FOUND IN DRAFTS

(I'm still avoiding doing that massive "you need these" albums post.)
HELLO! I have been spending my Saturday doing what I do most Saturday's I have off; I have been listening to music and reading. It has been awesome, but then I got a bit... reflective?

I was asked by an old acquaintance today if I could come and try out for his band. They are in need of a drummer and, well; I like to hit things. I started to try to figure out what I kit layout I should bring to a tryout. It also got me thinking about what I even play (from a genre standpoint). So, I started to go backwards starting with the last thing I did with The Twin.

The Twin

Inner Demons

Inner Demons was the last set of songs I wrote with The Twin. The actual writing process took about a year between November 2011 to approximately March 2012. For this album, I decided to go as minimalistic as I possibly could while still being able to play the first EP. I just used the following: kick drum with a double kick peddle, high hats, 20" ride, rack tom, floor tom and snare. This forced me to focus more on using the kit to create interesting patterns as opposed to using a multitude of cymbals to create a wall of sound. The actual writing process involved a lot of Pat handing me a riff and me playing it a billion different ways until I got the feel and flow I wanted. Most of the drum lines were not set in stone until I got into studio with Jordan and we agreed on the final hit counts. In studio, we added a second 20" ride to fill the recordings out a bit.
The general feel I went for came from my pop background instead of the metal one I usually used. I tried to use complimentary beats as opposed to trying to play as fast and heavy as possible. The exception being Live Together/Die Alone, which is just me beating the crap out of everything I had.

NOTE: Roman Candles had been recorded for almost a year before everything else and, therefore, had a china in the mix.
NOTE PART TWO: Fact or Fiction was a song that was intended for the first EP, but was cut. We accidentally played it again years later.

Dirty Dancing & Victims

These songs were meant as part of a three song mini EP that just never seemed to finish. We spent way too much time working on them and not enough time hiding them from the public. The end result was some of the drumming I am most proud of and probably will be for the time being in my career. Dirty Dancing was just an exercise I used to do with bands like The Dillinger Escape Play or Meshuggah, where I don't actually follow the drums but every single stroke of every instrument. For instance, I would make the guitar lines all hand work and the bass lines all kick drum play. What came out of me doing it over a track like Dirty Dancing sounded far more chaotic than what is actually going on. Except for the last part, which was me showing a friend of mine that you can do interesting things with only a rack tom and a floor tom. I don't think she ever realized that it was for her, but that is okay. Victims was a little more straight forward in being it was closer to a standard hardcore "follow the accents" game. This song kind of fell out of me the week we first recorded it and, other than minor flourish tweeks, it never changed. It was also the last track I ever recorded with 3 cymbals and, therefore, is full of splashy goodness. So many china hits!
These two songs were intended to be complicated on drums. The riffs were sporadic, but still dived into parts of crescendo. This allowed me the freedom to ruin myself for a part or two, then back it up with something simple. These songs on stage always left me needing a moment before we continued; the day we retired Victims, I was a very happy boy.

EP

The first EP was one of the first times I had ever been recorded by someone else. The experience that I gained from the summer of 2009 will forever be treasured. It showed me what a shit contract looks like and what kind of people to keep watch on. I am STILL proud of the songs on this EP, even if the quality is garbage. I worked for several weeks straight with The Twin before I joined to shape the skeletons they had been working on the year prior. The sound we were going for was clear in all of our minds right up until the last day of studio. My set up for the kit back then was HUGE. Tom and such was the same, but I'm pretty sure I had 4 cymbals plus a china.
At the time I was on a huge death and nu-metal kick. Other than a couple of Underoath tracks, I had stayed away from most of the scene they were trying to enter. I came from a very violent and uneducated place. I like to pretend that this made us somewhat unique at the time. III remains as one of my proudest moments in drum writing history.

