Ottawa express interview September 2008

September 18th, 2008                           Ottawa Express
Canadian gothic
Dave Jaffer

Calgary’s Rae Spoon brings rock and folk to spooky places

Seems to me that a lot of the conversation about Rae Spoon falls all over itself dropping the T word like the people talking just figured out what it means, which itself seems kind of dumb. Still, let’s get that out of the way.

Yes, Rae is a transgender individual. Yes, this unquestionably influences his music and the stories that music tells. But no, it’s not the most interesting thing about Rae Spoon, an excellent songwriter whose musical journey seems to be somewhat backwards, almost Benjamin Button-like in nature.

“I think this album is a lot different than the other ones,” Calgary-born Spoon says of superioryouareinferior, which hits shelves on Oct. 7. “They were folk, country, bluegrass and things like that. I think there’s still some folk elements [on the new record], but I made a purposeful departure from country music in general.

“I was going the opposite way. Like, when I was younger I was really into folk, and all [that] kind of stuff, and then I think that I wanted to start playing rock. Which is kind of the opposite of what people do in general, because they usually rock out until they’re 30, get tired, and start playing bluegrass. I think I did almost the opposite.”

A quick look at superioryouareinferior may lead one to believe that it’s Spoon’s darkest record to date. It boasts titles like Come on Forest Fire Burn the Disco Down and Bones in a Museum, and its lyrics occasionally venture into lonely, spooky places.

Spoon doesn’t bring up darkness
when discussing the record, but he does suggest that superioryouareinferior is merely a different kind of Canadiana.

“I was writing along the theme of, like, Canadian gothic. If you’re trans and you’re in a small town, it’s kind of like being in a gothic novel, the way you’re treated a lot of the time,” he says. “I think I started exploring those things, and started writing along the themes of ghosts, and madness, and death on the highway, death in general, wildlife; I don’t know, it’s kind of a specifically Canadian album, this one. I try to tell stories with different layers. I could be singing about wolves but I’m singing about mental illness. I try to weave things together so it could be one thing or another.”

Oh, and one more thing.

“I try to write good hooks,” he laughs. “You need a hook!”