What Slave and Nova Saturn are two local bands who are
influenced by 70s and 80s electronic music. Although their styles
differ, they are both part of Montreal's small but notable
electronic scene.
What Slave are Daniel Bernard (principal songwriter and
keyboardist), Vibeke Pedersen (vocalist, songwriter and "multi-
instrumentalist"), Andrew Lord (guitarist), and Caspian Kilkelly
(bassist). They have recently released a demo which includes "Time
Sleep" and "Feeling of Power." Their music can be described as
electronic with new wave and goth elements. Bernard considers their
sound to be unified, as opposed to a lot of popular bands these
days.
"Sugar Ray sticks a DJ in the band and says 'We're a hip hop
band for this song, a metal band for this song' and it's not
original."
As for their stage act, the focus is on the music rather than
the performance.
"It's not about egos, it's about the songs," said Bernard.
Nova Saturn is essentially the work of songwriter and
keyboardist Nova, with the help of two other keyboardists for the
stage act. His EP "Reflections" combines elements of trance and new
wave geared towards the dance floor. Tracks such as "Silk," "Red
Planet," and the title track reflect Nova Saturn's high production
standards. Formerly known as Skull Fracture, Nova describes his
most recent work as "nostalgic, futuristic electronic." His new
live show will incorporate rave, industrial, and alternative
atmospheres.
Both bands feel that the Montreal electronic scene is a
struggling one. Though he sited Insurgent as an exception, Nova
said: "The true classic synthesizer sound does not exist in
Montreal, it's focused on aggression and pretentious type of
feelings."
Bernard feels that local electronic bands are geared more
towards DJs and rely too heavily on samples: "People are focusing
more on tracks than songs. They'll press 'go' on their drum machine
and let it go for 14 minutes, and it's nothing."
As for future plans, What Slave intend to continue promoting
the band but do not feel that a full length album would be
appropriate at this time.
"We don't want a record deal to become famous rock stars, but record companies have the budget," said Bernard.
Nova will release a full-length album entitled "Visions" this
summer.
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