It’s hard to relive the thrill of witnessing the wild antics
of born showman B.A. Johnston for the first time. He’s like James Brown
on a shoestring budget, where the shoestring is re-used every gig.
There are costume changes, funky aromas, pools of sweat, playful
confrontations with the audience and spastic verging-on-rhythmic dance
moves. And don’t forget those shots of boogers that Johnston forcefully
produces from his nasal passage. Those are awe-inspiring (and
sick).
Of course, it’s musical performance, too. His songwriting wilfully
tackles gross subject matter, either backed by rinky-dinky electronic
music or Johnston’s fastly strummed guitar. Songs alternately aim to
amuse and insult (sometimes both), but occasionally they ring true.
“Dirtmall”—from his new album, Stairway to Hamilton, on
Halifax’s Just Friends imprint—paints the picture of a rundown
shopping mall identifiable to anyone who’s lived in a city.
Johnston doesn’t put much stock in music being the reason people
continue to check out his live shows—he’s been touring for almost
nine years, sometimes trekking across the country twice a year. “The
live shows developed in a way to trick people into paying attention.
Being such a bad musician myself, I need to give people a reason to
come back. So you really want to entertain people,” he says.
From year to year he’s had to adapt to a changing music scene across
the country. Long-running venues Johnston has played are either
closing, becoming spots for fine dining, or changing from live music
venues to dance bars. Unfortunately, it’s not always a case of the
lousiest venues shutting down.
The liner notes to Stairway to Hamilton give props to music
venues all over the country. There are also dedications to venues that
have gone to “bar heaven,” including Oshawa, Ontario’s Velvet Elvis,
which closed this spring.
“It’s kind of sad because [Velvet Elvis] was a really fun place [to
play]. The owner went above and beyond her duties. You’d have unlimited
booze, she’d feed you and let you stay in the bar on these couches. And
Oshawa’s not the kind of place that can afford to lose these music
venues.” Thus, Johnston was forced to play one of Oshawa’s
less-desirable venues on this tour.
“All the places that aren’t fun and stink still exist. It’s not
going to be as fun.”
On average, he expects that at least one location he’ll play on any
given tour will be closed by the time he heads out on another. “It’s
the sad reality of music venues these days; the nicer they are to you,
the more chance there is they’ll be bankrupt soon.”
Touring in support of a new album boosts Johnston’s confidence for
undertaking a 10-week cross-country trek. Aside from guaranteed
stronger attendance for shows and the extra press from having an album
to push, Johnston relishes the opportunity to change up his stage show.
“Live shows can get stale when you keep playing the same songs. I find
you can get really down from doing that because it’s just the same old
crappy dog and pony show. If you can update that with a new dog, then
it feels better.”
Stairway to Hamilton was recorded in Halifax—where he lived
for a spell before returning to Hamilton two years ago—with Dave
Ewenson at Echo Chamber. Noticeable on this album is the beefed-up
sound on his party tracks, which benefit from the musical input of
Windom Earle’s Stephan MacLeod. It again tackles many subjects heard on
past recordings: food, sweating, love gone wrong and outdated
technology. The previously mentioned “Dirtmall” relies on the
questionable metaphor of loving the dirtmall “like a retarded child,” a
line even his mom has given Johnston grief over.
“If you look at that mall [in Hamilton], it’s intrinsically flawed.
You don’t want to say something’s wrong with it, but there’s something
that keeps it different from the shiny nice mall. It still has that
sense of innocence and hope. I guess I’m not saying it in any sort of
way that’ll make me sound like less of a dick for making fun of
retarded children,” he says with a laugh.
“But what can I tell ya? I think the metaphor suits it.”
This article appears in Sep 25 – Oct 1, 2008.