When I was young, my mom always tried pushing me into music lessons. I'm guessing the mothers of Liam Jaeger and siblings Jacquie and Steve Neville of The Balconies did too---with great success.
"We were all studying at University of Ottawa in the classical music program," says Jaeger, calling from Kingston, ON. There, the band's drummer met his love, Jacquie, and formed a band with her and her brother, Steve.
Since then, The Balconies self-released their debut album, which has been receiving praise from blogs like Chromewaves and publications like Montreal's Voir for its eccentric, energetic sound.
"We were reading a review of our album in Voir," explains Jaeger, "and they were saying, 'This sounds like a kid with a personality disorder'---which is cool for us."
Once you see them live, you'll be OK with that diagnosis too. Jacquie howls and headbangs, Telecaster in her arms, sequined jacket on her back. Steve is always at her side, bobbing along on bass like a six-year-old trying to keep his cool in a bouncy castle. And every trio needs a kickass drummer. This is where Liam comes in. "Everything that happens on our record is totally us," says Jaeger. "We don't put anything into a song because we're like 'Yeah, people like this right now.'"
The amount of noise these three humble Canadians make at their shows is exciting. Jaeger says that they're certainly aspiring to other great trios of the past. "The bands that always were really special to me---Nirvana, Green Day in the '90s and The Police---they were three people creating so much sound," he says. "Everything has to be really concise, you can't just add parts for the sake of it. You have to make sure every part that you pick to play is the one.
"We just want the audience to be happy they're there," he continues. "Listening to the music for the sake of listening to music, or just coming up to the front and getting all sweaty with us."