
Sloan
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12 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SLOANâS 12
1. That title isnât just some random number. Sloan 12 is indeed the 12th album from Canadian power-pop perennials Sloan, which means itâs as good as Led Zeppelin IV, Black Sabbathâs Vol. 4, and Chicago 4 all put together. But seriously: not only are Sloan the rare band to make it to their 12th record, and not only are Sloan the rare band to make it to their 12th record with all four original members, and not only are Sloan the rare band to make it to their 12th album with four original members who are equally prolific songwriters, theyâre arguably the only band to make it to their 12th album with four original members who are both equally prolific songwriters and all still working at the top of their respective games, sounding utterly ageless in the process. On 12, each of the four principals contribute three stellar songs that play to their core strengths: Patrick Pentland with the soaring rock anthems, Chris Murphy with the playful, participatory sing-alongs, Jay Ferguson with the jaunty prog-pop gems, and Andrew Scott with the whimsical innerspace explorations. Says Murphy, âI guess with the album title, we are showing off the fact the we have 12 records.â
2. Actually thatâs not entirely true. âWhen we were making the record, I kept Tweeting about it and hashtagging the posts #Sloan12,â Pentland says. âSo I was like, letâs just call it Sloan12. Naming records is always the worst and we can never agree on a title!â
3. Itâs pretty together. On their previous release, 2016âs Commonwealth, each member of Sloan was granted their own side to use as a blank canvas, resulting in a collection of de facto solo EPs packaged as a double album. This time, the band were eager to initiate more creative cross-pollinationâwell, at least to start. âWeâd hoped that this LP would be more of a reaction to Commonwealth,â Ferguson says. âWhereas that album was more of everyone retreating to corners to produce and sequence a side of their own material, this one would potentially have more collaboration than usual.â Alas, as Murphy notes, with three parents in the band, âItâs hard to get everyone in the room with kids, and people getting sick from their kids, and hockey practice with their kids.â Still, that collaborative spirit shines through on Murphyâs âWish Upon a Satellite,â a glorious union of AC/DC chords and Big Star choruses that features a second-verse lead vocal from Pentland, while the normally self-sufficient Scott invited Murphy and keyboarist Gregory Macdonald to (in Murphyâs words) âcome barf harmonies and melodies all overâ the Pink Floydian reverie â44 Teenagers.â And while the 12 songs on 12 greatly emphasize each memberâs distinct personality, theyâre all ultimately united by their lean economy and punchy precision. âI really wanted to make a concise record after the sprawl of Commonwealth,â says Murphy, noting this is the first Sloan record to feature equal song contributions from all four members since 1999âs Between the Bridges. âI think this record will be that much easier to digest. Itâs certainly easier to learn!â
4. Itâs smeared in Smeared. Sloanâs 1992 debut is something of an outlier in the bandâs discography, foregrounding a formative love of shoegazey guitar effects that the band hasnât indulged since. âSome Sloan fans donât even count Smeared,â Murphy says. âThey start at [the 1994 follow-up] Twice Removed, because thatâs when we really started to become the band we are now.â But Sloan12 is rife with Flanger-induced flashbacks: the introductory surge of Murphyâs âSpin Our Wheelsâ conjures the gliding momentum of the bandâs Converse-clad classic â500 Up,â while Pentlandâs âAll Of the Voicesâ comes slathered in the signature harmonies that powered their breakthrough single âUnderwhelmed.â Another of Pentlandâs compositions, âThe Day Will Be Mine,â is even less subtle in announcing its inspiration. âItâs basically âMarcus Said,ââ Pentland laughs, referring to the droning Smeared highlight. âI realized that a part of the sound of our first record was me making noise, and thatâs really my strength: guitar noise that envelops pop songs. I would say thereâs definitely an element of early Sloan to this record that we havenât looked at it in a while.â Adds Murphy: âI think Smeared was actually the last time we were all equally excited by the same movement: all that grunge and shoegaze stuff. And since then, weâve all split off to explore our own musical interests in our songs.â
5. Some of these tracks wonât just remind you of older Sloan songs, they are older Sloan songs. As Pentland notes, when you have four songwriters playing together for the better part of three decades, âthereâs a lot of riffs leftover.â By his estimation, the music for âThe Day Will Be Mineâ has been kicking around for 20 years in search of the right lyrics; âAll of The Voicesâ dates back to the sessions for 2003âs Action Pact, but, he says, ânobody cared about it when I wrote it and we demoed it. Then, when we got together for this record, I gave everybody else the demo for that song, and they were like, âWhere did that come from?â And Iâm like, âI wrote that 15 years agoâyou all played on it!ââ
6. Yes, Patrick is fully aware âAll of the Voicesâ sounds a bit like Nirvana. Oh well, whatever, nevermind. DGC represent!
