Ann Vriend returns to Australia for February/March tour

Canadian artist Ann Vriend has a lot of fans in Australia, and she's going to help them ease out of summer by playing a string of dates in a variety of locations, accompanied by the Rooster Davis Group. Just for the tour Ann will release an EP just for Australian audiences. Entitled Anybody's Different, fans will be able to buy it at her shows - dates appear after the interview - and in the meantime enjoy the single 'Real Love'.

How was your 2016?

It’s been quite a year, I think, for a lot of people – politically and we’ve lost a lot of great artists. Economically a lot of people aren’t doing as well as they had hoped and I’m definitely in that camp. For me it’s been a really busy year touring, too, so I am really behind on things like … well, everything: paperwork and organising and my inbox is terribly unattended to.

I’m sure people who email you understand that you’re often on the road and it can be hard to keep track of things like email.

Yes, but then you get off the road. And there’s such a large amount of things when you’re an independent artist and wearing a lot of hats, doing all the business side as well as the music side. You’re not trying to be rude and ignore people, but you only have twenty-four hours in the day [laughs]. You hope people understand. There’s some people I’ve heard who say, ‘I’ve got everything cleared in my inbox’ – Oh, are you serious? [Laughs] Who can do that?

I think those people have assistants they can delegate to. When you’re an independent artist you are the delegator and the delegatee.

A lot of them aren’t yes/no answers, like: ‘What’s your marketing strategy for the next five years?’ and you can’t say, ‘No’ or ‘Yes’. That’s an involved thing to answer. Or somebody says, ‘Can you give me career advice?’ Maybe, I don’t know. The things that are more involved you tend to put off because it takes a lot of thought.

It is the challenge of the two halves of what you do: your creative work, which includes playing live, and then the business side which is that more administrative thing. There’s quite a different rhythm to that, so throughout the year it probably feels a bit like you’re chopping and changing.

That’s really one of the hardest things, just wearing these different hats and being in a totally different head space doing creative stuff to doing emails that are, like, ‘What about May 16, 2018?’ and then they ask you for your tech rider. Also: ‘What’s the new title for your EP?’ That’s exactly what I’m dealing with today when I get off the phone – I have to decide on my next EP title and then book dates to go to Europe. So you’re always mixing up, but it’s what everybody has to do. I think back in the ages when there was a lot more money in music and major labels were the only way you could have the music business work, there managers and record labels did all that stuff for the artists and the artists were just purely artists. But since the internet, that has changed everything [laughs].

I’m interested in how those changes affect creative work – creative output. Part of the reason for having that structure of the business is so you can concentrate on your creative work, because it is such a different thing to do. Perhaps we’re yet to see the effects of that and maybe we won’t for a while, but I wonder if songs get shorter and albums cease to exist simply because artists won’t have time to do that many songs at once and instead they’ll just release singles.

The way people are consuming music these days – which is largely on streaming sites like Spotify, or making their own playlists on iTunes – having an album, like a group of songs presented together, seems less and less of a thing. For instance, my record label are deciding to release a single at a time rather than a whole album, not because I don’t have enough songs but because they want one song at a time to have attention and push. Because otherwise what was happening was that you’d have this album of twelve songs and they all cost an equal amount of money to record and then only one or two were the singles that were on the radio or that people would hear or that would get marketed. So you’d have these other ones that almost got forgotten and then ignored and people who were investing in them, like a record label, weren’t really getting a return on investment. That’s the business model they’re working with. But I think you’re right in that what’s happening with artists now, because they have to do so much more than before, is that, yes, there is a danger of the music suffering, either because their output isn’t as much creatively because they’re doing all this business stuff or the quality suffers, unfortunately, and not because anybody wants it to but because you only have so much energy and head space and time to work on your time and practise every day and write every day and get better.

It’s the head space and also that mental quietness out of which songs or stories can come. You need those pauses in your life to be able to do that.

