TV SETS are a lo-fi, bedroom pop duo from Toronto, Ontario.
We thought they'd spent far too long in the bedroom so decided to hook up with them for a chat in their garage, we pulled up a couple of crates, cracked open a few oldies and chatted about ghost hunting, doctors appointments and cassette tapes, here's how we got on....
Please introduce the band your music in one sentence....
TV Sets is a lo-fi, bedroom pop band from Canada.
You’re called TV Sets, how did you come about choosing this name?
Angela: Josh picked the name after months of average or already-taken suggestions. It was like a prom dress…it fit perfectly.
What is the best advice you ever received and who was it from?
Angela: Jan Levinson-Gould from The Office (US) said in an episode once, “There are always a million reasons not to do something,” referring to the fact that we’re never in the right time of our life to go after what we want. It changed my perspective on everything and gave me a kick in the old butt. Is it horrible that the best advice I ever received wasn’t from a family member or friend but from a fictional character on a television show?
Who designed the artwork for your EP cover for ‘Rat Tar Art’?
Josh: All of the photos and album art are the work of the extremely talented Kyle Tait. We’re hideous swamp people in real life, trust me.
How would you sell TV Sets and this record to someone who may never have heard of you?
Josh: Influenced by the likes of early Beck and Eric’s Trip, TV Sets pulls you into their claustrophobic space through overcast vocals, coarse guitars and whirring synthesizers.
Tell me a fascinating fact about each of you?
Angela: I can tap dance.
Josh: I once joined a ghost hunting society.
‘Falling Awake’ is one of the highlights off the EP, what was the process to make this track happen?
Josh: We built the whole song on a series of guitar, synth and drum loops before adding our vocals and running the whole thing through a series of amps and cassette players
Being an unsigned band how hard is it to get noticed and how has social media aided your music?
Angela: Social media is an awesome way to reach more people than ever. It’s really changed the way bands can promote themselves without needing to hire a team of people. That being said, there millions of great bands out there. Social media or not, we want to just stay true to our music and hope some people like it.
Do you own a record that you wouldn’t like to admit you have?
Josh: This webpage couldn’t handle the amount of CDs we own that we're not proud of.
As you guys are from Toronto, if someone from the UK was visiting your city, name three places they should visit? (Food/Comedy Club/Bar)
Food: Khao San Road is my favourite Thai food.
Comedy Club: Second City Toronto is the best sketch comedy in the city. It’s a great place to see amazing talent before they hit it big (some famous alumni include Mike Myers, Catherine O’Hara, and John Candy).
Bar: If you’ve got some money to spend, Bar Chef on Queen Street serves Manhattans that come out smokey. We don’t, so we usually just order something cheap and people watch.
Where did you record Rat Tar Art, and what made you choose that studio?
Angela: We recorded it partially in our rehearsal space, and partially in Josh’s living room. I’d like to say we chose it because it had such a cool indie, underground vibe to enhance our connection to the tracks, but let’s be real…it was free.
Name three people (alive, dead or fictional) that you would like as party guests?
Angela: Elvis
Josh: Billy Corgan
Angela: Caesar Milan
There are many good bands and musicians out there, who would you ask the readers of musicmuso to look out for?
Josh: Odonis Odonis from Toronto…you’ll thank me later.
If you could describe your music in the form of a fictional character, who would it be?
Angela: AC Slater from Saved by the Bell, absolutely. Not the cleanest cut, but you can take us home to your mom for dinner. A little rough around the edges, maybe even mullet-ey at times…but worth the listen.
What are your plans for what remains of 2014?
Josh: Well there’s only a few months left, but I’ve got to make a doctors appointment at some point. Music-wise, we’ve just added a third member to the band so we’re in the process of putting together a live show and releasing another free four song EP through tvsets.bandcamp any day now.
The garage was getting rather draughty so we opted to decamp to the kitchen where we sat huddled around mugs of Hot Chocolate, prior to leaving them to their own devices, we thought it only fair to let them take part in our 'quickfire' questions....
Coffee or Tea?
Coffee.
Coke or Pepsi?
I can’t answer this! I’ve failed the Pepsi taste challenge every single time.
Maple Leafs or Toronto FC?
Maple Leafs
Mac or PC?
Mac…but I only bought it recently and I don’t quite understand the Microsoft Word equivalent.
Taco or Burger?
Fish Tacos
Lemmy (Motorhead) or Ozzy (Black Sabbath)?
Lemmy
CD or Vinyl?
Cassette Tape. Doesn’t everyone miss rewinding?
Car or Motorbike?
Car
Acoustic or electric?
Acoustic
Bovine Sex Club or Massey Hall?
The Bovine. Awesome patio!
Shower or Bath?
Shower
Tattoos or Piercings?
Tattoos…neither of us have any but we respect the art, you know?
We'd like to thank Angela and Josh for their time, we wish them every success in the future and look forward to hearing the next 4 tunes on Bandcamp.
You can pickup their latest 4 track offering from Bandcamp using the traditional 'pay what you like' method, feel free to send them a couple of bucks as music doesn't get created for nothing folks and I know that they'd appreciate your hard earned cash!
Interview by Mark Wincott