By Divine Right Decode Their Mutant Message

Jose Contreras is a mutant, or so he says.

The singer/multi-instrumentalist has definitely proven he has the uncanny ability to make catchy pop rock. We also know he played a big part the careers of many of this country's most successful musicians.

On disc, Contreras' By Divine Right is mostly a one-man show these days, but in decades past, the Toronto institution has included the likes of Broken Social Scene's Brendan Canning, Feist and Holy Fuck's Brian Borcherdt.

Contreras recently released his first By Divine Right album since 2004: Mutant Message. CHARTattack talked with him about the disc's genesis.

CHARTattack: Why Mutant Message as the title? What is the mutant message?
Jose Contreras: I knew when I was on tour in Australia in 2005 that I was gonna call the album the Mutant Message.

It works on many levels for me. I feel like a specialized human — a mutant — and playing music is my mutation. It was also inspired by the book of the same title. The book is a profound spiritual message to the human race, its main messages being about holding on to our humanness, our connection to the earth, to nature, to our intuition, to our psychic powers, and our ability to transform reality with our love.

Have the songs on this been brewing for a while or are they fairly new?
Some of these songs I started writing on tour in 2004 to 2005. Others came together during recording, so are from the last year. I wrote and recorded a lot for this record.

Was it all written by you or was there some collaboration involved?
I wrote everything except the first verse of "Wings Too Big," which was written by my childhood friend Dave Young.

Did your vision for what you wanted the finished product to sound like change much over time?
I knew I wanted to distill these songs down to their essence: melody and spontaneous events. The performances were often recorded during long jam sessions. The arrangements were guided by the spirit as often as they were premeditated.

In that sense, it came together as I wanted it to. I think all my favourite rock music [incorporates] the accidental into the songwriting. I wanted the songs to be short and melodic.

How do you decide the time is right to make a new By Divine Right album? Is it just when you happen to have a free moment?
I always wanna make BDR records. I did get busy in the last few years with producing records, playing and touring with my wife [Lily Frost], and being a dad. I won't rush something to be done, though. I've compromised enough in the past, already. Now when I make a record,a I've got to love it or else I'm not done.

Have any records or musicians you've produced for over the last few years had an effect on your own sound?
I guess I feel empowered to follow my heart more than ever. Even when the records I produce sound nothing like BDR, what I bring to those records is my sounds, my energies. The more experience making records I get, the more I feel confident to go for it. I tend to encourage people to experiment with their songs, to reveal themselves with their voice. I guess that does rub off on me, too.

Think it'll be another five years until the next album?
It better not be! I'm constantly writing and recording.

We have a few songs ready to go already. Probably the best songs BDR's ever had!

Over the winter, I'm planning on finishing a batch of songs that are already brewing. Michael and Dave are gung-ho to start recording soon too. So, we'll see how it goes.

My dream scenario is an album a year, until I'm dead. I also have another album half done which I call My Divine Light. They're the quieter, weirder songs... I'm planning on finishing that this winter too. Also, there is an EP — How To Be A Creature — that was recorded at the same time as Mutant Message. That'll probably come out next year. We play songs off that live. "The Titty Shaker" is on that one!