Various Artists
One Scene to Another
Plumline Records
Within the last fifteen years or so, it's become evident that the Metro Detroit area has become as big a market for Canadian bands as it has for local acts.  The popularity of 89X, CIMX-FM's 'alternative/modern rock' format in the early 90's brought forth a vehicle for  bands north of the border (mostly Halifax and Windsor) to reach a young, hip and music-hungry Detroit audience.  Some of these bands were aided by trends of the time - i.e., Eric's Trip, which garnered an awful lot of 89X support for its album, Love Tara, simply because the band happened to be on SubPop Records when radio bought into the whole 'grunge/Seattle ' scene.  Others got help from the sheer locality of the station; Halifax-via-Newfoundland trio The Hardship Post recorded Somebody Spoke at White Room Studios with Al Sutton, which gave the band a sort of geographical crossover appeal.  Then again, other were also bands like Sloan and The Killjoys that earned airplay by  just kicking a lot of ass. 

Of course, part of this Canadian revolution in Detroit had to do with Canada's broadcast content laws, which specify that stations must devote a specific percentage of airtime to Canadian artists.  Moreso, though, it had to do with the fact that no one else was running a format quite like 89X at the time, and the station personnel at the time had the guts to spin a lot of material that most stations wouldn't have taken the time to try to sell to an audience.

Some young radio listeners took notice of these bands and latched on to them as idols of sorts.  Yes, they were a minority, as most kids were still devouring things like Rage Against the Machine, Tool, Primus and Lollapalooza; however, for every large group of kids sitting at hulking venues to watch national 'alternative' acts, there was another handful piling into a car and taking off from the suburbs to cross the border for a Thrush Hermit or Inbreds gig. 

Plumline Records folks Nicole Allie (a member of New Grenada, it should be noted) and Mike Chavarria were two of the latter, a fact made somewhat obvious by the label's soon-to-be-released compilation, One Scene to Another - Plumline Records' Tribute to Canadian Indie Rock.  The disc serves a number of purposes, really; it shows the influence of 90's Canadian rock on the current Detroit scene while also giving today's younger local audience a chance to experience these potentially unfamiliar songs through bands that it knows about from all-ages shows and the internet.  In a roundabout way, the tribute serves as a way to introduce Canadians to some Detroit acts through familiar material.

As nostalgic documentation, One Scene to Another supplies a cute bit of reminiscing.  Anyone familiar with the aforementioned early years of modern day 89X won't be able to help singing along with Ko-Ko Louise during The Hard Lessons' soulful take on The Super Friendz' "Karate Man."  Sloan fanatics will surely take note of Mood Elevator's candid lounge interpretation of "Money City Maniacs," which is remarkably faithful despite the genre bending involved, while The Trembling shows a lot of grit in a jaggedly endearing turn on Sloan's "G Turns to D," as well.  Direct Radar Turtle turns a quick bit of microphone goofing into a dreamily reverent version of The Hardship Post's "Just for Little." 

As with most tribute discs, some bands get a bit brave with 'musical reinvention,' which does create a few initially awkward moments. The W-Vibe turns Thrush Hermit's "French Inhale" into a robotic electronic number, though the song regains some of its original luster during the legit guitar solo; Kalkaska's "My My" (Plumtree) is a somewhat muddled composition that serves as an odd closing point of the compilation (the experience is interesting more than annoying, though, as the track is the shortest on the disc).  The Pop Project succeeds better in turning Zumpano's "The Only Reason Under the Sun" into a lush, light-hearted modern springtime sing along song, though.

Casual listeners not familiar with the old school Canadian scene shouldn't write this release off, however, as a number of these songs stand up strongly on their own merit.  New Grenada's intense cover of Eric's Trip's quasi-obscure "Smother" is an absolute burner of a track that torches the version Sloan did on the old DGC Rarities release from the mid-90's (thought that might pass as blasphemy to some);  Spy Island's fervent romp through Jale's "Ali" will make Pavement fans blush, and Anthony Rochon's delivery of "The News of Your Son" (Joel Plaskett) is as musically elegant as it is lyrically blunt.  Tiny Steps blissed-out pop/rock sound works marvelously on the version of The Super Friendz' "10 Lbs" included here, which could easily pass as a legitimate radio track these days. 

The Recital (with vocal help from Karen Ostafinski) pretty much steals the disc entirely with its tight rip through "Follow" from Eric's Trip's Love Tara album, which serves as the high point for both nostalgic and casual purposes.  The bass rolls along flawlessly, the guitars riff with the right amount of fuzz, and the vocals are just plaintive enough to evoke memories of Julie Doiron and Rick White.

The end result is that One Scene to Another is a very respectful look back at a scene that these musicians obviously remember fondly.  Like most compilations, the disc definitely has it's ups and downs.  The goods outweigh the bad rather handily, though, making this disc well worth a time/monetary investment.  Plumline's Allie and Chavarria should be damned proud of themselves with this release, indeed.

                                                                                                          - Gary Blackwell
   
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