About Me
Another day, another deadline. Im meeting The Suits this evening at their swank Quebec City hangout Le Boudoir Lounge. The hard part is memorizing their mile-long names: Samuel Loubier-Demers, Félix-Antoine Berubé, Olivier Roy de something or other. Otherwise, its been a breeze listening to their debut opus, a one-way melodic trip to Pleasantville titled Quarter-Life Crisis. Ive googled co-producers The Berman Brothers and learned that the German duo have had the midas touch with Cher, Hanson, even the Bahmen (Who Let the Dogs Out, no less). I know that sound engineer Rob Heaney is a key player with Cirque du Soleil. Now Im at the point where the choruses of Low and lead single Play have leeched into my brain and I cant hit the mental stop button.The Suits defy easy categorization. One minute Im thinking the Cars, the next its the Cure minus Robert Smith, then No Doubt, then any number of 80s electro-pop acts. Ultimately I realize they sound like nobody but themselves. Theres a cohesion here that cant be missed. Amidst the byzantine arrangements, a group personality emerges sophisticated and sincere, moody yet playful, a little retro while still being totally contemporary.I grab a cab. The heavy rain leaves me soaked in the dozen paces it takes to reach the Boudoirs front door. Im greeted by a blonde-haired guy with blue eyes who I recognize from the promo shots. Introducing himself as Samuel, he takes my dripping coat and says, Dont worry bro, were over by the fireplace. Well have you as dry as Ramses nutsack in less time than it takes to say double scotch on the rocks.The first thing I notice about The Suits are the women with them. Stunning. Stylish. Classy. Its an appropriate scene for an unabashedly commercial pop act who claim theyre here for fun, not to save the world. Several of the men are wearing ties in what I imagine is a wry statement on the bands name, but with no suit jackets in sight they look more like a cool ska/new wave act dressed by Diesel. Once the waitress, a Valkyrie named Sophie, has brought me a double dose of trouble, The Suits and I get down to business.They tell me theyre in their mid-to-late twenties. They hooked up at the turn of the century, though theyve been musicians since their early teens. Like so many other bands, weve played all sorts of dead-end places, and recorded demo after demo after demo, says Samuel. With that, he turns silent, clearly indicating that past is past and the Suits arent too interested in dwelling in it.Our time is now. announces Olivier. Were proud of what weve accomplished so far. Weve had some airplay in Quebec and English Canada. Were played New York City. But theres such a world of difference between who we were and what weve become. I mean, we used to be called Sunny Side Up and lean towards punk rockPunk rock? Interesting, but not totally surprising. Their music definitely rocks, but then again its blatantly pop. So what happened here? We started messing around with electronics, which is good because thats what I do, explains Felix, the cheeky, talkative one who puts the final shine on the bands sound. The truth is this change of direction was inevitable and natural. The Suits is a group thing. Were friends, first and foremost. Im a psychiatrist. Sam spent the last few years as an investigator. Olis a translator. Keeping things democratic is hugely important to us.Mention Quarter-Life Crisis and the fireworks go off. The Suits are excited about it. So excited, in fact, that they all start talking simultaneously, blurting out anecdotes and laughing at inside jokes. It seems that after years of pleading for attention from an indifferent record industry, the band finally found committed believers at Vancouvers 604 Records. It took a while to convince them three years actually - but it was worth it, says a beaming Sam. We had other offers, but we felt this company was ready to let us evolve on our terms. Its rare to find a solid level of trust in this business.
Recording in the bands historic hometown, a city filled with distractions and not exactly a music business mecca, was a risky move. We basically had to build our own studio. We rented a neat sounding room and filled it with tons of gear. Still the Bermans had to bring in their own ProTools. Ah yes, Christian and Frank Berman, professionally known as the Berman Brothers. Big-time, chart-certified pop/dance producers originally from Hamburg, Germany and based in New York City for the last decade. Their walls are papered with 80 gold and platinum discs. They won a 2001 Grammy for Who Let The Dogs Out.Arriving in wintry Quebec in January, 2005, the Bermans quickly and efficiently cut half the album. It was a real sign of open-mindedness on their part to come to a city we love and want to support, says Oli. You have to understand were talking about guys who were wearing more money on them than Id spent on my wardrobe in five years. But they were total gentlemen and made us feel comfortable in no time.The five Berman-produced tracks are led by Play, a blast of sunshine marked by buoyant synth riffs, vocal harmonies and that hook-riddled chorus. The brief sample of an anonymous Arabic singer was a late substitute for one by Nusrat Fatah Ali Khan, who it turned out was singing holy text from the Koran. Were not interested in being controversial just for the sake of it, says Yohanne Gosselin, the bands plainspoken centre of gravity. Instead the emphasis remains on the singles live for today message, which is matched by a video shot in the idyllic Cuban town of Trinidad. The Cubans have it pretty hard because of the embargo, but theyre always smiling, always playing music. They bite into life, says Oli.
Among other initiatives, the Bermans dropped a voice-over from the Apollo 11 moon mission into Space Odyssey, about an ultimate long-distance relationship with a woman bound for Mars. They helmed a re-recording of Low, which had scored airplay for Sunny Side Up in Quebec. And they encouraged the band to cut one francophone track, Le Plaisir, as a signal that English isnt the global pop scenes only international language.The Suits felt confident enough to tackle the remainder of Quarter-Life Crisis themselves. They worked closely with engineer Rob Heaney, a Juno Award nominee for the Cirque du Soleil album Alegria. Hes a quirky guy, a bit like an alchemist, but also a friend and a father figure with his slippers and all those herbal teas, reveals Sam. The collaboration generated album opener Big Fat Comeback, a critique of pop cultures nostalgic rearview obsessions, and such album highlights as the title track and Downloading (about the anarchic possiblities of the Internet, not a pro or con statement on file sharing).
As the evening wears on and the Boudoir fills with clubbers, I close with a question about the bands name. Calling ourselves The Suits is plain cynical, says Oli. Were not in the major leagues, but weve already had our share of business problems with suits. At one point we were pretty bitter, so we turned to irony for solace. Adds Felix: We thought it made sense to make fun of the industry by pretending that the choices we make are dictated by flowcharts and shareholder interests.Okay, irony. These guys think theyre funny, huh? I put their wit to the test by asking the eternal job-interview closer. So where do you guys see yourselves in five years? Its probably just my imagination, but the Boudoir seems to go quiet for a moment. Sophie puts down a cloth with which shes been wiping down a table and stands there, hands on sweet hips, waiting for an answer. The Suits share amused glances, wry grins on their faces. Finally Sam provides an answer.We see ourselves doing this for a long, long time, he says, totally deadpan, the smile replaced by an intent gleam in his eye. Were aiming for an annual growth rate of 15 percent and an eventual merger with General Motors. But the cover of Rolling Stone would be nice for starters.
made with the Cosmoedit Myspace Editor
