MP3 My Sister Ocean - Beautiful Failures

âThe two members of My Sister Ocean have crafted a musical and lyrical gem on their new CD - "Beautiful Failures". Rich pop mixed with hard rock beats make this band one to watch out of Edmonton.â â The Sidetrack Café (mid-level act venue in Canada)

10 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Modern Rock, POP: Today's Top 40



Details:
INTERVIEW WITH PRODUCER/SINGER/BASSIST HOLDEN DANIELS

Whatâs it like producing your own album as opposed to hiring a producer to help out?

Well, to be honest, I have nothing to compare it to. Iâve been producing my own recorded material since 1994 and although I sometimes think Iâd love to work with producers like Arnold Lanni and Bob Rock, I think about the budget for something like that and I almost laugh. As an indie band, we could never recoup the cost of a big-name producer on our record, so Iâve been producing our albums out of necessity. Weâd have to tour for 2-3 years straight to make any money back, and thatâs something weâre not willing to do for one album.

You released your 1st EP Silverwave 2 months after losing a band member, did you have all the songs written already?

No. We had actually booked our CD release as a trio for May 2005, and it gave us about 5 months of prep time and time to finalize our album from which we had about 20 finished songs to choose. The band had become stale for about a year â we werenât touring, we werenât recording as often as weâd like, and we hadnât released anything since January 2003, so we were really ready to attack the world, tour, and everything. Our 3rd member wasnât really willing anymore to go on tour with us when the time came, so we had to make a decision to proceed without him. That was in March, there was only 2 months until the release. We discussed a bunch of things⦠changing our name, getting another guitarist, and canceling the CD release. But I had recorded 2 songs with just drum and bass in my condo as sort of a sonic experiment. I was always recording demos and some became band songs and some didnât. These 2 songs became the inspiration for us to proceed as a duo. With only 2 months to go, I wrote and recorded another 5 songs and we called it an EP Release party. It ended up getting very well received so weâve just decided to continue on as a duo. We were picked up by a local radio station as their Band of the Month that August, meaning we were given regular rotation and a showcase concert at the end of the month. They ended up playing âYou and Meâ, the very first song I had recorded with bass and drums only.

So do you have something against electric guitars?

(laughs)

No not at all. In fact, I still use the guitar in our recordings, but itâs now a secondary instrument. It doesnât drive the songwriting or the production. I find a lot of bands are doing that lately. Beck, Nine Inch Nails, and Justin Timberlake have all been writing songs where the guitar takes a back seat to the bass. I was actually inspired to do this well before I had heard of other bass and drum duos like Death From Above 1979 and local act Whitey Houston, but I was definitely inspired to see that duoâs could actually pull it off well live after seeing The White Stripes.

You say this album is about failing beautifully. With titles such as âAm I Wasting My Life?â and âBeautiful Failuresâ, are these songs about you specifically or something else?

The album is mostly autobiographical. Itâs just the way I write. Iâve tried to be more of a storyteller and write girl meets boy type of songs, but they never really do it for me. I think Iâve drawn a lot of influence from bands like Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Stone Temple Pilots, and lyrically they are always all over the place. Iâd love to write a song like âElderly Woman Behind The Counter In a Small Townâ someday, but instead, weâve been writing songs more abstract lyrically like âSmells Like Teen Spiritâ or maybe more literal like any average Bad Religion song. Iâve received flack from industry folk for not being poetic enough, but I think my lyrical style is ironically most like Eminem. He seems to say what he thinks and he's good with rhymes, and doesnât worry about writing about the rain or sunshine or whatever⦠I tend to be blunt with my lyrics so if thatâs not poetic, I apologize, but that seems to be the best way for me to communicate.

Do you actually feel like youâre wasting your life?

Sometimes Iâve thought about going back in time, finishing my Ed. degree, and making things a whole lot easier on everyone by becoming a teacher. But knowing me and my stupid dreamy idealistic self, I know Iâd then only want to quit everything to become a musician. Being a musician has its ups and downs for sure, I love everything about it except the industry crap, which Iâm getting used to, and being away from family, which Iâll never get used to or enjoy. As I get older, Iâve been having different definitions of making it, and Iâve been trying to emulate musicians that I respect like Jerry Cantrell or Butch Vig â guys that have been in the industry for years and know how to produce, write, and play well live.

Why should people listen to your album instead of the latest major label flavor of the week?

They shouldnât choose us over any other artist. I think thereâs room in everyoneâs iPods for a song or two from every new band that comes out, indie or not.

Whoâs your favourite indie band?

Iâd have to say Metric is really floating my boat lately. I wish I could sing like Emily Haines sometimes.

Top five albums of all time?

Thatâs a toughy. But I always can say Pearl Jam âTenâ as my number one American album, and I Mother Earth âScenery and Fishâ as my favourite Canadian album of all time. Rounding out the list would be Stone Temple Pilots âPurpleâ, Red Hot Chili Peppers âBlood Sugar Sex Magicâ, and everything from Chris Cornell. Add Our Lady Peace, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, and Smashing Pumpkins to that and you have anything thatâs in my playlist any given time.

Those influences seem to be evident in your music, but your voice remains unique and unlike any of those artists.

