Hopeful Monster

Free Singles Reissues & NXNE Showcase

2011-05-16T13:57:00.021-04:00

NXNE Showcase info:

Thursday, June 16 at 9 pm
Bread & Circus, 299 Augusta Ave
(facebook event page)

To help get the word out, we've reissued a few songs as free downloads from viinyl.com — they've been streaming online for ages anyway, might as well put them on your iPod too!

Check out the links even if you already have the CDs, it's a cool format — large scale artwork, music streaming & download, lyrics and video for each song hosted at it's own unique URL:

http://uncivilized.viinyl.com
http://paytherent.viinyl.com
http://steppingin.viinyl.com
http://starsarephotomagnets.viinyl.com
http://riverreflexive.viinyl.com

Sessions for the third Hopeful Monster album are going swimmingly! Come to our showcase for a preview of the new sound.

In The Dead Of Winter

2011-01-09T11:09:00.004-05:00

Hopeful Monster has been invited to perform at IDOW 2011! If you live in Halifax, you know about this festival — founded in 2006 by a handful of musicians and promoters, it draws aficionados out of hibernation en masse, to celebrate live music despite the crushing weather. In its first year, IDOW marked the closing of the legendary Khyber Club on Barrington St, the migration of the Halifax indie scene to the North end of town and the establishment of a thriving new singer/songwriter community with a mature and far-carrying voice. Hopeful Monster opens for Snailhouse on Thursday, Jan. 27 at FRED, 2606 Agricola St, following Newfoundland's Matthew Hornell.

FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE

inthedeadofwinter.com
snailhousemusic.com
matthewhornell.com

Same song, new site...old school (kinda). Get a free Hopeful Monster mp3 at uncivilized.viinyl.com

Video Glitch

2010-11-23T10:05:00.019-05:00

Blip.tv, the site that hosts the videos I've been posting here, recently changed their embed player, which is why no videos have been loading if you've visited this site lately. To go back and re-embed everything is just too huge a task right now, but you can still watch the videos — just use the "videos" quick link on the right of this page to browse the video archive. You can also go straight to the source at hopefulmonster.blip.tv

Pics And Videos From CBC Taping

2010-09-19T23:35:00.008-04:00

Body Arithmetic

New Start

Looking pretty pleased with ourselves in this after show pic... and so we should be, I think the whole live taping thing went pretty well! When I find out when it airs, I'll post the details. Thanks to CBC, Bread & Circus and everyone who came out! Photos by Randy Ray and Catherine Phillips.

Just heard about Hopeful Monster? Here are a few videos, featuring high quality audio so turn it up! There's a ton of content on this site — photos, reviews, lyrics, poster art, dozens of live videos etc — use the links on the right to look around. Thanks for stopping by!

Uncivilized (from Metatasking, 2008)

Stepping In (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Stars Are Photomagnets (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Representing Nova Scotia in CBC Song Quest

2010-09-10T13:47:00.013-04:00

Hopeful Monster has been chosen to represent Nova Scotia in CBC's Great Canadian Song Quest this year. The theme is "Road Songs" — that means I'll be writing a song about a stretch of road, somewhere in NS, and you get to choose it! Well, you get to nominate, promote and vote for your favourite spot, but you're gonna have to fight the good fight to beat out the roads other people are rooting for. Or maybe your favourite road has already been put forward — you can help make sure it comes in first! Head over to the Song Quest website and jump on the bandwagon... or blaze your own trail. Nominations close September 21, after which you can vote for one of the top five until October 1. Then I'll have two weeks to write a brand new song about the road you've chosen.

On October 26, when it's all over, the 13 artists representing the Canadian provinces and territories will perform at a gala concert at Glenn Gould Studio in downtown Toronto, to be televised and broadcast on CBC radio across Canada. The 13 songs will be for sale on iTunes — last year's Song Quest yielded a compilation that sold more copies than any other music recording in the history of the CBC! Needless to say, we are very honoured to have been chosen for this cool project.

As if Song Quest, regular airplay and April's Radio 2 Drive session weren't enough, Hopeful Monster just got another big hug from CBC: they are going to record our next concert and broadcast it on Canada Live later this fall. The show is this Thursday, Sept. 16 at Bread & Circus in Kensington market (facebook event page). If you're in Toronto, come on out and get your hoots and hollers on national radio! Just try to keep it PG, my kid and my mom might be listening...

Watch the Song Quest 2009 gala concert here

Just heard about Hopeful Monster? Here are a few videos, featuring high quality audio so turn it up! There's a ton of content on this site — photos, reviews, lyrics, poster art, dozens of live videos etc — use the links on the right to look around. Thanks for stopping by!

