09-17-2010, 03:24 PM
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In Gord We Trust - Tragically Hip's Gord Downie plays Misson's Clarke Theatre
Singer, father, Canadian icon. Canada's frontman, Gord Downie, shares his thoughts on music, water, and the importance of places like Abbotsford's AESC in this exclusive interview with the Abbotsford-Mission Times ahead of next Saturday's show at Mission's storied Clarke Theatre
By Darren McDonald, Special to the Times September 17, 2010
More Canadian than maple syrup, Tragically Hip singer Gord Downie looks forward to sharing his new solo material at Mission’s Clarke Theatre on Sept. 25.Photograph by: Submitted, for the TimesGord Downie has better things to do.
Though with 11 shows in the opening 16 days of a new tour supporting his latest album, The Grand Bounce, maybe that's not true.
"It's been the story of my life, 20 years on the road, I've been in the greatest cities on earth for 12 hours and generally for that kind of time you can't do much," he said Tuesday, staring down Toronto's Don Valley Parkway.
Preparing for another tour, Downie leaves his wife and children, his renewable energy green-powered home, his beloved Lake Ontario and the Waterkeeper Alliance compatriots who fight to keep it clean.
It's already been a year since his band, the quintessentially Canadian The Tragically Hip, played Abbotsford's Arts and Entertainment Sports Centre. He returns to our neck of the woods on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Only this time it's personal.
During his solo show at Mission's Clarke Foundation Theatre, Downie insists he won't be quite the same character Hip fans have grown to love over the past 20-plus years.
"I doubt it somehow."
Which means he's either more subdued or more personal.
"Nope, neither," he says, laughing deeply, "Intrigued yet?
"Obviously I'm pushing the passion to the hilt, that's all I know how to do, you know, bring the Howlin' Wolf and all that . . . People want to see you having a good time, you know, you're not there to inspire pity."
Pulling in from a concert in Victoria the night before, Downie and his backing band, The Country of Miracles, will play Mission for the first time.
Despite the quick dip in, a walk downtown or a fast pint at Mission Springs Brewery to rub local elbows isn't out of the question.
"I hope so. Generally that's all relevant, that's all useful, and it's all gold to me on stage, because the band, we're a curious lot and we want to know who we're playing to and we want to talk about such things.
"But again, you don't have too much time."
Opening with the catchy born-to-open-shows The East Wind and ending with Pinned, a song created on a train and featuring his daughter's piano practice, The Grand Bounce reflects Downie's contempt for coasting - which isn't to say things have changed so much listeners will actually understand his eccentric lyrics.
"Without even knowing I was doing it, and only recently being able to articulate it, I think it's the 'core' you're looking for. And it might be reduced to one word . . . Love. Betrayal. Horror. And ultimately any song I've tried to create has been cognizant of that core, or even not cognizant of it, but in hindsight looking back on it saying, 'I think there's the residue of meaning here.'
"But when you say 'what's it about?' that's at once a pretty loaded and open-ended question. It doesn't make sense . . . I don't know what to say to someone."
That changes when the conversation turns to water conservation and protection, something Abbotsford felt first-hand during this summer's watering ban aimed at protecting the city's very limited reserves.
"If there's something going on in your community, regarding your water (sources) . . . which are also in the public commons. They belong to everybody, they don't belong to the sawmill or the nuclear reactor or whoever's drawing that water. Ninety per cent of the water that's disappearing is being drawn by industry, it's not people watering their lawns.
"It's people taking that water that they need to do business.
"An issue like this is happening in every f**king community in the country as we speak, so all it really takes is Canadians to decide to do something about it. A group like Waterkeepers can help you learn the rules to get to the table, and talk where industry and government are discussing your . . . future - without you. It could make you cynical if it wasn't so bloody interesting."
Another local interest Downie's familiar with is Abbotsford's polarizing AESC.
The Hip supported and performed at a similar arena in Kingston, Ont. two years ago.
Unlike Abbotsford, where taxpayers appear to be on the hook for not only the building, but supplementing its main tenant, the AHL's Abbotsford Heat, Kingston's location allows it to succeed in pulling major acts (recently Sheryl Crow and Elton John, Downie recalled) on routing dates between meal stops in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Still, the idea remains the same.
"It's important for the community to have a place where everyone can go and see each other, otherwise you retreat to your little corner pubs and you talk about each other too much. In the wide open when you have 3,000 people sitting there watching a hockey team play or watching a concert, it's important to have a meeting place of that size for any community," he said.
"So I get it on all levels. I hope it's working for you guys."
In the meantime, he seems genuinely excited about his first foray into Mission.
"It's going to be fun, we're going to have a good time that night. You'll leave with a smile on your face, I hope.
"Actually, I guarantee it."
