North of Canada

This installment of our Bands in the Neighborhood series features North of Canada, a indie/power pop band who play at the Velvet Lounge on October 1st. Here's what they had to say.

How did you all come up with the band name?
The members: The General on drums and tactical maneuvers, The Admiral on bass and tambourine, Robert France on guitar and vocals, The Corporate Drone on guitar and vocals

The names of the band members were arrived at organically and reflect either a personality trait or article of clothing of each member. Robert France and Drone are brothers and lived for a brief time on Baffin Island with their parents when they were kids. The name is a tribute to the hearty sould who inhabit such locations.

How did the band form?
Three of the members lived in proximity of each other rooting for the Fightin Phillies.

How many members live in Columbia Heights? Whereabouts?
The Admiral lives on Irving

Do you practice in CH? How about play any gigs in the neighborhood?
We'll occasionally hold an acoustic practice at The Admiral's home, but the full-fledged electric practices require the space and luxury of the suburbs. We played once at The Wonderland Ballroom on a rainy Wednesday night in April. I remember the service being excellent. We are slowly becoming regulars at Asylum in Adam's Morgan for their Friday night live gigs along with The Red and the Black, DC9, Rock and Roll Hotel, and a few other venues that have asked not to be mentioned.

What are your band's influences?
NoC has responded favorably to the likes of Supergrass, Blur, Graham Coxon, Albert Hammond, Johnny Headband, Electric 6 and far too many other local and national acts. The band sounds like a soothing blend of aromatic teas crossed with jalepenos would taste. We tend to write songs while sipping moderately priced vodka and pondering the great questions of our time. The General does not believe in contraception and therefore is not creatively influenced by it. The animal kingdom is a frequent muse for the band as songs are frequently written about or allude to various wild and domestic creatures.

Do you have any records out?
We have an EP out on iTunes entitled Every Seahorse Could Be Different. We have many more songs in various stages of recording. You haven't lived if you've never heard an album inspired completely and solely by the majestic creatures of the deep known as seahorses.

What’s your take on the local music scene, Columbia Heights and DC?
Columbia Heights is a great neighborhood if you enjoying combining the conveniences of suburban shopping with gang violence and party buses. In accordance with the recent WaPo article, the band still isn't sure what a 'hipster' is but we're relatively sure that we aren't it. We enjoy DC in principle but could do without the following items: cut-off jean shorts on males and wine bars.

And if you had to rename your band for something in Columbia Heights, what would it be?
South of Petworth
- New Columbia Heights

Located at the edge of the Atlas District inside D.C., The Red and The Black bar claimed host to North of Canada and several other emerging indie bands from around the country. Although the other bands (Southeast Engine and The Shiftless Rounders) won’t be mentioned in this review, definitely check them out since their sounds kept the audience wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

Despite not being the headliner, a jittery crowd appeared hyped for what turned out to be an energy-packed set from North of Canada. From the intricate dual vocals of Robert France (Kuczynski) and Brazenly Rye (Ryan Kobb) to the masterful play of The General (Mark Kuczynski) on the drums and the deep-rooted impressionism on the bass from The Admiral (Mike Lashinsky), each member of the group hung to each other in a manner that spoke of camaraderie.

Influences from Supergrass, Blur, Built to Spill, Nada Surf, Albert Hammond Jr., Graham Coxon, Ghost City and Johnny Headband came through in spurts throughout the set as wily Brit-pop lyrics mixed with laid-back jam-band riffs. Outside of the group’s fine performance, the venue didn’t offer the best acoustics, which were designed for less electric and more acoustic, both of which hurt NoC.

North of Canada will be releasing a six-track EP in late winter along with another EP at some other point next year. For pictures from the show, head to MusicUnderFire’s facebook, or check out NoC on facebook or MySpace.

- Music Under Fire

Repeated pleas to remove his shirt had little effect on the General.

Despite shouts from the crowd and encouragement from fellow band members, the drummer for North of Canada resolutely remained clothed, avoiding shirtless shenanigans.

Instead, it was the music that was revealing. And the General, generally known as Mark Kuczynski, anchored the rhythm section throughout the band's recent performance at The Red and the Black in Washington, D.C.

The band, which splits its allegiance between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., played its first show since debuting a new bass player, Mike Lashinsky (the Admiral), in September.

Drawing on influences from American groups such as Johnny Headband and Ghost City along with British bands such as Supergrass and Blur, North of Canada invoked British singer-songwriter Graham Coxon with “life is hollow and benign,” a spin-off of a line from Coxon’s “Empty Word” during the raucous “Feel.”

Thanks to good sound balance in the small upstairs room of The Red and the Black, this and the band’s other lyrics came through loud and clear, rising above the sometimes intense dueling guitar effects created by the band’s two guitarists. Complementary vocals by Ryan Kobb (Brazenly Rye) and Rob Kuczynski (Robert France) further accentuated the steady rhythm kept by the General and bass lines carefully orchestrated by the Admiral.

Culminating with the borderline prog-rock length song, “Falling Down,” North of Canada kept the audience hanging to its eclectic melodies and inventive lyrics, even devising words like “octo-green.”

Even though the band, as in one of their songs, might “not know what's up in our sky,” they certainly keep fans looking upward to their next performance – even if the General didn't disrobe.

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North of Canada will be releasing an EP, Every Sea Horse Could Be Different, in 2009. To hear the band and see photos and videos from their performances, visit www.myspace.com/northofcanada.
- Metro Music Scene