Plumtree- Winter Formal 2000

When bands break up usually it's for good, bad, stupid and financial reasons. Personality clashes, musical differences, martial breakup, going broke and just plain, "run the course" are just some of the reasons. Sometimes members of a band want to explore something else either on their own or with other people. That's why lead singers/songwriters of bands seem to control the destiny of the band and will go solo if they think the rest of the band is dragging him/her down or they want to explore other musical directions or sooth their ego with more attention and accolades to themselves.

None of the above reasons are why Halifax's, Plumtree called it quits in June 2000. Their split was amicable, after a lengthy spring tour across Canada and the U.S. they decided to go their separate ways with Amanda Braden moving to Toronto, Catriona Sturton to Japan, Lynette Gillis to New York, leaving singer/songwriter Carla Gillis in Halifax to embark on a solo career. No rock star tantrums or nasty breakup stories, it was them moving forward with their lives and academic aspirations (while in school the band toured during their school breaks), Carla and Lynette have continued collaborating on many music projects and Catriona is doing the solo thing.

When they broke up: Plumtree's last show was June 30, 2000 at the Marquee Club in Halifax, NS.

Why They Split: (See above) Basically they wanted to discover a world outside of Halifax. Touring with a band is a good way to see the world, but you always seem to end up at home.

Post Breakup: Lynette and Carla have relocated and played in bands in Vancouver (Bontempi) and Toronto (Sister). Amanda lives in Vancouver, while Catriona is in Ottawa pursuing a solo career.

Odds of a reunion: I think pretty good! I wouldn't be surprised if they get together musically for a one-off, but a tour is a long shot, but definitely not out of the question. They are still young and three quarters of them are still active recording and performing. Those three (Carla, Lynette and Cat) did play one song together during a Sister set for the Scott Pilgrim Vol. 6 launch party (the graphic novel, not the movie) in July 2010. The whole band did reunite at the movie premiere in August (see photo), but they didn't perform. Hey, if the Replacements can play three shows, anything is possible!

Reunited...to watch a movie only.

In 2000, I had the opportunity to see Plumtree four times. I really wish I saw them on their earlier tours because three of the shows they toured their new record (at the time), This Day Won't Last At All (kind of appropriate now!) the setlists didn't vary too much. The show I'm posting is the first of the four and was before the release of the new record so many of these songs hadn't been heard by many yet. A decent sounding recording on my trusty cassette recorder with the usual crowd chatter, captures the band as an opener for local band, B'ehl's CD release party. It was billed as a Winter Formal because of the large ballroom setting and most people dressed formal (not me, who knew?) and as a bonus the girls in Plumtree wore skirts. I think Carla mentions it's really a rare occasion they dress up, Amanda says it's only the second time they've done it. Plumtree were and remain one of my favourite bands...Very cool show!
Enjoy!

PLUMTREE
Ramada Marborough Skyview Ballroom
Winnipeg, MB
January 27, 2000

Audience Master
Sony mic> Sony Cassette recorder> Maxell XLII cassette>
audio CDR> FreeRip> WAV> FLAC> rar

01.  One-Stop
02.  Scott Pilgrim
03.  Racing Gloves
04.  My My
05.  Thrilled To Be Here
06.  Hello Again
07.  Latitude
08.  Regret
09.  I'm Not Moving
10.  Was That All
11.  You Just Don't Exist

PLUMTREE- 2000-01-27 Ramada Ballroom, Winnipeg, MB, FLAC. rar

Mini Plumtree Reunion!!!

This is an awesome moment for Plumtree fans who have waited almost 10 years to hear the band (almost, Amanda didn't wasn't there) perform together again. This little reunion (one song?) was during the Scott Pilgrim Vol. 6 launch party (the latest volume of the graphic novel series) in Toronto, on July 19th. In case you don't know the connection with the movie, Scott Pilgrim Vs The World and Plumtree, Scott Pilgrim was the name of a Plumtree song (the one they perform on this video) and then comic artist, Bryan Lee O'Malley created a graphic novel and named his hero, Scott Pilgrim after the song. Plumtree's song is on the movie soundtrack.

