Daughters

"Everyone thinks we’re from Canada because our fucking [debut] album is called Canada Songs,” laughs Daughters vocalist Alexis Marshall. "I think Canada’s great; we love playing up there. You’ve got such a great government system, everything’s run well, people are kind and it’s clean. Everyone is rollerblading, which is hysterical. Here, everyone’s rude, it’s dirty and everyone’s a prick, and it’s the same wherever you go.” But, what was the reason for their debut’s homage to all things Canadiana? "It wasn’t [a political statement]. Our old guitarist Jeremy was from Canada and we were talking about what we were going to call the record and he said, ‘can we call it Canada Songs?’ and I said ‘yeah, sure, why not?’ So we did it and that was pretty much it; we never really thought about it.”

In 2003, out of the ashes of the criminally unknown As the Sun Sets, Providence, Rhode Island’s Daughters turned the underground on its head. Their innovative combination of blast beats, bizzaro, avant guitar noise and noodling, destructive breaks and frenzied screams won over jaded critics, art school kids and scenesters alike in barely 11 minutes, influencing a number of then-emerging bands to reach beyond clichéd breakdowns, and even led to an invitation to join the renowned Hydra Head roster.

Their new record is dubbed Hell Songs and its title isn’t a comment on America’s current decline; according to Alexis, it’s strictly an aesthetic choice. "I like the way the word [hell] looks when it’s written down. And everyone thought it was a good idea.” Hell Songs refines Daughters’ penchant for artistic, spastic experimenting, frantic tempos and is a "double album,” clocking in at a whopping 23 minutes. But the biggest change isn’t musically but vocally — Alexis’s shattered screams have been replaced with a drawl that evokes Jesus Lizard’s David Yow, and actually complements Daughters’ music. It’s had some fans crying foul. Alexis explains, "It’s not that we didn’t know people were going to say, ‘what the fuck is this?’ But I told everyone I’m not screaming on this record; I don’t want to do it anymore. And everyone was excited; they wanted to know what it was going to sound like.” Their enthusiasm hasn’t been matched by fans; the most common message on the band’s Myspace page seems to be "What the fuck happened to the vocals?”

"I guess I was hoping people would feel the same, like ‘I can’t wait to hear this to see how they pull this off.’ As it turns out, most people are just like, ‘What is this bullshit? This isn’t grindcore.’ We were never a grindcore band!” Alexis exclaims. "It’s intimidating [to be in this band]. These guys can play. I don’t want to be like, ‘You guys be impressive and I’ll just scream.’ We’re not a band like that. Our music is not like that, so why should the singing be like other bands?”