Venue: 185 Van Horne, Montreal
Date: Friday, June 26th, 2015
The 185 Van Horne is a nice little niche except it can get really stuffy inside on warm and humid summer days. This bring your own beer small loft also has a back yard. Where V and I ended up while the first set, Kyle Bobby Dunn, was playing. You might of guessed that 185 Van Horne is on Van Horne. You've guessed right. Next to the train tracks.
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| 185 Van Horne. View from the back yard. |
That evening, as well as talking about guys, tinder and what not, we had this conversation on what it means creating for someone without being compensated. It kinda sucks actually. V and her friends, a few years back, made this beautiful video clip for the band Pang Attack. They accepted to not get payed in exchange for creative freedom. The end result was beautiful only the band didn't feel obligated to promote it and ended up making their own video out of the same song. I had a similar experience with close friends. They approached me to do an illustration for an album cover. Made many different covers only to find out that my friend's collage (beautiful nonetheless) was chosen for the cover. Wouldn't have bothered me as much had I been payed. Also, when you pay someone for creative work you feel more obligated to finish the work with that artist. You know... to get your money's worth. This is why doing something for free is not always recommended. Would just like to add that I love my friends dearly now (it has been a few years). F, having read all of my posts, is one of the few people to give pointers on my blog. Am as much a fan of his music as he is of this blog.
The reason I brought this up is, maybe 20 minutes later, Seoul took a few minutes out of their performance to thank the artist behind the album cover. Very thoughtful indeed.*
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| Seoul, I Become a Shade |
They added "You know... Sometimes you do just what you really want to do... And then you get confused... and you fuck up. And you go back to do what you really want to do"** Amen in so little words.
Seoul I believe has been working on I Become a Shade for a few years now. This is apparent when listening. Everything fits in together to create one sound. You may not like the album (I like it) but the intention is clear.
It is a bit different live. Sounds, quiet on album, surfaces on live performances. All three of them sing. All three of them have their own voice. I wasn't aware of this when listening to the recordings. I think they should emphasize on that difference. Wouldn't it be awesome? "White Morning" is definitely my favorite track, you do hear some dissimilarities between the voices on that track.
It is an easy listening. You like it or you don't. Some album reviews talk about complacency. Maybe. About "being OK with getting lost in uncertainty". Am not ok with that state of mind but hey, you got to take a break once in while. No? "I Became a Shade" does the job just fine.
* On their facebook page."Today, our record is out ~ And where are the words to describe this day? The sheer amount of life and experience and change that has ridden shotgun through the creation and mounting of this record feels positively unfathomable to consider at once. Of course, it's the small moments that glow now - being crammed together into a freight elevator with all our equipment at the end of a long day and ascending the walls of a building in silence. To our family, friends, loves, collaborators, fans, and incredible team helping out, thank you. All that is vital in you comes in contact with us and makes us bloom every day like resilient house plants. We are so grateful to exchange love and ideas in the way that we can. But there is a great mystery to songs that can never find translation in words, and so, without further ado - our guy,,, ~ I Become A Shade ~
may these songs be there for you as they have been for us. in grace, Julian, Nigel and Dexter"
** Thanks V for writing that down.
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