Roddy of Rebel Emergency sat down with us to discuss the evolution of the band, traveling and the release of their latest record Love Ain't Free.

What brought you guys together as a band?

Roddy: I started playing with Neil (who is the bass player), and this other dude Adam who is not in the band anymore. We kind of just started jamming in the basement, just for fun. I've actually known Geoff for a while because his mom taught me music since grade four and I saw him playing guitar at our high school, so I invited him to come and play and we just took it from there.
Me and Neil, we couldn't really play at the start; we were just messing around not really knowing what we were doing so Geoff kind of brought more of a pro approach to it. He taught us how to put chords together and stuff and we grew from there. From the basement outwards.

So he brought more of a writing approach to things, as opposed to just jamming?

Roddy: Actually we were pretty good creatively, coming up with ideas, it was just putting it all together. He made us more cohesive musically. From there we kind of had a revolving door of drummers (which I guess a lot of bands go through). Our drummer now, Jeremy, has been with us for three years, so he is the longest serving member.

As a band, being known as Rebel Emergency, was it a long time coming working towards the name and group image?

Roddy: Well it was weird because we started off as Rebel Emergency six years ago in the basement and then we went down to New York for a while and we met a Jamaican dude who we made a band with, his name is Panic. So we had Panic and Rebel Emergency. We lived down in New York and recorded an album there, toured around the States and Jamaica and played a bunch of shows.

Then he ended up getting arrested when we were in San Diego playing a show, so we had to go back to Rebel Emergency again (laughs). We had to build it up again, almost from the bottom. So it's been this weird ride we've been on, just trying to get back to the point where people know our name and there's a buzz going around and people are excited about our band.

Has your sound changed a lot since that happened?

Roddy: I think it was about using what we learned from him, and what we learned by going to Jamaica and living there and being around that music and being in New York. The vibe there is totally different, so it's kind of like grouping all of those things together and using all those experiences together that's become our sound. Which I think is kind of cool because I don't think you can really place us in one genre. It's kind of a mix of this and that and it's interesting not being able to place it. The whole Jamaican influence seeped into our musical brains I guess.

How long did you guys spend touring and playing there?

Roddy: Well, over that year and half or so when we lived in New York we kind of did a cycle of New York, L.A., Miami, Atlanta, and then Jamaica—we went three times. We lived down in Kingston for a month once, and we played all over Jamaica. We played every big city there (there's only four or five). I guess for that year we were pretty busy either driving across the country or flying here or there, but it was fun.

What was it like working with Commissioner Gordon on your first full length Love Ain't Free?

Roddy: Well he's kind of like the fifth Beatle I guess (laughs). We call him that; he's kind of a part of the band.

So you worked with him then on the EP as well?

Roddy: Yeah yeah, we did. Pretty much everything we've recorded we've done with him. He kind of took us in from the start when we first went down to New York, and just being thrown into the scene—it was kind of crazy, like a "What are we doing here" moment. We actually moved right to the Bronx, to this house where the studio was in the basement where all these dance hall artists were recording, like Sean Paul and Beanie Man and all these guys so it was a little intimidating. So through Panic we met Commissioner and we went over to his place and he's got Grammys and stuff. We walked into his studio and went "What are doing here?" (laughs). We just had a vibe with him right away and he's been such a huge influence on us musically and just with giving us direction. I mean, we'll call him whenever we need advice because he's been through it all.

What made you go down to New York in the first place?

Roddy: Well it was just an opportunity we had. There was a friend of a friend, they had hooked up studio time to record four or five songs. Panic was engineering there, so he wanted to record a live band. He had never done that because most of the dance hall dudes just do tracks, so it was an opportunity and we just took it. It was all paid for so you might as well go down to New York City if you get the chance. It kind of just grew from there. I mean, I think I ended up packing three pairs of underwear and we ended up staying there for a year (laughs).

Yeah, I guess you can't say no to that kind of an opportunity.

Roddy: Yeah, we've had a few those like that where it's like "Hey, come to Jamaica and play the biggest reggae festival", not too long after we got together. We said sure, then going up on stage we were like "What are we doing here?". But it turned out to be an awesome experience and awesome memory and a great learning experience too. Even just playing in front of different types of crowds and different types of people you really learn a lot about yourselves as a band and as performers.

