The Grind Pays Off For Bedouin Soundclash

Although Bedouin Soundclash have been around for five years, they should be happy that the Juno Awards brass still consider them a new band. It has doubled their chances of winning an award, as they've been nominated for both new group and single of the year.

The Kingston trio's combination of reggae, ska and rock must have been tough to classify for the Juno peeps, as they definitely don't fit into the rock or alternative categories. Defining Bedouin isn't just hard for awards show judges though, it's difficult for their fans as well. The group have been compared to everyone from The Police to Phish to Dave Matthews.

"I think people just wait for other people to tell them what to make of us," says bassist Eon Sinclair. "It seems people are just lacking the basic curiosity about music.

"A lot of people tell us what we are, then hate on us for that. 'Oh, these guys are a ska band, but that's not really ska.' We're like, 'Yeah, we know we're not a ska band.'"

"We're pretty honest with where we've come from," adds lead singer/guitarist Jay Malinowski. "In terms of our sound, I think it's a sound that's unique to the three of us being who we are. I'm not really sure what else it is."

One reason why their sound is so varied is a result of their eclectic taste in music. From Toots And The Maytals to punk rock, Bedouin Soundclash have listened to a lot. Sinclair currently has Bloc Party and Arctic Monkeys in rotation.

"All three of us had written off that Bloc Party record," says Sinclair. "I saw all the press on it and I was like, 'Oh I'm not going to like this.'

"But then I actually heard the record and it's got so much substance to it. They were a band that were uncool for a really long time and then all the sudden they just blew up."

Bloc Party's journey from nothing to everything is something that Bedouin Soundclash can relate to. Until the group placed "When The Night Feels My Song" in a Zellers commercial, they were just another band touring the country and playing to small crowds. Not even their allies predicted that they'd have any real success.

"Everyone was telling us that 'When The Night Feels My Song' would never get played on the radio," says Malinowski. "And for about two years they were right.

"It was a little frustrating when you'd see it was easier for other bands [to get on the radio], but we don't compare ourselves to the success of another. We had to blaze our own path."

Now the band aren't just getting regular radio play, they're selling out shows across the country and speaking to the media everywhere they turn.

"We couldn't even get press in university," says Sinclair. "We were touring the country and they still didn't know what to think. They were really scared, to be honest, because it was so different."

"It's really weird getting press now," adds Malinowski.

So what do Bedouin Soundclash credit their success to?

"The grind," says Malinowski.

"I look at bands that haven't had to put in the time and I wonder how they're going to do their next record. That's how you keep things in perspective, by having to go through that grind."

You can catch Bedouin Soundclash here:

March 29 Kingston, ON @ AJ's
April 1 Halifax, NS @ The Forum w/Broken Social Scene