I recently spoke with Chris Brodbeck of the Canadian band SEE SPOT RUN ( www.seespotrun.ca). Spot is a pop/rock band who have just released their 2nd CD for Loggerhead Records, which was produced by (and whom guested)

former APRIL WINE guitarist Gary Moffet. As it turned out, there's a few April Wine links here, and we got off track a few times talking about the Canadian band that the See Spot Run guys and myself are all fans of. See Spot Run's newest CD is called "Weightless", and features a very diverse and good solid pop tunes such as the title track (the first single), as well as "Can't Forget You Baby", "Do You Want To Be My Girlfriend", and the 70s inspired "Better Day".

A bit of history about the band. I got the new CD, and the previous one,..........

CB: There was even one before that, an independent. That was released in '93, April 1, 1993, and it was called "Traces". It was a 6 song, produced by the same producer that we have now, but it was self-packaged, and self-financed, and we did the consignment thing and all that. And we did really well with it. So we were encouraged!

How did you hook up with Gary Moffett, because I'm an April Wine ((www.eburg.com/~cellar/) fan - so I'm curious!?

CB: Well, Gary became a producer after he left April Wine, and he had a partner - Billy Shlaboski, he was an engineer who worked on Frank Marino's records, and Pagliaro, and a lot of great Quebec artists, and he had just done the "Marjeau" project, and she is from a band called "Carbeau", and that was her first solo album, and she did really well with it - sold like 200 000 copies in Quebec alone! And he was the producer.

And we just hooked up with him, and he was still new at it, and we were new at it, and looking for a producer because we needed to do things within budget, and he was very good at that, and we struck up a relationship with him.

Both albums are credited with Gary Moffett "as himself". Did he actually play some of the guitar?

CB: Ahh.....- he does! We sort of wanted to keep it a mystery, and not be specific on what he did. The way we make albums, we sort of get together and we all play around and jam, and add things in, and you never know what is going to stick well. He fools around with us; he puts parts down and stuff and ideas, and we all sit around and laugh, it's really fun. Sometimes things work so we don't change them. So he has a few parts on there that he did. And we're glad to have him because we're April Wine fans too!

Where abouts are you guys from?

CB: we're a Montreal band. Born and raised in Montreal, and we write and record in Montreal.

Age-wise, what are you guys?

CB: Late 20s (roughly).

So you guys grew up in the 80s.

CB: You're good with your math! ha ha. I think my influences come more from the late 70s than 80s actually.

Consider yourself more of a 70s, 80s, or 90s influenced band?

CB: I'd say late 70s, early 80s, but we do very much like what's going on right now, and I enjoyed as well what they called the "grunge" era.

I noticed, especially on the new album that you guys encorporate a lot of ...like the one songs got a bit of the techno stuff in it, a few songs got heavy chords, and you got some nice ladi back stuff.

CB: Yeah, we enjoy a lot of different types of music, and we enjoy listening to albums, and we enjoy bands who are diverse, and ya know where you can put an album on and it's more of an experience than the same song over and over. That's just the kind of albums we enjoy, and we enjoy making those types of albums. And it seems is seems that in the industry today that sort of art of making the albums has been lost. And we like to do it that way, and we're cocky enough to just do it, and we take the critisism.

Any specific bands, artists you're big on?

CB: Well you're talking to me, so you're gonna get my angle. The whole band listens to very diverse types of material. We have a guy who's really a blues guy, our drummer is big Prince fan, I like everything -- I go from XTC to Police, Pink Floyd, whatever! I like a lot of new bands like Radiohead. We just like music, and there's so many good bands that if you looked at our CD collections you'd see that it's just so diverse.

Hate to Categorize....

CB: Oh no!

Would you put yourself first as a rocker, a pop-band, or alternative?

CB: We're a rock band! Because that's where it starts. Alternative - that's a mixed up word, because what's 'alternative'. They sometimes call us alternative, and that's fine - it means we're hipper than mainstream - that's what alternative means today.

What can you tell me about the bands roots, as far as when you guys got started, what you started doing - that sort of thing?

CB: Well, Randy (Bowen - guitar, vocals) and I started the band, and over time and travel we met the other 2 guys and rounded out this formation that we've had on the last 2 albums. Randy and I are from the same musical breading ground - which is the West island of Montreal. We went to rival High schools, but i won't hold that against Randy! And that's where it started. It started out of this area, and we decided very early on that we wanted to make records, and that we wanted to travel, and get of one scene - we didn't want to be part of one scene; we needed to discover the rest of Canada, and be a part of all musical communities and learn and prosper from the knowledge of other musical communities. Because if you're just in Montreal, Montreal's not a very good musical breeding ground. Not a lot has come out of here, and even though this is our city and we love it, it's just a little stifled and it's a little mixed up because of the language problem.

