Edmonton born, Vancouver based synth rock/ alternative rockers Rend have changed their name, in part, to reflect a new chapter in their musical careers, to High Love, which they help will take them “higher” with their brand new single “No Longer Yours.”
They play the Slice on Tuesday, June 20 with Victoria’s Fortune Killers.
“There were a lot of reasons we changed the name, said High Love lead singer Carol -Lynne Quinn, noting the band still includes her husband, bassist /keyboardist Jeff Quinn, guitarist Steve Roe and drummer Jordan Dempster.
“ We were Rend for five or six years, but there are already four or five Rends in the United States and Europe touring,” she said, noting Changing the name also closes a chapter in their career and their sound.
“And we’d get people coming to our shows expecting to hear violent metal, which I think is awesome, but which is totally not representative of what we do. When we create music, we want to affect people positively,” Quinn continued, summarizing a few of the reasons why they changed their name.
They recorded their new single “No Longer Yours,” with producer Howard Redekopp, who has worked with Dear Rouge, Mother Mother and Tegan and Sarah as well as Rend, as part of a new program called the Prophets of Music emerging artists not for profit organization formed in 2015 to commemorate the lives of Joshua Hunter and Zachariah Rathwell of Calgary band Zachariah and the Prophets.
“It means a lot that they (Prophets of Music Society) have created something so beautiful out of something so dark,” she said.“ This song is a song we’ve had for two or three years, it‘s a personal story about not being trapped in an abusive relationship I grew up in. It’s about getting that moment of freedom from a relationship,” she said.
“ They were so supportive. it was like being surrounded by a musical family. Being in the record business, you have a lot of people telling you what you should and shouldn’t do. They stood by and supported us just helped us achieve our own vision,” she said.
That single is the first of an upcoming album to be released in the fall.
“We did about five songs with Howard. And we recorded 10-15 songs for the album,” she said.
“ The new album is a good representation of what we do. This single shows our more pop, ambient side. But we also have this more alternative rock side. So this record is a mixture of that pop, more ambient , electronica side with the more rock and roll side. It’s pretty dynamic,” she described, adding it also shows how the band has grown over the past few years.
“ This is a new chapter for us,” Quinn continued.
they are excited to play with the Fortune Killers.
“They‘re from Victoria. They’re a synth pop band,” she described, noting their set will include a preview of the new songs.
“We’ll be playing a lot of new songs from the new album and some old Rend songs which mean a lot to us and which we can’t stop playing,” she said.
High Love and the Fortune Killers play the Slice, Tuesday June 20.Local band Makiisma is also on the bill. Doors open at 7 p.m.
