Introducing...Two Hours Traffic

Two Hours Traffic should be on everyone's radar by now but the continental divide is a curious thing. These indie types from Canada were nominated for a Polaris Prize (the Canadian equivalent of the AMP or Mercury Music Prize) in 2008 for their second album Little Jabs. With third album Territory out now, Two Hours Traffic are starting to make inroads into Australia, where they're currently on the road with The Jezabels.

It's amazing that a band so highly revered in one country can be almost unheard of in another. Especially so when you consider Australia's love affair with Canadian music at the moment (see: Arcade Fire, Crystal Castles, Broken Social Scene, Caribou). Then again, Charlotteville wasn't built in a day and if Two Hours Traffic want to become worldwide superstars, they'll have to do it one country at a time. At the moment they're doing Australia. Recently here on a tour with Dead Letter Chorus, the indie quartet currently find themselves on the road with one of this country's most hyped bands, the Jezabels. We caught up with Two Hours Traffic frontman Liam Corcoran to see how the band is faring in this country of ours.

In 25 words or less, describe your sound for us.

“We are a power-pop band with a mixture of influences including punk, indie and folk.  We aim to craft interesting and catchy songs with strong lyrics.”

Welcome back to Australia. This is the second time you’ve been here this year. What is it about this country that keeps bringing you back?

“We have some good contacts in Australia on the business end and we were invited back much earlier than expected.  We are excited to be embarking on this tour with The Jezabels.”

You toured with Dead Letter Chorus in June and now you’re on the road with The Jezabels. Have you come across any other Australian acts that have taken your fancy?

“We have come across some great Australian music.  In terms of newer stuff, we are really into Dan Kelly as well as Dappled Cities.  Digging back a little further, we like The Triffids and You Am I.”

Is it strange coming from Canada, where you’re quite well known and respected, to a place like Australia, where you’re a bit more anonymous?

“It is a challenge coming into a new country where you are basically unknown.  You have to hit the stage every night and convince at least a few people that your music is worth listening.  We are the kind of band that has always built things slowly so we are happy if even one person comes over and buys a record after the show.”

Canada produces some of the most incredible indie music in the world. What is it about Canada that’s so conducive to that sort of music? It seems like there’s a great community of artists all supporting each other.

“In general, Canadian musicians are very supportive of each other.  Many of the successful bands coming out of Canada have a lot of members, and many of these people are involved in multiple projects (even two of our member play in another band called The Danks).  In order to make all this work, everyone has to respect each other as artists and give their band mates the appropriate breathing room.  This mutual respect has allowed many of these acts to thrive.”

You released your third album Territory earlier this year. For a crowd that’s still relatively new to your music here, do you think this is a good starting point?

“Territory is a good starting point if you remember that we have added four bonus track from our previous album Little Jabs.  We think Territory is a stronger record but many of our fans connected with Little Jabs so we have added some of the more popular tracks from that record.  So in the end you are getting 15 tracks and that gives a pretty decent overview of what we've been up to over the last four or five years.”

Your second album Little Jabs was obviously a breakthrough, getting a Polaris nomination and winning an East Coast Music Award. Did you find it hard to follow up such a hyped-up album?

“There was some pressure to perform on Territory, but I think it was positive pressure.  We knew that a lot of people in Canada were waiting to see what we would come up with and we had that in the back of our minds.  I believe it pushed us to make the best record we could.”

Was it pretty intimidating going up against the likes of Caribou, Black Mountain and Plants And Animals in that 2008 Polaris Prize?

“We didn't feel intimidated to be in the Polaris Shortlist because we knew we weren't going to win.  It was just an incredible honour to be mentioned in the same breath as such excellent groups.”

Have the accolades of that album changed your lives much? Have you been afforded many more opportunities as a result of it?

“Little Jabs definitely got our foot in the door but we are still out there battling.  We'd like to keep making music, and make a living doing it, but we're not really there yet.  The Polaris nomination is something that has helped us get some attention outside of Canada, which can be very difficult.”

Was it tempting to repeat the formula of Little Jabs on Territory? Conversely, what have you done differently on the new album to not repeat yourselves?

“Nobody wants to make the same record twice.  We have always felt that our song writing has changed with time and therefore we don't worry too much about repeating ourselves.  On Territory, we focused a lot more on the lyrics, we wanted to make every word count.  Also, we used a lot less acoustic guitar and instead opted for piano and synthesizer.”

What’s next for you guys? Anything exciting planned for 2011?

“In 2011, we are going to play some shows in the United States but for the most part we will be writing new material for our next record.”

Two Hours Traffic support The Jezabels at the Ed Castle on Sat Nov 27. Territory is out now through Bumstead/ABC

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