By Jim Barber
Canadian prog-rock sensations Crown Lands can dazzle listeners and audiences with their intricate compositions, blow you away with their distinctive musical prowess, hold you rapt with the literate majesty of their lyrics, and go away you with a way – particularly in a reside setting – that you’ve got skilled one thing distinctive, thoughts increasing and eminently memorable.
All that’s to say, and hopefully the duo of Kevin Comeau (guitar/bass/keyboards) and drummer/vocalist Cody Bowles gained’t thoughts the time period, Crown Lands are storytellers. Not within the sense of the kinds you get at a library studying to children (though if it’s Clifford The Large Crimson Canine, rely me in!), however extra like these of an epic bard from the instances of Norse sagas, or the tales informed to the accompaniment of drums and different homespun devices by the indigenous peoples of North America.
The way in which the pair are capable of deftly and dexterously weave collectively compositional and lyrical complexities that carry an emotional arc is uncommon … and admittedly, fairly good.
As if to place an exclamation level on that assertion, Crown Lands launched their new musical magnum opus, Apocalypse, in Might. It’s a sensory tour past time and house; a fascinating conceptual curler coaster experience that delves not simply into the well-trod tropes of science fiction, however as a substitute utilizing the infrastructure of sci-fi and fantasy to convey prescient observations and opinion about as we speak’s world.
It’s a journey within the sense that one track results in the following, which results in a decision (of types) on the finish of the brilliantly epic title observe, nevertheless it has additionally been a journey for the band in getting up to now, as they’ve needed to navigate via some skilled challenges over the previous couple of years.
As typically occurs within the music enterprise, the ‘enterprise’ aspect of the ledger can intervene, or at the very least distract from the music aspect. After fulfilling their contractual obligations with Common Music, Crown Lands was basically an unbiased act for a short time, and used the time to jot down and report two impressed, musically intricate, but nonetheless highly effective albums, Ritual I and Ritual II, which had been launched shortly after signing with InsideOut Music final July, two and a half years after their final album with Common, the favored and critically acclaimed Fearless.
“An enormous purpose why it took us so lengthy to make Apocalypse after Fearless was we had been going via this large transitory stage the place we had moved away from Common Music Canada and it took us a very long time to signal a brand new cope with InsideOut Music who we’re with now. In that point we wrote, recorded and combined Ritual II, which was really nominated for a Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the 12 months, which was very nice. It was additionally the primary Crown Lands report that was really written, engineered and combined totally by ourselves on this house,” mentioned Comeau.
“That was the report that gave us the boldness that we really might do every little thing ourselves. It takes a very long time to belief your self and belief one another with a course of that you simply’re usually used to paying anyone upwards of $500 a day to do these issues for you. We’ve been fortunate sufficient that we’ve labored with such nice engineers and producers over time, individuals like David Bottrill [Peter Gabriel, Smashing Pumpkins, Tool, Muse and Rush] and Nick Raskulinecz [who produced the last two Rush studio albums as well as working with Foo Fighters, Alice in Chains, Deftones, Korn, and Evanescence] and Terry Brown [every Rush album from Fly By Night through to Signals], all of whom have labored with our heroes. We’ve seen first-hand what they’ll do for our artwork, how one can make issues higher.”
Bowles and Comeau did produce Apocalypse however nonetheless selected to usher in two of these pivotal mentors simply to supply a 3rd and fourth set of ears on the venture.
“For this report we did select to collaborate once more with Nick and David on a couple of components. Nick helped us write a few elements of the music for ‘Via the Wanting Glass,’ and helped us produce that track specifically. He additionally helped us report the drums for ‘Apocalypse.’ Then David helped with a few of the vocal prime traces on a few of the songs like ‘Blackstar,’ and ‘The Fall,’ ‘Foot Troopers of The Syndicate.’ After which after all David combined it,” Comeau defined.
“Whenever you’re making this type of music, you possibly can typically lose objectivity. So, on this case, from beginning to write the report to ending the combo it took virtually a 12 months and a half. Most of that was as a result of we had been doing different issues. We had began writing it after which we went off and did Ritual after which we recorded one other instrumental report with Terry Brown and David Barrett, which goes to be popping out late this 12 months, and plenty of different tasks. So this type of ended up sitting round for longer than it most likely ought to have. A lot of the work for Apocalypse bought finished within the fall of 2025 and in a extra concentrated time period.”
Whatever the peripatetic nature of the method main as much as the completion of the album, the thematic and musical focus by no means waned, with Apocalypse representing the following stage within the evolution of a band that has all the time pushed themselves ahead each as musicians and as songwriters. Bowles and Comeau are minstrels at coronary heart, with each the music and the lyrics and telling tales that have interaction the thoughts, physique and spirit.
