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I can totally go into a play on words with the title of a song from an artist with Canadian roots that came out in the 90's, but I won't. Let's just say that if you are not familiar with Ought - here is your chance to become a fan just like me.
I gravitate toward different, unique, fresh and music that doesn't sound like everything else that is out there right now. My tastes are all over the place but if it connects with me, I am sold. Ought is one of those bands where you know you need or want to hear something different, but you aren't quite sure what it is. After listening to More Than Any Other Day in its entirety, I realized this release was exactly what I needed to hear and I know for a fact I am not the only one that feels this way.
Ought formed in Montreal and is made up of four mates who are all natives of everywhere but Canada. Guitarist and vocalist Tim Beeler, originally a folk musician hailing from New Hampshire, fell in with New Jersey native Matt May (keyboards) and Australian émigré Tim Keen (drums, violin) - the three of them began sharing an apartment that doubled as practice space, where they were soon joined by Portland, OR transplant Ben Stidworthy on bass. Ought played its first show and recorded its first EP in the largest bedroom of their apartment in the summer of 2012.
Following another recording session in early 2013 and the release of a second EP via Bandcamp, Ought spent a few days at the Hotel2Tango studio with engineer Radwan Moumneh (Suuns, Matana Roberts, Jerusalem In My Heart) in the fall of 2013 at the invitation of Constellation, laying down a clutch of songs new and old that comprise the first "proper" full-length album. More Than Any Other Day was released by Constellation on April 29, 2014.
Ought is already garnering critical acclaim by the likes of Pitchfork, Exclaim, Paste, numerous blogs and music groups. I am really grateful that Tim Keen took a few minutes to answer some questions. Ought is about to embark on a really long tour and will be limited on time so I got lucky. I'm excited to post and share about these guys and I will definitely be seeing them live next month.
I might be a little too obvious of how excited I am about this band based on my questions/comments but I do believe they have many great things going for them and that their fan base will continue to grow as word spreads to music lovers everywhere. Let's get on with the questions...
WMB: I do believe More Than Any Other Day is going to be towards the top of my list of 2014 albums. I am a member of a few music groups and you guys have been rightly shared and raved about. I do feel this year you might just be catapulted into the mainstream because of the demand from your fans - you already have great momentum and critical acclaim - are you guys ready for that level of attention?
TK: Wow! Honestly, I think there's still a big gap between us and the real mainstream that we'd be pretty hard-pressed to close in without changing the way we make music. Constellation isn't exactly pressuring us to move units. That being said, it's exciting to see that people are connecting with the record, and as long as we can keep working in the same way that we have always worked, I'm excited to see what happens.
WMB: I noticed your booking agent is the Windish Agency - does that mean (fingers crossed) you might possibly be making a SXSW appearance next year? They do have quite stellar day parties ;)
TK: I honestly have no idea yet--we're still trying to lock in the rest of this year! Maybe! We haven't had that conversation. We'll definitely be touring a lot, though--I've never been to Austin and I've heard great things.
WMB: Habit is one of my favorite tracks off the album. I can definitely relate to this song and I feel a lot of people can - is there a personal story to that track?
TK: I can only really speak to the jam in which we wrote it. It was one of the first days of Spring when the sun was out all day, and it was finally nice in our jamspace. I'd been sitting outside a lot, which felt like a luxury at the time, and I think more than usual we were feeling a little summery. The lyrics, from an outsider's perspective (Tim B writes those) speak to me about a silent desire to outwardly feel something in situations where it's normal to push something down and not feel it fully. Tim B might disagree with me on that, though, I dunno.
WMB: How has it been working with a record label behind you for More Than Any Other Day vs. the New Calm EP? Are you guys still writing new material, or just focusing on the tour right now?
TK: We're writing new stuff the same way we always have: slowly, in our practice sessions. We've got one or two new songs we're going to test out on this tour. Having the record label certainly gives us a lot more resources, but in many ways it's just the same thing, we go in and play the songs just like normal. The best thing about having the label is that they've done this all before (literally) 100 times, so they can help us catch things we would have no idea about, and give us confidence in the process.
