Hot Springs Prefer Volcano The Second Time Around

09/19/07 5:00pm

by Erik Leijon (CHARTattack)

It may have taken longer than the Hot Springs had originally planned, but their debut LP, Volcano, is finally spewing forth hot punk-pop and rock magma all over the Canadian musical landscape.

Wanting to make sure that the final result didn't become a "wall of sound," lead singer, guitarist and chief songwriter Giselle Webber returned to the studio after the first mix and worked on a second version of the record. The original was mixed by The Besnard Lakes frontman Jace Lasek in Montreal, while for the second they spent Thanksgiving in the eastern Quebec wilderness at Arcade Fire's Petite Eglise church/studio in Farnham.

The group wanted Volcano to have more of a pop sound, and entrusted the second mix to Mark Lawson.

"The goal was for the heavy bits to be balanced out with the lighter bits," says Webber. "I'll try my best not to make pop songs; when I sit down I'm thinking about making something heavy.

"I can do it, but a lot of times no matter what I do a whole lot of pop slips through the cracks and starts screaming through."

Webber says producer Jonathan Cummins (Bionic, Doughboys) called her music writing style as a "bong-load of riffs."

The group were formed in 2005 and already have a well-received EP, Rock Partouze, under their belt. They've also gained a reputation of being one of Montreal's most wild and frenetic live acts. The process of translating that energy to tape proved difficult. The group were forced to limit how many times they'd record a song in the studio because they were recording on analogue tapes and didn't want to tape over the old takes. Doing that, though, recreated the nervous effect of performing live.

"When you feel that excitement of only having one or two shots to do this, there's that stress in your bones and you jam it out like you were on stage because you feel that nervousness," says Webber. "I think that's important compared to other tracks where we would do overdubs for a month-and-a-half, like we did on 'Cellophane.'"

The group will make a video for "Cellophane" with director Benjamin Weinstein (Weakerthans, Silverstein).

Another trademark sound of the Hot Springs' punk-inflected pop is Webber's unique voice, which has been compared to the likes of Bjork and Janis Joplin. Webber was aware of the comparisons while recording Volcano, and admits that being a fan of the Icelandic songstress as a youngster likely had a subconscious effect.

"I had to cut myself off from her. I haven't listened to the last two Bjork records because it was fucking up the way I sing."

Here are Hot Springs' tour dates:

Sept. 27 Quebec City, QC @ Velvet
Sept. 28 Montreal, QC @ Le National w/Miracle Fortress and Elfin Saddle
Sept. 29 Toronto, ON @ Lee's Palace
Oct. 20 Sherbrooke, QC @ Telephone Rouge