The Wayback Machine

Hail Voyagers! Time once again to bend the fabric of time! Today's guest has seen through the warp & weft and eschewed any implied rules, (much like Jens Lindberg), and shows us the mischievous side to his imagination!

Our guest's story begins, for our purposes, back in 1997. A band formed called the Datsons, then renamed the Datson Four, (when Australia's Datsuns began garnering some punch and notoriety).

In 2003 a new name: The High Dials! Since then they've released two albums and two EPs, the last being 2005's War of the Wakening Phantoms, a brilliant & original slice of our favorite sounds. Tim Sendra of AMG had this to say:

"(they)...open up their sound to include more modern reference points like the Stone Roses, the '90s shoegaze sound, and, somewhat inevitably, new wave. The extra layers of influences free the High Dials from the past, and they magically end up sounding like no one but themselves for the most part. Sure, you can still spot references at times, but they are less obvious — a little Kitchens of Distinction here (in the hazy walls of guitars on "Strandhill Sands"), a dab of Moose there (the shoegaze & western slide guitar on "Master of the Clouds," the plucked acoustic guitar on "Lucifer's Dream"), and some classic Ride all around ("Sick with the Old Fire," "Higher and Brighter"). Best of all, there is almost no Who to be found anywhere, but there are soaring vocal harmonies, waves of guitars, and gloriously free and easy-sounding songs — like "Our Time Is Coming Soon," "A River Haunting" (which features some wonderfully corny-sounding synth washes), the epic ballad "Your Eyes Are a Door," and "The Holy Ground," a pounding rocker that opens the album with a biff bang pow! — that overflow with a joyous energy that's surprising on first listen and heart-warming on the next 20. It is always fun when bands reinvent themselves, mostly because they usually botch the job and become laughingstocks, but the High Dials do the nearly impossible and make the makeover work for them in the most delightful way."

Hailed widely by critics and fans alike, (this one especially), I'm still hypnotized by the overall flow of the album. And by the time we get to "Your Eyes Are A Door" I'm in full-on headphone bliss..! (Goes well with the annual Perseids, too!)

So, without further bluster and blather, time travelers....welcome Trevor Anderson of Montreal's The High Dials!



So, where does this creative visionary want to go?

The premise: You've been given a one-time opportunity to use The Wayback Machine; what band would you like to see, in what year, and what song would you most want to see them play?

Trevor: Today I would most love to see the Velvet Underground in New York with their original line up in '65 or '66, doing a 40-minute version of "Venus in Furs" with viola and alternately-tuned guitar turned to 11.

But it would be great if we could make a few stops. What's the hurry? It's a time machine! We could still get it back early and avoid late fees.

The return journey would have stops for a top notch booze up with the Faces, then the Beatles in Hamburg, and the Stone Roses in the second summer of love in Manchester. Also, there would be a quick detour to London in '67 to drop in on Jimi Hendrix's debut and the 14-hour technicolour dream just around dawn as Pink Floyd take the stage.

(Editor: I told you. "...shiny shiny...shiny boots of leather..")



....and, returning:



The High Dials are currently working on their new album, Moon Country,to be released in Canada, this August or September, with worldwide distribution to follow as soon as some lucky label(s) jump on this! Trip Inside This House promises to keep you posted on developments. It's what we do.

Thank you Trevor!