WMB: I'm looking forward to catching you guys on tour next month - US in July and then Europe in August - will this be the first tour outside of Canada for you guys?
TK: We've played a few US shows, but nothing on this scale. We're *very* excited.
WMB: If you could play at a dream festival or tour - who would play with you (can be past or present bands)?
Here is my review of their live set from July.
I'm posting my two favorite tracks from More Than Any Other Day. If you dig them like I do - check them out live if they will be near you (dates listed below) or go buy their great debut album and share, share, share! There is also a cool video for The Weather Song but I have no idea how to embed it.
There is no doubt that I am a fan of Ought - so what is my fan name? An Ought-er, Ought-ling or what about plain Oughts or Ought Bots?? hahaha. It's never to early to start thinking about naming your fans, guys. (OK I am halfway joking..or am I?) Ought just recently gave into the internet last year, so it's time for them to get to working on those #hashtags.
I gravitate toward different, unique, fresh and music that doesn't sound like everything else that is out there right now. My tastes are all over the place but if it connects with me, I am sold. Ought is one of those bands where you know you need or want to hear something different, but you aren't quite sure what it is. After listening to More Than Any Other Day in its entirety, I realized this release was exactly what I needed to hear and I know for a fact I am not the only one that feels this way.
Ought formed in Montreal and is made up of four mates who are all natives of everywhere but Canada. Guitarist and vocalist Tim Beeler, originally a folk musician hailing from New Hampshire, fell in with New Jersey native Matt May (keyboards) and Australian émigré Tim Keen (drums, violin) - the three of them began sharing an apartment that doubled as practice space, where they were soon joined by Portland, OR transplant Ben Stidworthy on bass. Ought played its first show and recorded its first EP in the largest bedroom of their apartment in the summer of 2012.
Following another recording session in early 2013 and the release of a second EP via Bandcamp, Ought spent a few days at the Hotel2Tango studio with engineer Radwan Moumneh (Suuns, Matana Roberts, Jerusalem In My Heart) in the fall of 2013 at the invitation of Constellation, laying down a clutch of songs new and old that comprise the first "proper" full-length album. More Than Any Other Day was released by Constellation on April 29, 2014.
Ought is already garnering critical acclaim by the likes of Pitchfork, Exclaim, Paste, numerous blogs and music groups. I am really grateful that Tim Keen took a few minutes to answer some questions. Ought is about to embark on a really long tour and will be limited on time so I got lucky. I'm excited to post and share about these guys and I will definitely be seeing them live next month.
I might be a little too obvious of how excited I am about this band based on my questions/comments but I do believe they have many great things going for them and that their fan base will continue to grow as word spreads to music lovers everywhere. Let's get on with the questions...
WMB: I do believe More Than Any Other Day is going to be towards the top of my list of 2014 albums. I am a member of a few music groups and you guys have been rightly shared and raved about. I do feel this year you might just be catapulted into the mainstream because of the demand from your fans - you already have great momentum and critical acclaim - are you guys ready for that level of attention?
TK: Wow! Honestly, I think there's still a big gap between us and the real mainstream that we'd be pretty hard-pressed to close in without changing the way we make music. Constellation isn't exactly pressuring us to move units. That being said, it's exciting to see that people are connecting with the record, and as long as we can keep working in the same way that we have always worked, I'm excited to see what happens.
WMB: I noticed your booking agent is the Windish Agency - does that mean (fingers crossed) you might possibly be making a SXSW appearance next year? They do have quite stellar day parties ;)
TK: I honestly have no idea yet--we're still trying to lock in the rest of this year! Maybe! We haven't had that conversation. We'll definitely be touring a lot, though--I've never been to Austin and I've heard great things.