Exactly. And time. As you’d know, as a writer too, you can’t say exactly how much time it’s going to take you to write something. You start it and then you might erase a lot of what you’ve written and start over, or have to come back to it and redo parts because your editor said. So when people say, ‘Can you do this by tomorrow?’ well, maybe or maybe not. It depends, when I sit down, what comes out. I can’t tell you yet.

You mentioned your EP – and that’s scheduled for release in 2017, so I imagine you’ll bring some copies with you when you come to Australia?

Technically we’re just going to get them manufactured in Australia, not wanting to bring five suitcases [laughs]. But, yes, I’m going to have that with me. I think it’s officially going to be released on January 20 in Australia and that day a new single will be coming out, and that one’s called ‘Real Love’. And two of the singles are out on the internet because it’s been released in Canada already. So that will be the third single from it but the first one that’s really being pushed in Australia.

The last time I spoke to you, you were having your album pressed in vinyl. How did that work out? Would you do vinyl again?

Definitely. It’s a ton of work, getting all the artwork organised because it’s obviously a different size than a CD. But I’m a huge vinyl lover myself – I have a big record collection and really get off on the whole vinyl thing, love going to second-hand stores and finding treasures. What’s fun about is that there’s this resurgence in vinyl going on right now. People are going back to wanting the tactile thing and having the artwork in front of them that’s not this tiny little CD thing or zero artwork where it’s digital. We always include a download card with the vinyl so people can have the best of both worlds. So it’s really fun, although it’s still a hassle because a box of vinyl is heavy – but it’s worth it. It’s a fun thing to have and it’s more lasting, in a way.

The last time you came to Australia, I don’t remember that you had the Rooster Davis Group with you – is that right?

Yes.

And there’s no guitar or bass – it’s two keyboards and drums. So in terms of transporting yourselves around, does it get a bit bulky?

Yeah, it’s quite annoying – I’m not gonna lie [laughs]. There’s many days when I wish, Oh, couldn’t I just play the piccolo or just something small like a spoon? But it’s hard to sing while playing piccolo, for one thing. When I musically put things together what I was doing I wasn’t smart enough to think about the logistics of travel. The Rooster Davis Group itself is a band unto themselves as well, and I perform in it. So when they’re doing their music, which is New Orleans blues and boogie and funk, I am either a backing singer or sometimes I sing lead, but just not my own music. And then I hire that band to be my backing band to do my original music. So on this tour we’re doing some Rooster Davis shows and some Ann Vriend shows, so that’s part of the reason that I might bring them along, so we can do these two things on the same tour.

So when you do the blues festival in Goulburn, is that you as you or is that them?

Well, in that case it’s going to be a combo [laughs] – just to make things more confusing. We’ll do a couple of my songs and then a couple of theirs and sort of change it up back and forth between who’s band leader, which keeps things interesting. The music is definitely markedly different, so people will notice the difference, but it belongs in the same lineage of being part of the R&B tradition. One is older music and mine is more modern soul.

Is there a certain freedom for you when you’re a member of the Rooster Davis band and the spotlight is not on the way it is when it’s you? I’d think it’s a nice balance for you, to be able to do that.

Totally. There’s way less pressure as a support musician rather than [when] it’s my band and the focus is on me and I’m the bandleader. It is really nice. In a way I have a lot more fun doing that because there’s less pressure on me and it’s really fun music – it’s impossible to not have fun in that genre. But it is a really nice contrast. I really enjoy being able to have those two hats to wear musically.

And it’s a paradox: the pressure is on you when you’re the bandleader and it’s your material but that’s what you work for, to have that career, but at the same time it’s hard and you’re responsible for other people. So it’s good to have a break.

Exactly. If I didn’t want it, there’s no one holding a gun to my head saying, ‘You have to have it’. I do want it and it’s really rewarding, but it takes my energy when it’s your music and it’s close to your heart and being pretty vulnerable.

You’re coming out in February and March to play a range of towns and venues – how far ahead have you planned this tour?

