By Michael Yee
The second of 3 sold-out shows at New York's Webster Hall has just wrapped up and the backstage area is abuzz with the myriad members of Broken Social Scene in disparate groups talking to family and friends.
In the over-crowded dressing room, Kevin Drew walks in an immediately makes his presence known, "Who's got a fucking joint?" he hollers.
This is about as far as the debauchery and excess go for this band however. Those thinking that a band riding high on the success of their latest self-titled album and only 4 days away from making their American late-night television appearance would be partying it up like, well, rock stars. Not this band though. The mood is celebratory, but subdued.
Lively discussions about life, love, politics and any other topic you can think of abound as people migrate from group to group. Producer David Newfeld holds court in the muggy dressing room while guitarist Andrew Whiteman says some quick farewells and disappears. Do Make Say Think's Charles Spearin wanders into the dressing room and is immediately taken aback by the bright lighting and overwhelming smoke. He leaves as quickly as he arrived.
As the band and crew continue to unwind, it's obvious to see that even when the spotlight isn't on them, this group of people are as grounded and laid back as any group in their position will ever be. Perhaps it's the fact each band member is in their late-20's early-mid 30' and success has been a long-time coming. Toughing it out in the Toronto indie scene for years has finally yielded them success that they're not ready to relinquish to the usual conflicts like drugs or internal squabbling.
Four days later, the audience of Late Night with Conan O'Brien is awaiting Broken Social Scene's American network debut. During the commercial break before they're scheduled to appear, the gear of the band is wheeled out onto the stage and the band quickly assemble themselves. As the commercial break ends and the band is introduced, the opening chords of "7/4 (Shoreline)" ring over the PA and it's noted that two members who weren't at the New York shows the previous weekend are front-and-centre for this performance. The first is Leslie Feist, who tackles her lead vocal duties with great aplomb. The second is Jason Collett, the singer-songwriter who has given the band a helpful hand since almost the beginning. And although he's off to the side with Whiteman on this night, it's hard to miss his giant frame and presence amongst the ridiculously-large crowd onstage. The performance is tight and generally well-received by the audience and viewing public. Even Conan gushes with heartfelt admiration. Another step taken.
Back in Toronto about a month later, Collett describes what that experience was like:
"It was a lot of fun, but Feist and I were flown in from the tour we were on. Some 40-odd hours of travel, rehearsal, make-up, meet and greet, for 3 minutes of air time seems a little absurd when you step back and think about it. The folks at the show were joking that our various collective have become regulars."
As absurd as it may seem, Collett isn't kidding himself (or anyone else) and isn't apologetic about the success BSS has had so far and the rub it has given the various other side-projects, including his.
"Well, it's a no-brainer that BSS have kicked the door open for so much of the indie scene in Canada."
It's an arguable point, but even Collett can't deny the exposure is a mixed blessing. In recent months, he has cut back on performing with BSS and has retreated to his solo roots (albeit now with his backing band, Paso Mino).
Collett grew up in the Toronto suburb of Bramelea and cites his suburban childhood as a major influence on his songwriting. The auto-biography on his website paints a raw but real picture of the North American phenomenon of suburbia: delinquent teenagers drinking, doing drugs, having awkward sexual encounters and generally hanging out in strip-mall parking lots.
"Teenagers muck about. It's a natural part of growing up. I was however, commenting on my experience growing up in the suburbs which in my view is far more hazardous for its reliance on cars and its landscape of malls and boring architecture, which seem to encourage reckless behaviour more than urban culture. I've always been more concerned with how suburban architecture discourages any lasting community. There are no landmarks that remain constant, to help make you feel rooted. I'm envious of my friends that have grown up in Toronto. My wife has always lived in the same 6 block radius and still knows a lot of the same shopkeepers from her childhood. Things are more village oriented in cities and that is where culture begins and is nurtured."
It's not surprising then, that Collett escaped to the nearby big city in his teens and hasn't looked back since. After becoming a carpenter and having a family, he released two independent albums, Chrome Reflection and the Bitter Beauty LP - which were then cobbled together into his Arts & Crafts debut Motor Motel Love Songs (Arts & Crafts) in 2003.
After meeting members of BSS and working alongside them for their 2002 breakthrough, You Forgot It In People (Paperbag 2002 / Arts & Crafts 2003); Collett then released the critically-acclaimed Idols of Exile (Arts & Crafts) in the summer of 2005 and has been riding the wave of notoriety ever since.
Collett (who lists Blond On Blond by Bob Dylan, Horses by Patti Smith, My Aim Is True by Elvis Costello and Coney Island Baby by Lou Reed as influential albums) and his songwriting have been of much interest. His folksy roots-pop has slowly garnered attention over the years, be it from his popular "Radio Monday's" showcases to his association with BSS. And with such a rich tapestry of subject matter to choose from, does the subject matter come to him at random times or does he take the time to sit down and write out the songs?
"Both. There's a bit of mystery to the good [songs] though. They just more or less arrive fast and furious and it's best to stay out of the way. It's easy to overwork or overthink the process. Like music in general, it's better to not overhandle your material, it'll lose its magic if you do. You just need to remain open and let your subconscious do the talking."
Even contemporary issues like the Iraq war have had a profound affect on him. Collett recently participated in an event at the legendary Toronto club, The El Mocambo, called the "Peace and Release Awareness Campaign," for hostages in Iraq.
"Well, one of the hostages [Christian Peacemaker James "Jim" Loney] is a friend of mine, so it's very close to home for me. It's a courageous thing for these activists to be there. I like their motto ("Getting in the way [of violence]"). Most of us spend our lives just avoiding it. But to get in the way of violence is a heavy concept. That's a responsibility that truly makes you a citizen of the world."
Although not listed as an official member on You Forgot It In People, Collett has since been drafted into the fold and has shared the criticism and adulation the band has received since its follow-up Broken Social Scene (Arts & Crafts) was released last autumn and immediately polarized many fans.
"The only valid point is that we made the record we needed to make to please ourselves, and let me tell you, that was no easy task."
Again, Collett makes no apologies for the indie-rock juggernaut BSS has become. It's been a long journey for Collett and his indie-brethren and there's no foreseeable end in sight. It's perhaps this journey that has also made him seemingly weary. When asked what he thinks his life would be like if he had never got caught up in the whole BSS/A&C whirlwind, "Less [chaotic]", is his deadpanned response.
So does that mean there will be new material from both himself and BSS in the future?
This time, his answer is purposely self-effacingly elusive but optimistic.
"Always."
This interview originally appeared in February 2006 on another website.
2 comments:
Cool interview, but holy shit dude, get someone else to edit your work if you can't get a handle on the english language.
That comment doesn't even make sense.
ANYWAY, I'll let you in on a little secret: we did have someone editing our work at the time, but they did such a piss-poor job of it, there was a revolt of sorts and we decided that our creativity would come first before proper editing. It's also one of the contentious issues that led us to leave our old site and create this one. Although, I don't think I did such a bad job here, the fact you don't point out any specific errors also makes me dubious of your claim.
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