CD review: hues Starting Fires Jaymin Proulx Interrobang Published: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 The premise behind

starting fires is one of warmth and excitement. When youre chi lling with your friends at a campground or feeling like a lazy evening outdoors, a fire is a great way to relax and unwind. It is also a way to start up a party and get the energy cooking. Enter hue: a five-piece band hailing from London and Toronto with a brand-new re lease entitled Starting Fires. They will be playing a 19-plus show at Call the O ffice July 22 with USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) on July 22. The five members came together in an unusual way. In late 2002, Danny Paton Jr. and Andrew Schmidt started a band called Gerald Pessy while attending H.B. Beal Secondary School in London. Both learning guitar at the same time, Paton said th e two grew together musically right from the beginning. In 2004, Gerald Pessy pl ayed a Battle of the Bands against Darcy Fincks band, but neither band won. Regardless, in late 2005, Paton Jr. and Schmidt asked Finck to join them in form ing hue. Jessica Paton, Dannys sister joined the band in 2009 when her brother bought her a microKORG synthesizer and asked her to sing back-up on a few tracks. Those bac k-up vocals earned her a permanent spot in the band. hue gained their final memb er, Andrew Jones, after a late night in downtown Toronto in 2009. He was a mutua l friend and worked at a local bar close to Paton Jr. and Fincks house. Paton Jr. (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Schmidt (drums, percussion), Finck (guit ar, piano), Jessica Paton (microKorg, vocals) and Jones (bass) now make up hue a nd are excited to bring their sound to London, having opened in the city before for bands like Lights, Two Hours Traffic, The Wooden Sky, Hey Ocean! and Juno wi nners Said The Whale. The band moved to Toronto to pursue hue to the fullest, said Paton Jr. London was a great place to start and if it werent for London, hue wouldnt exist. Toronto is t he centre of the Canadian music industry and naturally we were all drawn there. It was the best decision for the band. We felt we had grown as much as we could in London. If you listen to our first al bum, it was simpler. But since our venture to Toronto, as a group our lives have changed. We have matured and grown in different ways and the big city has broug ht us closer. This year all of our hard work will hopefully come together and St arting Fires will reach coast to coast! Paton Jr. added that bands like the Tragically Hip, Sam Roberts Band and Coldpla y are sounds they aspire to, and the Hip is a particular favourite. The Hip has always been a favourite of mine for about 12 years. They are the Cana dian band and listening to them reminds me of camping and my dad. He encouraged me to listen to them. For Finck, the Sam Roberts Band is another Canadian staple that is pure talent. I like they write whatever music they want and not what people tell them to sell. Not many bands can make it to their level without compromising their creative i ntegrity. For both of them, Coldplay are liked for the way they make people feel. (The song ) Yellow has a soulful, uplifting feel, whereas Fix You goes from slow, emotional to

nes to an epic, feel-good vibe. Thats what we want our music to do: to (make list eners) feel good and be inspired. So, still craving the fire? Come to Call The Office on Friday, July 22 to watch a scorching set and a band that will continue to heat up whatever room theyre pla ying in. For more information, visit myspace.com/hueband or facebook.com/hueband. Tickets are $7, must be 19 or older to attend.