(L-R: Jay Smith, Matt Mays, Andy Patil, Tim Jim Baker. Photo by Scott McIntyre.)

“Is it this Tuesday?” Jay Smith asked about the release of his band’s latest album. “Wow, I didn’t realize that … Guess I’m out of the loop.”

The guitarist for Matt Mays & El Torpedo had a laugh at his own expense before continuing to talk about the group’s upcoming record, Terminal Romance (Sonic/Warner), in stores – yes – this Tuesday, July 8. An 11-song collection of fuzzy, sweaty rockers and heartbreaking ballads that blends a bit of Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and some AC/DC-ish crunch.

Smith was at home in Cape Breton when he spoke to East Coast Noise about El Torpedo’s latest exploits. Like a good friend would, Smith was leaving the next morning at 6 a.m. for Toronto where he was to help bandmate Tim Jim Baker move from the big city back to Halifax.

This weekend, Mays & El Torpedo can be found playing Charlottetown’s annual Festival of Lights, which also features Billy Talent, Our Lady Peace, Nickelback, The Trews and others. Apart from that gig and a few other one-off shows, the band doesn’t have a proper East Coast tour happening until likely later this year.

“As far as a coast-to-coast tour goes, I don’t think we’re doing anything until fall,” Smith says.

That doesn’t mean the band isn’t working though. West coast dates (including 10 dates opening for Kid Rock) are planned over the next few weeks, and the recent recording of Terminal Romance took them across the Atlantic Ocean and from one end of Canada to the other.

Smith and his bandmates (Mays, Baker and Andy Patil) spent several weeks working in Kingsdown, England recording Terminal Romance with veteran producer Chris Tsangarides (Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest). They recorded more of it in Vancouver, B.C. as well as various Nova Scotia studios.

“It was great,” Smith says of recording in the U.K. with Tsangarides. “He’s worked with Thin Lizzy, which is like my favourite band. I walked into the studio and the first thing I saw was the plaque for Black Rose, which is my favourite Thin Lizzy album.”

The band actually tracked about 14 songs with Tsangarides and six of them made the album.

“Some of it was really heavy stuff, we were definitely feeling the British metal influence,” Smith says.

The tunes that didn’t fit the vibe of Terminal Romance may end up on another release in a few months time, he explains.

“Don’t hold me to that, but that’s the plan I think,” he says with a laugh.

It was three years between the group’s self-titled disc and Terminal Romance, a long gap they’d rather not repeat.

The album isn’t a departure from El Torpedo’s self-titled debut from 2005, but it does expand on the group’s sound, blending in a bit of punk and some sweet piano-led balladry to the band’s tried and tested brand of rock. Smith wasn’t in El Torpedo for the first album, he replaced original guitarist Jarrett Murphy in April of last year when Murphy left the group to work on other projects.

Asked if there is a particular theme on the record – after all, it’s called Terminal Romance and the cover art features a bleeding mechanical heart – Smith says it just happened that most of the tunes ending up being about heartbreak.

“Matt’s dad actually drew the cover,” he explains. “Anything you see with Matt Mays name on it, his father made the cover. He also made us this huge backdrop for the stage. It’s huge, I have no idea how he did it.”

Before anyone else asks, Smith says he was not the inspiration for the Ramones-esque punk track “Rock Ranger Record” on the album. Smith is a member of the sort-of defunct Sydney, N.S. rock group.

“No, I swear … I think it was just because of the alliteration – ‘Rock Ranger Record.’ It was going to be ‘Monoxides Record,’ but that just didn’t work,’” he says with a laugh. “It worked out though because I have a pile of Rock Ranger T-shirts that I can sell at shows.”

As for his other band, Smith says Rock Ranger never officially called it quits, but he doesn’t see the group playing together anytime soon with El Torpedo being so busy.

As El Torpedo prepares to hit the road again, Smith has mixed feelings.

“I don’t know … I’m married now with a little boy, it’s harder now than it ever was for me. Leaving is the hardest part. I’m sure for the other guys it’s the same.”

By the same token, he says getting paid to do what he loves is a wonderful thing.

“You know, I did this for like 10 years and I’d come home from playing with $20 in my pocket. I’m not making millions, but it’s nice to play and, you know, people come to see us.”

(Jay Smith suggested I pass this on … the group filmed it while in England. I’m not sure what it means, and Smith wasn’t saying, but if you’re looking for something goofy and fun to check out, go for it. I’ll leave the comments about the boys’ acting skills to you.)

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(L-R: Thom Swift, Joel LeBlanc, Tom Easley. Photo contributed.)

