>>PREVIEW
BEDOUIN SOUNDCLASH
Saturday, November 12
MacEwan Hall (U of C)
Is selling out an outdated and irrelevant term? If Led Zeppelin lends their song to a car commercial to make some extra dough, does the song lose its meaning? If a struggling Canadian reggae-influenced three-piece has the summer of their career when their hit song becomes the backdrop for a Zellers commercial, does that band lose its integrity?
According to Pat Pengelly, drummer of Bedouin Soundclash, whose "When the Night Feels my Song" single has been dubbed the song of the summer by many radio stations across Canada, you can’t sell out if you never bought in.
"The commercial in general, as a band, we had no problem with that. It
doesn’t damage the integrity of the music at all. We’ve never had criticism about it, but people want to know how you feel about it," says Pengelly before a gig rehearsal somewhere in the United Kingdom. "Selling out is an outdated term and irrelevant."
It’s been a slow rise to radio domination for Bedouin Soundclash. The former university students recorded their sophomore album, Sounding a Mosaic, almost two years ago and are just now reaping all the benefits – largely based on the strength of "When the Night Feels my Song."
"In Canada it’s been a slow, naturally grassroots process for us as a band. We toured the country countless times before the album was out. The song was always the first single, but it never had any radio play at all until The Edge picked it up in Toronto this summer," says Pengelly.
Fresh off a stint on the Warped Tour, the Montreal trio made up of Jay Malinowski’s raspy vocals, Eon Sinclair’s bass and Pengelly’s drums, was shocked to learn the magnitude of the song’s success.
"It was crazy. We had been away all summer on the Warped Tour, to come home to that was a really amazing thing," he says. "We’ve been getting radio play on adult contemporary stations and stuff. Having our song on the Zellers commercial definitely exposed our music to people that wouldn’t necessarily get to hear it at a show."
Heading overseas straight after the Warped Tour, Bedouin Soundclash found the power of their single has reached an international level.
"The funny thing is, we realized people didn’t really seem to know who we were until we played the single. As soon as we played the song, people would be a lot more into it. People know the song and that’s great," says Pengelly of their U.K. fans.
The success of Bedouin can be measured not by the reception of a single, but how the band reacts and rides the wave of the hit.
"As a band we’ve always been about physically getting our music out there to people and it’s rewarding to see that," says Pengelly.
Regarded as a live band, Pengelly says the single has rocketed the band to new heights, stabilizing their touring schedule, both overseas and in North America.
The band has been on tour in support of the U.K. band The Ordinary Boys. This marks the third time Bedouin has been in the U.K. since August. They plan to go back early next year for bigger and better reasons.
"We want to go back and do our own headlining tour so the fans can see what we are about. It’s hard to get a feel for the band when you’re the opening act and only playing 30 to 40 minutes a night," he says.
Before the summer madness, Bedouin found time to write and record several tracks in February. Their third album, tentatively called Street Gospels, will not be out until well into the new year.
"We’re really itching to get our new music out there, but we’re still riding high," he said.
As Bedouin wheels around Canada for their headlining tour this winter, be sure that their audience will be tested with some new tracks. Bedouin is careful not to get ahead of themselves, though. They realize that one single alone can only do so much, and keeping level-headed and setting priorities are key elements to a band’s success as well.
"What keeps the vitality of the band alive is staying focused for the half-hour or 40 minutes a night," says Pengelly.
"The music has to remain the focus – otherwise you get burnt out." |
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