WMB: Habit is one of my favorite tracks off the album. I can definitely relate to this song and I feel a lot of people can - is there a personal story to that track?
TK: I can only really speak to the jam in which we wrote it. It was one of the first days of Spring when the sun was out all day, and it was finally nice in our jamspace. I'd been sitting outside a lot, which felt like a luxury at the time, and I think more than usual we were feeling a little summery. The lyrics, from an outsider's perspective (Tim B writes those) speak to me about a silent desire to outwardly feel something in situations where it's normal to push something down and not feel it fully. Tim B might disagree with me on that, though, I dunno.
WMB: How has it been working with a record label behind you for More Than Any Other Day vs. the New Calm EP? Are you guys still writing new material, or just focusing on the tour right now?
TK: We're writing new stuff the same way we always have: slowly, in our practice sessions. We've got one or two new songs we're going to test out on this tour. Having the record label certainly gives us a lot more resources, but in many ways it's just the same thing, we go in and play the songs just like normal. The best thing about having the label is that they've done this all before (literally) 100 times, so they can help us catch things we would have no idea about, and give us confidence in the process.
WMB: I'm looking forward to catching you guys on tour next month - US in July and then Europe in August - will this be the first tour outside of Canada for you guys?
TK: We've played a few US shows, but nothing on this scale. We're *very* excited.
WMB: If you could play at a dream festival or tour - who would play with you (can be past or present bands)?
TK: The opinions that follow represent only me, Tim K, and may change by this afternoon:
- Dirty Three
- Lungbutter (http://lungbuttermtl.
- Beyonce
- Bad Brains
Here is my review of their live set from July.
I'm posting my two favorite tracks from More Than Any Other Day. If you dig them like I do - check them out live if they will be near you (dates listed below) or go buy their great debut album and share, share, share! There is also a cool video for The Weather Song but I have no idea how to embed it.
There is no doubt that I am a fan of Ought - so what is my fan name? An Ought-er, Ought-ling or what about plain Oughts or Ought Bots?? hahaha. It's never to early to start thinking about naming your fans, guys. (OK I am halfway joking..or am I?) Ought just recently gave into the internet last year, so it's time for them to get to working on those #hashtags.
Connect with Ought here:
Upcoming Tour Dates:
06/29 Scottsdale, AZ - Pub Rock * w/ Bad Neighbors
06/30 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress * w/ J.R.M. ::FREE:: 21+
07/02 Dallas, TX - Three Links *
07/03 Austin, TX - Holy Mountain *
07/04 New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa * 21+
07/06 Atlanta, GA - The Mammal Gallery * w/ Fucked Up, & Weed
07/07 Durham, NC - Pinhook *
06/30 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress * w/ J.R.M. ::FREE:: 21+
07/02 Dallas, TX - Three Links *
07/03 Austin, TX - Holy Mountain *
07/04 New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa * 21+
07/06 Atlanta, GA - The Mammal Gallery * w/ Fucked Up, & Weed
07/07 Durham, NC - Pinhook *
