Dartmouth-born songwriter Mike Legere has released his latest solo album, Ourselves in Public. When he’s not drumming for Places Erupt or belting out vocals at Century Thief, the Toronto-based artist is using his audio-engineering background to fine-tune a melodic nod the human experience.
Soundbytes of common convergence areas, from the industrial subway station to the bustling Montreal town square, frequent the beginnings and endings of a number of tracks. Uniform throughout is a powerful, atmospheric touch that forces surreality from listeners, and more often than not does this ever-present soundwave build in power as the song goes on, overwhelming one’s ears with unrelenting force.
“I started thinking about how much of who we are or become over time is a social construct, performative in a way,” said Legere. “I had written one of the songs a couple years back in Italy which I felt fit that theme and my mind started turning and developing some titles and themes I wanted to build around that concept.”
This is perhaps captured most prominently in “The Sudden Downpour.” Though the instruments and lyrics play at a relaxing pace, the bassier background noise builds and builds and builds, refusing to be ignored, and is finished off by a minute’s worth of an audio clip of being in a big city, implying that you can never really escape the pressure of identity.
Legere plays around with several other sounds throughout the album as well. “The Buzz,” which is the first to seemingly bring the instrumental/vocal aspect level with the background atmosphere, includes a subtle keyboard melody, adding to the already contemplative lens of the human mind. Elsewhere, “Reputation”’s off-beat hi-hat is one of the more curious tactics, and “Into The Day” utilizes heavy-hitting drums and a residual synthesizer finish.
“I just hope people can enjoy it- I found some relief in writing it so hopefully that will transfer.”