When people cannot box you into a catagory or music genre you are generally labelled rock and it is left at that.
Toronto based band, Magneta Lane are not about to leave it at that. Of course, this all female trio has already learned to embrace the Girl Band monicker as they have aged. But they were so on the ball with the most recent release on EOne records Canada, that they generated their very own genre. “People will always catagorise music, but we took back our power and did it on our own terms.” Lead vocal and bitching witch, Lexi Valentine told TiTT.
Witchrock
Released on February 14 2013, Witchrock was bound to raise a few eyebrows. The content is not all love and romance “and if you don’t treat him right bitch, I will,” is the general direction we are headed! Dark humor disguised as love songs, for a Valentines day release.
When Valentine told discussed all things Magneta Lane with TiTT, she made it quite clear from the start that it was tongue in cheek and a sense of humor was necesary. A ten year veteran of the music business and yet still only in her mid twenties, Valentine is smart, savvy and sounds shit hot.
If you are a 35 plus listener, or just an avid fan with a wide ear, you may well hear the influence of Grace Jones, Shirley Mansun, Kate Bush and Hazel O’Connor in the singers voice and there is a definitive Brit Pop topping mixed up in Witchrock!
Witchrock
Valentine tells TiTT “I was a classically trained singer until I was twelve, then I just started to sound like a pubescent boy. I do think my voice is getting better with age though.” So, from Soprano to Pavarotti. While the beard and belly is not evident that is of no matter! “Of course there were also rules in the training, which I never liked. So many rules. But after I heard rock and discovered there were no rules, I knew right away that is where I fit in.”
Musically Valentine; vocals and guitar, Nadia; drums and French; bass, have no formal training. Valentine seemed very proud of that fact. “I had, I think one guitar lesson and realized my hands were too small and so taught myself. Nadia just bought a pair of drum sticks and started beating out tunes on furniture and French has never had a bass lesson. It has been great that our parents have always been really supportive of us as far as music is concerned. Nadia was 15 when we were signed. I was 17. Everyone thought were 19. The clubs wouldn’t have let us play if they knew we were not 19! I hope, in 100 years, if I decide to have children that I am a parent that doesn’t tell her daughter no. It could certainly have a very negative effect on a young girl. I know that once you have a passion for music you are stuck with it. It was very weird having to figure things out at such a young age. Nadia had to change schools with about a year and a half left because we had a video on Much Music and the girls at school were starting to find out what we were doing.”
Valentine explained that Witchrock was a kind of stop gap for them musicallly. “We still have more songs in post production, but we really wanted to give our listeners something new, it has been so long. Also we wanted to still be passionate about the songs while they were still fresh. You can expect a full length record hopefully by the end of the year. A video for Burn will be released shortly and we are already putting together ideas for a tour of Canada, The USA and then hopefully Europe, all before the end of the year.”
This could be seen as a re-birth for this very talented and smart trio, is that how they percieve it?
Line in the sand
Valentine is very adamant when she says “We are so much more involved in the business side of our business now. We were not so much when we were younger, we had a lot of other people working for us. But it can save your life to be in involved. Kids want to be Kurt Cobain, but you really have to be Donald Trump too. It is important to be smart. You know the girls that make videos with thier boobs hanging out, they need to be smart. For me know I’m older it is less of a selfish endeavour and that helps too.”
Valentine is so right. She is giving up her life, to give you art that should be listened to, enojyed and cranked fucking loud. Be sure and take a trip down Magneta Lane.
Lady Bones from 2010’s Gambling with God
https://www.facebook.com/magnetalane
by Karen Graham 27 March 2013
Turn It Up To Twelve 