07/08 Washington, DC - Black Cat Backstage *
07/09 Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle * 21+
07/11 Brooklyn, NY - Baby’s All Right * w/ Modern Vices, & Semi Femme 18+
07/12 Boston, MA - Church * 21+
07/13 Montreal, QC - Casa del Popolo *
07/14 Toronto, ON - The Drake * 19+
07/14 Toronto, ON - The Drake * 19+
07/16 Bloomington, IN - The Bishop * 18+
07/17 Chicago, IL - The Burlington *
w/ Dream Council, & Barber Greene 21+/no advance tickets
07/18 St. Louis, MO - Off Broadway *
07/19 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry * 18+
07/20 Kansas City, MO - Riot Room * 21+
07/21 Denver, CO - Lost Lake * 21+
07/22 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court * w/ Mooninite
07/23 Boise, ID - The Crux * w/ Mindrips
07/25 Toronto, ON - Silver Dollar ~ w/ Blonde Elvis, & Wish
07/26 Kitchener/Waterloo, ON - Starlight ~
07/27 Guelph, ON - Hillside Festival ~
07/30 Quebec City, QC - Le Cercle ~
07/31 Saint John, NB - The Pub Down Under ~
08/02 Sackville, NB - Sappyfest ~
* w/ Dub Thompson
~ w/ Freelove Fenner
~ w/ Freelove Fenner
~Europe~
August 8 - Haldern Pop, Haldern-Rees (DE)
August 9 - Wasn’t Born To Follow Festival, Copenhagen (DK)
August 10 - Paradiso, Amsterdam (NL)
August 11 - Le Mecanique Ondulatoire, Paris (FR)
August 12 - Relâche Festival w/ Night Beats, Quintron & Miss Pussycat,
@ Les Vivres De L’Art, Bordeaux (FR)
August 9 - Wasn’t Born To Follow Festival, Copenhagen (DK)
August 10 - Paradiso, Amsterdam (NL)
August 11 - Le Mecanique Ondulatoire, Paris (FR)
August 12 - Relâche Festival w/ Night Beats, Quintron & Miss Pussycat,
@ Les Vivres De L’Art, Bordeaux (FR)
August 13 - La Route Du Rock Festival, St. Malo (FR)
August 15 - Jabberwocky, London (UK)
August 16 - Green Man Festival, Brecon Beacons (UK)
08/21 - Ottawa, ON @ Arboretum Fest w/ Fresh Snow, Freelove Fenner, & Blue Angel
August 15 - Jabberwocky, London (UK)
August 16 - Green Man Festival, Brecon Beacons (UK)
08/21 - Ottawa, ON @ Arboretum Fest w/ Fresh Snow, Freelove Fenner, & Blue Angel
~EUROPE 2: THE RETURN OF~
29 Oct - Soy Festival, Nantes (FR)
30 Oct - Pitchfork Festival, Paris (FR)
31 Oct - Rockomotives Festival, Vendome (FR)
01 Nov - Le Phare, Limoges (FR)
04 Nov - Ziegel Oh Lac, Rote Fabrik, Zurich (CH)
05 Nov - Bad Bonn, Dudingen (CH)
06 Nov - Ohibo, Milan (IT)
07 Nov - Circolo Degli Artisti, Rome (IT)
08 Nov - Covo, Bologna (IT)
09 Nov - Rhiz, Vienna (AU)
11 Nov - Privatclub, Berlin (DE)
12 Nov - Uebel & Gefahrlich, Hamburg (DE)
13 Nov - King Georg, Cologne (DE)
15 Nov - Brudenell Social Club, Leeds (UK)
16 Nov - CCA, Glasgow (UK)
17 Nov - Workman’s Club, Dublin (UK)
18 Nov - Sound Control, Manchester (UK)
19 Nov - Scala, London (UK)
20 Nov - AB Club, Brussels (BE)
30 Oct - Pitchfork Festival, Paris (FR)
31 Oct - Rockomotives Festival, Vendome (FR)
01 Nov - Le Phare, Limoges (FR)
04 Nov - Ziegel Oh Lac, Rote Fabrik, Zurich (CH)
05 Nov - Bad Bonn, Dudingen (CH)
06 Nov - Ohibo, Milan (IT)
07 Nov - Circolo Degli Artisti, Rome (IT)
08 Nov - Covo, Bologna (IT)
09 Nov - Rhiz, Vienna (AU)
11 Nov - Privatclub, Berlin (DE)
12 Nov - Uebel & Gefahrlich, Hamburg (DE)
13 Nov - King Georg, Cologne (DE)
15 Nov - Brudenell Social Club, Leeds (UK)
16 Nov - CCA, Glasgow (UK)
17 Nov - Workman’s Club, Dublin (UK)
18 Nov - Sound Control, Manchester (UK)
19 Nov - Scala, London (UK)
20 Nov - AB Club, Brussels (BE)
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