Hot Toddy is back. Not that the band ever really went anywhere, but the New Brunswick three-piece has been so busy working on solo projects and other musical endeavors that it’s been about four years since their last proper album as a trio.

Hence the band’s new album title – Trio. It’s another collection of fine blues, folk, roots and a dash of jazz the band has become known for.

“That’s what it is, it’s a trio album,” bassist Tom Easley explains.

The rash of other projects – guitarist Thom Swift won numerous awards for his recent solo disc, Into the Dirt; guitarist Joel LeBlanc plays in Big Alice and the Joel LeBlanc Trio; and Easley shared an East Coast Music Award this year with pianist Bill Stevenson for their work on the album For The Record – shouldn’t lead one to believe Hot Toddy has lost its focus.

“It’s definitely the biggest creative focus in my life,” Easley recently told East Coast Noise. “And I’m sure it is for the other boys as well. You don’t dedicate 12 years into something to throw it away.”

In fact, Easley says Trio, released in April, came together easier than any of their previous discs, a sign that Toddy hasn’t lost a step.

“We could visualize it a lot better,” he explains. “This one all came together very quickly. We knew what we wanted out of this project. It came together in a very natural way. There didn’t seem to be many hurdles to jump.”

Trio features 12 tracks, including several instrumentals showing off the band’s chops. Each member contributed four tracks to the album, and most of the disc was recorded live off the floor at Echo Chamber Studio in Halifax with Charles Austin.

There were some overdubs here and there, but Easley said they wanted to “retain the integrity of a live album.”
Hot Toddy played several dates around the Maritimes in April and May, and they’re looking at more dates throughout the summer.

Easley hasn’t ruled out further collaboration with friends Isaac & Blewett (Tim Isaac, Jim Blewett) either. The two groups have toured extensively together over the last few years, going so far as to release a live album, Live at the Black Box, together in 2005.

“They’re our brothers,” he says about the Albert County, N.B.-based duo.

At the time of the interview, Easley said the band had put feelers out about some potential West Coast dates.
As of this writing, there were no tour dates listed on the Hot Toddy’s website.

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(Photo courtesy of www.davidmyles.com)

While he wasn’t out to write a concept album, when it came time for David Myles to name his third album, he took a look at the songs on the record and noticed a bit of a theme.

“There’s a lot of songs with that theme – putting something at stake to get something back,” the Fredericton native says. “Whether it’s with love and relationships or something else.”

So, he named the disc On The Line.

“It’s also about the artistic pursuit of having to put yourself on the line in front of people,” the friendly, easy-going singer-songwriter says.

Lyrically, Myles is one who isn’t difficult to figure out. He rarely writes fictional stories. He says he admires Bob Marley as a lyricist because he wrote clear ideas and thoughts. Myles tries to do the same.

“They’re close,” he says of his lyrics. “Things I definitely know, whether they happened to me or people close to me. They’re my own thoughts, they’re not even story songs.”

Myles’ third disc, the follow-up to Things Have Changed (2006), is an 11-song disc featuring some of the best players the East Coast has to offer, from Matt Mays to Hot Toddy’s Tom Easley to Old Man Luedecke and Garrett Mason.

He’s been hard at work on the album for several months. Myles says it’s when he is working on the album that he is most nervous about the project, not when it’s released and available for fans and critics to analyze it.

“It’s out now, so it’s kind of a waste of my energy to worry about it. But of course, I want people to like it.”

Myles says his energies are so focused on making an album exactly what he wants that it’s difficult for him to write new music or think about much else than the upcoming release.

“The nicest part (of releasing an album) is it opens a flood-gate of creative energy. I’m writing all kinds of things now and thinking about new ideas, the next project, which sounds kind of ridiculous.”

On The Line was released nationwide on May 6. While Myles is generally regarded as a folk singer, On The Line includes moody jazz, upbeat country and even a mellow rocker. He says the world-class players who he tapped to perform on the album helped shape its sound.

“This project was probably the first time I (thought about players as I was writing),” he says.

Myles knew he wanted Tom Easley to play bass and Geoff Arsenault to play drums on the disc, so he was able to shape some of his ideas based on what he knew to be their talents.

Other songs changed during production. After writing album opener “I Don’t Want To Know,” Myles thought of making it a bit of a rocker while he was recording it. Matt Mays happened to be in the recording studio at the same time he was, so Myles asked him to perform on the track.

“I wanted to make it a rock song, which is really different for me. Matt was perfect for the song, he knows that (sound),” he says. “I usually write a song and then think about who is going to take it to the next level.”

