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New Year’s Resolution

New Year's Resolution

By only

Friday February 11, 2005

More mature but still tight

What is the deal with Tinseltown? That place is a barn. Does anyone go there? Such a big building and yet so vacant. A perfectly quiet environment to conduct an interview with LL, Dana Ayotte and Melanie Covey. They make up the wonderful New Year’s Resolution, an all female trio featuring members from Trail vs. Russia (SCORE!), the Stunts, the Skinjobs and mid 90’s monolith Queazy. They are playing this Friday the 11th at the Lamplighter with Automatic Fancy and Black Horse to celebrate the release of their new album, Bullets of Love. I’m thanked in the cd, “I Heart NYR” shirts were made for me, and their song about Ricky Schroeder was dedicated to me twice. If I can offer a bit of advice, you should interview your friend’s band at least once in your life.

ONLY: So I’ve been talking to some people, and they all agree that you’re all phenomenal musicians. I don’t see that a lot in other bands.
LL: Well, I’ve been playing since I was twelve, and Dana’s got her Grade Seven in piano…
ONLY: Grade Seven! That’s fantastic!
Dana: Yeah, my mom taught me.
ONLY: That’s tough. Can I tell you something quick? I was having problems knowing the notes on the lines and spaces of the staff. My mom learned all the sayings, not knowing a lick of piano, just so that every night before I went to bed she would grill me on them. That’s a mom.
All: That’s a mom.
ONLY: The Wurlitzer (organ that Dana uses). Where did you get it? Is there a good story?
D: The Wurlitzer was purchased for five dollars at a yard sale by Jaklyn from the Stunts.
ONLY: Five Dollars? There’s this song that you guys do where you Melanie plays with a drum machine beat. I don’t think that I’ve seen a show where it’s actually worked the way you wanted it to.
L: I know!
ONLY: Why not just ditch the damn song.
D: It’s the only time I get to play bass.
L: It’s the second to last song on the cd. It’s part of the song, and we’re still figuring out how to make it work properly.
ONLY: Shindig. Did you not wear the “I Heart NYR” shirts at one of the shows?
D: Yes we did.
ONLY: Are they around anymore? You don’t wear them anymore. That’s when I fell in love with you guys. The music of New Year’s Resolution is very familiar, but I can’t think of a band that you guys really sound like.
L: Whitney Houston? (Sings. Nicely done.)
ONLY: The music. Very Keyboard driven. Song Concious. Pop-inspired. The Stunts were a little more hard driving. Trail vs. Russia was more Shellac-ian. And the Skinjobs were a little more hard driving punk.
L: I also had another band called Queazy that was very pop….
ONLY: You were in Queazy?
L: Yeah.
ONLY: You guys had a video that had all my favorite wrestling dolls like King Kong Bundy, didn’t you? That was so long ago. Were you on the cover of Drop D Magazine?
L: Oh yeah. I was on this cover doing this (arms out. crazed expression)
ONLY: How long ago was that?
L: 1996. I’m dating myself. That was my first band. We started in ‘92.
ONLY: Do you find that the music you are playing now is a little more mature, a little softer then before?
L: I know for me I’m feeling mature, because for me, I had the distortion pedal on all the time, and you can hide the notes. You can hide the mistakes. But when your doing clean guitar, every single note you can totally distinguish. I’m more conscious about being a better musician.
ONLY: The show at the Pic I saw you play last week was the most comfortable and tightest I have ever seen you guys.
Melanie: We’ve been playing some of those songs for going on two years now, and so those songs are pretty tight.
D: I think what made us feel tight about the songs is that we went into the studio. We had to verse ourselves in getting it right. Now we know everybody’s part by heart.
ONLY: There’s a poster of you at the Hive (recording studio) where you played with Triple 3 and Sarah Wheeler. Is there significance to that poster.
D: We put it there on the washroom door right before we went in the studio.
ONLY: But why is it up there?
L: I hope it just doesn’t mean that the poster he puts up on the bathroom means that they’re shit.
ONLY: It’s not wrapped around the toilet. Where’s your favorite place to play?
D: Mike’s Tavern. That was my favorite show. The sound was great.
L: The Vogue was pretty good.
ONLY: You played the Vogue?
L: No (laughter at my expense)