Livestalk & The Bodies Sessions

Kevin came up to me a few months after All Cut Up disbanded and asked if I would record a couple of the old tunes that he has modified. He explained how he was working with a calvalcade of different musicians from the area to come up with some new collective project with his favourite musicians. The three songs that I picked were Introduction/Slight Deduction, Pour Vous... and A Yearning (For Originality). All of these songs I had played with Kevin at a show a few months prior and still remembered most of them, so I felt like this was the best option due to time constraints and other things. We went to this shit jam hall out in Hespeler, crammed a tiny drum kick and a few microphones into the room, and gave her shit. The session went off without a hitch, but I had honestly forgotten all about it after a few months. About a year later (maybe longer), Kevin asks to meet me in a parking lot. I was not expecting myself to ever play on an album that felt that way, but I was in love with the ideas and final product. I have gushed over this album for years, and if you know me you will know just how proud I am of it, so I will stick to just my small part in this portrait.
I used the same drum kit layout I used for the Inner Demons EP, except I believe I left the double kick at home. Introduction... and Pour Vous... were both written by Kevin a year later using a sequencer (Fruity Loops?) to line up the basic drum progression he needed. I just gave parts a bit more flourish and beefed up the ending of Pour Vous. A Yearning... was an All Cut Up track that we never (?) used. There are more time signature changes than anything I have worked on previous or prior, and the accents don't always line up measure by measure. I'm not going to lie, I like to use that track to show what I am capable of as a drummer. The whole process from my side took maybe three hours and a good portion of that was catching up and seeing how life had been for my giant friend.

(4/4, 6/8, 4/4, 6/8, 4/4, 6/8, 10/8, 4/4... 7/4, 6/4)

All Cut Up

Human Promo

This was just Kevin and I recording onto tape at the Tugnut household. It was just post Caitlin deciding to leave the band, so we just covered all the parts. The EP consists of one song from our second EP, one from the first and three that were new. It showed a progression from where we were to where we were trying to get to. It was all recorded in one day and, unless I'm wrong, was mostly one take live off the floor. I actually really miss this set. I am pretty sure that we were too young for what we were coming up with.
I used so much gear back then; I think I count 5 cymbals plus high hats. The songs were all pop or punk in structure, so the writing was pretty straight forward. Flourishes were usually either a stop or blisteringly fast fills. Also, how did my feet move that fast at any time? There is NO editing to what we were playing, and I can't even pretend to be that fast for that long anymore. I don't think I could have for years at this point. Oh, me when I didn't have a job...
ALSO! I still use bits and pieces of the song Eat The Pills, Kid in other songs I have written since! Just noticed that when listening to it for the first time in forever.

Okay, fuck it. I'm done going down this road. There are three sessions you are going to be missing. The one was in 2006, when All Cut Up recorded a full length album. The other two were the first two ACU EPs and MY GOOD GOD we don't know what we are doing but it's awesome. I recorded the other three and I didn't know how compressors worked. For being in high school and listening to a strange array of music, we pulled off something pretty cool. Though I miss it most days, I hear it is better dead. Did you want to check these albums out? Let me know! Get a hold of me and I can set up stream points no problem. Hell, I think All Cut Up is still on MySpace, if you wanted to sort through the decades worth of bands that are now long dead to find us.

I'll probably do something less wordy next week. Or maybe I'll just put up pictures of cats. Internet loves cats.
-J

Lest we forget (punk & Metal)

Remember 2002? I don't either don't worry.

(END BLOG)

I kid. 2002 was the year I started high school. The intro metal at the time were bands like Slipknot and Staind, and I really did start the alternative hunt around that time. Death metal got me into looking into the local scene and my Nine Inch Nails discovery got me looking into the budding screamo scene. 

Grade 10 I was introduce the the local music scene of Cambridge by a girl named Becky and a fellow named Jeff. They took me to see The Reason play with 86 This, Handheld, and Farewell To Freeway. So that seems like a good place to start.

A couple of notes:

Every little section will be followed by a "DOES IT HOLD UP?!" to which I am simply asking that if I had come across this album now instead of then, would I have picked it up.

I'd also like to take this line to Nate for introducing me to the phrase 2004-core. All you need to do is look at a few albums from this year to get what it means.

