Nova Scotia’s AA Wallace will play the Capital Complex this Thursday as part of his Eastern Canadian tour, along with the delightfully raucous synth rocker band Tupperware Remix Party.
The tour will showcase In Alpha Zones, AA Wallace’s second studio album – a mix of indie-disco meets electrified dance party. Compared to his other works, Wallace said his latest album is more about isolating a specific sound – one that can stand alone in its own time and place.
“I used to write more traditional songs where the idea was that a song is a song and it could be played on any instrument in any era and still stand up,” said Wallace. “It could be played anywhere anytime but it’s not really related to anything specific. I feel the opposite of that now.”
The song “Shake it Out” has already garnered the attention of many – it doesn’t have any gender-specific language or insinuations. It would be newsworthy if Wallace was trying to make headlines about political correctness – but he’s not. The song is upbeat, drawing you in with peaks and troughs of keys and sharp synthesizer riffs. At the end of the day, it was a fun way for Wallace to get across something he’d say in conversation – not a statement. “I try not to take myself too seriously – even though there are some really serious songs on the record,” he said. “I’m not bearing my heart – I’m just writing a bunch of words.”
The Toronto-based artist saw out his earlier musical days in bands like alt-rock influenced Sleepless Nights. Wallace said he’s excited to be doing his latest East Coast tour with Tupperware Remix Party because it will be a lot more relaxed than his earlier days with Sleepless Nights. Touring was almost constant back then, giving Wallace the perspective to really enjoy his time on the road with Tupperware today. It also gives him plenty of time to practice the guitar – an instrument he’s comfortable with but one that demands less intensive rehearsing in comparison to being on vocals and synthesizer at the same time.
“We’ve rehearsed more for this batch of shows than I’ve ever rehearsed for anything in my life,” said Wallace. “This will be the first time I’m playing guitar the whole time,” adding wryly, “I hate rehearsing – I love playing live.”
When it comes to his audience, Wallace wants the crowd to be provoked in their entertainment of the show.
“[You can] enjoy it or relate to it – there’s a lot of things but to break it down to its core I just want them to enjoy it,” he said. AA Wallace and Tupperware will play three Ontario shows before making their way to P.E.I. and then N.B. After wrapping up their Halifax, N.S. show the team will play one more show in Toronto to finish up the tour in April. Bringing his sound to the East Coast is something Wallace has enjoyed since growing up outside of Halifax, and his motto has pretty much stayed the same since then – make music, make people think, or just make them dance. “I’m more interested in weird sounds that inspire me,” he said. “I don’t want people to feel indifferent to it – I want to illicit a reaction.” Tickets for the [March 31] show can be purchased online on the Capital Complex website or at the e-tix kiosk in downtown Fredericton at Isaac’s Way restaurant.