Are you guys all English speaking?

CB: Yes. Even though my roots are French i grew up on the West Island of Montreal which is very English.

So we grew up in an English environment. We also grew up on a lot of French music - which is a great thing.

Montreal had some good things in the 70s and that.......

CB: Yeah, I'm not saying it's been all that bad. There really hasn't been a lot though, there's been some great French artists, but i mean our claim to fame is what? Gino Vanelli!? I like Gino Vanelli. April Wine's not really a Montreal band, even though their musical career grew up here, they're from Nova Scotia.

Now you guys have done alot of touring. How many times have you gone back and forth across Canada?

CB: Wow! 40.

What do you like the most as far as what clubs you play, you do mostly clubs?

CB: Up until now it's been mostly clubs. We're trying toget away from the club scene and more into all-agers, because we're finding that our market is under 18 for the most part. So we like to play for our fans who can't get into a bar, and so we're trying to work that out through High Schools and festivals where it's all-ages and stuff.

Is there a high scholl circuit?

CB: No. We're trying to create one. We did do a lot of High schools on our last album, and we sent a leaflet out to High schools that we were available to play, and it was only through the students who run the student council and student council presidents that if they were aggressive enough they could get us, because you had to get through like an army of principles and the heirarchy just to convince them that a band wouldn't create a problem, because that's what they think, i guess. So we had to put our best foot forward, and it was very successful, we played a lot of high schools, and we're hoping that as we keep doing it that the schools will talk to each other and ya know - "this is pretty cool. this is maybe what we should get going". And it makes sense because rock n roll music is really for the most part for young people, teens, and really doesn't belong in the bars. It belongs for the public, and it belongs in the high schools and stuff like that!

It's a tough market.....

CB: It's a tough market everywhere now. I think that live music is struggling because of computers,because of MuchMusic, and if you can remember when you were a kid - there was none of that, so if you could see a band that - was a thrill! Now you can see a band anytime, anywhere - on your television, on your computer, and it's not such a thrill as it was when you were a kid, you know!?

I don't think anything beats the live show.....

CB: I don't either! I'm hoping that the new generation wakes up and says "yeah - cool!" But i think it's the band's responsibility as well, the band's responsibility to put on a show, to give something that makes it exciting, and I've found that in the last 10 years bands haven't been giving much back to their audiences; you know - good bands -- good music, but then you go see them, and it's like it's not really that good or they're too shy, they're shoe gazers, or they dress in their old clothes, ya know!? And it's just no fun. So we're trying to bring the fun back into it, and the show, just like they used to do. If you're an April Wine fan you'll remember that when you went to see an April Wine show you got to see the big bald drummer do the big solo, and it was exciting! They gave you something, you know!?

Bands you draw comparisons to?

CB: Hmm.......

From what i understand Cheap Trick is one.

CB: Yeah, I actually started listening to Cheap Trick more these days for some reason. I heard "Surrender" on the radio, and thought 'I got to pull out the record and listen to it', and i enjoyed listening to it. Yeah, there's a similarity - they're a rock band, with guitars, they write good pop songs, and they have distinct images, they're not 'A' typical long haired looking rock band. They got a drummer that looks like maybe my dad, a guitar player who is a bit of a clown, and they have these sort of pop-star looking guys, and that's a great thing. The reason why they compare us to them is because they're fun, and they have good radio-friendly pop songs, but they're still rockers; they still turn up the guitars, and they have these distinct images that we do as well - if you've seen the pictures you'll know we all look a little different from each other.

(From what i read) you guys have a definite plan on what you want to do. You want to do the Canadian circuit for so long, then try and crack the US, and then an international thing...

CB: World domination!

You have a definite plan?

CB: Absolutely! As far as which direction we will take, in what order - we don't have a plan, but we definitely want to take our music out of Canada, and hit European markets, and American markets.

(Talk detours into April Wine talk, and around to original drummer Ritchie Henman.....)

Now he (Ritchie) played with you guys for a while, right!?

CB: Well, in our 'down time' we go out and fool around, when we're not doing 'See Spot Run' we have a little band on the go just to keep our chops up and have a little fun. Because our drummer is in Toronto we needed a drummer, so we called Ritchie up, and Ritchie was very keen to do it because he knew that there was no commitments - it was just for fun. He was totally into it!

He's got a great attitude!

