Meet the band
Local Artist Spotlight: AHRF
AHRF is an all-Canadian indie-rock band made up of childhood and university friends. With the upcoming release of their first studio LP, Extracurricular, the Fulcrum interviewed the local Ottawan band to learn more about who they are.
Band members Liam St. John (drummer), Miles Lawlor (vocalist and guitarist), Nick Lee (bassist), and James Feschuk (lead guitarist) all met at Nepean High School and subsequently added Daniel Turenne (bassist) to the band in university.
A bunch of young adults navigating life after university in a COVID-19 world, their music is reminiscent of that. Song such as “I Hope My Degree Is Worth It,” “me.mp3,” and “I Thought I’d Be Famous By Now” all deal with those anxieties.
Feschuk had access to Raven Street Studio during the pandemic, meaning the band was able to get together and start making music. The band used the studio as an “oasis” during lockdown, and the result was the creation of Extracurricular.
“It just kind of fell into place during COVID-19, when we were locked in our bedrooms and James had this crazy access to this studio space,” said Lawlor.
While Extracurricular is mostly indie-rock, there is a wide variety of sounds used in the LP, from the light-hearted tones in “I F***ing Love The Boys,” which is reminiscent of The Strumbellas, to “Bet On Me”, inspired by Iron Maiden.
“I really think the actual songwriting and lyrics took a step forward during this album,” said guitarist James.
This is clear when listening to the lyrics of softer-sounding “me.mp3,” which talks about all the time spent online during the pandemic.
The album begins with the Nickelback-inspired song “Bückle Up,” with several voices shouting “get off the stage” and “not this guy again”.
“All of our music has been a bit tongue-in-cheek and that has been a factor of it. It’s us making fun of ourselves. Obviously, we take the music seriously, but at the same time we want people to know that they can just have a good time,” explained Lee.
Keeping with this tone, “I F***ing Love The Boys” is a classic indie song. According to Feschuk, this was the first song written for the album.
“We had this chord progression, and it sounded like a love song…So we decided to write a love song about the boys,” said Feschuk.
“I Drank 6 Beers” follows in a sincere, funny, and relatable tone focused on the band’s university years. It has a very upbeat sound reminiscent of early 2000s rock a la Blink-182. It features lyrics such as: “I ate my greens today, but I drank 6 beers,” among others, some of which were written by singer Lawlor during a 10 A.M. Zoom lecture.
In a change of pace, “me.mp3” is a slow rock song that looks at the pandemic and the reality of spending almost every waking hour on some sort of screen to the point where it’s addictive. This song is vulnerable and honest with the audience in its lyrics.
“I kind of thought about how we are addicted to our phones and then there’s this self-awareness of it and continuing to do it anyway,” said bassist Turenne.
“I Thought I’d Be Famous By Now” adds a classic rock style to the album. When asked if they thought they would be famous by now, the band answered with a unanimous “yes!”
“I always thought I was going to be famous, even as a little kid… I always thought it was going to be writing, it was going to be music, it was going to be something,” added St. John.
Featuring another acoustic turn, “I’m Scared To Try New Drugs” describes being surrounded by drugs and sometimes not being able to keep up. It features a distorted guitar being detuned during recording, showing up at the end for a very distinct and vibrant sound.
After a short electric guitar interlude in “Joel P,” the album leads into “I Hope My Degree Is Worth It” and subsequently picks up tone to become a classic upbeat indie sound. When asked whether the band thought their degrees were worth it, again the band responded “yes.”
“When these songs were written you’d probably get a different answer. If you asked me if my degree was worth it partway through, I would say ‘I hope to God,’ because this is fun, but also a nightmare,” said Daniel.
“Bet On Me,” the only song inspired by heavy metal sounds, showcases the confidence and energy of AHRF.
“It’s a song about giving yourself a little bit of false confidence,” said Nick.
The last song on the LP, “Through My Phone,” was written from the perspective of someone else. In this story-telling song, we follow “a weird dude who is hanging out and spending way too much time online and sitting at his computer,” explained Miles.
You can follow AHRF’s journey on their Instagram.
Extracurricular is available on Spotify and Apple Music.