Seeing this immediately makes me think Plumtree reunion!! But through email a few months ago, I asked Carla if there were any plans for a reunion based on this renewed interest in the band because of the Scott Pilgrim Vs the World movie and she replied it would be difficult because Amanda was a new mom and it wouldn't be so easy to get the band together to tour. Carla Gillis and her sister Lynette have been recording and performing together as, Sister and judging by the huge smile on bass player Catriona Sturton's face, she looks thrilled to be there. For the movie premiere on August 5, Amanda did fly into Toronto from Vancouver, so the band, at least in person did reunite. If they reunited for a mini-tour or even a few shows, I would so be there, I promise!

Absolutely Nothing!

I can find absolutely nothing in the way of pictures of the band, this is as good as it gets.

If you're a hardcore Plumtree fan you may be already familiar with Carla and Lynette's early side-project, Absolutely Nothing. They formed in 1994 with members, Carla Gillis, Lynette Gillis and Lisa Verge (later replaced by Derrick Hiltz) and they released a couple of cassettes and played mainly around Halifax. Absolutely Nothing would never be mistaken for Plumtree, their sound was more aggressive, their songs are short and fast and they definitely had a punk edge to them. Carla still sang, but instead of playing guitar she switches to bass. As their MySpace page says, they are a "lean and teen Halifax punk band". They disbanded by 1997, which enabled Carla and Lynette to tour freely and concentrate on their main project, Plumtree.

A number of years ago (at least 10 years ago!), I received a Absolutely Nothing cassette tape and a VHS tape full of Absolutely Nothing and Plumtree live performances from someone on the East Coast, I can't remember who it was, but thanks! Unfortunately the video tape was probably a few generations old, so the quality is a little rough and is not by any means high def, but it's a great documentation of both bands. The tape made me even more of a fan and created a need to see them perform live. I'm hoping there will be a renewed interest in the band, cause I figure the new Plumtree.ca site is a way for Carla and co. to maybe gain some attention because of this Scott Pilgrim movie and to give their fans (new and old) a glimpse into what they were missing. The t-shirts are just a tiny way they can cash in. Plumtree was a band that broke-up at the height of their popularity and called it quits much too prematurely. Check out their discography page and buy their studio albums! Show your support for the band and who knows...!

Carla and Lynette have continued to form bands together and record great music. While living in Vancouver they formed, Bontempi (They mailed me their CD) and Bells Clanging. Currently in Toronto, Carla and Lynette's latest project is, Sisters.

Getting back to Absolutely Nothing, I'm posting this rare cassette demo I have. The sound is fairly lo-fi and raw and there's some tape hiss and the sound volume fluctuates a bit (again a few generations old). I just transferred the tape to digital files and honestly I hadn't played the tape in years. Maybe one day if the members of the band re-release it on CD and clean-up the sound, with a better mix and less distortion, this could sound really good. On their MySpace, the song samples sound much bassier and cleaner.
Enjoy!

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING
Demo cassette (1994?)
1. Fako
2. AWOL
3. Ol' Blue Eyes
4. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
5. Lawyers Suck
6. Pointed
7. I'm A Boy
8. Milli
9. Loser
10. Armidillo
11. PDS / 4 Track
12. Ich Habe Angst
13. I Don't Know
14. Top Of The Morning
15. Liberated Woman

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING- demos. rar

Plumtree - Scott Pilgrim

With the release of the upcoming film starring Michael Cera, Scott Pilgrim vs The World, it should be noted the film is based on the graphic novel by Bryan Lee O'Malley. More importantly before the books, the name of "Scott Pilgrim" originates from the song by Plumtree.

In the film, Michael Cera's character (Scott Pilgrim) will be seen wearing a Plumtree t-shirt. The band is selling those very same shirts on their newly launched website at http://www.plumtree.ca/. It should be also noted, I just bought one! (buy here!) Photos later when it arrives!

More Plumtree videos can be found on YouTube or on Plumtree's site.

