Partner, the Canadian duo of Josée Caron and Lucy Niles, have announced their new release out April 5, 2019. Entitled Saturday the 14th, it follows their 2017 debut, In Search of Lost Time which landed on NPR, Stereogum, Noisey, Exclaim, and CBC Music year end lists. Pre-order Saturday the 14th HERE.
Today, Partner is sharing the video for “Long and McQuade,” an ode to the Canadian music store chain. Watch the video HERE. The “Long and McQuade” single is also available on streaming services.
“We wanted to make a song for the musicians, and what experience is more relatable to a Canadian musician than going to Long and McQuade? The song just came out one day while we were talking about Long and McQuade and we liked singing it like Pearl Jam, so it stuck.” – Partner
Partner kicks off a US West Coast tour next month including a show at Noise Pop Fest in San Francisco.
USA & Canadian Tour Dates February 20 – Fox Cabaret, Vancouver BC* February 21 – The Queens, Nanaimo BC February 23 – Lucky Bar, Victoria BC February 24 – The Vera Project, Seattle WA* February 25 – Holocene, Portland OR* February 28 – The Hi Hat, Los Angeles CA* March 02 – The Crepe Place, Santa Cruz CA* March 03 – Noise Pop Fest, San Francisco CA* *co-headlining with Dude York
RIYL – AC/DC, The Breeders, Ween, Melissa Etheridge, Aerosmith
Partner is funny, but not a joke. Gay, but not for each other.
Partner is the “mature” effort of two best friends named Josée Caron and Lucy Niles. Borne of their fortuitous friendship, Partner confidently harnesses the infinite power of Rock to explore a variety of niche yet strangely universal themes.
The two met while attending Mount Allison University in small town Sackville, New Brunswick, on Canada’s East Coast.
The duo played in numerous Sackville bands together over their University years. Around mid 2014 the idea of Partner came to fruition.
Influenced by acts as varied as Tegan and Sara, Melissa Etheridge, Ween, kd lang, and Aerosmith, Partner delivers a refreshing and vital twist on a classic, prompting you to re-think what you thought was possible in Rock.
They released their debut album In Search of Lost Time in September 2017. The album made NPR’s All Songs Considered, Stereogum, Noisey, Exclaim, CBC Music, Indie 88 and many more Best of 2017 lists. The album was shortlisted for the Polaris Prize, and Partner were the recipients of the SOCANsongwriting prize for their song “Play the Field.”
Despite the success of In Search of Lost Time, Partner is committed to exploring and breaking down the limits of their minds in the name of Rock. Saturday the 14th represents the first steps towards a bold new future: the listener will find the band questioning the rules and questioning themselves, and, if they listen closely, a few tantalizing hints for what lies in store next.
Saturday the 14th will be released April 5, 2019 via You’ve Changed Records (CAN) and Father/Daughter Records (US).
Track Listing Partner – Saturday the 14th (April 5, 2019) Father/Daughter Records (US), You’ve Changed Records (CA) PRE-ORDER
1. Fun For Everyone (Minions) 2. Stoned Thought 3. Tell You Off 4. Long and McQuade 5. Les ailes d’un ange
Partner in the press:
“Listening to Partner is like hanging out with your best friends, assuming your best friends are queer Canadian stoners with hooks for days.” – Stereogum
“The best Canadian rock record of the year wasn’t made by Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene or Mac Demarco, but by two self-deprecating, 1990s-loving stoner best friends known as Partner. ” – Playboy
“…two young women from Canada, Joseé Caron and Lucy Niles, who write and record as Partner, put out the year’s best guitar rock album.” – NPR’s All Songs Considered
TOUR DATESFebruary 20 – Fox Cabaret, Vancouver BC* February 21 – The Queens, Nanaimo BC February 23 – Lucky Bar, Victoria BC February 24 – The Vera Project, Seattle WA*^ February 25 – Holocene, Portland OR*^ February 28 – The Hi Hat, Los Angeles CA*^ March 02 – The Crepe Place, Santa Cruz CA* March 03 – Noise Pop Fest, San Francisco CA*^ *w/ Dude York ^w/ Blushh
USA & Canadian Tour Dates
January 24 – Big Fun Festival, Winnipeg MB
February 20 – Fox Cabaret, Vancouver BC*
February 23 – Lucky Bar, Victoria BC
February 24 – The Vera Project, Seattle WA*
February 25 – Holocene, Portland OR*
February 28 – The Hi Hat, Los Angeles CA*
March 03 – Noise Pop Fest, San Francisco CA*
*co-headlining with Dude York
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Partner is the “mature” effort of two best friends named Josée Caron and Lucy Niles. Borne of their bizarre and fortuitous friendship, Partner confidently harnesses the infinite power of Rock to explore a variety of niche yet strangely universal themes. Self described as post-classic-rock.
