Biography
Highly sensitive to my surroundings, I am always curious of the thoughts behind people’s actions. Often, my observations and inconsistencies that surround me manifest themselves into lyrics and eventually into a song. Creating music gives me a sense of purpose and direction, a kind of sanity if you will, as well as an insatiable appetite that drives me to stretch my artistic boundaries across music forms. My original tunes combine traditional roots and contemporary music. Of course, I have been influenced by many artists including Elliot Smith, Kurt Cobain, Syd Barrett, John Lennon, Leonard Cohen, Feist, Josh Holmes, and Tom Waits.
Music and writing are my passions - performing on stage in front of live audiences, well, I find absolutely euphoric. Currently, I am in 3 projects. Toys are Just which is my main focus as of late, the deadbeat dads and my solo Carlo Meriano. I have played shows all around Toronto with many talented bands and am always working on music and finding new music to listen to.
The Hedonism of an unfurnished apartment
Caughing caughing, all the emptly Oland cans covered in ciggarette ends- where are my ashtrays? I bought so many from thrift stores in Dartmouth, and now they're all gone. No shelves, all my movies carpeting the floor, small multiple towers of Babel around my empty fish tank with the subtle smell of rainsoaked pebbles. My computer over an upturned microwave box, beside a new pay-as-you-go phone with the Toto ringtone, a half deck of Peter Jackson reds, and my father's gold Omega Seamaster. An empty bottle of Pringles I didn't buy beside a half-empty bottle of Wiser's I did. And between my box desk, the wiser's and the Schwepp's, lies her copy of the Outsiders- I'm on page 42 and its not helping.
Look at what I have to resort to, without you..
I can only imagine the musician who, having exusted the loquacious musings of his Suburban peers- having watched one too many Interpol/Metric/NMH dashed with occasional Nirvana, Lennon, and DFA- falls apart and picks up a 1.99 kinder guitar from Value Village. Carlo Meriano and Dave Plowman, self-proclaimed gunslingers have produced something here on this album- Toys are Just- something of a proviso for our Canadian pop explosion. Drink your fill of young people waving their hands in the air, tight jeans and so many flaccid rhymes, and your sure to wake up with a hangover. This EP is not the book, contains far less than you've grown accostomed to in little (non) smokey bars- Carlo Meriano wants to talk to someone, but only if they might flip to the back, skip the rotting meat.. (if you wonder what all this means, let me fast forward to the point of an album recorded with toys and beats- have sex with someone to this music and see if that doesn't work out for
you.)
Instrumentation
Toys Are Just
1. Carlo Meriano: lead vocals, Kool toyz electronic guitar ,ukulele,guitar
Dave Plowman: Synthesizers ,backup vocals
Mike Mcgellon- guitar
Zak Miller- Bass guitar
Dillon Collet- Drums
Sam- piano
The Deadbeatdads
1. Carlo Meriano: lead vocals, acoustic guitar and harmonica
2. Dustin Braiden: bass guitar and vocals
Discography
So far three of my songs (Happy Destroyer, Sexy Technology and Plan B) have received airplay on U of T and York University radios. Plan B was also aired on two-way monologue on-line radio. I have also played live a Ciut Toronto. I am done all the tracks to my toys Are Just ep which is set for may 2009 release..
Links
| http://myspace.com/toysarejust |