| Advertisement |
|
Local Guides
|
|
|
Gunning for Success
Ex-Local Rabbit Breaks Free
|
by Vish Khanna
December 8 — 14, 2005 |
|
Ever since releasing his startlingly great solo debut Beigy Blur
earlier this year, Ben Gunning has faced countless questions
about what his new music is all about. In his old band, Local
Rabbits, Gunning and Peter Elkas split songwriting duties evenly,
composing brilliant rock music that squeezed and bent the genre
for all its worth. Loosely guised as a clever alt–blues band, the
Rabbits were idiosyncratic but their energetic live shows were so
mind-blowing, they left little room for studious contemplation of
their ingenious lyricism or thoughtful musical composition. Now
days, Elkas is a laid–back soul–rocker hiding a fierce
guitar–slinger, while Gunning is onto something (seemingly)
completely different.
“I think some Rabbits fans might not be as interested in this
record,” Gunning says acceptingly. “I don’t think we were super
divided between ‘Pete and Ben fans,’ but anybody who listened
closely to the band knew the distinctive writing styles. There are
less rock sounds here, less distorted guitars. There are some
genres touched upon that might not be so popular in the ‘indie
scene’ or whatever, but I’m definitely into expanding the territory
and finding a niche for myself.”
It’s gratifying to hear Gunning happily evolving beyond the
sounds he’s best known for. On his own, he’s free to make even
more stylistically challenging music than the Rabbits’ heady
indie–rock, incorporating production elements of jazz, R&B, and
hip–hop into his sound while focusing listeners’ attention on his
astonishing writing. The trick for some, however, will still be
trying vainly to nail down Gunning’s sound.
“I’m not really genre–specific, which can definitely work
against you,” he admits. “I think this album is consistent but it’s
not a rock record and, while there are elements of jazz and R&B, I
don’t think somebody who’s expecting a jazz record will think of
it that way. That’s just the way I operate. I think that’s the way the
Rabbits worked too—always integrating our interests in subtle
ways.”
Local Rabbits fans who stuck with the quartet until the end
may recognize Beigy Blur as a natural extension of Gunning’s
writing for This is it, Here We Go, the band’s final record. Others
have been unable to find a thread to connect the Dr. Dre–like
production values of new songs like “Why Can’t I Leave Myself at
Home?” and “The Deep Dark Blue” with classics like “(Sally Ann’s)
Style Denial” and “Stomp Your British Knights Down.” At this point
in his career, Gunning isn’t here to pander to anyone’s tastes but
his own.
“Rock–oriented songs just aren’t my interest right now,” he
says. “I think anyone making music wants to do something that’s
relevant in some way and also true to their own interest. I think
you should think about where your music fits in the big picture.
When I’m making music, I’m conscious of these issues and I
labour over it but I always leave room for improvisation and try to
put it all into a kind of pop framework.”
Anyone familiar with Gunning’s incisive lyrics knows that
that he puts a great deal of thought into his songs, which are,
more often than not, deft critiques of social ‘progress’ and
interpersonal dynamics. His analysis extends into the realm of
contemporary music production as well, and he is clearly alarmed
by notions of “retro-as-hip,” which have pervaded new records
made by younger bands grasping for a sound that Gunning
believes was circumstantial to begin with.
“There’s an overarching style and production to it that’s
come back and my problem with that is a lot of production has to
do with emerging technology and what’s available at the time,” he
explains. “I think people weren’t as hyper-conscious of
production the way that younger indie-bands are. Like, ‘oh, I like
the sound of that so I want to reproduce it.’ I try to be more about
just using what’s available now and having faith that what you
have is going to make sense no matter what gear you use.”
Gunning has adopted a similar approach to writing lyrics,
choosing to infuse his incredibly catchy, head-nodding songs
with pointedly contemporary subject matter. The results can be
jarring but make his songs sound that much more vital.
“Technologies are changing our relationships with each
other and to me, there’s a whole knot of problems that come out
of that,” he says. “How can that not be fodder for writing? Fiction
has done it but songwriting often stays within traditional subject
matter. There are universals but I feel they have to be linked with
specifics of what we’re dealing with and so I try to keep it modern
lyrically as well.”
In the end, Gunning really has created a fun record with
Beigy Blur that should catch astute ears while challenging
expectations. “I’ve tried to do something I care about that’s fresh
and I’m going to continue on that path and I hope that people will
enjoy it,” he says. “If not, too bad for them and too bad for me.”
Ben Gunning
w/ Al Tuck
Sunday, December 11
8pm (early show)
Vinyl, Tix: $7
www.bengunning.com
|
Share on
 |
No comments yet... be the first! |
|
