{"id":1899,"date":"2017-06-27T11:48:14","date_gmt":"2017-06-27T11:48:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/interview-laureate\/"},"modified":"2018-03-21T22:15:51","modified_gmt":"2018-03-21T22:15:51","slug":"interview-laureate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/interview-laureate\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview: Laureate"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last few years were kind of rough on me, I\u2019m getting it together; 27 has been good so far, I\u2019m hoping next year\u2019s better,\u201d<\/i> muses Laureate<\/b>\u2019s Giancarlo Talarico on \u2018Come Around\u2019<\/i>, one of the strongest cuts off the Montreal quartet\u2019s debut full-length. It\u2019s a sturdy piece of positive reinforcement for everyone who found the mid-20s a difficult period. <\/p>\n

Yet such sentiments seem to be prevalent in punk music in 2017. From the Menzingers\u2019 take on turning 30 and reflecting back on a demanding decade to Dead Bars\u2019 positivity about living your dreams as \u201cageing rockers\u201d, artists are writing about life experiences that go far beyond the trying adolescent years. <\/p>\n

As someone who found the teenage years rather easy, but then struggled to adapt to life as a fully-functioning adult, such albums are instantly relatable. After a whirlwind early 20s, by the age of 25 I was ready to see the back of London, my relationship had broken down and I was in a job that was damaging my mental health. I wanted \u2013 and needed \u2013 a fresh start. <\/p>\n

And I think it is this experience that makes both the Menzingers\u2019 \u2018After The Party\u2019<\/i> and Dead Bars \u2018Dream Gig\u2019<\/i> so relatable. It\u2019s also what makes Laureate<\/b>\u2019s debut full-length, \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i>, hit home so hard. It\u2019s certainly left enough of a mark that I\u2019m on the phone to bassist\/vocalist Erin Power and guitarist\/vocalist Giancarlo, the songwriting brains behind the Montreal indie-rock\/emo\/pop-punkers, at midnight on a balmy weekday night to get the lowdown on the group\u2019s excellent full-length debut. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not always easy to convey a feeling,\u201d<\/i> says Giancarlo. \u201cI don\u2019t consider myself to be the best lyricist in the world, but what we\u2019re singing is heartfelt at least, and definitely the hardest period of my life was around 25\/26 where I was just feeling lost.<\/i> <\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t really angered as such, just not sure where to commit. And when you\u2019re not sure what you want to commit to, there\u2019s no energy because you\u2019re not committed and it just all combines into feeling aimless. So all those songs are really about trying to figure out what you\u2019re looking for when nothing\u2019s really wrong, but nothing feels quite right.\u201d<\/i> <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Like me, Laureate<\/b> are in their mid-30s, and they\u2019ve used \u2018\u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i>\u2019 as a way of sweeping the decks clear of all of those difficult hang-ups. The result is an album that feels like a breath of fresh air; an ultimately positive and infectious experience that is one of 2017\u2019s unheralded gems. Growing up on a diet of bands such as Knapsack, Samiam, Superchunk and the Get Up Kids, Laureate<\/b> touch bases with many on the poppier side of the emo\/indie-rock spectrum. Consequently, \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i> is filled with duelling vocals, killer melodies, buzzsaw guitars and some enormous pop hooks. Fans of the former acts \u2013 as well as more modern day punk rock bands like the Menzingers, Super American or Save Ends \u2013 won\u2019t be disappointed. <\/p>\n

Essentially a “passion project” \u2013 a term Erin and Giancarlo will use frequently during our hour-long chat \u2013 Laureate<\/b> (completed by guitarist\/vocalist Matt Garies and drummer Mike Thomassin) is the creative outlet for two accountants, a videographer and a steel industry worker. Four normal people doing normal jobs, but who get together a couple of times a week to make music and occasionally hit the road for some weekend shows. Like the subject matter of \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i>, it\u2019s this dedication to creating something despite all of the real world pressures of jobs and rent and commutes that makes Laureate<\/b> so likeable. <\/p>\n

\u201cSome months we will practice 3 times a week, some months we won\u2019t talk to each other, it really depends on what we have going on in our lives.\u201d<\/i> says Giancarlo. \u201cBut, I also think that\u2019s why we\u2019ve been able to do this for so long, because if it was something that stopped being just for the pleasure of doing it, then you get to the question of \u2018what\u2019s the point\u2019?<\/i> <\/p>\n

Landmarks by Laureate<\/a><\/p>\n

Talking to Erin and Giancarlo, it\u2019s clear there are no big egos on display, or a desire to make this passion project something it\u2019s not. With initial plans to self-release \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i>, it wasn\u2019t until they spoke to Jump Start Records that they decided to go with a label. <\/p>\n

\u201cBasically they are on the same page as us, especially as far as touring goes,\u201d<\/i> says Erin. \u201cA lot of labels won\u2019t take to you on unless you\u2019re gonna tour as much as Pup or the Flatliners \u2013 I mean, those guys, they\u2019ll be on the road 8-10 months of the year \u2013 but it\u2019s tough and we\u2019ve all got other commitments. As much as I would just love to get in the van and run around the world, it\u2019s not a realistic option at my age. We\u2019re all in our mid-30s, so it\u2019s just not going to happen.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cBut we get out as much as we can, like on weekends, and they [Jump Start] are very understanding and supportive of that. They basically let us do \u2018us\u2019 the way we do \u2018us\u2019. It\u2019s not very eloquent I guess, but they understand the situation, they believe in the music, and they think they can do a good job with it,\u201d<\/i> concludes Erin. <\/p>\n

