HUNDRED WATERS at the Drake Hotel (1150 Queen West), Wednesday (July 9), 8 pm. $12.50. RT, SS, TF. See listing.
Going out on the road for the first time can put a lot of strain on relationships in a young band.
That’s not an issue for ambient pop band Hundred Waters, who lived together for years while attending college in Gainesville, Florida, and still share an apartment in L.A. Between that and their heavy touring schedule, you’d think they’d be getting sick of each other.
“Surprisingly, there isn’t that much tension,” says Zach Tetreault as their tour bus crosses into their former home state. “We respect each other a lot, and everyone’s opinion is definitely valued, which goes a long way.”
That attitude doesn’t mean the band hasn’t felt pressure.
After unexpectedly signing to EDM superstar Skrillex’s label, OWSLA, in 2012, their lives changed dramatically. But when the time came to finish their second album, The Moon Rang Like A Bell, the group struggled to wrap it up.
It was definitely worth the delay. Lead vocalist Nicole Miglis’s languid, ethereal vocals grab your ear first, but the rich electronic textures and fluid, jazzy rhythms quickly become just as essential to the band’s sound. And as lushly produced as their recordings have been, it’s still clear that they’re a proper band – not just a studio project.
“It was a difficult time with deadlines and coming to terms with letting this thing go. With the first one, there were no expectations. We didn’t even realize we were making an album at first. We were just living in our college town, making music like we always did,” says Tetreault.
“A collection of songs turned into something that felt like it could be called something, so we came up with the name Hundred Waters and self-released it. Then it got re-released by OWSLA, and here we are now.”
And as important as the quality of the songs is to the band’s success, ultimately their philosophy seems just as essential.
“We don’t really use words like ‘leader,’ mostly because we all do a little bit of everything and everybody is just as important as everyone else,” says Tetreault.
“I think we realized that we can’t have this thing without each other.”
benjaminb@nowtoronto.com | @benjaminboles