Uncivilized (from Metatasking, 2008)

Stepping In (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Stars Are Photomagnets (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

New Start - April 30, 2009 at The Local, Toronto

Mourning Dove Festival 2010

2010-07-09T12:34:00.028-04:00

The second ever Mourning Dove Festival will be held in Head Of St. Margaret’s Bay NS on Saturday, July 31, with performances by Erin Costelo, Hopeful Monster, Jose Contreras (of By Divine Right), Andrew Watt And The Glory Glory and Michelle McAdorey (formerly of Crash Vegas).

The venue is a wooded property on Mason’s Point within twenty kilometres from the Halifax Rotary, providing a relaxed setting to enjoy some great music. This would be a perfect family destination after a heat-of-the-day outing to Queensland Beach! The first act will begin at 3 p.m.

Bring a sweater, a lawn chair or blanket to sit on and bug juice. Tickets are $20 and include food. Attendance will be limited to 100 guests, so please reserve a spot in advance by contacting us at 902-826-7067 or mourningdovefestival@gmail.com.

* Please note: in the event of rain, the festival will be held Sunday, August 1

For more info and a map of the location, visit the festival website.

We had a blast putting on MDF 2007, despite a torrential downpour (hence this year's rain date proviso) — we're really excited to be doing it again this summer! Not only is it a chance for us to host a fantastic line up of singer songwriters, but it's becoming the focal point of a Ball family reunion that will see my brother, sister, nephew, daughter, uncle and parents all under the same roof for the first time in ages. The house once belonged to my Grandfather, a percussionist who emigrated from England in the 1950s for a job in the Royal Canadian Artillery band; it was sold in the 70s and reacquired by my folks a few years ago for their retirement home... so the stage is set for a very special occasion — we hope you will come share it with us!

Besides the festival, I'll be playing another Hopeful Monster show while I'm back in NS:

* Monday, July 26 at Company House, Halifax — with Andrew Watt & The Glory Glory, Mike O'Neil

Hopeful Monster at NXNE 2010

2010-06-15T20:51:00.017-04:00

Thursday, June 17 @ C'est What?
67 Front St E - $10 or NXNE pass

Hopeful Monster (1 am)
Praise The Twilight Sparrow (12 am)
Sunbear (11 pm)
Katherine Rose (10 pm)
Mark Mandeville with Raianne Richards (9 pm)
Sara Kamin (8 pm)
(facebook event page)

Hopeful Monster is:

Jason Ball - piano, vocal
Jose Contreras - guitar, vocal
Randy Lee - violin
Alex McMaster - cello

Just discovering Hopeful Monster? Here are a few tidbits for ya:

CBC Radio 2 Drive session
Interview with Rich Terfry and studio performance (aired April 22, 2010)

Aeolian Hall with Lily Frost & CBC Radio 2 Drive Session

2010-04-19T00:52:00.031-04:00

On Tuesday, I went in to CBC to do an interview / recording session for Radio 2 Drive with Rich Terfry. Jose and Randy joined me and we did our best pre-noon version of "Air Highway" and a new song, "Angel Spies." Rich is from Nova Scotia too, he studied biology in college and already knew the science meaning of hopeful monster when he heard the band name. What he doesn't know is, I saw him play at a tiny Gottingen Street art gallery, way back when he was Stinkin Rich, and... I think... he was only wearing a diaper. Or maybe he had a mime with him, who was wearing a diaper. Somebody was feeding somebody something with an oversized spoon. It was a really long time ago. I was impressed though, a simple joke that put the whole set into context..

It was nice chatting with Rich in person, and playing the 1940 Steinway grand piano at the CBC studio. The session airs Thursday, April 22 on CBC Radio 2 around 5 - 7 pm. It'll be posted at Live on Drive after that.

On Saturday evening I opened for Lily Frost at the Aeolian Hall in London, Ontario. It's a beautiful, 150 year old concert hall that has also been a furniture shop and East London City Hall, among other things, over the years. Clark Bryan, the owner, is a concert pianist who lives downstairs with two Steinway grands and a music academy. On stage there is a new Yamaha grand, signed inside by Chick Corea when he performed there earlier this year. The hall has been listed among the top 10 acoustic spaces in the country. Great Lake Swimmers recorded an album there, which is funny cuz I did a throw to them when I was recording station IDs at CBC.

Summer's Only Daughter

No Alibi

Randy and Jose joined me for a few songs. We are all in Lily's band, doing songs from her new album, Viridian Torch, for the first time. Jose produced the album and Randy co-wrote some songs, including "Forest Fire." The Toronto launch party is May 20 at Hugh's Room. She plays the following night with her swing band.

