Diehatzu Hijets

The Bros EP follows Diehatzu Hijets’ 2011 full-length “Doo Doo Boy,” a chart-topper at CJSR 88.5 FM, with another heavy serving of honest, fuzzed-out alt-rock that would be right at home nestled among Sonic Youth and Eric’s Trip in any ’90s record collection.

While L’Heureux wrote most of Doo Doo Boy on his own, this one is a collaborative effort with major contributions from bassist Drew Lamb and drummer Adam Prins. The disc was recorded almost a year ago but was held off due to finances – until Whiskey Wagon frontman Landon Barrowman stepped in with his label Dead City Records.

Lyrically, songs like Get Real and Makeshift Sick plow through topics of alienation, transitioning into adulthood, and finding one’s self amid crushing pressures from peers and society. “We’ll never be what you wanted us to be. We won’t run from ourselves,” L’Heureux proclaims proudly on the band’s flagship song, the song the same title as the band name. - Kevin Maimann

Edmonton’s grunge rock gnarlaters strike again with another full length onslaught of rock and roll annihilation. Bros is steeped in that unique variety of inimitable and indefatigable bromance that only a band can really share. The fraternal jam photons that compose each of these head bangers would need a quantum physicist to pinpoint their constantly vibrating position. Highlights include, but are not limited to, the eponymous anthem “Diehatzu Hijets” and the unassuming vulnerability of “Get Real.” Lyrically, Layne L’Heureux can be a joy to listen to. His material is throroughly approachable and relatable without forsaking the poetic. If you have enjoyed Diehatzu Hijets before, live or on record, I think you can agree that this band only ever gets better and Bros is a testament to that.
- Argue Jobs

Doo Doo Boy
Diehatzu Hijets -Doo Doo Boy
Old Ugly, 2011
***

"The world keeps spinnin' around / how I need it now" pleads Layne L'Heureux, singer/guitarist on Diehatzu Hijets' "Falling Apart." It's a summarizing moment on Doo Doo Boy: the sentiment is fragile, but awash in guitars that spit fuzzy haze and amped up soloing, its power gets pumped up into a higher register. Dinosaur Jr's a definite touchstone here: the bruised melodies carry well enough, propped up often with acoustic six-string, and the band seems suitably roughshod to deliver on the more charged-up ideals. - Vue Weekly (Paul Blinov)

Not exactly a slacker
With his long, scraggly hair and casual dress sense, Layne L'Heureux looks like he stepped out of Richard Linklater's early '90s films, Slacker or the stoner classic, Dazed and Confused.
The local singer-songwriter's tunes, introspective rock wrapped in a haze of fuzzy guitars, self-loathing lyrics and sluggish vocals, are also echoes of the same era -inspired by altrock pioneers such as Dinosaur Jr., Husker Du and Nirvana.
L'Heureux, however, is anything but a slacker.
He works three jobs and is promoting his latest albums -New, a solo effort, and Doo Doo Boy, recorded with his trio, Diehatzu Hijets -released via Edmonton's Old Ugly Recording Co.
If that wasn't enough, he's about to start working on another album with Rene Wilson, formerly of The Subatomics, at Riverdale Recorders.
"Yeah, non-stop," says L'Heureux, 23, who grew up in various towns in northern Alberta. "I try to write a song every day, and if I'm not writing, I'm practising. It's all I do, man. I don't have a formal secondary education, so if I'm not writing, I sort of feel worthless."
This sense of inadequacy has been a double-edged sword for L'Heureux.
While it now fuels his artistic drive -and inspires his lyrics -it used to prevent him from performing and, in part, led to a brief phase as a "prolific drinker," as he describes it.
"Alcohol became a medication for me," he says. "It wasn't a healthy decision for me, but I learned a lot from that experience. Eventually, my family had to get involved and I had to get involved and switch up my way of life.
"I'm glad I did because I'm not as shy anymore, either."
Some of L'Heureux's previous struggles are reflected in the nine songs on New, which he wrote during a recent stint as an audio-visual technician for Syncrude in Fort Mac. EATER tackles self-delusion and the breakup of a relationship, while Daze marks his decision to quit drinking.
"All the lyrics -from my previous records on my own label, Labrador City, to now -are just based in trying to find happiness. I try to stay happy, despite the bleak forecast of the music industry. Being in Edmonton, there's not necessarily an opportunity to make it, but the music is so great.
"Maybe I'm being foolish to pursue music, and I think a lot of that bleeds into the lyrics. Am I making the right choice? I could do more with my life, I could be more secure, instead of walking into this unforeseeable void. At the same time, this is where my heart is and I can't change my heart."
L'Heureux performs Thursday as part of Old Ugly's weekly showcase at Cafe Leva, 11053 86th Ave.
The show starts at 8 p.m. Admission is free.
Diehatzu Hijets will celebrate the release of Doo Doo Boy on Wednesday, March 30 at Wunderbar, 8120 101st St.
Both of L'Heureux's new albums are available as digital downloads -on laynemusic.bandcamp.com and diehatzuhijets.bandcamp.com. - Sandra Sperounes, Edmonton Journal

