Bunch of Keaners

British pop-rockers eager to ditch the airplane and drive across Canada

By DARRYL STERDAN

Keane aren't keen on repetition.

While most bands are happy to find a stylistic niche and settle into it, these British pop-rockers have consciously laboured to broaden and enrich their sound with each successive release.

"Well, I'm glad you noticed," chuckles soft-spoken singer Tom Chaplin down a scratchy phone line from a tour stop in Moscow. "It's true; there are plenty of bands out there that find a way of doing things and get successful and make lots of money from it -- and are very happy doing it.

"But I guess there's a sort of ambition in us to want more -- to push ourselves and never really slot into that comfort zone. After the success of our first record, we could very easily have gone, 'Well, that did well, let's just remain the same.' But each time, we've tried to do things in a more expansive way."

Musically, that motivation has taken the band -- Chaplin, pianist Tim Rice-Oxley and drummer Richard Hughes, along with bassist and unofficial fourth member Jesse Quin -- from the passionate piano-based balladry of 2004's Hopes and Fears to the more experimental textures of 2006's Under the Iron Sea and on to the '80s-style art-pop of last year's Perfect Symmetry, which found the group utilizing guitars for the first time. Lately, they've been heading off in another direction, cutting tracks with Somali-Canadian poet and hip-hopper K'Naan.

Speaking of new directions, the band's latest swing through Canada brings them to a handful of cities they've never played before. (Keane plays Kitchener Sept. 19 at the Centre In The Square.) And perhaps playing a few songs fans have never heard before.

Here's what Chaplin had to say about their restless nature, working with K'Naan and something else Keane aren't keen on -- flying.

How is Russia? From your band's blog, it sounds like you've had an interesting trip.

Well, none of us likes flying. So we decided to get on the train, which is something we've done quite a bit in recent times. So they tacked on a carriage to some rickety old train that runs from St. Petersburg to Moscow and we had jolly time just hanging out and seeing the world go by. Which, compared to getting on an airplane, was a joyful experience.

How have the shows been?

We played a really rocking show in St. Petersburg last night. It's strange; in the last year or so, we've played a lot of places we never really played before. So you have no idea how the fans are going to react to your music, how well they'll know your songs, which albums will be their favourites. There have been a lot of those very fresh experiences for us.

You'll be playing a lot of Canadian cities for the first time as well.

We're bookending with Vancouver and Montreal, which are two cities we know and love. But everything between that is a big, new adventure. Again, what will be lovely is that we'll be driving -- there will be no flying -- and seeing the Canadian countryside and getting a sense of the enormity of the place. It's really exciting for us.

Is your dislike of flying based on fear or environmental impact, or ... ?

It's a combination. As soon as I get on a plane, I'm sort of chewing the seat -- completely out of breath and very fearful. It's quite odd; I was never like that before. I would be very blase about it. But paradoxically, the more I've flown, the more I've come to hate it.

You feel like your number's bound to come up?

(Laughs) Well, I do feel like we're changing the odds all the time, with the number of flights we do. But I also absolutely detest airport security -- that invasiveness and having everything searched through. I feel that should be avoided. And yeah, on the environmental side, we're trying to limit the flying we do. It's not going to change anything by a huge amount, but you have to start with the things in your own life. It all makes a small difference, to us at least.

You're in the wrong business for a guy who hates flying.

(Laughs) Yes, it's very annoying. But that's how we plan our tours these days; so we can limit it as much as possible. We've even thought of taking the boat to America -- getting a few bands together on a cruise ship. It would take five or six days to get there, but it would be cool.

A lot of bands mellow as they get older, but you seem to be heading in the opposite direction. What's the deal?

We have always just felt that it's worth experimenting -- it's fun and different. It shakes you up and ultimately makes for better, greater music. And all our heroes have done that. I always think of David Bowie as the pinnacle in terms of musical and stylistic evolution. It would be lovely to keep aspiring to those lofty heights. Whether we'll ever get there I'm unsure, but we keep trying.

Is it a challenge to incorporate the new songs and sounds with the old material onstage?

Every time we make a record, it becomes more of a challenge to play live (laughs). But yeah, this time we were pretty nervous, because these songs are a lot more complex and require a lot more adeptness musically. And we're not that confident about our playing (laughs). There were some worrying moments in early gigs, but as time goes on, it's been great fun and added another dimension to the live sound.

You've been recording with K'Naan. That suggests another stylistic shift. What can you tell me about the songs? Are they more rhythmically based?

I suppose. Marrying our two styles is something that's hard to imagine. But he has a very soulful and emotive quality to what he does. It's not incessant bling and posturing. He talks about his childhood and life in a way that chimes quite well with what we do as a band. So it was a happy marriage in the studio. Everyone was excited and inspired. Other than that, you just have to wait to hear it.

Any chance we'll hear anything new on the Canadian dates?

We've got a few things knocking around. It's a question of whether we feel brave enough to bring them out (laughs). The K'Naan stuff, of course, will have to wait. But we do like to chuck in surprises. So you never know.

DARRYL.STERDAN@SUNMEDIA.CA

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