Angel Spies

Forest Fire by Lily Frost

myspace.com/lilyfrost

I set the video camera up before sound check, and then the piano got moved. Thanks to Gord Paul for flying in and saving the shot!

circa 1969

circa 1900

Just Wanna Rock Interview

2010-02-24T13:26:00.003-05:00

I met Namebacon at The Shed in Leicester, UK, when I played there in November 2008. He was the only person at the show who bought both Hopeful Monster CDs, and I guess he liked them cuz last month he emailed me about doing an interview for Justwannarock.net, the webzine he writes for. Namebacon is his nom de plume of course, his true identity to be kept secret because he works for the government — but this unassuming young bureaucrat leads a shadowy double life, infiltrating indie music cells, exposing their fiendish schemes and the conspirators who would keep them silent. Read his full report here.

justwannarock.net

* May 7, 2010* It seems justwannarock.net is out of commission at the moment. Luckily I still have a copy of the interview, so here it is:

1. Hopeful Monster, where did the name come from?

It's a science term. The evolution of species is driven by random mutations, little changes from generation to generation that cause feathers to grow on pterodactyls, horns to fall off unicorns, fish to grow legs and crawl up onto the beach, etc, gradually over thousands of years. Some mutations result in traits that give the new generation a survival advantage and these become dominant in the species over time. If the mutation is an extreme one, the offspring is so unlike its parents that it has to be considered a new species, like if any of the examples above were to happen in a single generation. They call it "macroevolution" and the lucky new critter is called a "hopeful monster." ...Or unlucky, I guess, if the mutation turns out to be a handicap and the monster in question dies a miserable and lonely death without procreating (it remains to be seen which version of the metaphor applies more directly to my musical career).

2. How long have you had the band going, and was it just solo or band act to begin with?

Actually it was a recording project first. My friend and I started a recording studio in 2001 called "Nervous System" in rural Nova Scotia (Eastern Canada). We each had a batch of songs we wanted to produce and when my album was done I needed a name for it. So first Hopeful Monster was the album title, then I put a band together to perform the songs and called that Hopeful Monster. I love playing with a band, especially for the kind of music I was writing in those days, but it's so expensive to tour with a band that now I mostly do solo gigs or very small ensembles...until word gets out and I can afford to bring the gang!

3. Where/who/what influences you? Any one artist in particular "taking your fancy" at the minute?

Sooo many artists have influenced me over the years, everything from Beatles, Beach Boys, Zombies, Kinks and Todd Rudgren to AC DC, Alice Cooper, Linda Ronstadt, Gram Parsons, Dylan, Cohen, Spiritualized, Sparklehorse... I could go on forever. I grew up on the 60s & 70s LPs my dad had, got into fluffy hair metal when I was a teenager, punk when I was in high school, grunge when it happened and so on. But I've always tried to combine classic and experimental songwriting with arrangements that have a sense of adventure. I'm really into Of Montreal and Sufjan Stevens, but they're not exactly breaking news...I usually latch on to really good stuff about a year or two after the mainstream has flirted with it and moved on. Then I never let go. I played with a couple UK acts last time I was there that are fantastic — Sweet Baboo and The Junipers (from Leicester no less!).

4. Touring, where's your favourite place to tour, any stand-out gig or venue you remember?

UK is pretty great — the cities are close together, the roads are awesome, the countryside is lovely and people have good taste and a great sense of humour. Canada has good roads but the country is huge (beautiful too!) and cities are really far apart. Mainland Europe has it hands down though — you get paid well, audiences listen quietly and buy lots of CDs. I think maybe its because they are hungry for English language entertainment. I love going places where people speak a different language myself, so I suppose I can relate. Norway and Germany were especially awesome for me.

I played at Catweazle Club in Oxford, an open mic where tons of people turn up every week to see about 10 acts do about 2 songs each. Just a stool and a spotlight and everyone is totally silent (they have to be, there's no PA). An inspiring event that's been going on for about 15 years.

5. Favourite sandwich?

Prosciutto, pear, brie and arugula on ciabatta with mango chutney (today....yesterday it was egg mcmuffin).

6. I remember when I saw you play in Leicester, you did a song about Barack Obama. A year on, how do you feel about him as US president?

Oh yeah, the song is called "Landslide" and I actually wrote it before I ever heard of Obama. I tried to sell it to him for his election campaign because it seemed like he would win big and the song is kind of a social critique along the same lines as the Democrat agenda. Maybe it's a bit too critical to get votes though, he didn't use it. I like him. I'm still waiting for that health care announcement!

7. I personally like having an album in my hand as a cd or record, but with mp3 downloads selling at a record high, do you see it as a good or bad thing for bands like yours?

