Title: Straight outta Kingston!
Keywords: Tragically Hip, Canadian rock, podcast, musical journey, storytelling, discography, live tracks, vinyl
In this episode, join JD and friends Pete and Tim as they embark on a musical journey into the world of the Tragically Hip. As die-hard fans of the band, they discuss their experiences and thoughts on the music and storytelling of the Tragically Hip. From their early beginnings to their debut album and beyond, JD, Pete, and Tim break down the tracks, compare studio and live versions, and explore the unique sound and identity of this iconic Canadian rock band.
https://ratethispodcast.com/ghtth
Chapters:
(0:00:00) - Getting Hip to the Hip
(0:07:46) - Musical Roots and Taste
(0:17:52) - Canadian Rock Band Discussion
(0:36:02) - Exploring the Tragically Hip's Debut Album
Join the discussion on Twitter and Instagram at @gettinghippot and join the Facebook group at facebook.com/groups/fullyandcompletely. Questions or concerns? Email JD at JD@gettinghiptothehip.com.
Subscribe, rate, and review the show at gettinghiptothehip.com.
The live music featured in this episode comes from:
Dead Flowers - 1985 Bath
All Canadian Surf Club - 1989 London
Transcript
0:00:00 - Speaker 1
Hey, hip bands. it's JD here. Have you ever imagined what it would be like if you could listen to the tragically hip for the first time again? This is something I've spent a great deal of time considering. I can still remember my first experience with the band, While it was a while ago. I still remember it like it was yesterday.
It was July of 1990, and I was working in a small town quick serve restaurant in Dairy Bar called Yeti's Arctic Safari. The new owner, Jeff, brought in a stereo system to replace the dinky radio that had entertained us with classic rock while we worked. He had a mix tape that featured a band he called The Trag. As the first notes rung out, something happened inside of me. The music resonated with my 13 year old self. I could feel a change coming over me that was more powerful than the puberty I was working my way through. It was hard rock, but it was different than the hard rock I was listening to at home. Instead of dripping with machismo and bravado, this music cut deeper to me. It featured lyrical twists and turns. the phrase that left me wanting more. Fortunately, I got to come of age with The Trag, the hip.
Most of my experiences I discussed on the podcast fully and completely with my friend Greg, And while that podcast satisfied my desire to share my takes on one of Canada's greatest bands, it still didn't hit the mark of taking me back to that moment at Yeti's Or the longing I felt listening to Road Apples, the ahas I had with fully, completely, The coming of age I experienced with Day for Night, Or the simmering beauty of Trouble at the Hen House, And so on. That's where this podcast comes in. You see, my friends Pete and Tim have never heard of the hip before. It turns out there are a lot of people who have never heard of the band before. So for those of you that fall into this category, experience the music of the tragically hip along with Pete and Tim as we travel the discography and tackle the music and storytelling of our band, the Tragically Hip.
If you're already at Die Hard, listen along and hear what they know, what they notice and how often they get it wrong. Every week we'll tackle a new record. So strap in and get ready to listen to the hip for the first time I'll get ["Tragically?
0:02:17 - Speaker 2
Hip"] Long Slice Brewery presents Getting Hip to the Hip.
0:02:33 - Speaker 1
Hey, it's JD here and welcome to Getting Hip to the Hip. I hope you are ready to rock and roll. I know my friends Pete and Tim are. Let me just take their muzzles off here and let them have at it. Fellas, before we go anywhere, tell me why you did this, Because it could turn out like incredibly sideways. I don't know where this is gonna go. I think that this is the greatest Canadian band of all time And I think they rank in the world stage as well, but you guys haven't heard of them. So, Tim, what do?
0:03:10 - Speaker 3
you think, Thanks for having us, JD. I hope, I hope, I hope. I told my family what we were up to and my oldest son was like alright, do you like this band? If you listen to this band, are you gonna be able to do it? You know this is gonna be like a fucking marathon listening to all the albums. And I said I'm not really sure. You know there, this Canadian rock band from what I know.
I remember living at the beach in San Diego and one of my neighbors had a tragically hip sticker on his truck and I always wondered like that's weird, a band popular enough to have stickers on a bumper of a truck. but I don't know who it is. So you know, there's not a lot of bands you know from the past 10 to 20 years who made it kind of big that I'd never, ever listened to any song from. So yeah, we're curious to see where this goes. And you know, of course I've listened to Rush, I've seen Rush play. you know there's all kinds of music out of Canada Arcade Fire, and you know more present. So let's see what the tragically hip is. We'll see if it's gonna be tragic or not. Oh, oh.