Yeah, I know I donât have a crooner voice like Chris Cornell. Iâm still getting used to what my voice is capable of and I like playing around with different tones and really pushing my range, but I donât have a nice, churchy vibrato like some of my contemporaries. Iâm glad I donât sound identical to anybody, but I also wish I could sing anything other than rock music sometimes⦠but I canât! I think I can sing as well as Anthony Kiedis, but thatâs not saying much for either of us! I used to get compared to the guy from Tripping Daisy and Perry Farrell from Janeâs Addiction all the time, but that seems to have died down. Now I hear Linkin Park and U2 from people⦠I donât know why though.

âI Used To Be a Heroâ is obviously about war. There seem to be a lot of war songs lately, why write another one?

Well this isnât really a war song. Itâs actually about an old man I knew who I just knew to be nice, accomplished, and very well-respected. What I found out after he died was he was a POW during World War Two. His plane was shot down and he was missing for about 2 months. Then, he met this other soldier in the camp that would ultimately end up becoming his brother-in-law when they returned home, because he was introduced to that soldierâs sister. So thatâs where I wrote the line âThe worst thing that couldâve happened made me better in the end.â Itâs funny to think if he hadnât become a POW, he never would have met his wife of 50 years. The main point of the song is that we judge people based on what we see. He was an old man when I met him, and I never knew he was considered a hero when he was my age.

Where does the name My Sister Ocean come from?

Itâs another take on a naming convention Iâd already seen in two of my favourite Canadian bands - I Mother Earth and Our Lady Peace. I thought the feminity of the names were somewhat misleading and when I heard the music I was surprised to hear they were rock bands. I thought itâs be cool to have a similar name and hopefully give people a similar reaction.

Thanks for the interview! Any words of wisdom for the kids out there?

Sure... Don't spend your money on drugs, spend it on guitar lessons. You'll thank yourself for it later.

BAND BIOGRAPHY

My Sister Ocean consists of 2 "schooled" musicians who have been the rhythm section in several bands since January 1996. Both members are talented in their own right - Eugenio, arguably one of the world's best rock drummers (anyone who's been to a live show can attest to that), and Holden, the creative force behind the lyrics and the sonic aesthetic of the band. Holden has produced both of the duo's official indie releases in his home studio, and has directed the band's first official music video, much to the anticipation and request of fans from around the world.

In the spirit of other duo bands, they have a simple, pared-down sound that communicates directly to the listener, and without the status-quo electric guitars getting in the way. The music is loud, tight, unapologetic, quirky, and fiercely independent. The band is unafraid to delve into softer, more delicate material, but mostly delivers a consistent and very original variety of heavy, hard-hitting, melodic rock.

The band has shared the stage with many of Canada's best acts, and their fanbase is consistently growing around the world thanks to their own independent distribution channel, mostly referred to as "the Internet."

"Thanks to the internet, we've been able to market our music around the world. Also, thanks to XM Satelite Radio, we're getting fans from around North America," Holden says. "We get fan emails daily now. I think we have enough fans around the world to fill up a 500 seat venue," he jokingly adds.

My Sister Ocean got their name from playing on the names of some of their favourite Canadian acts - "I Mother Earth" and "Our Lady Peace". "On one hand, we were wanting an epic name, and on the other hand, we kind of have a weird sense of humour, so this was like an inside joke for us as well. We've been complimented more on our name than our music in some circles!"

Having played together for over a decade, the energy and connection between the two band-members is very evident. "We hang out lots even when we're not performing or recording. We're basically best friends so we have a connection that comes from our friendship and flows through us when we play live," says Eugenio Pacileo from his cosy West Edmonton home. "Our crowds can feel that energy at our shows and it's a real positive experience for everyone involved. Even on a night where maybe there's less of a turn-out, we still have a hell of a lot of fun because we just love playing music together."

The songs are drenched in lyrical content about relationships, drug abuse, physical and emotional abuse, and general observations about Holden's world. "I sort of had a mixed upbringing," Holden explains. "I have this really loving mother and some amazingly close friends, but for a period of three to five years, my home life was a real struggle. As a teenager I was dealing with a step-father who became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and had become abusive toward me and my brother. Now, he wasn't putting cigarettes out on me or anything like that, but I have these weird memories that keep flashing of moments when my step-dad became another person, and wasn't afraid to hit out of anger. He threw a Walkman at me once and I got berated in front of my friends for the most absurd things. I didn't find out until well after my mother had divorced him that he had been addicted to cocaine since I was 13. It was a bizarre time in my life and somehow I managed to get through it with some great support from my friends and even their parents. I feel like I was raised by a village, and it was that network of people that helped me get through the shittiest period in my life. Now, it's been forever since those days, but it still influences my view of the world and my lyrical ramblings. All the bullshit isn't over though, cause now I'm dealing with other family members who have addictions and it really helps me appreciate all that I have in my immediate circle of family and friends."

Holden said that he could've turned into a negative creep, but music inspired him and kept him out of trouble. Eugenio also has had some trepadacious moments in his life, so the band tends to share the belief that writing about negative events can be used as a therapy to get through them.

"Music saved my life," says Holden. "Thankfully I had friends who wanted to jam on the weekends instead of getting into fights, drugs, or whatever else. My best advice to anyone in a shitty situation, especially teenagers, is to buy a musical instrument or write poetry.You'd be amazed at how positive you can feel after releasing the negative energy. Music can't be taken away from you. Whatever pain you may currently be in can be lessened by expressing creativity, even if there is no intended audience other than yourself."

My Sister Ocean's latest release, Beautiful Failures, can be purchased wherever fine music is sold. If you can't find it at your local music store, ask the retailer to special order it for you.