The two met while attending Mount Allison University in Sackville NB. The duo played in numerous Sackville bands together over their University years (Yellowteeth and The Mouthbreathers). Around late 2014 the idea of Partner came to fruition.
Partner released their debut full length In Search Of Lost Time in September 2017 on You’ve Changed Records and received incredible critical acclaim including making the year end best of lists at NPR’s All Songs Considered, Stereogum, Playboy, Noisey, Exclaim, CBC Music, Indie 88 and many more. In Search Of Lost Time was also short listed for the Polaris Prize 2018 and Partner’s single “Play The Field” won the SOCAN Songwriting Prize 2018 ($10,000 prize!).
Partner have been named the “best new band in Canada” in the Globe and Mail. And taken their enthusiastic live show all over North America, touring in the USA with Shamir and PUP; and playing practically every Canadian festival (Field Trip, Hillside, Sled Island, Sappy Fest, Halifax Pop Explosion, Pop Montreal, Beau’s Oktoberfest, CMW, Folk On The Rocks and many more).
Influenced by acts as varied as Melissa Etheridge, Ween, kd lang and Prince, Partner is genre-defying, part musical act, part teenage diary and 100% queer
Partner in the press:
“Listening to Partner is like hanging out with your best friends, assuming your best friends are queer Canadian stoners with hooks for days.”
– Stereogum
“The best Canadian rock record of the year wasn’t made by Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene or Mac Demarco, but by two self-deprecating, 1990s-loving stoner best friends known as Partner. ”
– Playboy
“…two young women from Canada, Joseé Caron and Lucy Niles, who write and record as Partner, put out the year’s best guitar rock album.”
– NPR’s All Songs Considered
I’ve been listening to this psych-rock duo for years now, and they deserve to be better known to the world at large. O.D.D.S. II was a wild, crazy record with heavy fuzz, vocals covered in so much reverb as to make them almost incoherent, and a mix of live and electronic beats.
These Tuareg musicians make music for desert landscapes, yet it fits in anywhere you are. You could be in Antartica, the Amazon, or at the middle of Randolph and Michigan in downtown Chicago and this album’s haunting vocals and superb craftsmanship will make you feel your surroundings in a different way.
In a perfect world, this Detroit psych-rock trio are headlining music festivals. This album, heavily influenced by a near-death experience shared by all three members during a flight to Greece, is their trippiest so far and might be the best Velvet Underground album never released.
This is probably the best debut album of 2017. Josee Caron and Lucy Niles come out guns-a-blazin’ with this fine piece of power pop that contains heavy riffs, fun lyrics, and razor sharp song craft. It’s loud and proud.
RIDE came back this year with one of the best albums, shoegaze or otherwise, I’d heard in a long time. Shoegaze is enjoying a great resurgence right now, and it’s due in part to albums like this. It’s a stunning piece and a record we didn’t realize how badly it was needed until we heard it.
I’ve arrived at the end of my live music year for 2017. I saw over 60 performances this year, and the majority of them were a fun time. There were some that might’ve had lame crowds or that just didn’t thrill me, of course, but 2017 was good for live music. To save time (and my sanity and your patience), I’m counting the top 30 live shows I saw this year. Here are the first five.
