Pop music brings to mind a lot of different musical groups, but in the case of Library Voices, one is more inclined to think of clever lyrics about pop culture and literature than Britney Spears and boy bands.
The homegrown Saskatchewan band will be back on the road promoting their sophomore album, Summer of Lust, following its release August 23.
The seven-member band is comprised of five Estevan natives, including Paul Gutheil, Brennan Ross, Mike Thievin, Carl Johnson and Michael Dawson. Amanda Scandrett is from Moose Jaw and Eoin Hickey-Cameron is from Toronto. All members of Library Voices currently live in Regina.
Two singles from the album have been released: the ironic, handclap laden "Generation Handclap" and "The Prime Minister's Daughter," a satirical jab at Stephen Harper's cuts to the CBC and arts programs.
Band member Michael Dawson spoke with The Mercury about the band's fall tour and what old and new fans can expect from Summer of Lust.
"I think we're just chomping at the bit to get out and play," he said. "Our record comes out in August and we recorded it in December I think we're all getting a little antsy to get out and play those songs for people and have people hear the new music."
Library Voices signed with label Nevado Records before producing their new album, which was written in Kronau, Saskatchewan and recorded over 10 days in Montreal. The album retains much of the clever lyricisms and pop culture references from the band's debut Denim on Denim and EP Haunting Ghosts (& Other Collected Shorts).
"I think that with Summer of Lust we're more focused, and I think that we sort of grew as songwriters. The biggest difference was in the process. (When) we wrote Denim on Denim, a lot of it was sort of constructed in the studio and the process dragged out between tours and went on almost a year. In the end, we're very proud of the results and it was definitely a learning experience. We stepped back from that one and kind of looked at what we learned from it, where our strengths were and we worked to tighten up some of the weaknesses. Summer of Lust was just such a different experience. We locked ourselves away in this small town for a couple weeks and just sort of wrote and wrote nonstop and we went to Montreal and recorded the entire thing in 10 days this time. It just feels a lot more like how we perform our songs."
Of signing with Nevado, Dawson said it was an important step for the band.
"It was necessary, I think, for us to take the next step in our careers and know that we're not afraid to put the work in, the endless hours that goes along with making music and promoting it. It was sort of working with people who have stronger ties to the music industry and sort of the necessary know-how to help it grow for us.
"It's great to be aligned with those people and I think it's going to be a really great year for his label."
This fall's tour takes them from coast to coast, with stops planned for Regina, New York City, Ottawa, and Charlottetown, to name a few. The pace of the tour is undeniably gruelling, but the band gets along very well, making the travelling bearable.
"There is the occasional bickering and it is sort of exhausting. We love it, that one hour a day when you get to perform, that's what it's all about, but it's also the eight hours of just being half-awake, staring out a van window, watching stuff pass by. Part of it is the dynamics and the people in the band. We've all known each other for years and sort of grew up together and have played music for going on 15 years. I think we've all learned to accept each others' quirks and traits."
When travelling, it's usually the driver who DJs for the entire van between visits to Subway, the band's fast-food restaurant of choice (ideal for pleasing both the vegetarian and non-vegetarian band members).
"I think that on our last tour, we all rediscovered our love for the Tragically Hip, something we hadn't listened to in the van for a long, long time. We listen to lots of old jazz records sometimes, some stand-up comedy. We even get into audiobooks, where everyone joins in and listens to a book on the trip."
Dawson said the band is excited to get back to playing both small stages and large festivals.
"This summer we've been mostly doing festivals, like folk festivals, like Ottawa Bluesfest. You end up playing to a couple thousand people and it's a totally different experience.The first couple times we did it, it was sort of nerve-wracking and we sort of learned to have a lot of fun with it. In that respect, I'm thinking about how it's been so great, but we're looking forward to getting back and playing to 100 people on smaller stages this fall and sort of having a different kind of connection with the audience."
When asked about favourite performances over the past few years, Dawson explained that their higher calibre gigs, like that at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, have been as great as shows played to smaller, home crowds.
"Our favourite shows probably vary between when we played the medal ceremony at the Olympics, where there was 18,000 people there. In the same respect, when we get to play in Estevan and Regina it's great, and our families can come out and have a great time."
Similarly, Dawson explained that the band loves playing at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, where bands like The Rolling Stones have also played, but loves to play the Exchange or Amigos in Regina and Saskatoon respectively when they have the chance.
"They both sort of feel like hometown shows, in a way, but it feels a little more surreal when you're in these places with all that rock and roll history."
Both Saskatchewan and Canada as a whole have been very receptive to Library Voices, and Dawson said the highest compliments the band has received come through feedback from fans.
"It's been overwhelming, it really has. We've been invited to all sorts of really exciting things around the province. Sometimes you kind of find that, being a Saskatchewan band, you have to gain notoriety outside of your province before the province sort of looks inward at you, but we really didn't find that this time.
"Internally, there's a reason why we're still trying to hack it out in music, making ends meat. It's because we all grew up loving music and we do it because we love it. The biggest compliment for sure is the feedback we get from fans who buy the records and keep in touch that way."
Recently, Library Voices drew the attention of Spin Magazine and The New Yorker, with Spin calling them one of "three undiscovered bands you need to hear now" in 2008.
"It's kind of a different calibre of press," said Dawson of the article. "We don't really align ourselves with that (attention), we're very realistic about where we're at I guess the word is flattering. All the press was unsolicited. The magazine just reached out to us and said they wanted to do that."
The band offers a handful for mediums for their fans to get their music. Summer of Lust is being released digitally, on CD and on vinyl, something Dawson explained they're actually losing money on, but makes the product feel less temporary than an MP3 purchased on iTunes.
"It's a physical thing, versus just a digital release. It's big and you can take it all apart, and we included a little poster inside the packaging, and it feels like more of one large, singular package than a MP3 that feels so immediate and kind of disposable in a way."
Those who get the chance to see one of Library Voice's upcoming concerts are in for a fun experience, according to Dawson.
"The seven of us, we really get along so well, and that translates to our concerts I think. It's just sort of a really fun experience and I think a lot of people walk away from (our shows) and they feel like they had a really fun night out."
Library Voices will be playing at the Regina Folk Festival this weekend, and old and future fans are invited to check them out. For more tour dates, visit the band's Facebook or Myspace pages.
