>>PREVIEW
WIL
Saturday, June 23
The GRAND
It’s a simple, homespun philosophy. "If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it" paired with a belief that making music should be an enjoyable pursuit. This easy ideology (plus a ton of good old-fashioned hard work) has begun paying serious dividends for the former Calgarian still known as Wil. "It’s hectic and crazy and wild, it’s good and evil and beautiful all in one fell swoop," he summarizes in a post-rehearsal phone call, on the eve of his cross-Canada tour. His speaking voice, high, clear and sincere, sounds exactly like his singing voice.
Wil and his wife Caroline left Calgary for Qualicum on Vancouver Island last August and his independent, acoustic pop music currently resides on the mega major label EMI. They’ve ponied up the cash for large print ads and radio spots in support of his recent album and current tour.
Recording for By December began in an Ontario A-frame cottage and continued at numerous studios right across Canada, before the finalk mixing in Nashville. Producer Dave MacKinnon (FemBots) fleshed out the rootsy bed-tracks with piano, steel guitar, strings and horns. Those familiar with Wil as a solo performer might be taken aback by By December’s enormous sound. There were times when Wil himself experienced a similar reaction, initially at least. "Now I listen to it and I think the one thing I can take away from it is I’m buying what that guy is singing," he says. "No matter how huge it ended up sounding, no matter how big it got, the songs still sound like a person telling you a story, getting the message across. I can still pull off any of those songs, by myself in a theatre or with a drummer or with three or five or nine or the Polyphonic Spree," he quips. "If a song is an OK song it should be able to stand on its own two feet to begin with."
Co-writing was another new experience for Wil. His high-profile contacts led to opportunities to collaborate with Broken Social Scenester Jason Collet and 54-40’s Neil Osborne. "Neil was like, ‘you and your wife and your dog, come to our house in the country and stay with us and be with us and be with my family. We’ll eat great food and go swimming and have coffee and write music if it feels good," This easy-going approach perfectly suited Wil’s own way of doing things. "I don’t give a shit what your name is and I don’t give a shit what you drive and what you’re worth and how big your you-know-what is, none of that matters. I need to know that I can sit there and be honourable with you and trust you and enjoy your company and respect you."
As well as opening doors, being on a major label has another, practical advantage. "We don’t come home, obviously, $40,000 in debt. It’s a great relief for my wife and I, having done this for so many years." When Wil does make it home, his island retreat provides an idyllic respite from the rigours of touring and studio hopping. "It’s pretty great because it’s the opposite of what we do – I call it the box in the woods," he says with a hint of satisfaction.
So far, anyway, sticking with the tried and true has served Wil rather well. "I like finding something and sticking with it, like the 20-year relationship I have with my wife. It worked for some reason and we’re just going to keep doing that. I do like change and growth and experiencing things, but if something’s working I’m not going to change it, and that’s the bottom line." |
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