Preview
MOCKING SHADOWS
Wednesday, December 17
The Whiskey
Driving back to their home base of Calgary from a festival in the middle of Canada, seven-piece jazz-blues unit Mocking Shadows were trying to figure out an answer to the question, "Now what?"
With nearly seven years as a band under their belt, the obligatory set of lineup changes dealt with, a live CD already four years on the shelves and more invitations for gigs than there are days in the year, they wondered how to continue pursuing their goal of shaking things up and enjoying the music.
"We were trying to think of what we can do to set us apart from the other bands, a unique project. The idea of a live recording came up," says saxophonist Gareth Hughes. "We’ve done a live recording before, but our style’s changed a lot since then. We felt ‘Why don’t we try and film it?’ And it just kind of went from there."
The result is the release of Out of the Blue, which Hughes believes to be the first DVD released by an independent band in western Canada.
But the journey from that nascent idea to the actual DVD was complex. The first problem was finding a room with a stage large enough to fit a seven-piece band comfortably. Although the group knew they were looking for a theatre, not every place was suitable or available. Then they managed to snag Studio 82, which had once been a cinema in Calgary.
"It was a fantastic venue for something like that. It has tall ceilings so the jib arm could move and shoot from all angles," Hughes says. "We couldn’t do that in a regular club. As well, the show’s quite intense, but it’s not really a sit-down type of show so the soft-seater approach didn’t work."
It speaks well of the band’s popularity that they managed to pack the place for the filming on a Monday night in April. It speaks even more highly of their craftsmanship that they managed to film and record the DVD in one gig. Although music DVDs are notoriously boring, the good ones can be inspirational. The band relied on the Lenny Kravitz: Live and Prince’s Rave UN2 the Year 2000 to inform their own choices.
"We wanted the rawness and edginess they captured. We’re proud of the fact that there are no overdubs on our DVD," Hughes says. He says that when they first formed, The Mocking Shadows were rooted in old school blues, but, with members ranging in age from 24 to 40, punk, classic rock, funk and jazz have all left bruises on the band’s musical skin. The result is musicianship that rightfully earns that pride.
Hughes reckons that if the average independent CD costs between $ 20,000 and $30,000 dollars to record, then their DVD cost between five and six times that much. So with such an intense investment of time, talent, emotion and money, what are the best parts?
"Well, there’s several moments. We’ve got one slow blues tune on there ("Never Met") that Jordan did a phenomenal job of singing. There’s different moments throughout the night. As I’m watching it as a performer, having the camera in and around the audience is really interesting to get a first-hand look at how the crowd’s reacting.
"When you’re at a live concert and you’re in the front row, having the time of your life – being able to provide something like that for other people is one hell of a feeling. Not from a selfish perspective, but to see the looks on their faces and know that you’re helping them get there." |
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