Ģż
Back in the ā90s, Sloan, the Inbreds and the Super Friendz formed the holy trinity of Halifax pop-rock. Now, with the resurgence of retro CanCon in full swing ā anyone catch that recent Our Lady Peace/I Mother Earth show? ā itās only appropriate that some of the East Coastās most beloved ā90s stars have joined forces for an album and tour under the name .
This recently minted band features Sloanās Chris Murphy on drums, the Inbredsā Mike OāNeill on bass, and the Super Friendzā Matt Murphy on guitar, with the three splitting songwriting and vocal duties evenly. Naturally, many fans and critics have branded the project a āsupergroup,ā although Matt Murphy is reluctant to embrace the term.āI kind of prefer ādream team,āā he offers, chuckling good-naturedly on the line from a tour stop in Peterborough. āThatās also pretty arrogant, but I can live with that. Thereās just no way to sound humble when you start throwing these terms around.ā
The guitarist explains that itās a thrill to work closely with musicians he has respected for so many years. āI get to play with people who Iāve always admired ā their singing, their songwriting and their playing,ā he says. āAnd now theyāre in a band with me, and I get to stand back and listen to them do their thing or help them do their thing.ā
The three songwriters have been friends for many years, and have even collaborated sporadically, but they were inspired to form TUNS after the two Murphys (who are not related) backed up OāNeill for a solo-project performance in Toronto in 2013. Once they began writing songs together, their musical DNA quickly melded during deeply collaborative jam sessions.āIf you were to do a forensic analysis of each song, it would be a very complicated process to figure out who contributed what to what song,ā Matt reflects. āIt was so organic ā I hate that word, but whatever. Everything was made up on the spot. And a melody that Mike came up with, I may end up singing with my own words over a chord pattern that Chris devised.ā
TUNS released a self-titled debut album this past August. Its nine cuts are packed to bursting with jangling electric guitars and soaring harmonies that are equally indebted to ā90s college rock and classic ā60s pop. Jubilant opener āBack Among Friendsā acts as a mission statement of sorts, as the guys harmonize on lines about the ups and downs of friendship and declare, āIām done with this humdrum tedium / I want to make some noise.ā
The sun-kissed āMixed Messagesā blends breezy psych-tinged vocals with a toe-tapping surge of six-string grit, and āMind Your Mannersā is a jittery sugar rush of yelped pop hooks. Elsewhere, mid-tempo numbers āLook Whoās Back in Town Againā and āTo Your Satisfactionā venture into slightly more shadowy melodic terrain.
These cuts rarely highlight the collaboratorsā individual personalities; instead, their voices and styles merge, making TUNSsound like a unified creative force rather than the work of three distinct songwriters. āThe comment weāve been hearing is that itās actually pretty hard to know whoās singing what,ā Matt notes. āWe sort of sing in the same register, and to the untrained ear it could be any of us doing it. But it does help us when we sing harmonies. It makes a very cohesive sound.ā
The trio will be bringing their cross-Canada tour to Ā鶹“«Ć½Ó³»on Nov. 25. (Full disclosure: This writer will be performing as part of the showās opening act, Jay Arner.) Fans who attend can expect TUNS to deliver an unfussy show of classic-sounding pop-rock.
āI think we all feel like thereās still new territory to be charted out in that [rock music] world,ā Matt says. āIt may not change the world, but at least for us, thereās still some exploring to do. Thatās really, ultimately, what itās about. Itās about us finding new ways of putting traditional sounds together.ā
TUNS perform Friday, Nov. 25, at the Biltmore Cabaret, 7pm. Tickets $15 at
