May 1 2015 – Another year and another Canadian Music Week. We firmly believe this is the best festival in Toronto if you love rock. Of course the festival feature all genres of music but we only care about what we call #RealRock – music steeped in electric guitars and that carries on the spirit of rock and roll. We here at T-Mak World really enjoy trying to find new bands that we love. Once we find such bands, we approach our favorites to request interviews for our Emerging Artist Spotlight series where we have featured over 100 artists so far. We set off on this mission yet again for Canada Music Week (CMW) 2015
Today we set our focus on a band from Ottawa, ON named The Red Rails. All bands we talked to are asked similar questions to each other so we can get to know them better. The description on The Red Rails website reads:
In a shotgun shack in the sub-zero depths of the Ottawa winter, The Red Rails began, with vocalist and guitarist Kim Vincent, bassist Chris Slaney and drummer Steve Brogno as its constituent parts. Since then, they’ve roamed the landscape like a pack of wolves, challenging audiences with their feral rock intensity and a taste for blood.
Their debut full-length album, A Living Fiction, is a rare beast. The songs pummel forward with muscular precision until either transcending to moments of melodic power or unraveling into anarchy. The first single from the album, On the Line, is a fine example, and its official video showcases the band’s frenetic edge, with Kim lacerating his guitar between vocal assaults on the mic. They’ve been compared to Them Crooked Vultures, Alice in Chains, and Death From Above 1979.
2014 was a busy year, which had The Red Rails playing 20 show dates on their Eastern Canada tour that spanned for 5 weeks crossing 6 provinces.
Here is what they had to say to us:
Hey The Red Rails, thanks for taking the time out to talk to us. Let’s start off with the obligatory introductions. Who’s in the band and what instrument does everyone rock?
The Red Rails: Kim Vincent – Vox/Guitar, Chris Slaney – Bass/Vox, Steve Brogno – Drums
How about the history of the band, when did you get started and how did it happen?
The Red Rails: We formed in 2012 when our drummer, Steve had set up a jam with a bass player (Chris) he’d already played with a bunch of times with. I (Kim) joined them for that jam and after that first session we knew we had something special. It’s been nothing but great times and music ever since.
Who are some of your musical influences?
The Red Rails: The Beatles, Queens of the Stone Age, Death From Above 1979, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Them Crooked Vulture, Foo Fighters, Band of Skulls…
We have an immediate like for any band that lists Zeppelin! So based on the above how would you describe your music to someone that has never heard it?
The Red Rails: Riff heavy rock and roll with a deep set groove. Sometimes light, sometimes dark.
What is the significance of playing Canadian Music Week (CMW) for you?
The Red Rails: We are stoked because this will be our first appearance at the festival. Happy to be a part of it and see what kind of events, conferences, shows we can attend. Looking forward to meeting new people and getting our music out there!
What is your favorite single line of lyrics the band has written and why?
The Red Rails: That’s a good question… I’m (Kim) gonna go with “You and I are one in the attack”. It’s from the track “On in the Attack”, a song that Chris wrote. The lyrics are deadly. I love em.
What does the 2015 hold for you ideally as musicians?
The Red Rails: 2015 for us is all about writing new music, and playing some really good key shows. Last year we had an amazing year with tonnes of tour dates so now we are working on the catalogue side of things so to speak…
Imagine that you were asked to be the opener for any band’s world tour (both current and historical). Which band and tour would be your dream opening gig.
The Red Rails (Kim): Damn, these questions are good. I can’t speak for the other guys, but I can safely assume Them Crooked Vultures. Come on! Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones!! That would be ridiculous.
What is the future of the music industry? With the concept of the album and physical CD’s facing extinction, how will we be consuming music in 10 years? Are the economics feasible for emerging artists?
The Red Rails: I have no clue where it’s going to go, but it looks like streaming IS IT along with limited edition hard copies, whether it be vinyl or cd. I can’t say that that is a good thing. It seems that “Why buy it, if you can just stream it” is what we’re looking at here. Which really, you can’t blame the consumer for.
Where can people purchase or listen to your music?
The Red Rails: People can head over to our website. The links are all there, but they can pick it up from iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby and most other digital distributors.
At the end of 2014 we published our picks for top 10 albums of 2014. Lists like those are always a reflection of personal tastes so take a look at our pics and tell us if you were making the list what are some albums you would you have had on it?
The Red Rails: I’ll give you a few of my fav’s. Not sure if I could even make a top 10 really.
Jack White ‘Lazaretto’, Lana Del Rey ‘Ultraviolence’, St. Vincent ‘St. Vincent’, Hozier
Any closing remarks for our readers?
The Red Rails: Check us out online…
Thanks so much to The Red Rails. We hope that you can see them live. They are playing The Dakota Tavern , Saturday, May 2 at 1am.
The band’s website is www.theredrails.com and as you would expect they are on Twitter (@theredrails) and Facebook (/TheRedRails). In the meantime check out their video below from YouTube.
