Rah Rah brings free spirit music to London
Playing catchy, pop tunes, the group's six members (Erin Passmore, Joel Passmore, Kristina Hedlund, Leif Thorseth, Marshall Burns and Samra Sahlu) present a collaborated, tight sound while maintaining a genuine jam-style presence on stage. Since their buzz-worthy performance at the Pop! Montreal show in 2006, ‘Rah Rah‘ has been gaining popularity both in their hometown and across Canada. Extended college radio play has expanded their fan base past the Prairie Provinces. This May, the group began an exciting Canada-wide tour to promote their new full-length CD ‘Going Steady'. Playing over 30 shows in just eight weeks, the band's hard work is starting to pay-off.
Erin Passmore and Marshall Burns have been making music together for years. Erin, an accomplished drummer, bassist, pianist and singer and Marshall who plays guitar, bass and also sings, originally met back in high school and began playing small, local shows with friends. Soon Erin's brother Joel came aboard, then pals Kris and Samra, and finally newcomer Leif joined the group to create the current ‘Rah Rah' lineup. Every member of the group is significantly talented; most of them play two or more instruments and almost every member sings! The strength of each member's talent allows for rotating positions during live performances and a more collaborative writing and recording process that highlights and showcases everyone's abilities.
Their sound includes the usual mix of guitar, bass and drums, but also the unexpected addition of violin, keyboards and even a bit of accordion! It's refreshing to see such a young band step outside of the cookie-cutter high school garage band lineup and offer something that sounds a little different. There's a fresh energy to their music that just feels happy. Erin whimsically describes their sound as “layery” and “smiles” capturing the true, optimistic sweetness that this group promotes.
Not that their sound is all sugar and spice (though there is some candy involved, but I'll get to that later…). Their lyrics touch on love found and lost and hint at heartbreak, with a touch of hopeful, unabashed romanticism. Marshalls's honest words point to him being the band's Romeo, but in truth, his openness in expressing his thoughts in each verse is admirable and even enviable. In Erin's word, “everyone secretly wants to be like him”. And it's true! It's easy to listen to these songs and immediately “soundtrack” your own relationships. Just listen to ‘Our Hearts Don't Match Up' and the way the three verses explore love's chronology.
“In the first verse there is lonely love, in the second ideological motivation and in the last one death and time” explains Marshall, “In all three situations the notion of love stands as the one constant.” When asked about influential artists, Marshall mentions singers Roy Orbison, Neil Young, Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan and their “distinguishable voices (that are) so honest in their delivery and lyrics”.
The album ‘Going Steady' took years to come together, as many of the band members were still in school. They took their time to create an album that now represents what Erin describes as a “collage of a couple of years of the band's life. (It's) interesting in itself anyways, but it was…well…kind of weird!” Speaking of “weird”…be sure to listen closely to “I've Got Faith”, if you catch them live, where Kristina fills her mouth with Poprocks candy and actually “plays” them during the bridge! I told you, they were talented!
Starting their first Canada-wide tour is a huge undertaking for this young group. Though sleep and good food can prove hard to find on the road, the band is truly pumped about the chance to play their music to a live crowd every night. Currently plagued with a malfunctioning stereo on the road, the group will just have turn to each other for entertainment on the long days ahead. Joel, described by Erin as the band's “most enthusiastic (member)…always making jokes and pumping people up for shows…doing crazy impressions” has his work cut out for him in the next eight weeks!
The tour began its run in their hometown of Regina on May 6th and then headed east, hitting intimate venues in major cities along the way. The tour will bring them all the way out to St. John's NL, then turn around and head completely west to finish up in Kelowna BC for Canada Day.
London welcomes ‘Rah Rah' for a live performance at the Blackshire Pub on June 15th.
WHO: Rah Rah
WHERE: Black Shire Pub, 511 Talbot (at Dufferin), 519-433-7737
WHEN: June 15, 2009, 9 PM
