Hill Kourkoutis

Our newest friend to the Canadian As Heck Podcast has an unbelievable resumé.  From being a studio musician for some of our country's biggest artists, to producing exactly the same, Hill has done it all!  From Serena Ryder to SATE and many more, including production, acting, AND directing music videos.  This conversation was so much fun.  Check it out, like, subscribe to the Podcast, and leave a comment!

Hill on the www:
https://hillkourkoutis.com/

The Canadian As Heck Podcast is part of... :
https://revolutionradio.ive

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, it's Craig from Revolution Radio Canada and the Canadian
as Heck podcast. Can you do us a favor? Can
you hit that follow button? That way you never miss
a new episode of Canadian as Heck. You can get
all of the amazing music and content that we have
to offer at our website, Revolution Radio dot Live. Once again,
that's Revolution Radio dot Live. Thanks so much for listening

(00:21):
to Revolution Radio Canada and enjoy this podcast. And that
official countdown of course gets us on the air. Craig
g here with you, Craig Goadoor alongside my man Dmitri
elect see you, and this is a program called Canadian

(00:44):
as Heck. We've had a few weeks off there. It's
been a bit slow for us as far as things go.

Speaker 2 (00:49):
But we're just.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
My wife just all of a sudden her speakers decided
to act up. So anyway, my name again, Craig Dmitri
ad in a hack. Thank you for joining us tonight.
We greatly appreciate it.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
Hill.

Speaker 1 (01:05):
I think, did my man Dmitri pronounce your last name correctly?

Speaker 3 (01:10):
Say it?

Speaker 2 (01:11):
Do it?

Speaker 3 (01:12):
Well? All right?

Speaker 2 (01:13):
Do it? Dimitri.

Speaker 3 (01:14):
The thing is, I'm I'm kind of weird about Greek okay,
because but anyway, Hills.

Speaker 4 (01:21):
That's perfect. Yeah, Kuti or corkutis if you want to
canadianize it.

Speaker 2 (01:26):
Yeah, I know, I just want to canadianize it.

Speaker 3 (01:28):
Eh. My last name is Alex. You and very few
people everybody stumbles over that, you.

Speaker 4 (01:35):
Know, get overwhelmed as soon as they say the Greek name.

Speaker 3 (01:39):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
Yeah, we we have a JUNO nominated superstar with us tonight.
And honestly, my friend Hill, thank you so.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
Much for your time. We greatly appreciate it. Thank you
for being.

Speaker 4 (01:53):
Here, thanks for having me. I'm excited.

Speaker 2 (01:56):
Awesome.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
So listen, We've got a bazillion things to talk about,
and if you don't mind, you we go backwards because
as we were talking off the air, I thought to myself,
you know, we could start talking Juno, as we could
start talking all of some of the you know, some
of the incredible artists that you've interviewed or excuse me,
that you have worked with. I'm just wondering about your parents.

(02:17):
How did your parents meet?

Speaker 4 (02:19):
They met? In talking about this, My parents met in Athens, Greece,
and they met at I believe it was a political
rally because my great uncle was running to be mayor
of which is Athens. And yeah, they my dad was
working on his campaign and so was my mom and
that's how they met.

Speaker 2 (02:41):
Oh that's amazing.

Speaker 3 (02:44):
Canvassing or what like. I don't know, like I'm not
like a long.

Speaker 4 (02:49):
Canvas eventually, yeah and uh and how long? How long? Roses?
This would have been like the early eighties.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
Yeah, okay, during the time of Reagan and uh and.

Speaker 4 (03:06):
Uh Reagan was later. I think Reagan was president. I
think when I was born in eighty eight.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Okay, okay, okay, Yeah, this is politics.

Speaker 3 (03:14):
It's yeah, this is andre type of times, you know.

Speaker 4 (03:19):
Okay, so you know you're you know, you're Greek politics.

Speaker 3 (03:23):
I haven't been in Greece and forever. I'm planning to.
I'm planning to go next year, you know.

Speaker 4 (03:30):
This summer. Actually, I've decided to book a vacation for once.

Speaker 1 (03:35):
Are you Are you going to the islands or are
you just going to Greece properly?

Speaker 4 (03:38):
I think yeah, we're gonna. I think I'm gonna go
to it's called Left gus Or that's where my grandfather's from,
and that's usually my my escape. It's on the Ionian side,
so it's a little a little quieter, a little more
chill then, Yeah, I love it. It's just the best
beaches in the world, bias really beautiful beaches.

Speaker 3 (03:56):
Yeah, I thought, I thought, I just presumed that, Like
it's that your parents came from a village.

Speaker 4 (04:02):
Well, my my dad was born in a village called Biocomi,
which is like outside of the s which is up north.
But my mom's my mom's dad was from which was
it was a village technically like on the island.

Speaker 1 (04:18):
This is fantastic. I could listen to this all night.
This is great.

Speaker 3 (04:22):
Yeah, this is Greek. This is Greek as hack you know.

Speaker 2 (04:30):
That's it.

Speaker 3 (04:31):
Yeah, Oh I love it.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
Fantastic. So sorry, Dimitri, if you don't mind.

Speaker 1 (04:35):
Just because we've kind of started sort of at the
beginning with your parents and everything, I figure, why don't
we just go back to where did you grow up?

Speaker 4 (04:44):
I grew up in a hamlet called Greenwood, north of Ajax.
Oh yes, and it's about forty five minutes northeast of Toronto.

Speaker 2 (04:54):
Yeah, I know exactly where it is, do you really.
I'm in Markham right.

Speaker 4 (04:58):
Yeah, that's just down the street. I used to go
to that hospital whenever i'd like break my arms and stuff.

Speaker 1 (05:03):
Okay, I'm two minutes from I'm two minutes the hospital, exactly.
I'm two minutes from that hospital, which is a good thing.
Yeah yeah, yeah, awesome. Okay, So okay Greenwood.

Speaker 2 (05:14):
Interesting. What high school did you go to?

Speaker 4 (05:16):
I I went to a school in Whitby actually culture
Folger Castle. It was like the Hogwarts kind of place. Yeah, yeah,
and that's I went there from grade six to twelve.

Speaker 1 (05:28):
Because you were you've you're dipping your toes in so
many amazing things. And like I said to you off
the air, your resume is fucking incredible, Like it really is.
It is a proper resume. What did you start with
film music?

Speaker 3 (05:47):
Yeah? That's that's an interesting like.

Speaker 1 (05:49):
How did you really start getting into essentially the artistic
journey that you're you currently find yourself on.

Speaker 4 (05:56):
I remember it being the first thought I could ever have.
I was at actually a Greek cultural event here in Toronto.
My dad was giving a speech.

Speaker 3 (06:06):
Oh and can you tell us exactly where you were?

Speaker 4 (06:09):
I can't remember the place. It was like a banquet hall,
I think or something.

Speaker 2 (06:13):
Was it a Greek banquet hall?

Speaker 4 (06:14):
It would probably there's a lot of great set on
banquet halls. It's Greek er Italians. But yeah, and I
walked up on stage like one of those precocious three
year olds, and I grabbed a tambourine and I sat
down next to one of the band members. There was
like a band on the stage, and I was just like, yeah,
this is where I'm supposed to be. And then after that,
I was begging my parents to let me play guitar

(06:35):
because I think guitar was like the gateway to the
music drug.

Speaker 1 (06:41):
As you can see with the guitars, the wall of
guitars behind us.

Speaker 4 (06:45):
There's a lot of There are a lot of guitars there. Yeah,
So I started with guitars and then it just blew
up from there.

Speaker 2 (06:51):
How old were you Okay.

Speaker 4 (06:53):
I think I was seven when I was given my
first guitar.

Speaker 2 (06:55):
It was a nice good for you. I was seven
when I got my first guitar.