0:04:36 - Speaker 1
Maybe it'll be super hip Ground. oh God, Oh, he doesn't stop. You wind this guy up and he just does not stop. Oh, finally, P Ground control to major P Yeah yeah.
0:04:51 - Speaker 4
So I got into this. this was a court ordered thing for an offense that I've made one time. No, no, no, JD, you asked me to do this and you know I actually have heard of the tragically hip and it's funny because back in like I wanna say, the mid 2000s, like 2006, 2007, I was working at a bar. I knew a couple really good folks that used to come in there a lot. They were both Canadians Kurt and I can't remember the other girl's name And there were a couple and we used to talk about trailer park boys all the time, which they loved. They would always talk about tragically hip And it's kind of one of those things that, like, can't really force anything on people.
You know, you gotta kind of just lead the horse to water and hopefully they drink. And then, more recently, in like 2018, 2019, I ran into somebody else and they were just like check out this song and download this out on Spotify And love it was my favorite album. You're gonna love if you like this and I'm just like it. just it wasn't organic And I'm hoping that this, you know, this adventure that we're all three embarking on will be. you know, it'll take, so to speak, because previous attempts had not done so, And I'm excited, though, but I know it's gonna be a big sandwich to take a bite out of, that's for sure.
0:06:29 - Speaker 3
You know JD JD, if you would depend. you know some dude from Florida or I don't know. you know somewhere else in the US and asked me to do some other band, US based band or something. I don't, it's hard. my point is it's really hard to say no to a sweet Canadian guy.
0:06:49 - Speaker 1
So yeah.
0:06:50 - Speaker 3
So you know, it's like I said to my wife Amy, you know JD, who she had heard about but not meant to ask me to do this like multi week podcast about some band I don't know. And I'm a little concerned like what if? what if me and Pete were just like JD? we're gonna have to end the podcast early. We don't get it, you know, but I'm sure we all get it.
0:07:15 - Speaker 4
What JD didn't tell you is that the original this was originally gonna be a Papa Roach podcast And we're gonna go through the through the discography of Papa Roach, but last minute he changed it to the end, so thank God, Yeah So where are you No?
0:07:34 - Speaker 1
offense to. Papa Roach, Where are you guys hailing from at this point? I mean, I know, but if people are actually listening to this, that means that we completed the task. So that's one thing. Where do you come from And where do you come from musically?
0:07:53 - Speaker 4
I live now. I live in Malia, Spain, which is in the south. For those of you who can pick Spain out on a map, it's the closest part to North Africa. but I come from Southern California, born and raised in the LA area, more specific the Long Beach and Downey area. Most of my life in Long Beach, though. Musically, help me out, man.
0:08:27 - Speaker 1
I think you're both, like, big fans of music, like the full spectrum, and that's why I chose you, Like you know.
0:08:36 - Speaker 4
I'm not, let's put it this way, I'm not a Steve Albini. I don't diss any type of music. Okay, Steve Albini fans out there, I just I let I like there are music that I will gravitate towards and listen to, which tends to be rock and roll, indie rock, Stuff like that. but yeah, I'm never gonna sit there and go. you know, I don't. I didn't like Kendrick Lamar's record. I don't think you should have got out of mother air. Fuck that. like whatever dude, to each his own man. Some people really like it, some people really like this and that. so even those who like poppy roach started bring it up twice.
0:09:15 - Speaker 3
We know, we know, we know it. next, the vinyl. Yes, I've lived in Portland over 20 years, just over 20 years this year, But I hail from Southern California as well. So I'm kind of just like a West Coast, you West guy I guess, but lived overseas for a stint of time and hope to do it again because we Head over to Europe at least once a year.
Musically, you know, I don't Play anything but air guitar really well, just kidding, kind of not mediocre I guess. and I've, I will listen to a lot, of, many, many genres of music. if you, if this was to not to be like some contemporary Country artists, I probably would have either killed you guys through the, the interwebs, or myself or all of us. That's about one of the genres I just can't do. but yeah, I Drew up, I guess you know, listening to FM radio and Making mixed tapes on cassette and yeah, baby, you know, like I, I could hear.
