December 9, 2024 • 51 mins
In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Lauren Denitzio of Worriers (@worriesmusic) to discuss Tegan and Sara's 2007 album The Con. Yes, we're finally getting back to the one remaining winner from the Patreon CanCon arc voting. Find out more about how The Con came to hold such a special place in Canadian indie-emo, what the album meant to Lauren and our hosts, how Tegan and Sara dealt with The Con's reception very differently, and more on this week's podcast.
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While you're there say hello to @BlakeMurphyODC and @JGoldsbie.If merch is your thing, be sure to check out the store: http://bit.ly/chpmerchOr reach out to the show and say hey: podcast@columbiahouseparty.com
If you enjoyed today’s show, please rate Columbia House Party 5-Stars on Apple Podcasts.
See you next week for another episode of CHP.
Sick of hearing all the ads? Subscribe to Soda Premium on Apple Podcasts to get rid of them!Follow @ColumbiaHP on X!
While you're there say hello to @BlakeMurphyODC and @JGoldsbie.If merch is your thing, be sure to check out the store: http://bit.ly/chpmerchOr reach out to the show and say hey: podcast@columbiahouseparty.com
If you enjoyed today’s show, please rate Columbia House Party 5-Stars on Apple Podcasts.
See you next week for another episode of CHP.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
I'm married in the sun against the stone of buildings
built before you and I were born, and to my ears,
confusion rose against the latest episode of Columbia House Party. Jake,
what's up?
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Not much man? How are you doing?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
I am excellent. I'm very excited for today's episode.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Yeah, me too. That's gonna be a fun one, Jake.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Today we're discussing an album for one of the best
and most pivotal Canadian indiacts of the last two decades.
It's the fifth of their nine albums, The Dead Center,
and in my eyes, the songwriting peak of a really
incredible career. And while we hope this episode finds you well,
it would be a perfect one for anyone who is
recently called things off. Today we're discussing teaking and Sarah's
(01:04):
then I.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Won't regret saying this.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
This that I'm saying, is it.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Better than keeping my mouth shot.
Speaker 5 (01:14):
That goes without saying? Call pray of car break my your.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Maybe I would have been something you'd be good at.
Maybe you would have been something I'd been good at.
Speaker 6 (01:44):
Don't know.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
I won't be safer Kisco day every day to make
myself feel bad. There's a chance I saw to wonder
if this is something to do.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
Song is called call It Off Off Tigin and Sarah's
the con apologies for opening with the ending track there.
We'll talk about why in a little bit. We're gonna
talk a lot about everything to do with this album
with a guest I'm really excited to have on. We're
joined today by Lauren Denizio. Lauren, how's it going?
Speaker 7 (02:26):
Hey good, how's it going? Happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
I'm wonderful. I'm really glad we found a time and
an album for you to come on. For anyone who
doesn't know, Lauren is the lead singer and guitarist of
the excellent band Warriors, who on March fifth is part
of band Camp Friday released a cover ZP that you
can go check out at Warriors dot bandcamp dot com.
They also have some great merch If you happen to
(02:49):
follow me on Instagram, you would have seen me and
said March before the survival pop shirts that I like
a lot. Lauren's also an artist and illustrator who you
can check out at Lauren Underscore Dnitzio on Instagram and
Lauren You also have a weekly newsletter and subscription service
on Substack get it together dot substack dot com, where
there are things like zines and seven inch flexi series.
(03:11):
What can you tell us about the Substack and the
cover ZP and everything else you've been working on lately. Yeah, well, sorry, sorry,
I'm just gonna dump of stuff on your shoulders to explain.
Speaker 7 (03:24):
I'm very explained everything you've ever made.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
What is art?
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Well, Lauren, Yeah, I.
Speaker 7 (03:30):
Have no idea. So yeah, the Substack is actually a
newsletter that combines my artwork and things that I enjoy
writing about, like music and art and you know what
Warriors is doing. There's a lot of process stuff, but
also just like writing my review of like movies that
(03:58):
this is a terrible pit but but yeah, it's it's
basically it's a newsletter that where I really get at
kind of building a creative life for yourself, and I
interview a bunch of people too, and and so I've
kind of combined that with it being the newsletter where
you can get updates about where your stuff. Also, and
the subscription part of it are the paid subscriptions where
(04:21):
if you subscribe annually, you'll get a physical object for
me four times a year. So so right now I'm
in the middle of four flexy seven inches of demos
from our last record that come with a zine, like
an original zine for each seven inch. So so that's that.
(04:41):
Paid subscribers, like on a monthly basis also get like
extra videos and covers and things, and but it's it's
free every week, get something for me, get updates and
discount codes and all sorts of stuff. But it's kind
of the closest thing we have to a Patreon.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
It's great. And again that's I get it together dot
substock dot com and at Warriors Music on social or
band camp, and then Lauren's on at Lauren Underscore Dnitzio
on Instagram. Before we get into Teagan and Sarah, I'm
hoping that you can retell a story that I heard
you tell on a different interview before. Is that okay?
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Oh okay, yeah, sure, whoa all right?
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Just in the spirit of canadianizing the episode even further,
you told the story on another interview about the time
some Proud Boys accidentally showed up one of your shows.
Speaker 8 (05:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, it was really weird.
Speaker 7 (05:35):
Yeah, so we were actually you know, it was actually
in Vancouver and I forget what bar it was, but
it was a very queer show, and you know, it
was definitely a bunch of punks in this bar. And
after we had played, I found out that there were
a bunch of Proud boys that had come in and
(05:57):
I don't they didn't know what show it was, Like,
it wasn't because it was our show or anything. They
were just like, motherfucker, like, we'll pay and go to
this bar. And I think they pretty quickly realized how
unwelcome they were, and everyone was just like, good, you've
got to be kidding me, and you know, just kind
of stared at them out of the bar. They definitely left,
(06:20):
like because they knew they shouldn't be there, you know,
like it was just very awkward.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
So proud now, huh.
Speaker 7 (06:29):
I don't think anybody said anything to them. They could have.
The bartender might have said something, but but yeah, we
were all a little like what the fuck? And yeah, that's.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Very very odd.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Yeah, I hope we haven't cultivated a community where anyone's
not aware of this. But for the it's not as
bad in Canada. People that tweet that stuff like that.
Whenever anything bad and racist is happening in the US,
it sure does happen here. I'm sorry that that happened,
But it's it's funny that they got the message and
just kind of slinked away the old Simpson grabbed the
(07:05):
hat off the rack and leave.
Speaker 7 (07:07):
Yeah, I'm glad. I'm glad that it like that happened
instead of it being like old school not se punk's
fuck off, like having a fight something. So yeah, that
was fine.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Lauren. You also had another little bit of Canadiana. You
participated in that awesome times Errow cover with Steve's like
Kowski our buddy and Jeff Rosenstock and a bunch of
other people. I take it you're a big weaker then span.
Speaker 7 (07:34):
Yeah, oh totally, Yeah, absolutely, Josh is great and I
was a site that they asked me to sing on that.
It's it was awesome to get to basically do karaoke
with your friends.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Okay, we are not talking about the Weekend NDS. We
are talking about Teagan and Sarah Jake. I know that
for you, teag and Sarah are a band that you
like but don't have a lot of deep connections with necessarily,
but you actually were interest used to Tea and Sarah
through another band that you and Lauren have in common
as big fans of so tell us a little bit
about that, how you came to Tegan and Sarah and
(08:08):
what your relationship with the con is.
Speaker 9 (08:10):
Yeah, I mean, like I knew about Taking and Sarah
through high school just because of the sort of can
con angle obviously, but and they're a band that I like,
but I just don't have any like strong person connection too.
But I sort of I had heard the name and
kind of whatever, and then got into them because of
the Against Me record New Wave.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
But yeah, I heard that song.
Speaker 9 (08:32):
I love that song, and I was like, wow, I
love her voice a lot, and then just sort of
got back. I listened back. I guess there was only
two thousand and seven, so it wasn't as much material
as there is now, but really liked it. And then
they're I think Teak and Sarah kind of just in
Canada especially, they're just sort of in sort of the
(08:56):
whatever you want to call an alternative emo whatever scene.
They're kind of just like an omnipresent group here and
so and really liked their sort of turn to more
of a pop sound.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
Yeah, Love You to Death is like one of the
best running and workout albums that there is.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
Didn't see it coming, but I was like, yeah, this
is awesome.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
Yeah, you get all the goodness of Tinis Sarah's songwriting,
but you get these more up tempo running beats and stuff.
Speaker 6 (09:24):
You know.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
I'm similar to you, Jake. I've been a fan for
a long time, and basically, you know, you can't miss
them if you're into the Canadian scene and you're tracking
things like Polaris and Juno's and just generally being around
the scene, They're awesome. I love the songwriting so much.
I'm really excited for this episode. Lauren, you you gave
a couple options of episodes you might want to do.
(09:45):
Frightened Rabbit was on the table. Why Teakin and Sarah
the con for you? Why was this one of the
ones you wanted to do with us?
Speaker 7 (09:51):
You know. I was looking at the kind of era
that y'all were covering, and I feel like I'm actually, like,
if I'm honest, I'm like not a huge fan of
a lot of emo and or like a lot of
like bigger pop punk from like the early aughts or
(10:12):
something that I did. I feel like a lot of
my friends are, like, you know, were formative records for them.
I'm just kind of like I don't know. And I
feel like Tiagan and Sarah were this weird crossover to
me that you know, they were two women playing acoustic
guitars and somehow they were also an emo band. And
(10:33):
and I really love this record I read, so it's
like looking at that time frame, I legit love this
record and I feel like this this was like the
emo punk record of that time for me.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Awesome. We're going to get into a lot of the
details of the con as well as some of our
favorite Tea and Sarah songs not on the con after this,
(11:08):
all right, so quick background twin sisters from Calgary who
began playing guitar and writing at the age of fifteen.
