Montreal's creative scene is buoyant yet still remarkably compact.
A city where everyone seems to know everyone else, influenced from across disciplines, genres seem to spill over one another.
Doldrums is a case in point. Newly signed to Sub Pop, the producer – real name Airick Woodhead – draws inspiration from the visual arts and literature, alongside music.
New album 'The Air Conditioned Nightmare' is out now, half-inching its title from a post-war Henry Miller tome.
With this in mind, Clash decided to probe Doldrums on his literary influences…
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What is your favourite book and why?
Stranger In A Strange Land by Robert Heinlein. I first read this as a teenager and have re-read it probably more than anything else. It's about a man raised on Mars who is sent back to Earth with no knowledge of human customs – very relatable for anyone who feels like an alien! Also influenced Ken Kesey and the Marry Pranksters, David Bowie in The Man Who Fell To Earth and probably countless others.
What other authors do you like?
Vonnegut, Céline, Hakim Bey, Philip K Dick, Henry Miller, Brautigan, J.K. Rowling.
What draws you to certain books?
The covers! Ha, no, the same things that draw me to music or film or art. You become fascinated with a particular world or idea and follow the thread to see where it leads. Actually, I shouldn't be so flippant about covers. I picked up Philip K Dick's Exegesis because the cover had the same symbol I had drawn on my wall and was not disappointed!
Have you ever discovered a real lost classic? What is it and why?
I'm not much of a scholar, don't really know if what I've read is a classic or not.
Do your literary influences have a direct impact on your songwriting?
Yeah for sure. Not more or less than music or film or art though. Songwriting happens primarily in the subconscious so everything you've taken in is going to have some effect on everything that comes out. I wouldn't say my lyrics are very influenced by what I read though. They're more poetic and I don't read poetry.
What are you reading at the moment?
A book on self-hypnosis. I bought it for the cover – I do love new age stuff. One of my favorite books is The Re-Enchantment Of The World.
What is the first book you remember reading as a child? Hmm… the ugly duckling.
Did you make good use of your library card as a child / teenager?
Oh yeah, you gotta use that. I was pretty bad with the returns though!
Have you ever found a book that you simply couldn't finish?Do you read book reviews?
Nope.
Would you ever re-read the same book?
Oh yeah. The good ones get better with repeat reads.
Have you ever identified with a character in a book? Which one and why?
Yeah the basis for starting Doldrums came from re-reading the children's book 'The Phantom Tollbooth', which I would still recommend to anyone. It's so psychedelic and surreal and funny. At one point the lead character Milo gets stuck in the Doldrums, the place where nothing ever happens. I guess that was where I was trying to get out of at the time – and, maybe by starting this band, I did!
Do you read one book at a time or more than one?
In the van we usually have a few kicking around. One of the best parts of touring is sharing music, books and films. Steven tends to read more non-fiction, Maddy (from Moon King) is really into comics 'n' stuff. You have a lot of time in the van to read . . . you ever see a map of Canada?
Is there an author / poet you would like to collaborate with?
Yeah! McKenzie Wark, who wrote A Hacker Manifesto. There is a great lit scene happening in Montreal right now, lots of readings and books coming out. As someone who's used to going to a ton of live music shows it's interesting to see a similar community forming around writing. They're mostly smarter than us musicians, though. We only get paid in beer.
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Catch Doldrums at the following shows:
May
20 London Electrowerkz
21 Dublin Hidden Agenda @ Whelans
22 Bristol The Louisiana
23 Manchester Soup Kitchen
24 Glasgow Stereo
26 Brighton The Hope
Photo Credit: Jeremy Dabrowski
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