I’ll see APTBS at any opportunity, and seeing this set where they opened for the Black Angels was a no-brainer for me. It was also the first time they played Thalia Hall, and they sounded great in there. I was lucky enough to chat with front man Oliver Ackermann before and after (along with the rest of the band – Dion Lunadon and Lia Braswell) the set, so that made the show extra special.
Joe Walsh had a fun time opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. He joked with the sold-out crowd, played every hit you’d want to hear at one of his gigs, and had a huge, excellent backing band. He also showed that he could still shred on guitar, and his performance of “Take It to the Limit” brought my wife to tears.
The last show I saw this year turned out to be a delightful night with bossa nova legend Bebel Gilberto. It was a lovely set in an intimate venue. Everyone needs to see Ms. Gilberto at least once, and hear her often.
If you’re in a band, I wish you could’ve seen Bleached with me twice within six months because you’d have seen a perfect example of how to step up your game. This show, which had them opening for the Damned, was the second time I’d seen them in that time period. The first was at a gig in Cleveland in October 2016. I thought they were good then, but this performance left me gobsmacked. They’d become tighter and stronger in just half a year. It had been at least a couple years since I saw so much improvement in one band.
This was Partner‘s first gig in Chicago, and one of their first in the United States. Shame on you if you missed it, because they are now indie rock darlings and their debut album, In Search of Lost Time, is one of the best of 2017. This show was an absolute home run and wowed everyone there.
Tour Dates:
(current 2017) December 08 – El Club, Detroit MI* December 09 – The Drake, Toronto ON* December 10 – Le Belmont, Montreal QC* December 11 – Great Scott, Allston MA* December 14 – Elsewhere, Brooklyn NY* December 15 – U Street Music Hall, Washington DC* December 16 – First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia PA*
ANNOUNCING
2018
January 17 – The Slice, Lethbridge AB^ January 18 – Revival, Regina SK (Winterruption)^ January 19 – Amigos, Saskatoon SK (Winterruption)^ January 20 – The Rec Room, Edmonton AB^ January 21 – Big Winter Classic, Calgary AB^
January 25 – MOTR, Cincinnati OH January 26 – Empty Bottle, Chicago IL January 27 – Founders Brewery, Grand Rapids MI
February 02 – This Ain’t Hollywood, Hamilton ON
March 13 – 17 – SXSW, Austin TX
May 11 – Focus Wales, Wrexham UK May 17-19 – The Great Escape, Brighton UK
*w/ Shamir ^w/ Duchess Says
**More dates to be announced soon
Ahead of their joint Canadian Prairie Winter tour, Partner team up with Montrealers Duchess Says to curate a SpotifyWinter playlist to get you in the mood, shared by Exclaimhere.
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RIYL – Weezer, AC/DC, The Breeders, Ween, Beavis & Butthead
Debut album In Search of Lost Time mixed by Grammy award winner Chris Shaw (Weezer, Public Enemy, Sum 41).
Partner is the “mature” effort of two best friends named Josée Caron and Lucy Niles. Borne of their bizarre and fortuitous friendship, Partner confidently harnesses the infinite power of Rock to explore a variety of niche yet strangely universal themes. Self described as post-classic-rock.
The two met while attending Mount Allison University in small town Sackville, New Brunswick, on Canada’s East Coast. The duo played in numerous Sackville bands together over their University years (Yellowteeth, The Mouthbreathers and the aptly named hardcore band Go Get Fucked). Around late 2014 the idea of Partner came to fruition.
Influenced by acts as varied as Melissa Etheridge, Ween, kd lang, and Prince, Partner delivers a refreshing and vital twist on a classic, prompting you to re-think what you thought was possible in Rock.