They were originally called Plunk. They won a competition for
the first professional demo and then became Sarah and Tigan.
They got to open for Hayden in Calgary, which would
have been a show. Then they changed their name to
Tiagan and Sarah and released Underfeet Like Ours independently. They
(11:32):
were then signed by Neil Young's Vapor Records, which is
very cool. They released The Business of Art and If
It Was You in two thousand and four. They had
their bigger local and international breakthrough with So Jealous, which
was released on Vapor and Sanctuary. They kind of got
some extra buzz because the white stripes covered Walking with
a Ghost, So that's maybe the most notable from that era.
(11:55):
But their standout to me and to Lauren, I was
glad we agreed on This is you Wouldn't Like Me? Lauren?
Was that your introduction to tikin this error? Had you
kind of been a fan of theirs prior to on
that track and the So Jealous album.
Speaker 7 (12:09):
That was That was definitely my introduction to them. I
feel like that was the track that was available on napster.
I remember it being on my computer in college and
like that the MP three and it wasn't it wasn't
even the whole record. I think I have like three
tat in Sarah songs back then or something. But take
(12:29):
Yeah you Wouldn't Like Me was was the one.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
This for anyone who doesn't know or just wants to
go back and listen to it, This is you Wouldn't
Like Me?
Speaker 3 (12:38):
In saddle Me.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
Your Causing hid right a.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
Little rock song, Well push it down, let it.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Run me write in.
Speaker 10 (12:53):
I feel like I would like me? And don't you
worry there's still side.
Speaker 5 (13:11):
Don't you worry?
Speaker 10 (13:14):
The suit side, nothing to live win, no sleep.
Speaker 11 (13:22):
And alone as you still win those.
Speaker 5 (13:28):
Outside and the slay will bring you.
Speaker 6 (13:35):
The life.
Speaker 5 (13:36):
I won't let me find me?
Speaker 4 (13:44):
You like me if you met me?
Speaker 12 (13:48):
Don't you worry?
Speaker 11 (13:51):
There's still side, don't you worry. There's still.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Another band I really like called The Beths has a
song called you Wouldn't Like Me, And it's not a
cover of that song, but I feel like it's meant
as kind of a spiritual hat tip to that song.
Hopefully I'll get to ask them about it one day. Jake,
you you hadn't come to Tea and sarahuntil the Con, right,
so you wouldn't the earlier stuff missed you a little
bit because you were still You're so young, Jake, I am.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
I know.
Speaker 9 (14:59):
I'm such a baby at thirty two years old.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Well, look, it matters a lot because for a lot
of the albums we do, you get to say I
was in high school, and I have to say I
was in college.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
That's true.
Speaker 9 (15:11):
I guess it would have been the Con would have
been the most recent of theirs that came out. I
don't remember really the order of when I got into it.
But yeah, I came into them around I guess around
two thousand and seven as well, because that's when that
Against the record came out and then went back a
little bit. But the CON is definitely the one that
was like, Okay, this is like the teaket in Sarah
(15:33):
record of the moment, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Yes, and it's it's the most Columbia house party of
the albums because coming off of So Jealous, they stayed
with Neil Young's Vaper in Canada, but they moved from
Sanctuary to Sire in the US and for this album
they ratcheted up the production side. They called on Columbia
house party Hall of fameer Chris Walla to produce this one.
(15:55):
They also had performances on the album from members of
Death Cab, Weezer, Afi, and a few other places. Despite that,
the video documentary from this time shows that it was
still a pretty DIY album. They still had a lot
of control over it, but the creative process was pretty stressful.
The sisters have talked about this straining their relationship a
(16:15):
little bit, but eventually they got there. July twenty fourth,
two thousand and seven, the CON was released. You know,
this is it's certainly a dark turn and a dark album.
As they were going through the writing process, Teagan was
going through the end of a long term relationship, Sarah
was separated from her American girlfriend who couldn't get a
(16:36):
working visa. Their grandmother had just passed, So, as Tegan
told Metro Weekly, it's very dark and also very much
about reflecting on getting older, long term relationships and the
end of things. And what I find, you know, immediately
interesting about the album is, and I guess tigan Issara's
process in general, is that there is a consistent kind
(16:59):
of of dark tone to this and while the sound
of the songs goes like changes a little bit, obviously,
I do feel like that theme is pretty consistent, even
though Tan and Sarah we're going through different things. They
each wrote seven songs on this album, and it's not
an A side B side, so the fact that it
stitches together kind of really cohesively as a testament to
(17:22):
I mean, I guess, just how well they work together.
So the second thing that stands out to me on
this album is that it's a It very much feels
like a breakup album, and they open the song with
an album I guess about marriage. This is I was married.
Speaker 10 (17:43):
I guess the startling to control against.
Speaker 6 (18:02):
The god of fun bags joke, another bag, that joke,
another mad.
Speaker 10 (18:17):
Now we look coment, tell me, tell me Julie has
a book is breaking Bags? That seems nobody talked. This
seems a baby's head of pas.
Speaker 5 (18:34):
I look into the.
Speaker 10 (18:38):
Two bob evil that just does not pass.
Speaker 5 (18:43):
I don't see.
Speaker 6 (18:44):
What they say.
Speaker 5 (18:46):
Don't try to control the good of.
Speaker 6 (18:52):
Man's to another bag place to enough.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Tune, Jake. It occurs to me now that I missed
with the opening lyric intro. I should have had you
do the the singback part.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
You should have That is a missed opportunity.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Right, unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
I'll never forgive you.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Sorry, buddy, Lauren. I know the the kind of theme
of the album was something that you wanted to talk about.
In addition to this being a breakup album. What do
you think of the kind of starting this off given
where the album goes from here?
Speaker 7 (19:37):
So yeah, I mean, it's like the whole record sounds
like a breakup record, like even if it's even if
it's not directly like sounding like a breakup song specifically,
you know, everything is yeah about the end of things
or missing someone or being in pain and sounding like
(19:57):
you're in pain. And but then the whole record starts
with this song that's like a dream about getting married.
It's not actually about getting married, like it's it sounds
like a like an aspirantal daydream kind of thing that
that I that I think. I mean, I went back
(20:18):
and read the lyrics recently and it occurred to me.
I was like, oh, I think this is about you know,
telling homophobes to fuck off, or like, you know, not
not understanding like why it was so terrible that that
they would want to get married. But it's not a
breakup song. It's not a it doesn't sound like an
(20:40):
especially sad song. But then the rest of the record
is just like, oh, this is a breakup record, and
and and then also that it ends with with call
It Off, which is probably the least angsty song on
the record. It's clearly very like nostalgically sad, but but
(21:05):
it's not like wishing that they were going to get
back together, just like, well, this is this is it? Okay,
this is sad all right, kind.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
Of shrugged shoulders lyric of maybe you would have been
something I'd be good at it, maybe, but I wanted
to ask a little bit more in your rereading of
the lyrics and the as you said, telling homophobes to
fuck off, how important or meaningful was it if it
was at all Fatigue and Sarah to you know, from
the outset in their career be open about being queer
(21:39):
and having that be a part of their songwriting. Was
that meaningful for you as you found them and became
a fan.
Speaker 7 (21:47):
I mean maybe, I feel like I was already listening
to a lot of music by openly queer people, not
necessarily in the Indian punk world. But it wasn't like
a huge novelty to me that they were openly gay.
But but it was cool, you know. I was certainly like, oh,
(22:08):
that's rad. They can do that, Like maybe I can
do that and I and I do remember, I don't
I don't think i've seen them since this, but I
think they were on tour for the con and I
saw them at Terminal five in New York, which is
gigantic Sweat, and I just remember it was just like,
(22:29):
you know, ninety percent queer women, and it was great.
I loved it, you know, It's like I love that.
But yeah, I don't know. I mean, I I want
to say, because I really do believe that if you
you know, it's good to be able to see yourself
on stage, and that's something that's really important to me.
(22:50):
I think it would have been odd if they weren't,
because you know, there a lot of their music was
about relationships. But yeah, I just I sometimes wonder if
certain acts get pitch and hold too much. Yeah, right,
And I'm I'm sure that's something that they have thought
about a lot. But I certainly appreciated it. You know,
they're great, so or they are great.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
In reading their response to kind of how the CON
was received, it sounds like going back to it that
more than that there was they had to sort through
a bunch of commentary that didn't want to take female
songwriters seriously or like the same level of seriousness as
their male cameraters. Like they were twenty seven at the
time that they wrote the CON and some of the
(23:36):
including the Pitchfork review, obviously just like you would think
reading it that they were like teenagers. The way that
people just seemed shocked that twenty seven year old women
could write good music, It's yeah, that seemed to be
more their issue than you know, pitchingholing based on being queer. Yeah,
so this is a pretty good breakup album and it
(24:00):
gets there pretty quickly after I was married. Knife Going
In is a personal favorite of mine and kind of
I think one of the best examples of their songwriting
and their their vocal talent. But really you get to
this kind of meaty, emotional middle when you go back
in your head. Hop a Plane and Soil Soil Back
in your Head probably the most radio ready of the
(24:24):
songs here, and it was not surprisingly then their first
single to chart. It charted on the Canadian rock charts.
It's also, you know, it's just a very good track,
so it's not that surprising that it was a breakthrough
track for them. This is back in your Head.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
A lot of books, founding.
Speaker 12 (24:55):
Book, SA don't need we get so comfortable.
Speaker 4 (25:05):
Beem.
Speaker 5 (25:07):
I was a stretcher, left boat.
Speaker 11 (25:12):
I just walk back, I just fall back, thaksful one Astray,
(25:35):
then again, then I get, Then I get say.