Speaker 3 (07:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (07:00):
I had struggled with a little classical, you know guitar
and uh yeah, and then I was I really wanted
to play electric guitar, so I started working at my
parents' business in the summers to save up for that
first Fender Strat.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
And then how old were you when you got it.

Speaker 4 (07:16):
When I got the strat. Yeah, I was twelve when
I finally I had to transition from classical to acoustic guitar.
There are a few steps until my parents finally gave
But yeah, I worked all summer for actually have it here.
It's like an awquamarine metallic Fender American strat.

Speaker 2 (07:34):
Can we can we see it?

Speaker 4 (07:35):
You want to see it? Yeah?

Speaker 3 (07:36):
Sure?

Speaker 2 (07:37):
Please please?

Speaker 3 (07:38):
And then also and also you have to let us
know if you ever played the bazuki.

Speaker 4 (07:42):
I have a buzuki right behind me, so you played it?
How to play? I can play like Smoke on the
Water by Deep Purple One.

Speaker 1 (07:52):
Oh, that's ad on the bazuki. I would love to
hear that. That's very silly, that's beautiful.

Speaker 4 (07:59):
Yeah. This so this is my first guitar and I
love it. Yeah, I still have it. I didn't get
rid of them.

Speaker 2 (08:04):
Was that new or was that used?

Speaker 4 (08:05):
When it was brand new? It's like a two thousand straps.
And then I started my first band that year with
a bunch of girls from homeroom, and we wanted to
be the go gos. Yeah, and then that that's kind
of when I started. And then really quickly after that,
I just knew I wanted to do this, and I
don't want to waste time.

Speaker 2 (08:23):
I'm wearing I'm wearing the Beaches T shirt.

Speaker 3 (08:27):
Yeah, it's kind of interesting that I think that there's
something cool that's going on with Canadian women right now,
like forming forming like really obnoxious rock bands like The
Beaches and No Bro and things and and things like.

Speaker 4 (08:41):
That, and guitars are coming back. I love it.

Speaker 3 (08:44):
Yeah, And and I like the way that women are
that Canadian women are are are working with them and
being so so much more obnoxious about rock than the
guys are.

Speaker 1 (08:56):
You know, you know, can I just if I may,
if I could just pull this up really quickly. The
other thing I wanted to talk about hill really quickly,
and and we're going to touch on just exactly what
Dmitri talked about just a second ago. This is possibly
the most boss home page picture on a website I
have ever fucking seen.

Speaker 2 (09:18):
That is so freaking cool, Like that that's.

Speaker 4 (09:22):
A warehouse studio is at Brian Adams's place in Vancouver.

Speaker 2 (09:26):
Is that that's in Vancouver?

Speaker 3 (09:28):
Oh see, I was wondering if that was the lair?

Speaker 2 (09:31):
Is that now?

Speaker 4 (09:32):
I we're in the lair, right now the lair is
my basement.

Speaker 2 (09:35):
So is that the main room hill or I.

Speaker 4 (09:38):
Believe it's studio too over there. Yeah, you're talking of
the warehouse.

Speaker 2 (09:43):
Right, yeah? Yeah, is that is that a console?

Speaker 4 (09:47):
It's a beautiful Neve console and actually Rupert Rupert needs
signed it in the pretty cool Oh my goodness, it's
a beautiful room. I wish I had more time there.

Speaker 1 (09:56):
I was.

Speaker 4 (09:57):
Actually they're doing a writing camp, so but I kind
of you're not really making records out a songwriting camp.

Speaker 2 (10:02):
But I tried.

Speaker 4 (10:04):
Yeah, I tried as much as I could. I made
you so the beautiful mic locker there because I have
some beautiful vintage mics there I.

Speaker 1 (10:10):
Can imagine, Yeah, some class old classic telefunkens and Noiman.

Speaker 4 (10:14):
Yeah, I grabbed a like you forty seven from the
late fifties. I think it was wild.

Speaker 2 (10:19):
Yeah, that was That's one of the stories.

Speaker 4 (10:22):
Was worth more than my life, Yes.

Speaker 2 (10:24):
Right, mine too, Yeah, both of us put together, apparently.

Speaker 1 (10:26):
Yeah, that's right. There was a great story of Jim Morrison,
of course, at the doors, walking into a studio for
the first time and seeing a telefunk in You forty
seven and absolutely losing his mind because he said, that's
Frank Sinatra's microphone.

Speaker 2 (10:41):
It is that was.

Speaker 1 (10:42):
That was the mic that and he was like he
was the biggest Sinatra fan on the planet.

Speaker 2 (10:46):
So I just loved that.

Speaker 4 (10:47):
It's one of my favorite mics too. It's the best,
very verstive, perfect.

Speaker 1 (10:50):
Well, I've got a few questions for you then to
wrap up the end of the interview, which we are
not even close to, so sorry, Dmitri. You were talking
in regards to women in uh, women in music in general.

Speaker 2 (11:04):
Some amazing things going on right now.

Speaker 3 (11:06):
Yeah, I am one of them. You you I want
to go to bring this up. Well, I think that
you're kind of reaching for me. I'm a massive fan
of sat Yeah, and yeah, I bought I actually bought
this CD from her wow in uh in the Elmo
in the Alma Combo. She was there for a Lemon

(11:29):
stage a few years ago.

Speaker 2 (11:30):
And uh was DJSB on that gig as well.

Speaker 3 (11:33):
That was DJSB was there was there as well. Nice
and like she's some and say to somebody who's gone
through a real journey because she started she started off
like doing soul and then and then she became this
kick ass rock star, you know, and I'm thinking, like
when did when did you get involved with her?

Speaker 4 (11:56):
I actually met her I think when I was like
fifteen sixteen, and then eventually we all kind of found
each other in the same scene. So I actually started
playing in her band, like keyboards in the site above
it taliba era that she was known she had like
a superphone player instead of a bass player.

Speaker 3 (12:12):
Yeah, she had that awesome song high.

Speaker 4 (12:14):
Yeah, it was that record. Beautiful record and yeah, and
then started playing with my weird alien surf rock band
and we just kind of like toured in each other's
bands for a bit. And then when she started the
SAT project, we were writing for that for the first album,
and then when she put the second one out, she
came to me and was like, I want you to
produce this thing, and so I was all in. I mean,

(12:35):
she's like one of my best friends and I just
and what she does.

Speaker 2 (12:39):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (12:39):
Then that was a very special record. It went through
quite a quite a few iterations and journeys before the
final version came out.

Speaker 3 (12:47):
Wow, how did you now the thing is like the
change from the change from R and B and sold
to to full out rock, Like how did that were
you worry about? Like how she was going to transition
from ever.

Speaker 4 (13:02):
She's always been a rock star, that's the thing. Like
she's even even with the last project, it was still
very rock and roll, you know. So it made sense.
And and it makes sense because rock comes from soul
and blues, you know, so just uh and she's always
been a rocker to me, you know. So, yeah, it

(13:23):
felt like a very natural progression for that project.

Speaker 3 (13:27):
And uh, now I have to ask you about your
latest project, because well, I'm going to start off by saying,
your family must be so happy that you're that you're
getting involved, Like that's first of all, that soccer is
coming to Toronto and and like all over the country

(13:49):
that Canada is co hosting it. Yeah, and also I'm
assuming that there's like a lot of soccer maniacs in
your family.

Speaker 4 (13:56):
Yeah, I mean we're we used to have fights amongst
each other because every family member is like a fan
of a different Greek Super League team, so there's always yeah,
there's friendly rivalry, but yeah, we're a huge soccer fan.
And the fact that I mean living in Toronto too,
it's such a god especially during World Cup or Europa

(14:17):
euro A Cup.

Speaker 3 (14:18):
God damn. Yeah, it's like just all the ethnic enclaves.

Speaker 4 (14:22):
Like it's like, yeah, the city comes to life. So
it's very very exciting.

Speaker 2 (14:28):
Yeah, I remember djaying.

