By Mikhail Saavedra
It’s commonplace now to watch on TV the effects of the recession, like for example how many people in the US are actually living in tent cities! Seeing this led me to dust off a copy of some of that older music I keep by Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie that had helped so many previous generations cope with the anarchy of our economic system. But I was curious to see if there was anyone talking about this in this day and age and then I found HOTCHA and I was pleasantly blown away. There is that same rascal intensity that I could find in those old records, an intensity derived from singing something genuine with a mixture of both fun plus a humanistic undertone. I spoke to Beverly Kreller and Howard Druckman who comprise HOTCHA to get a sense of their unique style.
Which song do you prefer from your CD?
I really like all of them of course, it’s hard to choose but I guess of the original material, I’d have to say
“Mines Went Down” since it so adeptly speaks to the economic situation in the Great Depression era but for our times as well. For something tongue-in-cheek- I really like “Foie Gras” and for something bluesy but fun, the portrait of an old man in the “Dustbowl” era sitting on his porch…”Harlan’s Porch” which has tuba and a nice little mouth trumpet solo.
What got you started in the world of music? Was it by change or simply an inevitability of the soul?
BEVERLY KRELLER: For me, I think it was my mother forking out the money to buy an accordion for me (a piano was too expensive for us) and then making me sit down and practice at the kitchen table. No seriously though, I think it was the soul speaking to me. I actually picked up the accordion at the age of 4 or 5 and could play by ear (my older brother was learning it already) and I said I wanted to learn. Then I was also involved in choirs at school, church and community…anywhere I could do music I’d be there. I then later was an actress for many years, did a stint as an apprentice at Stratford Festival (I was Loreena McKennitt’s understudy for the singing role of Ceres in Shakespeare’s “the Tempest”) and then finally came back to playing music.
I began writing songs for theatre and later I was in a great Celtic group called “3 OUR TOUR” in the 90s that I wrote original material for as well.
For HOTCHA! I write the lyrics and melody and then Howard and I come together to arrange. He adds the chord arrangement to the songs etc. and adds a lot of the flavour to the final creation. It’s a great match.
HOWARD DRUCKMAN: I would say it was inevitable. I’ve been a music lover since I was six years old, which is when I began picking out tunes from the radio on the old piano in the living room. By the time I was 13, I was taking piano lessons and buying records for myself, and at 16 I bought my first guitar. But I have to credit my wife, Beverly Kreller, for being the first to get me over my fear of performing, and allowing me to make that great leap from leading campfire singalongs of favourite covers as a hobby, to playing her original songs on an actual stage as a professional. I love to make music, and always have. (Bev adds…Howard is also a very talented music journalist and writes for publications like EYE Weekly)
Can you tell us a bit about your newest work and the ideas behind it?
Well DUST BOWL ROOTS: Songs for the New Depression is HOTCHA!’s debut CD and we began the project because we were in a really wonderful band called “Solstice” but the music was more of a jam nature and with slower tempos. We really wanted to do music that was more up tempo and would make you want to dance. On road trips we started formulating the HOTCHA! vibe by singing out “gibberish” tunes” for fun while travelling.
For the longest time I had this big band era, “Gene Krupa” style drum beat in my head that was originally meant for my song “Foie Gras” but then it ended up in the song “Mines Went Down” which is the first track of the album. It was sort of a rousing drum, which called out the pain and grief of the loss in a mining community caused by the closing of the mine. There were no bail outs for them!
The original songs on the album are all written with a vintage vibe of the 1920s / 30s era and were written well in advance of the current economic downturn we are experiencing today. I think I may have actually picked up on something “in the air” though (I’m a little bit psychic that way) and just 2 months after we embarked on the journey of recording the album, the economic troubles began. So the timing for this kind of music of the Great Depression, is really poignant. The idea for our music at present, is to be a kind of tonic for the times, in that the lyrics may be somewhat dark and speak of hard times, but the melodies and tempos are uplifting and danceable. It’s an emotional as well as economical depression we are facing and the music can be a salve for both.
“Foie Gras” was written regarding a current debate in Ottawa and other areas about whether or not to ban the pate due to the process the ducks undergo in order to make foie gras. The sub-text of the song is about the fact that in a poor economy, you’ll hear the phrase “I have to get all my ducks lined up in a row” quite a lot and it’s also takes a bit of a bite at the “fatted ducks” in the big corporations who greedily want more even after their bailouts.
On covers by Louis Armstrong’s “Ol Man Mose” and Sy Oliver’s T’Ain’t What You Do” we use what we call the “poor man’s horn section” …a kazoo, and on “Harlan’s Porch” we use a “mouth trumpet”. The idea is that in the spirit of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger etc, you’re ready to pick up and ride the rails with your music, so portability is key.
How can people find out more about you and your wonderful work? (great spot to drop any and all events you may have coming up)
We can be found at www.HOTCHA.ca
www.sonicbids.com/HOTCHA
www.myspace.com/HOTCHA7
HOTCHA! HIGHLIGHTS:
The album has received numerous rave reviews.
For complete articles please check out: www.sonicbids.com/HOTCHA
CBC Feature on Fresh Air w/ Mark Rheaume & Mary Ito
CBC and community radio airplay across the country
Debuted at # 1 on the CFBU campus radio Top 30 Charts in the first week of release
Debuted at # 10 on CIUT’s Top 30 in the first week of release
Debuted at #9 on CHRW FM’s Top Folk/Roots/Blues Charts
& more…
BRAVO! NEWS Spot: http://watch.bravo.ca/bravonews/#clip175234
* INDIECAN Radio (Episode 132) and airs on XM Satellite Radio, Channel 87 THE VERGE, FM affiliates across Canada
UPCOMING SHOWS:
Jun 20, 2009 Big on Bloor Street Festival (Concord Stage) Toronto, ON
Jun 21, 2009 “73”, St. Catharines, ON
Jun 26, 2009 Toronto City Roots Festival @ Hugh’s Room Toronto, ON
Jun 27, 2009 Toronto City Roots Festival, @ Distillery District Toronto, ON
July: 3:30-5:30 pm Saturday matinees in July at the Cameron House
Jul 24, 2009 The Bookstore Café, Camden East, ON
Jul 25, 2009 CD RELEASE! THE WHEEL CLUB, Montreal, QC
Jul 26, 2009 CAGIBI, Montreal, QC
Jul 28, 2009 Organic Underground Belleville, ON
July 31 2009 CD RELEASE! London Music Club, London, ON
Aug: 3:30-5:30 pm Saturday matinees in August at the Cameron House
Aug 23, 2009 Pedestrian Sundays: McCaul Stage, Baldwin & McCaul St. Toronto, ON
Sep 12, 2009 Wychcraft Market (at St. Clair & Wychwood)
Nov 2 2009 Moonshine Café, Oakville ON