Speaker 6 (25:45):
Then I can go roun.
Speaker 1 (26:27):
Boy. That that opening beat there misleads you to where
that song's going. Jake, I'll ask you first, just that
that kind of theme of like just the way they
say it wanting back in someone's head, and that that
part of the breakup process of like, I guess hoping
that they're still thinking of you. Is that relatable for
you at all, Jake, I know you're you're happily a
(26:48):
wife guy now, but yeah.
Speaker 9 (26:51):
Yeah, of course. And I think one of the great
things about their songwriting that I think has sort of
continued through all the various, let's call it phases of
their sound is that I think they're very good at
sort of digging into that I don't want to say simplistic,
(27:13):
because I think that sounds sort of dismissive, and I
don't mean it that way, but I think they're very
good at like honing in on these very universal, simple
feelings that everyone has in these sort of situations and
then turning them into really good pop songs. And I
feel like the middle of this record, especially, really like
(27:37):
really drills in on that, especially this song and the
one next.
Speaker 1 (27:41):
Yeah, the next one being hop a Plane, which we're
going to talk about in just the second. Lauren, I
know that back in Your Head was one of the
ones that you wanted to discuss as well. Why is
this song a big one for you?
Speaker 7 (27:52):
I mean it is definitely a hit of the record,
and yeah, I feel like this was enough one that like,
if you didn't I mean obviously if it charted, like
if you didn't really know much about Tag and Sarah before,
you probably knew this song.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
I think.
Speaker 7 (28:10):
Yeah, I think it's just a really cute pop song,
especially when a lot of the rest of the record
is pretty dark or kind of angular. They have a
lot of really interesting percussion and rhythm stuff happening in
a lot of the other songs, and then this song
just opens with this really cute piano line, and yeah,
I don't know, I really I just really like it.
(28:31):
It's just one of my favorites.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
Yeah, it's also I think it's the best. Being a
big fan of Love You to Death, it's going back
to this one. It's like, oh yeah, there was a
little bit of that in there already, that maybe they
could do the synthpop thing in in a fun and
creative way in terms. So one of the things I
mentioned it earlier that you know, seven of these songs
(28:53):
are written by Tiegan and seven of them are written
by Sarah. I'm curious if it's one of those things that,
like you maybe like retcon that you noticed or have
a preference, Lauren, when you're going through them, can you
like tell a Teagan song from a Sarah song or
is it just kind of twelve fourteen Teagan and Sarah songs?
Speaker 7 (29:14):
I don't think I can tell. I mean I can tell.
I feel like you can tell the difference between their voices. Yes,
but I don't because they harmonized so much, like so much.
I don't. I don't think of their songs as like
a Teagan song versus a Sarah song, like you might
in other bands that have two lead singers. Yeah, No,
(29:36):
I don't. It's weird that I don't.
Speaker 6 (29:40):
No, no, no.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
I only ask because when we were kind of pre
talking about what songs we might want to talk about,
you skewed heavier towards Tigan songs. So I was just
I was curious if that was something that you picked
up on or were aware of, or it just kind
of happened randomly like that, nineteen being one of them.
I know that's a that's a favorite of yours. I
(30:02):
love the felt you in my legs before I met you,
feel you in my heart, but I don't even know you.
Speaker 6 (30:07):
What is I mean?
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Nineteen is one of your favorites. I guess we could
just talk about it as a track on its own.
Speaker 7 (30:14):
Yeah, nineteen is heartbreaking but so beautiful and relatable, like
I think, especially knowing that they wrote this record when
they were in their like mid twenties, like reflecting on
who you were as a nineteen year old, like falling
(30:36):
for someone you basically don't really know that well, but
you're just like all about them very quickly and channeling
that emotion still, you know, like still channeling that like
hurt and longing for someone in this gigantic crush is
(31:00):
pretty interesting or it's just a very compelling songs. It's
just a beautiful song for sure.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
And that's the thing about those romances at nineteen is
the quicker and more dramatically you fall like that, uh,
the bigger the heartbreak coming out of it, right is,
oh yeah, you feel harder on both ends of things.
Shortly before, I mentioned kind of that emotional apex in
the middle of the album with Hop a Plane and
Soil Soil. This is Hop a Plane.
Speaker 6 (31:27):
I took the.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
Train back back to where I came from, chok It
all along its.
Speaker 8 (31:33):
Imagine my heart, sir, please help me memories all one
to hear you lu line you love line.
Speaker 5 (31:54):
From a plane again, stage John stage.
Speaker 2 (32:19):
Stage so.
Speaker 1 (32:44):
Again. Just a just a killer tune, but Lauren another
favorite of yours.
Speaker 7 (32:48):
Oh yeah, definitely. I feel like this has ended up
on a million playlists and really just for myself, no mixtapes.
This is not a mixtape song. This song actually made me.
Rereading the lyrics made me realize how much like and
I say this with love, I have no idea what
(33:10):
some of their songs are about, what a lot of
their songs are about, Like if you if you read
the lyrics, I feel like a lot of them are
so personal, Like maybe like the verses will be like
so personal and nuanced. I'm like, what are you talking
about them? But it's like I don't need to know
because the songwriting is so good that you just like
(33:32):
get that emotion from it, Like all I need to
hear is that you're not mine, Like that's antithetical to
what you think that song sounds like. You know, like
if that song sounds like you're trying to get somebody
back and like they're far away and you want them
to come visit you, but it sounds like that song
(33:55):
is about please tell me we're not together anymore. You're
not mine and I can get over.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
You, right. And that's where you know that I took
the train back to where I came from. I took
it all alone. As opening lyric, it's like, you know,
it's it's tough. It sounds like they're asking for that
rather than describing what happened. It's just, you know, release
me from this kind of thing. But yeah, it's it's funny.
Even the Genius Annotations says it's about a confusing relationship.
(34:25):
And I think that they have that genius annotation there
like that because even the people who are hardcore enough
to do Genius annotations don't really know what's uh, what's
going on in that one.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
I love Genius annotations so much.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Early twenties Jake would have been like on the leaderboard
for Genius Annotations.
Speaker 9 (34:44):
I don't know, I don't know, Like a lot of
Genius annotations there is like it's a song that's very
clearly about some like this is a song about a breakup,
and it's like yeah, yeah, or like genius, the singer
is saying, the singer is saying they're sad, and the
line and the lyric is all was like, I'm so sad.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
It's like, yes, you nailed it, genius, thank.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
You, Yeah, thanks Jake. But I do I still do
feel like you would have been on there, but you
would have been the annotator down voting and being like,
well actually it's ah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
You're making me sound very great and normal. I know,
old you old Yeah.
Speaker 9 (35:22):
Yeah. Maybe I don't know. I feel like I feel
like old me would have been like too pretentious and
shitty for genius. Maybe I would have I would have
found like the offshoot that no one heard.
Speaker 1 (35:31):
Of, and like this is what there really is? Right,
So I guess kind of to get back to the
close of the album, obviously, call it Off is just
a killer, killer album closer. We talked about it a
little earlier on and played it off the top that
too is a Teagan song and not to over focus
on hers, but in Sarah's own estimation, as she told
(35:53):
NPR in kind of reflecting on this being one of,
you know, a pretty big accomplishment for them, she said,
there's a sophistication to it that I didn't realize existed
when I was twenty seven. There's no payoff to my songs.
They're all tension. It's uncomfortable, and I wonder if that's
where you know the pairing here really works because teagan
(36:14):
songs have a little bit more of that either payoff
or a little bit of the optimism left. One thing
I wanted to ask both of you about, since I
know you're both big fans of Against Me or Lauren.
In your case, you've worked with Laura Jane before. Teagan
and Sarah have said that this album is heavily influenced
by Against Me as the eternal Cowboy. Lauren, I guess
(36:35):
you've worked with Laura Jane and being a fan of both,
do you feel that in here?
Speaker 7 (36:40):
Do you hear that in the con I'm sitting her
being like, I don't hear that, or I guess, but
that's a good thing, because I think if they wrote
a record that I was like, they've been listening to
a lot Against Me, like that wouldn't be good, Like
I you know, but I mean, I think you can
definitely hear them getting to be like a louder punk band,
(37:04):
if that makes sense, Like even with hop a Plane
and their guitars are just totally fuzzed out on that
and they have some really good choruses, So I understan, like,
I can see how that would be the case. I
don't think it's like an obvious, oh this is there
against me, uh influenced record. But but that's cool that,
(37:30):
you know, even even kind of before Teagan sang on
that record that they were like fans of each other
and stuff.
Speaker 1 (37:38):
Mm hmm, yeah, that's cool. How I know this is
kind of like a separate podcast of its own, but
how did you enjoy working with Laura Jane? I'd imagine
that would have been pretty cool.
Speaker 7 (37:48):
Oh yeah, it was great. It was great. I haven't, like,
on the two records we've done since then, I haven't
had a producer who's also a songwriter or like an
artist in their own right. And I shouldn't say that,
but like, no one, no one was working with me
on the songs outside of the band, like specifically as
(38:12):
a as a songwriter as in the same way I
guess that Laura was. And and I think that that
was a really interesting experience. Interesting makes it sound like
it's bad, really interesting. No, it was great. It was
It was really great. It was like I have really
nothing but fun memories of that. And and you know,
(38:34):
Laura's Laura's great and has a has a really amazing ear,
and she would just hear things. I was like, what
do you talk like, just can really pick up on
things and just really helped a lot. It was super collaborative.
We had a lot of fun. So yeah, that it
was just a dream. It was really nice.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
That sounds amazing. Jake, you're you're a big Against Me fan.
Do you hear that going back to the con at all?
Or is it the same kind of thing where like, yeah,
they got a little punkier and a little fuzzier, but
that's about it.
