Toronto group the Strumbellas shouldn’t be mistaken for pop stars such as Katy Perry or Ariana Grande. But lead singer Simon Ward says the band’s latest album, Hope, out this month on their new American record label Glassnote, had them searching for a “more popular” sound. And if the reaction to the band’s first single, “Spirits,” is any indicator, it’s working.
“It was a lot less jamming and just writing songs without our instruments in our hands,” Ward says over the phone while en route to an Atlanta show.
“We would write it on a computer almost as opposed to in a jam space. In the end, we definitely kept those roots in there and tried to push it as far as we could without people getting angry at us,” he adds.
The album shouldn’t anger many, judging by its uplifting, grandiose feel, thanks to a handful of sing-along anthems. Ward says a lot of preparing went into the creative process.
“We actually pretty much wrote the entire thing and demoed it out the way we wanted before we even got into the studio,” he says. “If we played you our demos of the songs before we went into the studio, you would see a lot of similarities.”
The musician says Hope’s 11 songs stood out from the rest because the band picked out “the best melodies and made songs out of those.” And unlike the song “Shovels & Dirt,” which took about 20 minutes to write, Ward says the fantastic lead single “Spirits” was an exercise in patience.
“ ‘Spirits’ was like a mishmash of three different songs that I had,” he says. “We had to put them together to make it fit like a jigsaw puzzle. A lot of songs didn’t come together as easily as ‘Shovels & Dirt,’ but that’s the fun: putting the song together and making everything work.”
Ward knew he was onto something with “Spirits” after it was initially approved by his wife and his sister. Since then, it’s made an indelible mark on both sides of the border.
“We’re so surprised, we’re shocked,” Ward says of the song. “We didn’t have a clue, we just took a shot in the dark and it worked out.”
The Strumbellas also appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live in early March, which was definitely a memorable moment.
“Those are the things that we always dreamed of doing,” Ward says. “They were super welcoming and nice, and they let us do it a couple of times because we were so nervous. The whole experience was out of this world.”
Another first in March will be their maiden trip to Austin’s South by Southwest (SXSW) festival. The band has a dozen performances lined up in a hectic but satisfying few days.
“We’re trying to take it seriously and be as professional as we can in terms of bringing our ‘A’ game to every show,” the singer says. “After that we’re going to eat a ton of fried chicken.”
In the big picture, Ward hopes Hope tugs at the listener’s heartstrings.
“I hope people like it and it evokes emotions in them. And just for three and a half minutes it makes their day a bit better.”
