INTERVIEW WITH
IAN BLURTON
WITHIN PUNK ZINE INTERVIEW WITH
IAN BLURTON
PUBLIC ANIMAL
OCTOBER 16, 2016 BY EMAIL
COURTESY OF MELANIE KAYE PR Formed in 2012 from the ashes of Tricky Woo, C’mon, Bella Clava, Lying Cheats, Change of Heart, Starvin’ Hungry, etc., Public Animal was named after an Alice Cooper song. Their high energy show finds vocalists Ian Blurton and Caitlin Dacey layering fuzz guitar and distorted organ over the groove-oriented rhythm section of Eric Larock and Ryan Gassi. The four diverse writers have built a sweatsoaked shrine to ‘60s/’70s rock, a greasy machine held together by strands of psych, pop, prog, garage, doom, shoegaze and soul. They have released records on Yeah Right!, Teenage Rampage, No List/ Noise Agony Mayhem, Squirtgun in Canada and Electrohasch in Germany. J.B: Okay so let’s start from the beginning the whole name “Public Animal” came from the earlier workings of Alice Cooper, which in a way you guys have that 70’s sound? IAN: Yes the name Public Animal comes from Public Animal #9 by Alice Cooper on the School’s Out record. We do have a 70s vibe to what we do as alot of the masters of hard rock come from that era but we are also a band that is in the present and are influenced by current currents. There are lots of things to be inspired by, people/ bands/art, and are open to that while also trying to write from our own perspective so it sounds like us. J.B: What was the creation process behind this project from the previous bands you were in? It has more of a shoegaze stoner rock feel direction?
IAN: Almost every band I’ve been in has been a collective so the differences are the people and what they bring to the table. Public Animal is four individuals and/or lone wolves, we try to write and arrange our songs as a unit and everyone throws around ideas until the song is done. We spent alot of time on tones and tunings and arrangements and finding the right balance of everything. I think we are finding that our kind of jams are a little bit slower now as it gives the music more space to breathe. J.B I got to ask is the key work on this release done on a Korg? It almost has that oldcshool Roland 8 bit sound? IAN: Good ears. Parts of it were done on a Korg and run thru a 1940s Valco with car radio speakers so it’s a very, very old school way of getting that 8bit sound. J.B: Prog has come an extremely long way from the late 70’s and then through the eighties and now it seems to be more infused with a modern twist of course? What was the influences for Palace Arms? IAN: Prog is not a dirty word for Public Animal but we tend to like the early stuff that is tough and not too bloated. We love Hawkwind, T2/It’ll All Work Out In Boomland, Tangerine Dream, Morgan, Neu, etc even though progheads would probably not consider some of that prog. We like music that is adventurous and our audiences really seem to appreciate and embrace that. J.B: The chord work and rifts range from doom to metal to atmospheric? What was the creative track processing on this one? IAN: Nyles Spencer, who did a great job engineering the bed tracks, also likes to process tracks live as they are going down so he would be sending things through a tape echo or reverb plate and other effects and printing them for later use. We also spent alot of time overdubbing and making sure the tones of everything worked the way we wanted them to. Switching genres and sounds can be a tricky thing and with the guitars I had make multiple attempts to get what we were after. J.B: Of course being an engineer yourself you got access to the infamous Bathouse Studio what kind of vibe was resonating out of that place?
IAN: It’s just very relaxed and all about getting the work done as it’s off the beaten path and there is not much else to do. The gear is all incredible and it’s just a really great place to immerse yrself in the recording process as you can stay there while working. Needless to say, we are very grateful for the experience. J.B: Of course being digital you had time to do tracking and pre mastering before giving it over to Brad at Audio Seige? IAN: We did the beds in 4 days and then spent months on the overdubs and mix by ourselves. Not much pre-mastering done as we love what Brad does and as usual he offered solid advice about the mixes and then did a great job on the mastering. J.B: Of course you guys did the video pre teaser any thoughts on the Ice Cream Parlour? IAN: As in opening a Public Animal ice cream parlour? That is something we support 100%. J.B: What’s it like being on Yeah Right Records? IAN: It’s great. We love Tony who runs the label and he does (Yeah) right by us everytime. We have been very lucky to have releases out on Elektrohasch (Europe)/NoList/NoiseAgonyMayhem/Teenage Rampage/Squirtgun and appreciate everyone taking time out of their busy lives to help out. J.B: You guys are of course on tour currently hitting up the iconic Horseshoe Tavern for the Halloween bash and then ending the tour at my old stomping grounds The Townehouse up in Suds? J.B: We look forward to each and every show and have so much love for all the venues we are playing on this upcoming run. Keeping a venue open and helping support a scene is a tough go and we appreciate all the work that goes into it everyday. J.B: We always end with a famous book or quote that inspired your life anything come to mind? IAN: Kick Out The Jams Motherfuckers!!!
Tour Dates Sat Oct 15 Saskatoon/Amigo’s Cantina CFCR funding drive wrap party Fri Oct 28 Toronto/Horseshoe Palace Arms record release with Diemonds/PowWows + DJ Tim Perlich Sat Oct 29 London/Call The Office Fri Nov 4 Guelph/ DSTRCTwith Mad Ones/HotKid Sat Nov 5 Windsor/Phog Lounge with Mad Ones/HotKid Fri Nov 18 Peterborough The Red Dog Sat Nov 19 Montreal/ Bistro De Paris with Half Measures Fri Dec 2 Barrie/The Foxx Lounge Rock Bar and Hotdoggery Sat Dec 3 Sudbury/The Townehouse
PALACE ARMS AVAILABLE OCTOBER 28th ON YEAH RIGHT RECORDS