At Mount Zoomer
Encyclopedia
At Mount Zoomer, the second full length LP
from the Canadian
indie rock
band Wolf Parade
, was released on June 17, 2008.
euphemism for magic mushrooms and a nod to Montreal band, A Silver Mount Zion." The LP was originally meant to be entitled Kissing the Beehive
; however, due to possible copyright infringements in relation to Jonathan Carroll
's 1997 novel of the same name, the album's title was changed. Spencer Krug said they "didn't know that was the title of a book... We might have to change it, but we might not. And we'll have to make it clear that it's not [named] after his book. It's a complicated situation." It had also been reported earlier by Blender Magazine that the record was entitled Pardon My Blues; however, on April 28, Sub Pop Records officially announced that the album's name would be At Mount Zoomer.
According to singer Dan Boeckner
, half of the album was recorded in Farnham
, Quebec
at Arcade Fire's Petite Église, an old church that was converted to a recording studio for the production of Neon Bible. After touring the east coast in late 2007, Wolf Parade recorded the rest of the album at MIXart Studios in Montreal, Canada
.. Afterwards, the album was mixed at Arlen Thompson's sound studio, Mount Zoomer.
The cover art for the new album features the work of Matt Moroz and Elizabeth Huey, depicting a battle scene between the two artists.
The track "Call It a Ritual" was released by the band on April 14, 2008.
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
from the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Wolf Parade
Wolf Parade
Wolf Parade is an indie rock band formed in 2003 from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The band is currently on an indefinite hiatus as of May 31, 2011.-History:...
, was released on June 17, 2008.
Album title
The album is named after drummer Arlen Thompson's sound studio, Mount Zoomer, which apparently is "a B.C.British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
euphemism for magic mushrooms and a nod to Montreal band, A Silver Mount Zion." The LP was originally meant to be entitled Kissing the Beehive
Kissing the Beehive
Kissing the Beehive is a fantasy novel by Jonathan Carroll, published by Nan A. Talese/Doubleday in late December 1997. When the novel was published in Great Britain the following year, Carroll added a three-page epilogue at the request of its publisher, Victor Gollancz. It is the first novel of...
; however, due to possible copyright infringements in relation to Jonathan Carroll
Jonathan Carroll
Jonathan Samuel Carroll is an American author primarily known for novels, which can be characterized as magic realist, slipstream or modern fantasy...
's 1997 novel of the same name, the album's title was changed. Spencer Krug said they "didn't know that was the title of a book... We might have to change it, but we might not. And we'll have to make it clear that it's not [named] after his book. It's a complicated situation." It had also been reported earlier by Blender Magazine that the record was entitled Pardon My Blues; however, on April 28, Sub Pop Records officially announced that the album's name would be At Mount Zoomer.
Album overview
The band started playing new songs live that would end up on At Mount Zoomer as early as summer 2007. Among the first to be played were "Language City" and "Fine Young Cannibals".According to singer Dan Boeckner
Dan Boeckner
Dan Boeckner is a Canadian singer, songwriter and guitarist. He currently fronts the indie rock bands Wolf Parade and Handsome Furs and was previously a member of Atlas Strategic.-Overview:...
, half of the album was recorded in Farnham
Farnham, Quebec
Farnham is a town located in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is part of the Brome-Missisquoi regional county municipality, in the administrative region of Montérégie. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 7,809, making it the second most populated community in the RCM.- History :The...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
at Arcade Fire's Petite Église, an old church that was converted to a recording studio for the production of Neon Bible. After touring the east coast in late 2007, Wolf Parade recorded the rest of the album at MIXart Studios in Montreal, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.. Afterwards, the album was mixed at Arlen Thompson's sound studio, Mount Zoomer.
The cover art for the new album features the work of Matt Moroz and Elizabeth Huey, depicting a battle scene between the two artists.
The track "Call It a Ritual" was released by the band on April 14, 2008.
Track listing
- "Soldier's Grin" (BoecknerDan BoecknerDan Boeckner is a Canadian singer, songwriter and guitarist. He currently fronts the indie rock bands Wolf Parade and Handsome Furs and was previously a member of Atlas Strategic.-Overview:...
) – 4:37 - "Call It a Ritual" (KrugSpencer KrugSpencer Krug is a Canadian musician. He is currently the singer, songwriter and keyboardist for the indie rock bands Wolf Parade and Sunset Rubdown. He has also performed with other Canadian bands including Swan Lake, Frog Eyes, Fifths of Seven, and ska band the Two Tonne Bowlers, playing various...
) – 2:45 - "Language City" (Boeckner) – 5:02
- "Bang Your Drum" (Krug) – 3:10
- "California Dreamer" (Krug) – 6:00
- "The Grey Estates" (Boeckner) – 3:26
- "Fine Young Cannibals" (Boeckner) – 6:31
- "An Animal in Your Care" (Krug) – 4:19
- "Kissing the Beehive" (Boeckner/Krug) – 10:52