Layne L'Heureux is through folkin' around.

On the local singer/songwriter's fourth record New, he's dropped the indie-folk shtick and embraced his love of fuzzed-out rock'n'roll.

Layne L'Heureux will release the album next Thursday when he plays Café Leva, 11053 86 Ave.

"I went from a total elitist folk standing to getting into the punk/alternative rock stuff in the '90s and dating back to the '70s," he explains.

"All these bands started reuniting. Like Dinosaur Jr. reunited, and I heard them and I was just like, 'Whoa man, my mind is melting.' And then I went deeper and got into Husker Du and the Buzzcocks and the Wipers and all that stuff. So I just wanted to start making more upbeat music."

In the same vein, L'Heureux also founded alt/grunge trio Diehatzu Hijets, which will drop its debut full-length Doo Doo Boy with a show at Wunderbar March 30.

L'Heureux set off on his new musical path when he briefly relocated to Vancouver two years ago.

In need of a change, he left his girlfriend and headed west to find himself and elevate his career.

Instead, he got lost in a sea of talented musicians who had similar plans.

But the 23-year-old found his would-be Diehatzu bandmates in Edmonton through the website Craigslist, and after a few months spent building chicken cages six days a week, he saved up enough cash to move back home with a refreshing new attitude.

"I went through a big transition. That's what that whole move was - just a transition, growing into my own skin," L'Heureux says.

"I was really self-deprecating and self conscious and insecure, and it was holding me back."

His new sense of confidence has allowed him to look past the trappings of the indie scene he'd become entrenched in.

"The first songs I started writing when I was 16 were big Kurt Cobain inspired songs. And when I moved to Edmonton (people were) kind of like, 'Oh, Nirvana's gay, let's get more into the indie stuff, let's prove we know what we're talking about with music,'" he says.

"And that really sucked a lot for me, because I got into that scene a lot and that really prevented me from doing songs that I really wanted to write.

"It just becomes a giant filter for your creative output."

L'Heureux has also stepped away from the label Labrador City Records, which he co-founded with local musician Tyler Butler (L'Heureux also runs a label called Ulcer), to release New on growing local imprint Old Ugly.

New's grungy lo-fi rock, with L'Heureux's rough, heartfelt, occasionally off-key vocals, would make a suitable addition to any '90s grunge collection.

But he's preparing for a full-fledged resurgence of flannel and ripped jeans.

"I think grunge is having a huge revival. Like Superchunk, Mission of Burma, Dinosaur Jr., they're all putting out these new records and getting huge reception," he says.

"So I kind of want to be part of the revival, I guess. I want to be part of that scene as it happens

As he continues to draw away from the indie scene that gave him his legs, L'Heureux still loves its softer, more pensive music.

He just wants to rock a little harder and faster than his peers.

"It's a huge jump from what I was putting out. I'm getting pretty positive reviews all around, people seem to be into it, so I hope I'm going in the right direction," he says.

"I'm following my heart, so f--- the rest, right?" - Kevin Maimann, Edmonton Sun