Music has long been the basis of Wade MacNeil’s life. Since co-founding pioneering post-hardcore outfit Alexisonfire in the early 2000s, the Canadian singer, guitarist, songwriter, and composer has lent his talents to numerous influential and impactful projects. He founded gritty punk outfit Black Lungs, fronts U.K. hardcore heroes Gallows, put fingerprints on recordings by the likes of Anti-Flag, Cancer Bats, and Bedouin Soundclash, and scored a handful of successful feature films and video games. In 2017, MacNeil composed music for Jay Baruchel’s comedy Goon: Last of the Enforcers, and also scored Baruchel’s 2020 horror film Random Acts Of Violence.
His latest, however, dubbed Dooms Children (due out October 20th), is arguably the purest distillation of his artistry and identity to date, and frames a rather tumultuous, transformative, and ultimately transcendent few years of his life. You might call it rock, blues, psychedelic, or stoner. You could compare it to the Dead, the Allmans, even Skynyrd or QOTSA at times. But that falls short.
More aptly, Dooms Children sounds like thick smoke lazily falling from cherry red lips; like twisting the throttle towards a hazy sunset on a bare highway; the voice of someone you love sending you off into sweet, soothing slumber.
Central to the enveloping aural experience is its live-off-the-floor recording and organic production style. The effort was co-produced with the inimitable Daniel Romano, a prolific and acclaimed artist in his own right, with talented multi-instrumentalist Ian Romano, and Montreal guitarist Patrick Bennett rounding out the record’s musical contributors.
From the kaleidoscopic groove of “Trip with Me” to the rocking emotional reckoning of “Psyche Hospital Blues” to the bare-boned beauty of “Heavy Year,” the record digs into entirely new musical and emotional territory for MacNeil which, considering his resume, is saying a lot. Dooms Children also compellingly reimagines the Dead’s “Friend of the Devil” with a more sombre aesthetic. But it’s the swirling, slow burn of lead single “Flower Moon” that best represents the whole, with its intensely cathartic coda embodying the hope of renewal and rebirth that May’s full moon represents in cultures the world over.
Today Glide is excited to premiere Dooms Children’s imaginative take on the Grateful Dead’s classic “Friend of the Devil.” While many bands outside the jam scene have reimagined the Dead in recent years and tons of artists in general have covered this song, Dooms Children has manifested one of the cooler renditions on the tune. MacNeil’s rough and smokey vocals are complemented by fuzz-laden, twangy guitar that gives the song a sort of desert trip vibe. MacNeil and his band are not tied down by staying faithful to the song, instead taking things into a far out universe that includes heady percussion, psychedelic synths, and a range of mind-enhancing guitar playing that veers from dark Americana to full on, spaced out stoner rock with plenty of fuzz to go around. Though this cover may be unexpected, MacNeil lays down one of the coolest versions of this classic tune that you will ever hear. While plenty of Deadheads seem to be happy to settle for John Mayer wanking away on the Dead repertoire, it’s far more exciting to hear these more thoughtful and creative interpretations.
Wade MacNeil describes the inspiration to record the tune:
“I had been up for a few days. I had done so much speed I felt like I might never sleep again. It was early enough in the morning that the sun hadn’t come up yet, but the birds were out. The sound of their chirping felt like the auditory embodiment of fear and shame. There was nothing soothing about it. But, there was one thing that felt steady. I was listening to the Grateful Dead. That always calmed me down. ‘Friend of the Devil’ was playing and I heard Jerry sing the words, “If I get home before daylight, I just might get some sleep tonight.” It felt different hearing it this time. It felt so personal. It felt like if I actually made it to my bed, maybe I could be ok. Maybe somehow I could get sober and I could stop hurting so goddamn much. I got rid of all the drugs in my pockets and made my way home.
I began listening to the Grateful Dead during a very chaotic time in my life. They became a soundtrack for me and helped me pull myself out of the depths of impending self-destruction. Hearing ‘Friend of the Devil’ that morning will always be etched into my memory. Dooms Children is the most personal collection of songs I’ve ever released. So I felt compelled to record the Dead song that feels the most personal to me. I hope you enjoy it.”
LISTEN:
Photo credit: Rashad Bedeir
One Response
Don’t you know, will they add this song in theor new album or it is just single?