Mantra (2) - Stop the Fire b/w Nightmares

Tracks

Side 1

		Track Name	Length
	1	Stop the Fire	03:43

Side 2

		Track Name	Length
	1	Nightmares	04:14

Photos

Videos

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Information/Write-up

Mantra is succeeding in bid to create identity of its own

Mantra have added an interesting twist to the game of musical chairs: eighteen personnel changes in as many months keeps the players guessing as to who's performing beside them from one night to the next.

This is Thursday ... you must be the new guitar player. . .

It's taken many hours of auditions, but Mantra have settled down into one of Calgary's most innovative and dynamic bands, amply rewarded for their persistence.

“They've been stable for three whole months now,” Mantra’s manager, Doug Wong, said with a grin. That must be a record. Nonetheless, the current combination seems to have clicked.

Mantra’s sound lies on the rock and roll side of groups like Styx and Genesis. Its seven members draw liberally from one another's talents to build a characteristically bold, striking sound.

New ideas
But comparing Mantra to Styx is too easy. Mantra is striving to create an identity of their own. Two female vocalists are part of the answer, adding a dimension that few rock bands have explored in any great depth, and forming a substantial part of the band’s personality. Actively pursuing new ideas is also part of the quest.

Quite literally, the result is a “big” sound: three and four-part harmonies, lush keyboards filling the background and a lone electric guitarist that often sounds like six. They make optimum use of creative interplay between the guitars and keyboards and the broad range of combinations that three vocalists can pursue. The result: a sound that is refined but no less dynamic for the extra effort.

Coupled with highly lyrical writing and a touch of drama, it piques the imagination as well as the libido.

Yet good rock is the catalyst from which the band draws its intensity, and most of Mantra’s members are experienced and confident enough to pull together a unit that might easily fly apart under the strain of its own diversity.

Changes
As for the shifting roster: “It was a question of finding the right people, people who wanted to make something of it,” explained Kim McCarvill, one of Mantra's vocalists. The current line-up lists Jon Ingram, Sue Suddath, and McCarvill on vocals; Rick Hill on drums; Fran Hill on keyboards; Norm Anderson on guitars, and Hans Sahlen on bass.

Add three men on lights and sound — Jack Jamieson, Paul Rutten, and Brent Besplug, the unseen members — and you've got a good-sized crowd to cart around from venue to venue.

Musically, the band's size has its advantages, though: “It's a band effort, everyone takes a hand in the music. There’s more to work with and one idea can be tossed around by a lot of people,” Ingram said. Plus, new people mean different influences and a greater variety of sound. Oh yes, and there are more relatives to buy records.

Disadvantages? Well, small stages for one thing.

They have enough original material stockpiled for an album and are currently working on a recording at Smooth Rock Studios. They plan to have it completed by summer; meanwhile, Wong is scouting for labels.

Performing and recording (and until recently auditioning and breaking in new members) takes a lot of time, but that's not the half of it. All the band members hold down day jobs in addition to performing at night. “It's obvious why we're doing it,” Ingram said, “that's what it takes right now.” Dedication, Wong said. Determination, Ingram added. That about sums it up.
-Roman Cooney, Calgary Herald

Kim McCarvill: vocals
Sue Saddath: vocals
Jon Ingram: vocals
Frank Hill: keyboards
Norm Anderson: guitars
Francie Hill: keyboards
Hans Sahlen: bass
Rick Hill: drums

Arranged by Francie Hill
Produced by Doug Wong
Engineered by Richard Harrow
Mastered by Bernie Grundman
Recorded at The Living Room Studio, Calgary, Alberta

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