Toronto-based Broken Social Scene will be performing at the Bronson Centre on Dec. 16 and 17 as part its current tour.
While Toronto-based Broken Social Scene is known for its changing lineup and collaborative approach to making music, band member Charles Spearin says the group’s current tour has turned it into a more organized ensemble.
“We’ve become more of a compact machine this time. I think we have a reputation as being a bit of a sprawling, sloppy chaos on wheels,” says Spearin.
“This time we’ve had so much touring and travelling we’ve become kind of a . . . touring machine.”
The tour, which hits Ottawa on Dec. 16 and 17 for performances at the Bronson Centre, incorporates both previous records and the band’s latest release, titled Forgiveness Rock Record.
Artists who have worked with Broken Social Scene include Canadian music sensation Feist, all members from Canadian indie rock band Stars, and Metric frontwoman Emily Haines.
The lineup for Ottawa’s shows includes founding members Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning. Evan Cranley, from Stars, may also perform in Ottawa.
Spearin says it’s “refreshing” to have a changing lineup.
“Sometimes we get a phone call that somebody’s going to come on tour,” said Spearin. “To have people coming and going adds fresh air and new ideas.”
David French will play on percussion and saxophone for the live shows, but is not on the record itself.
“We needed a new Leon,” says Spearin, referring to musician Leon Kingston, who plays on the latest record.
Spearin says Kingston was his “right-hand man” for his own solo record, the Happiness Project, which won Spearin a Juno award earlier this year.
However, Spearin says Kingston had “higher callings” and now lives as a monk in a California monastery.
The collaborative nature of Broken Social Scene’s music has more “wonder and surprise,” compared with playing individually, which is a “static, egocentric way of making music,” says Spearin.
“I enjoy music more when it’s a bit spontaneous and less conceptualized,” says Spearin.
The Bronson Centre is a good-sized venue, seating 900 with room for just over 600 on the main level. Broken Social Scene played its last show in Ottawa at the Bronson Centre, though some fans thought the mandatory seating – with no option to get up and move around – killed the mood of the show.
Christine Sirois, a journalism and film studies student at Carleton University, attended the band’s performance two years ago and says the combination of uncomfortable seating and poor sound had a negative effect on the show.
“For people going to the shows, I think it’s really unfair to force them into these really uncomfortable seats,” says Sirois. “They’ve paid the money for the show, they should be able to get the experience they want . . . The thought of paying 35 bucks to go sit in a high school auditorium with a terrible sound system is unfortunate.”
Peter Hale, a member of Here We Go Magic, the opening act for the show, says that while his band takes “the vibe of a place really seriously,” it’s not the venue that is responsible for how the crowd reacts.
Here We Go Magic has not performed in Ottawa before, but has played with Broken Social Scene in venues across Europe.
“We’re just sort of peas in a pod,” says Hale.