Pamela Pachal is currently based in New Brunswick, Canada but was recently in Montreal with her drummer Sean Keenan. They were in town to play a couple of gigs to a curious but enthusiastic crowd. The following interview was originally supposed to occur while Pachal was still in Montreal, but due to unforeseen events, we had to postpone until some “dust” settled. Here is the interview we finally managed to do, with details about what delayed it:
You were recently in Montreal and had the misfortune of getting your vehicle broken into. Does this kind of incident make you fearful of touring and does it create trust issues when dealing with people you interact with, either in the music scene or in your personal life?
PP: Oh yeah. Anytime you have something like this happen you start to second-guess if you should be doing this, or if it’s worth it. Bad things are going to happen, no matter who you are. You just have to keep pushing through them and always believe that things happen for a reason.
If I’m not mistaken, you’re touring Canada this summer. Is it the first time out with the current band that you have? Is it a full band, or just you + drums?
PP: We’re going on a cross-Canada tour this fall. Right now it’s just me and my drummer but we’re hoping to find a permanent bass player for the tour.
Do you enjoy touring, or is it a necessary evil?
PP: The tour itself is great, the booking/promoting/organizing/etc. leading up to the tour sucks! Seriously, it is by far the worst part of being a musician….which is why there’s plenty of opportunity out there for bookers and promoters.
Okay, what is your favourite instrument to play? Which is the primary instrument you compose on?
PP: It completely depends on my mood….if I’m feeling bluesy, I definitely want to be on the piano. If I want to rock out, definitely guitar. With composing I usually go back and forth, writing for guitar and piano… but I’d estimate that the majority of my songs started on guitar.
What was the first instrument you learned to play? Are you self-taught, classically trained or…other?
PP: Guitar is the first instrument I learned to play even though my mom put me in piano [lessons] when I was really young (I was only in them for a bit). I taught myself guitar and then about a year after I started playing keys as well. I was self-taught on [both of them] even though I am fully trained in music theory (graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Music Technology).
Going back to the subject of the break-in in Montreal, you lost the laptop where some of your musical creations were stored. How do you feel about intellectual property and music copyright violations?
PP: Since my long-term goal is to be a songwriter/composer, I feel very strongly about it, or at least I should, but honestly, I am very confident in my writing and creating abilities. If someone wants to steal songs from me, go ahead, I’ll just write something new…
Would you ever consider the possibility of writing for other musicians (who don’t first steal your copyright)?
PP: Definitely. Eventually I just want to be a full-time songwriter. I really enjoy playing and performing but my real passion is for writing. I would just love to be able to write a song and then hand it off to someone else to play. (Someone good though… haha)
If you could write a song for another singer/musician, who would it be and why?
PP: I’ve thought of that a lot….and certain songs I would like to see certain musicians sing. Completely depends on the song, and the musician. Songs that are very personal to me I would only want a handful of people performing. Other songs I would just love to see anyone play them.
If you could jam with a full band consisting of your musical heroes, living or dead, who would you choose?
PP: Oohh…..it would be a big band! Beethoven would definitely be conducting a string section, probably have to bring Bach from the dead as well to do a little organ action, John Mayer would be on guitar, Alicia Keys on keys, Aretha Franklin, Joss Stone and James (not Jim) Morrison on vocals, Stevie Wonder on the synth, Sean Keenan (my drummer) on drums, the Pips on backing vocals, and Justin Timberlake just standing there looking pretty cause I luff him… ;-) Oh, and I would like every boy-band that ever came about to be dancing while the jam is going on… I am so out of the closet about my boy band fetish!
*Speaking of being out of the closet, Pachal has some pretty sexy promotional images of her frolicking in what looks to be a bed, (and a sofa??) with two lovely female strangers.*
You don’t seem to be shy with your public image, nor with the lyrics of your songs. ‘Cheating Bitch’ is pretty direct, and ‘Nasty Clothes’ is a raunchy romp. Do you ever get flack for having potty mouth or being overtly sexual?
PP: Haha, well I censor myself depending on the venue I’m playing at. If I’m playing at a family fun kind of festival, I usually get kids to shout out a word and then I use that word to replace the swears in my songs. ‘Cheating Bitch’ has been played as ‘Cheating Moose’ once and ‘Eating Cake’ another time…haha. When I’m at a bar or adult venue though, I sing the songs as is. Except if my mom is at the show. If she’s there, I mumble any lyrics about sex. That’s cause it’s just too weird to sing about having sex with you’re mom around!
What was your worst insult or remark in regards to your unwillingness to censor yourself?
PP: I think I’ve had a couple “gay” remarks when people notice I’m singing about girls in my songs….but nothing bad, just mutterings like “did she just say a girl??” or “is she a l-l-l-le-s-bian??” haha. I think it’s funny, but I understand their shock. When you think about it, there’s really not a lot of gay musicians (especially ones who play at the venues I do) who are so open and forthcoming lyrically. A lot of gay musicians (and straight musicians as well) tend to use a lot of metaphors in their songs… and I’m not really one for the metaphor.
What are three things that keep you awake on the road?
PP: Coffee, cigarettes, and Sean re-telling South Park episodes.
What’s your current favourite road-trip song or CD?
PP: A new mixed CD with a couple real gooders like John Mayer’s ‘In Your Atmosphere’ live, B.O.B’s ‘Airplanes’, ‘Ode To Joy’(my favourite musical piece of all time), Classified ‘Oh Canada’ (great Canadian song), The Script’s ‘Breakeven’, and a bunch of other good ones…
Interview conducted by Dee Gamliel