killbeatmusic.comThe most recent brainchild of Winnipeg musician Michael Petkau Falk has been a long time coming. His band, Les Jupes, recently finished an album almost two years in progress. Petkau Falk has been part of the process of making Modern Myths since the beginning, writing the first set of tracks in late 2008 and starting the recording process in February 2009.
“It’s been a long time in the making,” he says. “I’m a big believer in music as an open-ended process … [and] I wanted to make sure we did it right.”
After a long two years, the current lineup of Les Jupes—which has only been in existence for three months—is taking Modern Myths on the road with dates in Ontario, Quebec, and Eastern Canada.
“[Touring] allows us to grow and evolve,” says Petkau Falk “Our live show is mostly faithful to the record, but we’re doing things better; we’ve added things and taken things out for the shows. Musically, it’s a refinement process.”
Petkau Falk is particularly excited about playing in Montreal, citing the city’s influence on Modern Myths. “The record was sort of born in Montreal,” he says. Montreal producer Marcus Paquin, known for his work with Arcade Fire, produced the album, and Petkau Falk returned to Montreal to mix it. “While it’s mostly a Winnipeg record, it’s got a lot of Montreal in it as well,” he says.
The result is a thoughtful and introspective album set around the common theme of “people trying to deal with their shit, figure themselves out, and get past hurdles in their lives—hurdles that are mostly self-inflicted,” says Petkau Falk. This loose theme covers the majority of the tracks, including a character study of former USSR President Nikita Khruschev as one of those “who has to please and appear a certain way … but they could just explode.”
Although this record is more collaborative, Petkau Falk has left his mark on every aspect of its sound. “For the most part, I’ll write the structure of the song and give it an emotional direction,” he says. “I know the mood I want the song to take, but sometimes I’m open to see where the song wants to go.” Other tracks on the album showcase some of this flexibility and collaboration between Petkau Falk and the rest of the band.
Lyrically, Petkau Falk points to another common trope in the album’s lyrics. “It’s a tough love record,” he says. “Just get over yourself already.” When discussing the band’s tour schedule, Petkau Falk’s “get over yourself” approach is readily apparent. Les Jupes are playing both Canadian Music Week and South by Southwest this year, and, according to Petkau Falk, the difference between them is clear.
“At CMW, everyone is trying to prove how cool they are, especially because there are so many industry people there,” he says. “At SXSW, it’s more of a big party. It’s very celebratory, and it’s a lot more fun, even though there are industry people there. People don’t seem to worry about it as much.” With these and many other shows ahead, Petkau Falk is excited to get back on the road, especially with the band’s current lineup. “We’re old hat at touring now, but the beauty of it this time is touring with people who are more fun than ever before.”
Petkau Falk’s overall approach to making and performing music seems to follow this line of thought. “I’m just the middle man for these songs,” he says. “They come through me, but I’m not ultimately responsible for how they live their lives. The environment for the songs is important for what the songs want to be.”
While some artists would have given up on the exhaustive process of making Modern Myths, Petkau Falk shows that sometimes, it’s OK to let go and let things happen, especially when the result is this successful.
Les Jupes play le Cagibi on March 10 at 8 p.m.
