Dearly Beloved Interview
Niva Chow & Rob Higgins
Photo by dearlybelovedmusic.com
TSH: How would you guys describe your creative partnership?
Rob: Chaotic. Tempered with a great love. Our last two recording sessions have been of the "write songs on the studio floor - on the spot" variety. A process that’s, understandably, not for everyone. But it’s where we’ve been in terms of approach for two albums now.
TSH: How much material did you have to choose from while putting together Hawk vs. Pigeon?
Rob: We recorded 12 or 13 ideas and picked the best 11 in the end. We also added one later for the UK/Europe release - a collaboration with Patrick Pentland of Sloan.
TSH: What was the dynamic like when you were recording?
Rob: A bit mad, really. When you’re making it all up to suit your mood the dynamic can be fresh but the inherent unknown that comes with that dynamic can be stressful for some people. I like the challenge of not knowing what I’m going to record when I wake up and head down to the studio. We’re certainly not lazy - we’ll play a song 30 times if we have to, to get a good take - it’s more about pushing ourselves and creating circumstances that bring out our best. We thrive under pressure.
TSH: What’s the story behind the imagery on the album cover?
Rob: The background is a shot from the Joshua Tree, near where we recorded. The white circular logo represents the band’s journey to this point.
TSH: Tell us about the fascinating story of how the album title came to be - I understand Niva experienced an encounter between a Hawk and pigeon...
Rob: True story. We were tracking the final vocals for the album back at our Toronto studio, Phoebe St., when a hawk disemboweled a pigeon right outside the studio window as Niva was singing. Once the pigeon was extremely dead and bloodied, the hawk just stood on its face/neck with this proud and sort of accomplished look about it. A striking moment, especially considering we were throwing around ‘Hawk vs Pigeon’ as an album title.
TSH: What experiences do you draw on to write a song like ‘Miles Around’?
Rob: Noah Purifoy created an art installation out of found materials in the desert and it was mind blowing to visit and experience. You can walk through it. Dave Catching’s friend, Hutch, took us there on a break from writing and when we got back to the studio we wrote that tune. The bass line and vocal wrote themselves in a few minutes.
TSH: The song ‘World Series of Fedoras’ has a laid back, unwinding tempo to it and also a brief guitar solo of sorts, how do you go about constructing a song like this?
Rob: I love writing songs with odd time signatures that don’t really feel like they’re odd time signatures. We have a tune called ‘Carnivale’, from Make It Bleed, that’s like that. ‘Fedoras’ is another one of those, but one where I wanted to mix dusty, southwestern vibes with a progressive structure. That’s one of my favourite Dearly Beloved songs.
TSH: The bassline for the song ‘She’ is so addictive and has been stuck in my head for days, did you feel the moment it was crafted that you had the basis of catchy groove to work the song around?
Rob: Yeah, I suppose. I knew instantly that it would make my hand hurt to play the damn thing. It’s all over the neck, and the tune is a bit wordy, so I knew I had crafted a bona fide pain in my ass.
TSH: Tell us about the thinking in ending the album with ‘Doves above the Door’ which is primarily a progressive instrumental track...
Rob: The idea behind that tune was to use the band’s initials - the keys of D and B - to create a piece that started with a single whole note and built to a mad crescendo without straying from the chord progression. I had been looking for a way to write about my dad’s final moments and that instrumental track summed it better than any lyrics would. We could feel the sadness in the song the first time we tried jamming it out. When we listened back to the first proper recording of it, it was emotional. My dad saying "goodbye" was the saddest moment I’d ever experienced at that point of my life. The title was inspired by the story Hutch told us of the two doves living above his garage door. One dove was still caring for the other, despite the fact it was long dead, because that’s what they do. I couldn’t shake the story of those birds. Ultimately, the song and the birds needed each other.
TSH: What was it like recording the album at Rancho de la Luna?
Rob: Magical. It was like surfing the seas of serendipity.
TSH: The album consists of quite a few notable guest appearances, what was it like for you guys to work with Dave Elitch and Brendan Canning?
Rob: Those men are titans. Monsters. Captains. Ministers of badassery. We are thankful that they take an interest in and make time for the things we do. When you respect people and they play on your tunes it makes you feel good. Those guys work so quickly, too. Which suits us. We like that.
TSH: Also working alongside Patrick Hutchison is something you describe as ‘inspirational’ how did it play out with him offering his expertise?
Rob: He made us soup. And coffee. And took us on field trips. And played movies outside on the side of his trailer. He was amazing. He also was generous in terms of the anecdotes and stories he’d share with us. A sweet, sweet man.
TSH: It’s been a rather tough period for you Rob, to have encountered surgery and have 80% of your large intestine removed. During this period of grief did you channel any of that tough period into your music?
Rob: Oh yeah. I’m lucky to have music, more specifically, Dearly Beloved, as an outlet. It’s a place for me to put it all. That said, everyone has roads to walk that offer unexpected challenges. You just have to give those obstacles the finger and do your best to carry on.
TSH: The video for ‘Living Proof’ captures you guys in a fresh performance and really displays you guys as a band that offer a raw show, what was it like making the video itself?
Rob: Easy peezy. Our friend James Reid has a good eye so we just set up a few lights and played through the song a handful of times while he moved around with his camera. He cut it and there we go. A video. The intent was to, as you said, capture the energy we generate playing together.
TSH: You guys have also played live shows in the UK lately, tell us what it was like for you guys to play your material to the UK audience?
Rob: It was grand! It’s a pleasure to play to people that don’t necessarily know our music. Love the challenge of that. The crowd participation levels were off the chart, so that was also great. Toronto crowds have been described as laid back, to say the least - I can not say that about our time overseas. The amount of dancing and shouting of famous musicians’ names at us was killer. Loved playing shows there.
TSH: When playing live what kind of energy do you hope to generate?
Rob: We’ve always said our thing is chaos, tempered by love and delivered with great fury. Rock n’ roll is an energy to us, we just want to feel something. Something that makes the ass shake and the head bang.
TSH: If you could go back in time to see one performance, who would it be?
Rob: The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Jimi was the man. Not a bass player but his playing has inspired mine as much as anyone. A close second would be The Who with the original lineup. Entwhistle and Moon? I would truly love to experience the thunder of that band in its prime live.
TSH: What was the first concert you attended?
Rob: Rush. But that’s because of a family tie. The first concert I chose to go to was The Clash in Toronto at Maple Leaf Gardens. I was so young I had to be taken by my aunt and the truth is I barely remember it.
TSH: Who is your favourite vocalist?
Rob: Rick Froberg. Hot Snakes.
TSH: Finally, your favourite album and song of 2013 so far?
Rob: Album - The Bronx. IV. Fantastic energy start to finish. Song - anything from AM by Arctic Monkeys. Brilliant collection.
Dearly Beloved - “Living Proof”
Hawk vs. Pigeon
