By Nick Laugher, Staff Contributor
“(In Winnipeg) there’s this beautiful sense of potential. I think that if you really want to do something, you can do it here.”
It’s this kind of humble sincerity has embedded itself in the veins and flows out of the mouth of John K. Samson, lead singer and songwriter for Canada’s beloved indie stalwarts The Weakerthans. Aside from being the driving force behind one of Canada’s most accomplished independent acts, Samson is also responsible for running the small but dedicated publishing company Arbiter Ring, which tirelessly contributes to a plethora of musical projects outside of the band.
Recently, Samson has embarked on a solo venture: a series of three seven-inch vinyl and digital releases over the course of a year and a half, all inspired by roads and highways in Manitoba. This is Samson’s first release as a solo artist since sharing a six-song split EP with Manitoba punk band Painted Thin in 1995. Opting to release a series of vinyl and digital releases in lieu of an album, Samson believes it was the challenge of the medium that lured him in.
“I liked the idea that I have eight minutes to say something about this one place, this one road,” says Samson. “It was kind of an exercise, I had to be concise and direct … plus, (The Weakerthans) have never had a seven-inch … and I really like vinyl.”
While admittedly sharing a love/hate relationship with his home province – “One Great City!” Is a prime example – Samson is more than willing to cite growing up there as central to his identity and affectionately pays homage to it with this solo venture.
“Growing up in Manitoba, if you said you were a publisher, a musician or a poet, people took you at your word – and you were,” says Samson. “The centres of the country, they require you to have some kind of qualifications to do these things.”
Samson, who indeed does succeed at pushing boundaries as a brilliant and influential poet, musician and publisher, has just stepped off a small European tour as the opener for German band Kettcar in support of the first release of his solo project entitled City Route 85. Samson admits that the aspect of the tour that appealed to him the most was the beautiful architecture and ambiance of the venues.
“The Weakerthans have played a lot of big, ugly rooms, so it was nice to play rooms that were gorgeous and had some soul, because at least if I sucked, then the room was still beautiful,” says Samson, tongue-in-cheek.
Beautiful venues and the love of a humble, honest city are also responsible for attracting Samson to Halifax, where he will play a solo show at St. Patrick’s Church for the Dead of Winter festival on Jan. 29.
“I’ve always really loved Halifax and when they invited me and I thought, ‘Well no one’s really invited me to this kind of thing before,’ and I heard the venue was beautiful,” remarks Samson. “It just sounded like a very enjoyable evening.”
Weakerthans fans fear not – the band is by no means deteriorating. Samson is quick to announce that this solo project is not an attempt to begin a new career as a solo artist.
“This was a fun, personal thing that I wanted to do – very low key,” Samson explains. “It’s not that I didn’t think it would work with The Weakerthans. The idea just felt like a solo project.”
Though they’re slowly working on a new album – “Bits and pieces at a time” says Samson – The Weakerthans are, and always have been, predominantly a live band. Samson attributes this largely to getting his feet wet playing bass and touring with Canada’s politico-thrashpunk alumni Propagandhi before leaving to start The Weakerthans.
“It made me realize that I love playing for crowds and, though it’s a hard lifestyle to adapt to, I love touring,” says Samson nostalgically.
The Weakerthans are certainly well known for their energetic live performance and workhorse dedication to touring. In 2009 they embarked on a cross-Canada tour from St. John’s to Whitehorse dubbed the “Rolling Tundra Revue”. The tour included two sold out hometown shows at the Burton Cummings Theatre in Winnipeg which the band will release as the live CD/DVD “The Weakerthans: Live at the Burton Cummings Theatre” on March 23. Samson admits it’s an idea that’s been kicking around in the back of their minds for a while and that the welcoming embrace and energy of the Winnipeg shows inspired them to finally take the plunge.
Following Samson’s solo performance in Halifax, The Weakerthans plan to head down under for an Australian tour before settling back down in Canada to immerse themselves once more in the crafting of their forthcoming album.
Samson’s City Route 85, which is available through Epitaph and ANTI records, continues the intricate character-based storytelling approach that Samson lyrically embarked on with The Weakerthans’ 2007 album Reunion Tour.
“I’ve always wanted to be a writer,” says Samson. “My first goal was always to write fiction and this is the only way I really know how to do it – in three minute pop songs. I’m interested in human beings, not so much in my own daily life … I’m interested in exploring and trying to understand other lives, to spread those stories around to people. I think everyone goes through a phase where they’re more interested in themselves. There’s always that misanthropic phase that writers go through, but some people stay with that … they refuse to find anything good about humanity. But me, I’m just completely captivated by it all.”
You can bask in Samson’s unique blend of deeply profound, intimate folk music, storytelling and dry humour as he performs songs from his new solo release and The Weakerthans’ catalogue on Jan. 29 at St. Patrick’s Church in Halifax.
Recent Comments