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The Stills
Posted by Editorial Intern on 01-Jun-06 @ 12:20 PM|
HQ: Brampton, Ontario, Canada
NOW PLAYING: Without Feathers(VICE/ATLANTIC) WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW 'EM:They say the human body completely regenerates itself every seven years. Not only have the Stills done this in half the time; their new, Feather-free look (and sound) fits them like a glove. YOU LIKE? YOU'LL LIKE: The Sam Roberts Band /Broken Social Scene / Wilco Between writing dynamite songs, maintaining handsome looks, fluently speaking both English and French, and occupying cribs in New York and Montreal, the Stills have always had a lot going for them. So it's understandable that more than a few finely plucked eyebrows were raised last fall when drummer Dave Hamelin went all Phil Collins on us and assumed co-frontman duties alongside vocalist/guitarist Tim Fletcher. Worry not, Stills faithful: The band's future remains secure. In fact, their retooled lineup--Hamelin, Fletcher, keyboardist Liam O'Neil, bassist Oliver Crowe and drummer Julien Blais--might be even more naturally aligned than their previous one. "People might not know it, but I wrote most of the songs on [2003's Logic Will Break Your Heart]," explains Hamelin. "I never wanted to be the drummer in the band, but we didn't have a drummer, so I did it. But even when we made the last record, I knew that I wouldn't be playing drums on the new one. I wanted to sing the songs that I wrote." Whereas Hamelin's writing on 2003's Logic Will Break Your Heart branded the Stills as fashionably gloomy purveyors of unrequited love and longing, their latest album, Without Feathers, is colored with shades of unabashed, often glorious alt-country. And though Feathers, like its predecessor, is about strained and failed relationships--both within and outside of the band--its music rarely reflects the weight of its lyrics. "We wanted to challenge ourselves and make the music kind of celebratory," says Hamelin. "Like, 'Let's try and take every song somewhere we don't think it's going to go.' There are a lot of Beatles songs that could be gloomy, but there's something about them that makes you happy. We want people to put it on and feel, well, somewhat happy." --Tristan Staddon |