The Reason - Ravenna (2004)

This was one of my first experiences with "screamo." Ex Sewing with Nancy changed their sound and became a form of pioneer in the Southern Ontario punk scene beside Silverstein and Alexisonfire. The reason had that vocalist that would switch between the whining singing and screaming to accompany their soft-heavy-soft formula. The drummer barely used double kick, and it really kept the punk pace to all of their music. The individuel parts of their songs were very simple yet very fluid.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! Well, in the same way that At The Drive In's first album holds up. It is not so much a good listen as it shows a time and a place in music. In the screamo genre, this album has one of the lower production values that will apear on the list. Though this adds to the feel, it does make it hard for new listeners to pick it up and give it a swing. The Reason's next album, Things Couldn't Be Better, is a much cleaner album with much less 2004-core screaming.

Roses Dead - Stages (2006)

Holy fuck technical punk and/or Djent has come a long way, but my god this album is pretty. This is the first band I heard that played with rhythms and time signatures to a point where someone looking to learn the progressions would HAVE to break it down into segments, some of which lasting less than 3 seconds. The album starts with a "dirty breakdown" and the noise doesn't end for the entire 11 tracks. A Wake In The Water is still one of my favorite instrumental tracks of all time. The only real gripe I have about this album is that, even though it is one huge track, every song starts with a very similar guitar riff. This band has an EP prior to this release the broke up due to internal conflict and the inability to find a singer.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! New listeners and people who don't remember the early years of this sound would probably not enjoy this as much as those of us who lived through it to tell the tale. I mostly put this one on the list to remind the old 519punk users that they exist. 519 REGION PEOPLE, GIVE THIS ALBUM MORE PLAYS ON YOUR ITUNES! If you need a copy, talk to me. I think I still have mine somewhere.

Tugnut - Ode To Pete (2006)

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA



*recomposes self*

I played so many shows with these guys and my do I miss it. The first time I saw them, their bass player played half the set outside and I had no fucking clue what the hell was going on. People didn't know whether to dance or to kill each other. Still remains one of the loudest bands I have ever seen and will always stay close to my heart. I am reviewing this album mostly because when scanning through all of them, this was one of the only ones I could hear. The recordings, minus this and one other album, were all self done analogue. The first few albums were put together using photocopiers, sharpies, and time. There was some mention that the singer would actually write poetry and base the songs around how he thought the music would accompany it. To be honest, there are still parts of their songs I can't play after all these years of trying because it makes ABSOLUTELY no sense, and I love it.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! If for no other reason than there is nothing that could ever sound like this ever. Their strange use of jazz chords followed by broken jazz chords followed by a saucy dance bit will never be able to be replicated, and that is a bit depressing. Where are they now? Joe is making acoustic guitars in, I believe, BC. Marc was playing bass for Fuck The Facts and Steve was playing with the Great Sabitini. Marc and Steve are also in a two piece doom metal group called Greber. Please help these amazing friends with their respected projects.

Poison The Well - Opposite of December... A Season Of Separation (1999)

I can't tell if I have to love this album for what they influenced and were at the forefront of, or if I should hate them for making entire songs on this album out of "dun dun dunundun dun." There was a time where the first track had blown my mind with it's blistering double kick outside of metal and how personal the lyrics are. When looking at my iTunes for albums that came out that same year, I can't find anything remotely similar with the exception of Calculating Infinity (The Dillinger Escape Plan) and Refused's The Shape of Punk To Come from the year prior. There are still some great moments on this album and I'll still bust Slice Paper Wrists out at social functions to watch a couple people go scouring the ground for nickels.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! To put politely, fuck no. It is little more than nostalgia and their second album Tear From The Red (2002) was the same idea but so much better. I still love this album, and I'm sure most people who picked it up back in the early 2000's still love this album. If you have never heard of Poison The Well, save this one for last on the list of which albums to check out.
...
*puts Slice Papers Wrists back on to sing along with the middle bit*


ALEXISONFIRE - ALEXISONFIRE (2003)

When the hell did this album hit ten years old? That aside, what a fantastic piece of audio. This album has some of the prettiest string work to date. This album was before Dallas Green could sing properly and before George Pettit knew how to scream without thrashing his voice. The drums on this album are simple because they have to be to make this album perfect.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! I am way too biased to say honestly whether it does or not. It is still in my top Canadian albums of all time and in my top twenty albums of all time. There is something I love about how unpolished it is. In fact; if they cleaned it up, I probably wouldn't care for the album at all anymore. It is gritty and off key and strangely mixed because it HAS to be. I'm still looking for someone to cover Counterparts And Number Them, by the way.