I was telling my son this year that I could hear the first seconds of a song and have record Set up on my tape deck It just record off the radio. So you know, huge music fan from early age, like fifth, sixth grade. So been listening to music forever and a fan forever and at one point, like huge AD of you have lists and track things, Like I tried to start to try to formulate, formulate the shows I've been to in my life, the gigs, because I'm still a Often good goer. I'm still recuperating from the one I went to last Friday night, But, gee she, I've been to lots, of, lots of, lots of concerts. So I feel like I know you know music fairly well and can talk about it and no artists and some personally and, um, yeah, I'm excited to Give this rodeo a. you know, around the Around the corral, see what happens.
0:11:26 - Speaker 1
Yeah, I think it's gonna be. I think it's gonna be fun and it's gonna be different. There are gonna be phases We're gonna listen to where you will like it more than others. I'm sure You know Pete the, the person that was telling you you got to listen to this. if this is your favorite record, You would like this.
I can't even imagine saying that with the hips, because their uvra is like is all over the place. It starts out as real well, we'll get into it with the p, but it starts out It's, it's bar rock. It's you know, it's It's bluesy bar rock. They were disciples of, you know early Early garage and late 60s stones. You know that type of music. uh, I mean, they had a saxophone in the band, for god's sake, You know. so they were that type of band. Uh, the saxophone ultimately was gone by the time they started to record. That's uh, davis manning, um, but uh, Yeah, It's all over the map. It's all over the map. So why don't we kick into a live song right now and then we'll get talking about the record in in question here, which is the Tragically Hip EP. This is Dead Flowers by the Rolling Stones, covered by the Tragically Hip, with Davis Manning playing sax. Hope you like it. let's get into it.
0:13:20 - Speaker 5
Talking to some rich folks that you knew And I hope you won't see me in my rated community. You know I could have been. Thank you, Send me Dead Flowers, by the way. You know, when you're sitting by in your own big black bag Making bets on Kentucky Dirt today, When I'm in my big skin room with a head on my head and a spoon, Another girl did jump in the way. Send me Dead Flowers, by the way. You know, when you're sitting by in your own big black bag Making bets on Kentucky Dirt today, Send me Dead Flowers, by the way. Take me down, let our sins and break me down. I know you think you're the queen of the underground. Send me Dead Flowers, by the way. Send me Dead Flowers, by the way. Send me Dead Flowers, by the way.
0:16:41 - Speaker 1
Isn't that great, Yeah, Okay, before we get into the EP specifically, I just played you Dead Flowers and I sent you some other live tracks. Just want to get a sense of what you thought of that first group of songs and listening to this band play them live.
0:17:02 - Speaker 3
I thought of so many different things as I first heard some of the songs. I mean, I instantly wondered about Gordon. Some of the songs were specific storytelling. I really wondered about his songwriting process, which I think is one of the most boring questions. I ask a band, But I immediately went to that His vibrato. Okay, that was like instantly, what is going on with this guy's voice and the way he sings? Is he trying to protect his vocal cords? I think some singers use vibrato when they're like on massive tours or something to exercise their voice or something.
But you know, it sounded like a really good kind of bar rock and roll. to me That's what it sounded like. It sounded like I want to be in a club or in a bar with like a couple hundred people, You know, drinking not the bats Another great Canadian beer And just kind of rocking out. You could hear the fans loving the band. It sounded very 80s to me too, Very 80s. I mean it was like every song was its own book, if you will, Its own little story, and it just sounded like a reminder me of I don't know, Reminded me a little bit. His voice, reminded me a little bit of how Elvis sings, Reminded me a little bit of Freddie Mercury, But also a little bit sinister, like Glenn Danzig.
0:18:57 - Speaker 1
I don't know if you guys know who he is.
0:18:58 - Speaker 3
You know, it was just charismatic. He's a very charismatic guy. He's probably a lot of fun to hang out with Gordon. But yeah, it sounded very time specific to that era.
0:19:15 - Speaker 1
Well, there's something about it that makes it more time. specific too, Pete. what did you think?
0:19:21 - Speaker 4
Well, I gotta be honest with you, JD. I listened fully and completely to the actual EP, The live link that you sent me. The only one that I was able to hear was Highway Girl.
0:19:40 - Speaker 1
Oh, and that's sort of cheating, because that came out in 91. So I'm sorry about that.
0:19:46 - Speaker 4
No, no, not at all. I mean, I have my comments on the EP itself and kind of what I thought, But I don't want to jump the gun if you're not ready to hear that.
