>>PREVIEW
THE VIOLET ARCHERS
Thursday, October 20
Liberty Lounge (MRC)
"Green tea. That was actually a big part of this record – my writing and breakthrough," says Tim Vesely, the man behind The Violet Archers, named for the legendary Canadian composer. "I always sat down with coffee before. We have some young kids and I found coffee was a bit too much in the morning for handling so much stuff, so I switched over to green tea. It gives you that same sort of caffeine thing, but it doesn’t make you uptight and I just think things came out easier. So it’s quite a big thing in my life — green tea."
Vesely, who is also a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist with The Rheostatics, has always had songs set aside for a solo project, but never really had the time to do much with them until recently. "(The project) sort of came about at the time that The Rheos were off for a whole summer," he says. "So I was not only writing a lot, but I started to focus on actually doing a record."
The record, called The End of Part One, is a warmly haphazard ode to everything. Filled with careful, spontaneous songs that are both exquisite and natural, Vesely is joined by some familiar names and voices, including Ida Nilsen from Great Aunt Ida and the Buttless Chaps, Steve Pitkin from The Flashing Lights and Elliott Brood, and Wayne Omaha’s Yawd Sylvester. "I’m glad I chose a band name, because it is about me associating with different musicians. There’s always going to be a bit of a revolving door with this and a loose kind of approach to recording and writing."
This openness allows Vesely to involve these musicians in different ways at different times. Between playing live, touring and more recording in the future, coupled with the fact that there isn’t really a full-time commitment from any part of the equation, he has freedom to forge relationships with artists across Canada. "I’m pretty much going to end up with two of everyone," he says with a laugh. "Except for Yawd. There’s only one Yawd."
Happenstance and serendipity grace the Archers’ path. Vesely says he was searching for a bass player to tour with when, walking down the street, he ran into Dylan Hudecki from By Divine Right, who could play the Ontario dates. Then Vesely received an e-mail from Scott Remila of Raising the Fawn who offered to help out should he ever need a bass player — thus, Remila is playing the Western Canadian dates. "You’ve got to look for those signals and go for them because they always turn out really good," says Vesely.
While this type of chance could be perceived to contain a certain magic, Vesely assures that it’s also a tremendous exercise in energy and co-ordination. "I’ve had this feeling all along – this analogy of trying to build an airplane to take off in, while you’re on the runway. You’ve got to have the momentum and you’ve got to have the pieces in place all at the same time," he says, with an audible smile. "It’s a bigger job than I thought. And the pay sucks. But that wasn’t unexpected."
No matter how much work it has been, or will be, in the future, The Violet Archers will no doubt remain as flexible and ecstatic as their recording suggests. "After playing the first four shows, the goals aren’t even on the radar yet," says Vesely. "It just feels like all potential." |
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