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Band That Lives Together Plays Together
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Elise Roller admits it can be a little frustrating being the only woman in a house full of dudes.
...Elise Roller admits it can be a little frustrating being the only woman in a house full of dudes.
Even if those roommates are also members of her band.
“They’re like my brothers,” says the singer and keyboardist for Calgary alt. rock band, Go For The Eyes.
“You have that love-hate relationship. Sometimes it’s like, ‘I don’t want your friends over right now, they bug me.’ Or, ‘Can you clean up your dishes?’ I’m kind of like the big sister ... But it’s nice sometimes. I always feel protected.”
Roller says living in the same Millrise home as her three bandmates has helped Go For The Eyes become a much tighter live band.
“We’ve had other musicians tell us, ’Wow, we can tell that you live together because you’re all really connected,’” she explains.
“We did it on purpose in order to grow as a band.”
The band’s living situation also proved advantageous while recording their debut album.
GFTE borrowed $10,000 worth of recording equipment from a friend, set it up in their basement and recorded for several weeks with bass player Eric Svilpis producing.
“We really got to make this album sound exactly how we wanted it to,” says Roller.
“We would just come home from work and play around with something. This album is exactly the way we wanted it to sound like. It wasn’t rushed.”
The group - which is rounded out by singer-guitarist Jeff Turner and drummer Nathan Raboud - is celebrating their new CD with a show at SAIT’s The Gateway on Friday night.
Go For The Eyes’ sound is hard to pin down, although the band has dubbed it ‘circus rock.’ The undulating, bass-heavy rhythms and unusual melodies have also drawn comparisons to Queens of the Stone Age, Arctic Monkeys and Jack White’s The Dead Weather.
“The Dead Weather is great because they have male and female vocals,” says Roller.
“I’ve listened to a lot of Dead Weather and a lot of what (Dead Weather singer) Alison Mosshart does and Jeff has been compared to Jack White a lot.”
Though Go For The Eyes has been going since 2008, the current lineup has only been together for about a year.
Roller had been gigging around town as a solo artist and kept bumping into GFTE at shows.
“Jeff and I just started collaborating,” she recalls. “We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if Elise Roller and Go for the Eyes could just merge?’
And I was like, ‘Why can’t they?’”
With Roller in the fold, Go For The Eyes caught the attention of a New York-based label. But after months of recording demos, both parties decided they weren’t right for each other.
Still, the band remained focused and continued to write songs.
“I think once they added me to the picture, it kind of softened things up a little bit,” says Roller.
“They’ve always made it known to me they wanted to keep that hard edge. That was probably their biggest fear when they added me, that I couldn’t sing rock and roll. But it’s actually made a really unique sound for us. Even just adding the keyboards in.”
After Friday’s CD release party, GTFE will be gearing up for a tour that will eventually take them to Toronto to showcase at this year’s Canadian Music Week.
“I’m kind of nervous,” says Roller.
“We don’t have a van yet. So we’re not sure how we’re getting out there. But we’re sure it will work itself out.
Our parents will probably come through for us in the end. I’m more excited than anything. It’s a huge opportunity.”
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Sexy Rock 'n' roll Karma
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Ever heard the phrase, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”? Your annoying high school g...Ever heard the phrase, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”? Your annoying high school gym teacher, or maybe a douche bag boss, has used the expression and you’ve just brushed it off as another patronizing phrase. This saying has held true, however, for local indie rockers Go For The Eyes, finding motivation and a D.I.Y. attitude out of the ups and downs of today’s music industry. Vocalist/ keyboardist Elise Roller explains via e-mail how she and her fellow bandmates - vocalist/guitarist Jeff Turner, bassist Eric Svilpis and drummer Nathan Raboud - have managed to escape unwanted label drama for some sexy rock ‘n’ roll karma.