CB: He does, and he's a great great guy to work with, and lots of fun. He works hard. This is just a low key, fun band kinda thing that we're not doing anything with. it's really super - low key. And it's a thrill for us to work with Ritchie because we're April Wine fans to start with. He says the same about us, you know 'it's a thrill to work with you guys'. He's a great guy to hang out with. (Later) And with Ritchie we played "Could Have Been A Lady", and the first few times we played it he didn't get the drum roll right, so we gave him shit, said "you gotta play it right" . So the next night he played it right. That's the only Wine song we did, we sort of felt a little nervous asking him to play his old songs, you know!?

Let's talk a bit about the album....

How did you handle going from the first full album to the 2nd album? Any major differences

CB: Yeah the first album took a little longer to make because we were still looking for a deal while we were doing it, so we were sort of in-between recording and looking for a deal. So it took a little bit longer, and it was just a different atmosphere because of that. And then when we did our 2nd full length album - which is the one that's out now - "Weightless" it was literally written in a month. Save maybe 3 tunes on hte album, the rest of it was written in a month, August. Then we went into rehearsals and started working it out in rehearsals, and then began going in and recording it. So it happened quite quickley that the process of writing, recording, and putting it out was very quick, and the good thing about that is it still remains very fresh and exciting.

Do you write and demo a lot more than that's on the CD? For a ban these days, you guys keep it fairly conservative - 12 songs, alot of bands go out and put on 15-16 songs, and half of it's filler.

CB: Yeah we didn't want to do that, we wanted the right amount. We didn't want the listener to be there a long time, so we kept it within (i think) 50 minutes, which is a great length for an album, and we didn't want to go over-board on it. And we wanted to keep most of the songs shorter than the last album to keep the attention of th listener - like a good book.

The first song that jumped out at me the most was "Weightless", a good straight forward pop song, but what song it reminds me of is "Closing Time".

CB: There's a 2 note similarity. It's the first 3 notes of the chorus in Weightless matches the first 3 notes in the verse to Closing Time, but the timing's not the same, so if you were write it down on sheet music it wouldn't look exactly the same. But there's way more songs than that. There really is only 3 songs 'cause there really is only 8 notes and 3 chords in pop music, so there's really only so many configurations that can be put out in a song; that's why pop music is 'pop music' because people enjoy melodies, they ring of something they've heard before, so you hear the same song over and over. I mean i can find a million songs that sound like Closing Time.

What influenced the song Weightless?

CB: Weightless is one of those songs that has no story, and no explanation it just comes out of the air, the melody comes in with the words, i grab a guitar, start strumming, and it all falls out for no reason - i don't know where it comes from. "Lucy" was like, from our last album. Other songs have different stories, but this song has no story.

As far as lyrics, how do those come about?

CB: They come out at the same time.

Are they stories of your own, or inlfuenced by what you see...?

CB: Not really, it's all mixed up. I think it's like a dream, when all these things that happen to you just melt together and they make strange dreams, and you wake up the next morning and go 'what the hell did i just dream?' I think that's what happens.

You guys mix up a lot of harder edge riffs with softer tones like on "Alone"......

CB: That probably comes from listening to like Pink Floyd and The Police. Pink Floyd's a very dynamic band, and so are The Police - they work with space a lot, they use space as a tool, and we just gravitited towards that because it's so effective, and it's so infectious to be able to bring something down to small and then make it really big. And we love heavy guitars, and we love sweet melodies as well, and that's what comes of it.

Two other songs that jumped out for me were "Do You Want To Be My Girlfriend" - which has sort of 'power-punkish' energy to it, and "Better Day".

CB: Oh you like Better Day, cool.

It's a bit 70s-ish....

CB: It's definately mid-70s-ish. And Do You Want To Be My Girlfriend comes from the punk side of us; mostly from me though, that's very Ramones that song. Better Day was a song that we had played live during our last tour for our last album, and i put it together and sort of constructed it, and it became somewhat of a long opus type song where it starts very slow and builds and has the big lead and stuff like that. And it worked really well live! People came up to us and said 'oh we like that', ya know. And we sort of figured it might fit at the beginning of the album but we might be able to close the album with it, and really stay true to the dynamic of it.

What stands out for you on the album?

CB: My favorite song is terrified, and that's just me. Each of the guys will probably have a different answer. Don't ask me why - i don't know, I just think it has a great vibe.

Do all the songs end up in the live set at one point?

CB: Yes, but i don't think we would play "Alone" and "Better Day" on the same night. Usually we do a 90 minute set, and we'll play probably all fo the album, plus 1 of the 2 ballads, and then we'll play the rest of the night on the older album, and the stuff like the singles and songs that really work live.

Do you do anything outside of your own repertoire?

CB: No. We're sort of toying with idea of doing a cover for an encore. We haven't figured it out yet. Maybe Cheap Trick is a good way to go, but i don't know.

What can you tell me about the band live?

