Tales from the City: A Mobile Evolution
Written by Liem Vu
Photo credit http://www.myspace.com/mobile
Date: January 16, 2008
On April 18, 2006, a group of Montreal rockers rejoiced as their debut album, Tomorrow Starts Today, was released under Universal Music Canada. With hits like “Out of My Head” and “Montreal Calling,” the seemingly overnight success provided two potential outcomes. Mobile would either join the ranks of other “one album wonders” or become part of a larger legacy of Canadian music.

With Mobile's recently released sophomore album, "Tales from the City," these Montreal rockers appear to be destined for the latter rather than the former. Transcending the borderline cookie-cut pop rock mould of their first album, the second offerings of Mobile have shown growth, honesty, and lyrical honesty.

Going beyond lead singer Mat Joly's newly-gruff exterior, the new experimental edge to Mobile can be seen in their debut music video for "The Killer." In a Blade Runner-esque music video full of dystopian images of a neon cityscape, the propulsive drum beat kicks in with conviction as a catchy guitar riff echoes. The repetitive nature of the song does conjure up similarities to their past hits but Joly admits that the new single isn't necessarily indicative of the whole album.

"It's tough to say…it's the middle of what we came up with this album. It still has the Mobile sound but at the same time, it is slightly different and has nothing to do with “Out of My Head” or “Montreal Calling”. I think it's a good song to say what the album is going to be a little like but there's also songs that are a little darker and less poppy because in The Killer, there are pop elements."

A notable "darker" track is "Sweet Light" featuring Quebec singer Arian Moffat that highlights a new dimension of Joly's vocals as he sings in a lower register. The propulsive Mobile beat is present but the distorted guitars add an organic, unpolished effect which was sorrowfully absent in the perfect overproduction of their first album. Without Moffat's accompanying vocals in the chorus, the track may have run the risk of becoming overly melodramatic but with the songstress' delicate melody in the chorus it elevates the song into an unconventional and beautiful track.

While the lighter pop approach of the first album lead to numerous hits, the songs never resonated with the type of reality and vulnerability that is found here in their sophomore effort. Referring to the album as reflective of a "dark city full of snow," Joly recalls the tales from Montreal that lead to the darker direction of the album.

"We were writing and recording and during that time, there was the worst snow storm we ever had in 30 years in Montreal. It was snowing every week, every couple of days…and as much as I hate the winter time, I think it did influence me to write certain parts of the songs."

It was more than environmental woes that would eventually shape the unconventional final track, “All is Forgiven,” as Joly faced troubling times. “‘All is Forgiven’ is the song that I wrote for that specific moment of a time when I heard and went to funeral homes in about six times in a matter of 3 months so it kind of freaked me out a bit and I got really inspired and I actually had that piece of music for some time and I didn’t know what to write about until all those things happened to me and then I kind of had the subject right in front of me. That song was what I went through during those 3 months.”

Perhaps one of the most experimental pieces yet, the song begins with a distorted and industrial drum like beat which paves the way for a bass line. A reverb drenched vocal by Mat Joly echoes in a melancholic style producing an operatic and tragic effect only to be finally accented in an ambiguous last minute of pure static and distortion.

From pop-rock to progressive rock, Mobile have proven themselves to be a formidable band, one that Canadians should be proud to call their own.

Check out www.mobiletheband.com for more information on the band and upcoming tours.