Procrastinator is the first in a series of solo recordings by Saint John musician Drew Sweet.
subtle is the latest project by Saint John musician Drew Sweet. Drawing on years of experience playing in several bands past and present including December Fall Out, Hand-Drawn & NVN as well as his love for the sounds of Emo and Indie Rock, Sweet decided to try his hand at recording some music on his own, so he booked some time with engineer Corey Bonnevie and set about documenting a few tracks.
In August, the project’s debut EP, Procrastinator, was release. For this recording, Sweet handled all instrument and vocal duties with the exception of guest vocalist Sadie Donahue.
“I chose to make subtle just me mostly as a way to challenge myself,” said Sweet. “The name, subtle, has been in my mind for years. And I’ve wanted to do a project like this – tracking all the parts myself – for as long as I can remember.”
Sweet was initially inspired to pursue a solo project after listening to the Chicago-based group, Into It. Over It.
“The band was comprised of only two members – a songwriter and a drummer,” he said. “When I read the liner notes and saw that all guitars, vocals, and bass were done by one person, that was when I realized that it could practical method of recording.”
The project was initially planned to debut in 2016 but life got in the way and the idea was shelved for several months before coming back into focus earlier in 2017.
“I moved from Saint John to Fredericton just as I started writing these songs that are on the EP,” said Sweet. “I was consumed by work, anxiety, and just the general stress that comes with getting older. I didn’t even live in Fredericton for a full year before I lost my job and came back to Saint John. The first thing I did when I got back was message Corey [Bonnevie] and booked time in the studio. I tracked it in two days and poof, subtle became a reality.”
subtle made its live debut in August as part of Quality Block Party 1.2 and Sweet now has plans to bring the project to Fredericton audiences this fall as part of Perish, a mini-music festival curated by Flourish Festival.
“I’m very excited to play Perish,” said Sweet. “Jane Blanchard (Flourish founder) is a national treasure.”
As far as performing live goes, Sweet says, “Subtle is meant to be a collective, a sort of revolving door of musicians that I’ve played with over the years. Currently, the live band is Gavin Downes on drums, Cole Savoie on bass, and Colin Ferris on guitar. Fun fact – these are my best friends. I even saved Colin from drowning when we were younger!”
“I’m incredibly humbled by the response from people thus far,” said Sweet. “The plan is to continue playing some shows for 2017, then go right into the studio come the new year. I may be shooting myself in the foot, but I’m aiming to release 5 EPs next year. Two of the EPs are very much realized and ready to go, but I’m considering some more experimental directions for the other three.”
Upcoming Live Dates:
subtle+Kylie Fox+Bad People+Ski Team+Chillteens | Saturday October 7, 2017 | Charlotte Street Arts Centre | 12 – 5 p.m. | ALL AGES | View Event