That facet of the band’s method and ethos is on show to an excellent larger diploma on this new album, which includes a deep, complete and compelling narrative story underpinning each phrase and each notice, all wrapped up in a prog-rock fan’s dream concoction.
“We’re doubling down on our progressive tendencies and particularly our need to inform extra of a cohesive narrative story which we’ve been turning up with each launch. I feel this time round, we’ve got a totally cohesive storyline sort of from begin to end, ending with ‘Apocalypse.’ I really feel like we’ve actually began to develop that to an important level the place it’s virtually like a launching off level for even our future tasks,” mentioned Bowles.
“I feel we’re simply going to maintain doing this much more and simply amping it up. Every launch we’re getting extra progressive than the final musically and conceptually. I particularly get tired of of doing the identical factor. Sure, we do have a sure sound at a sure level and also you do sound a sure manner. However I all the time need to incorporate new stuff. We’re large lovers of music and lifelong learners of life, so we’re all the time making an attempt to push ourselves musically. So, no matter we’re making an attempt to study within the present second, we attempt to incorporate it in a roundabout way, form or kind into the following factor we’re doing. Like, for example, Kev simply bought a extremely cool new instrument – a Chapman Stick, and he began studying it. So we’re now going to attempt to incorporate that in a roundabout way on this subsequent report that we’re writing proper now. We’re simply all the time exploring, I assume, new territory and discovering new textures, discovering new polyrhythms – all the great things.”
Taking components of fashionable fantasy, science fiction, and even some themes and contextual power from as we speak’s click-bait information headlines, Apocalypse continues with a few of the settings, characters and soundscapes utilized on earlier releases, including layers, emotional and story complexity and drama to what’s turning into a real epic.
“The idea got here earlier than we found out a whole lot of the opposite stuff. It was impressed by this jam Kevin despatched over to me; this little section that had this actually cool and provoking part. It appeared like Pink Floyd and I actually beloved it. Then we sort of branched off from there and began jamming stuff. As we progressed, it grew to become obvious that this was a prequel telling the story of the rise of The Syndicate. We now have a story universe spanning our albums. It talks about this planet referred to as Karagon, this hero character referred to as Fearless, who’s the final of his individuals, and there’s this evil drive that’s colonizing different planets referred to as The Syndicate. They’re coming and colonizing and taking the assets of those planets, specifically the power from their suns and firing it again to their very own house world as a result of their world is dying. The entire premise of this new story is speaking in regards to the circumstances that arose that allowed The Syndicate to rise to prominence on this planet and the rise of the nemesis of the hero Fearless, the antithesis to Fearless and every little thing he stands for, Blackstar, who’s sort of like our Darth Vader character. The Syndicate is also an Empire analog for Star Wars nerds,” mentioned Bowles, who’s chargeable for the textual narrative.
“Basically what occurs is the story takes place within the time when Fearless was asleep, earlier than the occasions of the Fearless album, ‘Starlifter: Fearless Half II’ the place this Syndicate involves Karagon and clashes with the militant faction of Fearless’ individuals, they usually experience these dragons in house, which is fairly hilarious. So we’ve got this loopy conflict between these people who find themselves very in tune with nature, individuals with decrease expertise, who should resort to guerilla warfare down on their very own house turf. But it surely’s no match for the tremendous expertise of The Syndicate, as a result of they’ve just about mastered this complete intergalactic conquest recreation – they stunning a lot eradicated them they usually begin strip mining the planet and setting up this large mechanism across the solar, this Dyson sphere factor that takes the power from the solar again to their planet. So this story is about that conquering of Kerrigan and the way they’ve stolen these assets.
“However then there’s this infighting that occurs on the best way again with Blackstar and the individuals on his ship and the remainder of the fleet about what they need to do, how they need to break up the assets. However then they hear again from their house planet that there’s been an rebellion and The Syndicate has assumed management. A civil conflict had damaged in and out the chaos, there’s been a whole lot of bloodshed. When Blackstar will get again, he realizes his household has been murdered and every little thing he as soon as knew is destroyed. The story actually cements this complete idea of how hate begets hate; violence begets violence. What you sow out on this planet, will finally come again to you, particularly issues like violence and oppression.”
It ought to sound acquainted to those that have been taking note of the historical past of the world, significantly the interaction between the so-called Outdated World of Europe and the ‘New World’ of North and South America, the place European colonizers and empire builders got here, noticed, destroyed and imposed societal and financial buildings which are nonetheless harming the indigenous communities of the western hemisphere. In fact, all the world was an enormous shopping center of assets, together with tens of millions upon tens of millions of people (slaves), for European imperial powers to tromp in, increase some flags and declare centuries-old civilizations theirs.
