Album 2 from this pop/jazz quintet is moody, atmospheric, orchestral and, well, depressing. But it's also swinging, marching and altogether a joy to listen to. Songwriter Rick Maddocks knows how to craft a tasty dirge.
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Incredibly atmospheric fare from this Vancouver quintet that employs eclectic instrumentation (double bass, dobro, lap steel, piano, bizarre field recording samples) to concoct a subtle mixture of blurred and bluesy jazz-pop. Vocalist/songwrite/author Rick Maddocks' lyrics are pure poetry that bend and shape to fit the angular rhythms. A truly original sound. 4/5
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Judging by the innocuous colour of his band's new CD, the bland chino hue of its accompanying press release and the suggestion from the band's publicist to conduct the interview at Helen's Grill over a brownish breakfast, it would seem Rick Maddocks has fully embraced the name of his band, The Beige.

"People have a knee jerk reaction that beige equals boring or bland, but for us it was a bit tongue in cheek," says Maddocks on the phone from his Burnaby home, the colour of which was not discussed. "Instead of trying to jump out at the audience, we wanted take a more introverted approach to playing and pulling people in as opposed to trying to grab them by the scruff of the neck. So in some way the name kind of influenced the way we approached things."

If the songs on El Angel Exterminador are any indication--a spooky, dust storm of Latin-tinged drinking songs, work songs, love songs and death songs that would fit nicely on the record shelf alongside Calexico and Howe Gelb--beige and all of its earth-caked shades is an apt colour for the self-described atmospheric pop and jazz band. Then again, so is umber, although calling yourself The Umber runs the risk of being mistaken for an electronic goth band. Just saying...

In addition to Maddocks, who sings and plays guitar and keyboards, The Beige is rounded out by local music scene ringers Andrew Arida on piano, organ and accordion, drummer Geoff Gilliard, Mark Haney on double bass and Jon Wood on guitar, lap steel and dobro. Together they bring a potent level of musicianship to the mix, which could easily derail into self-indulgent jam sessions considering the band's proclivity for improvising both live and in the studio. To their credit, The Beige keeps the wanking in check. In fact, the album's only obvious improv exercise--the album closer "Fin"--which revolves around a field recording of a construction site at Trout Lake park, is more ethereal than excessive.

"There is restraint, and we listen a lot," Maddocks says. "For us, space is really important... It's not a case of showing off your chops but making sure it's at the service of the song."

Another element Maddocks makes sure is at service of the song is his lyrics. The author of the 2001 short story collection Sputnik Diner, creative writing instructor at Douglas College and editor of literary journal Event Magazine, Maddocks says his lyrics always come after the music is written. Still, there are plenty of inspired moments fuelling The Beige music machine, particularly "I Got A Job In The Belly Of The Beast" with such deft lines as "True love on the factory floor. Hey, hey, danger pay./We couldn't kiss through the masks that we wore; we just licked the plastic."

"It's that surreal combination of a love story and this awful work environment," says Maddocks who worked in a steel factory when he was younger and living in Ontario. "I used to work 12-hour night shifts and watch the blast furnace, the huge white hot flames and molten metal being poured in the middle of nowhere at this plant in the middle of the night... It's not a heavenly place."

Speaking of heavenly places, The Beige celebrates the release of its new CD Jan. 23, 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul's Anglican Church. With its indoor labyrinth and haunting acoustics, the West End Gothic Revival structure is a fitting venue for the band whose previous CD release concert for their debut album 01 took place under the stars of the HR MacMillan Space Centre.

As for band merchandise at the show, don't expect any custom-made robes, crucifixes or factory masks. Although, you never know what you might find lurking around the T-shirt table.

"We're still working on the merch," admits Maddocks. "We did joke that we should just have beige T-shirts with the word 'the' on them. But that has yet to materialize."
Vancouver Courier

Friday, January 22, 2010

Rick Maddocks (left) and his band get beigey Jan. 23 at St. Paul's Anglican Church.
CREDIT:
Rick Maddocks (left) and his band get beigey Jan. 23 at St. Paul's Anglican Church.

Judging by the innocuous colour of his band's new CD, the bland chino hue of its accompanying press release and the suggestion from the band's publicist to conduct the interview at Helen's Grill over a brownish breakfast, it would seem Rick Maddocks has fully embraced the name of his band, The Beige.

"People have a knee jerk reaction that beige equals boring or bland, but for us it was a bit tongue in cheek," says Maddocks on the phone from his Burnaby home, the colour of which was not discussed. "Instead of trying to jump out at the audience, we wanted take a more introverted approach to playing and pulling people in as opposed to trying to grab them by the scruff of the neck. So in some way the name kind of influenced the way we approached things."

If the songs on El Angel Exterminador are any indication--a spooky, dust storm of Latin-tinged drinking songs, work songs, love songs and death songs that would fit nicely on the record shelf alongside Calexico and Howe Gelb--beige and all of its earth-caked shades is an apt colour for the self-described atmospheric pop and jazz band. Then again, so is umber, although calling yourself The Umber runs the risk of being mistaken for an electronic goth band. Just saying...

