Spotlight Ottawa

On Thursday, October 19, 2017, Spectrasonic presents Death From Above, The Beaches and American Lips at the Bronson Centre Theatre (211 Bronson Avenue).

Doors open at 6:30pm and the show starts at 7:30pm. Tickets are $38.00 – $42.50.

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Every pair of tickets purchased online for Death From Above includes a standard digital copy of their new album, OUTRAGE! Is Now, releasing 9/8/2017. You will receive instructions via email on how to redeem your album shortly after ticket purchase.

Tickets also available at Vertigo Records and both Compact Music locations. There is a limit of 6 tickets per customer/order – duplicate orders will be cancelled.

Lineup, date, venue, times and ticket price subject to change without notice.

Death From Above

Motion predicates progression. Death From Abovecertainly kept moving on their third full-length album, Outrage! Is Now(Last Gang Records/Warner Bros. Records). Whilegleefullymaintaining the car-wreck intensity of their punkified disco rock, the hooks got hookier, the weirdness got weirder, and the wildness got, well, wilder. The mustached merchants of death dance discord—Sebastien Grainger(vocals, drums)and Jesse F. Keeler(bass, keys, synths)—made a collectivedecision to embrace their own penchant for perpetual motion and cooked up the perfect soundtrack to Armageddon’sdancefloor.“By your third album, I feel like you shouldbe trying different things, whether subconsciously or consciously,” exclaims Jesse. “You’ve got to stretch out the pizza dough of your idea and see how big you can make it creatively. After 17 years, things change. We both wanted to see how far we could take it as Death From Above. Once we started working on music, it seemed like this was going to be a record where theveryidea of what our band is evolved.”“The myth of what we should bedidn’t existanymore,” Sebastien agrees. “We didn’t say it out loud of course, but it was like, ‘Let’s flex our abilities as much as we can and make some weird shit.’There was never a moment wherewe took a conventional path—either writing or recording. There was always some strangespice thrown in. It’s a grim record, but there’s a bounciness to it. We captured an element of fun.”The lads actually began pondering what becameOutrage! Is Nowwhilein the midstoffinishing their 2014 record, The Physical World. Marking asweaty and triumphantreturn after anear10-year studio hiatus, their sophomore outing would be met with critical applause from Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Times, Monster Children, Uncut, Alternative Press, and KERRANG!who awarded it a rare perfect score. It filled a void left in the aftermath of 2004’s disruptively influential You’re A Woman, I’m A Machineas Death From Above scorched theroad alongside everyone from Deftones to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Eagles of Death Metal. The Physical Worldspawned fan favorites such as “Trainwreck 1979,”which generated an impressive 11.4 million Spotify streams to date and “Virgins”another to crack the 5-million mark.As they retreated to Jesse’s farm two hours east of Toronto to write in 2016, the musicians came to terms with adulthood as only two punks can.“I think the band evolved because we’re evolving as individuals,” says Jesse. “I’ve changed. My life is nothing like it was in 2000. Back then, we lived in an old funeral home. Now, I own an old cemetery. We’re using the same amps though.I’m fucking 40-years-old. I’ve got two kids. I do totally normal dad stuff. I don’t need tolet anyone know who I am through my music. I can just make art that I enjoy.”“The goal of the record was to expand the vocabulary a little bit, not to drastically change,” adds Sebastien. “We stepped outof our comfort zone.”With a host of demos,Death From Above headed back to Los Angeles to work with producer and engineer Eric Valentine (Queens of the Stone Age, etc.). Making for what Jesse describes as the“fastest recording process,”the vision quickly took shape as they developed an intimate workingrelationship with Eric. Nothing was off limits or out of bounds as evidenced by the first single “Freeze Me.”It shimmies from a piano melody into a slamming distorted bass and drum groove before Sebastien croons out one of the group’s catchiest chants todate while stretching the limitsof his vocal register.