Speaker 9 (39:03):
Yeah, Uh, not really either other than the fact they're
a band that also started sort of on the more
acoustic side of things and then brought that into a
more rocky, punky sound or whatever. But I do sort
of hear It's not like a direct and like if
(39:24):
when I heard this album in two thousand and seven,
after hearing Tigan on the Against Me song, I wasn't like, oh,
I see now, but I it's sort of to me
and like maybe this is totally off base, but to
me they sort of I can feel I sort of
understand what they mean, Like I can see how they
(39:46):
might to phrase this. I can see if they were
listening to a lot of that record while making this record.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
I kind of get it.
Speaker 1 (39:52):
Okay, Yeah, that makes sense. We're gonna talk about how
the Con was received, and we're gonna pick some of
our favorite songs off.
Speaker 2 (39:58):
Of it after this.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Okay. So the Con did well. It hit number four
in Canada and number thirty four in the US. It
eventually became their second of four gold albums, got long
listed for the Polaris Prize here, and got a Juno nomination.
It's been pretty well received critically, as eighty on Metacritic
and at ninety two on Absolute Punk. The Observers Sarah
Boden gave it a five out a five, writing when
(40:36):
your heart feels like a stone in your breast, the
Con will prove a perfect, sweetly addictive companion, which is nice.
But there was also the usual bullshit, as we kind
of talked about earlier. The Pitchfork review was dumb. As
Sarah told NPR, I've gone back and read the press.
It's unreal, so shocking. Men have written their best things
in their teen years or their twenties. Prolific artists like
(40:59):
Kurt Cobain or Hendrix. We were not babies. We were
twenty seven years old. We had lived a lot of life.
Because we were women, it was so hard to take
what we were doing seriously. We got more popular, but
we didn't get the respect. Teagan felt differently, in the
same interview to NPR, said, the con was when I
felt so validated. Sarah and I were in different places.
(41:20):
It was such a transcendent moment in my life. We
made it, we turned that corner. There were thousands of
people singing along, so a little bit of contrast there
between how each of them dealt with the you know,
success versus some of what was being written. Laura, and
I know that you're kind of fascinated by, like you
said earlier, just how big they got in the indie
scene as a rock band with you know, dual lead
(41:43):
singers and acoustic guitars and kind of this emo sound.
I guess, can you offer any reflection at all on
you know, what Tegan and Sarah are saying there about
you know, this kind of success versus respect and obviously
you know, I mean we kind of eye roll earlier
at of course, of course, some of the music critics
(42:04):
weren't willing to give them full credit for the songwriting,
or act surprised at it because they were women. I guess,
just your kind of wrap up thoughts on the con
and how it might have been received at the time.
Speaker 7 (42:15):
It makes a lot of sense to me that they
felt like it was a transcendent moment for them, not
just in how it was received, but like how you know,
how the record turned out, and it feels like a
big achievement for a band to put together a record
like this, and yeah, and so like to not get
the respect critically, but you feel like your peers are
(42:37):
getting for similar or lesser works. I shouldn't say lesser,
but just like you know, things that maybe aren't as
ambitious is awful and disappointing, but also at the same
time not unexpected, Like I'm sure they could see that coming,
but I mean I think at the time at the time,
(42:59):
I like just graduated college, like not too long before
this record came out, and yeah, I feel it was
just it was huge, like I think they I feel
like they played Webster Hall and I saw like that
they were in a tour bus and I was just
like fuck, yeah, you know, like like they played some
big venue and I knew that it was their bus.
(43:20):
I was like, that rules, because yeah, it's like you know,
in my head at that point, I just considered them
a punk band with acoustic guitars. I was like, what
like that, didn't you know I didn't know people who
did that or like who who got as big as
they were, So yeah.
Speaker 2 (43:38):
I don't know.
Speaker 7 (43:38):
I just think it's a it's a really significant record
for them. But also like when I listened to it,
like at the age I was at when it came out,
I feel like it was a it was a really
big deal.
Speaker 1 (43:51):
Yeah, and obviously you know big here in Canada to
the Polaris and you know, nooms and all that. They
followed up with Sainthood, which was nearly a successful and
then heart Throb, which is actually their highest charting album
today I hit number two in Canada, and then as
I noted off the top, I really enjoyed their more
synthpop turn with Love You to Death in twenty sixteen,
(44:13):
including this one of my favorite Ta gun At Sarah songs,
dying to Up.
Speaker 5 (44:23):
Put a little love You into my Heart took a
chancel it apart.
Speaker 2 (44:33):
A little little lad.
Speaker 4 (44:34):
Into the dark my heart, see your face mix a
heart of you on your voice can manage.
Speaker 5 (44:47):
I don't tell me which you are now.
Speaker 11 (44:49):
Where you live?
Speaker 8 (44:51):
Tell me or you were in love, how you've been?
Speaker 6 (44:53):
I'm done to.
Speaker 4 (44:55):
Is the one you ended up with Everything you wanted, Wait,
everything you.
Speaker 12 (45:03):
Did Friend, Uns can Be Back on the James episode
First Can.
Speaker 11 (45:21):
Be Back.
Speaker 6 (45:26):
Is the one.
Speaker 4 (45:27):
Wag You All is the only ending with begin you
want to.
Speaker 6 (45:41):
Dun.
Speaker 1 (45:43):
Their most recent album is a really interesting one. In
addition to their memoir High School, they released the album
Hey I'm Just Like You, which is them revisiting uh
songs that they wrote in their teen years with kind
of their their current sound and their current perspective. There
was also a ten year anniversary of the con. They
released the con X with covers from other artists like
(46:05):
City and Color, Hailey Williams, Grimes Churches. The Church's cover
of call It Off is amazing, but I'm a big
Churches fan anyway. They've also done, you know, a lot
of other collaboration work, as we mentioned, TV, video games,
social and political activism. In kind of wrapping up where
they're at right now. Around the anniversary of the con,
(46:28):
Sarah told Billboard, it just feels like that community has
supported us so much, and it's also I don't know,
it's the only thing that keeps me from turning into
a nihilist and thinking an asteroid should hit Earth is
to give back to people who are constantly giving. So that's,
in my eyes, a pretty good perspective to take to
fight off the nihilism. As she says Lauren, we're now
(46:50):
at the part of the podcast where we normally kind
of pick a couple favorites off the album, and eventually
we're going to pick one of these songs to be
on our Columbia house party mixtape or playlist or whatever
you want to call it. So I guess first I'm
gonna kick it to Jake first, because Jake was a
little fresher to the album. Did you going back to
a Jake, any songs stand out as your favorites off
(47:12):
the con Yeah.
Speaker 9 (47:13):
I think hop a Plane is by far my favorite
on the album. I think it's just such a it's
such a great sort of amalgamation and everything I like
about this sort of genre. I guess to simplify it
nown to its essence, like it's just that mix of
sort of the punkier thoughtful, sort of acoustic rooted songs.
(47:35):
I know it's more of an electric tune, but you
know what I mean. But yeah, I think like back
in Your Head and hop a Plane Back to Back.
I definitely think are.
Speaker 2 (47:42):
A great like.
Speaker 9 (47:43):
I love when there's sort of center pieces of albums,
and I think those two are great center pieces. I
also really like like O like h which also is
a great cover by smir who Rules. But yeah, I
think those three are probably my would be my tops.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Lauren, what about you? What's I know, we talked about
it a little bit over email beforehand, but what are
your what are your favorite songs on the.
Speaker 7 (48:05):
Con Yeah, I mean I I would agree with the
Hop a Plane pick. That's definitely one of my favorites,
as is Back in your Head.
Speaker 1 (48:13):
I feel it.
Speaker 7 (48:13):
Maybe it's like I'm trying to pick like the like
the not already a hit one or something but snob
in me, but yeah nineteen and call it Off, Yeah,
call it off. I feel like is the one that
I I forget about and then I hear it again
like a goldfish. I'm like, this is amazing. But yeah,
those those are my favorites.
Speaker 1 (48:35):
Okay, I guess you know, normally we don't have like
a standard choice for the mixtape. It can be our favorite,
it can be the one that we think best kind
of encapsulates the album or our conversation.
Speaker 3 (48:47):
You know.
Speaker 1 (48:47):
I know that you and Jake both have back in
your head at number one, So that's a possible way
we could go here. Call it off thematically is maybe
a way we could go, Lauren, you talked about hop
a Plane being on a lot of playlists. Where do
you where do you want to go with this?
Speaker 6 (49:02):
What?
Speaker 1 (49:02):
What do you think we should throw on the mixtape?
Speaker 7 (49:05):
I would go with hop a Plane.
Speaker 1 (49:07):
That's all right, notist, there's plenty of there's plenty of
bumming out on this playlist. We'll be all right. But yeah,
hoppap Plane is a good choice. And look, you said
it was a heavy playlist in mixtape song or not
mixtapes on but a heavy playlist song for you, so
(49:28):
it makes sense. It's obviously a good, fun, versatile playlist piece,
so it fits perfectly. I guess my My only other
question for you, Lauren was do you have a favorite
Teagan and Sarah album that's not the con like, did
one of the other eight stand out to you? As
you know, one of the top ones for you the
way Love You to Death is for me?
Speaker 7 (49:49):
Oh, I mean it would it would be between so
Jealous and Sainhood. Honestly, I do really like their their
newer music, but I think it's it's one of those
cases of like the place in your life where you
are when you listen to certain records. But yeah, one
of one of those two. I really like hell off
(50:10):
of Sanhood that was also on a on a ton
of playlists.
Speaker 1 (50:14):
But uh yeah, nice, Okay, well with the HPAP plane
is locked onto the mix of me as long as
you don't have an objection, Jay.
Speaker 2 (50:23):
Oh absolutely not.
