MUSIC PREVIEW
TRICKY WOO
August 11
Metro
August 12
Olympic Plaza
Snow Jam
You don't need special glasses to see Tricky Woo's Technicolour dream
It isn't late-breaking news – rock 'n' roll is back in vogue, along with the custom-ripped T-shirts to prove it. Still, more facets of rock music continue to be discovered – today, practically everyone who uses electric guitars has been lumped into the genre. Take the MTV 2001 Video Music Awards (due to air this September), which is presenting thrash-rap turkeys like Limp Bizkit as nominees in the rock genre. While that annual spectacle will continue to honour all the wrong people, other musicians will continue to write rock music by playing around with the established traditions. One of those bands is Montreal's Tricky Woo.
Aside from trying to get rotation on MuchMusic, Tricky Woo have another minor dilemma at this point in time. Critically acclaimed for their scorching 1999 release, Sometimes I Cry, they were thrown into the spotlight for releasing an album that burned the ears and warmed the hearts of people looking for aural thrills. This summer, they released the elaborate Les Sables Magiques, their fourth full-length and "extension" to Sometimes I Cry. Instead of unanimous applause, some people were scratching their heads at the development of the band and criticizing the Woo for being more retro than ever.
To the money-making mind, it was a risky departure (if you hastily label what is an honest-to-goodness progression as a departure). They changed their pace, took more time to flesh out songs, threw in impeccable frills and ended up pumping out a chunky record full of hooks and more wild-eyed lyrics. True, they may take a fun romp through concepts first delivered in the ’70s, but lead singer and guitarist Andrew Dickson doesn't exactly think that they're a ’70s cover band.
"I don't think we're the Grateful Dead or anything like that. There's nothing wrong with that band, but we've been playing for so many years... it's like we try to express ourselves even more live. It's something we love to do.
"I just worry sometimes that people think rock ’n' roll is actually punk music with Chuck Berry chords. There's a bit of a difference, I think."
Although he sounds completely satisfied with the band, Andrew is also disappointed with the content of a few unfavourable record reviews. Some critics stated quite bluntly that the latest effort doesn't sound like its predecessor, so it isn't good. Regardless, he attributes the hastiness of the reviews to the nature of contemporary music. People hear a band and think "that's what they do." The band is then expected to duplicate the hit formula until they can't do it anymore. Thankfully, for those who want something more, Tricky Woo have another agenda.
"We can't prescribe that way of thinking," Andrew says emphatically. "I don't think that's a very rock and roll thing to do."
A quartet once again, Tricky Woo are currently on the road for the Six Cats And A Podium tour with new member Phil Burns (keys, percussion). With another rocker onstage to help convey the lush intricacies of Les Sables Magiques in a live setting, Tricky Woo may be able to connect the dots for the people who are still trying to understand the album. If they were dismissively tagged as another flash-in-the-pan in the retro-rock revival, it would be a cryin' shame. |