Partner relocated to Windsor ON at the beginning of 2016. After a freakishly productive year of writing, recording, and touring, Partner have released their debut to the world, titled In Search of Lost Time (September 08, 2017). Their enthusiastic and action-packed live set has led to them being named the “best new band in Canada” in the Globe and Mail.
Partner is genre-defying and terrifying: part musical act, part teenage diary, and 100% queer.
In Search of Lost Time isn’t the first music released by Canadian rock outfit Partner. They’ve released multiple excellent singles (i.e., “The Ellen Page” and “Personal Weekend”), and founding members Josee Caron (vocals and lead guitar) Lucy Niles (vocals and rhythm guitar), and Kevin Brasier (bass) already had Canadian indie rock scene credentials with their former bands Mouthbreathers and Go Get Fucked (possibly the best band name ever). So it isn’t surprising that their first full-length record is witty, full of hooks, and one of the best pop-punk albums I’ve heard in a long while.
“Everybody Knows” starts the album with squealing, heavy guitar riffs and brings in a favorite subject of Partner’s – the goofy things that happen when one is high. Caron sings about freaking out in the grocery store while in a euphoric quest for chips. Niles sings about getting high while waiting for a friend and then realizing she can’t hide the fact that she “sparked another one” while waiting on the friend’s porch. Oh yeah, Caron’s guitar solo on this will leave you stunned.
Niles’ guitar on “Comfort Zone” (a song about the joys of slacking) reminds me of Television riffs. “Gross Secret,” with its sharp guitar work and dual vocals from Caron and Niles, reminds me of Sleater-Kinneyif Sleater-Kinney would relax a bit now and then. “Angels from Ontario” is about a perfect pop-punk love song you’ll ever hear. The hooks and beat are instantly infectious and it bursts with enough energy to fill an opera house.
Caron reveals her love of shows like Judge Judy and The Maury Povich Show on “Daytime TV.” Niles sings about the dangers of snooping in your roommate’s room on “Sex Object.” “Ambassador to Ecstasy” is a solid rocker about trying to woo a hot girl and the possible complications that can come with such an endeavor.
“Play the Field” is a fun song about having a crush on a hot female athlete and contains what might be my favorite lyric of 2017 from Lucy Niles – “…to see you in your sports bra, though, just might change my life.” “You Don’t Have to Say Thank You” is, without question, the sexiest song on the record as Caron tells her lover she doesn’t have to thank her for an amazing night since “your pleasure is my delight.” Zowie! As if that weren’t enough to sell you on it, wait until you hear the wall-flattening guitars and drums (from Toronto indie rock drumming legend Simone TB).
“Creature in the Sun,” a song about the joys of mindfulness, might be my favorite cut on the record. It’s somewhere between new wave, post-punk, pop-punk, and spaghetti western music. I guarantee that if you hear this on the radio or in a wrecka stow, you will instantly stop and think, “Who is this?” The 1990’s alt-rock vibe is heavy on “Remember This,” which isn’t surprising when you consider the album was mixed by Chris Shaw who has worked with Weezer and Ween (among many others).
The closer, “Woman of Dreams,” has Caron and Niles pining for a lovely lady but realizing the best they can do about it (for now, at least) is write a song about her. It reminds me of Fountains of Wayne‘s harder tracks with its punchy hooks and clever lyrics.
I haven’t even mentioned the sketches, which include various goofy telephone conversations with photographers, Caron’s father, and others. I’ll let you discover those on your own.
This is one of those albums that will reveal new stuff to you every time you hear it – a drum fill, a wicked guitar lick, a funny lyric, etc. I don’t know if Partner will get back the time they’re searching for, but they didn’t waste any making this record. It won’t waste your time either.
Keep your mind open.
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Official Statement
“A comfort zone does not have to be a place. A comfort zone is whatever makes you feel at ease. It can be a person, an object, a sensation. No two comfort zones are the same. We recognize that we have had the privilege and good fortune to experience comfort in a way that unfortunately eludes many. We feel that everyone deserves to feel the relief, however fleeting, that is offered by a comfort zone. We recognize that most people spend the majority of their time outside their comfort zones, and with this song we hope to express our belief that everyone deserves to feel comfortable and safe.
