Beside themselves with joy — the members of Remote Kid may not look it, but they’re excited to get on with their musical lives
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Sitting down with musicians to discuss the breakup of their band might sound like a sombre and uncomfortable task, like discussing the details of the divorce in front of the kids. For Cameron May, Sandy Barron and Lara White, the three principal songwriters in local indie-pop collective Remote Kid, no such black cloud hangs over their heads. The decision to dissolve the group after almost four years together comes not from artistic differences, but from a careful consideration of each of the members’ goals and priorities and reaching a common conclusion — that the band might not fit.
This is not to suggest that anyone is unhappy with the time spent together or the music that emerged — if anything, the band will be giving their songs a royal send-off, making their show this Saturday at the Republik their full-length CD release party as well as their farewell. Still, with each member growing up, letting go is the healthiest thing they can do.
“Especially when we wanted a full-on band, there was a lot of dissatisfaction. [It was] a Sisyphusian struggle,” says Barron. “But [we have] a lot of different sounds and songs — one of the best shows we did was a Summerwood Warren show with just four of us, and it was great. It was just acoustic and chill.”
“Our history was like trying to put a band together for four years and it never working,” May says with a laugh. “We wanted to have a solid band for years, but finally we kind of gave up on that notion, and then we eventually just gave up on the band.”
Membership difficulties aside, all three agree that Remote Kid has been a positive experience, giving the songwriters an opportunity to participate in a music scene that is just starting to gain momentum, and work with some of the talented people involved, such as the Phil Withers’s Chris Dadge and Günther’s Scott Munro. May, who has lived in Calgary most of his life, and Barron, who arrived here only four years ago, both agree that music in Calgary is brighter and stronger than ever, and it will only get better — even if Remote Kid isn’t there to help keep things running.
“It’s really warm and welcoming,” May says of the local scene. “Everybody knows each other and plays on everybody else’s records, so I think it was good for us. This is an exciting time. There are a lot of really diverse bands, and a lot of great talent. I would call it a renaissance, because what other time has Calgary had that? I think it’s a ‘naissance,’ if anything.”
While May is putting music on the back burner to focus on a teaching degree, Barron and White have no doubt that they will jump right back into the musicians’ pool — whether it will be playing and jamming with other bands, or recording an album by themselves in their apartment (something Barron tells me he’s just finished doing).
“We’re all really good friends, so it’s not like it’s the end of anything,” White says. “Except it’s the end of Remote Kid, and the beginning of whatever else.”
