MATT
AS HEARD ON ...
TOMMY MAC OF HEDLEY
NEIL OSBORNE OF 54-40
PHOTO : KEVIN KELLY
MATT
ANDERSEN
For the full interview , listen to the Jan . 20 , 2016 episode
AS HEARD ON ...
CM : After the success of [ 2014 ’ s ] Weightless , what did you do differently for [ 2016 ’ s ] Honest Man ?
Andersen : Well , we worked with a different producer , Gordon Williams , on this one and he comes from a pretty strong hiphop background . So , I mean , a lot of the recording process was different as far as using drum loops and beats , which is something I ’ ve never really done before and , honestly , is something I never really thought I would do . But when you start to talk and go over it and see how he works and thinks , it is a lot more musical than I ever really gave it credit for , so it kind of really opened me up a lot that way . A lot of the sessions were built around us just jamming . He would have beats and I would have my guitar and just started playing back and forth with other players in the room , so it was still as organic as it ever had been for me .
TOMMY MAC OF HEDLEY
For the full interview , listen to the Jan . 27 , 2016 episode
CM : You ’ re a producer , own your own studio , and your production work even pre-dates your work with Hedley . So what informs Hedley ’ s decision to bring in outside producers ?
Mac : We always wanted to be not known as one producer ’ s baby . So we made a conscious decision to work with a lot of different producers over the years , which in effect was my education in producing – just working with such a variety of producers . Also , as a studio bass player , I learned to not get super attached to parts . We did one album with three different producers on it . One guy would be like , “ I just want you to play whole notes on the one ” and the next guy is like , ‘ I hate walking bass lines ,” and the next guys says , “ Give me walking bass lines .” It puts you in the mindset of , “ I ’ m not going to get demoitis ,” as we call it , “ I ’ m just going to go in with an open mind and maybe a few options .”
I think producers are surprised by me on a playing level sometimes , not because I ’ m an overly amazing player , but because they come in and say , “ Oh , I ’ m not crazy about walking bass lines ,” and I just say , “ No problem , here ’ s another option …”
I think keeping that much of an open mind as a player has really helped me as a producer to be more open to not only players ’ ideas , but the fact that nothing is ever really set in stone . It is all really liquid until you actually press it .
NEIL OSBORNE OF 54-40
For the full interview , listen to the Jan . 13 , 2016 episode
CM : When reworking your material for La Difference : A History Unplugged , did you come to any new realizations about any of the songs ?
Osborne : One of the sparks of this idea and this project was getting more into the lyrics . One of them was when Dave [ Genn , guitarist ] joined the band in 2003 , I got to know him very well and of course he ’ s a full-time , permanent member now , all these years later , but I remember telling him that the song “ Crossing a Canyon ,” even though it ’ s kind of a pop song , the lyrics are really about when my father was dying of cancer . He was like , “ Whoa , I had no idea .” So he came up with the idea of making it more of a melodic key and more suitable to that sentiment and it was like , “ Oh , that ’ s interesting .” So , from there , we decided we could interpret the songs on a level that still carries the meaning of the song , or even more so in some cases , or just done in a different context . Like “ Baby Ran ” is done in more of an up-tempo , folky , O Brother , Where Art Thou ? kind of vibe and it still works .
So the fun and the challenge and , really , the opportunity was the fact that these songs could hold up to that kind of idea . All these years later , they still sit with us quite well and then we can do them justice and not try to make fools out of them . It ’ s almost like you can go back on your first date and do it all over again 30 years later .
PHOTO : COURTESY OF EONE MUSIC CANADA
18 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN
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