Myles, who lives in Halifax now, was luckily unscathed by the floods that overtook much of the Fredericton area a month ago. His parents live right on the St. John River – “It’d be hard to imagine how they couldn’t be affected, knowing where they live” – but somehow their home wasn’t hurt either.

“Their house is basically an island right now, but somehow there’s no water in their basement. They were away when it happened, so I was just watching it on TV really hoping they wouldn’t be affected.”

He’ll be heading home a few times this summer on tour. Myles’ summer touring will take him around the Maritimes and into Ontario. On The Line may see a European release, so he’ll likely end up touring overseas at some point.

“Busy in the summer, busy in the fall,” he says. “I’m just really focusing on putting on really good shows.”

Since taking on a manager and more of a support team around him, Myles has been able to focus more on the creative end of things than the business side of music.

While he learned a lot in his years of working independently, he says he is enjoying the time and freedom he has now to write music and practice.

“Plus, it’s nice having someone to speak on your behalf, to brag you up and hype you. I’m not very good at that.”

For more on David Myles, see here.

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(Nathan M. Boone photo)

When I first saw the Tom Fun Orchestra, it was at an East Coast Music Awards after-party in 2007. A friend recommended we check them out, and so we did. I’d never heard the band before, so I didn’t know what to expect.

What I saw was a ballroom full of people dancing to sounds created by about 10 people on stage – a raucous mix of rock, folk, swing, traditional sounds – a melting pot of noise that you couldn’t help but dance, tap your toes or at least raise your glass to.

The fun was infectious as was evident by the smiles throughout the room, the biggest of which were worn on the faces of the nine or 10 musicians on stage playing guitar, bass, banjo, fiddle and a handful of other instruments.

It was electric and quite obvious at the time that this Cape Breton band was something special.

At the centre of it all was the ringleader in the middle, decked out in a white suit, curly mop of hair bouncing to the songs as his gravelly voice spit out lyrics over top of the music.

It was a great initiation to a great band.

Fast forward a year or so and the band has released its debut album, You Will Land With A Thud (Company House), and it is about to embark on a tour of Scotland and Ireland.

Ringleader Ian MacDougall (aka Tom Fun) spoke to East Coast Noise recently about the band, the difficulties of traveling with a nine-piece band and how he doesn’t like the Celtic reference people keep making when referring to the Orchestra’s sound.

“We get comparisons to Celtic music,” he says over the phone from the Company House offices in Sydney, N.S. “I don’t feel there’s anything Celtic at all.”

He says the label is frustrating at times because it pigeon-holes the band in a genre it doesn’t necessarily fit in.
“It’s people who mean really well” that are saying it, he explains. “As much as the reviewer means really well, it doesn’t do us any favours.”

The Tom Fun Orchestra formed three years ago, sort of by accident. The ECMAs were taking place in MacDougall’s stomping grounds of Sydney, and he submitted a “crappy quality recording” of some tunes he’d recording in his living room to see if he could land a showcase.

He succeeded in landing the showcase, but the trouble was he didn’t have a band.

“It took me two days to form a band,” he says with a laugh. He grabbed nine or 10 of his musician friends, taught them the songs quickly and they were off to the races.

“It was mostly to put on a spectacle,” he says of the decision to go with a 10-piece group. “It shouldn’t have worked.”
But it did. Reaction to the band was immediate, and it was positive.

“It was surprising at first,” MacDougall admits. “It was totally unrehearsed, so I’m sure it was entertaining in some fashion,” he jokes.

The band’s name was really a joke, one MacDougall admits he’d take back if he could, but “we’re stuck with it now.”

On the band’s debut album, the Orchestra consists 11 members: MacDougall, Morgan Currie, Hinson Calabrese, Alicia Penney, Shane O’Handley, Zach MacLean, Dave Mahalik, Victor Tomiczek, Devon Strang, Albert Lionais and Lachie MacDonald.

On the group’s Myspace page however, only 10 members are listed. The band’s official website says there are nine members. So you can figure out how many people are actually in the group next time you see them perform.

MacDougall says nine members are traveling on the current tour, which is part of the reason the band is hitting towns overseas instead of spreading their name across Canada first.

“It’s easier for us where there’s nine of us traveling. We can drive an hour between gigs instead of 10 hours between gigs,” he says.

He says it takes a lot of patience, planning and co-operation for the large group to travel together.

“We’re compatible with each other, but not with anyone else on the planet,” he laughs.

The band will continue to put most of its energies into overseas tours for now.

“It seems to make sense for us. And if I can get some quality travel in, why not?”

Check out the Tom Fun Orchestra here.

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