Speaker 1 (50:25):
Good good Jay. Thank you, Lauren. We wanted to thank
you for coming on. This was a lot of fun.
I really appreciate you taking the time.
Speaker 7 (50:32):
Yeah, thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
And as a reminder for everyone, you can follow Lauren's
work with Warriors at Warriors Music on bandcamp in any
of your socials. Check out her art on Instagram at
Lauren underscore nisio, and then check out her newsletter I
Get It Together on substack get it Together dot substack
dot com. Lauren, Thank you so much. Please try the
(51:34):
fish
I'm married in the sun against the stone of buildings
built before you and I were born, and to my ears,
confusion rose against the latest episode of Columbia House Party. Jake,
what's up?
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Not much man? How are you doing?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
I am excellent. I'm very excited for today's episode.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Yeah, me too. That's gonna be a fun one, Jake.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Today we're discussing an album for one of the best
and most pivotal Canadian indiacts of the last two decades.
It's the fifth of their nine albums, The Dead Center,
and in my eyes, the songwriting peak of a really
incredible career. And while we hope this episode finds you well,
it would be a perfect one for anyone who is
recently called things off. Today we're discussing teaking and Sarah's
(01:04):
then I.
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Won't regret saying this.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
This that I'm saying, is it.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Better than keeping my mouth shot.
Speaker 5 (01:14):
That goes without saying? Call pray of car break my your.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Maybe I would have been something you'd be good at.
Maybe you would have been something I'd been good at.
Speaker 6 (01:44):
Don't know.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
I won't be safer Kisco day every day to make
myself feel bad. There's a chance I saw to wonder
if this is something to do.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
Song is called call It Off Off Tigin and Sarah's
the con apologies for opening with the ending track there.
We'll talk about why in a little bit. We're gonna
talk a lot about everything to do with this album
with a guest I'm really excited to have on. We're
joined today by Lauren Denizio. Lauren, how's it going?
Speaker 7 (02:26):
Hey good, how's it going? Happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
I'm wonderful. I'm really glad we found a time and
an album for you to come on. For anyone who
doesn't know, Lauren is the lead singer and guitarist of
the excellent band Warriors, who on March fifth is part
of band Camp Friday released a cover ZP that you
can go check out at Warriors dot bandcamp dot com.
They also have some great merch If you happen to
(02:49):
follow me on Instagram, you would have seen me and
said March before the survival pop shirts that I like
a lot. Lauren's also an artist and illustrator who you
can check out at Lauren Underscore Dnitzio on Instagram and
Lauren You also have a weekly newsletter and subscription service
on Substack get it together dot substack dot com, where
there are things like zines and seven inch flexi series.
(03:11):
What can you tell us about the Substack and the
cover ZP and everything else you've been working on lately. Yeah, well, sorry, sorry,
I'm just gonna dump of stuff on your shoulders to explain.
Speaker 7 (03:24):
I'm very explained everything you've ever made.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
What is art?
Speaker 1 (03:29):
Well, Lauren, Yeah, I.
Speaker 7 (03:30):
Have no idea. So yeah, the Substack is actually a
newsletter that combines my artwork and things that I enjoy
writing about, like music and art and you know what
Warriors is doing. There's a lot of process stuff, but
also just like writing my review of like movies that
(03:58):
this is a terrible pit but but yeah, it's it's
basically it's a newsletter that where I really get at
kind of building a creative life for yourself, and I
interview a bunch of people too, and and so I've
kind of combined that with it being the newsletter where
you can get updates about where your stuff. Also, and
the subscription part of it are the paid subscriptions where
(04:21):
if you subscribe annually, you'll get a physical object for
me four times a year. So so right now I'm
in the middle of four flexy seven inches of demos
from our last record that come with a zine, like
an original zine for each seven inch. So so that's that.
(04:41):
Paid subscribers, like on a monthly basis also get like
extra videos and covers and things, and but it's it's
free every week, get something for me, get updates and
discount codes and all sorts of stuff. But it's kind
of the closest thing we have to a Patreon.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
It's great. And again that's I get it together dot
substock dot com and at Warriors Music on social or
band camp, and then Lauren's on at Lauren Underscore Dnitzio
on Instagram. Before we get into Teagan and Sarah, I'm
hoping that you can retell a story that I heard
you tell on a different interview before. Is that okay?
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Oh okay, yeah, sure, whoa all right?
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Just in the spirit of canadianizing the episode even further,
you told the story on another interview about the time
some Proud Boys accidentally showed up one of your shows.
Speaker 8 (05:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Yeah, it was really weird.
Speaker 7 (05:35):
Yeah, so we were actually you know, it was actually
in Vancouver and I forget what bar it was, but
it was a very queer show, and you know, it
was definitely a bunch of punks in this bar. And
after we had played, I found out that there were
a bunch of Proud boys that had come in and
(05:57):
I don't they didn't know what show it was, Like,
it wasn't because it was our show or anything. They
were just like, motherfucker, like, we'll pay and go to
this bar. And I think they pretty quickly realized how
unwelcome they were, and everyone was just like, good, you've
got to be kidding me, and you know, just kind
of stared at them out of the bar. They definitely left,
(06:20):
like because they knew they shouldn't be there, you know,
like it was just very awkward.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
So proud now, huh.
Speaker 7 (06:29):
I don't think anybody said anything to them. They could have.
The bartender might have said something, but but yeah, we
were all a little like what the fuck? And yeah, that's.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
Very very odd.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Yeah, I hope we haven't cultivated a community where anyone's
not aware of this. But for the it's not as
bad in Canada. People that tweet that stuff like that.
Whenever anything bad and racist is happening in the US,
it sure does happen here. I'm sorry that that happened,
But it's it's funny that they got the message and
just kind of slinked away the old Simpson grabbed the
(07:05):
hat off the rack and leave.
Speaker 7 (07:07):
Yeah, I'm glad. I'm glad that it like that happened
instead of it being like old school not se punk's
fuck off, like having a fight something. So yeah, that
was fine.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Lauren. You also had another little bit of Canadiana. You
participated in that awesome times Errow cover with Steve's like
Kowski our buddy and Jeff Rosenstock and a bunch of
other people. I take it you're a big weaker then span.
Speaker 7 (07:34):
Yeah, oh totally, Yeah, absolutely, Josh is great and I
was a site that they asked me to sing on that.
It's it was awesome to get to basically do karaoke
with your friends.
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Okay, we are not talking about the Weekend NDS. We
are talking about Teagan and Sarah Jake. I know that
for you, teag and Sarah are a band that you
like but don't have a lot of deep connections with necessarily,
but you actually were interest used to Tea and Sarah
through another band that you and Lauren have in common
as big fans of so tell us a little bit
about that, how you came to Tegan and Sarah and
(08:08):
what your relationship with the con is.
Speaker 9 (08:10):
Yeah, I mean, like I knew about Taking and Sarah
through high school just because of the sort of can
con angle obviously, but and they're a band that I like,
but I just don't have any like strong person connection too.
But I sort of I had heard the name and
kind of whatever, and then got into them because of
the Against Me record New Wave.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
But yeah, I heard that song.
Speaker 9 (08:32):
I love that song, and I was like, wow, I
love her voice a lot, and then just sort of
got back. I listened back. I guess there was only
two thousand and seven, so it wasn't as much material
as there is now, but really liked it. And then
they're I think Teak and Sarah kind of just in
Canada especially, they're just sort of in sort of the
(08:56):
whatever you want to call an alternative emo whatever scene.
They're kind of just like an omnipresent group here and
so and really liked their sort of turn to more
of a pop sound.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
Yeah, Love You to Death is like one of the
best running and workout albums that there is.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
Didn't see it coming, but I was like, yeah, this
is awesome.
Speaker 1 (09:18):
Yeah, you get all the goodness of Tinis Sarah's songwriting,
but you get these more up tempo running beats and stuff.
Speaker 6 (09:24):
You know.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
I'm similar to you, Jake. I've been a fan for
a long time, and basically, you know, you can't miss
them if you're into the Canadian scene and you're tracking
things like Polaris and Juno's and just generally being around
the scene, They're awesome. I love the songwriting so much.
I'm really excited for this episode. Lauren, you you gave
a couple options of episodes you might want to do.
(09:45):
Frightened Rabbit was on the table. Why Teakin and Sarah
the con for you? Why was this one of the
ones you wanted to do with us?
Speaker 7 (09:51):
You know. I was looking at the kind of era
that y'all were covering, and I feel like I'm actually, like,
if I'm honest, I'm like not a huge fan of
a lot of emo and or like a lot of
like bigger pop punk from like the early aughts or
(10:12):
something that I did. I feel like a lot of
my friends are, like, you know, were formative records for them.
I'm just kind of like I don't know. And I
feel like Tiagan and Sarah were this weird crossover to
me that you know, they were two women playing acoustic
guitars and somehow they were also an emo band. And
(10:33):
and I really love this record I read, so it's
like looking at that time frame, I legit love this
record and I feel like this this was like the
emo punk record of that time for me.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Awesome. We're going to get into a lot of the
details of the con as well as some of our
favorite Tea and Sarah songs not on the con after this,
(11:08):
all right, so quick background twin sisters from Calgary who
began playing guitar and writing at the age of fifteen.
They were originally called Plunk. They won a competition for
the first professional demo and then became Sarah and Tigan.
They got to open for Hayden in Calgary, which would
have been a show. Then they changed their name to
Tiagan and Sarah and released Underfeet Like Ours independently. They
(11:32):
were then signed by Neil Young's Vapor Records, which is
very cool. They released The Business of Art and If
It Was You in two thousand and four. They had
their bigger local and international breakthrough with So Jealous, which
was released on Vapor and Sanctuary. They kind of got
some extra buzz because the white stripes covered Walking with
a Ghost, So that's maybe the most notable from that era.