For an act like mine its huge because I can sell my music anywhere in the world without a distributor. It just wouldn't be possible otherwise. CD Baby is good for mail ordering CDs worldwide, but I'm probably selling more digitally though. It also helps me figure out where to tour. Good for the environment too. I like the idea of putting the music and lots of artwork up online, but also selling CDs in special packaging at shows. That's what I did with Metatasking... the CD you have is from a limited edition of 100 hand painted, hand stamped copies.

Are you a CD or vinyl kinda guy?

Love vinyl but my turntable has been broken for years. CDs are pretty convenient...

8. You may be aware of the recent foot of snow that bought Britain to a complete and utter, EMBARRASSING stand still. Hailing from Canada, how do you fair in the winter months.... and did you laugh at us?

I wasn't aware, actually. My brother lives in London and my wife works at a newspaper but I live under a rock. You can feel free to laugh at me...

9. What's next for Hopeful Monster? New tour, new album, more solo work?

Right now I'm working on demos for the next album. I have to finish writing songs & brainstorming parts, then I'll workshop the arrangements with musicians (including strings, horns, other orchestral instrumentalists, rhythm section etc) for a studio recording and a big band concert / live taping. In the meantime I'll be doing solo or small ensemble shows — sometimes I play with just the string section or just the guitarist etc. I did a residency at The Local Pub in Toronto last year where I introduced a new section every week and brought them all together as a 7 piece for the final show. There are videos from that series on my blog, and videos from that UK tour too (not the Leicester show unfortunately. I did tape the Junipers' set when we played together in Northampton, some of that is posted too: http://hopefulmonstermusic.blogspot.com — click "videos" on the right hand side of the page).

10. Finally, bear vs lion, who would you put your money on?

Bear for sure. But imagine a yellow bear with awesome hair like a lion's — there's a hopeful monster for ya. Just don't ask him who is daddy is...

Tuesday Feb 23 at The Local

2010-02-18T22:34:00.007-05:00

I've been working on some new material over the winter, stockpiling songs for the next hopeful monster album. Come out & get a preview on Tuesday! (396 Roncesvalles, PWYC)

As an aside, here are a couple links I found recently to hopeful monster nods on the net:

CBC r3 podcast: The Sunshine Show - episode 29

Chris Burland at Chart gives HM props (and the #3 spot in his Top 10 for 2008 ...oops, just finding this now!)

60s Pop Podcast from CD Baby

2010-01-15T09:50:00.010-05:00

"Uncivilized" has been included in the final episode of CD Baby's 60s pop podcast, featuring current artists whose sound is inspired by music from the golden age. Lots of great indie acts have been featured on the podcast, which is available for free on iTunes. Here's the line up from episode 8:

1) Tony Cox - "Sweet Elaine" from the album Unpublished

2) Hopeful Monster - "Uncivilized" from the album Metatasking

3) Schuyler Fisk - "The Good Stuff" from the album The Good Stuff

4) Jane's Party - "No Good For Me" from the album The Garage Sessions

Jane's Party, by the way, are also from Toronto — a young band with great writing, playing and singing talents. We played together last year at NOW Lounge during the North By North East festival.

I scoured the web and found videos for each artist (except Tony, who doesn't have one yet but promises to send me the link when he does):

Hopeful Monster - Uncivilized

Schuyler Fisk - The Good Stuff

Jane's Party - No Good For Me

Dakota Videos

2009-12-18T19:47:00.003-05:00

Here are a few videos from The Dakota show on Wednesday. Thanks to everyone for coming out! This will likely be the last post of the year, so happy holidays to all & best wishes for 2010!

Uncivilized

Rocky Holler Canon

Pay The Rent

Perfect Riddle

Daily Electric

No Alibi

Summer's Only Daughter

Photo by Marc Horowitz

METATASKING Relaunch at Dakota Tavern

2009-11-22T21:14:00.016-05:00

Photo by Marc Horowitz

Hopeful Monster plays an early show on Wednesday, December 16th at The Dakota Tavern to celebrate the recent release of METATASKING on Gooseberry Records. You may be thinking, "don't I already have that record..?" and if so, you are right (and I love you!): the album has been available online for more than a year; since late October, it is also for sale in Canadian music stores.

As mentioned, this is an early event, running from 8 to 10 pm, with My Divine Light opening. After the Hopeful Monster set, Luca Maoloni and gang take over the club for The Old Soul's Christmas party — I will definitely be sticking around!

Here are a couple more pics I scavenged from the web for the gig poster. Hopeful monsters indeed..

