Crack Cloud

Alberta, Canada’s Crack Cloud aren’t your typical postpunk guitar band. Their unconventional aesthetic and constantly evolving cast of contributors lends their songs and shows a rare degree of raw intensity. Crack Cloud - who refer to themselves as a multimedia collective - have just released their self-titled debut album and are playing two UK headline shows this November. We caught up with singer-drummer Zach Choy and bassist Daniel Robertson to discuss their inspiration and the ‘historical trauma’ at the heart of everything they do.

Q: Canadian artists such as Drake and Arcade Fire have spoken explicitly about their desire to create a new notion of ‘Canadianness’. Do you feel like you represent a challenge to what it means to be Canadian?

Zach: A lot of the subject matter is informed by childhood experiences of growing up in rural Alberta in the 90’s; where multiculturalism often felt like a pretext for the more insidious affluence of the oil industry. We felt dissociated from our environment at an early age and in many ways our content is a reflection of that dissociation.

Q: You’ve previously described ‘Crack Cloud’ as a multimedia collective. Do you feel limited by more traditional labels?

Zach: Our creative inclinations extend beyond the musical content: our ideas can only be fully realized this way. All musical and visual content is the conglomerative effort of a fluctuating number of people that resonate with Crack Cloud as an artistic notion or entity.

Q: Do you think welcoming differing viewpoints is important in the political sphere as well as the artistic one?

Zach: We are making art that is informed by our lived experiences and observations. The political significance of that is up for interpretation. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being politically arbitrary. If you’re finding solace in a creative outlet - if its helping you to cope, to grow, to understand yourself and the world around you - then thats a fucking blessing. Believe in yourself. Love yourself. Find your own climate and cultivate from the heart.

Q: Wow that’s inspiring! Which artists would you say inspire you?

Zach: Artists like Erykah Badu and Kendrick Lamar that allow themselves to be emotionally vulnerable and defiant. We identify with the narrative of Hip-Hop culture because it isn’t exclusive to race, creed, class, or history: it’s often about coming-of-age: of making something out of nothing.

Daniel: Seeing someone investigating the boundaries of expression is inspiring; Midori Takada has been a longtime inspiration for me.

Q: You’ve described Crack Cloud as your ‘rehabilitation outlet’, do you think the collective could become a vehicle for rehabilitating other addicts?

Zach: Crack Cloud does function as a vehicle of rehabilitation for people in our lives. I had a very negative impact on myself and the people closest to me during my teenage years. It’s easy to associate my transgressive behaviour with addiction at the time, but what is easily overlooked is the root cause of addiction to begin with. Rehabilitation can only work through a deep understanding of yourself, and the historical trauma that influenced you to search for that quick fix. I think art is fundamentally about recovery. It’s meant to inspire growth and connectivity and engagement. This is what Crack Cloud strives for within our own community, and we aim to extend that invitation.

Words by Alex Mistlin | Illustration by Josh Whettingsteel