Halifax band takes the stage at DSTRCT
On Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016, Halifax band Vulva Culture took a swing through Guelph to play a show at DSTRCT on their winter tour. An original blend of nuwop, dream rock, shoegaze and drone, their live show proved to be as sludgy as promised. Like wading through molasses on a February night with a touch of a dark psychedelia to keep you entranced through it all.
The band released their first EP in August this year, with a handful of singles released recently online.
I had a chance to talk to Vulva Culture at 93.3 CFRU-FM before their show. The band features Halifax musicians Amy Vinnedge (vocals & guitar), Kayla Stevens (guitar), Hannah Guinan (bass) and Bianca Palmer (drums).
Alex Harris: What are you guys cruising around in these days?
Bianca Palmer: A Milwaukee tall can. Half-full. [Laughs]
Amy Vinnedge: It’s a Dodge Caravan. It’s quite the little beast. We’ve got everyone piled in there, we’re actually travelling with Kurt Inder from Halifax. We share Bianca on drums. We even have a DVD player! It’s been really great.
A.H.: For those who haven’t listened to you guys before, how would you describe the music?
A.V.: It’s sad, slow, sludgy. Definitely sludgy. A lot of effects on there. Drown the music as much as possible. [Laughs]
A.H.: Any favourite stops on the tour?
A.V.: Fredericton was fun. It was a great way to start the tour. We got to play a sold out show, which I don’t think any of us have ever done yet. It feels nice to sell out a venue.
A.H.: How would describe the music scene in Halifax?
B.P.: Everyone is so tight. There [are] definitely different types of music that are happening in different little pockets and groups, but everyone in the music family in Halifax is ever so sweet to each other and very tight. Halifax is a big enough city that you’re not bored, but not too big that you’re distracted, so you can actually hone in on a project and incubate it. It gives you the time to fine tune yourself, then you gotta go!
Hannah Guinan: Sometimes you need to create a lot of your own resources and you learn how to do a lot of things yourself. And if you lived in a place where all those things already existed, you wouldn’t get that experience.
A.H.: Do you want to talk about the band name?
B.P.: I like to say that we all met at this very intense research-based hospital and we were all born without bums and the doctors put us all into this community group and it just so happened that we had all the essentials to start a band.
A.V.: The band name was really more of an afterthought. It was catchy.
A.H.: With a powerful female presence in the band, how has equality played out in the music industry on the east coast?
B.P.: I feel like I don’t see the problem anymore. I was really surprised when I toured this summer at how many more female powerhouses I saw. It’s not a novelty anymore. That’s one thing that would turn me away from playing drums and performing in front of people. I would get way too much attention [for being female] and it was weird. There’s always going to be those weird comments and people babying you and wanting to help you take your ride cymbal off of a stand.
Kayla Stevens: Whenever I’m borrowing someone’s amp or something, I’ve had so many people trying to show me how to use it. What this knob does etc.
Bianca: There’s those little frustrating things but I feel like in Halifax there’s a lot of great ladies taking charge. People are getting used to it.
H.G.: It’s definitely been a conscious effort for women, people of colour, people who are gender non-binary or trans. It’s been an effort to do what they love to do. Things are different now and things will keep changing every year. Conscious efforts have been made and will continue to be made.