On The Verge

Plants and Animals

Montreal, Quebec
The Indie-Jam Border
www.plantsandanimals.ca

When the Montreal-based indie rock band Plants and Animals released its debut record Parc Avenue, the band knew that both jamband and indie fans would dig its sound. “Typically in the indie world, it hasn’t been hip to be a jamband,” says lead singer and guitarist Warren Spicer over a steaming cup of coffee. “But you know what? Who cares, it doesn’t really make a difference to us.” On Parc Avenue, the trio (which is rounded out by drummer/vocalist Matthew “Woody” Woodley and multi-instrumentalist Nicolas Basque ) captured the wildly diverse sounds of Montreal, Quebec through progressive, multi-sectional songs, tender ballads and heavy jams. In contrast, Spicer says the band’s more recent release La La Land is the band’s “least jammy stuff,” though it still nods to its neighbors with cameos from The Slip’s Brad Barr and members of the Arcade Fire horn section. Rest assured that the band will continue to stretch out live. “Things are tight and narrow on the record but will be extended during live sets.”