Speaker 1 (14:30):
I remember DJing back in little Italy a few World
Cups ago, and it was just I mean I live.

Speaker 4 (14:36):
Very close to there and that's where I end up
watching games.

Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah, just electric. It was absolutely incredible.

Speaker 3 (14:42):
So you have Toronto theme and FIFA World Cup twenty six, uh,
the official FIFA World Cup twenty six host city themed
for Toronto. So yeah, so tell us about like the
process of put of landing that assignment and putting it together.

Speaker 4 (15:04):
You know, it was interesting because I actually just after
New Year's I got a direct message on Instagram from
a FIFA account and at first I thought it was
a total hoax, and then it was like, we have
an exciting opportunity for you. But then I clicked on
the page and it was the official World Cup page.
So I was like, oh, wow, this is real, and yeah,

(15:25):
I said I'm definitely interested. And it happened very quickly
after that. So yeah, I was assigned with essentially taking
the FIFA World Cup twenty six theme song that they
had released last year, and because they're sixteen host cities.
They started this new collaborative endeavor this year where each
host city has chosen a producer that's from there to

(15:45):
do the theme song essentially like the remix of the
and they call it a sonic ID. So yeah, I
did the Toronto sonic ID and the assignment was to
infuse this remix with you know, whatever the sound of
Toronto would be. And you know, and I had to
meditate on that obviously, because Toronto has so many things.

Speaker 3 (16:06):
It's yeah, that must have been. That must have been
a real well, you must have been brainstorming and coming
up with three hundred things.

Speaker 4 (16:17):
I mean, you know what. I didn't want to think
it too much because I think in my experience whenever
I'm tasked with doing something like this, which isn't all
the time, but I really try to let my intuition
guide me because if you become too cerebral about it,
stress the sound contrived. And to me, it kind of
came down to two inspirations and the first one is

(16:38):
our multicultural identity and the second was the Toronto sound,
which is essentially the sound that has transcended across all
of pop music and rap and R and B. And
that's kind of what we're known for, and so I
felt that we already kind of had a genre that
felt very Toronto. Yeah, and then yeah, and then just
taking inspiration from this vibrant city, right, I imagine myself kind

(17:01):
of walking through all these diverse neighborhoods and what that
would feel like and how that would translate sonically, and
that was kind of the inspiration behind it.

Speaker 3 (17:10):
Very cool. Then you're yeah and so, and I guess
your family must be so proud to that.

Speaker 4 (17:17):
They were excited. I was really excited to tell my dad,
like the most for sure, and even my family and
Greece messaged me, They're like, what is this? This is madness?

Speaker 2 (17:24):
Oh wow, that's too cool.

Speaker 4 (17:27):
Yeah, it was really cool for sure.

Speaker 1 (17:29):
The only I oh yeah, no, I don't even know
why I'm thinking about this. The worst that I remember
for poor Greece in regards to anything EuroCup or World
Cup related was David Beckhabe taking that.

Speaker 4 (17:43):
I did win though in two thousand and four, and
that was true, wild true. I was living in that
hamlet at the time, and my whole family came to
the dan Forth and like partied when that wind happened.

Speaker 3 (17:56):
It was very exciting, all right, So hell do you
remember I can't remember what year this was, but Greece
had advanced in the World Cup and we had a
big game against Costa Rica and I think it was
Costa Rica. And I was at a Greek Orthodox church

(18:21):
that morning for a forty day memorial for an ant
and so anyway, like all my family is there, and
the priest says, I'm going to make the sermon brief
because we all want to watch the soccer game.

Speaker 2 (18:42):
That was that, Dimitri, that was the twenty fourteen World Cup.

Speaker 4 (18:51):
And I was going to say because I was in Ottawa,
that was around Canada day, right, I was playing parliament
in Ottawa, and I brought my jersey and I was
like going into the hotel bars watching the games in
between all the sound checks and stuff.

Speaker 1 (19:07):
I can imagine that must have been such a nail
biter for you guys, because it was June twenty ninth,
twenty fourteen, and it ended up one one in full time.

Speaker 3 (19:15):
Oh my god. It was so frustrating because the Costa
Rican goalie was unbelievable. We were firing so many shots
at him and our goalie was not was not having
to face a lot of shots, but he led in,
he led in, I guess one too many, and uh,

(19:36):
you know, and that was it.

Speaker 4 (19:38):
You know, I can't imagine how nerve wracking it is, though,
you know, being the goalie out of all the players
in these matches.

Speaker 3 (19:45):
It's yeah, that's so yeah, No, I.

Speaker 4 (19:48):
Get stressed out watching them. I mean it's like just
as nerve wracking is getting on stage for me. It's
just stressful.

Speaker 1 (19:55):
Yeah, so there's a hole of Sorry, sorry to metric.
Go ahead, Oh, I just now.

Speaker 3 (20:03):
One of your highest profile projects was What What Watton?
By Ason Aby?

Speaker 2 (20:10):
And and uh, we spoke, we spoke.

Speaker 3 (20:15):
We did, we did one of the one of the
one of the things I asked him about was well,
as as you likely know, Ason ab has a background
in journalism, you know, and uh and what Watton? Uh, Well,

(20:37):
a large part of making Watson was sifting through all
this all this footage or recordings of his grandfather. So
there was a sort of like a documentary documentarian thing
going on. So and I'm thinking, like, as a producer,
I I kind of wanted to I kind of wanted

(20:58):
to get your perspective on that, because it's like he
was it was a very spot like. It was a
project that only a snobby could do because he's a singer. Also,
he has this journalism background, and so he was able
to work out both of those muscles on that one album.
So can you can you sort of tell us what
You're how, what You're how that experience was for you?

Speaker 4 (21:22):
Yeah, for sure, I mean, it's uh, that was probably
one of the most memorable projects I've ever worked on
because we were telling such an important story. But yeah,
you're You're absolutely right, you nailed it. That whole album
is an auditory documentary, you know, telling Watton's life story.
And it was interesting because we kind of started recording

(21:47):
that during the pandemic as well. Like Evan had been
recording conversations with his grandfather during the lockdowns and and
that's where all the recordings came from. And then based
on the recordings, he started to write these songs based
on these conversations and and those songs then he brought

(22:08):
the songs to me and we started to work out
the album. But what was really interesting about the process
was he was providing me with the sound bites of
his grandfather's story as we're kind of working on everything.
So we were always thinking about the larger context of
the story and the narrative and how that was going
to flow to tell the story, which is a really

(22:29):
beautiful way to write, I think, or to work when
you're when you're making a full length album. And I
love the process of making albums, Like to me, the
album is still very much alive, and and I love
being able to work with concepts because that's the power
of storytelling, right, Like singles are great, and they're they're beautiful,
and songs are great, but I love how we can

(22:50):
stitch together those songs to tell a really powerful story. Yeah,
so it was it was great. It was a great process,
and it was a very unique process.

Speaker 3 (22:59):
Well do you done? Okay, So do you think that
the album as somebody who loves albums as well? Yeah,
you know, And and I was taking and I was
talking to people. Well most of the world now is
younger than me, but it's like I was talking friends,
but I was talking to people and like people I

(23:19):
absolutely respect, and everything.

Speaker 4 (23:22):
They did.

Speaker 3 (23:23):
They they never listen. They never get more than three
songs into an album. And I'm thinking, and I'm thinking,
do you do you find that the general music listening
public out there still has time for albums.

Speaker 4 (23:40):
I think it depends on the audience. Honestly. For me,
if your audience is the type of audience that appreciates albums,
then there's absolutely a space for it, you know. And
not every artist is formatted I think to be working
on albums either. So like I work with a lot
of artists where it's very much a single oriented thing
and that and that's of a pop music thing. I

(24:01):
find that, although that's changing too because a lot of
the pop artists I've been working with lately are artists
that are coming to me with a concept and it's
a concept album, you know. And I don't know, maybe
that's why they come to me, is because I do
concept albums. That's kind of my passion. That's the same
album was a concept the album as well, The Fool,
you know, so.

