October 27, 2009 Fringe Arts

Dog Day afternoon

Halifax indie band bring a new lineup to Montreal

by Stephanie Laleggia

Halifax band Dog Day, as they once were.

When Halifax band Dog Day started filming their own music videos, band member Seth Smith made a surprising discovery: his dog was born to be a star.

“I kinda got tired of filming around him and pushing him out, so I just decided to keep him in [the videos],” he said. “He’s a really good actor.”

The band makes the videos themselves to “take a little break from the music,” said Smith. And when they aren’t busy romping around the Nova Scotian countryside with a camera, the indie rockers are romping all over Canada.

“I wish there could be more time [to tour],” said Smith, excited for the band’s upcoming three-month tour.

Smith and his wife, Nancy Ulrich, who initially played as a duo called the Burdocks, only became Dog Day when they added another married couple, Crystal Thili and her husband KC Spidle. The band was discovered playing in a Halifax venue by German record label TomLab. Their third and latest album, Concentration, was released this spring. After Spidle decided to go solo, long-time friend and drummer Robbie Shedden became the band’s newest member.

“We have no recording material with [Shedden] yet, but we played Pop Montreal with him and it went great,” said Smith. “We’ve seen him play in a whole bunch of Halifax bands, and we were just fans of his work. He has a complementary style that works. It’s kind of like a nice refreshing change, to have a slightly different feel.”

“It’s gonna be a surprise for me,” said Smith of their upcoming show at Il Motore, which will be their second in Montreal in the last three weeks. He said fans should expect to hear material from each of the band’s three records and, hopefully, their newest 12-inch vinyl release.

The band already hopes to plan future shows in smaller towns on the East Coast, as well as in the U.S. and Europe. Dog Day are a band on the move and Smith said they aren’t ready to settle down anytime soon.

“I would definitely like to try something new,” he said. “I like evolving.”

Dog Day play with Attack in Black at Il Motore (179 Jean-Talon St. W.) on Oct. 27 at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door.