Music
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Last week I received a 3 song demo from a local Toronto band who call themselves At Odds With Even. Upon first listen, I have the impression that this is a trio of music lovers who are up on their musical history. I hear traces of The Minutemen, The Melvins and The Cramps who are all bands that only the most astute music fan could successfully draw inspiration from. On the other hand, it's quite possible that Adam Tiessen, Anthony Randall and Dan Roffey are not familiar with those bands at all and they just simply stumbled into this sound without any preconceived mental prodding whatsoever. Either way, this a band that is worthy of our attention.
The demo was presented in an envelope covered in some very original looking artwork and the CD jacket also offered more of the same which leads me to believe that this band is determined to be noticed. The three songs presented on the demo show a broad range of musical styles. Recognize contains some mind altering psychedelia and Adam's vocals remind me a lot of D. Moon from the aforementioned Minutemen. Plastic Bag is the most immediate of the three songs, boasting a lo-fi garage sound and a chunky guitar breakdown that is not dissimilar to the aforementioned Melvins, as well as perhaps begging some comparisons to Mudhoney or Dinosaur Jr. And On The Corner is the third song, a slowed down reggae beat accompanied by some bassy vocals in the chorus that remind me of, yes, you guessed it, The Cramps. There are other songs on their myspace page that showcase a band that does not want to stay confined by any specific musical niche. It'll be interesting to see which direction the band decides to take in the next year or so, but in the meantime they're still playing the occasional gig throughout the city (and likely looking for more gigs too) so keep your eyes peeled and check them out.
http://itsnotthebandihateitstheirfans.blogspot.com/2008/10/at-odds-with-even.html
- It's Not the Band I Hate, Its Their Fans
Discography
Putting an album together as we speak.
Photos
Bio
AT ODDS WITH EVEN started via a posting on the popular craigslist website. Drummer, singer, and sometimes chalk vandal, Adam Tiessen responded to an ad posted by guitarist, bassist, and sometimes artist, Anthony Randall. They met up one wintery evening in 2007 and made some tequila-powered fuzz rock. Since then, they have written and recorded plenty of songs, and added a full time bass player, Dan Roffey (formerly of the heavy nineties band Guilt Trip).
Together, these musicians form a power trio - drums, bass, and guitar - and trade off on singing duties. The band writes and records constantly, using a digital 16-track recorder, at their shared rehearsal space in the Junction. They incorporate a variety of styles (dance beats, garage rock, etc.) and instruments (keyboards, hand-clap orchestras, etc.) into their ever-expanding repertoire. Other musicians have compared them to alternative heavyweights The Melvins and Local H. The members of AT ODDS WITH EVEN are happy with these comparisons, although they don't think that they sound like either of these bands.
AT ODDS WITH EVEN has played at many venues around the city, i.e. The Cameron House, Mitzi’s Sister, The Reverb, Smiling Buddha, etc., and are planning a few dates in Montreal in the new year.
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