In addition to Maddocks, who sings and plays guitar and keyboards, The Beige is rounded out by local music scene ringers Andrew Arida on piano, organ and accordion, drummer Geoff Gilliard, Mark Haney on double bass and Jon Wood on guitar, lap steel and dobro. Together they bring a potent level of musicianship to the mix, which could easily derail into self-indulgent jam sessions considering the band's proclivity for improvising both live and in the studio. To their credit, The Beige keeps the wanking in check. In fact, the album's only obvious improv exercise--the album closer "Fin"--which revolves around a field recording of a construction site at Trout Lake park, is more ethereal than excessive.

"There is restraint, and we listen a lot," Maddocks says. "For us, space is really important... It's not a case of showing off your chops but making sure it's at the service of the song."

Another element Maddocks makes sure is at service of the song is his lyrics. The author of the 2001 short story collection Sputnik Diner, creative writing instructor at Douglas College and editor of literary journal Event Magazine, Maddocks says his lyrics always come after the music is written. Still, there are plenty of inspired moments fuelling The Beige music machine, particularly "I Got A Job In The Belly Of The Beast" with such deft lines as "True love on the factory floor. Hey, hey, danger pay./We couldn't kiss through the masks that we wore; we just licked the plastic."

"It's that surreal combination of a love story and this awful work environment," says Maddocks who worked in a steel factory when he was younger and living in Ontario. "I used to work 12-hour night shifts and watch the blast furnace, the huge white hot flames and molten metal being poured in the middle of nowhere at this plant in the middle of the night... It's not a heavenly place."

Speaking of heavenly places, The Beige celebrates the release of its new CD Jan. 23, 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul's Anglican Church. With its indoor labyrinth and haunting acoustics, the West End Gothic Revival structure is a fitting venue for the band whose previous CD release concert for their debut album 01 took place under the stars of the HR MacMillan Space Centre.

As for band merchandise at the show, don't expect any custom-made robes, crucifixes or factory masks. Although, you never know what you might find lurking around the T-shirt table.

"We're still working on the merch," admits Maddocks. "We did joke that we should just have beige T-shirts with the word 'the' on them. But that has yet to materialize."
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El Ángel Exterminador is a CD I can listen to all day long. The vocals are nice, but not in-your-face, and not really used as a lead instrument in every song. Smooth musicianship, laid-back song structures, lots of nice, acoustic & stringed instruments, and the lyrics are dark and complex. Everything has this 'old modern' feel to it somehow.

This record is definitely suited for long play; it's atmospheric, interesting, but not overbearing at any time. If you have a keen ear, you'll want to rewind the song, to hear that little sound or echo you caught out of the corner of your ear. The way everything transitions, you can start at the first track and feel the music pulling you in, progressing, until the end, 'FIN'.

There are two ways to listen to this record. In a set of headphones, scientifically observing every little echo, every unique keyboard tone or field recording; or you can put the CD on, go about your busy day doing whatever, while having it play in the background and still manage to pull you out of whatever you're doing for a second and say, "Wow, that's nice!"

One of those moments happened when I heard the main guitar riff in track #5 "Ponce de León". It's so simple, so clean, but a little warped beauty, over spacey bass and drum shots. All the while, there's something humming and whirring in the background, getting closer and closer, only to fade away into nothing with everything else. The hooky double bass on "Underground is Waiting" draws you in, and there are only six lines of lyrics in the whole song. These are just two examples of why I think this album is great.

The Beige show that music can have modern production, and still contain that earthy, man-made substance, but I suppose it is the modern man we're talking about here. I want to find out more about field recording. It fascinates me.

I first encountered singer-songwriter/author Rick Maddocks of The Beige in March '09, when I caught another project he's in called Slowmobile. The music was all created live, using real instruments, with looping and field recordings for good measure. I asked Rick back then about how he goes out and gets those field recordings:

"I spent a week in Havana and recorded as much as I could: echoing voices in a near empty church, a lone trumpeter in a quiet plaza, recorded a flamenco class in the Gran Theatro de Havana; captured a kid on tape singing a dirty little tune after he bummed a smoke on the Malecon."

I don't know if any of those specific recordings are used on El Ángel Exterminador, but you can hear little murmurs of things, a trace of something here and there, totally distinguishable to the people who made this music, but to the rest of us, it could be any mysterious sound, man-made or other.

This is not an album that's going to pick you up and make you wanna dance. The press materials I received called it the "Great Canadian feel-not-so-good album", but if you are looking for some original music that's anything but boring, with its intense imagery, theatric or cinematic composition style, and wide range of elements, this album will not disappoint. (5/5)

*The Beige play a CD Release Party for El Ángel Exterminador on January 23rd at St Paul's Anglican Church (early show). Tickets at Red Cat Records, Zulu Records, Highlife Music and info@thebeige.ca

- Nathan Stafford
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