The Dakota Tavern is located at 249 Ossington Ave, Toronto

A few exciting announcements

2009-09-27T21:00:00.026-04:00

Metatasking is coming out, for real, like, in actual stores! Gooseberry Records is releasing it to Canadian retail outlets this fall through Sonic Unyon Distribution. For a label from Ontario, there is an uncanny cluster of East Coast acts on the roster — Laura Borealis, Benn Ross, Doug Mason, Danger Bees and the list goes on... I'll be among compatriots. Gooseberry has a store at Zunior.com, so now you'll be able to buy digital downloads in the high fidelity FLAC format.

Stateside,"Pay The Rent" has been licensed for use in episode 4 of Roadtrip Nation, a youth oriented program about making self-actualizing career choices, to air nationally in the US on PBS this fall. "Uncivilized" is included on a compilation that the producers of the show will be handing out free to students, during a tour of US colleges starting next week.

Yet further collusion to disseminate Hopeful Monster's message looms, with the inking of a new co-publishing agreement: Bearsuit Publishing will be promoting Hopeful Monster's catalog to film and TV music supervisors, starting this November.

Finally, I'm heading down East for a showcase at the Halifax Pop Explosion at the end of the month. Jose Contreras joins me for the Hopeful Monster show at Company House on Wednesday, October 21st; By Divine Right plays the following night at the Seahorse.

For the unfamiliar, here are a few Hopeful Monster videos, featuring 16 bit audio!

Uncivilized (from Metatasking, 2008)

Stepping In (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Stars Are Photomagnets (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Steel Bananas

2009-08-02T21:32:00.017-04:00

Curran and Karen from SteelBananas.com were at Hopeful Monster's NXNE showcase in June. I met Curran and photographer Matt Filipowich later, on just about the rainiest day this summer, at Sunnyside Pavilion. The interview is posted here.

In other "news," FM102x.com chose "Uncivilized" for their Song Of The Day on Monday, June 29, 2009. Linked here (they put up the wrong album cover...but that CD is good too...if you happen to buy it by mistake!)

For the unfamiliar, here are a few Hopeful Monster videos, featuring 16 bit audio!

Uncivilized (from Metatasking, 2008)

Stepping In (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Stars Are Photomagnets (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

New Start - April 30, 2009 at The Local, Toronto

Hopeful Monster Plays NXNE

2009-06-10T19:00:00.021-04:00

Saturday, June 20 at 11 pm
NOW Lounge, 189 Church Street

Uncivilized (from Metatasking, 2008)

Stepping In (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

Stars Are Photomagnets (from Hopeful Monster, 2002)

New Start - April 30, 2009 at The Local, Toronto

Videos from April 30 Residency Finale

2009-05-01T23:47:00.008-04:00

New Start

Daily Electric

No Alibi

Universal Donor

Cobra Wings

April 30, 2009 at The Local, 396 Roncesvalles Avenue, Toronto

Paul Aucoin vibraphone
Jason Ball piano, guitar, vocal
Jose Contreras guitar, tambourine, vocal
Jon Epworth drums, vocal
Monica Guenter viola
Randy Lee violin
Larry Thomas pedal steel

Thursdays in April at The Local

Thursday, April 9 featuring Randy Lee and Monica Guenter
Thursday, April 16 featuring Larry Thomas
Thursday, April 23 featuring Jon Epworth and Matt McCullough

thelocalpub.ca
colour photo by Matthew Cook

Videos from April 23; Grand Finale this Thursday!

2009-04-27T13:56:00.016-04:00

River Reflexive

Air Highway

Daily Electric

Jon Epworth and Matt McCullough have been Hopeful Monster's rhythm section since January. They joined me on April 23rd for a mostly upbeat, psychedelic set. These are a few of the highlights.

A couple posts ago, when I was introducing my Thursday night April residency, I mentioned I would be bringing in new guests each week. Those of you who have come out know that I've kept my promise: I had a string section with me on April 9th, a pedal steel player on April 16th and the rhythm section last week. It's been an uncommon opportunity to show off the "many faces" of Hopeful Monster and give my songs a new twist for each show.

This week I'll be harkening back to Hopeful Monster's origins when I am joined by vibraphonist Paul Aucoin, who rented a studio with me in 2001 to record our first albums: Hopeful Monster and La Nouvelle Gauche, Paul's debut, released under the name The Hylozoists. We recorded both albums at the same time, in shifts, and helped out with each other's productions by playing and engineering a little. It was a magical time...

I let the cat out of the bag last week, but for those of you who couldn't make it to the show, the "surprise guests" who will be joining Paul and me on Thursday are...all the previous guests! That's right, all the musicians who have joined me to date will be cramming themselves onto the tiny stage at The Local for the grand finale concert, an intricate and raucous psychedelic hootenanny! Picture it: strings, vibes, pedal steel, piano, guitar and the badass rhythm section you have just witnessed.

