Jason Collett Battles Boring North American Cities

The late winter tour has become something of a right of passage for many Canadian musicians.

Steeped in bad weather, skid marks and a whole lotta bleakness, it's fascinating to observe the same artists crisscrossing Canada this time of year without regard for life and limb.

Jason Collett is one such artist, and with a new full-length, Rat A Tat Tat, and a spate of South By Southwest Music Festival appearances on the horizon, Collett can only hope for an early thaw to save the treachery of March and April on the Trans-Canada Highway.

"It's dangerous, and for several years, I've promised myself this would be the last one," Collett says about winter touring. It's something he's becoming accustomed to, both as a solo artist and a member of Toronto's beloved Broken Social Scene.

"It'd be great if we could work some danger pay into the equation. Unfortunately, between the mad dash towards touring before the end of the school year and all the bands touring in and around South by Southwest, the late winter tour is pretty much inevitable for a lot of musicians."

Collett spent much of the past decade on the road, which plays well to his grizzled troubadour image. Cut from the singer/songwriter cloth and tempered by just a tinge of grimy urban grit, Collett has developed a following away from his BSS meal ticket, both from the hipster brigade and fellow musicians.

Collett's annual Basement Revue series at Toronto's Dakota Tavern has attracted such diverse talent as Buck 65, Julie Doiron and members of Rheostatics and The Weakerthans, not to mention appearances from countless Broken Social Scene members past and present.

While he is beloved at home, Collett is a fan of the touring lifestyle, seizing the opportunity to visit some of his favourite haunts and finding quiet time to write away from his young family back in Toronto. But after having played in most North American cities on multiple occasions, Collett has come to observe firsthand the sameness than infects cities and towns on both sides of the border.

"Tom Waits said something recently that I thought was pretty prophetic: 'The problem with America is you can't find a bad cup of coffee anymore.' And after touring for so many years, I totally get where he's coming from.

"With any town in the U.S. and a lot of towns in Canada, too, they all subscribe to the same template and because of the pre-imminence of major chain restaurants and retailers and gas stations, you end up seeing a bunch of cities that are virtually interchangeable."

Luckily, Collett still finds enough inspiration in his travels to inform his music in a positive manner.

Many of Rat A Tat Tat's 11 tracks have bits and pieces gleamed from life on the road. Songs like "Lake Superior" and "Winnipeg Winds" speak to the provincial experience in obvious ways. But Collett says touring also influenced his music, lyrics and thoughts in a way that might be less noticeable to the untrained ear.  

"You might only spend a night or maybe just an afternoon in a town but if you visit it enough times, you'll start to slowly engage in these elements that unlock some of the local flavour," he says. "Canadian cities are great for that, even if it's just because of the names.

"Thunder Bay, Penetanguishene — the names evoke a true sense of drama and mystery, especially if you're not Canadian born and bred. It's natural subject matter for any Canadian songwriter, or even if you are just a lover of words."

Rat A Tat Tat's name and cover art are likewise mysterious, and Collett is reluctant to pinpoint the origins of either.

He does concede that the album was NOT named after New York-based electronic outfit Ratatat (and it remains to be seen if the duo names their new full-length Jason Collett in retaliation).

As for the album art, Collett says it was at least in part influenced by a new found interest in playing cards, namely the intricate and often bizarre artwork that covers their flipside.

"Euchre is a very popular game within the Toronto music community," says Collett. "So it was through my interest in the game that I first started learning about the long history of playing card art.

"It isn't something that is widely discussed but if you think about it, it has a subversive form of expression through the ages, even at times where there wasn’t a lot of satire or other forms of alternative expression.

"There is the mocking of the monarchy and the mystery and intrigue of the Joker and the intricacy that a lot of playing card designs have. Obviously, the artwork for the album came very much from that thought process."

It's an odd inspiration to be certain, but if Collett has learned anything in his decade plus as a performer, it is to keep the certain uncertain.

You can see Jason Collett here:

March 10 Toronto, ON @ Lee's Palace w/ Zeus and Bahamas (Canadian Music Week 2010)
March 11 Guelph, ON @ E-Bar w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 12 London, ON @ Call The Office w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 13 Hamilton, ON @ The Casbah w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 15 Mexico City, Mexico @ Polyforum Siqueros w/ Timber Timbre and Zeus
March 17 Austin, TX @ Peckerheads (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 17 Austin, TX @ Austin Convention Center (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 18 Austin, TX @ Red Eye Fly (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 19 Austin, TX @ The Mohawk (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 19 Austin, TX @ The Parish (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 20 Austin, TX @ The Galaxy Room (South By Southwest Music Festival)
March 23 San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 25 Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 26 Vancouver, BC @ The Biltmore Cabaret w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 27 Victoria, BC @ Sugar w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 28 Kelowna, BC @ Habitat w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 29 Canmore, AB @ Communitea Cafe w/ Zeus and Bahamas
March 31 Edmonton, AB @ The Pawn Shop w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 1 Calgary, AB @ The Legion w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 2 Regina, SK @ The Exchange w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 3 Winnipeg, MB @ West End Cultural Centre w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 4 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
April 6 Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 7 Chicago, IL @ Schubas Tavern w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 13 Waterloo, ON @ Starlite w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 14 Ottawa, ON @ Zaphod Beeblebrox w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 15 Montreal, QC @ Le Petit Campus w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 16 Peterborough, ON @ Red Dog Tavern w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 17 Kingston, ON @ The Grad Club at Queen's University w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 20 Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 21 Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse w/ Zeus and Bahamas
April 23 New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
April 24 Brooklyn, NY @ Union Hall w/ Zeus and Bahamas