Aboot to rock your world

Dragonette started off in 2005 in Toronto, Ontario. Comprised of singer Martina Sorbara, bassist Dan Kurtz, guitarist Chris Hugget and drummer Joel Stouffer, Dragonette signed with Mercury Records and eventually up-sold to Universal Records.

“When we were on Mercury there was a lot of them trying to be a creative part and that didn’t work,” said Sorbara of the experience.

It took a few years, but the group was able to prove themselves and get on a bigger label, with more power.
Focusing on the creative side has allowed the band to really explore the spectrum of styles in their music.

“Now we have full control and do as much business as we need to but get to focus on the creative side of the band more,” Sorbara said. “Dan brings a beat and a synth line and presents it and I go in and play with some melodies or lyrics, hands it back and it shapes the song. Hopefully we’re inspiring each other as we go back and forth, in and out of the studio. Sometimes it starts out with me writing a lyric or sentiment of a song but it’s usually Dan playing with computers and being Dan.”

The fact that Sorbara has ten years of professional album-writing and recording experience may have some bearing on the bands capability to write catchy electro-pop but she’s too modest to admit it.

Usually, major labels keep a close eye on album sales to dictate a band’s fate. If you’re not selling hundreds of thousands, you may not be able to leave your home state, let alone country.

Dragonette have been fortunate in that, despite touch-and-go worldwide sales, their label has stood behind them and assisted in numerous world tours and promotions. Album sales aren’t even on the band’s radar. The group believes in the music so much that the members don’t even worry if a few people steal it.

“Some people will pay, some won’t. I think more and more aren’t doing so much because of the money, it’s that some people just find it easier to just take it rather than buying it. It’s not so much about the price as it is accessibility,” Sorbara said. “We’ve toured around the world on an album that ‘sold’ an amount that we shouldn’t have.”

The group’s newest release Fixin To Thrill hit stores in Europe a few weeks ago, but only hit North American markets this week. With the release of the group’s newest effort, the fan base has been steadily increasing, much to the band’s delight.

“This tour, we’ve seen a solid fan base show up to every show. We’ve teetered on the verge of not knowing if people will come, but this tour has made us feel more secure. The shock of seeing people in the front row singing all the songs that were just released, show us that our fan base is well on its way,” Sorbara said.

The group was also well received on recent festival appearances in Australia and a muddy encounter at Glastonbury where Sorbara was covered in a polluted mess.

“We did Glastonbury three years ago and it was a muddy soup of disgustingness,” she said. “Wherever the mud dried on you, there was a red blotch of infection from all the junk that was in the mud.”

So if you’re oot-and-aboot tonight, you should get over to the Doug Fir and check out the beautiful madness of Dragonette. Gritty electro-pop mixed with grinding guitars and some beautiful singing is in store for you from a group of good-looking neighbors to the north. The best thing is, you never know what type of song you’re going to get.

“Every song is so haphazard it’s a miracle it turns out a song at all. Next album will probably be off on a totally different tangent. Each song comes out different ‘cause we don’t know what we’re doing,” Sorbara said.