CB: Like i told you before, we have a tremendous commitment to putting on a show. We always try to have an enhanced light show, and whenever we can have as much special effects - smoke, strobes - the whole deal! A lot like a 70s rock band would have. And we like to look in the audience, we like to talk to our audience, we like them to participate, and we like them to pay attention to us, 'cause that's why we're in the business - we're ego-maniacs! ha ha.

Is the album available in the US or no?

CB: No, although we do have fans in the US that watch MuchMusic and listen to Canadian radio stations that e-mail us and stuff, and they want to know how to get ahold of the albums. So we have to try to make head-roads into the States.

Are videos as a big part as they were in the late 80s and early 90s?

CB: They are still, yes. There's a lot of discussion about the cost vs whether it's worth it or not, but it's been working for us great, and they've (MuchMusic) played every video we've gave them, so we're very happy, and it's helped us alot because it gets to a market that - I find young people don't listen to radio anymore for the most part because radio is not playing anything anybody wants to hear anymore, particularly young people.......

Well I listen to older stuff, and i don't hear that anymore either, so.....

CB: Ha ha - there ya go, we have a problem!

I think it's too repetitive, too 'set'.

CB: Yes, it is. That's the magic of 70s radio - which was every dj could play whatever he wanted and you would sort of gravitate to a dj that sort of liked what you liked, and that was such a cool thing. And that doesn't exist anymore, it's all computerized. So to answer your original (question) yes it has been great for us, and videos helped us to reach a market that we wouldn't normally meet.

You guys use keyboards on the album, how to deal with that in the live show?

CB: Ah, you want to know our tricks!? Well, we do what all great bands do - we put it on a CD, and play with it. U2, REM, (Ed: Rush?)...

As far as the name!?

CB: It came out of a suggestion box really. When we put the band together we came up with probably about 150 suggestions, one of which was our manager's - "See Spot Run", it was the only one we could agree on because it was cacthy. People either love it or they hate it, but they don't forget it! And that's the point of the name.

Did Gary Moffet play a part in you guys getting on to Loggerhead Records?

CB: No, we did a tour where we opened for one of the artists that was on Loggerhead, and we were the opening act. It was a bus tour, about 8 weeks. We played our 45 minute set every night, and we caught the attention of the record company and they were cool and said 'we'd like to do something with you guys'. So we signed up.

Anywhere in Canada that has been particularly nice to you?

CB: Well, as of late - everybody has! BC & Vancouver have been tremendous! Winnipeg's been great; and Calgary, Regina, Edmonton have all been great; Toronto's been really good, and Thunder Bay has always been good, Ottawa's been great. When we started out there was a few spots that we were having trouble getting through, but ever since we've turned the guitars up it seems the Westerners have been taking to us more.

Familiar with Uriah Heep at all?

CB: I am yeah, not a lot of it though. One of my favorite bands was XTC, and their favorite band is Uriah Heep. (Ed: Really - anything written about that?) In their unofficial biography it says that when they were starting out they were Uriah Heep fans. I found that unusual. They have a book out "The Story of XTC" - it's in there.

(More April Wine talk ensues, metions of Ritchie, David Buerster's collection....)

CB: I've got a picture of me,.. do you know the picture on the Greatest Hits album and the leather jacket Gary is wearing? Well I've got a picture of me wearing that! Ha ha ha.

(More April Wine talk, then coming back to Ritchie...)

CB: He's got great stories. Between him and Gary I got tons of stories. And the memorabilia he has in his basement is great too. .....We used a lot of April Wine gear on this album. The same guitars that were used for Roller were used for this album. A lot of those guitars that he used for a lot of those songs. He's got a Robin's Egg Blue Strat, i think it's something in the neighborhood of 1962 that he used live for a number of years, and he used it all-over the albums like "Say Hello", and that guitar was borrowed from him to use on Cory Hart's first album - the one with "Sunglasses At Night", so it's gotten around, that guitar. But he has an arsenal and we have an arsenal and we just throw guitars around 'til we find the right sounds. It seems like a lot of his stuff, including his big red Marshalls - we used those as well.

What's your favorite April Wine album?

CB: It would have to be, (and that's a tuffy!), I'd say "Harder Faster". I really like "Stand Back", I like "On Record", and I really like "Electric Jewels". I'm not a big fan of the later April Wine, Harder Faster it stopped for me. I wasn't big on Nature Of The Beast, or Powerplay at all, I wasn't big on any of those albums. But Harder Faster was a good album, I really enjoy that album.

Songs?

CB: I like "Say Hello", "Lady Run Lady Hide" - that's a great song!

Electric Jewels is my favorite April Wine album.

CB: Great album; that and Stand Back are really great albums - "Oowatanite" and all those great songs!!

(More April Wine chat, thank-yous and good-byes).