Canadian indie rock band The Famines are coming to Fredericton and they’re ready to get up close and personal.
The Famines came together after the duo’s previous groups disbanded. Drummer Garret Heath Kruger says he persuaded guitarist and vocalist Raymond E. Biesinger until he caved.
The duo, known for their minimalistic, stripped down approach, will be playing at ReNeu Boutique on Oct. 29. ReNeu, a clothing boutique nestled in the heart of the Tannery on Queen Street, might not be your typical rock venue, but it might be the perfect fit for The Famines’ style.
“More intimate or smaller shows are really interesting,” said Kruger.
“I really think that there’s something to be said about the energy and how the band and the audience interact. It’s a lot more personal. That organic interaction is the most important component of any good live show.”
Preferring smaller, more intimate shows is a sentiment which has been echoed by many musicians recently, including former lead singer of The Dresden Dolls, Amanda Palmer.
“I love the sweaty and loud frenzy of rock shows. And I love the small, honest intimacy of house parties,” Palmer said in an interview with online music magazine Nothing But Hope And Passion.
“It’s like the difference between attending a giant dinner party with 100 people versus sharing a romantic dinner with your lover. They’re both great, but one or the other would get boring. And I like switching back and forth between the two, because I don’t get bored of one or the other.”
Playing shows at smaller venues is one aspect commonly attributed to bands that follow the do-it-yourself method, which has seen a resurgence in the past decade or so. The DIY method first infiltrated music in the 70s, when many punk rock bands developed a distaste for managers and agents meddling in their affairs, but opted to fill those roles themselves.
“There’s this disillusion that you need someone else to do those sort of things for you, but it’s very possible to do them on your own” said Kruger.
“Probably the biggest benefit is that you can run things exactly how you want. You can represent yourself in a way that you are happy with. Being able to represent yourself doing something you love, it just doesn’t get any better than that.”
The Famines will be playing with Motherhood, Wild Domestic and Goofetroop on Oct. 29 at ReNue Boutique. Admission is donation at the door.