Whatever, wherever, whoever your comfort zone may be, it is our hope that you are able to access it as often as is necessary. Love and respect” – Partner
QUOTES
“Ontario-by-way-Sackville band Partner is one of the most exciting and brightest hopes for rock and roll in Canada.”
– Noisey
“Inspiring Canadian duo with a fetish for cold truth and hard riffs… ”
– Clash Magazine RIYL – Weezer, PWR BTTM, Melissa Etheridge, Ween, Beavis & Butthead
Mixed by Grammy award winner Chris Shaw (Weezer, Public Enemy, Sum 41). Video directed by Colin Medley.
Partner is the “mature” effort of small town lesbians Josée Caron and Lucy Niles. Borne of their bizarre and fortuitous friendship, Partner boldly goes where few have even desired to go, moving effortlessly from topics like sex objects and gross secrets to more serious themes like intimacy, friendship, and existential unease.
Partner marries feminism and stadium rock riffage to produce a sound as queer as they are, and their arrival on the scene couldn’t be more timely: “Partner’s music is like what early 00s pop punk would be like if it was mixed with a reverence for classic rock era guitar solos. But unlike that generation’s insistence of straight white dude figureheads that traded a sense of humour for self-righteousness, Partner’s songs are funny as hell.”
After a freakishly productive year of writing, recording and touring, Partner are releasing a first single “Comfort Zone” to kick off 2017. Their enthusiastic and action-packed live set has led to them being named the “best new band in Canada” in the Globe and Mail, and although “Partner hasn’t even released an album yet, [watching] one of their sets, it’s clear right away that they’ve arrived fully formed.” Influenced by acts as varied as Ween, Weezer, Neil Young, and Sum 41, Partner promises to make you question everything you thought you knew about rock ‘n’ roll.
Tour Dates: March 30 – Tender Trap, Brooklyn NY USA April 01 – House of Targ, Ottawa ON (Juno Fest) April 14 – Phog Lounge, Windsor ON April 20 – The Casbah, Hamilton ON April 22 – Long Boat Hall at the Great Hall, Toronto ON (CMW) June 14 – Palais des Congrès, Montréal QC (Mondial de la bière) June 15 – Saw Gallery, Ottawa ON (Ottawa Explosion)
Josee Caron and Lucy Niles, otherwise known as Partner, were kind enough to sit down for an interview in the Schuba’sgreen room before their first-ever appearance in Chicago on January 22nd. I learned about the origin of their band’s name, their love of pop music, that Josee Caron has a delightful laugh, that Lucy Niles has a mischievous smile (and is willing to destroy a coffee table to open a bottle of beer if necessary), and more.
7th Level Music: I discovered the two of you when I almost got to go to [Chicago’s] Riot Fest last year.
Lucy Niles: We almost got to go, too.
7LM: I was researching bands, and you were the second band I looked up.
LN: Oh, nice.
7LM: I heard “The ‘Ellen’ Page” and went, “Holy cow, I have to see these ladies,” and after that I found “Hot Knives” and I thought, “Yeah, I have to track these ladies down.”
LN: You found them.
Josee Caron(laughing): You were sold.
7LM: Yeah, two songs in and I was in.
7LM: So it fell through and I couldn’t make it to Riot Fest, but then I found out you two couldn’t make it either. I’m sorry you couldn’t make it.
JC: It’s all good. The visas were delayed. There were a bunch of applications and the processing time just took longer, but we used that time to find who was going to mix the album and stuff. We took that week to finish the record and got it sent off, so it was really a blessing in disguise.
7LM: When’s the record coming out?
JC: We don’t really know.
LN: We’re looking for…(looks at Josee, and then points at a mini-fridge) Actually, you go. I’m going to grab one of these beers.