Plumtree Live!

I know there are at least a few readers to this blog that have heard of the late great all-girl Halifax band, Plumtree. If you are not familiar with the band, have a look from their Wiki-bio.

Plumtree was formed in 1993, when the original line-up of the band were teenagers. Carla Gillis (aged 17) on vocals and guitar, sister Lynette (14) on drums, Amanda Braden (15) guitar and vocals and Nina Martin (16) on bass. In their 7 years of existance, they produced 3 full-length CD's, one EP and five 7" singles. In 1996, they were awarded a YTV achievement award for the best Canadian band under twenty and appeared on the nationally broadcasted show. Their popularity was helped by the fact around this time, a boom of great young bands sprung up in the Maritimes region (Sloan, Jale, Eric's Trip), that gained national and American attention (think, Sub Pop!). Plumtree earned a solid fan base with their down to earth, fresh approach to indie-rock that took them on tour throughout Canada and the US. They toured with bands such as, Superfriendz, Thrush Hermit, Inbreds, Weakerthans and the Local Rabbits.

I had the pleasure of seeing the band 4 times during their last tour in 2000 and I wished I had discovered them sooner. About a year ago, in one of my past blog postings I talked about meeting the band after a show and about how I recorded their shows I attended (Also you can still download the Flutterboard cassette ep). If there is interest, I could transfer some of my tapes to CD (or mp3's) and post some more live Plumtree.

Today, I have a recording that was broadcast on the CBC during a East Coast Music Awards showcase concert. Plumtree played a short set (I'm not sure if this was edited down) at the Halifax Convention Centre on January 31, 1998. The sound quality is excellent, as it's a radio broadcast, but there is a glitch between Effin' and You Just Don't Exist, I must have knocked the tuner dial or something as I lost reception for a few seconds, other than that, it's good.
Enjoy!

PLUMTREE
Halifax Convention Centre
Halifax, NS
January 31, 1998
FM Broadcast

1. Hang Up Baby
2. Fatherhood
3. The Game's Over
4. Sodium Chloride
5. Effin'
6. You Just Don't Exist
7. Racing Gloves
8. Go! / outtro.

PLUMTREE- 1-31-98. rar

Plumtree- Flutterboard

Back in the early and mid-90's Halifax was the "hot-bed" of indie-rock talent in Canada. Bands such as Sloan, Super Friendz, Thrush Hermit, the Inbreds and Jale caused a wave of excitement and promise that captured the attention of music fans and opened doors for other East Coast bands in Canada and the US.

One of my favourite bands from Halifax was Plumtree, who released 3 full length CD's and a handful of 7'ers and many appearances on compilations. Plumtree toured extensively across Canada and the US (they only toured in summer months because of university classes) during their 7 year career and I saw the band live four times. I also had the pleasure of talking to guitarist Amanda Braden of Plumtree after a show in Steinbach (30 minutes outside of Winnipeg) back in 2000, we talked about their tour and music and of course got all the band to sign their third CD, This Day Won't Last At All. In case anyone is interested, I recorded the Plumtree shows on my trusty Walkman tape recorder.

I have for your listening pleasure, Flutterboard, a six-song cassette (available only on tape) that the band released a year before their first full-length CD, Mass Teen Fainting came out. It features exclusive songs that are not available anywhere except for an early version of In The Sink. This tape is hard to find and long out of print, but is by no means their quintessential work, I urge you to seek out all of Plumtree's CD's if you love catchy melodies and all-girl vocals. The quality of their sound improves on each release and I consider their final CD, This Day Won't Last At All, their masterpiece. The band broke up in 2000, but Lynette and Carla Gillis are still actively playing music. They formed Bontempti in Vancouver, Bells Clanging and now a new project, Sister with sister Lynette and Ryan Myshrall from Local Rabbits.

PLUMTREE Flutterboard ep (1994)
1. In The Sink
2. Let's Hope There's A Heaven
3. Hey! Whiskers!
4. Depp
5. Festooned
6. Good Time To Tell Me