ETERNAL HUSBANDS
INTERVIEW WITH
RICK REID
BY EMAIL / COURTESY OF
MELANIE KAYE PR J.B: So the name Eternal Husbands how did that come into play? Is it from the Novel? RICK: It was a play on the Dostoevsky novel and the fact that Matt and I soldier on through the music industry, and even as our bands break up we stay together...also to weed out any possible homophobes listening to our music. J.B: You guys are from Montreal an iconic scene that has a huge influence what inspired you on the direction of “French Exit”? RICK: Montreal is a beautiful place to live for an artist or a musician, a family, anyone really...there is a vibrant and exciting music scene that is vast in scope and genre, and it lends itself well to the creative process. I would often just walk around aimlessly for hours at night through the streets and even after 4 years still end up in places in my own neighborhood I’d never noticed. The city definitely looms large on
this record.
J.B: Do you find it easier to work as a two piece? I’ve seen some
pretty knarly two pieces before? RICK: Working as a two piece is exciting and challenging, leaves no room for error, and creates space that can be really cool. That being said after recording French Exit we have added another guitarist and drummer for the live show to flesh out the songs, but the creative process is just the two of us. J.B: There was a little bit of a break there in between the self-titled and “French Exit”? RICK: We put out the first EP months after our previous band The City Streets broke up, it was just experimental stuff we were recording in my apartment during the fallout of that band...as the project progressed we realized what we wanted to do with the next record, which included recording in a studio in Vancouver, bigger sounding pop songs, which require more money, logistical effort, flying across the country, etc. So that would account for the longer gap between records. J.B: I would describe it as fog,folk,indie is there a side of experimental that you kind of gravitate too? RICK: Matt and I have always just written and played the music we wanted to, whatever people want to call it is fine. We both listen to a wide range of musical styles, and bring our respective ideas and influences to the table, and see what fits together. J.B: How was recording at Rain City in Vancouver? RICK: Recording at Rain City was fun, a pleasure and a hell of a studio. We chose to do the record there because of our collaborator in production and friend, Jesse Gander, who we have made a handful of records with. He understands my esoteric descriptions of how I want things to sound, my vision for the record, and translates that into reality with a budget and time constraints...we love working with him. J.B: Is Jesse Gander that methodical? RICK: Gander is a wizard on the pro tools, a helluva engineer, he knows how to get things done. So in that way, he’s methodical but he’s also very intuitive and let’s things happen naturally, happy accidents, all those things that cause “magic” in the studio. J.B: He’s been known for producing some really interesting works is that what made you to decide on that direction? RICK: Gander is a music lover like us, loves all kinds of music, but comes from a punk rock background like ourselves as well, so we have an unspoken philosophical understanding in regards to how things are
done and the reasons behind them...he’s made death metal records, punk records, pop records, country albums...so we knew he was the guy when it came to the ambitious project we had in mind. J.B: “Purple City was referenced as the infamous sit around with nothing better to do Edmonton nights? In reference to tripping out? And mostly the track has that feel foggy and experimental? RICK: Purple city is an Edmonton tradition passed down through generations in which one takes acid, stares into specific floodlights at the legislature grounds and then everything turns an incredible purple, which then progresses into what usually is a memorable night in the beautiful Edmonton river valley in summer. J.B: What’s the creative process for writing? RICK: Usually I write a song on acoustic or piano just a basic outline, and Matt and I start throwing ideas back and forth, adding, subtracting, recording different sounds and instruments until we have something cool. We have tons of material that may be released or rerecorded, we have so many things on the go it’s hard to keep up, which is a good thing I suppose. J.B: “French Exit” has a different feel from the last? RICK: French Exit is different from the last record in that it’s based more on what could be considered traditional songwriting, although we add an interesting palate of sounds and instrumentation to them, as well as upgraded production values to make them unique...we have other more experimental stuff recorded, maybe the next album will be completely different, but this is where we’re at now. J.B: We always end with a famous quote or a book that inspired you anything come to mind? RICK “Let everything happen to you Beauty and terror Just keep going No feeling is final” ― Rainer Maria Rilke
FRENCH EXIT AVAILABLE NOW @eternalhusbands.com