I’m lucky in that I didn’t have to book this one myself. The woman in charge of the company who booked it did a great job. She’d never booked a tour before – her background is in merch sales – but she did a really great job. We had another guy lined up but he got really sick, unfortunately, so she had to take the reins quickly.

There’s some great clubs there and also some good towns to visit in warmer weather, like Byron Bay.

I’m looking forward to it. I used to have to do all that [booking] myself when I was in Australia and, as you can imagine, it’s a ton of work and a lot of emails and phone calls, and sometimes by the time you’re on the tour you just want to crawl into bed because you’ve been married to your laptop and phone for so long. It’s so nice to have a team there now and people who are good at what they do. I’m very lucky.

Thursday 9th February 2017

Brass Monkey, CRONULLA NSW

Friday 10th February 2017

Australian Blues Music Festival, GOULBURN NSW

Saturday 11th February 2017

Australian Blues Music Festival, GOULBURN NSW

Sunday 12th February 2017

Smiths Alternative, CANBERRA ACT

Friday 17th February 2017

Paris Cat, MELBOURNE VIC

Friday 24th February 2017

The Heritage Hotel, BULLI NSW

Saturday 25th February 2017

Venue 505, SYDNEY NSW

Thursday 2nd March 2017

Lizottes, NEWCASTLE NSW

Friday 3rd March 2017

Flow Bar, OLD BAR NSW

Saturday 4th March 2017

63 First Ave, SAWTELL NSW

Friday 10th March 2017

Nightquarter, GOLD COAST QLD

Saturday 11th March 2017

Brisbane Jazz Club, BRISBANE QLD

Sunday 12th March 2017

The Rails, BYRON BAY NSW

For more information, please visit www.annvriend.com

Ann Vriend on tour in Australia

Ann Vriend isn't a country music artist but I'm always willing to make an exception for Canadians (the reason for my declared bias appears in this interview). Ann is an amazing soul performer who is on tour in Australia, carting a whole lot of vinyl albums with her. Accordingly, this is being called her 'Those Records' tour. I spoke to her when she was between gigs.

So it's 9 a.m. – that's quite early for a musician.

You're right [laughs].

Are you a morning person by nature?

No. No, no, no [laughs]. But that's okay. It's easier to get up when it's sunny and warm out than when it's cold and wintry.

Now I read somewhere that you're an honorary Australian, so I thought I'd give you a little pop quiz. The first question is: do you like Vegemite?

Oh boy. The answer is that I do now that I know you have to spread it very, very thinly on your toast, because I used to think it was spread on like peanut butter or jam, and I thought it tasted like melted car tyre. Not that I eat melted car tyre, but …

I lived in Canada for a year and I didn't come across anything equivalent.

No, there is not. Except maybe melted car tyre. Which they don't serve in jars or anything.

Very true. The second question is: have you seen a platypus and, if so, what are your thoughts?

[Laughs] I saw one in a zoo in Melbourne, I believe, and I tried to see one in Tasmania but they were very evasive. So they kind of look like a cross between a lot of things. They're interesting. I wouldn't say they were really beautiful. [They look like] god was on a scrapbook day.

Third question: how do you feel about Kylie Minogue?

I think she's pretty awesome. She's like Cher – she gets younger and younger.

My last question: have you learnt to surf?

No. I've tried. I think surfing is like 99 per cent trying to get on a surfboard and then 1 per cent losing it in the water and having it almost hit you in the head.

I suppose also when you're here you're working, so you possibly don't have a lot of spare time, between travelling across Australia – which takes a lot of time – and doing the gigs.

It's true. It always seems to be eaten up. You think you have half a day off here and there's a bunch of emails and you have to eat, and suddenly there' not time to do anything [else]. Having said that, we have a few days off right now, which never really happens on a tour but this tour worked out that way. So I did go to the beach yesterday, and I didn't surf but I watched people surf. I don't know if that counts [laughs].

