January 23, 1997
Peace Time
By Blair S. Watson -- Calgary Sun
Raine Maida appears to have put his health problems behind him -- and just in time.His Toronto-based band, Our Lady Peace, has just released its second album, Clumsy, the followup to its breakthrough CD, Naveed.
While touring Naveed, Maida suffered a spinal herniation that led to some show cancellations, including one in Calgary. "That was a bad one in Calgary," the singer recalls in a telephone interview. "I couldn't move. Pinched nerve.... I went and got a steroid epidural in my back and it fixed me up. "Now I'm taking care of myself. I started to do yoga and I've meditated quite a bit." Plus, Maida adds, he has been playing more guitar lately and curtailing the manic stage antics that stress his back. "It kind of keeps me a little more straight, being at the mike and not being able to run around and be as crazy as I guess I was," he says. But Maida and his bandmates are still creative, as Clumsy proves. This explorative, innovative recording retains the exotic rhythms of Naveed, while displaying increasingly acrobatic vocals and elaborate harmonies. "We took a lot of time experimenting. The album was really done in three months. We took another two months to really go back over stuff and re-rerecord. "It's neat to look back and know the extra time we took was important to the record." Clumsy marks the recording debut of a new bass player, Duncan Coutts, who replaced Chris Eacrett. "Duncan plays keyboards and he sings, so there are a new more harmonies. We tried cello in a few songs because (Duncan) played, but it didn't seem to fit," Maida says. However, Our Lady Peace seemed to be a perfect fit for both Robert Plant/Jimmy Page and Van Halen; both acts had OLP open concerts for them. The Van Halen dates were particularly memorable for Maida, as they were among the last shows VH played before parting ways with singer Sammy Hagar. "Eddie (Van Halen) would often be in our dressing room hangin' out -- as would Alex (Van Halen) and Michael Anthony. But Sammy Hagar is a different cat, you know. "Eddie's there three hours before soundcheck playing his guitar onstage ... whereas Sammy's a little more involved with having his own limo. It didn't seem he was in it for the music as much as the Van Halen brothers were."
