After spending many hours writing and drinking copious amounts of tea and listening to endless bands trying to find my next interview. I stumbled across Portage and Main through the lovely Green Couch Sessions. I knew straight away that this was the band I would inevitably interview.
So after listening to their album at least twice which I may add I feel is a true piece of Canadiana folk/rock I decided to get in touch with the band to see if I could get one of them to participate in a small interview for Ivory Faces. To my surprise the lovely John came back to me and was more than whiling to do it.
Portage and Main’s self-titled debut conjures up 'images of two lonely wanderers travelling the long and weary road trading melancholy tales of old romance'. With great harmonies that could cause the hairs on your neck to stand on end and folk/rock greatness oozing out of their veins, Portage and Main are a band to be recognised and I would say the album for any traveller embarking on an adventure.
Q. I ask this question to all the bands I interview as its polite. How are you on this October day?
Well.. As I have procrastinated a little it is no longer October.. It is November... But I am well nonetheless. Thanks for asking!
Q. For those that don't know you, can you tell me a little insist into how the band formed?
Actually Harold and I never really set forth to start a band rather to start writing songs together.. We have known each other since we were teenagers, both playing in punk rock bands in and around Vancouver. We became good friends at College where we were both studying music and have been playing music together since. After a rehearsal for another group one day Harold came over to check out some new guitar pedals I had recently purchased. We had been jamming for a while when an idea came out, we started singing, then fleshed it out, and before you knew it we had very accidentally written a song together.. A week later, on the phone, we were both remarking about how that song had been stuck in our heads... We decided to start getting together every week to write songs. Before you knew it we had written an album and the rest is history.
Q. I understand you have recently bought out a new album. Could you tell me about the recording process?
The album was recorded in basements and bedrooms. When we decided to record these songs we didn't begin to have the means to procure a pricey studio so instead, being huge fans of very natural sounding recordings, we decided our best course of action would be to involve all of our friends and do the whole thing ourselves. Harold and I had a good idea of how we wanted the album to sound and were very clear on where we were going with it but it would not have been possible without our keyboard player Georges Couling (Knuckleduster Music) who Produced and Engineered the whole album.
Q. How have things progressed since the release of the new album?
We actually didn't exist as a band until our CD release party in March of 2011 so things have been pretty full tilt since then. We toured Western Canada in June, spent much of the summer playing amazing festivals such as Live at Squamish, Rock of the Woods, and Pop Okanagan, and have had some great exposure through videos (Greencouch Sessions ect) and local media such as the Georgia Straight. We really could not be more happy with how things have progressed thus far. We have been spending much of the fall writing in hopes of having another release together before we head out on a cross Canada tour in March that will have us performing at Canadian Music Week in Toronto. We have had a lot of amazing opportunities in the short time we have existed and plan to continue working around the clock to help make sure that they keep coming our way.
Q. If you weren't in the band, what would you all be doing with yourselves?
We are all active musicians in the Vancouver scene. We all play in multiple groups and either make part or all of our living from playing music. I think its safe to say that If this group didn't exist we would simply be making music elsewhere.
Q. You are due to start a little tour in November right? Are you excited and what do you hope this tour has in store for the band?
We are very excited for this tour not only because it will be with our good friends Treelines, but also because this will be our first opportunity to get back to some of the cities we played on our June tour. These types of follow ups are integral to helping build a fan base that spans outside of your hometown.
Q. Any plans on jumping the pond and playing a tour in England?
As it is almost impossible for newer groups to make any money touring Canada, and its equally impossible for them to get visas to play in the States, the idea of touring in Europe is something we have actually been talking about. Depending on how the next year or so goes jumping across the pond could be a very real possibility.
Q. Where did the name Portage and Main come from and where there any other band names you came up with first?
Portage and Main was actually the first name we came up with. Neither Harold or I have the best track record when it comes to coming up with band names so when this one stuck we didn't mess with it. We basically wanted a name that juxtaposed something urban and something rural as we were two city kids who wrote a country record. Portage and Main is a famous intersection in Winnipeg that is claimed to be the coldest street corner in Canada. Broken down Portage is in reference to Portage la Prairie Manitoba, a small farming town that both Harold and I have family from, and Main is a street you would find in any urban area. With this we had our bases covered and a little bit of Canadiana to boot!
Q. What would you say has been the best thing to happen to the band so far?
This is a tough one as we have had a lot of great opportunities but I would have to say the one that has had the most impact would be our Greencouch Sessions video. This video has reached out far beyond the ground that we have been able to travel and has been instrumental in getting our music out there.
Q. Got anything nice planned for Christmas. I myself will be your side of the pond in Saskatoon spending Christmas with my friend. In fact check out his band Slow Down Molasses if you haven't heard them already. Great Canadian band.
We will all be spending Christmas at home with family, but most of December is going to be spent in the studio working on the next release which we are very excited for. If you are in Saskatoon and get the chance do yourself a favour and check out one of my favourite Canadian bands: the Deep Dark Woods.
Q. What are your plans for next year?
Well in short the plan is to keep on keepin' on! We plan to tour as much as possible and to try to keep on releasing content whether that be albums, Ep's, or videos. We are having the time of our lives and plan to keep on motorin' along.
Thank you to John for taking time out to do the interview. It really is appreciated.
If you want to listen to the band please check them out on the links below. I strongly recommend you do:
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