Interview: Stars

The band is set to get back into the swing of things with a new album in the works and their first show of the new year at Montreal’s eXcentris on February 16th. This won’t be your average show, however, as the concert is being put on by Warchild Canada and all proceeds will go to helping children affected by war.

We recently had a chance to catch up with Stars member Evan Cranley, who is not only one of Stars’ original band members but also plays in Broken Social Scene. From charities to cheese, we covered it all. So without further ado, here is our interview with Evan Cranley of Stars.

Meet You At The Show: First off, I’m always curious about the story behind band names – how did you come up with Stars? Why not hearts or squares? Did you guys deliberately not want to have “the” in the name?

Evan Cranley: It’s kinda funny, there was an explosion of bands like 8-9 years ago that had the word THE in their name… the hearts and the squares are also good names, but I always liked the name Stars because it was kind of a play on the heavens and the cults of celebrities – so when you think of the name what do you think of? A pop star?

MYATS: Ya, I think of famous people, but at the same time I also think of stars in the sky.

EC: Well that’s it, you’re meant to almost make a decision between the heavens or celebrity. I kinda like that from a name, you know?

MYATS: That’s really cool, I have never thought of it like that before. There seems to be a lot of confusion about whether the band is from Montreal or Toronto – so, to make matters more clear, are you a Habs or Leafs fans?

EC: Ohhh, I’m more of a Leafs fan but I have been living in Montreal for 10 years. We all grew up together and actually went to the same high school in Toronto. The band got started in Brooklyn 12 years ago. Then we relocated back to Canada, and I kind of convinced everyone to come to Montreal, because I thought it’s such a great city to make art in, and I’ve always thought of it to be a very inspirational place.

MYATS: Yeah, Montreal definitely has a strong art scene and underground music scene, so that was a good choice. Well, seeing that you now live in Montreal, while you’re off venturing around North America and other parts of the world, what do you miss most about our wonderful city?

EC: Well, I just actually built a house, so I haven’t really gone on tour yet. But when I do, I think I’m going to miss my home. And of course my friends – I’ve really created a world and a family in this city, so I think I’ll miss my friends, home and family – I mean that’s always what you miss when you go away.

MYATS: Definitely, but is there anything specific to Montreal? Like bagels or something?

EC: Haha, you know what, I’d really miss the bagels. And the cheese. Man, there’s some good Quebec cheeses. I’m a big food guy, so I’d definitely miss all the food here.

MYATS: What is your favorite venue to play in the city, and why?

EC: Well there’s so many, isn’t there? I really love Cabaret – I’ve always loved that room. I think it’s really a special place. That has to be my favorite venue, you know? It has such an incredible vibe. It feels like you’ve stepped into a place that shouldn’t really exist anymore – there’s something 20s about it. And Savoy. It has a kind of cabaret music feel. It kind of feels like I’m taking a step back in time when I go there, so I just love it there.

MYATS: That’s great. So let’s talk a bit about what you guys have been up to lately. So, I know you recorded a cover of the Pogues classic “Fairty Tale of New York” quite a while ago, why did you finally decide to give it a proper release in 2009?

EC: Well we released it on a very limited scale through our website. I think it was actually 2 years that it came out. The money we got from it went to charity – we like doing that. It was just supposed to be something special for the season, nothing more than that, you know? People only want to listen to Christmas songs for about a month, so.. there was nothing much to it. We put Ex-Lover on the one side, and the Pogues on the other, so we kind of released it as a single with a b-side.

MYATS: That’s really nice that you guys gave all the proceeds to charity. Speaking of which, your first Montreal concert of 2010 will be held in February to raise awareness and charity for War Child.

EC: That’s right! We haven’t played a show in over a year!

MYATS: I know! And we’re so glad that you’re back. It’s great that the band is involved in this fundraiser to benefit so many in need. How did you guys get involved with the fundraiser for War Child?