7. But this is no nostalgia trip. âBecause itâs 2018 and weâre still making records, the â90s mean very little to me,â Pentland says. âI donât look back at that era with any real fondness, whereas the 2000s have been more interesting to meâmaybe because weâre more relaxed now.â
8. You will learn fascinating facts about arcane British property laws. With its vivid images of chalets, mountains, and ancient Welsh castles, Fergusonâs âRight to Roamâ lets you vicariously travel through the UK countryside on the back of a sprightly, locomotive, acoustic pop tune. ââRight to roamâ was a term Iâd only first heard of when at a wedding in England,â he says. âA relative of the groom was telling me about his hiking adventures in Scotland where they have a freedom-to-roam act giving people access to private land for wandering, walking, and hiking to prevent creating a country of overwhelming private property. I used the phrase as the basis for an England/Wales travelogue, and also a contemplation on pluses and minuses of personal freedom.â
9. Yes, thereâs another Sloan song called âIf It Feels Good Do It.â Murphyâs boogie-woogied jam âDonât Stop (If It Feels Good Do It)ââanother older song salvaged for the new recordâmay share its parenthetical name with Sloanâs Pentland-penned 2001 hit single, but as he claims, âI had my âIf It Feels Good Do Itâ song before Patrick had his, and we just decided at the time that his was better!â (NOTE: Pentland disputes this account of events.)
10. This time, itâs personal. In recent years, Pentland has become more open about the anxiety and panic attacks that have plagued him as a performer. On Sloan12, he channels those experiences into two of the albumâs most rousing songs, âThe Day Will Be Mineâ and âHave Faith,â both of which use amped-up riffs and huge hooks to burrow a path from darkness to light. âDepression and anxiety were definitely on my mind when I was writing those songs,â he says. âBoth are basically about desperationâsomething has to change or this is not going to have a happy ending.â And while Scott is known for trading in surrealist imagery and cryptic wordplay, the psych-folk sway of âGone for Goodâ chronicles the breakdown of a friendâs marriage in the wake of an illicit affair. âItâs written in the spirit of [Twice Removedâs] âPeople of the Sky,ââ he says. âAs in: non-fiction.â
11. Now, about that Gord Downie line. As 12 eases you into its comedown closer, Scottâs â44 Teenagers,â the songâs cosmic-rock spell is momentarily broken by one particularly eye-opening lyric about a certain late Canadian rock icon. âJust the other day I was reminded of the many ways Gord Downie died/ I see a kid in my head who will be seeing red, until his anger yields to pride,â Scott sings with laissez-faire Ă©lan. âThat song was deliberately written as an ode to the teenager,â Scott explains. And part of that, he adds, involves examining how teenagers process trauma. âThe line isnât so much about Gord passing, but about feeling sad for his teenage son who just lost his dad. And not suddenlyâbut in a terrible, protracted kind of way. When I was 14âthe same age my son is nowâmy dad dropped dead in front of me from a massive heart attack. He was just 48 so you can perhaps imagine what the years leading up to that number have been like for myself.â For Scott, this wasnât purely an exercise in speculative songwriting from an emotional distanceânot only did he and Downie know one another, Scottâs teenage daughter and Downieâs son are actually schoolmates. âThere are many layers to the lyrics that hit home for me in a very real way,â Scott says. And besides, knowing Downieâs healthy appreciation of subversive humour and absurdity, âI think he wouldâve loved the tribute.â
12. Sloan are still here to serve you. On the surface, Fergusonâs centerpiece track âEssential Servicesâ seems like another joyous display of the bandâs consummate craftsmanship, using a bouncy âMr. Blue Skyâ piano line as a trampoline for some sky-bound CSNY-worthy harmonies. But couched within its ecstatic sound is a poignant statement of purpose. Says Ferguson, âChris thought the song was a fun way of referring to our band, being an essential serviceâwe can’t go away! The song touches on that aspect of our career. The chorusââessential services are counting on youâârefers to ourselves, but also the âyou,â meaning our audience and how we count on them to support and continue with us. They’re part of the equation as well. Does that sound too corny to say?â Hey, if it feels good, do it.
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