Speaker 3 (24:19):
Yes, it really really was, and there was an audio
documentary thing going on through that album too.

Speaker 4 (24:25):
There was, Yeah, we were working on interludes for that.
I think for me too, when I work on music,
it's very much a cinematic experience, like there's a visual
happening as I'm creating, you know, whatever sonic soundscape is occurring.
So yeah, I mean I think that there's It doesn't
work on every album, but interludes can be such a
powerful tool to propel narratives.

Speaker 1 (24:47):
I'd like to ask you, if I could, doesn't have
to be Canadian, whatsoever, would you be able to give
me your top three favorite concept albums.

Speaker 4 (24:57):
This is this is a harder than my friend, off
the top of my.

Speaker 3 (25:00):
Head, off the top of your head.

Speaker 4 (25:04):
Okay, Well, I just bought tickets to see Beck play
with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra this summer, and I think
his Sea Change album is one of the beautiful, most
beautiful albums of all time. And I love that that
album as a concept really putting me on the spot.

Speaker 2 (25:21):
Here, take your time all night, no problem.

Speaker 4 (25:27):
All right, Well you get like I mean, The Wall
and Dark Side of the Moon are are brilliant?

Speaker 2 (25:32):
Yeah sure, yeah, absolutely, I.

Speaker 4 (25:34):
Mean there's all those classic albums for sure. Well that's
when the that's when the concept album I think was like,
oh yeah, because you're going.

Speaker 3 (25:40):
Back, You're going back to Prague there.

Speaker 1 (25:42):
You know, yeah, and think about it this So let
me ask both of you that your opinion on this.
Do you think either Sandinista or London calling by the
Clash could be considered concept records.

Speaker 4 (25:54):
I think any of those albums can qualify because as
long as an album is telling and this is what
I think the purpose of a concept album is. If
you can tell a story that's based on that snapshot
of time, and you're speaking from the truth of that
time and who you are and what you observe in
that time, that's what the concept is. And sometimes the
concepts are more dressed up in these elaborate kind of scenarios,

(26:16):
like Janelle Monet's first albums, which I thought were brilliant
concept alaries as well. I love that whole series that
she came up with with The The Android. Yeah, it was,
it was brilliant, and I actually got hooked on her
because of those first EPs where you know, they were
really tying into the concept and the story and there
were these little interludes kind of talking and you felt

(26:38):
like you were in this movie. It was like this
crazy like Blade Runner kind of thing. Yeah, And so
I think and anything could be a concept album if
an artist is telling the story of the of their
life and that snapshot.

Speaker 1 (26:51):
Yeah, I think it's it's interesting because something like Queens
of the Stone Age songs for the Dead or songs
for the deaf. It's one of those records that a
lot of people look at it's like it's a concept record.
I'm like, it's not really a concept record. It's just
what they did. It does have a sound, absolutely, and
I mean, you're gonna end up getting that when you've
got Josh Hamy and Dave Grohl in a room together, right,

(27:13):
But it's it's one of those things where they had
all of those great kind of radio dial interludes in
between each song, you know. So I think Josh Homi
had said it was a drive from like the valley
into the desert in California or something like that, and
that's kind of what it was supposed to be taking here.

Speaker 4 (27:31):
And that's a concept. And that's the thing.

Speaker 3 (27:32):
I think.

Speaker 4 (27:32):
The concepts can be very similar. They could be these
very abstract or complex kind of narratives. But yeah, to me,
it's it's that should be what an album is. It
should shouldn't be just a collection of good songs. To me,
it's about the journey. Like even the sequence of an
album I think is a very asowerful thing, you know.

Speaker 1 (27:51):
So, do you think then something because the Beatles still
to this day, well, I should say everyone except for
Paul McCartney. They all say that Sergeant Pepp Lonely Hearts
Club Band is not a concept record.

Speaker 4 (28:03):
They were the concept Yeah right, you know what I mean.
Which is really funny though, because I even think the
White album, which is like my favorite album, and I
think that in itself is a concept okay, even though
they were really working together, like, but that's an interesting album.

Speaker 1 (28:20):
You're absolutely right for me and George George Harrison actually
said exactly the same thing for me, Rubber Soul and Revolver.
Technically speaking, those two records back to back could have
been Volume one in Volume two because they were just
really changing their sound and things like Tomorrow Never Knows
and I'm Only Sleeping and all those wonderful things.

Speaker 4 (28:39):
Now mind manage to think that that happened like within
a decade too.

Speaker 1 (28:43):
Just it's like they were putting out just under two
records every year and touring the entire world and doing
movies and doing promotional videos.

Speaker 4 (28:56):
Life before social media, they were. They were absolutely.

Speaker 1 (29:03):
So listen in regards to your production, your resume is
just unbelievably stellar. And Dimitri has already touched on it.
We've we've had the very good fortune of speaking to
some of as far as we're concerned, some of the
finest producers that this country has had to offer. We've
spoken to David Boutrel, We've spoken to Richard Chicky, We've

(29:25):
spoken to our good friend Scotti comer David Broadback. I
asked every single one of them, what are the three
pieces of gear that changed your life as a producer
slash engineer?

Speaker 2 (29:40):
What would they be?

Speaker 4 (29:45):
Wow, this is just like like recording equipment specifically, or just.

Speaker 1 (29:53):
Stuff that you're going to use, stuff that essentially you're
going to use to get the job done for your
client in the student for sure.

Speaker 4 (30:01):
I mean I can't. I don't know if I can
think about that in the context of the whole career,
because it like it's changed so much. I think as
technology has changed. And I can tell you like my
Swiss army knife stuff for now.

Speaker 1 (30:13):
Yeah go ahead, Yeah, I was gonna say, Richard Chicky
gave us the very first microphone he ever worked with
and pro tools. Yeah, so you know what I mean,
So go go nuts.

Speaker 4 (30:23):
I can go nuts.

Speaker 2 (30:24):
Fun.

Speaker 4 (30:25):
I mean, well, one of the biggest kind of sonic
inspirations for I love surf music, and I love echo
and reverb, and I think like the space echo was
probably one of the first like analog tape machines that
I used where I was really blown away by how
it sounded, and I didn't realize how I'd heard it
so many times but didn't know that that was the

(30:45):
space echo. Like Chris Isaac's Wicked Game, that's like one
of the sexiest guitar sounds ever. Yeah, that was a
space echo? Was it?

Speaker 2 (30:52):
Really?

Speaker 4 (30:53):
That was a space echo? Yeah?

Speaker 1 (30:54):
And if you don't mind me asking really quickly, what
studio did you use those analog tape machines?

Speaker 2 (31:00):
Do you remember?

Speaker 4 (31:01):
It would have been It had to be. It was
definitely in Toronto. There's there's been so many studios where
I've used that thing, because I don't own it was
probably not. No, it wasn't Phase one or Metal Works.
It would have been. I'm trying to think if that
was the one that had the space echo. Was it
my Vespa? I can't remember though, if that if they

(31:24):
had a space echo, That's what I'm trying to remember.
But anyway, it was one of those. It was one
of those studios I had really beautiful analog gear, and
I think that another one that I this is more
recent actually, but I've been using this pedal from Hologram
Electronics called the Chroma Console, which is I've been using

(31:48):
this thing on everything. I'm tracking drums through it, I'm
tracking guitars through it. It's literally a pedal.

Speaker 2 (31:52):
It looks like here, what is it? What does it do? Exactly?