“I’ve been trying to encourage Jesse to write on keyboard more,” he explains. “It’s an element on the first record that I wanted to use as much as we could. He sent me a voice note of the piano part,andwearranged it more or less how you hear it now. It felt like a welcome departure.”“I recorded it in the living room, and you can hear my wife and kids talking away in the backgroundon the first demo,” Jesse laughs. “Someone’s doing the dishes, and something even falls over!”On the other end of the spectrum, the title track could be a state-of-the-union for post-millenniummalaise wrapped in a robust bass riff, glitchy production, and lines like, “I’m out of rage, maybe it’s my age.”“There’s an absolute chaos and confusion in the world, and people who would otherwise agree on most things seem to be disagreeing,” sighs Sebastian. “There’s a lot more space between the poles of opinion and views on the world. It seems like a barrier of disgust as we almost dehumanize each other based on a few slight differences of opinion. The title isan observation of this hyper sensitivity, which we’re all a part of. It’s not meant as an accusation; it’s just a statement of the times.”The jarring bass blast of “Moonlight”gives way to another departure with an unabashedly metal moment of double kick drums as Sebastien relives one of the most horrifying experiences of his life.“It’s the most personal song on the record,” the vocalist admits. “When we were on tour in Dallas last year, I was jumped by a group of kids and got the shit kicked out of me. It was an extremely intense experience that I couldn’t ignore. Experiencing that kind of violence and fear can’t help but put a perspective on your life. I literally thought I was getting murdered. We even callthe middle section, ‘The fight scene’.”Meanwhile, the swaggering “NVR 4EVR”incorporates the remains of deceased fan James MarshallMatthews Jr.,with a vial of his ashes shaking the song intoexistence.“James was a huge fan of the band, and he died in an accident before he got to see us reunite,” Sebastien explains. “His sister came to a show in Washington D.C. and spread his ashes in our trailer so he could come on tour with us. She gave me this vial ofhis remains. It was a really moving and intense exchange for the both of us. I brought that vial on all of the tours we did and up to the farm. When we were doing percussion overdubs for “NVR 4EVR,”I had to use them. The trackstarts with the riff and that shaker isactually his earthly remains. It’savery special song to us and his family.”Ultimately,Outrage! Is Nowconfidently kicks off a new chapter forDeath From Above. “I hope fans see the progression,” Jesse leaves off. “This record is very muchthe result of the environment and experiences of the last five years. I can hear everything we’ve been through. This weird resolve builds up as you keep facing different circumstances. If we didn’t have struggle, life would be really fucking boring. Now that it’s all done, I enjoy it.”“It’s meant to be felt and stimulate you on an emotional level,” concludes Sebastien. “We tried to make something that excites and surprises us. My journey is that of enlightenment all the time and seeking some form of truth. There’s enough fiction in the world. We’re not going to tell you what to believe. That’s up to you.”

Beaches

Toronto-based band The Beaches are a little bit glam rock and a little bit garage. They’re tremendously warm cool girls with an infectious edge—the kind you’d want to introduce to your parents and then sneak out and party with.However you break it down, The Beaches are 100% rock and roll.Comprised of sisters Jordan and Kylie Miller (on lead vocals/bass and guitar, respectively), Eliza Enman-McDaniel on drums, and Leandra Earl on keys and guitar, the band has a natural kismet that shines through on each of their tracks and in their live performance. Their songs flow with unparalleled ease, headbangers with resonance.Truly the best of friends, their writing sessions are entirely organic. They’ve been playing as a band since their early teens, and it shows. Each band member brings something unique to the table, resulting in songs that walk the fine line between being a heavy hitting gut punch and a hell of a lot of fun. In fact, according to Leandra, they sometimes have too much fun writing: “Jordan and I will sometimes get into our own zone and write our Dracula rock opera,” she says, totally serious. “The others have to get us back to working on the sound.”Loaded with killer guitar riffs and poignant lyrics, it’s no wonder that The Beaches’ two self-released EPs caught the attention of iconic label Island Records, to which they’re now signed.Being an all-female group certainly sets them apart from the male-dominated rock world, but there’s a collective, visceral eye roll at the suggestion of being called a “girl group.” “It’s one of those things where you wish you didn’t have to mention it,” says Eliza, sighing. “It makes us unique, yeah, but we shouldn’t have to define ourselves as a female rock band. We’re a rock band.” They’re excited at the prospect of inspiring other young women to join bands, but it’s not why they play. “We’re not doing this to be role models,” says Kylie. “We’re in this band because we love to play together and we love music.”Their love of rock and roll is obvious; with wide-spanning influences including Nirvana, The Strokes, Amy Winehouse, St. Vincent, FIDLAR, and Blondie, their songs translate easily to live shows, connecting with any kind of audience. Their first single on Island, “Give It Up,” is a hard-hitting, reverb-heavy anthem that calls for change in any context. “It’s not about giving up anything,” says Jordan, whose vocals on the track call to mind the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O at her grittiest. “It’s more about just needing something to change.”From touring the UK, to playing Canadian festivals like Osheaga and Wayhome, to opening for Eagles of Death Metal, a lot has certainly changed for The Beaches over the past two years. “It’s been really exciting,” says Kylie. “We’ve been evolving a lot and growing as people, writers, and performers.”Performing is particularly important to The Beaches, who can’t wait to play their new music live. “Onstage you get to let go of all your insecurities and channel a purely confident person,” says Jordan. “You get to be really free.” Eliza agrees, adding, “It can be like therapy. Sometimes you can just focus, forget the crowd is there, and just be so in the moment doing what you do best.”“And if aboy would like to date any of us,” says Leandra, only half joking, “we’re all for it.”

American Lips

Featuring Sebastien Grainger of Death From Above 1979 and Adrian Popovich of Tricky Woo

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