BY ANDREW KING
THE STRUMBELL AS
T
Thriving on Uncertainties
here are plenty of question marks that come with a
career in music – inherent uncertainties, gambles
that may or may not pay off, the oft-cited “x-fac-
tors” that straddle the sometimes-thin line between
resounding success and abysmal failure.
The Strumbellas have faced their share of question marks
throughout their 10-plus years as a band – many that turned
into positive outcomes and others that didn’t. Now, though, early
into the cycle supporting their latest and fourth LP, Rattlesnake,
they find themselves in a pretty enviable place – one where they
welcome the vast majority of those uncertainties and, in fact,
thrive because of them.
“If there weren’t the question marks, I wouldn’t be in
this business,” says a candid Simon Ward, the frontman and
principal songwriter for the Canadian indie-folk-pop-whatever-
you-want-to-call-them sextet. “The fun part about it – and I can’t
guarantee any of this [for this album cycle] – but with the last
record, we had our tour schedule set, and then we’d get an email
saying, ‘Oh, guys, next Wednesday, you’re doing Jimmy Kimmel,’
so the fun thing about gaining success with the record is there
are fun surprises along the way.”
Admittedly, the band has passed the threshold to where the
question marks now have more to do with which major network
or festival stage they might be invited to play than which floor
in which flyover state they’ll be sleeping on, but that level of
comfort was hard-earned.
Sure, their upward trajectory to this point benefitted from
a pretty steep incline on the back of their last LP, Hope, and its
inescapable lead single, “Spirits”; however, prior to that surge
of success in 2016, The Strumbellas – Ward, drummer Jeremy
Drury, lead guitarist Jon Hembrey, bassist Darryl James, violinist
and violist Isabel Ritchie, and keyboardist Dave Ritter – were
thrusting themselves forward with hard work, perseverance, a
lot of good music, and a little bit of good luck.
Now, having reached a relatively high plateau for a Cana-
dian band, they’re back to work pushing the needle forward
supporting Rattlesnake with a packed summer schedule, ready
to relish in any question marks that might arise in the process.
Of course, the release of Rattlesnake in late March 2019 was
a pretty big question mark itself, considering it followed a
runaway smash that generated a flurry of awards, accolades,
and opportunities for the Toronto-based outfit. Still, Ward says
he was able to take it in stride – largely because, by the time the
album was set to hit store shelves and streaming platforms, a
lot of the potential stress points were already in the rear-view.
“There’s always a little bit of pressure. You know, your re-
cord label and your team and your friends and your band mates
– everybody wants to have more success and we want to take it
to the next level, so there’s always that pressure,” he tells Canadi-
an Musician. “But the honest truth is that I just want to impress
myself first. When it comes to writing songs, I only send out the
songs I think are cool, and they go to the band and my mom and
grandma and my friends to see if they like it.”
That’s the part of the process that’s most trying for him,
he admits. “Ultimately, the most pressure is me sitting at my
computer like, ‘Do you love it? Is it cool? Do you come back and
listen to it every day?’ And once I feel good about that, the rest,
I feel zero pressure from the world or anybody else. I’m excited
about it because I think it’s cool, and hopefully everyone else
does, and if not, I can start a dog-walking business.”
Ritter offers some perspective on that process from the
opposing side, saying that, when Ward circulates new material
among the band, it’s “almost always really exciting.” The two
then share a laugh – one that implies Ward knows full well why
“almost” was added as a qualifier.
“Occasionally, he’ll send us, like, a song called ‘Rollerskate
Disco’ or … what was that Lamborghini song called?” Ritter asks
rhetorically as they start another chorus of laughter. “And then
you think, ‘Alright, Simon’s just having a week and we need to let
him do his thing.’ But almost always, you get it and you’re like,
‘Wow. This is groovy and I could see it going in this direction.’”
The nine tracks comprising Rattlesnake have obviously
gone through those filters and then some, coming out the other
side as bona fide Strumbellas bangers. The record opens with
the one-two punch of “Salvation” and “I’ll Wait,” two obvious sin-
gles cut from the same cloth as “Spirits” and “We Don’t Know” –
earnest lyricism, memorable melodies, and anthemic choruses
with gang vocals for days.
Producer Tim Pagnotta’s fingerprints are all over those
two offerings. The California-based hit-maker behind singles
like Neon Trees’ “Animals” and Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and
Dance” has a knack for crafting catchy pop with substance and
depth. Needless to say, their collaborations were fruitful.
Hear the Full Interview!
Listen to our full interview with Dave Ritter & Simon Ward of The Strumbellas delving further into the
making of Rattlesnake on the March 13th, 2019 episode of the Canadian Musician Podcast, available at
www.canadianmusicianpodcast.com or your podcast platform of choice!
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