Canadian Musician - January / February 2020

together the songs, but executing them with as much ener- gy as we can when recording. We’re very “heart-on-sleeve”- type guys; that much is clear by the lyrics. But we spend a lot of time crafting and building and pulling apart songs to get them to a certain place where they feel thought-through. We generally try to make the parts within the song feel integral and coherent with each other, and when we feel good about the song itself and the coherence of its constituent parts, then it’s time to try to lay it down in the tracking room with absolute abandon … It ends up being less about the bal- ance, or the performance, and more about the energy and the careful construction being subverted by rawness that can only be achieved by going in and givin’er. ZACK MYKULA PUP PUP’s critically-heralded third LP, Morbid Stuff, is as calculated as it is combustible. The album showcases the same emo- tive-but-uncompromising punk rock that propelled them to impressive heights while covering a wider breadth of sonic influence and real-world experience – and that’s saying a lot. • • • • • • YC Drum Company Custom Kitty Cat Orange or Ludwig Early-‘70s Psychedelic Red Kit • 22-in. Kick • 16-in. Floor Tom • 13-in. Tom Ludwig Acrolite Reissue 14 x 6.5-in. Snare Noble & Cooley Solid Shell Classic Walnut Snare Paiste Cymbals • 22-in. 2002 or Masters Dark Ride • 20-in. Formula 602 Modern Essentials Crash • 19-in. Giant Beat Crash • 15-in. Giant Beat Hats Roland SPD-SX Sample Pad Meinl Percussion Shaker CM: Morbid Stuff showcases the widest breadth of styles we’ve seen from PUP thus far. Was it a con- scious decision to try and widen the spectrum and explore more dynamics this time out or more of a natural occurrence? ZM: I am not sure if it was conscious, but I am certain we all get bored pretty quickly and are always looking for new angles. But, in trying to spread out stylistically, we also try to keep our finger on what makes our songs sound like us. For me, personally, I am always trying to find a new or slightly weird way to say something familiar without alienating my bandmates or the listener. That means the drum parts have to work for the song, but I’ll also try my best to not emulate your “standard” classic rock or punk grooves; that said, I am guilty of totally leaning into the classics. I mean, they’re clas- sics for a reason… CM: What’s the most recent piece of gear you’ve added to that set-up and how did it earn the spot? ZM: My Noble & Cooley walnut snare from their Solid Shell Classics series. It earned its place by being an absolutely beautiful sounding and looking snare. Very dynamic. Sings at every volume. I am honestly over the moon about it. CM: You guys play no-holds-barred, heart-on-sleeve punk rock. You’ve also won the SOCAN Songwriting Prize, been shortlisted for the Polaris Prize multiple times, etc. I realize these aren’t mutually exclusive, but can you tell us about straddling the line between raw, undiluted emotion and “contemplative songwrit- ing,” and how you’ve gone about striking that balance over the years? ZM: A lot of it comes down to taking the time to carefully put 48 CANADIAN MUSICIAN MATT SCHULZ Holy Fuck’s soon-to-drop sixth studio album, Deleter, finds the band going even further down the rabbit hole at the in- tersection of technology and humanity, which should be wel- come news to fans of the boundary-pushing quartet consid- ering that’s been their M.O. since day one and has produced some truly stellar results so far.

Canadian Musician - January / February 2020 | Page 48