0:19:56 - Speaker 1
But I got loads of thoughts, Cool. Well, that leads us to 1986 and them finding their way to a studio with Ken Greer. I'm not sure if you guys know who Ken Greer is. He's a Canadian as well. He was a producer, but he played in a band called Red Rider. If you're not familiar with Red Rider, check out the song Lunatic Fringe, Check out the song White Hot. Those are great songs and he was the guitarist in that band. but then he stepped away and started doing some production work.
A friend of mine is the engineer on this record. I found that out years and years ago, but years after I had been a fan. I'm hoping to be able to talk to him for this podcast as well. It would be really cool to hear what he thought back in 86. This EP comes out in 87 on cassette prominently on cassette, but it does come out with a bonus song All Canadian Surf Club on the CD version. CDs were peaking through and they were making their way there. Three singles off this record Small Town, Bring Down Highway Girl and Last American Exit. I don't think that any of those songs are a surprise in terms of singles when you listen to the album in its entirety. This record isn't my favorite, but as a collection of songs it acts as sort of An amuse-bouche, as it were. What did you guys think of this record? This is your first time hearing it and first time talking about it. We'll start with you, Pete.
0:21:44 - Speaker 4
I made a point of putting myself into multiple scenarios when I listened to it. I kept having this struggle because I remember you saying you said to me multiple times, and every Canadian who I've ever talked to about this band has said, oh, they started out as a bar band. I kind of got that in my head and I was like something I wanted to shed and not really pay attention to, because you don't really take a bar band seriously. You know what I mean A bar band is a bar band. But then I understood, the more I listened to it, kind of what you, What the Canadians, including yourself, JD, meant when you said that. And I got so much I mean I'll be honest with you The first track So the first time I listened to the record I went for a run And then I listened to it sitting at my desk and doing some work and then just kind of like alone, not doing anything, Not preoccupying myself with all this stuff. The first song, I was just like And you said that was a single, correct?
0:22:54 - Speaker 1
Yeah, first single.
0:22:56 - Speaker 4
It just. I mean, I was Every time wildly underwhelmed. It didn't hit me at all. Last American Exit it picked up a little bit and then Killing Time was just, I mean, that was a fucking bohemian.
0:23:50 - Speaker 5
I got a kick when I walked down And I said I'd done my girl to tap To make my wounds with the sea dog sound A drink. I never wanted to, but it's for the never to take you back, My old man. I was all that bad. What you call compromise? I don't understand. What you call compromise. I don't understand. I walk away. I do you walk away? I walk away from a woman that comes down here on. She had done it wrong.
I need your confidence even though you're mine When it gets right down to the killing time. I know your heart's bad, But it's all I've ever had. We can never lie on this righteous crime. I do you walk away. I do you walk away. I walk away from a woman that comes down here on. I know this time we walk away. you just can't walk away. I walk away from a woman that comes down here on. She had done it wrong. I do you walk away. you just can't walk away. I walk away from a woman that comes down here on. She had done it wrong. I need your confidence, even though you're mine, When it gets right down to the killing time.
0:27:50 - Speaker 4
It just really really dug it. And what Tim said, too, is is it Rob Baker?
0:27:58 - Speaker 1
Yeah, Rob.
0:27:59 - Speaker 4
Baker. I can't remember what song was it, but I absolutely got some Huey Lewis vibes on his guitar tone. I mean it was super 80s, and not in a bad way.
0:28:12 - Speaker 1
No, I hear you, It's very 80s, like production wise, Because it has no choice but to be. I mean, it was the 80s after all.
0:28:20 - Speaker 4
But the weird thing about that is because I was hearing, yeah, yeah, yeah. But I was hearing some stuff in terms of like thinking about, okay, like I hear like some like the same sort of stuff you've heard going on in appetite, Because that was around the same time that that record came out. Appetite construction was what 86, 87. Yeah. But then what I really settled on was like there is a lot of like I hear a lot of that record in early Pearl Jam, early Alice in Chains. Yes, I mean his voice too, I think that record. you can see his voice progress into some amazing shit just by listening from song one to song seven or eight, whatever.
0:29:09 - Speaker 1
Wow, Okay, We'll have to come back to that because that's really interesting. You can hear it right through the course of the record.
0:29:17 - Speaker 4
Oh yeah.
0:29:18 - Speaker 1
Tim, what were your initial thoughts?