“We had a New York-based record label interested in signing us, but this prospect put us through a couple months of high stress writing and demoing everything we possibly could,” explains Roller. “The stress acted as a filter and we lost a couple of our members... In the end, going our separate way from the label allowed us the freedom to do our own record the way we wanted to do it without having suits nitpicking at details like production value or the number of hooks in a song. Without them, though, we wouldn't have wound up with the really solid line-up of dedicated musicians we have, with a unified goal of living music full time. We haven't looked back since.”
Rock ‘n’ roll and sex are inseparable and this is not lost on GFTE, who have often had their sound described as “sex-rock” and have perhaps one of the hottest leading ladies to grace the local stages.
“Sex is the beginning of life and we decided we hate the genre question as it is, so this is us trying to begin carving our own niche into the mountains of rock — plus it grabs attention. To be honest, we prefer sexy circus rock, or even just circus rock, mostly because our lives play out like the big top most of the time,” describes Roller.
Tied into the sex-rock vibe that GFTE brings both in sound and stage presence is the undeniable chemistry found between vocalists Roller and Turner.
“The idea we had was to have that juxtaposition be a key element to our vibe simply because it's something you see everyday, not just as a male/female thing but, from a broader perspective, more about the fact that relationships between opposites are always necessary to provide balance within a structure,” states Roller. “To be honest it's hard to describe the chemistry without a PhD - you've just gotta see it and get whatever you can out of it.”
GFTE are releasing their debut album this month and Roller claims the album gives fans a great summation of the trials and tribulations of the band. With a highly anticipated CD release show, a great deal of buzz surrounding the band and a proven work ethic, GFTE see nothing but great things for their band in the near future. Don’t let the name fool you: Go For The Eyes are after more than your gaze of attention. They plan on conquering audiences’ minds, bodies and souls nationwide.
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TWM Presents at Canadian Music Week Spotlight #2: Go For The Eyes
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This is the second installment in my ongoing preview of the bands who will be gracing the stage duri...This is the second installment in my ongoing preview of the bands who will be gracing the stage during Canadian Music Week at Rancho Relaxo. Today’s band is Go For The Eyes from Calgary, Alberta.
The Band: Go For The Eyes (http://www.myspace.com/gofortheeyesband) from Calgary
The Timeslot: Weds March 9th at 10:00 PM
What To Expect: Go For The Eyes come on the strong recommendation from my good friends The Darcys. There are definitely some great Albertan bands, but not as many as you might expect, so it is always refreshing to hear a cool band coming from the town of my birth. The band defines their sound as “circus rock,” an instantly intriguing label to put on any style of music. Go For The Eyes features a perfect blend of female/male lead vocals combined with huge driving guitars and some stellar drumming. They’ve been tearing it up in Calgary and now aim to taste some of that success across the country. It’s heavier than most indie-rock but never treads near hard-rock territory. I hear a fair bit of Jack White in the vocals, personally. The band is releasing an album just before the end of February, so they’ll be hitting Toronto and CMW with new music in tow. Remember, this festival is very much about seeing bands you can’t see the rest of the year. Keep that in mind when filing your schedule.
Below is a video of a special acoustic performance of their song “Tambourine,” done for an interview in Calgary. Take a listen and hear for yourself.
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I love this album soo much!
"I love this album soo much I dubbed it to cassette and glued it in my tape deck."
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Go For The Eyes Sounds
"Their circus, pop, punk, rock sound, is undeniably unique." - Drea L
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Go Damn, That's Good Music
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"The Strokes meet The Vines meet That Cool Band You Heard Once On The Radio, Having Been Out Way Too..."The Strokes meet The Vines meet That Cool Band You Heard Once On The Radio, Having Been Out Way Too Late But Strangely Feeling Still Lucid Enough To Register “God Damn, That’s Good Music” — But The DJ Never Came On To Say Who They Were. However, unlike The Strokes, Go For The Eyes care, and unlike The Vines, they’re actually generally pretty good. (Sorry, Vines fans.)”"
