Torquil Campbell, of Stars, talks about his latest CD picks.
Yin and yang vocals—that’s the signature of Canadian pop outfit Stars’ soulful sound. “I think rock ’n’ roll without a female voice every once in a while can get very immature, like men,” explains Torquil Campbell, the band’s lead singer. “I like the tension that feminine energy adds to music, and I like the way it grounds the sound.” Harmonizing with bandmate Amy Millan, Campbell often cedes the microphone entirely. “Even the Velvet Underground, a template for indie rock, understood the idea of occasionally giving the listener a break from Lou Reed,” he says.
Both Campbell and Millan—as well as all members of Stars—play in other projects, including the sprawling supergroup from Montreal known as Broken Social Scene. “They know when to give someone else a chance to sing,” cracks Campbell, referring to the collective that is often more than 20 members strong onstage, “but I’ve always really liked the dynamic of having two singers on a song.” On the heels of a confident new album,
In Our Bedroom After the War, Campbell discusses the array of music that has been inspiring him lately.
ANN PEEBLES I Can’t Stand the Rain (Hi Records)
“I’m a lover of soul music, and this whole record is just one devastatingly pure, incredible vocal performance. When you listen to this woman sing, you hear the purity of her voice, the generosity in the way she expresses herself. Read the lyrics and all she’s saying is, ‘I love you and I want you to stay with me, and if you ever left, I’d die.’ But what else is there to say?”
APOSTLE OF HUSTLE National Anthem of Nowhere (Arts & Crafts)
“[Front man] Andrew Whiteman is my musical hero right now. The band mixes so many elements because they’re such fluid musicians. They’re just capable of playing anything. And because Andrew has such a wide, catholic taste, it ends up sounding like a lot of beautiful things and like nothing specific at all. It’s music for people who love music.”
DOVES Some Cities (Capitol)
“As for big-sounding bands, I love Doves. I love the way they produce their records. I think everybody in the group really respects the way they make the music. It has such a huge, wide scope to it, sonically. You can put your hands in the air to it. It blows you away when you feel that energy.”
GINGERBREAD PATRIOTS Wax Lips and Hummingbirds (Value Owl)
“A friend recently handed me their CD, and I’ve been listening to this band all the time. They’re two brothers and a girl. They have a male vocalist and a female vocalist, and you know how I feel about the dynamic of two singers on a song. I listen to a lot of bands that have that conversation happening between a male voice and a female voice.”
SHOUT OUT LOUDS Our Ill Wills (Merge Records)
“The Swedes are such amazing pastiche artists. They’re really good at doing a ’60s thing or a postpunk thing. The Shout Out Louds sound like the Smiths crossed with My Bloody Valentine crossed with the Velvet Underground. Every song is a pop song—with a hook—and, to me, accomplishing that these days is a feat.”
Yin and yang vocals—that’s the signature of Canadian pop outfit Stars’ soulful sound. “I think rock ’n’ roll without a female voice every once in a while can get very immature, like men,” explains Torquil Campbell, the band’s lead singer. “I like the tension that feminine energy adds to music, and I like the way it grounds the sound.” Harmonizing with bandmate Amy Millan, Campbell often cedes the microphone entirely. “Even the Velvet Underground, a template for indie rock, understood the idea of occasionally giving the listener a break from Lou Reed,” he says.
ANN PEEBLES
APOSTLE OF HUSTLE
DOVES
GINGERBREAD PATRIOTS
SHOUT OUT LOUDS
