Bad Western
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Bad Western

Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2018 | SELF

Toronto, Ontario, Canada | SELF
Established on Jan, 2018
Band Alternative Indie

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"Hopeful Endings in Bad Western's Heartfelt "Sainte Something""

We have a tendency to color endings with sadness and melancholy; to lament them for their finality, rather than to embrace what we did have, and appreciate that time for what it was. Yes, doors close. Time is infinite, but life is finite: That which is, must eventually be have been. Yet that doesn’t mean we have to dwell in sadness: Bad Western’s stirring new single “Sainte Something” looks back on an ending with bittersweet warmth and appreciation for time spent together.

Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Sainte Something,” the latest single off Bad Western’s upcoming debut EP (out July 2018). Consisting of Ben Carter-Whitney, Landen Moore, and Wyatt Fine-Gagné, Bad Western are a Toronto-based indie rock band from Montreal. With strong pop, folk, and rock sensibilities, the band blend guitars and vocals to create a powerful atmosphere that resonates with feeling – especially on “Sainte Something,” the band’s best offering yet.

“Sainte Something” is a folk song dressed in rock instruments. The track moves with a driving force, starting off with a slow acoustic pattern and slowly building into an overhaul of emotion. Wyatt Fine-Gagné’s vocals echo with humbling grace as he resolves to a move forward with a smile, rather than a frown.

“At the beginning of my final semester of school in Montreal, a friend asked me to contribute a song to a short film he was producing,” Wyatt Fine-Gagné tells Atwood Magazine. “We were all excited by the prospect, but the direction we were given was relatively vague: The song was supposed to reflect our experience in Montreal. When I originally wrote “Sainte Something” I was fresh off of a break-up and just a few months away from finishing school and leaving Montreal, my home for the previous four years. I was thinking a lot about endings – how we cope with them, what they look like in retrospect, and whether they really measure up to the import I often ascribe to them.”

He continues: “When things end, my tendency is to zero in on regret and the things I feel I’ve missed out on, but I wanted “Sainte Something” to focus on the hope and possibility that endings can bring us. It is a song about looking beyond endings, appreciating the time that comes before them. It’s about enjoying the ride rather than worrying about what needs doing before you’re done.”

You could read “Sainte Something” as a breakup song, and in many ways it is. Perhaps breakups are just the easiest way for us to imagine this kind of intimate “divide” – the transition from knowing something so well, to being disconnected and out of reach. “Sainte Something” is very much romantic, but that romance applies to all life situations – because all of them, dark as it sounds, do come to an end one way or another. All we can do is embrace the life we have and the experiences we’re given – which is exactly what Bad Western do in “Sainte Something.”

Stream Bad Western’s new single exclusively on Atwood Magazine, and stay tuned for more from this promising trio as they gear up to release their debut EP next month! - Atwood Magazine


"Bad Western releases video for “White Shoes”"

Toronto, ON-based band, Bad Western consists of Wyatt Fine-Gagne (vocals/ rhythm guitar), Ben Carter-Whitney (lead guitar/ keys/ vocals/ bass), and Landen Moore (drums). The trio released their self-titled EP back in July, featuring the single, “White Shoes”. Today, we are pleased to aid in the unveiling of the video for “White Shoes”.

Wyatt Fine-Gagne shares on the single,

“In the fall of my last year of school, around the time that I wrote “White Shoes,” I had begun to notice more and more people wearing white sneakers – Chuck Taylor’s, mostly. Friends of mine who ended up with a pair were often pretty meticulous about keeping them clean, but I’m generally the opposite; I actually kind of like the look of worn down dirty shoes.

I wrote this song during a period of transition, uncertainty, and stress, all of which manifested in a deep desire for adventure. Adventure, especially with someone I cared about, seemed like a solution to all my problems, or at least a way to delay facing them. Obviously, this is a bit misguided; it’s said often enough that it’s now practically clichéd advice to tell someone ‘running away won’t solve your problems.’ But I still do get some comfort from the thought of leaving for a place where nobody knows my name. The thought of adventure in and of itself can feel liberating sometimes.

It took some time for the song’s arrangement to come together after I finished writing it, but I’m really happy with the result. I think the finished product really captures the ideas of movement and adventure that “White Shoes” centres on. We wanted those same themes to come through in a video – having seen some of their previous work, we thought that Oliver and Shady would be a perfect fit with us. They’re both really talented filmmakers, and we’re really happy with what they came up with.”

Oliver Whitfield-Smith, director and editor of the video comments,

“My partner [Shady Hanna] and I wanted to create a video for White Shoes that could showcase the upbeat and inherently catchy melody while giving weight to both the sombre and triumphant moments of the track. We landed on literal white shoes as our method of communicating these themes, as well as to allow us to craft a story about a group of characters being united through music.

After a couple days of perusing our local thrift stores and begging our friends, we assembled a collection of the most interesting and unique pairs of white shoes we could find. We shot over the course of eight different days, with about ten pairs of legs playing all of our characters (some lucky actors got to play multiple pairs of shoes). After gathering hours of footage, we molded the story in the editing room, where we went through many different iterations of the video with the band until we had crafted a fun, quirky music video about a city full of different people coming together to celebrate the power of music.”

Check out the video above, and be sure to connect with the band on their socials if you want to know more! - Canadian Beats


Discography

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Bio

Formed in Montreal and based in Toronto, Bad Western blends rock, pop, and folk elements into upbeat, guitar-driven music. Their self-titled debut EP pairs these elements with thoughtful, introspective lyrics to tell a story about love, loss, and moving on, from both people and places. Playing live, they deliver a joyful and energetic performance, with an ever-growing roster of original songs ranging back more than five years.

Band Members