Yeah and I guess that gives you guys a leg up on other bands as well.

Roddy: Yeah, I think so—because it's just different. Different experiences help shape you in so many ways, and not many bands get to go to Jamaica and play, or maybe they wouldn't go there because they are scared or something. The reputation there is that the crowds are hostile, but if you go there and they see that you are passionate about music and that you are respectful of them, they will totally accept you and embrace it.

How did the experience compare from working on the EP to the full length? Did you have different goals and a different process?

Roddy: I guess we were more mature, musically. We experimented a bit more on this one with sounds and feelings of some of the songs. A few of the new ones are a bit darker. Even lyrically I think it's a bit more mature than the other one, but you can still hear the similarities melodically and the sound of our band hasn't changed that much, I think it's just another step forward. I still think we can go in so many directions, and there isn't just one sound on the album. It takes you on a bit of a ride, and it kind of leaves the door open to go even further.

Is that something that you guys consciously think about, where you want to take your sound, or is it more of something that just happens?

Roddy: I think so. I think you always want to get better. We listen to this album now, and I mean we're proud of it but we are already thinking about the next songs and where we can take it. With this one, we were thinking of it as an album as opposed to just 12 songs when you listen to it. I think we accomplished that, because it has waves of fun, and then waves of darkness and kind of takes you up and down. I think it's kind of a lost art, the idea of a full album, being one piece. I mean with iTunes now, you can pick the three songs that you want out of 12, without having to buy the whole album. Which I guess is good because it sucks if you buy an album and there are only two good songs on it. With my favorite bands, I'll throw on the album and try and figure out why they put one song in front of the other, and try and see if the lyrics flow together in a certain way.

So what has the reaction to the album been like so far?

Roddy: It seems to be really positive so far. I like that everyone seems to have a different favorite song, which I think is a good sign because it's not just one or two with no one talking about the other 10.

Yeah, which is great going back to your point on the full album experience.

Roddy: Yeah, I'm really happy because almost every song has been chosen as someone's favorite. I think we just want more people to hear it. I mean, only those people that went to the CD release have it so far. We're in the process of getting it up on iTunes and other online distributors so hopefully once that is up everyone who is waiting to hear it can easily grab it.

It sounds like a good way to do things—having both a physical release and then digital distribution later.

Roddy: Yeah, exactly. We wanted to get it into people's hands, so that's why at the release it was included in the ticket price—you got a copy of the album when you walked in. But yeah, I'd love if the majority of people just bought CDs at our shows and people were excited about seeing us live and wanted to grab the album there.

Yeah, it's great for support and you guys get the money yourselves versus someone else.

Roddy: Yeah, exactly and especially so being an indie band, we are doing everything ourselves. I mean lots of bands are doing that now, and it is easier now with the internet and if you know how to use it, it can be an amazing thing. But it's still hard competing with labels. All the politics, and all.

Politics, money, influence, manpower...

Roddy: Yeah exactly—they have the machine behind them. But it's good, especially if you have fans that are passionate about your music. They will do whatever they can to help you too. It's just building relationships with your fans, and building relationships with people in the industry who do like your band and want to help you. You just have to find the right people.

So what has it been like playing larger and larger venues with the opportunity to get your music out to more people at once?

Roddy: It's been awesome. I think that was our third show at the Mod Club and we played Sound Academy a few times. Whenever you play a show you want to make as many fans as you can, that's the goal—for everyone to remember you and take your music home and to tell their friends, and to bring their friends the next time. I think we shine as a live band and we just gotta get out there and play more shows.

Where do you plan to go next? Do you have a tour lined up?

Roddy: Yeah, we are working on getting that lined up right now. We have a few shows around Ontario in the next month and then we're going to be working on a bunch of stuff. We were trying to get over to Japan actually, and definitely in the States. We're just trying to get this album out to as many people as we can right now.

Is that a lot easier now?

Roddy: Yeah, I think so. We know where the avenues are, we just gotta drive down them (laughs). We just have to utilize everyone and utilize all of our contacts and the people that want to help us out.

http://www.myspace.com/rebelemergencymusic
Interview by Jeff Jewiss