Interview: Tom McGreevy
A Conversation About The Latest Ducks Ltd. Album, 'Harm's Way'
With Harm’s Way, Ducks Ltd. has unleashed an impressive collection of jangly, chiming guitar pop shot through with dark themes and more than a few bleak observations.
It creates a delicious dissonance that gives the Toronto-based songwriting duo of Tom McGreevy (vocals/bass/guitar) and Evan Lewis (lead guitar) a unique voice that channels ‘80s British energy while pushing the genre forward at a manic pace.
For proof, look not further than the album’s cinematic centerpiece, “Train Full of Gasoline.” The title alone is packed with potent imagery which is only strengthened by the songs strummed momentum and metaphorical lyrics:
There's always
Another dagger hidden in the sleeve
Another bullet in the magazine
A way to get yourself set
Up to roll back
Down that same long track
Set up to explode
Like a train full of gasoline
“A friend had told me about the Lac Megantic rail disaster in Quebec. Essentially a train loaded with crude oil rolled down a hill and exploded in a town,” McGreevy told me for the interview below.
“The more I read about it the more it seemed like something that happened because of a series of small errors, each of them completely out of proportion with the disaster they precipitated. I thought that was an apt metaphor for a lot of human folly. The way that problems left untended often manifest in other areas in unexpected ways.”
I caught up with McGreevy by email as Ducks Ltd. wrapped up a North American tour and prepared for a run of May/June shows in Europe/UK.
Tom McGreevy Interview
Congrats on the great new album. How did your approach to this one differ from Modern Fiction? How collaborative was the songwriting process for Harm's Way?
Tom McGreevy: I think it was roughly the same in terms of the songwriting process. I tend to write the basic frame of a song and then me and Evan work together to figure out how to make the details work and how to build an arrangement. There's some variation within that formula, but that's how most of them come together.
The two guitar stabs and chiming intro to "Hollowed Out" are pretty triumphant. Did you always imagine that one opening the album?
Tom McGreevy: We didn't. We actually kind of had a hard time sequencing this record and then putting that song at the beginning kind of unlocked it.
Likewise, the first verse has some pointedly dark lyrics that leave no doubt what the song—and much of the album—is about. When you're writing, do you usually start with the lyrics or the music first?
Tom McGreevy: It's kind of a mix. The lyrics are definitely the hardest part, and the thing that I finish last. I'm normally editing them right up until the moment I track the vocals. Sometimes I have an idea for a lyric that leads me into writing a song, and sometimes there's a melodic idea that I build around.
The album has frantic energy from "Hollowed Out" straight through to the penultimate track "Harm's Way," which is a highlight for me. Did you go into the album intending to create a collection of songs with so much forward momentum?
Tom McGreevy: It's sort of our natural inclination I think. We tend to always want the songs to move faster. Often when we're starting the process of working on a new song the first thing we do is figure out how fast I'm capable of playing the rhythm guitar part, and then we work from that tempo.
The pace doesn't really let up until the ninth and final track, "Heavy Bag," a pretty song that almost acts as a decompression chamber. Was that by design? Did you take a different approach to writing that one?
Tom McGreevy: We did take a different approach to that song. I think we were feeling like we've refined how our instincts work as songwriters and arrangers to a point where it felt like it would be worthwhile to try to push against them. It took us longer to figure out than a lot of the other songs for that reason, but definitely felt like we discovered some new ways a Ducks song could work.
In terms of where it is on the album, I think we just felt it was the only place it could go. It was hard to figure out how to come back from it!
You guys have been on the road supporting the new album. Are there certain Harm's Way songs that you feel resonate with crowds?
Tom McGreevy: I think we're still finding that out to some extent, though I have noticed the phones go up during "Deleted Scenes," which is cool to see. I always liked that one and was a little sad that it didn't end up as a single, so it's been neat to see it find its audience.
If I got into the tour van with you, what would I be listening to?
Tom McGreevy: Depends on the day and probably who is driving. One of my favorite tour listens is the Jokermen podcast. Evan's been listening to a lot of old country lately.
I am probably more likely to put on more recent records, but it's a pretty broad spectrum. The last thing we listened to the last time we were all in a car together was the first side of the Yes album Close To The Edge.
One of the best albums of the year. And, yes, "Deleted Scenes" is a great song and was awesome live in L.A.