Hi and welcome to edition #7 of Alternative Motive! We are a monthly music newsletter focusing on today’s alternative music scene. If this email was forwarded to you and this is your jam, please click here to subscribe.

Tuned In

On pop punk fall and other music seasons
Certain sounds just make sense for certain months

The moment my Converse shoes begin crunching the dry orange-red leaves on the sidewalk and the breezes that cross the back of my neck start becoming a nuance rather than a sign of relief, I turn into a 2017 pop punk starter pack meme. Daily outfits revert to the flannel, black skinny jeans, beanie and Vans combination. I start craving pizza as I mourn the loss of Warped Tour. There is a metaphorical “DEFEND POP PUNK” sign above my head at all times.

As I put on my headphones each morning, there is one band in particular I want to listen to: Real Friends.

I have been a casual Real Friends listener for years – even seeing them live in Toronto last October – but am by no means a superfan. So, waking up every morning with a desire to listen to them above anyone else is an anomaly. Yet, it happens every single autumn.

My explanation for this is that Real Friends is a “fall band.” Their music captures the feelings of the cold seasons changing, where most days are dreary and overcast, but with small moments of sunshine or extreme downpour.  I find myself stuck in my own thoughts between the months of September and November, which is why I’m drawn to songs like “Sixteen,” “Teeth” and “From the Outside.” The band’s lyrics, sound and aesthetics all make sense to me this season. I come back to them every time.

But fall is not the only season that I have associated with a certain sound or group of bands. The more I analyze the monthly playlists I have been creating since 2019, the more I realize there are patterns in the artists and albums I listen to throughout the course of the year.

Where fall calls for the sounds of classic pop punk and Midwest emo, winter takes things a step heavier. Apart from the holiday music that takes over in December, my winter alternative music plunges into the territory of emo and post-hardcore. In the realm of staple albums, these are the months where Welcome to the Black Parade gets played the most. Spring is an in-between season, where the sun starts to tease itself but not enough for me to forgo a jacket. The months are feel-good enough, without being too free. I find myself drawn to the likes of indie-rock. Then, there’s my favourite season: summer. Sun’s out, school’s out, vacations are happening, people seem to be in a good mood, the list goes on. Summer songs are the realm of pop punk that pop punk purists will tell you are “too pop” for the genre. They’re songs that are upbeat, fun and play with genre conventions.

Music that fits well with seasons has a way of connecting to its listeners at a deeper level. This kind of music is almost embedded in memories. When you hear a song from a specific season in a different one, you will be catapulted straight back to the place you were when you last listened to it. 

Backstage

The thread in London, Ont.’s music scene
How artist Robin Henry’s work makes its mark across the city’s underground music scene

When London, Ont.-based artist, Robin Henry, thinks back to his first attempt at creating band merchandise, he calls it an “absolute disaster.” It was 2011 when he tried to make 25 t-shirts for an old band that he played in, equipped with only a zine about screenprinting and a do-it-yourself screenprinting kit.

“I remember being in my basement apartment, like in tears, because [the shirts] were not turning out how I thought they were supposed to and I was wrecked by it,” said Henry.

He estimates that 15 of the 25 shirts were misprints. But that did not damper the enthusiasm of his bandmates.

“When I showed the pile of shirts to my band, they were like, ‘These are amazing.’ They were just so happy to have band shirts.”

Henry said the experience set him on track to do the art that he does today.

“I just made something very physical, tangible,” said Henry. “It wasn’t just a sketchbook page. It was something. It was a finished product.”

After Henry – who uses he/ they pronouns – first attempted printing shirts, they put in time to hone their craft. They continued to dabble in printmaking before taking a screenprinting workshop in Halifax. They then went on to do a year at the Yukon School of Visual Arts. When they returned to London, Ont., they were receiving financial assistance from the province. During that period of time, they came across a Kijiji advertisement for a printing press starter package.

“I very irresponsibly spent my entire welfare check on a printing press, the ink, the flash heater and all the equipment that was necessary for me to start printing some volume,” recalled Henry. “I was like, ‘OK, I just blew my rent on art supplies [and] I need to make enough money to pay my rent.’”

He started calling bands that he already knew in the city and showed them his artwork, with the hope of making them clients. By what Henry calls a “miracle,” he was successful in finding clients, creating prints, establishing a flowing system and paying his rent. Since then, he has worked as a full-time artist.

Today, Henry runs Antler Press out of a shared art space at 629 Dundas St. E. in London, Ont. He is a multidisciplinary artist, working with various mediums including printmaking, illustration and graphic design.

“I’ve always been prone to making art,” said Henry, sitting outside of London, Ont.’s Variety Café for a Zoom interview, in between sketching a new design. “I don’t feel like I’ve had a good day unless I’ve done something creative.”

Henry is a thread connecting the city’s underground music scene together. They do artwork for a number of musicians and organizations based in and around London, Ont. They have created t-shirts for punk grunge band, Thunder Queens; posters for open mic nights at Variety Café; and handmade patches for their own music groups, Willow Switch and Sub Drop.

“It’s fairly rare for me to go into any concert where our print studio hasn’t had some hand in the process, whether it’s designing a logo for a band, doing their tee shirts, or designing projections for the band,” said Henry.

On Oct. 6, Henry was part of a show at Palasad Socialbowl in London, Ont., where they contributed to four aspects of the show: they played with Sub Drop, created a merchandise line for their own band, helped print shirts for headliner Status/Non-Status and designed the promotional poster for the concert.

Being involved in so many projects, Henry does not confine himself to a single art style. He works with artists to ensure that the designs he creates fits with their artist aesthetic, the sounds of the music and the art histories of various genres.

“I think that there’s a real honour to getting asked to bring a band’s sound into the physical world,” said Henry.

“I’m not going to do the same style of art or same motifs in terms of illustration for a bluegrass or folk band than I work for a black metal band,” said Henry about their process. “Part of being a well-versed printmaker or designer is being able to listen to the band and pick up on what lineage [and] thread they’re pulling.”

Henry has been engaged in the city’s music culture since they were a teenager. They describe their younger self as an “edgy, misunderstood kid” who got into the scene after a friend invited them to a show at the now-defunct Embassy Hotel. Henry said he was “swept up” by the music and found a sense of belonging at the show.

While London, Ont. is designated a UNESCO City of Music, Henry said that much of the area’s talent cannot be found at marketable bars or along the trendy Richmond Row downtown. To find art in the city requires effort.

“I think that London’s music scene has everything that you need if you know where to look,” said Henry. “But you really have to stray from the path [to] actually find it.”

“It’s a little bit grimier. You kind of have to slum it […] to find where the art is, but when you find it, it’s valuable. It’s the diamond in the rough,” said Henry.

Alt New Monthly

October 2023’s Alt New Monthly features new music from NOBRO, a fall-appropriate discovery by Chastity, plus a mix of Halloween favourites.

To find songs previously featured in the Alt New Monthly playlist, check out the Alt New Archives on Spotify.

Thank you for reading the seventh edition of Alternative Motive. Be sure to subscribe if you haven’t already and follow Alternative Motive on Instagram and TikTok.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN 🎃👻
-Kendra