Absolutely. That is also part of our national pastime. Now, you're out here on tour partly to celebrate the limited edition vinyl release of your album. I read that you are bringing the vinyl with you. So I have a couple of questions. The first is: why vinyl? And the second is: what's it like transporting vinyl from Canada to Australia?

First question: I'm a huge vinyl fan. I grew up with vinyl and my parents had a vinyl collection, and I learnt to operate the turntable when I was three because they got sick of me always asking them to put on records. Also is quite a retro-sounding soul album, kind of an early '70s, early '60s soul and that, of course, was the heyday of vinyl. It's the kind of album that you have had on vinyl if it had come out then. Then I had an opportunity to get it pressed on vinyl because there's a new pressing plant that's just opened about a year ago in Canada – it's the only one in Canada right now. There's a huge long list of people who want to get their albums pressed on vinyl and there's not enough plants these days, so basically I got an opportunity to have it done fairly quickly, which is a hard thing to happen when you're not a major-label artist. So I pounced on that opportunity because it just seemed too good to be true. But then I had to get it from one side of the world to the other. I looked into mailing it and it was astronomical – it was not an option. I would have had to end up charging so much per vinyl copy that probably no one would buy it. But I fly a lot with Air Canada, with touring so much, [so] I've now reached the Air Canada Premium Elite club [laughs]. So that means I can take three large bags for no extra charge. So I just did a lot of really careful packing with a bathroom scale, like taking things out of one suitcase and putting them in another until each one weighed an even 22 kilograms. It took about 45 minutes to pack the vinyl to make that all work.

And then you're taking them on the road with you, because you're going to a few different venues. Given that you've been here a few times now, do you find that you're drawn to play in the same venues, or are you trying to look for different places each time?

I have an agent here, luckily, who is taking care of that. Some of the venues, I think, I've played before. For instance, in Sydney I'm playing The Basement, and I've played there a number of times. In fact, I even have a live album that I recorded about five years ago, half of it was recorded there. We decided to do this [tour] last minute – we weren't necessarily going to do the vinyl tour. Then when we got the green light to do it, it was already November. So the places that he would normally be able to come up with were kind of hard, because a lot of people tour in March, because of Bluesfest. So we were just kind of, like, 'we'll get what we can get'. That's how the tour has worked out.

I notice also you're going to Goulburn in country New South Wales – have you played there before?

No, I've never been there before. It's certainly not one of your big cities or anything.

Some people who work in Canberra either live in Goulburn or live nearby, so it is a bit of a satellite town for the nation's capital. So there are probably pockets of people there who will be happy to have a great gig to go to.

Right, well, that's always good.

And in the country people are more willing to travel for things than people in cities. Something can be on round the corner in a city and people won't go, but people in the bush will travel three hours to see a show.

I know, it's crazy – it's the same in Canada.

Those distances in Canada are even more vast.

And then there's always the excuse of, 'Oh, but the roads are probably not very good and they're dangerous' and we're saying, 'Well, we got to the venue.'

After you return from this tour you'll be heading into the studio for your new album. Are the songs written and ready to go or are you still tinkering?

I'm tinkering with a few, especially lyrically. Musically they're pretty much ready to go. Well, I should say that my part of the music – which is that I write the chord progression and the melody of the songs and the form of them, but then my producer does a lot on his end on the arrangement side. I kind of do some. It's back and forth – he'll send me a version and I'll say, 'I like this', 'Oh, take that out' or 'What about this?' But the production that he adds to it really takes the song from just me at the piano to a whole different thing. That process hasn't started quite yet but it will start probably within a month.

Have you ever been unpleasantly surprised by an arrangement he's come up with?

Not really. Sometimes I think, Wow, I never would have thought of this – it's so outside of what I imagined. But he's the first producer that I've never thought, This guy – what is he thinking? He's so off track.. And there have been producers in the past where I've thought, Oh man, that's so cheesy or, Why would they think I would like that? and just been really panicking because I spent all this money and they're super-excited and over the moon about this thing and I'm [thinking], Oh god, no. But the good thing about Tino, having done my last album with him, there was no time when I thought, He has no taste – what is he doing?

