Southeast Engine is one of those bands that just seems fitting. The foursome, which hails from Athens, Ohio – a small city in the southeastern region of the state – has both a name and music evocative of its settings. The slightly strained, layered melodies of its past releases dance around nostagically-induced lyrical themes and beg to be read as inspired by the band's native soil. And even further in the same vein comes "Canary," the group's sixth full-length album.
While at its very core, the album exists as a conceptual homage to Depression-Era Appalachia, the group’s overall sound easily fits into the broader category of folk-inspired indie rock to come out of the Midwest. And although “Canary” was only released today, a handful of favorable reviews have already appeared online.
“It was all pretty exciting for us to get that positive feedback,” lead singer and guitarist Adam Remnant said. “You work so hard on your album, and you anticipate its release for so long, so then when it comes out you’re always a little wary of how it’s going to be perceived.”
Remnant said that while the band loves all the albums in different ways, the members are, understandably, proudest of the newest album, since it represents “the most current evolution of the band.”
When Remnant first set to work on writing the songs comprising “Canary,” he admitted he didn’t set out with any intentions of creating such a topical through line as what exists in the finished product. In fact, Remnant arguably wasn't even aware at first of the effect that his geographical situation had on his songwriting, although he did note that he feels an inexplicable bond to his origins.
"I have a certain affinity for Ohio," he said. "I feel connected to that place."
In fact, it wasn’t until after he had written the first few songs that Remnant recognized an emerging theme. Once he was aware of how the music seemed to be pointing toward a certain idea, that’s when he began to write more songs that complimented one another.
The result is a collection of 11 expressive songs that range from carefree and hopeful to thoughtful and poignant. But the main theme encircling them all is Remnant’s pushing – lyrically and musically – on the visualization of what it meant to live in Athens, Ohio, during the Great Depression.
“I just kind of became obsessed with that era in Appalachia,” he said of his songwriting process. “I [tried] to immerse myself in the time period.”
This involved listening to a lot of music from the 1930s, most notably the Carter Family and the Anthology of American Folk Music compilation. Remnant also taught himself the clawhammer technique of playing on banjo, to give the music a more authentic edge.
And while the music comes across as methodical and well researched, Remnant was adamant about the lack of planning or reading up on his part. He did, however, admit that watching documentaries about the New Deal and how it affected the region of Southeast Ohio may have been responsible for planting the seeds that grew “Canary” in his head.
“I didn’t have some sort of mastermind scheme of what I was going to do. I just started doing it,” he said. “And, I don’t know, that just, it just seemed like there was enough to explore there where I could…step into those characters’ shoes and write from that perspective. And it was sort of refreshing.”
And even once a common thread had clearly evolved in the songs he’d written, Remnant said he never tried to direct his songwriting in a certain way, preferring to avoid being hyperaware of how or what he was writing.
“I kind of just try to let ideas present themselves to me,” he explained. “I try not to force things too much.”
As for when and where the songwriting takes place, Remnant pointed out the difference between having an idea for a song and actually having the time to sit down and figure it out. While he admitted that he is constantly coming up with song ideas, regardless of where he is, he has never written a song on tour.
“The actual work happens when I’m at home and I have a block of time where I can, you know, really get the ball rolling,” he shared. “The creative stuff is challenging…but that’s why you do it. That’s what you feed off of.”
Southeast Engine plays the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco on Thursday night, with openers Pancho-san and Tommy Carns. The show starts at 9 p.m. and tickets are $10.
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