In Gord We Trust - Tragically Hip's Gord Downie plays Misson's Clarke Theatre
Singer, father, Canadian icon. Canada's frontman, Gord Downie, shares his thoughts on music, water, and the importance of places like Abbotsford's AESC in this exclusive interview with the Abbotsford-Mission Times ahead of next Saturday's show at Mission's storied Clarke Theatre
By Darren McDonald, Special to the Times September 17, 2010
More Canadian than maple syrup, Tragically Hip singer Gord Downie looks forward to sharing his new solo material at Mission’s Clarke Theatre on Sept. 25.Photograph by: Submitted, for the TimesGord Downie has better things to do.
Though with 11 shows in the opening 16 days of a new tour supporting his latest album, The Grand Bounce, maybe that's not true.
"It's been the story of my life, 20 years on the road, I've been in the greatest cities on earth for 12 hours and generally for that kind of time you can't do much," he said Tuesday, staring down Toronto's Don Valley Parkway.
Preparing for another tour, Downie leaves his wife and children, his renewable energy green-powered home, his beloved Lake Ontario and the Waterkeeper Alliance compatriots who fight to keep it clean.
It's already been a year since his band, the quintessentially Canadian The Tragically Hip, played Abbotsford's Arts and Entertainment Sports Centre. He returns to our neck of the woods on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Only this time it's personal.
During his solo show at Mission's Clarke Foundation Theatre, Downie insists he won't be quite the same character Hip fans have grown to love over the past 20-plus years.
"I doubt it somehow."
Which means he's either more subdued or more personal.
"Nope, neither," he says, laughing deeply, "Intrigued yet?
"Obviously I'm pushing the passion to the hilt, that's all I know how to do, you know, bring the Howlin' Wolf and all that . . . People want to see you having a good time, you know, you're not there to inspire pity."
Pulling in from a concert in Victoria the night before, Downie and his backing band, The Country of Miracles, will play Mission for the first time.
Despite the quick dip in, a walk downtown or a fast pint at Mission Springs Brewery to rub local elbows isn't out of the question.
"I hope so. Generally that's all relevant, that's all useful, and it's all gold to me on stage, because the band, we're a curious lot and we want to know who we're playing to and we want to talk about such things.
"But again, you don't have too much time."
Opening with the catchy born-to-open-shows The East Wind and ending with Pinned, a song created on a train and featuring his daughter's piano practice, The Grand Bounce reflects Downie's contempt for coasting - which isn't to say things have changed so much listeners will actually understand his eccentric lyrics.
"Without even knowing I was doing it, and only recently being able to articulate it, I think it's the 'core' you're looking for. And it might be reduced to one word . . . Love. Betrayal. Horror. And ultimately any song I've tried to create has been cognizant of that core, or even not cognizant of it, but in hindsight looking back on it saying, 'I think there's the residue of meaning here.'
"But when you say 'what's it about?' that's at once a pretty loaded and open-ended question. It doesn't make sense . . . I don't know what to say to someone."
That changes when the conversation turns to water conservation and protection, something Abbotsford felt first-hand during this summer's watering ban aimed at protecting the city's very limited reserves.
"If there's something going on in your community, regarding your water (sources) . . . which are also in the public commons. They belong to everybody, they don't belong to the sawmill or the nuclear reactor or whoever's drawing that water. Ninety per cent of the water that's disappearing is being drawn by industry, it's not people watering their lawns.
"It's people taking that water that they need to do business.
"An issue like this is happening in every f**king community in the country as we speak, so all it really takes is Canadians to decide to do something about it. A group like Waterkeepers can help you learn the rules to get to the table, and talk where industry and government are discussing your . . . future - without you. It could make you cynical if it wasn't so bloody interesting."
Another local interest Downie's familiar with is Abbotsford's polarizing AESC.
The Hip supported and performed at a similar arena in Kingston, Ont. two years ago.
Unlike Abbotsford, where taxpayers appear to be on the hook for not only the building, but supplementing its main tenant, the AHL's Abbotsford Heat, Kingston's location allows it to succeed in pulling major acts (recently Sheryl Crow and Elton John, Downie recalled) on routing dates between meal stops in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Still, the idea remains the same.
"It's important for the community to have a place where everyone can go and see each other, otherwise you retreat to your little corner pubs and you talk about each other too much. In the wide open when you have 3,000 people sitting there watching a hockey team play or watching a concert, it's important to have a meeting place of that size for any community," he said.
"So I get it on all levels. I hope it's working for you guys."
In the meantime, he seems genuinely excited about his first foray into Mission.
"It's going to be fun, we're going to have a good time that night. You'll leave with a smile on your face, I hope.
"Actually, I guarantee it."
"We're forced to bed, but we're free to dream"
Dana