(11:55):
But their standout to me and to Lauren, I was
glad we agreed on This is you Wouldn't Like Me? Lauren?
Was that your introduction to tikin this error? Had you
kind of been a fan of theirs prior to on
that track and the So Jealous album.
Speaker 7 (12:09):
That was That was definitely my introduction to them. I
feel like that was the track that was available on napster.
I remember it being on my computer in college and
like that the MP three and it wasn't it wasn't
even the whole record. I think I have like three
tat in Sarah songs back then or something. But take
(12:29):
Yeah you Wouldn't Like Me was was the one.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
This for anyone who doesn't know or just wants to
go back and listen to it, This is you Wouldn't
Like Me?
Speaker 3 (12:38):
In saddle Me.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
Your Causing hid right a.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
Little rock song, Well push it down, let it.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Run me write in.
Speaker 10 (12:53):
I feel like I would like me? And don't you
worry there's still side.
Speaker 5 (13:11):
Don't you worry?
Speaker 10 (13:14):
The suit side, nothing to live win, no sleep.
Speaker 11 (13:22):
And alone as you still win those.
Speaker 5 (13:28):
Outside and the slay will bring you.
Speaker 6 (13:35):
The life.
Speaker 5 (13:36):
I won't let me find me?
Speaker 4 (13:44):
You like me if you met me?
Speaker 12 (13:48):
Don't you worry?
Speaker 11 (13:51):
There's still side, don't you worry. There's still.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Another band I really like called The Beths has a
song called you Wouldn't Like Me, And it's not a
cover of that song, but I feel like it's meant
as kind of a spiritual hat tip to that song.
Hopefully I'll get to ask them about it one day. Jake,
you you hadn't come to Tea and sarahuntil the Con, right,
so you wouldn't the earlier stuff missed you a little
bit because you were still You're so young, Jake, I am.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
I know.
Speaker 9 (14:59):
I'm such a baby at thirty two years old.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Well, look, it matters a lot because for a lot
of the albums we do, you get to say I
was in high school, and I have to say I
was in college.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
That's true.
Speaker 9 (15:11):
I guess it would have been the Con would have
been the most recent of theirs that came out. I
don't remember really the order of when I got into it.
But yeah, I came into them around I guess around
two thousand and seven as well, because that's when that
Against the record came out and then went back a
little bit. But the CON is definitely the one that
was like, Okay, this is like the teaket in Sarah
(15:33):
record of the moment, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Yes, and it's it's the most Columbia house party of
the albums because coming off of So Jealous, they stayed
with Neil Young's Vaper in Canada, but they moved from
Sanctuary to Sire in the US and for this album
they ratcheted up the production side. They called on Columbia
house party Hall of fameer Chris Walla to produce this one.
(15:55):
They also had performances on the album from members of
Death Cab, Weezer, Afi, and a few other places. Despite that,
the video documentary from this time shows that it was
still a pretty DIY album. They still had a lot
of control over it, but the creative process was pretty stressful.
The sisters have talked about this straining their relationship a
(16:15):
little bit, but eventually they got there. July twenty fourth,
two thousand and seven, the CON was released. You know,
this is it's certainly a dark turn and a dark album.
As they were going through the writing process, Teagan was
going through the end of a long term relationship, Sarah
was separated from her American girlfriend who couldn't get a
(16:36):
working visa. Their grandmother had just passed, So, as Tegan
told Metro Weekly, it's very dark and also very much
about reflecting on getting older, long term relationships and the
end of things. And what I find, you know, immediately
interesting about the album is, and I guess tigan Issara's
process in general, is that there is a consistent kind
(16:59):
of of dark tone to this and while the sound
of the songs goes like changes a little bit, obviously,
I do feel like that theme is pretty consistent, even
though Tan and Sarah we're going through different things. They
each wrote seven songs on this album, and it's not
an A side B side, so the fact that it
stitches together kind of really cohesively as a testament to
(17:22):
I mean, I guess, just how well they work together.
So the second thing that stands out to me on
this album is that it's a It very much feels
like a breakup album, and they open the song with
an album I guess about marriage. This is I was married.
Speaker 10 (17:43):
I guess the startling to control against.
Speaker 6 (18:02):
The god of fun bags joke, another bag, that joke,
another mad.
Speaker 10 (18:17):
Now we look coment, tell me, tell me Julie has
a book is breaking Bags? That seems nobody talked. This
seems a baby's head of pas.
Speaker 5 (18:34):
I look into the.
Speaker 10 (18:38):
Two bob evil that just does not pass.
Speaker 5 (18:43):
I don't see.
Speaker 6 (18:44):
What they say.
Speaker 5 (18:46):
Don't try to control the good of.
Speaker 6 (18:52):
Man's to another bag place to enough.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Tune, Jake. It occurs to me now that I missed
with the opening lyric intro. I should have had you
do the the singback part.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
You should have That is a missed opportunity.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Right, unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
I'll never forgive you.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Sorry, buddy, Lauren. I know the the kind of theme
of the album was something that you wanted to talk about.
In addition to this being a breakup album. What do
you think of the kind of starting this off given
where the album goes from here?
Speaker 7 (19:37):
So yeah, I mean, it's like the whole record sounds
like a breakup record, like even if it's even if
it's not directly like sounding like a breakup song specifically,
you know, everything is yeah about the end of things
or missing someone or being in pain and sounding like
(19:57):
you're in pain. And but then the whole record starts
with this song that's like a dream about getting married.
It's not actually about getting married, like it's it sounds
like a like an aspirantal daydream kind of thing that
that I that I think. I mean, I went back
(20:18):
and read the lyrics recently and it occurred to me.
I was like, oh, I think this is about you know,
telling homophobes to fuck off, or like, you know, not
not understanding like why it was so terrible that that
they would want to get married. But it's not a
breakup song. It's not a it doesn't sound like an
(20:40):
especially sad song. But then the rest of the record
is just like, oh, this is a breakup record, and
and and then also that it ends with with call
It Off, which is probably the least angsty song on
the record. It's clearly very like nostalgically sad, but but
(21:05):
it's not like wishing that they were going to get
back together, just like, well, this is this is it? Okay,
this is sad all right, kind.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
Of shrugged shoulders lyric of maybe you would have been
something I'd be good at it, maybe, but I wanted
to ask a little bit more in your rereading of
the lyrics and the as you said, telling homophobes to
fuck off, how important or meaningful was it if it
was at all Fatigue and Sarah to you know, from
the outset in their career be open about being queer
(21:39):
and having that be a part of their songwriting. Was
that meaningful for you as you found them and became
a fan.
Speaker 7 (21:47):
I mean maybe, I feel like I was already listening
to a lot of music by openly queer people, not
necessarily in the Indian punk world. But it wasn't like
a huge novelty to me that they were openly gay.
But but it was cool, you know. I was certainly like, oh,
(22:08):
that's rad. They can do that, Like maybe I can
do that and I and I do remember, I don't
I don't think i've seen them since this, but I
think they were on tour for the con and I
saw them at Terminal five in New York, which is
gigantic Sweat, and I just remember it was just like,
(22:29):
you know, ninety percent queer women, and it was great.
I loved it, you know, It's like I love that.
But yeah, I don't know. I mean, I I want
to say, because I really do believe that if you
you know, it's good to be able to see yourself
on stage, and that's something that's really important to me.
(22:50):
I think it would have been odd if they weren't,
because you know, there a lot of their music was
about relationships. But yeah, I just I sometimes wonder if
certain acts get pitch and hold too much. Yeah, right,
And I'm I'm sure that's something that they have thought
about a lot. But I certainly appreciated it. You know,
they're great, so or they are great.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
In reading their response to kind of how the CON
was received, it sounds like going back to it that
more than that there was they had to sort through
a bunch of commentary that didn't want to take female
songwriters seriously or like the same level of seriousness as
their male cameraters. Like they were twenty seven at the
time that they wrote the CON and some of the
(23:36):
including the Pitchfork review, obviously just like you would think
reading it that they were like teenagers. The way that
people just seemed shocked that twenty seven year old women
could write good music, It's yeah, that seemed to be
more their issue than you know, pitchingholing based on being queer. Yeah,
so this is a pretty good breakup album and it
(24:00):
gets there pretty quickly after I was married. Knife Going
In is a personal favorite of mine and kind of
I think one of the best examples of their songwriting
and their their vocal talent. But really you get to
this kind of meaty, emotional middle when you go back
in your head. Hop a Plane and Soil Soil Back
in your Head probably the most radio ready of the
(24:24):
songs here, and it was not surprisingly then their first
single to chart. It charted on the Canadian rock charts.
It's also, you know, it's just a very good track,
so it's not that surprising that it was a breakthrough
track for them. This is back in your Head.
Speaker 4 (24:46):
A lot of books, founding.
Speaker 12 (24:55):
Book, SA don't need we get so comfortable.
Speaker 4 (25:05):
Beem.
Speaker 5 (25:07):
I was a stretcher, left boat.
Speaker 11 (25:12):
I just walk back, I just fall back, thaksful one Astray,
(25:35):
then again, then I get, Then I get say.
Speaker 6 (25:45):
Then I can go roun.
Speaker 1 (26:27):
Boy. That that opening beat there misleads you to where
that song's going. Jake, I'll ask you first, just that
that kind of theme of like just the way they
say it wanting back in someone's head, and that that
part of the breakup process of like, I guess hoping
that they're still thinking of you. Is that relatable for
you at all, Jake, I know you're you're happily a
(26:48):
wife guy now, but yeah.
