RIG REPORT
A look at the gear the members of Arkells will have onstage supporting Morning Report .
MAX KERMAN ( VOCALS / GUITAR ) Fender ’ 72 Telecaster Re-Issue Fender Reverb Deluxe Amp Boss Chorus Boss Tuner Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Fuzz Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb
MIKE DEANGELIS ( GUITAR ) Fender Elvis Costello Signature Jazzmaster Fender 1968 Bassman Amp Boss RV-6 Reverb Boss Tuner Diamond J-Drive MK3 Boost / Overdrive Diamond Memory Lane Jr . Delay Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Fuzz Electro-Harmonix Micro POG Octave Generator Keeley Compressor Maxon 808 Overdrive MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay MXR Phase 90 Phaser
NICK DIKA ( BASS ) Fender American Standard Jazz Basses Traynor YBA-300 Bass Head Ampeg Bass Cabs ( 410 , 6x10 , or 8x10 , scaled to stage ) Boss OC-3 Super Octave / Distortion Electro-Harmonix Bass Metaphors Preamp / Compressor / EQ / Distortion Klark Teknik DN100 DI
TIM OXFORD ( DRUMS ) YC Drum Company
• 13-in . Tom
• 16-in . Tom
• 24-in . Kick YC Drum Company 14 x 5.5-in . Snare Sabian Cymbals
• 15-in . Artisan Hi-Hats
• 20-in . HHX-Plosion Crash
• 20-in . HHX Legacy Crash
• 22-in . Artisan Medium Ride Promark TX747BW Sticks Evans Drumheads
• G2 Coated Batter Heads
• G1 Resonant Heads
• Heavyweight Snare Batter Heads
ANTHONY CARONE ( KEYBOARDS ) Roland RD-800 Stage Piano Roland JD-XA Analog / Digital Crossover Synth Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus Amp Nord Electro 3 Keyboard MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay Akai MPX16 Sample Player it a bit more , and not just serve it up for them ,” Kerman muses , and in that regard , Morning Report ’ s “ Drake ’ s Dad ” into “ Private School ” mimics that approach quite successfully .
And the Kanye- ‘ Kells comparisons can easily extend further , considering earlier this year , West dropped his most eclectic and , somehow , his most controversial album yet in The Life of Pablo . Its opener , “ Ultralight Beam ,” like “ Drake ’ s Dad ,” is also slow-burning , also features a gospel choir , also unlike what anyone would reasonably expect from a sonic stance , and stands out as unique from the tracks that follow .
It ’ s also not surprising at all when Kerman calls it his favourite track from the record . “ I think , like ‘ Ultralight Beam ,’ ‘ Drake ’ s Dad ’ kind of wipes the slate clean for Arkells fans on a certain level ,” he offers . “ It ’ s like , this is not just going to sound like the last record or anything else we ’ ve done . I was really pushing for ‘ Drake ’ s Dad ’ [ to open the album ], and the guys just let me do it .”
It may seem odd to discuss what ’ s still , at its core , very much a rock album in the context of contemporary mainstream hiphop , but really , it ’ s unavoidable . Outside of the obvious affinity for West , Kerman calls Chance the Rapper ’ s Coloring Book mixtape his favourite album of the year thus far , and foiling his apathy for modern rock is his belief that some of the more progressive and exciting sounds of recent years have sprouted from pop , hip-hop , and electronic music .
“ Collectively , we ’ re not just a bunch of guys sitting around getting high to a Neil Young record from 1973 , you know what I mean ?” Kerman jokes . “ If you were to see our text message group , which is where we often share what we ’ re listening to , aw man , it ’ s a lot of non-rock stuff . It ’ s the new Beyonce record , the new Chance record , the new James Blake record ... It ’ s all very of-the-moment .”
With that said , Kerman and Arkells have no delusions about their music or what it entails ; they ’ re just looking outside of its sphere to bring it to new places . “ We ’ re definitely rooted in classic rock ‘ n roll songwriting ; it ’ d be silly to say we ’ re not ,” the singer emphasizes . “ I love Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen and all those greats that people would associate with us as bands we ’ d listen to . But when it came to production [ for Morning Report ], it was , ‘ What would a fresh producer or somebody of-the-moment be thinking about ? What way would they pivot with the production of these songs ?’”
That informed the band ’ s unique approach to recording and producing the album – unique from a rock perspective , that is . Kerman points to the aforementioned Coloring Book mixtape as an example of the long-running approach to hip-hop albums that finds a number of different producers putting their touches on the same collection , and sometimes even on the same song .
Considering the success they had with High Noon , it would have been simple and even sensible for Arkells to once again tap producer Tony Hoffer ( Beck , M83 ) and try to repeat a winning formula ; however , this time , Hoffer produced only one of the dozen offerings on the album .
The studio sessions for Morning Report began in September 2015 down in L . A ., where the band cut one song each with Hoffer and Canadian ex-pat Brian West ( Maroon 5 , K ’ naan ), then returned to Toronto for a pair of lengthier sessions – five songs in October with Gus Van Go ( Said the Whale , The Stills ) and the remaining five in December with Joe Chicarelli ( My Morning Jacket , The Shins ). Says Kerman : “ That ’ s not the most conventional way that rock bands do stuff , and I love that about it .”
He believes that the opportunity to work with four accomplished but different producers broadened their “ sonic palette ” for the effort . He also acknowledges that the process could have yielded a lack of cohesion between these dozen tracks , but they ’ ve seemingly avoided that . “ So far , nobody ’ s been that accurate with who they thought did what , which is cool ,” Kerman says of those who ’ ve had an advance listen . “ I think that ’ s a credit to the producers , too , for trying new things and not being beholden to a particular sound .”
The resulting product , different as it may be , still fits comfortably into the band ’ s back catalogue . While it takes off on a few fresh tangents , they all complement the foundation that Arkells have so well established over the past decade . And it ’ s not just tinges of modern pop and hip-hop that make their way into the mix . This is , after all , the band that has been known to occasionally break out full sets of Motown hits for fundraisers or a friend ’ s wedding . Past and present , expected or unexpected , these different ingredients all combine for a compelling front-to-back listen .
The aforementioned first single , “ Private School ,” is proof of that . Considering its chart positions and inclusion on all kinds of tastemaking playlists through the major streaming services , it ’ s clear that fans old and new are receptive to this new iteration of Arkells – or at least this one part of it .
“ Private School ” starts off with a simple
36 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN