Music

HIGH FIVES: Lowest of the Low

by Sam Sutherland

Every week, High Fives asks five bands five themed questions over five days. This week, we’re get jacked on the material coming out of the Dischord Records archives (Dag Nasty! Government Issue! Reptile House!) and talking about re-issues.

Without question or hyperbole, Lowest of the Low were the most influential alternative band in Toronto in the early ‘90s. Active for only a few short years, they released only two full-lengths in their heyday, along with one album of new studio material during an earlier reunion in 2004. But Shakespeare My Butt, the band’s 1991 full-length debut, remains their touchstone, their Field of Dreams, their Moby Dick (if Ahab caught the whale early on in the story and then used its bones to write subtle, brilliant pop songs about Toronto). A true landmark of Canadian alternative rock supremacy, the album has stood the test of time, consistently popping up on Best Of lists (the decade, the country, the ever) and igniting a new wave of interest with each subsequent generation’s discovery of its punk-ish melodic charms. That said, the record is getting on in years, and the band have seen fit to offer a deluxe reissue that will no doubt ensure its survival for decades to come; fully remasterd, it now comes with six panel digipack artwork, liners notes from the Weakerthans’ John K. Samson, and a 45 minute documentary following the band’s storied career. Lowest of the Low are celebrating its release with two shows in Toronto this weekend, Friday and Saturday night at Lee’s Palace, along with an in-store performance at Sonic Boom on Saturday afternoon.

Is there any one single album you’re waiting with baited breath to be reissued?

I’m not really someone who looks in the rearview mirror a lot, which makes me a good artist but a terrible driver. I’m fond of my old favourites and return to them again and again, but for someone who writes and records and sings for a living, I try not to get too caught up in the sonics and the math of music. I’d rather just let the songs wash over me and get lost in them. I have huge respect for musicologists and audiophiles but I tend to glaze over when they make lists or dissect things. That’s why I’m not friends with Nick Hornby.

Should reissues always come with new material? Have you ever bought a reissue and been let down by the bonus stuff?

I think there’s a lot of pressure at record companies to find new ways to generate revenue from their back catalogues. The industry’s in its death throes, at least the old business models certainly are, and so it seems that companies are busting up the furniture for fuel. I think the Ryko re-releases of the early Elvis Costello records were fantastic and added real value to the originals with great unreleased tracks, liner notes and demo recordings, etc. Of course not everyone has such great trash in their closet as Elvis does. He’s thrown away better songs than make it on some peoples’ discs.

Do reissues diminish the value of a beaten-up original?

I think they almost become a different animal and you’re left with the strange feeling that they are and are not the same thing, all at the same time. That said, I think they can run the risk of diminishing what I can only describe as the aura of the original. There’s a reason certain songs were chosen, and were sequenced in a certain way which all contributes to the power the original thing had.

Have you ever dropped too much money on a single record? What record? How much?

I can’t remember how much, but I dropped a small bundle on the re-issue of the Velvet Underground Andy Warhol record. There was “bonus material”, which mostly consisted of multiple versions of songs (mono, stereo, etc) and really did nothing to build on the original. And that disc sounds like shit anyhow, like it was recorded in a culvert. Basically, free was too much. Stick with the original.

If one of your own records could be reissued on any format, what record and what format would you choose?

I’d love to remaster the Rusty Nails disc Crackstatic and press it to vinyl. We recorded it at Chemical Sound in Toronto, which had a reputation for being all analogue and a very warm sounding studio, but I’d still love to hear how the horns and the rhythm section would sound on vinyl.

Oh, what I meant to say was Shakespeare My Butt, remastered… with a DVD documentary… and new album artwork. Hmm… if only that were possible…