Thursdays in April at The Local — Featured Guests

Thursday, April 2
JBall solo

Thursday, April 9
Chamber pop with string duo Randy Lee and Monica Gunter

Thursday, April 16
Country standards and originals with pedal steel guru Larry Thomas (aka Big Larry 58)

Thursday, April 23
Gospel and psychedelia with Jon Epworth

Thursday, April 30
Finale with original monster Paul Aucoin and... all of the above!

This week's program begins at 10 pm with a short vibraphone-and-guitar set, followed by the "big band" set at 10:45 pm.

thelocalpub.ca
colour photo by Matthew Cook

Videos from April 16 show

2009-04-20T12:43:00.007-04:00

Walk Through This World With Me

Silver Lining

She

Here are a few songs from last Thursday's show with Larry Thomas. We're gonna try to do this again, maybe opening for your band!?

Thursdays in April at The Local — Featured Guests

Thursday, April 2
JBall solo

Thursday, April 9
Chamber pop with string duo Randy Lee and Monica Gunter

Thursday, April 16
Country standards and originals with pedal steel guru Larry Thomas (aka Big Larry 58)

Thursday, April 23
Gospel and psychedelia with Jon Epworth

Thursday, April 30
Finale with original monster Paul Aucoin and surprise guests

Each week's program will begin at 10 pm with a short solo set, followed by the main set, with featured guests, at 11 pm.

thelocalpub.ca
colour photo by Matthew Cook

Videos from April 9 show

2009-04-16T00:39:00.010-04:00

No Alibi

New Start

Daily Electric

Summer's Only Daughter

Just a few from last Thursday's show. Believe it or not, that was the first time Hopeful Monster has ever played live with a string section... I will definitely be doing more shows like this! Thank you Randy and Monica.

I played with Larry, tonight's guest, in a country cover band called Fat Horses almost ten years ago. We got together this week to rehearse and it was magic. I hadn't seen him since our last show but it's like no time had passed at all, it sounded so great. I love country music. Hope you can make it!

Thursdays in April at The Local — Featured Guests

Thursday, April 2
JBall solo

Thursday, April 9
Chamber pop with string duo Randy Lee and Monica Gunter

Thursday, April 16
Country standards and originals with pedal steel guru Larry Thomas (aka Big Larry 58)

Thursday, April 23
Gospel and psychedelia with Jon Epworth

Thursday, April 30
Finale with original monster Paul Aucoin and surprise guests

Each week's program will begin at 10 pm with a short solo set, followed by the main set, with featured guests, at 11 pm.

thelocalpub.ca
colour photo by Matthew Cook

Thursdays in April at The Local

2009-03-08T12:59:00.041-04:00

I have played in some pretty sprawling bands, and made records with more instruments playing than you can actually listen to at one time. But next month, for Hopeful Monster's Thursday night residency at The Local on Roncesvalles Avenue, I'm taking a different approach. Instead of all at once, I'm bringing out the sections one at a time — that is, Hopeful Monster will consist of new people, playing new instruments, every week!

Well OK, I, JBall, will be there for all the shows — for the month of April, Hopeful Monster is me plus guests. (Awesome guests, I might add!) I suppose, if I am being honest, what's happening here is that I am slowly turning into...a singer/songwriter! Or maybe I'm just starting to accept that it has already happened — either way, there are some advantages: I can tour as a solo act (and only lose hundreds of dollars, not thousands); I can still play dates when band members have other commitments; and I can play free shows at intimate venues where, let's face it, the rock set Hopeful Monster has been doing lately would be just too loud.

I have seen some really magical shows in my time, where two or three musicians have mesmerized a room with their tiny & shiny sounds. You don't need a jackhammer to break that kind of spell, and the subtlest crescendo can wield a world of power. That's the end of the dynamic spectrum I want to exploit next month, and these are the talented artists who are going to help me do it:

Thursday, April 2
Meet ze irreducible monster: the JBall solo experience

Thursday, April 9
Chamber pop with string duo Randy Lee and Monica Gunter

Thursday, April 16
Country standards and originals with pedal steel guru Larry Thomas (aka Big Larry 58)

Thursday, April 23
Gospel and psychedelia with Jon Epworth

Thursday, April 30
Finale with original monster Paul Aucoin and surprise guests

Each week's program will begin at 10 pm with a short solo set, followed by the main set, with featured guests, at 11 pm.

thelocalpub.ca
colour photo by Matthew Cook
black and white photos by Sami Siva

Wavelength 452

2009-02-22T22:13:00.018-05:00

Hopeful Monster joins Pete Samples and Evening Hymns at Wavelength next Sunday, March 1. Sneaky Dee's PWYC