EC: We’ve worked with War Child before, so basically the director of War Child in Montreal asked us to do something, and we jumped at the opportunity as we have before. We’ve also done charity work with Doctors Without Borders, and we’ve done a lot like that. Usually at our Christmas shows we put a lot of money into charity work, and I just thought it would be good to do a showcase not so much of us, but rather bring awareness to this charity, and to just play and have a good time.

MYATS: Will this be your first time performing at eXcentris?

EC: I played an improv gig there a couple months ago, and I loved the venue. It’s just kind of a place that was outside of the box. And yeah, the band can perform, and we’re going to invite some special guests to also perform, and we’re going to have a great time with it. Not try to take it too serious.

MYATS: It’s great that you guys are getting so involved and promoting awareness for War Child. Lately I’ve been seeing more and more members of bands starting to pursue their own solo careers while still balancing their role in their original band. Seeing that fellow band mate Amy Millan has launched her solo career, do you find that the band dynamic changes?

EC: Ya, it does – I think Amy’s solo record is a good example, but we all tend to do kinds of things out of the band, because it gives us chances to fill other artistic motives outside of the band, and that can only cleanse you when you come back to the creative process of Stars again, which is our band, you know? Amy is a good example. She can do something that’s totally outside of Stars and fulfill herself creatively with that, and then maybe come back to the band refreshed. She writes in different ways for herself than she’ll write with us in the band. We’re all musicians and artists first before Stars, and when we get together, we’re us.

MYATS: That’s a great way of putting it. A lot of the times bands just fall apart when some of their members leave to do their own thing, so it’s really nice to hear that the band has a refreshing view on this.

EC: Mhm, of course, it’s going to help us in the long run, you know?

MYATS: Definitely, you guys will grow creatively this way.

EC: Absolutely.

MYATS: Well speaking of creative growth, rumors have been floating around that the name of the next Stars album is The Black House, The Blue Sky - is this true?

EC: (Laughs) No no, that is just a rumor.

MYATS: Oh good to know! So are you guys working on a new album?

EC: Ya we are. We start mixing it next month, and we release it in July. So ya, that’s pretty much it! We’ve been keeping a really low profile lately. We started writing last year, so this album has been in the making for the past year or so.

MYATS: What can we expect for this upcoming album? Something similar to your other albums, or something completely different?

EC: You’re going to hear something slightly different. It’s a lot more synthesizer based, a lot more synthesis on the record. It’s going to be a more short and concise record, with only around 10 songs. And I’m really proud of it, it’s the best thing we’ve ever done. I’m really excited to release it.

MYATS: I absolutely loved the last record In Our Bedroom After The War, so I’m sure it’s going to be amazing.

EC: Thanks so much! It’s definitely still Stars, just the production and the synthesis are pushed a little more, but it still sounds like us.

MYATS: I can’t wait to hear it. Last but not least, if you were to describe Stars as a colour, what would it be and why?

EC: Oh that’s a good one! I’d have to say the colour at dusk – kind of before it’s black, and after it’s blue, I’d say somewhere in between there. You know, I see music as colour. I’ll look at a set list of songs and I could tell what colour each song is. I think of music and texture as colour, and I think it’s a great way of interpreting your music through colour, it just speaks so much.

MYATS: Well thanks so much for taking the time to talk with us at Meet You At The Show. We’re looking forward to seeing you at play at the benefit.

EC: Hey, my pleasure, you too! I had a great time talking to you. And ya, I hope you enjoy the show, it’s for a great cause and I know ticket prices are a bit pricey, but it’s for a great charity, and it’ll be a fun night with plenty of awesome music.

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We had a great time chatting with Evan, and we thank him for his time spent talking with us. The good news is that there is lots of new Stars on the horizon, so stay tuned. And be sure to come out and see Stars play for a great cause on February 16th at eXcentris.

Interview Conducted by Sarah Touyz

Tags: Amy Millan, Broken Social Scene, Cabaret, Doctors Without Borders, Evan Cranley, Habs, Leafs, New album, Sarah Touyz, Savoy, Stars, Torquil Campbell, Warchild