Speaker 4 (31:57):
It's like a color box, yeah, because I love I
love the sound of saturation, and I love hearing things
running through tubes and transistors and just getting that and
this kind of gives you that vibe. It's literally this
fun little box here, and it's got four modules, so

(32:18):
you could. They have a character module, which essentially gives
you drive and it gives you fuzz drive a lot
of really just raunchy sounds. And then there's a movement module,
which is kind of like your effects like phasers, Tremlo's vibratos,
And then they have a bunch of echo and reverb effects.
And then they have this texture one where it makes

(32:39):
it sound like tape warble and stuff, and there's like
a bunch of filters on it. But what's really cool
is you can run anything through it. It's a stereo pedal,
and so I, yeah, I have record drums through it,
record guitars through it, bass vocals. It's just a fun
little tool. I love it. I adore it. So this
has actually changed my workflow quite a bit. I use

(32:59):
it and post, I use it going in. It's very versatile.
I'd like travel with it if I have to record
a band.

Speaker 2 (33:05):
It's just that good.

Speaker 4 (33:06):
Yeah. I've even like recorded in studios with like massive
consoles and we're running this thing through the console, like
recording crazy drum room mics through it and stuff, and
it looks portable like it is, and it's so pretty.
I love it. It's very ergonomic.

Speaker 2 (33:23):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (33:23):
And then I think like the first time I ever
recorded through through a tube MIC, I think was pretty
life changing because I was using like s M fifty
eight's I started. I was part of the first wave
of like bedroom production. So I started recording on a PC,
like in my parents'.

Speaker 2 (33:41):
Basement, fabulous, nothing but fifty.

Speaker 4 (33:43):
Using a computer MIC. And it actually I used a
computer I get first. It was pretty brutal.

Speaker 2 (33:48):
Nothing but fifty eight and fifty seven's all day, right.

Speaker 4 (33:50):
That's it, which I still use all over the place.
They're the great smikes ever.

Speaker 1 (33:53):
Yeah, fantastic. Yeah, I'm talking. I'm talking in one right now.

Speaker 2 (33:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (33:57):
Yeah, it's it's there. It's beautiful, beautiful things.

Speaker 3 (34:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (34:00):
But I think being able to hear the difference in
sonic quality and the and the colors and the warmth
that came out of a tube MinC I think was
pretty life changing for me too.

Speaker 2 (34:12):
I'm lucky to be a musician.

Speaker 1 (34:15):
And I remember going into the studio with my wife
actually after we had produced we'd made a record, and
we sat with our engineer who's our old dear friend,
a guy by the name of Colin Caddie's, and we
sat with him and he said, this is what it's
going to sound like coming through cheap car stairs. And

(34:37):
he put on like the Yamaha, that's it exactly, the
truth speaker exactly. And then he said, and now sit
back in my chair, and then he put it, I
think it's Westlake. Is that the name of the company,
the ones that the giant ones that go into the
wall was.

Speaker 2 (34:54):
And it's like you literally hear every new ones like
every time.

Speaker 4 (34:58):
I really think it sounds like a record through the.

Speaker 1 (34:59):
Every time I would move my fingers on the guitar neck.
You would actually hear like my finger coming off of
the string, You know what I mean.

Speaker 2 (35:06):
It's just I just I love all of this stuff.

Speaker 1 (35:09):
I could talk with studios, talk about this stuff with
you all day. I'd actually like to give a little
sort of auditory example of I think what you're talking
about in regards to tube and saturation and all of.

Speaker 2 (35:23):
Those wonderful things. A fella that is absolutely insanely just
does not.

Speaker 1 (35:32):
Compromise in regards to anything. He must have analog every
time he goes into the studio. Is a fellow by
the name of Lenny Kravitz, and he recorded a song
on his Are You Gonna Go My Way? Album called
come On and Love Me. It's track three on this
and just listen to the drums on this recording here
we go anyway, I just wanted to play that really quickly,

(36:20):
just as a quick example. So cool of just that,
Like I've seen that done in the studio before, because
I've been around music with all my life of musician
and blah blah blah, anyway, all that stuff. I remember
seeing an old friend of mine in the studio and
he was playing a drum beat very similar to that,
and literally just watching just the led meters just like

(36:43):
literally just sitting on and just slamming on that on
that you know, plus I think it's like plus fifteen
or something like that, And I was just listening to it,
and it's that and that dirty, gritty, awesome sound.

Speaker 4 (36:56):
That's where the character comes from. Those are the types
of records I love listening to, and the other are
types of records I love to make. You know, it's
uh it is. I remember hearing even like some of
the old Motown sessions, like you know, they're all those
stems travel around the studios and even like soloing some
of those tracks, they're peaking like crazy. They're so Frenchy

(37:16):
and and it's interesting like yeah, but but they're just
slamming those two like that. That's how that's how the
distorted guitar came to be exactly right. I think it
was uh link ray Well he was cranking through a speaker,
but I think he was like punching holes in the
cone of the speaker with like a pencil something like that. Yeah,

(37:38):
but just distorted the crap out of things. But yeah,
it's I don't know that it's such a special sound.
That stuff hits me in the in the gut.

Speaker 2 (37:46):
Yeah, it absolutely does. And then this is actually I've
got a couple more questions for you.

Speaker 1 (37:52):
And then I know Dimitri is like literally like, dude,
can I can I go now really quickly? Number one,
your guitar heroes. Number two your production heroes. Who are
the people that have really inspired you over the years.

Speaker 4 (38:04):
Now you're really putting me on the spot.

Speaker 2 (38:06):
Let's start.

Speaker 1 (38:07):
Let's start with music and then we'll make our way
into into production.

Speaker 4 (38:11):
Okay, well, this is going to be a cliche, but
Jimmy Hendrix growing up was massive for me.

Speaker 2 (38:15):
Cliche at all, one of the one of the iconic.

Speaker 3 (38:19):
It's a little bit of a cliche, but you know, a.

Speaker 4 (38:21):
Little bit, but cliche for a reason. I was really inspired.
I had the pleasure of being in Martha and the
Muffins for a second. And Mark Gain from Martha the Muffins,
I think is one of the most talented guitar players
of all time. He's so inventive.

Speaker 2 (38:37):
Yeah, we've talked to him twice. Actually amazing. Yeah, yeah,
we've interviewed him twice.

Speaker 4 (38:42):
Incredible. Yeah, and he's one of the most creative guitar
players so percussive too. It's just such an interesting way.

Speaker 3 (38:50):
Yeah, and like and some of the and some of
the some of the newer stuff that him and Martha
are working on in this different identity. I wish I could.
I wish I could remember what they're what they're using srmeme. Yeah,
it's like it's it's a reminder of how funky Mark
can be.

Speaker 4 (39:10):
You know.

Speaker 3 (39:11):
It's like because like you listen, you listen to like
Echo Beach or like Black Stations, White Stations, Dance Park.
It's like I forgot how funky. I forgot how funky
Mark Mark and Mark and Martha could be, you know.

Speaker 4 (39:27):
Yeah, I mean those records are so incredible. I love
listening to those records, Like they're so interesting and the
rhythmic qualities of everything and the sonic quality of everything.
It's just it's they're beautiful records. Yeah. And Mark and
Mark is such a massive part of that sound. Yeah. Yeah,
very distinct player. Yeah, and I get if I had

(39:49):
to choose one more though, probably Peter Spenson from The Cardigans.
I think The Cardigans are one of the most underrated
bands of all time, and he is one of my
favorite guitar players all the time.

Speaker 2 (40:00):
I just adore the fact that you said like for me.

Speaker 1 (40:05):
Keith Scott from Brian Adams is one of my favorite
guitar players of all time. I just think there are
so many unsung heroes. There's a wonderful record, Tiger Lily
by Natalie Merchant, and there's a woman on there. Her
name is Jennifer Turner. Her guitar playing I'm gonna I'm
gonna send it to your pr fella.

Speaker 2 (40:23):
Yeah, and uh, and it is just.

Speaker 1 (40:26):
Jennifer Turner's guitar playing on this record is so unbelievably perfect.
It's just spacey and and wonderful and excellent.

Speaker 3 (40:34):
And the name and the name of Martha and Mark
Alter ego is Chemical Dreams.

