Feb. 15, 2012 - Issue #852: The Coffee Issue

Humans

Fri, Feb 17, Wunderbar

'If we know the song is not danceable, we're never gonna play it live," says Peter Ricq, one half of Vancouver dance duo Humans. That idea effectively functions as a statement of intent for the band: though it has some calmer numbers in the bag, Humans' primary modus operandi is to set controls for the heart of the dancefloor. Take early single "avec mes mecs" as a torchbearer example: written in the aftermath of a New Year's celebration that raged for three nights (which is sort of telling in and of itself), it sports a rallying chorus of, "Who knew / All we had to do was party?" that's given a disaffected delivery and drifts over a growing electronic beat and increasingly punchy synth. It grooves and shakes and, though it's a fine listen through headphones, it's clearly meant to be heard while in motion.
The party the song's based on, Ricq notes, wasn't quite as all-encompasing for him as for co-Human Robbie Slade.
"It was mostly Robbie—I had broken up with my girlfriend, so I was not that into a party mood," Ricq says, adding a laugh. "So I missed one of those three nights of mayhem that he had."
The pair pull from varied backgrounds: Ricq is a former warehouse party promoter; Slade used to be a folk musician. After becoming a duo when a promoter wanted Ricq to heighten the presence of his live show, the band shifted focus to electronics, and geared those toward the live setting. Ricq notes that, finances permitting, they'll bring a live drummer into the fold soon enough, but in the meantime, Humans is getting ready to release an EP that's been on the cusp of coming out for about a year now. It's shifted forms a couple of times in that span.
"First we had an EP, then it became an album—we had 23 songs—and we put it down to 12," Ricq explains. "And at 12, the label's like, 'Oh, re-record these ones and we'll put it out as an EP.' So, one year later, back to an EP. But it's better than it was: it sounds better. It's the first time we worked with a real producer, and it does make a difference.""
"We don't really think about how we're going to play [it] live," Ricq adds about the material they've written, "but we do think about what energy the song brings out, and we always have it in mind to have people dancing. That's the most important thing.

Fri, Feb 17 (8:30 pm)
With Nik 7 & Jaycie Jayce, Kumon Plaza
Wunderbar, $8 vueweekly.com comments: powered by Disqus