“Sci-fi has all the time pulled from the headlines. Sci-fi has all the time been a mirrored image of the world round us. It simply takes the truth a bit additional. And all artwork is only a mirror that’s held as much as the truth that you simply’re going through, proper?,” added Comeau.
“This album was largely impressed by what we’re seeing out on this planet. And colonization of indigenous peoples, the entire reconciliation factor, residential faculties, lacking and murdered indigenous ladies – that’s the core of what we do. It’s central to who we’re, even nonetheless. We’ve all the time needed to raise these voices. It’s a scary place [the world] and every single day is a brand new tragedy and we would have liked a spot to place that cathartically right into a artistic outlet,” continued Bowles
Comeau additionally commented not solely on the totally different emotional tonality of the brand new report, but in addition the totally different look the band can have on stage throughout elements of their exhibits shifting ahead.
“The subject material is noticeably darker on this report as a result of it’s not simply coping with themes of colonialism, nevertheless it’s additionally coping with the rise of fascism that we’re seeing around the globe and the way straightforward it’s to radicalize a traditional particular person and get them to establish with one thing that’s really going in opposition to their very own pursuits. In case you make a traditional particular person don’t have any different potential choices, they develop into a foot soldier of one thing like The Syndicate. And naturally the music goes to mirror that. But it surely additionally has given us a possibility so as to add an actual dramatic aspect to the reside present. We simply completed a headline tour the place for that shiny, sparkly sound of Fearless, Cody and I carry out it as a duo. Then we’ve got a 20-minute intermission and we do a giant costume change and we come out with two additional members and we carry out the Apocalypse materials. Cody’s dressed up as Blackstar and I’ve bought my sort of dragon-riding outfit on and we duke it out onstage. It’s enjoyable. It’s enjoyable to play that heavier sort of music and embody these characters and at that sense of theatricality. It’s operatic,” he mentioned.
“We even have our guitar tech costume up in a dragon costume throughout ‘Via the Wanting Glass,’ which is our epic dragon-riding ballad, and he runs across the stage inflicting mischief till we slay him through the climax of that track. Then, in some way, the poor man drags himself off stage, will get out of the costume, and arms me my subsequent guitar. So, he’s a real skilled in each sense of the phrase. I like Austin. We needed to push these visible components simply as a lot because the musical components to inform the story we need to inform.”
The 2 ‘new’ band members are bassist Daniel Walton, who additionally does some concord vocals, and drummer/keyboardist Adam Enrig.
“They each play on this unbelievable band referred to as Dreamland, and I produced their newest report and I consider Terry Brown goes to be mixing, similar to he did for one more band that I produced, referred to as Brass Camel. After we completed monitoring the music for Dreamland report I used to be blown away by how good these guys had been. I confirmed them the brand new Crown Lands report that we had been nearly to complete and it simply all sort of made sense to deliver these guys in to affix us onstage,” Comeau defined.
“As a result of musically all of us click on the identical. Artistically we’ve got comparable viewpoints and have the identical issues that we’re obsessed with. Like, we’re all large Star Wars nerds. So that they’re an important addition to the present, and I do know the viewers goes to adore it as a lot as we do.”
With the myriad connections to Rock and Roll Corridor of Famers Rush – understanding them personally, working with plenty of the identical individuals each in a reside and studio setting and unabashedly permitting the legendary trio’s musical DNA to infuse their very own music, Crown Lands ‘will get’ the joke that for a lot of their profession, Rush’s fan base was skewed in a predominantly male course, and acknowledge that there often is extra males than ladies at their exhibits as effectively.
“So far as gender goes, it’s all the time going to skew extra male. I do suppose our viewers is a little more balanced that Rush’s, particularly once they had been on the similar stage of their profession as we’re. But it surely’s nonetheless going to be 60 and even 70 per cent on the male aspect. However that’s simply from looking into the group. It’s tougher, typically, to inform what the demographic of your fan base is, particularly as a result of there’s a distinction between streamers and those that purchase the bodily product,” Comeau mentioned.
“We’re all the time speaking about information today, proper? And the cleanest option to get information is from one thing like Spotify. However the issue is that solely tells the information of the people who find themselves utilizing Spotify. And that’s an issue for us, as a result of should you take a look at our demographics, the bulk of people that got here to our headline tour that we simply completed most likely wouldn’t use Spotify as a result of the overwhelming majority had been Child Boomers who should not utilizing Spotify. On Spotify, our largest numbers are males of their 30s and 40s. And in addition, the vast majority of our fan base remains to be in Canada so far as streaming goes. In case you take report gross sales, like bodily album gross sales, I do suppose these numbers are literally stronger in Europe than Canada, and that’s most likely as a result of our new report label is predicated in Europe, which was additionally why we bought our label in Europe within the first place, as a result of we really feel Europe goes to be an excellent marketplace for us. There was overwhelming demand for the final report, Fearless; there was a lot demand to get it over into Europe as a result of there gave the impression to be a way more vocal fan base. So it’s exhausting to place a finger on who precisely is our ‘viewers.’”
