Posts Tagged ‘Canada’
Comet Control interview
Comet Control are a psychedelic rock band from Toronto, Canada. The band was formed after Quest for Fire split up in 2013. Earlier this year in June, they released their second album Centre of the Maze via Teepee Records.
I spoke to Chad Ross about the album. recording it and also their shift in sound.
Chad Ross and Andrew Moszynski were in Quest for Fire. How did Nicole Howell (bass), Jay Anderson (drums) and Christopher Sandes (keys) become part of the band?
After quest for fire broke up… nicole, jay, andrew and i immediately started talking about the possibilities of a new band. We’ve all know each other for years in Toronto. It was definitely a natural fit.
Your second album ‘Centre of the Maze’ released a couple months ago. Tell us a bit about the album.
for our self-titled debut, Andrew and I were consciously trying to write tighter, more melodic songs. Center of the maze sticks with that principal… but we took more time to develop sounds and concentrate on production.
It has been 2 years since the release of your self-titled album. What was the writing process for this album?
We got back from a European tour in the winter of 2015 and immediately started to work on the songs that would become the album. Andrew and I would bring in ideas, then we’d sit down with Nicole in our jam space and arrange everything. Jay came in towards the end of the process and we fine-tuned tempos/dynamics and solidified the songs with drums.
What was the recording process for the ‘Centre of the Maze’? How long did it take?
The bed tracks took a couple of days in the spring, at candle recording in Toronto with josh korody. We took the summer to record all of the overdubs at different spots around Toronto, at my home studio and a couple of backyard jam spaces around the city. I recorded all of the guitars with Andrew, my own vocals and the percussion. Chris recorded all of his keyboard wizardry in his home studio.
The band has more psychedelic sound compared to your previous band Quest from Fire. Was that a conscious decision?
It was a conscious decision to focus on tighter song arrangements, whereas qff was more centered around heavy long jams. The addition of chris sandes on keys definitely brought more psych elements to the production. We’re all into classic garage/psych… those influences came out more in our songwriting when we started paying less attention to riffs, and more attention to melody.
‘Centre of the Maze’ is your second release through Tee Pee Records. How has it been working with the label?
This is actually my 5th release on teepee if you include both qff records and the Nordic nomadic record I did with them. It’s a pleasure… and it’s a great group of people working behind the scene.
What have you been listening to lately? Are there any band that have inspired you of late?
Morgan delt has been blowing my mind lately.
Do you have any interests/hobbies outside music?
My day job is a finish carpenter. I find great pleasure in that from time to time. Also camping and nature in Ontario’s north country. It’s quite beautiful to venture north of Toronto through all of the lake systems.
What are bands from the Toronto/Canada that you recommend that our readers check out?
Some Canadian favorites are the shooting guns, radiation flowers, the soupcans, elevator, black walls,….
What are your plans to promote the album? Do you have any other shows planned for the rest of the year?
We have some shows coming up in September in Canada, and a European tour in November.