[Lucy will spend the next few minutes attempting to open a bottle of said beer without a bottle opener since one (for reasons unknown) wasn’t in the green room.]
JC: We’re looking for an American label to help us put it out. We’re kind of working behind the scenes right now. Everything’s done. It just needs to be mastered. It’s mixed by a guy named Chris Shaw. He is known for working a lot with Ween, and he mixed the “blue album” by Weezer. We wanted our guitars to sound kind of similar. We don’t know when it’s going to come out, but sometime this year, likely the fall.
7LM: [And] I found a great clip of you two in Go Get Fucked.
LN: Oh wow! Where did you find that?
JC (almost rolling with laughter): What?
7LM: You were playing at some deli or something.
JC (still laughing): Yes!That is crazy!
LN: Who posted that? I thought our friend was the only one who had that! That’s awesome.
7LM: It was hysterical.It was a set where, Lucy, you dropped a drumstick halfway through it and kept going. I thought, “That’s the greatest thing.”
LN: Yeah. That was a long time ago.
7LM: The name alone is amazing.
LN: That’s sweet.
JC: That’s how it all started, actually.
LN: That’s when we were younger.
JC: We were younger. We had a lot of energy.
LN: We used to get drunk three times a week and practice. Actually, [touring bassist] Kevin was in that band, too.
7LM: I’m really intrigued with how you settled on the name Partner. I didn’t know if you approached it from the noun or the verb, as in to partner or team up with someone.
JC: Definitely the noun.
LN: It was kind of an elaborate joke. We were kind of making fun of “normy” adults.
JC: We both worked at cafes and lots of the people there were like, “My partner…” It was a word that we heard a lot. To describe our relationship, we’re not partners.
LN: We thought it was funny because we’re not partners. Obviously everyone thinks that we are, but we’re not.
JC: So it’s very tongue-in-cheek.
7LM: I was going to ask you to finish this sentence: If we had two bucks for every time someone thought we were a couple, we could buy…
LN: A lot of weed.
[Laughter erupts.]
7LM: I figured it was something like that.
LN: I guess we could buy some other stuff, but that’s probably what we would buy.
JC: We just love the word, because we have partners. It’s just tongue-in-cheek because we’ve never…
LN: My tongue in your cheek?
[More laughter erupts.]
7LM: Tell me about the five-piece, because you’re touring as a five-piece, right?
LN: Yeah. We’ve got Kevin [who] plays bass and he also does a lot of administrative work. Brendan plays drums and does most of the driving. Dan plays third guitar, and he’s a great bandmate. We’ve had various other friends of ours fill in, and that’s pretty much our core group right now, but we keep it open if one of them can’t make it then we have other people who know the songs.
JC: This is our solid touring line-up. We all moved to Windsor together.
7LM: Is this your first tour in the U.S.?
LN: Yeah.
7LM: How’s it going so far? I know this stop was fairly early.
LN: Great.
[Lucy manages to knock the cap off the bottle of beer by banging it on the edge of a coffee table, forcing her to chug most of said beer before it spills all over the floor. She then attempts to open one for Josee in the same manner, but all of us decide she needs to save her hand – and teeth – “until we can get group insurance,” says Josee.]
7LM: Where are you off to after this?
JC: We’re just doing three dates, still getting our feet wet.
LN: We did Hamtramck (Michigan), which was awesome.
7LM: Was it good, then?
JC: It was awesome.
LN: It was so great. We ate delicious pizza.
JC: We played a little record-book shop called Lo and Behold.
LN: With a bunch of really cool, like-minded folks. It was pretty crazy. It was the night after the election, so we were pretty interested to go and see what everyone had to say. [There] were a lot of queer kids and queer kids of color who had a lot of interesting input. The next day we played Kalamazoo, which was awesome. The American punk scene is pretty cool to be observing.
7LM: I was going to ask you two about bands up your way that you think people should know about.
LN: A lot of our friends have sweet bands. [Looking at Josee] Who’s a good active band right now?
