TRUE PATRIOT LOVE
Metric’s Haines happy to head back to the Hill
Metric’s lead singer Emily Haines is returning to Parliament Hill on Friday to give Justin Trudeau a lesson in indie rock.
Haines and her bandmates tore through some of their most memorable hits three years ago for a crowd of thousands, including prime minister Stephen Harper.
With a new leader in office, Haines is eager to take to the Hill again and mark Canada’s 149th birthday. Metric will be joined by fellow homegrown acts including Coleman Hell, Coeur de Pirate and Alex Cuba.
Haines talked to The Canadian Press about what national pride means to her and why Metric decided to scrap what could’ve been their next album.
Q Friday will mark the second time you’ve played Parliament Hill on Canada Day. What brought you back?
A We did it under Harper and I’m very excited to do it under Trudeau. It particularly resonates for me. Every time it feels like the world is facing intense times it just really confirms how fortunate I feel to live in Canada. Being born in New Delhi, India, and being able to come here and grow up here, it’s incredible.
Q What makes Canada unique to you?
A Last night I had people over for dinner and was sitting in my yard enjoying a beautiful summer night and discussing all the stories of immigration, family members and all the people we know whose parents came here. (I was) really feeling patriotic in the best possible way. So it’s emotional for me.
Q Are there any highlights from the first time on the Hill?
A Singing Gold Guns Girls to Harper directly was pretty funny. I think I got a little too close … there wasn’t a lot of emotion (from him).
Q Around the time your album Pagans in Vegas was released last year the band hinted that another record was on the horizon. You’ve described it as totally diametrical to the sound of Vegas — but what’s the difference?
A It was the highly conceptual thing where we were going to do Pagans — about this synthesized world … and then we were going to do this complementary album that’s all organic instruments live off the floor. We were splitting the atom and showing the two sides that make the band who we are — the kind of thing you do when you’re on your sixth record.
Q That album was recorded last summer while you were opening for rock band Imagine Dragons. When will we hear it?
A (After the tour) we regrouped and were like, “Yeah there’s no … way we’re putting that record out.” I don’t know what we were thinking. We did all these incredible recordings in Nashville and all over the place, we did a huge amount of work, but there is just absolutely no way. We have all kinds of exciting surprises to come. We promise to keep everyone engaged, but that record — it’s the mystery tapes at this point.