"The Stills unleashed"

The Stills

One of Arts & Crafts’ latest signings, The Stills have taken off this year with an overwhelming response to their new album, Oceans Will Rise. Their first single “Being Here” has garnered considerable radio play, and it seems the band has a new found energy after an amiable departure from Vice Records. Tim Fletcher, lead singer of the Montreal quintet, recently took the time to speak about the new album, touring and isolation chambers.

www.myspace.com/thestills
www.thestills.net

Tim Fletcher: Vocals/guitar
Dave Hamelin: Vocals/guitar
Liam O'Neil: Keyboards
Olivier Corbeil: Bass
Julien Blais: Drums

How have crowds responded to the new album?

Really good. They’ve all been getting in to it for the most part and singing along to the new songs. It was interesting that even before the album hit, people knew the words from stuff they got off the Internet. I like that.

You’re not against people downloading albums online?

No, it has forced bands to become better and more legitimate musicians. Now you have to play well as a group – you have to put on a good show, you have to think about entertaining the people and bringing it to the people. So, that’s a really great thing and I think it is part of the fundamentals where music comes from – sort of a group ritual. That’s what the downloading and digital age has forced bands to do.

Do you consciously think about having to become better in all these ways because the public has access to your music so early?

I think it’s more of a, “How can we continue to enjoy ourselves more and more and have a degree of community at our shows”
So those are the questions you ask. You feel the audience too, so that’s a circular path.

Have you noticed a big change in your live show over the past few years?

A couple of years ago we were more of a crazy horse kind of thing, and now we’ve taken that and become edgier and more pronounced.

How did the move to Arts & Crafts happen?

Vice was going through some transitions, and so were we, and we’ve been friends with everyone on Arts & Crafts for many years. They’re like family to us. So, we met in the middle and everyone thought it would be great.
It was very simple. We went from Vice where it was very family-like, and we still love everyone there. But so far it’s been unbelievable here – it’s a great label where everyone works really hard.

Did fans assume you were a New York band since you were signed to Vice?

Yeah, I think so. I think people need to have a context for a band – they need to say they love a band, and say they’re from a certain area and this is why they mean so much to them. And every band is going to try to shrug that off their shoulders – they don’t want to wear that mantle. It is what it is, and at least it gave us some attention and we’re able to make music.

With the new album, Oceans Will Rise, was the final product what you expected it to be when you went into the studio?

It’s never what you expect it to be. You start off with an intention, and you visualize the finished product. But the truth is that it’s never what you expect it to be. You keep your eye on the prize, and at the end of the day what comes out is a different article of music than you thought it would be.
Though, with this record we were really pleasantly surprised in how it was different. I think that, though you can’t expect it to be what you thought it would be, it came out really great.

Were you surprised with anything on the album?

It was the quality that developed during recording, which was more of a new age feeling. It was like one of those isolation chambers where they put you in warm salt water and you just float there for hours chilling, and you heal your minds’ woes.
It was therapeutic. I didn’t know we needed it that much, but we did and it came through (on the album).

Explain the title and the artwork of the album.

The skull was bought by our good friend on eBay. It’s a skull that someone excavated from a Chilean mountainside. We’re into putting a few words and showing how they juxtapose with the image.
Oceans and rivers and waters can surge and can be a powerful force in nature, and I think that a lot of people can relate to the elements. It’s a current theme and a catch phrase, with our current environmental mind frame.
We felt they really juxtaposed well and formed a powerful combo.

The line, “The most polluted city in the world, that turns everything to gold,” in the song “Rooibos/Palm Wine Drinkard” really intrigued me. What are you referring to?

We spent time around Mexico City, and it’s unbelievably polluted, but it’s surrounded by all of these small towns that are extremely mystical and powerful – old Aztec towns. There’s a place down there that’s really magnetic and considered a spiritual place for Mexicans. There’s a lot of gold down there. So, as much as you can char things up and spew powdered lead at everything and turn it into lifeless stuff, nature will always prevail.

Do you gravitate toward ideas surrounding spirituality?

I love all of that stuff. I wish we were kind of living without shirts and conventional clothes, having to paint ourselves and dancing around fires. I feel that a lot of people are maintaining that, and that in a healthy way we need to revert to that naturalistic way of living.

How do you bring that type of living to life in Montreal?

Montreal is hippie central, which can sometimes be extremely draining because it’s really just simple and formulaic. It can be difficult for sure, in any city. I think people need to be wilder – that needs to be more present in us. We’re trying to maintain a civilized society, which means uptight. If the parameters were widened a little bit and we became more open minded about what is acceptable in the city, we might actually live in a healthier world.

Be sure to check out The Stills as they open for Sam Roberts across the country.

Nov. 1 – Hamilton, ON at Chedoke Room
Nov. 3 – Chatham, ON at River Rock Club
Nov. 5 – London, ON at Centennial Hall
Nov. 6 – Kitchener, ON at Centre in the Square
Nov. 7 – Belleville, ON at Empire Theatre
Nov. 8 – Sarnia, ON at The Industry
Nov. 11 – Toronto, ON at Danforth Music Hall
Nov. 13– Toronto, ON at Danforth Music Hall
Nov. 14– Toronto, ON at Danforth Music Hall
Nov. 15– Toronto, ON at Danforth Music Hall
Nov. 20 – Montreal, QC at Le National
Nov. 21 – Montreal, QC at Le National
Nov. 22 – Montreal, QC at Le National
Jan. 08 – Victoria, BC at McPerson Playhouse
Jan. 09 – Victoria, BC at McPerson Playhouse
Jan. 10 – Vancouver, BC at Orpheum Theatre
Jan. 12 – Kamloops, BC at interior Savings Center
Jan. 14 – Prince George, BC at CN Center
Jan. 16 – Red Deer, AB at Red Deer Memorial Centre
Jan. 17 – Edmonton, AB at Northern Alberta Jubilee Center
Jan. 19 – Calgary, AB at Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Jan. 20 – Saskatoon, SK at Lakeview Auditorium
Jan. 22 – Winnipeg, MB at Burton Cummings Theatre
Jan. 24 – Thunder Bay, ON at The Community Auditorium
Jan. 30 – Ottawa, ON at the Bronson Centre
Jan. 31 – Ottawa, ON at the Bronson Centre