Because it can be such a great collaborative relationship but, yes, if you feel that you're being misinterpreted that sense of collaboration disappears and then the album's not yours any more, to an extent.

Exactly. It really does feel like that. You think, Someone's doing a cover of my own song and I don't like their version.

That would be a weird feeling.

It's a very uncomfortable feeling.

When I was in Canada I was involved in college radio so I found out quite a lot about Canadian music and was always hugely admiring of the indie rock scene, as it then was, coming out of Nova Scotia and some other places. Could you talk a little bit about what's happening in Canadian music, where you fit into it and whether there's an increase in independent, possibly crowd-funded releases, as we've seen here?

I think there's a lot of scenes that are picking up right now. Crowdfunding is definitely a way that a lot of independent artists, and even established independent artists, are funding their albums. There's less and less people on major labels. The indie rock scene is big and the indie pop scene is big – bands like Arcade Fire. Of course, hip-hop and R&B – The Weeknd and Drake are two massive, massive artists. Obviously R&B is mostly an American scene but has a pretty big part of the charts right now and there's a lot of producers of that genre in Canada, and writers – some big guys writing for people like Miley Cyrus. 'Wrecking Ball' was written by a Canadian guy. So I think there's a lot of different pockets in Canada that are doing really well. Where I see my music is mostly on the soul side. I'm definitely not going for the same sound as The Weeknd or Drake, but it's exciting to me to see their success and see how that fits into the Canadian answer to what's happening in American R&B.

When I was there, there was very much that sense that the United States was so physically present, for one thing, so Canada was holding the line at the border but also holding a cultural line against the US. Obviously you can't help but be influenced by what's sitting right below you but at the same time, for a lot of Canadian artists it almost seemed like a challenge and it seemed to generate a lot of creativity and not defiance, but that sense of wanting to do really well and work really hard to make a different identity.

I think so. And luckily the government of Canada supports that, in that they've recognised long ago that if they don't actively support Canadian culture, it will just get swallowed up. Not that we don't have a separate identity, but numbers wise we're such a small country compared to their population and also the fact that their major, number one export is entertainment. So, as a result, it's very competitive but there are government grants that are funded, mainly via radio stations, where you can apply as an artist to get funding to make records or to support your record. And that's a big reason, I think, why Canadian music is doing well – because we have been lucky enough to get some of that funding and actually have a fighting chance in the marketplace.

Well, it is important – they're your stories and it's Canadian art. And you are part of the Canadian export. So your next show is at The Basement, then Canberra, Melbourne, Goulburn and Brisbane. Is there anything I've missed?

We're doing a couple of other things that aren't announcable yet [laughs] and we're doing a schools show in Melbourne as well. And we're doing some video filming and things like that.

So you're using your time well while you're here.

Trying to. Although I'd better be able to go to the beach a little more just so I can come back with a tan and show it off to everyone.

www.annvriend.com

Ann on tour in Australia:

Wednesday 16th March 2016

The Basement, SYDNEY NSW

7 Macquarie Place, Sydney NSW Australia 2000

www.thebasement.com.au

Thursday 17th March 2016

Smiths Alternative, CANBERRA ACT

76 Alinga Street, Civic ACT 2601

www.smithsalternative.com

Tuesday 22nd March 2016

The Toff, MELBOURNE VIC

Level 2, Curtin House 252 Swanston Street, Melbourne

www.thetoffintown.com

Friday 25th March 2016

The Goulburn Club, GOULBURN NSW

19 Market Street, Goulburn NSW

www.goulburnclub.com.au

Saturday 26th March 2016

The Milk Factory, BRISBANE QLD

48 Montague Road, South Brisbane QLD 4101

www.themilkfactorybar.com.au