A Conversation With: Greys

With a new line-up and revitalized sound, Greys is coming off the high that was their first show (Genevieve has photos coming your way soon!).

But before the show, I spoke with frontman Shehzaad Jiwani (former drummer of the lamentably deceased Arietta) and he gave me the story behind Toronto’s newest up-and-coming supergroup (also featuring Cam Graham of Canyon City, whom you should remember from this).

So, put on some Greys (they have two new tunes up on their Myspace page!), and read on!

The last time we spoke you were talking about how you wanted to spend more time on Greys. Now that Arietta has broken up, you have the opportunity to do so.

Shehzaad: Yeah. So I guess it kind of works out. It’s really weird. We were going to play a show, because Arietta was going to be touring. We were going to be out east around this time, and we were going to be back around the beginning of August. And I had talked to some of the guys in Burning Love about maybe jamming and just playing a one-off show for fun. Because they were going to be back around the same time. So I’d talked to Pat and Dave, and I talked to Cam who was originally in Greys. And they were like, “Oh okay cool. Let’s do it.” Because Cam just went to Africa and he came back just a few days ago. So it worked out that everybody was going to be at home. So I wrote a few songs and I told Peter from Teenage Kicks that we would love to play the 7” release. And it would be fun; it would be a big end of summer party for a bunch of friends of ours who don’t usually live in the city and we don’t hang out. So Peter and Jeff were both really into it. So we booked the show and a week or so later, Kyle told us that he was leaving the band. And when we booked the Arietta show, it was the day before the Greys show. So it’s kind of funny that the first Greys show is the day after the very last Arietta show. It works out in an interesting way.

What are the other Greys’ members planning to do once summer ends? I think Cam is going back to Guelph, right?

Shehzaad: Well, it’s sort of weird because Pat is in Burning Love, so he’s not going to be a full-time member. Matt Bourassa plays in a bunch of other bands too, but he is into the band so he’ll probably end up being the bass player. Everybody lives here, and Cam’s going to be back in January and that’s probably when we’re going to start touring a lot more.

Though Cam’s also in Canyon City…

Shehzaad: Yeah. So he’s going to be doing double-duty for those bands. He’s going to be moving back home in January so he’s not going to be in Guelph, where those guys are. It’s going to be a transition for both bands, I feel.

Last time I interviewed Canyon City, they were saying the band wasn’t a totally serious thing for all of them. It seemed to be more of a fun project.

Shehzaad: I think that was at the beginning of the cycle, when they were just starting out. Because Johno and Zack knew they were going to the Yukon. But I think when they get back they want to start playing more shows. Johno’s been writing a bunch of songs while they’ve been away. He sent me them, and they sound really good. I think they’re going to continue as full-time as they can while still being in school. Which is great because all the songs are really great and they’re all great dudes.

So musically, Greys is going to be one of many projects for every member except for you.

Shehzaad: I hope that’s not the case. The people that I’ve been talking to… Like, Cam wants to do it full-time and we’ve been talking about writing an EP, for the fall and the winter. And then in January and February it’s going to be out, and we want to tour pretty much full-time. It might be full-time for the writing process, because I end up doing most of the writing anyway. But I think after that, we’re definitely going to be more full-time than even Arietta was.

You’re going to be playing guitar and singing in Greys. Do you think it’ll be weird, having someone else as the drummer?

Shehzaad: It’s really weird.

You did say that originally you were a guitarist, then you became a drummer for Arietta. But now you’re a drummer, and you’re going back to being a guitarist for Greys.

Shehzaad: Yeah. I was talking about that with the other guys. It’s really weird, being picky abut the drums because I’m not picky with my own drumming, really. But it’s a bit strange. I’m comfortable playing guitar, but it’s been three years since I’ve been playing drums in that band. So I hope that I’m not too adament about playing certain things with the drummer that’s going to be playing with us. Pat’s a much better drummer than I am, so it’s been really easy letting him do his own thing.