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Go For The Eyes - Easy on the eyes - Nice on the Ears
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Our latest Front Page Band answers to the name of Go For The Eyes. Fronted by the lovely Elise Rolle...Our latest Front Page Band answers to the name of Go For The Eyes. Fronted by the lovely Elise Roller (Vocals/Keys) and the fantastic Mr. Jeff Turner (Vocals/Guitar), Go For The Eyes delivers a sumptuous auditory sandwich of alternative pop-rock to their listeners that will wake up your libido, no matter how comatose it may be. GFTE's sounds have been described as "Sex Rock". We can't get into my crush on Elise here, but I would definitely second that. Their instrumental section contains the sort of wild precision you usually only get from progressive-rock bands.
I've been talking with Elise quite a bit lately, and one thing that stands out is her passion for her band, and her dedication to music. Where some bands book as many shows as humanly possible, Elise tells me they spend painful amounts of time in rehearsal and designing their show around the next venue. This is the reason we'll all be waiting a little longer to see them play. Make no mistake, these guys are a massive ticket, and their most recent show at the Marquee room on February 6th had completely sold out. I can't say enough for this band, so quit reading this article and listen for yourself!
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Go For The Eyes Heat Up The Marquee Room
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Just after midnight on February 6th, Go For The Eyes tore up the stage at the Marquee Room to a drin...Just after midnight on February 6th, Go For The Eyes tore up the stage at the Marquee Room to a drinking and dancing crowd. Elise Roller and Jeff Turner brought unified vocals and equally stellar individual instrumental performances. Nate Raboud on drums, Eric Svilpis on bass, and Dylan Santimeau on guitar also brought kick-ass execution throughout the night.
They played crowd favourites such as Whiskey Cocaine, Best Friend’s Ex, Pills and Doctor.
The multi-faceted event, that featured Go For The Eyes models fashioning band merchandise, giveaways and a variety filled silent auction, was geared towards raising money to record a new album, a milestone which the band hopes to accomplish independently with their new line-up.
Daniel Bennett, a rapper better known as Transit, was the show’s opening act, followed by The Dead Hands and Calm Asa Coma. Transit joined The Dead Hands on stage and rocked a duet, proving his popularity with the audience. Both The Dead Hands and Calm Asa Coma performed strong sets.
Roller joined Bennett on stage to sing Reason To Stay, a track that will be featured on the rapper’s newest full-length album due to drop in September of this year. All photos by fourfourbeat.
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Jeff Turner and Nathan Raboud (drums) of the Calgary rock band Go For The Eyes; perform at the Concert of Hope site in Slave Lake Ab on Saturday July 2, 2011. Nathan is from Slave Lake himself.
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SLAVE LAKE, ALBERTA JULY 2, 2011-Jeff Turner and Nathan Raboud (drums) of the Calgary rock band Go F...SLAVE LAKE, ALBERTA JULY 2, 2011-Jeff Turner and Nathan Raboud (drums) of the Calgary rock band Go For The Eyes; perform at the Concert of Hope site in Slave Lake Ab on Saturday July 2, 2011. Nathan is from Slave Lake himself. ( Photo by John Lucas/Edmonton Journal)
Read it on Global News: SLAVE LAKE, ALBERTA JULY 2, 2011-Jeff Turner and Nathan Raboud (drums) of the Calgary rock band “Go For The Eyes” perform at the Concert of Hope site in Slave Lake Ab on Saturday July 2, 2011. Nathan is from Slave Lake himself. ( Photo by John Lucas/Edmonton Journal)
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State of the Arts: Go for the Eyes roll with circus rock
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The band that plays together, stays together.
That’s literally the case with the four members of ...The band that plays together, stays together.
That’s literally the case with the four members of local act Go For the Eyes, who not only share a musical home together in their indie rock collective, but also share the walls and rent in a home in southwest Calgary. And while the constant, close quarters can hold with them inherent issues and possible confrontations, vocalist-keyboardist Elise Roller says any ill will there may be rarely bleeds into the band atmosphere, and is in fact usually tempered by the idea of getting together onstage.
