METZ with ODONIS ODONIS and THE SOUPCANS at Lee’s Palace (529 Bloor West), Friday (May 17), doors 9 pm. $15. HS, RT, SS, TF. See listing.
METZ singer/guitarist Alex Edkins has some big plans for his band’s upcoming return to Toronto.
“Oh, I’ll probably sleep for about three days,” he says, chuckling over the phone from a grocery store in Omaha, Nebraska.
Not the most punk response, but not a huge surprise either. It took nearly five years for the trio to release their self-titled debut LP on Sub Pop last October, and they’ve been taking full advantage since, touring the U.S. and Europe.
The intense gut-punch release of their live show is a big exertion night in and night out, but Edkins says the energy he and his bandmates – bassist Chris Slorach and drummer Hayden Menzies – expend has invariably been returned by the crowds, and that’s kept them invigorated.
There was a sense that the trio would transcend their Toronto’s-little-secret status if and when they released their album, but the response has surprised even them. Keanu Reeves was photographed at their Los Angeles show. During one set, an overzealous fan ran right through the venue’s drywall.
“It’s been kind of overwhelming,” Edkins admits. “It’s unbelievable to go to cities on the other side of the world and have shows be sold out, or for people to know the music and be singing and dancing along.”
METZ are a compelling live band. Usually, though, ear-splitting post-hardcore is an acquired taste. But there’s a shifting tide in the indie world, where punk, sludge and noise rock bands like Fucked Up, White Lung, Iceage and Pissed Jeans are playing big festivals (as will METZ this summer, including Sub Pop’s 25th-anniversary Silver Jubilee).
Still, Edkins feels more affinity with like-minded Toronto bands the Soupcans and Odonis Odonis, both of which have joined them on tour and will open for them at Lee’s Palace. And their Prism Prize-nominated video for Wet Blanket is filled with familiar local music faces.
It was a no-brainer, says Edkins. “Why hire actors when we have so many talented friends?”
Interview Clips
METZ were due to play in Boston the night of the marathon bombing. Here, Edkins explains what the atmosphere was like in the city and why they cancelled their show that night.
It took nearly five years for METZ to put out their debut, but according to Edkins they’re not going to waste any time getting to album number two.
music@nowtoronto.com
