The Celebration Army – Hold Your Horses
Q&A / Single / Video Release
The Celebration Army are a four-piece, Toronto-based band made up of Oliver Pigott on vocals, Nelson Sobral on guitar, Leandro Motta on bass, and Troy Larabie on drums. This is the place where I normally tell you what genre of music a band plays.
Simply, The Celebration Army is a rock band. But this band is anything but simple. You’ll hear notes of R&B, with dirty funk thrown in for good measure, classic rock blended with modern notes. They’re super-talented musicians playing with a giant of a frontman.
In anticipation of their single release show at The Horseshoe Tavern, we asked the band about their humble beginnings, the writing and recording of the single and so much more.
Please hit play and read on!
Q) How long have you been playing together?
A) Almost five years now.
Q) How did you come together as a band?
A) We were all in the scene in separate bands and were looking to start something fresh and fun.
Q) How’d you come up with the band name?
A) It goes back a long way actually – as a kid, Oliver’s sister’s friend mispronounced “The Salvation Army” as “The Celebration Army” – over the years the name stuck with Oliver, and as he was considering band names, he felt that The Celebration Army really lent itself to the sound and dichotomy of the band. The Army side represents how we take the music seriously, and the Celebration side represents the fun and irreverence we have as a band.
Q) Does your fanbase have a name?
A) Yes, #RockandRollRecruits.
Q) Can you talk about your musical influences and what you’re listening to now?
A) We have such a broad palette of influences that actually played an important role shaping our sound. We draw a lot on music from the past: Queen, The Rolling Stones, 60s RnB; with modern influences from The Darkness and Radiohead.
Lately we’ve been really into the local scene, listening to and supporting bands like Ready the Prince, Crown Lands, Mattie Leon, Altameda, Cleopatrick and The Crooked.
Q) Tell me about your first live performance?
A) It was in a Toronto bar – but they misspelled our name on the chalkboard outside, and listed us as “The Celebration Party”. I think one of us still has a photo of it. Oliver was really into beat poetry at the time and recited a poem he had written while the rest of the band jammed out behind him, we sounded like a really bad “Doors” cover band.
Q) I been loving the teaser video on your Facebook page. It’s very cool. Can you talk about the concept Hold Your Horses?
A) It’s been a while since we released our debut album, and this is a stand-alone tune which is serving as a hold-over until our sophomore release comes out. That’s one of the many layers of meaning we’d prefer to let our audience explore.
Q) Can you describe the writing and recording process for Hold Your Horses, touching on how it was to work with Brian Moncarz?
A) The song came about the same way we always start writing a new song – being in the same room, jamming out new riffs and building off of each other. It’s a very organic process, and the energy that any one of us are feeling at that time can be the driving force behind the creation of it.
Working with Brian was great. We had a mutual admiration for each other, he saw us at the Horseshoe opening up for Ian Moore who he has worked with in the past, we got to chatting after our set and expressed an interest in working with each other in the future. A couple months down the road we found ourselves at Chalet Recording Studios laying down Hold Your Horses.
Q) Is there more music coming soon, maybe an EP?
A) Absolutely – stay tuned to our website thecelebrationarmy.com and our social media channels
Q) In 50 words or less, what can people expect from a live show?
A) Theatrics, rock and roll, balloons, swagger. They provide an atmosphere of acceptance, pride and celebration while embracing the individuality of their fans and first time listeners.
Q) Is there anything else, that I haven’t touched on that you’d like us to share with our readers?
A) The band is best experienced live – so next time you hear we’re coming to your city, we’d love to see you at our show!
Thanks to The Celebration Army for taking the time to answer our questions and if you’re in GTA, they’re debuting their new single, Hold Your Horses at the Horseshoe tonight (Friday, March 15)! Tickets are $10 and available at the door.
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[…] writing songs.” That statement pretty much sums it up. Nelson has had his hands in so many bands and projects over the years, that I’m not going to attempt to list them, for fear of missing […]