“Really, that’s where most of our fights are, with the living situation, not with the band,” Roller says while sitting in a southwest pub with her band-roommate, bassist Eric Svilpis.
“Actually whenever we play together as a band I find that our relationship is better as roommates. We need that. Because we need to remember why we’re a family, because the music brings us together. Because we’re all so different.”
And an odd assortment they are. Roller, who had her own successful pop solo career before joining with the trio, brings her love of lighter fare such as Coldplay and Interpol to the group; Svilpis professes his love for everything from experimental free jazz to acts such as Mr. Bungle; guitarist-vocalist Jeff Turner is the straight-up rock guy, who leans toward acts such as Queens of the Stone Age and the Arctic Monkeys; and drummer Nathan Raboud’s the metal head and hardcore fan of the band.
All of those differing sounds are evident in the music that Go For the Eyes has been cultivating in the city’s scene for almost a year now. Earlier this year, the band released its self-titled full-length debut, which features all of those personalities pushing against one another, but pulling together for a style the band calls “circus rock” — a rocking, funking, melodic mix that sounds like System of A Down meets Rough Trade meets Primus.
“I think that’s where the sound comes from — we all bring our own flavour into it,” Roller says. “It wasn’t like, ‘This how we should sound, let’s try to do this.’ It was like, ‘How do we make everything come together as a group and as individuals to please everybody?’ That’s where our sound comes from.”
Svilpis agrees, noting that because their style is unique and undefined, there’s room for everyone to contribute their own personalities towards the greater Go For the Eyes good.
“We all understand that it’s a matter of putting a song ahead of your own desires,” he says.
“We all sort of approach it with the mentality of everything for the song’s benefit . . . And we’re all fairly good at keeping each other in check. That’s the thing we’ve all learned living together.”
Of course, living together is one thing — living and succeeding in the larger world is something else entirely. And the successes they’ve had thus far are many and deserved, including: a show they had at this year’s CMW festival in Toronto, which earned them a private showcase for representative’s of EMI Publishing; their CD release party at SAIT set the record for tickets sold for a local show at the venue; and they’ve been invited to perform at the Slave Lake Concert of Hope at the end of the month, where the quartet will share the stage with such acts as the Stampeders, Susan Aglukark, Charlie Major and Ashley MacIsaac.
(The concert takes place June 30 to July 2 at the Big Fish Bay field in Slave Lake. For more info, visit www.slavelakeaid.com.)
That said, the band admits there have been times where they feel they’ve been hurt by the industry’s inability to pigeonhole them, even if the four-members see it as their strength and their selling point to the people who really matter — the audience.
“It really is advantageous, strictly because there is a wider appeal,” Svilpis says.
“It seems like an overused phrase, but there’s something for everyone. And I’ve seen all walks of music fans at our shows — everybody from metal heads to pop all-stars — and it seems to consistent ringing approval . . . When you have a good mix of everything, like we try and do, I feel like it strikes chords in all walks of music fans.”
Roller takes it defiantly further.
“We want to create a genre,” she says. “We want to create a genre where eventually people are going to be like, ‘Oh, yeah, there’s a circus rock festival going on,’ or something. Now we have to focus on all of the times people have not fit us into their (festival) schedules and just light a little fire.
“Some day,” she laughs, “some day they’re going to wish that they’d had us at their festival and we’re going to have our own.”
mbell@calgaryherald.com
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Gallery: Concert of Hope for Slave Lake
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Take a look at a collection of photos from the Concert of Hope to benefit Slave Lake.
Elise Rolle...Take a look at a collection of photos from the Concert of Hope to benefit Slave Lake.
Elise Roller of the Calgary rock band Go For The Eyes performs at the Concert of Hope.
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