LN: We love this band from Winnipeg called Trampoline. Our friends have so many cool bands. I’m going to forget someone. Protruders are cool right now. Our friends are always starting good bands.
JC: We’re from Sackville in New Brunswick. A lot of our friends’ bands started there.
LN: It was like a snowball effect. There were a lot of people that happened to be playing in bands, and then everyone who didn’t play music started playing music because everyone else was doing it. It was very accessible, and there’s not that shitty, macho vibe to the punk scene at all. It’s very inclusive in Sackville.
7LM: I’d heard that you guys had a really collaborative thing going up there.
JC: Yeah.
LN: We had fairly limited resources, but the resources that were there were awesome. We’d share gear, share a shed, and take advantage of the radio station. Everyone had a lot of energy. [It’s] a beautiful spot.
JC: Yeah, we’re really lucky to have art all the time there.
7LM: Are there any bands that your fans might be surprised to find you’re influenced by?
JC: Yeah.
LN: Our fans would probably be surprised by most of the things we like. We don’t really listen to cool music anymore. We’re really into exploring super bizarre music, and not necessarily cool bizarre music.
JC: Yeah, I listen to music for different reasons. I got different things out of it. I listen to a lot of pop music. I love to do research and listen to really good songs. I really love Rihanna. Anti is such a great album, obviously.
LN: All the best albums last year, in my opinion, were the mainstream popular albums. What a crazy year for music! Beyonce, Solange, Frank Ocean, all that shit. So crazy, so good, so much more avant-garde than most punk music, I find.
JC: We’re really excited about that.
LN: We love mainstream music, and really not mainstream music.
JC: We’re constantly in pursuit of true expression, unfettered self-expression.
LN: Sometimes really weird or bad-sounding synth, but when you can tell it’s exactly the statement someone wanted to make…
JC: Yeah, we’re really into exploring that.
7LM: I always say that as long as it’s good, I’ll listen to it.
LN: Sometimes when it’s not good, we’ll listen to it.
JC: As long as it’s pure.
7LM: Do you have any favorite misheard versions of your lyrics? Do people come up to you and say things like, “I love your song ‘Hot Wives?'”
LN: All our wives are hot!
JC (laughing): Hot Wives!
LN: There’s probably some good ones.
JC: People have trouble hearing the words because most of our stuff is live. We don’t have a lot of content, so people don’t really have the opportunity to mishear anything. It’s just a mess anyway.
LN: We try to be as audible as possible.
JC: So they can hear all our punchlines.
7LM: Lucy, who do people say you look like?
LN (pointing at Josee): So she’s Ellen Page, obviously. I’ve gotten [Dinosaur Jr.’s] J. Mascis. I think it’s the hair and the glasses. People say that I look like my sister sometimes.
JC: Yeah, you really do, and your Mom.
7LM: I get Christopher Walken a lot.
LN: You look like this guy Anthony we know.
JC: Yeah! From the cafe!
LN: She looks like a kid from a horror movie, the Ring girl.
JC: When I used to have long hair. That used to really bug me, but I’ve embraced it now.
7LM: You should rock that. Easy Halloween costume.
JC: Yeah, start a goth group.
7LM: I’m not sure if you’ve done this, but if you go to Google and type in “Partner band,” one of the most common things to come up is this exercise…
JC: Yeah, the partner band!
LN: Yeah!
7LM: So what’s your favorite weird exercise?
LN: We should start doing that. We should start exercising.
7LM: That’s a whole video right there.
JC: We’re going to start getting into dance soon. Lucy has a more natural talent for it. It’s going to be a steep learning curve for me
LN (nearly doing a spit take): Because I learned that dance last week? A friend one day taught me this line dance to “Chattahoochee.”
JC: I was pretty impressed.
LN: It’s pretty sick. I’ll teach it to you.
7LM: Where can people go to find your stuff? Your Bandcamp page, obviously…
JC: On my Dad’s YouTube channel, TheStones1965, you can find tons of bootleg vids of our live performances that I did not give him permission to post.
