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In the book The Island Of Seven Cities: Where The Chinese Settled When They Discovered America, Paul Chiasson, a Toronto architect and amateur archeologist, makes the claim that it was the Chinese that discovered America before Columbus, evidenced by the ruins found at Cape Breton Island, NS. The Hylozoists new album, L’Île de Sept Villes is indebted to this book by name sake, and while there’s little in common overall, there is an element in both that connect to an unmapped journey of discovery and territory claim. L’île de Sept Villes, the third record by The Hylozoists creator Paul ...read more
In the book The Island Of Seven Cities: Where The Chinese Settled When They Discovered America, Paul Chiasson, a Toronto architect and amateur archeologist, makes the claim that it was the Chinese that discovered America before Columbus, evidenced by the ruins found at Cape Breton Island, NS. The Hylozoists new album, L’Île de Sept Villes is indebted to this book by name sake, and while there’s little in common overall, there is an element in both that connect to an unmapped journey of discovery and territory claim. L’île de Sept Villes, the third record by The Hylozoists creator Paul Aucoin, is a sonic dream, where focus is put on the landscape of the pieces; where time and space are shifted with each song but provide an ongoing background for one’s voyage in reverie. It solidifies The Hylozoists as Canada’s indie-art orchestral mavens.
Since forming in 2002 in Seabright, Nova Scotia, the band have been releasing records and touring. Sounding like a score to a movie not yet made, The Hylozoists’ music is performed live by an ensemble ranging from six to ten musicians Aucoin enlisted from his life as a producer, arranger, engineer and performer. The band has shared stages with The Besnard Lakes, Cuff The Duke, The FemBots, Destroyer and Lambchop to name a few.
As a producer, Aucoin has worked on other artists’ productions including: Laura Barrett’s Victory Garden, Andre Ethier’s On Blue Fog and Born of Blue Fog, Cuff The Duke’s Sideline of The Cities, Wayne Petti's City Lights Align, and Golden Dogs’ Big Eye Little Eye. He’s contributed arrangements, vibraphone or his engineering skills to The Fembots, The Constantines & Feist, Hayden, Brendan Canning, Elliot Brood, Small Sins, Cursed, Quest For Fire, Jason Collett, Roxanne Potvin, Holy Fuck and Great Lake Swimmers. Aucoin has also been working on films, scoring Sara St Onge's The Funeral (showcased at Sundance) and The Lobotomobile (premiered at TIFF), a musical based on Walter Freeman's life as a crusader for the art of the lobotomy.
L'Île de Sept Villes was produced with Jeff McMurrich (Constantines, Hidden Cameras, Sandro Perri) who helped the band achieve a much bigger sound. “Bras d’Or Lakes,” the feature track on the record is both haunting and hopeful as strings are weaved around a buoyant piano melody. The animated video for “Bras d’Or Lakes” is currently underway and will be serviced to all video outlets, including Bravo, MusiquePlus, and music and art blogs. The band continues their tradition of using literary titles with the opening song 'The Possibility of an Island', named after a Michel Houellebecq novel. The last track on the record, “Soixante-Sept,” was originally commissioned by CBC as “Oh Montreal” for DNTO’s Expo 67 Special.
Since their 2006 release La Fin Du Monde, the band have cemented a live line up that’s instrumentally diverse and : “…the sound of the vibes, billowing and folding inside the high-roofed gallery, was astounding on its own -- and backed by the soft beats of the drums, the low rumble of bass, and the veritable orchestra of other instruments -- it really (to put it crudely) blew us away. I know nothing about these guys except that the stolen snippet of unplanned music they gave us was some of the freshest, most delightful and more enjoyable at the SXSW festival." – About.com
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