Toronto-based space rock band Possum is coming Nanaimo for the first time on June 18, just three days before the release of their first full-length album, Space Grade Assembly.
“The album is a bit of an assembly line of past singles and new thoughts and we kind of just wanted to take everything that we’ve done in the last year and a half and put it together as our debut,” bassist Patrick Lefler said. “It combines lots of different sounds.”
Nanaimo listeners will get to hear those sounds when Possum – Lefler, guitarist and vocalist Brandon Bak, guitarist Tobin Hopwood and drummer Bradley Thibodeau – performs at the Nanaimo Bar.
Lefler said as an introductory album, Space Grade Assembly exemplifies the band’s sonic interests. It also features appearances by the band’s friends in Toronto’s psychedelic music scene.
“I think it says we like to get lost in endless beats and build a groove and try to make some cool noise,” Lefler said. “And our live show has lots of improvisation and we tried our best to capture that on recordings.”
The recording was done by the band on old, analog equipment in their Toronto studio. Lefler said it was more beneficial to their sound for them to record it themselves.
“We also record other people, but I find we’re all kind of producers and we’re better recording ourselves than we are at having other people record us,” he said. “So we like to have full control over the tones and the sounds that we produce.”
He added that Possum crafted those sounds the way their vintage gear allowed them to.
“We try to capture first thought, you know?” Lefler said. “A lot of bands go into the studio and they just will go over and over and over stuff. We just try to capture it the way that we might play it live. Obviously there are some embellishments, but the base of all of the music is how we sound live.”
Lefler said the album’s title reflects how the band put it together.
“It’s very meticulous and very lovingly sown together sonic sounds that could be sent into space on Voyager 24,” he said.
WHAT’S ON … Possum performs at the Nanaimo Bar, 2-75 Front St., on Tuesday, June 18 at 9:30 p.m. $5 cover.
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