PREVIEW
KITCHENS AND BATHROOMS
Thursday, November 7
Metro
If Kitchens and Bathrooms are to be believed, they lost a second guitarist to a Guns N’ Roses tribute band after recording their first full-length record. That is if they are to be believed.
There is a certain satisfied smirking that comes with every bit of non-musical artillery launched by Kitchens and Bathrooms. Perhaps it’s their extensive time away from home; perhaps it’s the trials of putting out three releases in four years. Somewhere along the way, they learned to laugh at the serious business of making music
Taking their name from the Home and Garden TV network, Hamilton’s Kitchens and Bathrooms teamed up in 1998. A debut EP took them on the road and the full-length follow-up got them signed to indie giants Sonic Unyon. Since then, they've been on the road as much as time will allow. Several tours have road-tested their songs and built a fan base. This past spring they were in Indiana recording their second full-length, Utter a Sound, and they just spent five weeks in the van touring in support of the album – no small feat considering all the band members are students as well.
Apparently, despite glib responses, you can take them seriously after all. Utter a Sound boasts a thunderous explosion of sizzling guitars, breakneck time changes and massive half-time swells. With this record, Kitchens and Bathrooms can easily take their seat in the nebulous realm of post-rock, replacing the standard verse-chorus-verse song structure with the more dynamic loud-quiet-louder. Capturing the meticulously timed cacophony of Slint, the pummeling of Mogwai and urgent D.C. punk screeching, Utter A Sound pushes the limits of classification.
Most rock bands rely heavily on vocals to carry a song, and many of the avant-garde abandon them all together. Axl Rose does more "singing" on the last half of "Don’t Cry" than Kitchens and Bathrooms do on their whole record, but when there are vocals, they effectively punctuate the already intense soundscape.
"I honestly feel as though most music can't carry itself without lyrics, so writing music that can is the real challenge," says guitarist Phil Williams. "I think our main strategy as songwriters is to treat the human voice as if it were another instrument rather than the focus of the entire song."
Despite being recorded live off the floor, Utter A Sound was a huge leap forward for Kitchens and Bathrooms. Not only did they work with producer Daniel L. Burton (Songs: Ohia, Papa M) but they were able to complete the album much more quickly than their first, Thousand Yard Stare, which took nearly a year.
"It was almost unbearable that it took so long to complete what we consider to be some of our most simple work," laments Williams. "It was pleasant while we were in the studio, don't get me wrong, but our first album consumed too much time. We are actually unhappy that the album took so long and we weren’t able to finesse it."
It’s not hard to hear what a welcome change Utter a Sound proved to be, and given the uncharacteristic reverence with which Williams speaks of Burton, it seems likely to be a career high point.
"I don't know of any musicians that have had relationships with producers in which the split at the end of the paid time was as cordial as our split with Burton."
It doesn’t take long for this serious moment to pass. Williams informs me that their upcoming western Canadian tour will be completed with the help of the recently repaired van, a.k.a. "the sweaty rouge." This on-road home base was purchased from a scrapyard as part of a "huge conspiracy created by a mechanic front." Aside from the mind games that Williams claims are standard touring practice, the group's trip to Calgary this month may well include a visit to Metro to dance with the male strippers – that is if Kitchens and Bathrooms are to be believed.
Kitchens and Bathrooms in kitchens and bathrooms
As any musician will tell you, touring is an arduous odyssey during which epic stretches of driving are delineated only by meals and bathroom breaks. After five weeks on the road, Kitchens and Bathrooms reflect upon highs and lows:
· Kitchens – "Amigo's in Saskatoon was the best restaurant I've ever eaten at. I'm looking forward to getting some more food there this time around."
· Bathrooms – "The worst washrooms we encountered were in Vermont. As far as I remember there was no toilet paper, they reeked of urine and, to top it all off, we had no idea how dirty they really were because there were no lights." |
