“I know that people love sad songs. I just can’t really do them. I don’t feel like I’m being responsible.” Jose Miguel Contreras takes his perceived responsibility to uplift seriously. Speaking with a veteran musician like Contreras is refreshing. He’s completely natural and at ease on the phone, and demonstrates a clear level of self-awareness. The soul of the decades-spanning band By Divine Right is coming to Kingston on Thursday with his current bandmates, Michael Milosh and Dave Joseph, on a tour promoting Mutant Message, released in December 2009.
Mutant Message is By Divine Right’s first album after a five-year hiatus.
It has summery sound without veering into the territory of beaches and the now-tired jangly guitar. Mutant Message is a dusky fireside chorus with the uplifting drive of rolling down highways and hills, melding the familiar and original. The record is full of sonic references while maintaining Contreras’ consistent By Divine Right tone. It opens with the bright “I Love A Girl.” It’s a simple proclamation, and begins with a familiar riff—reminiscent of The Breeders cover of “The Who’s So Sad ”—but slides right into cheering chorus and slanting vocals.
When asked how and when he decided to roll back into By Divine Right, Contreras said he didn’t.
“There was no decision. It never really went away. I just finished my record when I could and people expressed interest to have me come play.”
With such an established presence in the Canadian indie music scene, Contreras is something of a magnet to greener musicians. With a reputation and eight By Divine Right records preceding Contreras, people come to him.
“It just happens. I met Michael a few years ago—he ed me and said he’d love to do it, he said sure and we hung out. I live in the forest now and when I moved up I here I sent the signal out.”
Featuring everyone from Brendan Canning and Feist to of The Meligrove Band, By Divine Right has had many over the years.
Despite the band’s ever-rotating hip, their sound doesn’t change much. With Contreras as the soul of the band, there’s a consistent feel to By Divine Right’s discography.
“Without a diss to anyone that’s been in my band, BDR has always sounded the same. I guess I know how I want things to sound, how I want them to be played,” he said. Contreras offers a realistic self-assessment of his success. Without stumbling over conventions of faux humility, he gives real insight into By Divine Right’s creative process. He said working with multiple musicians and personalities helps him stay true to his vision.
“Having new people in my band almost helps my with the consistency because I get to show them how I want the song played. When you play with people for a while shit starts shifting around.”
He went on to add a considerate not-that-there’s-anything-wrong-with that comment, noting he experiences the shifting process on other projects that have had much success. But By Divine Right is different, he says.
“BDR is sort of like my accidental rock n roll music. That’s where I take my accidents and organize them.”
As far as accidents go, Mutant Message ranks up among the best favourite mistakes. The flashes of noisy pop brilliance aren’t the necessarily the product of collaborative deliberation—and that’s okay.
“I’m good at telling people what to do. I don’t mean bossing them around—I’m a good band leader, I mean making things sound right. I hope I don’t sound like I’m bragging.”
Having a musician it the real power dynamic in his band rather than using friendly buzzwords about fusion and mutual inspiration is honest.
When complimented on his confidence, however, Contreras retreats somewhat.
“I’m not a hundred percent confident—I always wonder what the fuck I’m doing. I’m not a great engineer,” he said referencing his work producing on albums like Brian Borcherdt’s Coyotes.
“But I am good at getting performances and art directing. I always think of myself as someone who art directs. I art direct my band, my life, I art direct what I produce.”
Perhaps Contreras dedication to art directing not only his work, but his life, contributes to the upbeat feel of By Divine Right’s music.
“I think that there is this sort of hopeful vibe in BDR records. It’s not always on purpose—maybe it’s just an extension of who I am. It’s always been that way.”
That isn’t to say Contreras doesn’t tackle tougher topics.
“I guess at the same time—if I examine songs on my records you can be like ‘Yeah, that one comes from angst, from sadness, and this and that.’ … But the overall vibe seems kind of naive and optimistic.” This certainly is no different on Mutant Message. The album closes with “I Will Hook You Up,” where Contreras promises hopeful new horizons beyond the record’s end, anchored by foot-stomping beats and jogging strings. He sings “let’s move to the sea, run away with me”—a lyric sparkling with the unadulterated joy of adolescence but rooted decades of a refined craft.
But no matter how much age it takes to truly perfect the sound of youth, the formula remains the same. “A lot of the songs on BDR are spontaneous blasts organized into pop songs.”
Let’s hope this psych-pop dynamo keeps blasting such dynamism for many decades to come.
By Divine Right play The Mansion this Thursday with The Sunfields and The Baird Brothers. Doors open at 9 p.m. Tickets are available at the door.
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].