0:29:21 - Speaker 3
Eddie Vedder definitely came up for me because he has he'll get to this guttural I don't know what to call it this guttural vibrato thing where all of his syllables kind of run together and I feel like some of Gordon's singing goes the same way, but it really varies. Just going through the album, just first listening to it, I thought, okay, I kind of catch what this is. and Last American Exit kind of reeled me. back in small town, Bridgetown, was kind of like okay, that's interesting way to start The killing time in. Evelyn, you know, was like okay, who's this Evelyn gal? what is the story here? Like I wanted to know more conceptually what was going on in his head. That's kind of. I mean, I'm drawn to lyrics, you know, and at one point I was like, oh, maybe Evelyn's a cat, you know, I was feeling bad for her, I was worried about Evelyn, you know. but then Cemetery Side Road, so weird it's like let's throw this in there, you know. and so that got me kind of into not not deep rap at all, but you know, like I mentioned before, wanting to know about his process and hearing that they would play music and then he would basically put lyrics to music, and that kind of blew my mind too.
not many bands do that. a lot of songwriters, you know, start with their prose or what have you. I don't know, I'm a werewolf baby. what? like kind of honestly did this come out around Halloween? like why, Why is that? Why is that in there? It's so weird. I think Highway Girl was the first song. like Pete was saying, Highway Girl is the first one I listened to and it was kind of a messed up sinister song. it's like where is this going? they're killing people, their cops are on the run, where we dump in the body like WTF is the tragically hip all about. But I will say All Canadian Surf Club. I've listened to that song the most times out of the world.
0:31:37 - Speaker 5
There's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. goes over real big. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club.
It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club. It's a song for the summer. it's called the All Canadian Surf Club.
0:36:02 - Speaker 1
Yeah, if this was a single song and I'm a werewolf baby, I don't know that I would have followed through on this band.
0:36:13 - Speaker 3
It was really fun. but I'm like, okay, some of these songs are very specific to maybe parties people throw. I don't know, it's a wild mix.
0:36:26 - Speaker 1
Yeah, yeah it is. And what's interesting is writing credit wise. the chief songwriter at this time is the bassist, Gord Sinclair, writing both songs and lyrics, or music and lyrics and melody. by and large, There's a few songs that are Gord Downey songs and he becomes. as time goes on, he becomes the chief lyricist. He's almost like a poet laureate of Canada, for heaven's sake. But on this one he's got Killin' Time. that he wrote and I'm a werewolf baby is on his docket, So is Highway Girl and so is nope. that's it for him. That's it for him. So I thought All Canadian Surf Club was him, but it was not. Pete, what did you think of All?
0:37:18 - Speaker 4
Canadian Surf Club. At first it's really weird because I was like it's funny that you made the distinction about it being on the CD, Because I was like is this song belong in this record? Because it sounded that's the last song, correct? Yeah, it just sounded different, But I really liked it, Like All Canadian Surf Club. and then I started thinking about like is there a lot of surfing that goes on in Canada? And like started thinking like all the places in the world where people don't surf I would think Canada would definitely be on that list.
0:37:59 - Speaker 1
Yeah, I don't know where, like there's, you know like little surfing, like little wave surfing, you know like Right.
0:38:07 - Speaker 5
Or your water park.
0:38:08 - Speaker 1
Yeah, but yeah, the water park, But yeah, not a great deal of surfing. Now, if you are listening to this and you're an avid surfer in Canada, then by all means reach out to us, JD, at getting hip to the hipcom and give us the old what's for there.
0:38:25 - Speaker 3
Tofino is the place. I'll just say Tofino, that's tofino.
0:38:29 - Speaker 1
Yeah, you know like that's.
0:38:30 - Speaker 3
I mean it's on my list to go to someday.
0:38:33 - Speaker 1
I'm being schooled here by the Pacific Northwestern.
0:38:38 - Speaker 3
Yeah, well, I'm a West Coaster in general. There you go.
0:38:42 - Speaker 1
So any themes or any themes or anything like that, throughout these songs um vibing you. I mean, this is, this is a band. you know they say you write your first record. you know, from the moment you start playing, This is what, this is what went down on wax as their, you know, as their first material. And then you enter, you know the sophomore slump or or whatever. but I can, I can assure you you know where we begin with. the next record up to here is, you know, not so much of a slump. but back to this record. Did you like the studio version of Highway Girl? Like, obviously, the live version is is riveting. What did you think of the studio version?