Brand New - Deja Entendu (2003)

Keep your voice low...
This album is beautiful. The use of vocal harmonies and almost vocal battles at points must have been something short of impossible to arrange in a way that didn't make them sound conflicting. This was my emo secret, and I owe it all to my friend Jaymi for reminding me every once and a while that I still have this album somewhere in this massive library of music I have. The songs are unfairly catchy, yet not cheesy. The lyrics are personal, but not pathetic, though they do hinge at times. Every song is about some horrible personal moment that could have ruined a life, and quite possibly has. At the heart of this wrist-cutting hair-dying masterpiece is a punk heart who beats with just as much hate as any of us. The vocalist is a lyrical genius with lines that seem relatable, quotable, but still incredibly personal to the one who wrote them.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! Like most major label releases from the early 2000's, there is little change is recording quality or methods so from a strictly auditory standing; yes. It comes from the same background that most modern pop-punk comes from and, since emo is a dead language, I would say that it would definitely hold up to date. Forget I dropped the emo line and pretend that punk was never used in this review. Use them as an idea to check out this classic album, but don't base the album on those merits. It's an experience, not a label. Listen, enjoy, and welcome to the family.

Norma Jean - O God The Aftermath (2005)

This album starts with a "...wat..." and it just never really drops it. I would like to think that I'm ok at drums, but I still can't figure out the first track. Speaking of tracks; this was the first album that I have ever seen that had not only a witty play on words every track title, but also had two titles per track (the second of which was equally witty). I can't make out a damned word he says on this album, but it all sounds equally brutal and harsh and something that's fun to punch walls to. I don't know if it's the gargled screams, the driving and fucked drums, or the constant slides of dissonance on the guitars that make me so angry when I listen to this album. Don't get me wrong, it's a good kind of angry. The kind that you get after you watch that bully who was just making fun of you get his ass handed to him by someone who just can't take his bull shit anymore. The biggest bit of regret I have around this band is that, when I got to see them (2005), I couldn't mosh or maim because the God Damned hardcore kids were dancing in every possible pit area.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! Oh fuck yes and no. It sounds like shit. The mid is totally scooped out and if you are in a car, the bass rattle from the windows will be louder than anything going on in the music. As far as musically, it is in a field all to it's own. When I say sliding guitars, I mean that the first track and a couple others are literally based around synchronized slides and dissident chords being hit in perfect unison. The drums are, though simple in skill, are so fucking tight with the random nature of the tracks, that following them can feel like you are going to loose your mind. Please, pick this album back up. Show them that they shouldn't have dropped this sound and that we may have supported them for longer if they hadn't. Seriously, Norma Jean: your other albums after this one suck.

I Hate Sally - Sickness Of The Ages (2004)

So fucking metal. This album came out before they got their more recognizable female front. I personally prefer where they went, but I can completely see why this album was so well received in the metal scene and why so many fans still hold it on such high. It was metal through and through. There was no attempt at making anything sound pretty and the message was very straight forward.
DOES IT HOLD UP?! Yes. The metal community should always remember these great Canadians and all the good that they did. The next big album they did (Don't Worry Lady) was much more drone feeling and came at everything from a different lyrical edge. Check them both out!1 Also, I will never do this band justice. Luka is a much better fan than I, ask her about them if you want more information!

BAHHHHHHH THERE IS TOO MUCH!

I will come back to this premis later if this is well received. If I left something out that you KNOW I shouldn't have, remind me in the comments! I'll probably hate myself forever if I don't get something I'm not thinking of right now in the next one.