Halifax Escape Artists Century Egg Talk Embracing Change on New EP "Little Piece of Hair"
Halifax four-piece Century Egg are putting Atlantic Canada on the map with their beaming fusion of garage rock and mandopop. The band recently announced signing to hometown label Forward Music Group in anticipation of their EP Little Piece of Hair , out this coming Friday, May 7th, 2021. Just like their namesake, Little Piece of Hair is long-awaited, with the promise to delight and leave a lasting impression. Opening with blitzing pop-punk shaker “Do You Want To Dance?”, Little Piece of Hair reminisces shoulder-to-shoulder bopping at your favourite venue on a Saturday night.
Coming hot on the heels of their recent collaboration with Debaser's Mood Ring ("The world’s tiniest and most introspective music recommendation engine") and the We Can Play EP, Little Piece of Hair is the band’s loudest, clearest mission statement to date, marking another exciting addition to Forward Music's recent run of releases alongside Wolf Castle and Paper Beat Scissors. Boasting a new rhythm section of bassist, Matty Grace (she/they) and Meg Yoshida (she/her) on drums, Century Egg is a band reborn whilst still incorporating the dance-punk bliss of previous Egg outings, only bolder, brighter, and harder-hitting.
We got the chance to connect with Century Egg on the importance of creative outlets, managing band dynamics while writing songs over email, and their plans following the release of Little Piece of Hair. Read our full interview below!
Zoë Argiropulos-Hunter for Also Cool: Hey Century Egg! Thank you so much for chatting with Also Cool. To start, you've been described as escape artists: How do you achieve this way of being through your creative outlook and how did this come into play when producing Little Piece of Hair?
Century Egg: We’re four individuals with full-time obligations, and the band is just one of our creative outlets. Our band gives us a chance to temporarily take a break from reality, but also reflect on it and bring something back to it. We are all artists in our own right, and the band is a way to collaborate and express our appreciation for each others’ art.
Also Cool: In that vein, escaping isn't always about running away, right? It can also describe setting oneself free, or embracing change. On Little Piece of Hair, you've commented that the songs are about "finding yourself." What inspired that concept for this album, and how did it come together?
Century Egg: When the songs arrived, they just spilled out. They can be coping mechanisms, they can be power fantasies, or else just about processing what’s going on right now.
AC: On that note of embracing change, you’ve introduced a new rhythm section in your latest lineup — during a pandemic no less! How have these additions impacted the project?
CE: Different people bring different experiences to the band, and it is a much more collaborative process now. Each person brings something to the table that may not have previously been introduced due to our varied influences. Specifically our song “无路可退” (“Cornered”) was created over email. Matty (she/they) wrote the bassline first, before Megumi (she/her) added her drum parts, before Robert (he/him) and Shane (she/her) finalized the arrangement. This was done totally over email during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and brought about a newer darker sound that may not have come forth if the circumstances were different.
Century Egg, photo courtesy of the band
AC: Something I’m always curious to ask about is how artists are influenced by their physical environment and surrounding community. Has Halifax and it's music scene had any particular impressions on this album specifically?
CE: Maybe not necessarily Halifax, but the global landscape and the state of the world have definitely had an impact on Century Egg as a band, and it has come through in our writing. Ultimately the Halifax music scene has been predominantly white, cis and straight. We are not that. We embrace our diversities and look to encourage this growth within our scene.
AC: To end off, how are you planning to celebrate this release, and what can we expect from Century Egg in the coming months?
CE: For starters, we have two upcoming music videos that will be released in the coming months for “Do You Want to Dance?” and “Little Piece of Hair.” Sadly, we had planned a bit of a record release show — as we were invited to play Flourish Festival in Fredericton, New Brunswick — but now will be attending remotely via a pre-recorded live set, as our corner of the world has collapsed on itself a little bit. We are looking forward to playing shows the moment we can, but for the time being, we have to embrace and navigate our restrictions and look to plan for the future. This includes trying to reach new audiences via the internet and working on a full length LP that will hopefully see the light of day in 2022. Change was going to come one way or another anyway.
LITTLE PIECE OF HAIR
Out via Forward Music Group May 7, 2021
1. Do You Want To Dance?
2. I Will Make Up A Method
3. Ring A Bell
4. Little Piece of Hair
5. Riddle To Place
6. Cornered
Written by Century Egg:
Shane Keyu Song (she/her), Robert Drisdelle (he/him), Matty Grace (she/they) and Meg Yoshida (she/her)
Recorded by Franc Lopes at Ocean Floor
Mixed by Robert Drisdelle
Mastered by Dave Williams at Eight Floors Above
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