My first impression of Cursed Arrows wasn’t that they were a great band — in fact, I don’t think they were even a band when I first encountered them — my first impression was that they were an extremely nice couple being treated badly.
At the time, I was working at a video store that no longer exists, and they came in with a coupon. The manager of the store snottily refused to take the coupon, and I stood there embarrassed. I made sure to apologize to them the next time they came in, and gave them a free rental on my account. I also decided that I didn’t want to work at that store any longer, and applied to The Beat Goes On.
My impression of them now has changed. I still think they are an extremely nice couple (now married), but around two years after that video-store incident, they formed a band, and began writing some of the grittiest and prettiest bare-bones guitar rock I’ve heard in a long time.
Since forming in 2006, Cursed Arrows (a.k.a. Ry N and Jack E Stanley) have released three excellent full length records, Knives Are Falling From The Sky (2007), Telepathic High Five (2009) and The Madness of Crowds (2011) They’re a band who have sacrificed for their art, picking up and moving from Waterloo, Ontario to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in large part to be part of a more vibrant music community. If you want to know what they sound like you should really just listen to their music. But, if descriptions are your thing … think Sonic Youth by way of Dinosaur Jr. by way of the White Stripes (but not because of the gender make-up/instrumentation of the band, more by way of their approach, ethic and honest-to-goodness rootsiness.) Below is a little interview that should help you get to know them, their music and the music they love, which you should love too.
What was the first record/tape/CD you bought & paid for yourself?
Ry N: The first tape that I paid for myself was in 1992, and it was The Barenaked Ladies’ album Gordon. My first CD was later that year: Nirvana – Nevermind.
Jack E: I bought a Turtles ‘Hits’ compilation with birthday money when I was 10 or so. My favourite songs on it were “It Ain’t Me Babe,” “Eve Of Destruction,” and of course “Happy Together.”
What was the last record/tape/CD you bought & paid for yourself?
Jack E: The Kills – Blood Pressures (at the Kills show in Toronto; had it signed by Alison)
Ry N: Radiohead – The King of Limbs newspaper album (Jack E’s birthday present)
Do you have a good record store anecdote or story?
Jack E: Every record store day has been a little bit special, but we especially loved this past year since we were invited to play an acoustic set in a nifty independent record store in Halifax.
What’s your idea of the perfect record store?
Ry N: The way things are these days, the perfect record store is an independent record store whose doors are still open.
Jack E: Yes, any stand-alone store run by a true music collector/enthusiast is absolutely perfect.
Are you a completist? If so, what band/artist must you absolutely own everything by?
Ry N: I became obsessed with Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth at age 13 (when I bought The Year Punk Broke on VHS on a family trip to Florida), so I have almost everything those bands have done. Also, pretty much every Tom Waits record.
Jack E: I was amazed by those collections when we moved in together. I flipped through them not knowing where to start…
What’s the crown jewel of your music collection?
Ry N: As a teenager it was having all of those Dinosaur Jr. records, and a bunch of bootlegs of their live shows on tape. But now it’s probably all of the Third Man Records vault records we’ve acquired. There’s something great about knowing that you have a limited-edition release.
Jack E: Too many jewels. Hard Rain, In The Court Of The Crimson King, Trout Mask Replica, Fear Of Music.
What’s your holy grail – something you’ve been dying to get a copy of?
Ry-N: I really wanted to buy the reissued Beatles records when they came out last year, but our
bank account didn’t agree with me.
Jack-E: Yeah, for some reason we still don’t own a mint copy of the White Album.
Is there anything in your collection that you consider a guilty pleasure?
Ry N: We’ve unfortunately had to pawn chunks of our music collection over the years, so we don’t have too many guilty pleasures that remain.
Jack E: Get The Knack. Lyrical sleaze.
Do you use the internet to purchase music? Do you miss the pre-internet days of music buying?
Ry N: We’ve actually never used the internet to purchase music. I do miss the pre-internet days if only because prior to music being “free” on the internet everybody actually used to run to the store excitedly on release dates to purchase new records, and support the musicians. We still do, and unwrapping and those records is a glorious experience.
What CDs, DVD or Games would you suggest our customers add to their Beat Goes On Wish Lists?
I’m Not There (DVD)
Last Days (DVD)
Freaks and Geeks (DVD)
As a band, you’ve released music digitally, on CD and on cassette in the past year, and have also considered releasing vinyl – which format do you prefer as a musician? Which do you prefer as a fan?
Ry N – As musicians and fans, we both greatly prefer vinyl as a medium. We still buy CDs occasionally, if only for the art, and because we can rarely afford to buy records. Unfortunately we haven’t been able to press our own records to vinyl yet due to those same financial constraints, but it remains something we will do when it’s feasible.
If you could package your music in any way possible, if cost wasn’t an issue, how would you package it?
Ry N: My vote is for a gatefold 180g double vinyl LP. With sparkling lights.
Jack E: Our most recent album, The Madness Of Crowds, would have been perfect on two ten-inch clear vinyl records.
If you could say one artist or band has ‘done it right’ in terms of a career, who would it be & why? And how does that influence you?
Jack E: Jack White has always found ways for his music to reach the broadest audience, without ever dwelling for too long on one project. He’s helped re-instill a love of recorded and live music in so many young people, focusing on roots, country, folk and rock and roll – and the musicians who keep alive the (North) American tradition. The day Ry N and I met over 8 years ago, we spent a couple of hours listening to and talking about The White Stripes. Not much has changed.
What piece of musical equipment do you own that has had the greatest impact on the band or its sound?
Ry N: I don’t think any one piece of our equipment has defined our sound, as we try to keep things simple in terms of our setup so that we can focus on the songs. Having said that, I love the sound of my Gretsch – they’re not as ubiquitous as a Fender or a Gibson guitar, and it’s got a fantastic unique sound of its own.
Jack E: Our voices.
What’s happening in the near future for Cursed Arrows?
Jack E: We’re about to release a video that we directed for our single “Death Rattle Blues,” and we’re planning a couple of larger North American tours next year. We have spent so many years writing and recording one album after another that we haven’t even toured! Our fourth album, Skin Behind The Shroud, will be released later this year.
Watch Cursed Arrows’ video for Death Rattle Blues, here:
Visit Cursed Arrows at:
www.cursedarrows.com
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Or at a show near you! (That’s the best place to visit them!)