12 am Hopeful Monster
11 pm Pete Samples
10 pm Evening Hymns

with DJ Lauren Schreiber

Don't live downtown? Hopeful Monster joins The Odysseys at Marcello's in Streetsville, Saturday Feb 28

Concert Calendar

2009-02-22T21:41:00.000-05:00

Hopeful Monster at Mitzi's Sister - NOW review

2009-02-21T11:00:00.009-05:00

Shows That Rocked Toronto Last Week

Thursday, Feb 5, 2009
Hopeful Monster and My Divine Light at Mitzi's Sister

Oh, the musical talent that lies waiting to be discovered inside small, dark, empty bars. Thursday night at Mitzi’s Sister starred musicians who’ve kicked around for years and whose craft is achingly well hewn because of it. But just a few dozen people came out. My Divine Light is José Contreras’s moniker when his By Divine Right cohorts aren’t around, and though he struggled with a bad cold and poor onstage lighting that prevented him (and his wife, guest musician Lily Frost) from easily reading the piano charts, he saved the set from disaster with charming banter and tender, dreamy acoustic tunes.

Hopeful Monster, Jason Ball’s long-standing chamber pop project, gave a confident performance that showcased Ball’s terrific voice and melodic knack. Best were the sparser tunes in which Contreras, who plays guitar in the band, harmonized while Ball pounded away on Mitzi’s stage piano. A brand-new song called New Start was so good – and appropriately hopeful – it hurt.

Carla Gillis

Originally posted here

Moonlighting with Jon Epworth

2009-02-17T11:42:00.010-05:00

JBall joins Jon Epworth Band at Lee's Palace Thursday, Feb 19 $5

I met Jon when he invited Hopeful Monster to do a set at a benefit concert he organized last month for the Durham Humane Society. But I already knew his name, if not his music, because he lived in Nova Scotia for a decade before moving to Toronto last year. In fact, we both won "Best Of " awards in 2003 in The Coast's readers choice — Jon got Best Guitarist and I got Best Local Album. When he emailed about the benefit show I told him I'd do a solo set but he offered to back me up, along with his band's bassist Matt McCullough. I misunderstood. I didn't know Jon was a kickass drummer too! They played with me for the benefit set (Matt is a wunderkind) and again for Hopeful Monster's Mitzi's Sister show on Feb. 5, plus Jose of course, and Lily for a couple songs — check out the live review in NOW magazine by another ex-Haligonian, Plumtree guitarist Carla Gillis.

Well on Thursday I'm gonna sit in with Jon's band and I'm excited. I won't try to describe the sound, just watch these videos. I like this description though: "Like Elvis Costello arguing with Ray Davies. Wet On Wet [Jon's last album] has the sound of "art-rock drinking with old AC/DC." I would add Radiohead, Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainwright. Did I mention Jon can sing like nobody you've ever heard?

I'll be playing some guitar and singing harmonies. Come on out!

Jon Epworth & The Improvements at Fundy Fog Festival

ECMAs 2007

"Sessions" Episode 13 — interviews and live footage

CBC Radio 3 Podcast (and r3 pop up player)

2009-02-08T11:34:00.054-05:00

This week Hopeful Monster is featured on CBC Radio 3 podcast # 194 with host Grant Lawrence. We're nestled between Brent Randall and the School Of Rock segment featuring Paul Aucoin of The Hylozoists — I guess that makes us the tofurkey in a Halifax ex-pat sandwich. For those who don't know, Paul was Hopeful Monster's original drummer. In fact, Paul and I have played in loads of bands together: Holden Wheeling, The Spoondaisies, Living Water Assembly, The American Flag, Heavy Blinkers for a show or two...I played keyboards in the first incarnation of The Hylozoists and we ran Nervous System Studio together in Seabright NS.

Check out this list of featured artists!

Julie Doiron
Andre Ethier
Jon-Rae Fletcher
Brent Randall & His Pinecones
Hopeful Monster
Hylozoists
The Craft Economy
Ruby Jean and the Thoughtful Bees
Tigerrr Beat
Old Man Luedecke

You can download the podcast directly in the following formats:

mp3 | m4a | ogg

CBC r3 podcast #194 blog

Click the arrow in the top right corner to launch this pop up player and listen to Hopeful Monster while you browse the internet:

Playing Thursday, Feb 5 at Mitzi's Sister

2009-01-30T19:05:00.018-05:00

With My Divine Light 1554 Queen Street West, Toronto 9 pm $5

This photo is from around 2002...I never actually used it as a poster at the time, I guess I thought it was too far out. But I always meant to use the suit in a video. Last summer I saw "Soul On Fire" by Spiritualized and I think his jacket is made from a fire suit like this. So I made a video response with my song "Uncivilized" to put on youtube as a single from the new Hopeful Monster album, METATASKING. The video is posted below featuring 16 bit CD - quality audio, so turn it up! You can download the mp3 here (kinda like taping the song off the radio, for those of you who remember doing that).

