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Guitarist John-Angus spared a few minutes to explain to The New Times from his Toronto apartment who The Trews are, why the strange name and what it’s like getting electrocuted.
Q: You went from the name “One I’d Trouser” to “Trouser” to “The Trews.”
Can you explain this interesting chain of names? And what’s with the
spelling of “trews?”
A: We started out playing covers and writing songs in my
grandmother’s basement, where my family was staying at the time, when we
were in high school. The average age of the band members was 15. We
needed a name and we lifted this from a tune that Eric Idle sings in Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.
After a little while we lost the "One I'd" to sort of dumb down the
phallic reference. We played under the Trouser moniker for a couple of
years. On the eve of releasing our first EP we were sent a cease and
desist order from an acid jazz band out of Mississauga {a Toronto
suburb} who were already operating under the name Trouser. In a mad
panic someone suggested The Trews, which is a type of trouser that they
wear over in Scotland {most of the band is of Scottish decent} and the
name stuck.
Q: In the summer of 2002 you won a rock search contest that resulted in a
deal with Sony BMG. Can you tell me about this experience?
A: It was an exciting time for sure. These types of moments are nice
but you quickly realize, after you've signed and made your first record,
that the real hard work is still ahead of you.
Q: How surreal was it landing that contract?
A: Not really. We were pretty cocky back then and felt like we totally deserved it!
Q: How long had you been together as a band before winning that?
A: My brother Colin, our bass player Jack and I had been playing
together for five or six years. The joining of our drummer {and cousin}
Sean, and the rechristening of the band as the Trews had happened
probably a year and a half before we won that.
Q: “Hold Me In Your Arms” rocks--will you please play it at the
Westcott? It’s also pretty hard. Your newer album isn’t as much. Can you
tell me about this change in style?
A: Thank you and yes, we can! I think the experience of recording and touring the Acoustic-Friends & Total Strangers
album had sort of rubbed off on us and we were ready to explore some
different sonic territories and creative avenues. I think our hard
rocking side is still evident of Hope & Ruin and if you go back to No Time For Later,
where “Hold Me In Your Arms” comes from, there's evidence of the softer
side of the band. At the end of the day we don't wanna be a
one-dimensional rock band.
Q: What inspired Acoustic-Friends & Total Strangers--without any overdubs and with a 23-song DVD? That’s pretty cool.
A: We flew to Japan along with some fellow Canadians to showcase for
some Japanese industry. The venue was the Oscar Peterson Theater at the
Canadian embassy, which is a pretty beautiful place and doesn't
necessarily lend itself to face-melting rock. All the other acts on the
bill were either solo artists or stripped down bands. For these reasons
we decided to play it acoustic. It went over so well over there that it
got us to thinking about doing something similar back home. So we booked
two nights at the Glenn Gould Studio in downtown Toronto, which is a
studio/theater that seats about 300, and decided we'd record it. Pretty
much everything you hear and see came from night two. We decided to keep
it completely live to preserve the spirit of what we do acoustically.
We didn't expect it to have the great reception that it did.
Q: I understand there’s a meaningful story behind “Highway of Heroes,” a
charity single you recorded benefiting the Canadian Hero Fund. Will you
tell me about that song and what it refers to?
A: It was inspired by the 2006 death of a soldier from our home town
of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Capt. Nichola Goddard, who was the first
female Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan, and is named after a
stretch of highway that runs between the Trenton military base and the
Toronto coroner’s office on which fallen soldiers are driven down as
part of their repatriation ceremony. It is tribute to all the troops
serving overseas.
Q: How was it writing and recording at Bathhouse Studios? It sounds like a cool place to work.
A: It's an incredibly cool place to work. It's situated in the
countryside outside of Kingston, Ontario and is a great place for a band
like us to get away from it all and really focus on the task at hand.
It's a converted mansion where you stay and play. Once you move in, you
are day-in and day-out focused on the project. It's an inspiring place
to be and that is reflected in the music.
Q: Why did you decide to go there?
A: We've known and loved the Tragically Hip for years and have wanted to do more work there since we first did a demo for our Den of Thieves
record there. Gord Sinclair, co-producer of the record, has been a
friend for many years and was instrumental in helping facilitate the
space and make us feel right at home. The music started to come to life
instantly out there and I don't think that's something to be ignored.
Q: How do you usually write your music? What’s the process?
A: Over the years our songs have come together lots of different ways
but on this album it was completely collaborative by all five
parties--that being the band members and Gord Sinclair.
Q: A few of you are related. How is it writing, touring, sleeping,
eating…doing everything together? Still getting along? What’s your
secret?
A: You have to make an effort to get along. When you've been doing it
as long as we have it's like a marriage and it takes work. Otherwise
there would be a punch-up every five minutes.
Q: Who are three of your greatest influences?
A: As a guitarist, probably Jeff Beck, Joe Perry and Keith Richards.
Q: Which bands/artists are you currently listening to?
A: The last three things I bought on iTunes where: the Mother Mother album Eureka, Jimmy Cliff's Greatest Hits and Los Lobos, Colossal Head.
Q: Give me one really crazy concert moment...
A: I got electrocuted on stage once during our final number at a
venue north of Montreal. My amp blew up at the same time as I was
grabbing the mike and this caused a current to go through my body which
hurt like a bitch. Eventually I was able to let go of the mike, but had
no working guitar so I just swung the guitar in circles over top of my
head until the song was over. No one in the audience had even realized
that anything went wrong; they just thought I was being a great showman.
Q: What can people coming to the show at the Westcott expect?
A: I don't know, I've never been in the audience at one of our shows!
But certainly you're gonna hear a good mix of tunes from all of our
albums and people tend to have a really good time.
Q: Why should people come out to see the Trews?
A: ‘Cause it's fun and better than watching TV or surfing the Internet. Come on out and boogie with like-minded people of your community. Music is supposed to bring people together, man!