Speaker 4 (40:40):
That's right. Yes, I should have known that I was
totally drawing a blank too.

Speaker 3 (40:44):
It was. It was totally drawing a blank. You know.

Speaker 4 (40:47):
It's it's because it's it's past eight pm. We're supposed
to be in bed.

Speaker 1 (40:52):
That's right, that's right, in bed with a hot toddy.
So okay, and uh, production, who were yeah, producers, let's
go okay.

Speaker 4 (41:04):
Well, Tony Visconti, I adore.

Speaker 3 (41:06):
Him, yes, absolutely, Uh.

Speaker 4 (41:11):
Oh, this is Sheryl Crowe actually was probably my biggest
inspiration growing up as like a self produced artist. I
think she's an incredible producer.

Speaker 1 (41:18):
My my favorite mistake is actually in I would say
my favorite mistake from the Globe Sessions is probably in
my top fifteen songs all time.

Speaker 4 (41:26):
That's a stunning song and that whole album is ridiculous.
The Globe sonically.

Speaker 2 (41:31):
It's so good.

Speaker 4 (41:32):
I remember hearing it for the first time. I was
a big drill. She was my first concert at like
Massey Hall, so I was already into her by then
from like the Tuesday Night music club days. But yeah,
that that record though, was life changing for me.

Speaker 3 (41:44):
When did did she like? Was she producing on Tuesday
Night Music Club?

Speaker 4 (41:48):
No, she produced on the self titled which was her
second the one with if It Makes You Happy and stuff. Yeah, yeah,
I think they actually recorded that in like Landwase Studio
in New Orleans res Okay, yeah, and uh yeah, and
I can't remember where Globe Sessions was recorded. But yeah,
both of those albums I think were game changers for me.

Speaker 2 (42:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (42:12):
They sounded so unique and just the way the musicians
just played everything, the tones, everything, They're just really really incredible. Yeah,
and I love Beck as a producer. I think it's
like one of the most wild, incredible and versatile producers
I think. Yeah, I tend to like the are very
like the concept driven producers for sure.

Speaker 1 (42:32):
Yeah, yeah, so so.

Speaker 3 (42:38):
And what h what are some like and do you
have like some some Canadian figures that that throughout your identity,
throughout your development, have like meant something to you, like
as you Yeah.

Speaker 4 (42:53):
So many. I've gotten to work with so many of
my inspirations, which is so cool, Like Martha and Mark
are two of them.

Speaker 2 (43:00):
But looking at sure, Yeah.

Speaker 4 (43:02):
But my first professional songwriting session was actually with the
Lisa del Bello or her and that she's actually if
I had one in like top inspiration, she is probably
one of, like my the most inspirational people.

Speaker 3 (43:17):
My vey, what does she what? What has she been
up to?

Speaker 4 (43:21):
I mean, she she's making she's making us. But yeah,
she was. She was probably one of the coolest people
I've ever met. And I remember going into that session
and she was so like so open and welcoming and
just took me under her wing. I was like fourteen
or something, thirteen or fourteen, I like didn't know what

(43:42):
I was doing. I thought I knew how to write songs,
and she was one of the first people that really
opened up my eyes to like the art of songwriting.
She's also a kick ass producer, multi instrumentalist, incredible vocalist,
obviously amazing songwriters. Oh yeah, she's definitely one of the tops.

Speaker 3 (44:03):
That's amazing. I I she's somebody she like who man forces.

Speaker 4 (44:10):
One of the greatest albums ever. Yes, I agree, it's
incredible and.

Speaker 3 (44:17):
It's like and it's kind of a secret almost but
like but like a lot of people, it's like it's
I think that that's an album that more people should
know about.

Speaker 4 (44:26):
It's literally the precursor to like nine Inch Nails.

Speaker 3 (44:30):
I agree.

Speaker 4 (44:31):
It was one of those albums that I think it
just broke such a unique sound. It was like the
beginning of alternative rock. And yeah, that was definitely a
game changing album for me. When I heard it, I
couldn't believe what I was hearing. It was one of
them like what is this? This is so cool?

Speaker 1 (44:50):
Mm hmm.

Speaker 3 (44:52):
I also have to I also have to ask you
about the launch, okay, because I something I do for
money is teleprompting, and I had to I had to
go to the studio when the launch was happening, so cool,
do some some promos for that. So I kind of

(45:13):
met Shanaia but like but anyway, but like what would
like that was like Shania Twain was there, boy George
was there. That was like, that was crazy. It was.

Speaker 4 (45:24):
It was a pretty amazing gig. It was honestly, yeah,
tell us.

Speaker 3 (45:29):
What you tell us what you did on it? Tell
us what you did on it?

Speaker 4 (45:33):
Okay, And well I was I was in the house
band for the launch. So the launch was a show
that pretty much it was about. The whole concept behind
it was that if the artist was paired with the
right song, that it would help break their career. And
so it wasn't like the usual music talent shows in

(45:54):
that people were auditioning and then there was a live
audience and all that. It was actually more focused on
the recording process, which I thought was cool. So there
were five artists every episode they auditioned before, a guest
producer and a guest artist and Scott Borchetta, who is
the creator of the show and who owns Big Machine Records, Like, yeah,

(46:15):
it was sign Taylor Swift, Like he's an incredible, incredible
guy and yeah, and so they essentially narrowed it down
to two artists, and then the two artists that proceeded
went to record in the studio that was built in
this like film studio. It was a lot of the
coolest studios too. It was incredible, and they each interpreted

(46:37):
the song in their own style and then would perform
it at the end of each episode. So yeah, it
was a pretty wild trip. And yeah, there were incredible
artists that were guests on there.

Speaker 3 (46:46):
Now my memory is a little bit faulty when it
comes to work, but like, was that the studio on Pharmacy?

Speaker 4 (46:55):
Yeah, the first season we did there and then the
second season we shot at CBC at the Sounds.

Speaker 3 (47:00):
Okay, so I did so you did the.

Speaker 4 (47:03):
Season with Shanaia Fergie was on that season, Nikky six Uh,
Ryan Tetter, Jennifer Nettles. Did I say boy George?

Speaker 3 (47:15):
I said, I said boy George.

Speaker 4 (47:16):
Yeah, yeah, I Actually the coolest fist bump of my
life was was with Shania Twain and she was like
the nicest person.

Speaker 3 (47:26):
How why how does she fist bump? That's so cool?

Speaker 4 (47:31):
Well, you fist bump with That's that's it.

Speaker 2 (47:35):
That's that's all.

Speaker 3 (47:38):
I didn't get I didn't get to fist bump with
Shania I. Basically I just basically asked her, so is
that type size good for you?

Speaker 1 (47:46):
And she says, yeah, like nice, you know what that's
that's that in and of itself, that's that's I think
that's awesome that you got.

Speaker 2 (47:53):
To do that.

Speaker 4 (47:54):
Yeah, it was a great experience for sure.

Speaker 1 (47:57):
A couple of artists that you've worked with, you worked
with Violet. I saw mad Violet Madison Violet open up
for the Indigo Girls.

Speaker 2 (48:08):
Massey Hall. When would I think it was probably like
two thousand.

Speaker 1 (48:13):
And four, two thousand and five, something like that.

Speaker 2 (48:15):
I just think it's really cool that you work with
Madison Violet.

Speaker 4 (48:17):
Yeah, that we had so much fun. We actually went
to Halifax for part of that record to record it.

Speaker 2 (48:22):
Did you really Yeah.

Speaker 4 (48:23):
Because I co produced it with the Dan Ladwell, So
we did half at my studio and then half at
his studio, and it was such a great experience. I
love working with them. They're amazing.

Speaker 2 (48:31):
Serena Ryder, Yeah, best did you buy any chance? Work
with two incredible musicians? One I actually used to sell
drums to and he's one of the nicest guys ever
and then a bass player. I've actually worked with a
couple of.

