C'Mon: Newfoundland Is "Bizarre, Amazing"

10/19/07 2:30pm

by Cameron Gordon (CHARTattack)

There's not much that can be said about Ian Blurton that hasn't been said already. With this cliche-ridden sentiment in mind, let's turn over the reigns to Sir Ian to hear his thoughts on mediums, collaborations, travel and Bottled Lightning (Of An All Time High), the new full-length from his hard rock three-piece, C'Mon.

ChartAttack: Your new album Bottled Lightning (Of An All Time High) comes in a variety of formats, including a colour vinyl version. I would assume that since you've chosen to dabble in vinyl, you and your bandmates are fans of the medium?
Ian Blurton: Oh, definitely. Most of our records are pretty analogue, so playing them on vinyl makes them sound just perfect. It's a more natural way to listen to music overall. I read this study recently where they did some listening tests with monkeys between CDs and vinyl. Of course, the monkeys got a whole lot more agitated when listening to the CDs. I think that explains a lot. With vinyl, you're transposing a needle into a groove and transforming it into something, whereas with digital, the sound basically just appears.

One of the most memorable moments on the album is the opening string arrangement on "All Time High" featuring Owen Pallett and Anne Bourne. This seems pretty contrary for a hard rocking band such as yourselves. Why did you choose to kick things off in this fashion?
It's what the song needed, plain and simple. Besides, I think strings can be pretty heavy if done properly. Otherwise, it's pretty easy to get a bit self-important and mess things up. We tried playing the opening of "All Time High" on guitar and it ended up sounding like Queensryche, which was just a bad scene all around. Seriously, we'd much rather sound self-important any day of the week than sound like Queensryche. I think anybody would.

I know your bassist Katie is based out of New Orleans and you're spending more time down there. Were there ever any plans to record part of the album down there?
We had actually hoped to do just that, but for whatever reason, it didn't happen. I spend about half of my time in that city now, so taking advantage of some of the studios down there is definitely something I'd like to do. There's just such an amazing history of all kinds of music down there, and not just the blues and jazz stuff it's known for. The hard rock scene in that city is really amazing. A band like Eyehategod alone are incredible. There's the really heavy stuff like Crowbar and for me, being such a huge ZZ Top fan, I love being able to visit the place where they recorded Fandango. Overall, New Orleans is really the place to be if you're really into the music. It just oozes out of the sidewalks down there.

You've done a ton of production work over the past several years, and that no doubt influences your efforts when it comes time to put together a new C'Mon album. Are you constantly lifting elements from your various projects along the way?
I guess so, but I don't think the process is conscious at all. To be honest, most of the albums I've produced don't sound anything like C'Mon records, so it's pretty easy to remove myself entirely when I'm working with my own material. But then again, there'll always be bits and pieces that I'll take away from my work. For example, working with a guy like John K. Samson from The Weakerthans is obviously going to get me thinking about lyrics, since he's such a brilliant writer. It's not like I'm trying to emulate him, but it definitely gives that extra nudge of inspiration.

You've been involved in the Toronto music scene for over 25 years now, and played or worked with hundreds of musicians in the process. Is there anyone remaining that you'd still like to produce or collaborate with at some point?
There are tons and tons of people I'd like to work with, without a doubt. I ran into Mary Margaret O'Hara last night, and she's absolutely somebody I'd love to do something with. But yeah, there are way too many to mention. I'll never run out of names.

You have a slate of Canadian shows on the horizon. Other than Toronto, where does C'Mon typically find the most receptive audiences?
Actually, Toronto really isn't one of our best markets, considering it's our hometown. Saskatoon has always been incredible for us. Calgary is always great. And Newfoundland might be the best of the bunch. This tour will be our fourth time visiting, which is pretty amazing considering that most touring bands don't make the effort. For a band like us, it's totally worth it. The crowds are phenomenal. People get naked onstage. Newfoundland is just a bizarre, amazing place to play.