0:39:25 - Speaker 4
I liked it. I liked it a lot because it would give you Highway Girl was the only one I had heard the live version of, But, um, I think I liked it a little bit more, but if I put myself in the context of like being at that show, yeah, yeah, I'd absolutely want to much rather see it live. Yeah, of course.
0:39:44 - Speaker 1
Yeah, So these songs to me are written. it sounds, it sounds dumb, but this is, you know, a young band and they're not doing any trickery in the studio at all. These songs are written to be played right back on the road, you know, uh, leading the leading the charge of their, of their uh, of their gigs, so they can start to play less stones material and play more of their own material. You can hear that in theoh sorry, Oh no, no, go ahead, man No.
0:40:15 - Speaker 4
I was just gonna say like there's some parts where you're just like I remember listening to it and being like dude. I mean I can Just what you said at the beginning, Tim. I could picture myself at a bar with like 100 or 150 people and hearing this band and like 80% of people in there, including the bar staff, singing along to it because it's just so catchy and, like you said, JD, it was like it was written to be played live.
0:40:46 - Speaker 1
Yeah.
0:40:46 - Speaker 5
You know, Yeah.
0:40:48 - Speaker 3
And on the live version of Highway Girl. you know his storytelling. before they were even playing, the audience was eating up. I mean, you hear people laughing, you hear people cheering and I just imagined when they were on tour there was a lot, a lot of banter. I would just guess he's kind of a rambler, you know, connecting with the audience.
But at the same time, like hearing that live version and hearing the audience and thinking about them being a bar band, like they really reminded me a lot of the Grateful Dead. Yeah, like I just just I don't know there's something very Bruce Springsteen about it. you know, upstate New York, Cleveland, Detroit kind of, but in all those regions, like the Grateful Dead was huge also and it's just this touring type of band that has a lot of followers. They're going to play like this mixed mash of hits, of songs that people love. you know there's they're going to be a little bit different every time. Just, I don't know there's something about them that didn't make me think jam band but made me think like, oh yeah, these guys definitely have. yeah, these guys definitely have. you know, in the 80s they probably had a couple hundred thousand like real fans by the end of the decade in Canada. Can you remind us where Canada is again? I forget.
0:42:16 - Speaker 1
Canada lives on the roof of the USA and we intercept all airmail.
0:42:26 - Speaker 3
Yeah, Highway Girl's a weird song, you know, I don't know just like. this whole album to me was kind of a pizza with the works. That's made me hungry but yeah.
0:42:36 - Speaker 5
Yeah, I'll drink to that, Yeah.
0:42:38 - Speaker 1
I like that. Well, any final thoughts on this record, or what you're looking for in the next record, or you know anything along those lines, Pete?
0:42:51 - Speaker 4
You know, JD, you and I have obviously talked over time about the hip and I've talked a few other people, I think one of my co-workers, Barb, who's a big hip fan, and I. you know, I haven't really found a roadmap, It's just been this hodgepodge. It's like Tim said, you know it's been this pizza with the works, but I feel like I've digested this whole record, or I at least eaten it. I'm starting to digest it very well and I'm really excited for the next meal. I'm stoked to take the analogy step further, Like I'm genuinely excited for myself to listen, not for anybody else, if that makes sense.
0:43:42 - Speaker 1
Oh, that's cool Yeah.
0:43:45 - Speaker 4
Excited.
0:43:48 - Speaker 3
I, you know, I really tried to refrain from any listening or research and tried to come up with what I knew about them beforehand and think about that. I guess I'm excited because it is a band from the 80s. I love 80s era music that I haven't really given a listen to. There are certain songs on this album that make me think okay, I can definitely hear some more from these guys, and there's some total headscratchers where I'm thinking what am I in store for? You know, I told my son about this whole exercise and his reaction was kind of like overwhelmed for me at the thought of focusing on one band, so much.
And when I first listened to Small Town Bring Down, you know, in his presence we look at each other like oh no, What am I in for? Well, yeah, what is this band going to be like? I dig that song. No, I totally do.
0:44:56 - Speaker 1
There's something about it that I grew up in a small town and something about that idea of you know not another small town, hometown, bring down Yeah sure It's generic, It was very storytelling also, though.
0:45:12 - Speaker 3
but then, at last, American exit. when we got into listening to that, I was in the car, you know, driving from Detroit or wherever upstate New York, I don't know Coming into Canada, like I was kind of right there. It sounded kind of great.
0:48:59 - Speaker 5
Yeah.