Speaker 1 (48:45):
Times se Ku Lumumba on drums and Brian Kabaya Kawa
on base.

Speaker 4 (48:51):
Yeah, so we were actually part of the same band stretch.

Speaker 2 (48:54):
They're just that's awesome.

Speaker 4 (48:56):
It was it was the three of us in Serena
that you kind of were the first band and from
for the Harmony album. Yeah, and it was it was
so fun working with those guys. I love them dearly.
I actually met Brian first when we were working with
Martha and the Muffins, because he was playing bass for
that album that they had released that that I came
and I was, I was filling in a bunch of instruments,

(49:17):
but I did.

Speaker 1 (49:18):
I did a musical with Brian years ago, how to
succeed in business without really trying, and uh, and he
was he was. I was the drummer, he was the
upright bass player and it was it was so much fun.

Speaker 4 (49:29):
Yeah, he's a sweetheart.

Speaker 3 (49:30):
Serena Ryders actually playing the Peterborough Music Festival this Summer's yeah,
that's that's got to be cool for her. And like
I I was, I I saw Metric at the Peterborough
Music festival last year. It's like that's the whole town
seems to just come to that park and you know,

(49:52):
and spend the entire night. It's like so festival season.

Speaker 4 (49:56):
Yeah, the community comes out. It's like it's a fun time.

Speaker 3 (50:00):
Mm hmm. Yeah, what what I mean?

Speaker 1 (50:06):
We've got here, like we've got what's next, What's what
could possibly be next?

Speaker 3 (50:12):
Uh?

Speaker 4 (50:13):
Yeah, I'm just continuing making records in my basement. I
don't get out much, but yeah, I'm working. I've got
some new music to us. No, it's so fun. This
is a nice break for me because I'm usually alone
down here. Yeah, I'm working on some well, the new
tunes with Ason Abby will be coming out soon. I'm Yeah,

(50:35):
I'm really excited about that. Working with an artist named
Jessica Pearson in the East Wind, which is really fun.
It's kind of an Americana style record, and so we've
been recording a lot of fun instruments for that down here.
Emmy Jean, who's an artist that I've been working with
the last year, but we're working on her full length
album right now.

Speaker 1 (50:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (50:56):
Just I don't know. There's always stuff, stuff.

Speaker 3 (50:58):
Happening, and you have to make some food for Easter,
I do.

Speaker 4 (51:02):
Yeah, Greek star is coming up fast approaching. It's a
month less than a month west.

Speaker 3 (51:06):
What do people? What do people? What does the family demands?

Speaker 4 (51:11):
Not just the family now it's become like a tradition
for all my Canadian friends. So they all come over
and there's high expectations. So there's definitely Greek music. Sometimes
there's plate smashing. We have a giant spit that it's
custom built actually, and we have at least a goat
and a lamb and a bunch of the other kind
of kebab vibe things and lots of dips, lots of

(51:33):
My mom makes all the dips with the pitah. Yeah,
like many Zano salata Alma said Ziki, all the classics. Yeah.
So we just usually, well we'll make a cocktail special
for that for the season. Last year it was like
a mustika liqueur type cocktail. I called them Greek margarita's

(51:56):
because there was like a citrus spins.

Speaker 1 (51:58):
And so speaking of speaking of the the the wonderful
Greek thing, there's a great burger joint, Greek owned burger
joint on the.

Speaker 2 (52:11):
Dan Forth called Square Boy.

Speaker 1 (52:12):
If either of you been to, absolutely it's absolutely wonderful
and one of the owners that did the classic line
that that he used to take the piss out of
that came from Saturday Night Live when people would say,
can I have a burger, fries and a coke and
he would say no cookes, pepsis, and everybody in the

(52:34):
restaurant as soon as he would say no cokes, everybody
would turn around and go, pets, yeah, pepsis.

Speaker 2 (52:41):
Anyway, I just love that.

Speaker 3 (52:43):
The thing one of the things I love about Square Boy,
it's the type of restaurant my dad would have run. Yeah,
you know, like it's the type of restaurant he did.
He did run. He my dad had a restaurant in
the back of the Saint Lawrence Market for for like
a decade in the from the eighties and nineties, and
then he and then he had a restaurant in Newmarket
in Ontario, and and so, uh, you know, it was

(53:08):
like very he wasn't I don't think he was working
to These are very crowded places, you know, cramped, you know,
lots of Mitch mismatch chairs and stuff, you know, like yeah,
and uh, and like he hated he hated interact. He
would prefer everybody you know, and So and Square Boys

(53:32):
cash only still to.

Speaker 1 (53:33):
This, so is Johnny's Hamburger's at Victoria Park and Shepherd
Yeah still cash only. Yeah, I know it's some of
the like literally, I mean some of the best of
all time are Greek and Burger Joints.

Speaker 2 (53:45):
They're the best.

Speaker 4 (53:46):
Yeah, and the fries are incredible at these spots.

Speaker 1 (53:51):
Hill, you are just properly awesome. We can't thank you
enough for your time. We really can't. This has been
so much fun. At the end of every show, I
kind of forgot to talk about this because we were
having so much fun with you before before we went
on the air. If we could play a song that
you just think, really, you know, represents everything that you're

(54:12):
doing right now, all of that good stuff.

Speaker 2 (54:14):
Maybe something for maybe Gene.

Speaker 4 (54:16):
Yeah, sure, anything that's recent I resonates with me because
it's what I've done recently.

Speaker 1 (54:23):
Yeah, for sure. Do you want to If you could
give me a song title? Would be would be fantastic?

Speaker 4 (54:27):
Should we is one I did with Emmy Jean recently?
Or over you I guess would be another one.

Speaker 3 (54:35):
This would have been really good to talk about in
the in the in the few minutes we had but
we went into the Greek shit.

Speaker 2 (54:42):
You know, so.

Speaker 4 (54:45):
Okay, it's a business, you know, so's like just queuing
it up. That's exactly what we can talk about more Greek.

Speaker 2 (54:56):
My backbook pro back here, I'm tearing it up. Exactly.

Speaker 4 (55:01):
What are you doing for greekster?

Speaker 3 (55:04):
Oh my god, I've got well, the thing is my some.
I guess, I'll, I guess, I'll, I'll get some probably
pick up a Galacta Borrico or something classic. Yeah, I'm
a sucker for that. I'm a sucker.

Speaker 4 (55:22):
I can't have to desert now because I had to
become gluten free. That's why I can't even enjoy a
burger anymore. You know what, am I gonna do? The
let us wrap? It's like not as fun.

Speaker 3 (55:34):
No, Well, well I guess none of that. Yeah, but
you've got such a cool life with your cool music.

Speaker 4 (55:43):
That's true. I have guitars.

Speaker 3 (55:45):
At least.

Speaker 2 (55:49):
They take away the.

Speaker 3 (55:51):
Yeah, exactly, So you're you're not You're not a guitar.
You're not a bazooki hero yet. No.

Speaker 4 (55:59):
I actually so, I found some really great uh lessons
on YouTube, and I'm because I it's interesting. There's like
two schools of buzuki players. I didn't know this, but
there's the classic ones and they usually kind of play
up and down the neck, right, and then there's the
modern players are a little more like guitar players, so
they're playing more like vertically as as opposed to horizontally

(56:21):
up the neck. And I'm like, I'm trying to just
learn about the techniques and everything, because it's very different
from playing guitar, like the tremlows, and there's a lot
of like pull offs that that are part of like
the Greek buzooki sound. So yeah, and I want to
ensure that I nail the rudiments. I don't want to
like half asset, you know.

Speaker 2 (56:38):
I wonder if bazooki is used in any Portuguese music.
I wonder. All I know is all I know.

Speaker 4 (56:46):
I know it's like in some some Irish music. There's
like Irish buzuki.

Speaker 2 (56:50):
I think, Oh, happy Saint Patrick's Day.