As for touring in Europe … maybe sometime. Geo-politics, financial uncertainty, inflation, and an rising lethargy from the inhabitants in the direction of reside music make the expense of travelling throughout the nation powerful sufficient. Crossing borders is one other matter, and crossing oceans subsequent to not possible for many bands, except you’ve got deep pockets and an already entrenched fan base who will flock to each present and fill each venue and drop each dime they’ve on merch.
“We’re doing a couple of festivals in Canada this summer season and we’re doing one other headline run all through Ontario within the fall. We needed to do an entire run throughout Canada however simply logistically it doesn’t make sense. The promoter doesn’t need to pay us sufficient to really even pay for our fuel to get out to British Columbia and again. So we’re not going to do it this 12 months as a result of we will’t. We are able to’t take a look at a $20,000 loss to drive to Vancouver and again, which breaks my coronary heart as a result of that’s all I need to do is play music, play exhibits. The state of the business says we will’t try this. It’s what it’s. We’re working as exhausting as we will proper now to discover a option to make a U.S. run in March of subsequent 12 months work,” Comeau defined.
“And we’re additionally making an attempt to determine the logistics of what a European run goes to appear to be for us within the fall as effectively. However I gained’t misinform you, it’s not wanting good. Each time you need to go on the street, whether or not you’re going to B.C. and again, whether or not you’re taking place to Florida and again, otherwise you’re going to go to Germany and again, you’re taking a look at a hefty funding for any of these markets. It’s exhausting to take that hit except you occur to have $60,000 to blow on six weeks of hitting the street along with your buddies – most individuals don’t. I imply, Canada has its personal challenges too, as I’ve mentioned. Canada is a really large and really empty nation. And it’s so intestine wrenching to have a look at the numbers, to see the price of what it could take to exit west and do a run from Vancouver to Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Crimson Deer, Saskatoon, Regina, Winnipeg and on the Thunder Bay. We needed to do it tremendous slick and naked bones. So it was Cody and I, one stage tech, who’s going to assist us arrange the guitars and drums and stuff whereas I’m going to do the merch. After which we’ve got our sound man Graham who helps do entrance of home audio to verify the present is nice. That’s fairly lean and imply to crew guys, however they’re pals. They’d be giving us pleasant charges. However we don’t need to make the most of them as a result of they’ve payments to pay too. We’d fly on the market after which hire an RV, not a bus, so we additionally didn’t should cope with motels.
“All of that versus the [financial] ensures [from the promoters] that we had been being provided, we had been going to lose $20,000 to try this for 2 weeks. So what’s the purpose since you’re doing all that driving and killing your self. You understand, you do three exhibits in a row and also you’re enjoying a present in Regina after which it’s important to pack up and drive 10 hours to make it to Winnipeg, and so forth. And also you’re fortunate should you don’t crash, as a result of should you’re doing this in Canada any time from November on, you’re very more likely to hit a winter storm. It’s tough. In Ontario, we play in entrance of 5 – 6 hundred individuals or extra. On the market, we’re most likely going to play in entrance of 200 or 300. So out of that 200 or 300 hopefully they purchase sufficient merch. In case you do 10 of these exhibits, and promote a lot of merch, on paper it perhaps turns into a break-even proposition. However you’re nonetheless dropping cash outdoors of merch. On the core of the difficulty, it’s due to how costly every little thing has gotten: between truck leases, gas, getting permits printed should you’re crossing borders to have the ability to register all of your gear, coping with work permits, coping with all of that, after which playing each evening which you can break even or solely lose a bit bit of cash earlier than you promote merch.”
However they’ve chosen to stay it out, and make these computations and take a look at all of the permutations and hope that tough work, good press and evaluations, phrase of mouth buzz (each actual and on-line), enhancing report gross sales, and essentially the most priceless, but in addition most nefariously fickle of things – destiny – may also help Crown Lands get to the purpose the place they only should give attention to the music, the enjoying, the present and the viewers.
Within the interim, Comeau and Bowles simply hold diving deep into their creativeness, their prodigious expertise, and their need to construct a catalog of memorable, refined musical tomes to have interaction, enlighten and engender reflection that may endure the check of time … and house.
For extra info, go to https://www.crownlandsmusic.com/
- Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and creator primarily based in Napanee, Ontario, Canada, who has been writing about music and musicians for greater than 30 years. Apart from his journalistic endeavours, he works as a communications and advertising specialist and is an avid volunteer in his neighborhood. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.