\u201cAlso, for us, we\u2019ve always been happy to be the local opener for a band we\u2019ve admired,\u201d<\/i> says Giancarlo. \u201cAll of us in the band, our favourite thing is playing shows. We write the songs so we can play shows, which maybe a little backward, but Erin and I, we\u2019ve known each other for ages and we\u2019ve both come out of that DIY scene where everyone\u2019s in a band, or booking shows, or doing posters \u2013 and that\u2019s your social scene when you\u2019re going out on a Friday night. So for us, our social scene was being in a band and making music and it was like, these are the shows we want to go to anyway, let\u2019s put a band together and play them.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

It means there\u2019s an underdog-does-good quality about Laureate<\/b> and that comes across effortlessly as they talk and reminisce. \u201cWe had to send a record to Dubai this one time,\u201d<\/i> Erin remembers. \u201cI had to spend 45 minutes on my lunchbreak buying a box, going to the post office, sorting it out, shipping it. We\u2019d have made a dollar profit, if that. It\u2019s not about the money,\u201d<\/i> laughs Giancarlo. <\/p>\n

Indeed, Laureate<\/b> seem a band that takes everything \u2013 and every day \u2013 as it comes, not putting any pressure on themselves to meet targets or play 150 shows a year. This even translates to their output. \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i> is their debut full-length, and follows on from the \u2018Leave a Light On\u2019<\/i> EP, which was recorded in 2011 and released in 2013. It means some of the songs on \u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i> have been around for years. <\/p>\n

The feeling of seeing them finally out in the wider world is something both Erin and Giancarlo find hugely exciting: <\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, you play them so many times, and you record them and you listen to the mixes, you always have that moment where you try to distance yourself from your creation at some point as soon as it\u2019s finished \u2013 and to have other people bring back the enthusiasm for the songs that we thought were really good when we first wrote them \u2013 that\u2019s pretty cool,\u201d<\/i> says Giancarlo. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s also a bit like \u2018man, but we have NEW STUFF NOW! We don\u2019t want the old songs,\u2019 even though the record has literally just come out,\u201d<\/i> he laughs. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s cool though, we\u2019ll just put out another EP in another 4 years,\u201d<\/i> jokes Erin. <\/p>\n

Yet such a delay has served as a good education for the self-styled \u2018Weekend Warriors\u2019, not least of all in understanding how to get the most out of their band given their limited time and resources:<\/p>\n

\u201cI think, because we took so long between the EP and the LP, we lost some momentum,\u201d<\/i> says Giancarlo. \u201cI don\u2019t think we want to do that again. A lot of the publicity we\u2019ve had lately has been because we have a new product, and we can play shows because we\u2019re pushing something.<\/i> <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s also much more interest from promoters, who are much more interested in booking a band who seems to be investing in the scene and their music. You kinda get out what you put in, and I think, for us, we kinda learnt that lesson the hard way.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

Yet, for all this, there\u2019s a real sense that Laureate<\/b> are a product of the local community and their DIY ethics. Only truly forming after Giancarlo relocated from Boston to Montreal (\u201cWe\u2019d played in some other projects together and it was always sporadic, here and there, and when he moved to Montreal permanently, it was like \u2018OK, we need to start a band\u2019,\u201d<\/i> says Erin), Laureate<\/b> exist in a scene where trading shows and doing short runs on the road has enabled them to grow organically, but network ferociously, even when the momentum wasn\u2019t there. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of trade-offs,\u201d<\/i> says Erin. \u201cIt\u2019s give and take. You help people out, and they reciprocate. I\u2019ve had multiple bands sleep on my floor, and someone helped me out with a show shortly after, and that\u2019s really nice. Those networks are pretty solid, and they\u2019ve remained pretty solid.\u201d<\/i> <\/p>\n

\u201cI also like to believe that we have a reputation for being a band that shows up on time, and we have our own gear, we know what we\u2019re doing and we\u2019re on and off stage in the allotted time, and our music is not offensive,\u201d<\/i> continues Giancarlo \u201cSo you know, we get some invitations to do some really cool stuff and that\u2019s because of the work we\u2019ve done is as professional as possible.\u201d<\/i> <\/p>\n

\u201cProfessional rockstars!\u201d<\/i> laughs Erin. <\/p>\n

It seems a rather description for a band that\u2019s released a pop-punk gem on their own terms, uncompromising in standards and quality, but played with honesty, passion and integrity. It\u2019s one of 2017\u2019s standout moments, and a landmark you don\u2019t want to miss.<\/p>\n

\u2018Landmarks\u2019<\/i> by Laureate<\/b> is out now on Jump Start Records<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Laureate<\/b> links: Facebook<\/a>|Twitter<\/a>|Bandcamp<\/a><\/p>\n

Words by Rob Mair @BobNightMair<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe last few years were kind of rough on me, I\u2019m getting it together; 27 has been good so far, I\u2019m hoping next year\u2019s better,\u201d muses Laureate\u2019s Giancarlo Talarico on \u2018Come Around\u2019, one of the strongest cuts off the Montreal quartet\u2019s debut full-length. It\u2019s a sturdy piece of positive reinforcement for everyone who found the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":16476,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[1484,382,381,15022],"class_list":["post-1899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","tag-jump-start-records","tag-landmarks","tag-laureate","tag-rob-mair"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nInterview: Laureate - Already Heard Staging<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"\u201cThe last few years were kind of rough on me, I\u2019m getting it together; 27 has been good so far, I\u2019m hoping next year\u2019s better,\u201d muses Laureate\u2019s Giancarlo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Interview: Laureate - Already Heard Staging\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cThe last few years were kind of rough on me, I\u2019m getting it together; 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