Speaker 1 (56:52):
By the way, I've got I've got my Guinness Guinness here,
so I have so I have, I have, I d
j J. I've DJ'd a couple of Greek weddings and
a couple of Portuguese weddings, and the Greek music is awesome.

Speaker 2 (57:09):
It's lots of fun and very.

Speaker 1 (57:10):
Done and it gets you moving kind of thing, right,
Shout out to the Vasilakakos family.

Speaker 2 (57:17):
Uh that Demitri actually knows and uh I d j
I d j uh I DJ to Portuguese wedding.

Speaker 4 (57:26):
That's amazing.

Speaker 2 (57:28):
It was interesting the music.

Speaker 1 (57:30):
Okay, so picture this dun dat dun da dun da
dun da dat dun dat dun da, dun dat dun
da dat dun dat dun dat dun dat don so
and I'm seeing so it's two four two four two
four two four three four two four two four two
four two four two four three four two forth and literally,
so I played two of these songs. The bride is

(57:54):
like trying to count to. That bride comes up and
I'm literally as a drummer.

Speaker 2 (57:57):
I'm sitting there going dot dun dun.

Speaker 1 (58:01):
I'm like trying to figure this out. And I found
it really interesting. The bride, who's a white girl, comes
up to me and she goes, if you play one
more Portuguese song, I'm going to kill you, and she
grabs her husband. You Actually you would remember them to me?
Tre you was Amy Parkin that used to work at
the Groundhog. Oh really, she married she married her.

Speaker 2 (58:22):
Oh what's his name? Lovely guy?

Speaker 1 (58:25):
Anyway, uh, she she grabs him and she brings him
to the DJ. Both that says, if you play another
Portuguese song, he dies and he.

Speaker 2 (58:34):
Looks at me and he does this. He looks at me,
he goes.

Speaker 3 (58:39):
It's like it's gonna anymore. I'm just gonna I'm just
gonna say, Craig, that the way that you're doing that,
you're kind of reminding me of Apocalypse and nine to
eight from Suppers Ready by Genesis.

Speaker 2 (58:52):
So oh, okay, all right, interesting.

Speaker 4 (58:57):
Yeah, I think with any time signatures that are from
because I've I've had to play some music too where
I'm like, this isn't if I actually have to cerebrally
understand it. It doesn't work like you have to kind
of just sit back and listen and like, yeah, the
music I find with stuff like that, because it is
very like it does become intuitive once you've kind of let.

Speaker 1 (59:16):
It do yourself'd be nice if Tool would play in
four to four once in a while, that would be great.

Speaker 4 (59:23):
You know, they would not be Tool if they.

Speaker 1 (59:26):
Unbelievable, They are insane. My daughter actually is fourteen years old.

Speaker 4 (59:29):
It's beautiful going through the tool phase.

Speaker 2 (59:32):
She actually played in a tool band. Wow, she's she's.

Speaker 4 (59:36):
So much cooler than I was at that age.

Speaker 1 (59:38):
She's at School of Rock. She's at School of Rock
right now and she's just kicking ass. And she was
just in the tool band. She's now Before that, she
was in David Bowie. She is now currently in Stevie Wonder.

Speaker 4 (59:50):
Whoa. Yeah, she's way cooler than what I was doing.

Speaker 1 (59:53):
If you can, this is probably not going to show
up because of my stupid screen thing.

Speaker 3 (59:57):
No, no it's not.

Speaker 2 (59:58):
Yeah, it's it's her. Can you see that?

Speaker 4 (01:00:02):
Whoa so cool?

Speaker 1 (01:00:03):
Yeah, that's her playing her favorite Yeah, her five string
squire friend.

Speaker 4 (01:00:11):
Yeah yeah, never hit the five strings, Scared Hill.

Speaker 2 (01:00:14):
I could. I could literally talk to you for another hour,
literally easily.

Speaker 1 (01:00:18):
So yeah, I do. I do have Emmy Jane. Should we?
Is there anything you'd like to say about this about
this tune before we spin it?

Speaker 4 (01:00:27):
No, it was just really fun. There's one of those
songs that we wrote and I kid you, not like
five minutes, so it came together very quickly. And I
love her. I'm excited to be working with her own
new music right now.

Speaker 2 (01:00:36):
That's awesome.

Speaker 1 (01:00:37):
Listen, my friend, we are going to spin this tune
and you can stick around to the end. You can
bounce whatever you want. It's totally up to you. Okay,
So all right, we just want to say thank you
so so much one more time to our good our
new bestie here at Revolution Radio. Dmitri helped me out.
He'll go, thank you. And I'm not gonna butcher it.

(01:01:00):
What a way to finish the interview right, just for
me to be like.

Speaker 4 (01:01:03):
Core couding that you just nailed it, Craig.

Speaker 2 (01:01:06):
Yeah, but no, I don't want to be that white
guy that's like.

Speaker 4 (01:01:09):
You nailed it and I'm glad that you did it.

Speaker 3 (01:01:12):
And uh and Craig Hill and I are white.

Speaker 1 (01:01:17):
Well not like me or not not like not like
not like me and my my colonizing blood. But anyway,
it doesn't it doesn't matter. No, I really approve we
honestly again, thank you so much for your time. He'll
we really appreciate my friend, and uh, listen as things
go on, you know, if you don't mind, we'd love
to reach out and talk to you again at.

Speaker 4 (01:01:37):
Some point I'd love to hang again.

Speaker 1 (01:01:40):
Awesome, Thanks again so much. This, of course is uh
brand new from Emmy Jane released in twenty new iss
I Guess released in that Ish released in twenty twenty
four from Emmy Gene. The track is called should We
Episode one sixteen Dmitri. I think that's a that's a
good guess. I think it's a pretty good guest of
Canadian is heck right here?

Speaker 2 (01:02:00):
Revolution Radio Canada? Thanks again, help, thanks.

Speaker 5 (01:02:03):
Could you stick to the story?

Speaker 6 (01:02:07):
But no, Gods, don't Clawbie, I get some days I
will shoot and all me. Your sweet talk really makes
my teeth hard.

Speaker 3 (01:02:18):
Yeah, but he's just a friend.

Speaker 6 (01:02:20):
Listing something you say when it takes on old will
just to keep me away the planet, I'll tell me
just the mot tels to see under lining and molto
on me.

Speaker 5 (01:02:33):
I know it shouldn't have been, should be? I know
it shouldn't have should be.

Speaker 2 (01:02:48):
Now you're coming back to haunt me.

Speaker 3 (01:02:52):
Couldn't guess that week?

Speaker 2 (01:02:54):
And the pink is. I like the feeling that.

Speaker 6 (01:02:57):
You want me. I'm a sucker for a will They
won't because he's just a friend. Listen, Susan, you say
when it takes on old wills just to keep me
away the sn don't for me, mister mom tells to
see under line it and vote for me.

Speaker 5 (01:03:18):
I know we should have masship me. I know we
should have misshipped. I know we shouldn't.

Speaker 6 (01:03:34):
All you ever dudes, wool me down. Take a piece
and save it for yourself. You don't care if I'm
going home.

Speaker 5 (01:03:46):
Because you want it here. You own it now.

Speaker 2 (01:03:48):
Don't lose their my attention.

Speaker 1 (01:03:51):
Now, Walter.

Speaker 6 (01:03:52):
Listen them all that should tell me I'm there for
the attention.

Speaker 4 (01:03:56):
No love talk to me.

Speaker 1 (01:03:58):
It's like this song.

Speaker 6 (01:04:00):
I've always one ball and it's calling me boss.

Speaker 4 (01:04:05):
I know we should have a shine.

Speaker 6 (01:04:13):
I know we should have a sad.

Speaker 2 (01:04:17):
I know, I.

Speaker 5 (01:04:20):
Know we should a sad.

Speaker 2 (01:04:24):
I know it's sure.

Speaker 6 (01:04:28):
I know, he said in myself.

Speaker 5 (01:04:35):
I know we shouldn't