Toronto's Nadja are a prolific pair, having released, well, an uncountable number of albums in their six years on god knows how many labels, including Alien 8, Profound Lore, Robotic Empire and Crucial Blast. On April 28, Aidan Baker and Leah Buckareff will take a step towards arguably their most accessible release to date, with a straight-up album of covers they've titled When I See the Sun Always Shines On TV.
Released by the End Records, the eight-track album finds the duo using their uncompromising mix of doom, ambient and black metal to interpret some of their favourites by artists such as My Bloody Valentine, Codeine, Swans, Elliott Smith and the Kids in the Hall. Currently spending time in Berlin, Baker says that the covers album was based on a few different ideas. Amusingly, he writes, "With our new album we are: Finally settling the long-running debate whether we're a metal band or an ambient band... Or; exploring the roots of our sound and influences... Or; just trying to have a bit of fun in what can be an decidedly humourless genre... Or; all of the above."
Last summer, Baker told Exclaim! about the influence of bands like My Bloody Valentine and Swans on Nadja in an interview for an article titled "Sound of Confusion." "With MBV, there was a certain sense of immersion to their music, which we similarly strive for," he said. "A sort of sonic obliteration, if you will, but done prettily. The main difference may be the influence of artists like Swans or Godflesh, who similarly strived for sonic obliteration, but did it in a darker and heavier way - with Nadja we attempt to combine the darkness of industrial metal with the pretty swirliness of shoegazing."
As anyone familiar with the band would expect, Nadja also have more in store for the rest of 2009. Writes Baker, "We're planning to come back to Canada in the fall to coincide with a twelve-inch release that Blocks Recording Club is doing for us. We'll probably do a few shows around then as well in order to promote the release."
Be sure to check out tomorrow's (March 12) edition of Click Hear, where Exclaim! will have the exclusive premiere of Nadja's ten-minute cover of Slayer's classic "Dead Skin Mask."
When I See the Sun Always Shines On TV tracklisting:
1. "Only Shallow" (My Bloody Valentine)
2. "Pea" (Codeine)
3. "No Cure For the Lonely" (Swans)
4. "Dead Skin Mask" (Slayer)
5. "The Sun Always Shines On TV" (A-ha)
6. "Needle in the Hay" (Elliott Smith)
7. "Long Dark Twenties" (Kids in the Hall)
8. "Faith" (The Cure)
Nadja "Only Shallow" (My Bloody Valentine cover)
Released by the End Records, the eight-track album finds the duo using their uncompromising mix of doom, ambient and black metal to interpret some of their favourites by artists such as My Bloody Valentine, Codeine, Swans, Elliott Smith and the Kids in the Hall. Currently spending time in Berlin, Baker says that the covers album was based on a few different ideas. Amusingly, he writes, "With our new album we are: Finally settling the long-running debate whether we're a metal band or an ambient band... Or; exploring the roots of our sound and influences... Or; just trying to have a bit of fun in what can be an decidedly humourless genre... Or; all of the above."
Last summer, Baker told Exclaim! about the influence of bands like My Bloody Valentine and Swans on Nadja in an interview for an article titled "Sound of Confusion." "With MBV, there was a certain sense of immersion to their music, which we similarly strive for," he said. "A sort of sonic obliteration, if you will, but done prettily. The main difference may be the influence of artists like Swans or Godflesh, who similarly strived for sonic obliteration, but did it in a darker and heavier way - with Nadja we attempt to combine the darkness of industrial metal with the pretty swirliness of shoegazing."
As anyone familiar with the band would expect, Nadja also have more in store for the rest of 2009. Writes Baker, "We're planning to come back to Canada in the fall to coincide with a twelve-inch release that Blocks Recording Club is doing for us. We'll probably do a few shows around then as well in order to promote the release."
Be sure to check out tomorrow's (March 12) edition of Click Hear, where Exclaim! will have the exclusive premiere of Nadja's ten-minute cover of Slayer's classic "Dead Skin Mask."
When I See the Sun Always Shines On TV tracklisting:
1. "Only Shallow" (My Bloody Valentine)
2. "Pea" (Codeine)
3. "No Cure For the Lonely" (Swans)
4. "Dead Skin Mask" (Slayer)
5. "The Sun Always Shines On TV" (A-ha)
6. "Needle in the Hay" (Elliott Smith)
7. "Long Dark Twenties" (Kids in the Hall)
8. "Faith" (The Cure)
Nadja "Only Shallow" (My Bloody Valentine cover)
