"Means for a Means"

Means
It's no hush that in the last five-ish years, the hardcore scene has taken a substantial leap into the limelight, bringing with it pissloads of hopeful musicians with dreams of achieving the "rockstar" status.
Luckily, Regina based Melodic-hardcore quartet Means confirms that their last concern is the overpopulated super-genre and it’s often superficial values.

"We're not trying to compete musically with other bands," says guitarist and vocalist Matt Goud. "And we're not trying to be sexy like other bands or whatever," he laughs. "I'm really proud of the people in this band and the people we're becoming."

And rightfully so, given that alongside Goud, frontman Dylan Johnstone, bassist Todd Wells and drummer Aaron Friesen have not only been a compact unit and touring act for a mere two years, but have also managed to create three records (one re-release), secure a spot under a respected label, obtain a Canadian booking agent a la Underground Operations and more recently embark on a late summer Canadian tour with headliners Misery Signals and Shai Hulud .

"They've [Mis Sigs] turned out to be really big jerks," jokes Goud before shedding some light on tour times. "We all started some rituals...I don't know if that's the right word...but anyway, ours was called Street Justice. It's an ideal that can be passed on and it's a righteous ideal," he continues, "Misery Signals (on the other hand) has one called Night Beatings. That one's a bit more violent, I don't really want to get into that," he mocks before sharing a second story.

"We had never been to Newfoundland before. So to save on costs, 14 of us jumped in Shai Hulud's rickety '86 blue ford van," he continues, "Shai Hulud - those guys are older too right? So they're like old, crusty dudes that like classic rock music. And we just wanted to listen, to like, Rhianna or something".

"It's been cool," says Goud.

Means will keep their feet wet as they begin their fall tour with Across Five Aprils before settling for the Winter to write a new album set to be out next spring or summer.

"Writing the most heartfelt album yet...we're really going to be proud. That's really on my mind," says Goud. "This is our star really; getting this year under our belt. Right now in my life I feel lost doing anything else. I feel most at home right now playing in this band."

www.torqueonline.com
www.myspace.com/meansmusic