Speaker 9 (26:51):
Yeah, of course. And I think one of the great
things about their songwriting that I think has sort of
continued through all the various, let's call it phases of
their sound is that I think they're very good at
sort of digging into that I don't want to say simplistic,
(27:13):
because I think that sounds sort of dismissive, and I
don't mean it that way, but I think they're very
good at like honing in on these very universal, simple
feelings that everyone has in these sort of situations and
then turning them into really good pop songs. And I
feel like the middle of this record, especially, really like
(27:37):
really drills in on that, especially this song and the
one next.
Speaker 1 (27:41):
Yeah, the next one being hop a Plane, which we're
going to talk about in just the second. Lauren, I
know that back in Your Head was one of the
ones that you wanted to discuss as well. Why is
this song a big one for you?
Speaker 7 (27:52):
I mean it is definitely a hit of the record,
and yeah, I feel like this was enough one that like,
if you didn't I mean obviously if it charted, like
if you didn't really know much about Tag and Sarah before,
you probably knew this song.
Speaker 3 (28:09):
I think.
Speaker 7 (28:10):
Yeah, I think it's just a really cute pop song,
especially when a lot of the rest of the record
is pretty dark or kind of angular. They have a
lot of really interesting percussion and rhythm stuff happening in
a lot of the other songs, and then this song
just opens with this really cute piano line, and yeah,
I don't know, I really I just really like it.
(28:31):
It's just one of my favorites.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
Yeah, it's also I think it's the best. Being a
big fan of Love You to Death, it's going back
to this one. It's like, oh yeah, there was a
little bit of that in there already, that maybe they
could do the synthpop thing in in a fun and
creative way in terms. So one of the things I
mentioned it earlier that you know, seven of these songs
(28:53):
are written by Tiegan and seven of them are written
by Sarah. I'm curious if it's one of those things that,
like you maybe like retcon that you noticed or have
a preference, Lauren, when you're going through them, can you
like tell a Teagan song from a Sarah song or
is it just kind of twelve fourteen Teagan and Sarah songs?
Speaker 7 (29:14):
I don't think I can tell. I mean I can tell.
I feel like you can tell the difference between their voices. Yes,
but I don't because they harmonized so much, like so much.
I don't. I don't think of their songs as like
a Teagan song versus a Sarah song, like you might
in other bands that have two lead singers. Yeah, No,
(29:36):
I don't. It's weird that I don't.
Speaker 6 (29:40):
No, no, no.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
I only ask because when we were kind of pre
talking about what songs we might want to talk about,
you skewed heavier towards Tigan songs. So I was just
I was curious if that was something that you picked
up on or were aware of, or it just kind
of happened randomly like that, nineteen being one of them.
I know that's a that's a favorite of yours. I
(30:02):
love the felt you in my legs before I met you,
feel you in my heart, but I don't even know you.
Speaker 6 (30:07):
What is I mean?
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Nineteen is one of your favorites. I guess we could
just talk about it as a track on its own.
Speaker 7 (30:14):
Yeah, nineteen is heartbreaking but so beautiful and relatable, like
I think, especially knowing that they wrote this record when
they were in their like mid twenties, like reflecting on
who you were as a nineteen year old, like falling
(30:36):
for someone you basically don't really know that well, but
you're just like all about them very quickly and channeling
that emotion still, you know, like still channeling that like
hurt and longing for someone in this gigantic crush is
(31:00):
pretty interesting or it's just a very compelling songs. It's
just a beautiful song for sure.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
And that's the thing about those romances at nineteen is
the quicker and more dramatically you fall like that, uh,
the bigger the heartbreak coming out of it, right is,
oh yeah, you feel harder on both ends of things.
Shortly before, I mentioned kind of that emotional apex in
the middle of the album with Hop a Plane and
Soil Soil. This is Hop a Plane.
Speaker 6 (31:27):
I took the.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
Train back back to where I came from, chok It
all along its.
Speaker 8 (31:33):
Imagine my heart, sir, please help me memories all one
to hear you lu line you love line.
Speaker 5 (31:54):
From a plane again, stage John stage.
Speaker 2 (32:19):
Stage so.
Speaker 1 (32:44):
Again. Just a just a killer tune, but Lauren another
favorite of yours.
Speaker 7 (32:48):
Oh yeah, definitely. I feel like this has ended up
on a million playlists and really just for myself, no mixtapes.
This is not a mixtape song. This song actually made me.
Rereading the lyrics made me realize how much like and
I say this with love, I have no idea what
(33:10):
some of their songs are about, what a lot of
their songs are about, Like if you if you read
the lyrics, I feel like a lot of them are
so personal, Like maybe like the verses will be like
so personal and nuanced. I'm like, what are you talking
about them? But it's like I don't need to know
because the songwriting is so good that you just like
(33:32):
get that emotion from it, Like all I need to
hear is that you're not mine, Like that's antithetical to
what you think that song sounds like. You know, like
if that song sounds like you're trying to get somebody
back and like they're far away and you want them
to come visit you, but it sounds like that song
(33:55):
is about please tell me we're not together anymore. You're
not mine and I can get over.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
You, right. And that's where you know that I took
the train back to where I came from. I took
it all alone. As opening lyric, it's like, you know,
it's it's tough. It sounds like they're asking for that
rather than describing what happened. It's just, you know, release
me from this kind of thing. But yeah, it's it's funny.
Even the Genius Annotations says it's about a confusing relationship.
(34:25):
And I think that they have that genius annotation there
like that because even the people who are hardcore enough
to do Genius annotations don't really know what's uh, what's
going on in that one.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
I love Genius annotations so much.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
Early twenties Jake would have been like on the leaderboard
for Genius Annotations.
Speaker 9 (34:44):
I don't know, I don't know, Like a lot of
Genius annotations there is like it's a song that's very
clearly about some like this is a song about a breakup,
and it's like yeah, yeah, or like genius, the singer
is saying, the singer is saying they're sad, and the
line and the lyric is all was like, I'm so sad.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
It's like, yes, you nailed it, genius, thank.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
You, Yeah, thanks Jake. But I do I still do
feel like you would have been on there, but you
would have been the annotator down voting and being like,
well actually it's ah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
You're making me sound very great and normal. I know,
old you old Yeah.
Speaker 9 (35:22):
Yeah. Maybe I don't know. I feel like I feel
like old me would have been like too pretentious and
shitty for genius. Maybe I would have I would have
found like the offshoot that no one heard.
Speaker 1 (35:31):
Of, and like this is what there really is? Right,
So I guess kind of to get back to the
close of the album, obviously, call it Off is just
a killer, killer album closer. We talked about it a
little earlier on and played it off the top that
too is a Teagan song and not to over focus
on hers, but in Sarah's own estimation, as she told
(35:53):
NPR in kind of reflecting on this being one of,
you know, a pretty big accomplishment for them, she said,
there's a sophistication to it that I didn't realize existed
when I was twenty seven. There's no payoff to my songs.
They're all tension. It's uncomfortable, and I wonder if that's
where you know the pairing here really works because teagan
(36:14):
songs have a little bit more of that either payoff
or a little bit of the optimism left. One thing
I wanted to ask both of you about, since I
know you're both big fans of Against Me or Lauren.
In your case, you've worked with Laura Jane before. Teagan
and Sarah have said that this album is heavily influenced
by Against Me as the eternal Cowboy. Lauren, I guess
(36:35):
you've worked with Laura Jane and being a fan of both,
do you feel that in here?
Speaker 7 (36:40):
Do you hear that in the con I'm sitting her
being like, I don't hear that, or I guess, but
that's a good thing, because I think if they wrote
a record that I was like, they've been listening to
a lot Against Me, like that wouldn't be good, Like
I you know, but I mean, I think you can
definitely hear them getting to be like a louder punk band,
(37:04):
if that makes sense, Like even with hop a Plane
and their guitars are just totally fuzzed out on that
and they have some really good choruses, So I understan, like,
I can see how that would be the case. I
don't think it's like an obvious, oh this is there
against me, uh influenced record. But but that's cool that,
(37:30):
you know, even even kind of before Teagan sang on
that record that they were like fans of each other
and stuff.
Speaker 1 (37:38):
Mm hmm, yeah, that's cool. How I know this is
kind of like a separate podcast of its own, but
how did you enjoy working with Laura Jane? I'd imagine
that would have been pretty cool.
Speaker 7 (37:48):
Oh yeah, it was great. It was great. I haven't, like,
on the two records we've done since then, I haven't
had a producer who's also a songwriter or like an
artist in their own right. And I shouldn't say that,
but like, no one, no one was working with me
on the songs outside of the band, like specifically as
(38:12):
a as a songwriter as in the same way I
guess that Laura was. And and I think that that
was a really interesting experience. Interesting makes it sound like
it's bad, really interesting. No, it was great. It was
It was really great. It was like I have really
nothing but fun memories of that. And and you know,
(38:34):
Laura's Laura's great and has a has a really amazing ear,
and she would just hear things. I was like, what
do you talk like, just can really pick up on
things and just really helped a lot. It was super collaborative.
We had a lot of fun. So yeah, that it
was just a dream. It was really nice.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
That sounds amazing. Jake, you're you're a big Against Me fan.
Do you hear that going back to the con at all?
Or is it the same kind of thing where like, yeah,
they got a little punkier and a little fuzzier, but
that's about it.
Speaker 9 (39:03):
Yeah, Uh, not really either other than the fact they're
a band that also started sort of on the more
acoustic side of things and then brought that into a
more rocky, punky sound or whatever. But I do sort
of hear It's not like a direct and like if
(39:24):
when I heard this album in two thousand and seven,
after hearing Tigan on the Against Me song, I wasn't like, oh,
I see now, but I it's sort of to me
and like maybe this is totally off base, but to
me they sort of I can feel I sort of
understand what they mean, Like I can see how they
(39:46):
might to phrase this. I can see if they were
listening to a lot of that record while making this record.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
I kind of get it.
