A Charlottetown band is trying to breathe new life into the all-ages scene on P.E.I.
And, Moment of Eclipse, comprised of four high school members who came together thanks to Island Rock Camps, isn’t wasting time getting ready.
The band is releasing its first single, Obsessive, Compulsive, on Thursday while the video will be out on Friday.
Watch: Moment of Eclipse - Obsessive, Compulsive (official music video)
Moment of Eclipse consists (the pronouns the band members identify with are in parenthesis) of Nicolas Dickieson (he/him) as lead singer and guitar, Casey Mann (they, them) on guitar, Charlotte Lloyd (she/her) on bass and Jesse MacCormac (he/him) on drums.
“It’s going to be a generation of kids that want to be in bands,’’ says Nicolas. “No matter where you are there isn’t much room for under-19 music anywhere.’’
The band formed two years ago from connections everyone made while attending the rock camp. Since then, the band has played shows at Baba’s Lounge and the Sportsman’s in Charlottetown. Because those establishments are licensed, the band plays and then has to leave and no one under 19 can attend the show.
Listen to Obsessive Compulsive:
Nicolas says there are people in the music scene in Charlottetown who are trying to change things for the young music scene.
He said the band participated in the all-ages Charlottetown Punk and Hardcore Shows at the Farm Centre, which are run by Brett Sanderson and Sophia Tweel, both of whom are in bands. Tweel also took photographs of all of the bands and did the artwork for Moment of Eclipse’s album.
“They are so passionate about creating space for kids our age,’’ Nicolas says.
Charlotte says a lot of musicians her age are frustrated at the lack of opportunities to play live. Charlotte hopes Moment of Eclipse can be part of changing that.
“When you want to go to a show you have to go down to the bar,’’ Charlotte laments.
Nicolas says he’s on the board with Music P.E.I. and there are ongoing discussions about how to integrate all ages into the music scene in Charlottetown. During Music P.E.I. Week this year, an all ages show was held at the Murphy Community Centre on Richmond Street. The band has also played together at the Florence Simmons Performance Hall at Holland College as part of the rock camp.
“There is starting to be an entire scene of people our age who are interested in listening to music and interested to go and see live shows and interested in playing live music,’’ Nicolas says. “We’re at the front end of that.’’
Influences
Following are the musical influences members of Moment of Eclipse list:
- Nicolas Dickieson, lead singer: Nirvana, Radiohead, The Cure, The Killers
- Jesse MacCormac, drummer: Taylor Hawkins, Foo Fighters; Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters
- Casey Mann, guitar: Nirvana, Starbenders, punk and grunge bands
- Charlotte Lloyd, bass: Cliff Burton, Metallica; Peter Steele, Type O Negative; Marissa Paternoster and Mike ‘King Mike’ Abbate, Screaming Females; Starbenders
Nicolas was writing songs in his basement in 2018 and invited Charlotte, who he met at the rock camp, to come over.
“She was terrified to come over because we didn’t know each other,’’ Nicolas says. “But, she is a great bassist and a great musician and I wanted to write some music.’’
They knew Jesse so he was invited over and quickly became the drummer.
“If we had a different drummer it wouldn’t be Moment of Eclipse,’’ Charlotte says of what Jesse brings to the band. “We’re all such a big part of the engine. When you take just one of us away it changes everything.’’
But, something was missing. The band knew it needed a guitarist. Enter Casey who Jesse knew from school and the band knew from the rock camp.
Jesse says Casey was the glue that made the band what it is.
“When Casey came in, they added the creativity; the arrangements for the songs; it just locked in,’’ Jesse says. “We all have our own tastes in music but when we come to play together it’s Moment of Eclipse.’’
Casey shrugs off the praise, preferring to talk about what the band is about. If they were to describe the band’s sound, it’s nostalgia from the 1990s and 2000s music era with a touch of new wave.
The single was recorded and produced by Jon Matthews at his studio in Emyvale. The video was produced and directed by Charlottetown filmmaker William Wright.
Twitter: @DveStewart
