FOCUS

What you need to know about Arkells’ new album, Morningreport, Straight from the Hamilton, Ont., rock band’s lead singer, Max kerman.

1. They approached the album “like if Kanye West were to produce an

Elton John record.” “What does that mean? The challenge of a rock ’n’ roll band in 2016 is to make shit sound fresh, because I think a lot of rock ’n’ roll has become pretty redundant. The innovative genres are electronic, hip hop and pop music, and we take from all those things to create these songs.” 2. They didn’t make the record barricaded in a shack in the middle

of nowhere. “I don’t like being holed up for a month; I’d go fucking nuts. I don’t like being in the studio that much to begin with. I like listening to what we’ve done in the studio and being really proud of myself; I just don’t like the actual tedious part. I do one take and I’m like, ‘Is that good enough?’ We did two songs in September, five songs in late October and then another five in December—all with different producers—and then we got one guy to mix everything.” 3. Max ate a freezie during this interview. This is important because he willingly chose the red flavour, which, well, speaks volumes. 4. There’s a Drake connection. “My favourite song we’ve ever written is called ‘Drake’s Dad.’ It’s based on a true story about a bachelor party we were at in Memphis. We were very drunk, and we met Drake’s dad in a bar. He was really nice to us. We actually just shot the music video for the song, and he’s in it.”