LN: We do have a Twitter, and we also have an Instagram. You should absolutely check it.
JC: It’s all partner_band across the board. You can find us there and send us messages.
LN: And failing that, you can catch us wherever we’re playing.
JC: We’re going to go shoot a video for the first track that we’re going to release off the LP. We’re going to film that in February and it should be out in March or April.
7LM: Will it involve elastic bands?
JC: No. Hell no.
LN: It’s called “Comfort Zone,” so we won’t be exercising.
7LM: One last thing about the new record, was it you two in the studio playing everything?
LN: No, that was our original dream. Our EP is all us.
JC: Yeah, so everything you’ve heard is all us.
LN: I played drums, she played guitar, and we both played bass. [On] our new record, we had our friend Simone TV play drums. She’s a big Toronto drummer in tons and tons of different cool bands, Kevin played bass, I played guitar, and Josee played fifty more guitars.
7LM (motioning toward Josee): I caught of video of you rockin’ a double neck.
LN: We might have the double neck tonight.
7LM: Double neck guitars, and if a band has Orange amps it’s going to be a rockin’ show.
JC: We don’t own amps. We’ve gotten this far not owning any amps.
7LM: Wow! Nicely done.
JC: Well, Lucy owns one. It was her graduation present.
LN: My Dad bought it for me for graduating. Thanks, Dad. Well, we’ve got a hundred dollar Peavey amp.
JC: It’s communally owned.
LN: Brandon has a lot of gear in his basement, and that’s where we practice. We really depend on our friends.
JC: And other bands. Shout out to all the bands who have ever helped us.
[Shout out to Mar Sellars for setting up this interview and getting me press credentials.]
I was happy to learn just a couple weeks ago that Canadian pop-punk band Partnerwere playing at Schuba’s. I wanted to see Partner at Chicago’s Riot Fest last year, but my plans (and theirs) to attend fell through and I couldn’t make the festival.
I was still able to catch them on only the third show they’ve played in the U.S., however, and shame on you if you weren’t there.
First up were local post-punks So Pretty, who were like a combination of X-Ray Spex, Witch Mountain, and Bikini Kill. Guitarist / co-lead vocalist Rachel Manter unleashed vocal fury at our new President on “Progress,” lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist Ashley Holman screamed about wanting to be “punk rock royalty” on “Blueberry Blues,” and they got funky on “Limbo” (with bassist James Seminara on vocals).
So Pretty
Next up was another local band – Faux Furrs. They played a neat mix of shoegaze, surf, Americana, and dream pop. There were songs about everything from robots falling in love to building a colony on the moon. They had a clean, crisp sound that’s hard to pull off live.
Faux Furrs
Partner closed the show, and told me before their set that they hoped everyone would like it. Kevin, their bassist for the tour, said they were very happy about the number of people there. The people there were happy they showed up because Partner knocked their first Chicago show out of the park. Seriously. You will be upset that you missed this show when Partner become the Next Big Thing out of Canada.
Partner
Opening with “Born to Rock,” and proceeding to blast Schuba’s harder than a New Brunswick blizzard, Partner ripped through soon-to-be big hits like “Personal Weekend” and “Hot Knives.” “The ‘Ellen’ Page” is better live than you can imagine. Other fun moments were “Gross Secret,” “Everybody Knows You’re High,” and “Sex Thing.”
A typical day at the office for Josee Caron and Lucy Niles.
One of the best parts of Partner’s set was their reaction when it was finished. They were humbled at the outpouring of praise from everyone afterwards and elated that their first foray into the States had been full of great audiences.
“That wasn’t even the full album (which, hopefully, is coming this fall),” Josee Caron told me after their set. “We’ve got about fifty songs.”
Let’s hope for more stuff soon. They’ve whet our appetites and left us craving more. Again, you’re going to regret missing this show.
There are enough power chords in this photo to jump start a Ford F250 pick-up.
Keep your mind open.
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