You always say that. Like, you said that Sean, from Arietta, is a much better guitarist than you. And now Pat’s a much better drummer than you.

Shehzaad: He’s a killer drummer! When you see him play on the 20th it’s going to be pretty apparent that he blows me out of the water. He’s really really good. And he used to play drums in his old band, I believe. He’s used to it. It’s funny because he’s a great guitarist, and I’m an okay drummer, and we essentially switched in this band. But both of us are really rusty at the instruments because we don’t really play them that often. So it’s been fun to practice.

You’re going to be singing too.

Shehzaad: Yeah I’m going to be singing and yelling, I guess. We just did two demos that we’re going to get up on the Myspace soon. We did the demos just this past Tuesday with our friend Josh Korody, and he also did Arietta’s last song ever. We did two songs and singing was sort of weird, because it’s really intimidating coming out of a band with a guy like Tyler, who’s such a phenomenal singer – he’s confident and has a very distinct voice – to having to do it myself. And I don’t have a distinct voice and I’m really self-conscious about it.

You seem to have almost no confidence in yourself.

Shehzaad: No, I have zero confidence. That’s my problem. No confidence whatsoever. But Tyler is a great singer.

He is. But pretty much every time you compare yourself to someone else, you always talk about how they’re so much better.

Shehzaad: Well, it’s also intimidating because Pat plays in a band with Chris Colohan, from Burning Love. Every time me and Pat have practiced, I’ve told him I want to learn how to drum like Easton, from Burning Love, because he plays really hard and really fast. So we were playing this song called “Alien versus Creditor,” and the only reason I can even play it is because it’s way slower than their other songs. It’s tough. Every time I play it I get really out of breath. It’s a real workout. Vocally… We did the demos and Josh and I decided that I sound like a mix between the guys from North of America and Tim Harrington, from Les Savy Fav. Which is weird, because I was just trying to sound like Rick Froberg from Hot Snakes. But I guess I don’t really know what my voice sounds like yet.

Have you ever sung before?

Shehzaad: Yeah I’ve sung in bands before. But it’s been a really long time and I think I’ve grown up. My approach to singing has also kind of changed, and I’m trying to do it properly. I’m going to ask Jacquie from the Balconies to teach me how to sing properly one day.

Her vocal range is pretty amazing.

Shehzaad: Yeah, she’s amazing. If she’s my teacher, I’ll be able to be just as good as she is. Maybe. [laughs]

How are you feeling about Greys’ upcoming show?

Shehzaad: I almost don’t want the Arietta guys to be there, because I feel like if they don’t like it I’ll be really bummed. Especially Tyler and Brian.

Do you think they’ll tell you if they don’t like it?

Shehzaad: I hope so. [laughs] Sean hates everything, so I’m okay with him not liking it. But Tyler, Brian, and I have very similar tastes. Kyle will just care if the bass lines are sweet, so hopefully they’re sweet enough. But yeah. Those guys… They’re like older brothers to me. Singing in front of Tyler is going to be really intimidating. I was just really lucky to play in that band and I always felt like those guys were so good at everything that they did. And I know they scrutinize music, and I do too. But ultimately, it doesn’t really matter what anyone thinks. Just with those guys… I feel like I’m going to be tip-toeing around it because I want my older brothers to like what I’m doing.

So why Greys? The name Greys, I mean?

Shehzaad: It’s another word for aliens. I have kind of a weird fascination with outer space and aliens.

Do you believe in aliens?

Shehzaad: No. I mean, I don’t know. I guess. I feel like it would be a disappointment if aliens didn’t exist. I just thought it was an interesting and kind of ambiguous monosyllabic name that doesn’t necessarily tell you exactly what the band is about.

Well, the tag on Myspace says that you will be “Melting faces in various places.”

Shehzaad: [laughs] I think Cam might’ve written that. Which I imagine is what we do. It does melt faces.

– INTERVIEW AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY SAKINA SHAKIL