Speaker 1 (39:52):
Okay, Yeah, that makes sense. We're gonna talk about how
the Con was received, and we're gonna pick some of
our favorite songs off.
Speaker 2 (39:58):
Of it after this.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Okay. So the Con did well. It hit number four
in Canada and number thirty four in the US. It
eventually became their second of four gold albums, got long
listed for the Polaris Prize here, and got a Juno nomination.
It's been pretty well received critically, as eighty on Metacritic
and at ninety two on Absolute Punk. The Observers Sarah
Boden gave it a five out a five, writing when
(40:36):
your heart feels like a stone in your breast, the
Con will prove a perfect, sweetly addictive companion, which is nice.
But there was also the usual bullshit, as we kind
of talked about earlier. The Pitchfork review was dumb. As
Sarah told NPR, I've gone back and read the press.
It's unreal, so shocking. Men have written their best things
in their teen years or their twenties. Prolific artists like
(40:59):
Kurt Cobain or Hendrix. We were not babies. We were
twenty seven years old. We had lived a lot of life.
Because we were women, it was so hard to take
what we were doing seriously. We got more popular, but
we didn't get the respect. Teagan felt differently, in the
same interview to NPR, said, the con was when I
felt so validated. Sarah and I were in different places.
(41:20):
It was such a transcendent moment in my life. We
made it, we turned that corner. There were thousands of
people singing along, so a little bit of contrast there
between how each of them dealt with the you know,
success versus some of what was being written. Laura, and
I know that you're kind of fascinated by, like you
said earlier, just how big they got in the indie
scene as a rock band with you know, dual lead
(41:43):
singers and acoustic guitars and kind of this emo sound.
I guess, can you offer any reflection at all on
you know, what Tegan and Sarah are saying there about
you know, this kind of success versus respect and obviously
you know, I mean we kind of eye roll earlier
at of course, of course, some of the music critics
(42:04):
weren't willing to give them full credit for the songwriting,
or act surprised at it because they were women. I guess,
just your kind of wrap up thoughts on the con
and how it might have been received at the time.
Speaker 7 (42:15):
It makes a lot of sense to me that they
felt like it was a transcendent moment for them, not
just in how it was received, but like how you know,
how the record turned out, and it feels like a
big achievement for a band to put together a record
like this, and yeah, and so like to not get
the respect critically, but you feel like your peers are
(42:37):
getting for similar or lesser works. I shouldn't say lesser,
but just like you know, things that maybe aren't as
ambitious is awful and disappointing, but also at the same
time not unexpected, Like I'm sure they could see that coming,
but I mean I think at the time at the time,
(42:59):
I like just graduated college, like not too long before
this record came out, and yeah, I feel it was
just it was huge, like I think they I feel
like they played Webster Hall and I saw like that
they were in a tour bus and I was just
like fuck, yeah, you know, like like they played some
big venue and I knew that it was their bus.
(43:20):
I was like, that rules, because yeah, it's like you know,
in my head at that point, I just considered them
a punk band with acoustic guitars. I was like, what
like that, didn't you know I didn't know people who
did that or like who who got as big as
they were, So yeah.
Speaker 2 (43:38):
I don't know.
Speaker 7 (43:38):
I just think it's a it's a really significant record
for them. But also like when I listened to it,
like at the age I was at when it came out,
I feel like it was a it was a really
big deal.
Speaker 1 (43:51):
Yeah, and obviously you know big here in Canada to
the Polaris and you know, nooms and all that. They
followed up with Sainthood, which was nearly a successful and
then heart Throb, which is actually their highest charting album
today I hit number two in Canada, and then as
I noted off the top, I really enjoyed their more
synthpop turn with Love You to Death in twenty sixteen,
(44:13):
including this one of my favorite Ta gun At Sarah songs,
dying to Up.
Speaker 5 (44:23):
Put a little love You into my Heart took a
chancel it apart.
Speaker 2 (44:33):
A little little lad.
Speaker 4 (44:34):
Into the dark my heart, see your face mix a
heart of you on your voice can manage.
Speaker 5 (44:47):
I don't tell me which you are now.
Speaker 11 (44:49):
Where you live?
Speaker 8 (44:51):
Tell me or you were in love, how you've been?
Speaker 6 (44:53):
I'm done to.
Speaker 4 (44:55):
Is the one you ended up with Everything you wanted, Wait,
everything you.
Speaker 12 (45:03):
Did Friend, Uns can Be Back on the James episode
First Can.
Speaker 11 (45:21):
Be Back.
Speaker 6 (45:26):
Is the one.
Speaker 4 (45:27):
Wag You All is the only ending with begin you
want to.
Speaker 6 (45:41):
Dun.
Speaker 1 (45:43):
Their most recent album is a really interesting one. In
addition to their memoir High School, they released the album
Hey I'm Just Like You, which is them revisiting uh
songs that they wrote in their teen years with kind
of their their current sound and their current perspective. There
was also a ten year anniversary of the con. They
released the con X with covers from other artists like
(46:05):
City and Color, Hailey Williams, Grimes Churches. The Church's cover
of call It Off is amazing, but I'm a big
Churches fan anyway. They've also done, you know, a lot
of other collaboration work, as we mentioned, TV, video games,
social and political activism. In kind of wrapping up where
they're at right now. Around the anniversary of the con,
(46:28):
Sarah told Billboard, it just feels like that community has
supported us so much, and it's also I don't know,
it's the only thing that keeps me from turning into
a nihilist and thinking an asteroid should hit Earth is
to give back to people who are constantly giving. So that's,
in my eyes, a pretty good perspective to take to
fight off the nihilism. As she says Lauren, we're now
(46:50):
at the part of the podcast where we normally kind
of pick a couple favorites off the album, and eventually
we're going to pick one of these songs to be
on our Columbia house party mixtape or playlist or whatever
you want to call it. So I guess first I'm
gonna kick it to Jake first, because Jake was a
little fresher to the album. Did you going back to
a Jake, any songs stand out as your favorites off
(47:12):
the con Yeah.
Speaker 9 (47:13):
I think hop a Plane is by far my favorite
on the album. I think it's just such a it's
such a great sort of amalgamation and everything I like
about this sort of genre. I guess to simplify it
nown to its essence, like it's just that mix of
sort of the punkier thoughtful, sort of acoustic rooted songs.
(47:35):
I know it's more of an electric tune, but you
know what I mean. But yeah, I think like back
in Your Head and hop a Plane Back to Back.
I definitely think are.
Speaker 2 (47:42):
A great like.
Speaker 9 (47:43):
I love when there's sort of center pieces of albums,
and I think those two are great center pieces. I
also really like like O like h which also is
a great cover by smir who Rules. But yeah, I
think those three are probably my would be my tops.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Lauren, what about you? What's I know, we talked about
it a little bit over email beforehand, but what are
your what are your favorite songs on the.
Speaker 7 (48:05):
Con Yeah, I mean I I would agree with the
Hop a Plane pick. That's definitely one of my favorites,
as is Back in your Head.
Speaker 1 (48:13):
I feel it.
Speaker 7 (48:13):
Maybe it's like I'm trying to pick like the like
the not already a hit one or something but snob
in me, but yeah nineteen and call it Off, Yeah,
call it off. I feel like is the one that
I I forget about and then I hear it again
like a goldfish. I'm like, this is amazing. But yeah,
those those are my favorites.
Speaker 1 (48:35):
Okay, I guess you know, normally we don't have like
a standard choice for the mixtape. It can be our favorite,
it can be the one that we think best kind
of encapsulates the album or our conversation.
Speaker 3 (48:47):
You know.
Speaker 1 (48:47):
I know that you and Jake both have back in
your head at number one, So that's a possible way
we could go here. Call it off thematically is maybe
a way we could go, Lauren, you talked about hop
a Plane being on a lot of playlists. Where do
you where do you want to go with this?
Speaker 6 (49:02):
What?
Speaker 1 (49:02):
What do you think we should throw on the mixtape?
Speaker 7 (49:05):
I would go with hop a Plane.
Speaker 1 (49:07):
That's all right, notist, there's plenty of there's plenty of
bumming out on this playlist. We'll be all right. But yeah,
hoppap Plane is a good choice. And look, you said
it was a heavy playlist in mixtape song or not
mixtapes on but a heavy playlist song for you, so
(49:28):
it makes sense. It's obviously a good, fun, versatile playlist piece,
so it fits perfectly. I guess my My only other
question for you, Lauren was do you have a favorite
Teagan and Sarah album that's not the con like, did
one of the other eight stand out to you? As
you know, one of the top ones for you the
way Love You to Death is for me?
Speaker 7 (49:49):
Oh, I mean it would it would be between so
Jealous and Sainhood. Honestly, I do really like their their
newer music, but I think it's it's one of those
cases of like the place in your life where you
are when you listen to certain records. But yeah, one
of one of those two. I really like hell off
(50:10):
of Sanhood that was also on a on a ton
of playlists.
Speaker 1 (50:14):
But uh yeah, nice, Okay, well with the HPAP plane
is locked onto the mix of me as long as
you don't have an objection, Jay.
Speaker 2 (50:23):
Oh absolutely not.
Speaker 1 (50:25):
Good good Jay. Thank you, Lauren. We wanted to thank
you for coming on. This was a lot of fun.
I really appreciate you taking the time.
Speaker 7 (50:32):
Yeah, thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
And as a reminder for everyone, you can follow Lauren's
work with Warriors at Warriors Music on bandcamp in any
of your socials. Check out her art on Instagram at
Lauren underscore nisio, and then check out her newsletter I
Get It Together on substack get it Together dot substack
dot com. Lauren, Thank you so much. Please try the
(51:34):
fish
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