0:49:17 - Speaker 3
And to know that this band… you know, played together first and then tried to play a handful of shows Till they, I guess, got their bearings and then recorded. I mean, that's what bands did in the 70s and 80s for sure. You know, it wasn't very often that somebody got together and somebody already had 20 songs and they went and recorded. You know, so it's, it's so. this is a pretty a special, you know way to Start up a group. So I'm curious to, I'm curious to hear where they go. I like, I like some of the songs, you know, Yeah well, it gets pretty, it gets.
0:50:02 - Speaker 1
You know we're off on a journey. Let's put it that way. This will be. I do, like you know, to carry on the food analogy, I do like this you're in a new country and every day you're gonna get a new dish and it's it's gonna be spiced a little bit differently. Early on it's gonna be a little bit more rudimentary, But as we go on there's gonna be more nuance and you know deeper flavor profiles. and then there's context. you start to Listen to the songs differently because you start to understand the past and what this group has went through and when, ultimately, they played their last show in Kingston, Ontario, and You know almost a third of this country tuned in to watch that like it was like 11, over 11 million people watch. She's the last concert because they broadcast it on our national broadcaster, CBC. Wow, yeah, you know The they they've. they cover a great distance between that time and what you guys are listening to right now.
0:51:04 - Speaker 3
So it'll be interesting to To hear from you on this journey as we continue on one other just little mysterious kind of wow fact that I read about them was having to do with Them being double booked with Nirvana in 94. Do you know about this?
0:51:24 - Speaker 1
Yeah, they played. they played a show in Milwaukee. It was eight dollars a ticket and it was right to the hip and right. Anna Nirvana was actually opening for the hip. that not opening. it was a double bill, but you know, yeah and.
The story from from all the books is that Gord went to go meet Or the band rather went to go meet Kurt and he was passed out on a pool table like he was. he was dead to the world, So they didn't end up getting to meet, but we'll hear an interesting Tribute to Mr Cobain in in a future song, for sure.
0:52:00 - Speaker 3
Yeah, I'm intrigued. I'm intrigued, no more.
0:52:02 - Speaker 1
Okay, before we say goodbye, we're gonna do one more thing. We are gonna pick an MVP track, One track that you'll take away, that you'll put on a playlist. we're gonna do a playlist for each of you and It'll have your takeaway track from each record, and then you know, when we're done this exercise, We can put those up on Spotify and Apple music.
0:52:23 - Speaker 4
Well, for me, I'll do it for me while you're. while you're thumbing through it, Tim, for me, I think the track on this EP would the one that I would Would choose to be would be killing time. Yeah, okay, certainly, certainly, Certainly, to stand out for me might, if I had to pick. Well, you do be a crowd, so there you go.
0:52:52 - Speaker 1
Where you at there, Timmy, Hmm, Hmm.
0:52:54 - Speaker 5
Hmm.
0:52:55 - Speaker 1
Oh, you're gonna predict it.
0:52:57 - Speaker 3
I was kind of all over with this. I was no, that's hilarious, I know what you're gonna do too. I was kind of all over with this album. You know it was full of surprises for me. you know I already talked about Evelyn and You know it's like oh, poor Evelyn. whatever The werewolf I'm a werewolf baby Hilarious, like where is this fan going? like, this was a wild ride of an album for me. highway girl, I think was a first song you sent us JD, and That one has so many twists and turns and it just, I think, the most. My recollection, like maybe the most listens, was on that album from via Spotify, highway girl, But it closed out early, strong with me for all Canadian surf club. I think that's a fun sign. No, My.
California homie right there.
0:53:51 - Speaker 1
AP hadn't written down the whole time for those watching at home.
0:53:55 - Speaker 3
That was a fun track.
0:53:57 - Speaker 1
That's what, uh, we call the first episode. right there, boom done, theater the mind, we traveled straight out of Kingston. Thanks a lot, fellas. It means a lot. Thanks, JD.
0:54:07 - Speaker 3
Can't wait.
0:54:07 - Speaker 1
Thanks guys pick up your shit.
0:54:11 - Speaker 2
Thanks for listening to getting hip to the hip. Please subscribe, share, rate and review the show at getting hip to the hipcom. Find us on Twitter and Instagram at getting hip pot And join our Facebook group at facebookcom slash groups slash fully and completely. Questions or concerns email us at JD. at getting hip to the hipcom. We'd love to hear from you.
0:54:52 - Speaker 1
Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do, Do Do.