I posted the videos together in my myspace blog last summer...since then embedding has been disabled but here's a link to "Soul On Fire" by Spiritualized on youtube.

If you live in Parkdale you may have seen this flyer:

Join us Thursday!

Catweazle Club

2009-01-25T19:36:00.004-05:00

UK Tour Videos Part 3 of 3

Despite my tour being based in Oxford, I didn't actually book a proper show there. But I did play at a couple of open stages — one called Catweazle Club at the East Oxford Community Centre. The event is totally acoustic (no PA) and has changed venues several times in its thirteen year history. Dozens of people pay £5 and sit perfectly silently on couches, a couple rows of chairs and the floor. Regrettably there is no footage of me but I played a couple songs early on. There were about ten acts, including David Celia, my friend from Toronto, and his friend Jonathan Seet, also Canadian but now living in Oxford. The three of us sang together a bit. I didn't get any footage of Jon's songs either. Here is David doing "Evidently True."

The last performer of the night was Damian Katkhuda aka Mostar Diving Club. He had a band called Obi who apparently played their first gig at this event, thirteen years ago. You will love him so I'll put two of his songs up.

The Junipers

2009-01-19T11:05:00.000-05:00

UK Tour Videos Part 2 of 3

Here's some more footage from that night at Broken Shackle Tabernacle, but not of me. It's The Junipers, from Leicester, my new favourite UK band. If any of you know Brian Murray from The Guthries, this is his doppel-drummer. Again, sucky camera work by yours truly. I put the camera on a shelf next to the projector that is making those psychedelic swirls. Lazy maybe, I just didn't want to spend the show holding a camera. The Junipers are awesome, as these bald guys will tell you.

UK Tour Videos

2009-01-11T10:06:00.006-05:00

View Larger Map

As promised, here are a few videos I made while I was touring in the United Kingdom last November. I was only abroad for 10 days and basically covered the midlands of England, as far South as London and as far North as Nottingham. My brother Brian lives in Oxford, about 50 miles from London. He is a smartypants and teaches philosophy at the university there (maybe you have heard of it). I drove out to most of my shows from his place, and then back afterwards. The English may think this particularly hardass of me, but try telling that to a Canadian. English towns pop up every 20 miles or less; Canadians will drive 100 km, busting for a piss, just to do it at Tim Hortons.

Let's start with something from my London show at the Slaughtered Lamb. Some of my Canadian musician friends have played this event, called Electroacoustic Club. Will, the promoter, has great taste in music and picks out some fantastic performers. (Unfortunately I didn't get footage of them, just me!) Here are "Landslide" and "A Foot In The Dream." Brian shot these.

I didn't manage to film anything in Leicester or Nottingham, but I found a spot to set up my DV camcorder above the doorway in the Rugby Strip Club...as in "stripped down" i.e. acoustic / unplugged, solo acts mostly, no drum kits. No strippers. The event happens once a month at the West Indian Club, a community centre with a cheap bar and a hand made felt banner for every country in the Caribbean. It is apparently the only venue in Rugby and isn't quite downtown but not far off as its not a huge city. The home of Spiritualized, as it turns out, or Spacemen 3 anyway. Steve, who runs the night, knows one of the other guys, not J Spaceman. A guy in the audience says he went to school with Jason Pierce and if I ever meet him, say hi from Wally. His name is not Wally though. Here is "Pay The Rent." Please forgive the horrendous cinematography.

The last show of the tour was in Northampton, about 15 miles from Rugby. Another smallish city right in the middle of England. I actually drove past Rugby and Northampton pretty much every day on my way to other gigs. A shoe manufacturing town, apparently; like Toronto, has a shoe museum. The Broken Shackle Tabernacle is another monthly event and takes place at the Northampton Labour Club. Free admission, chatty, stylish crowd. Here is "Universal Donor," shot by Andy, the sound man.

Welcome to Hopeful Monster's Blog

2008-12-14T00:32:00.013-05:00

Stay tuned for Hopeful Monster news as well as music and video posts, presented in HiFi 16 bit stereo! Use the sidebar links to browse photos, videos, artwork, lyrics and reviews. Live videos from the November UK tour are coming soon, including new songs and footage of some amazing acts I played with.

Please feel free to leave comments or suggestions.

JBall

Poetry

2008-12-13T23:59:00.003-05:00

Selected Poems (c.1998)

1

Hermes will let you know
If you can light the way
Under the undertow
So galvanize your mind
Your thinking hat remains
Half buried in the sand
And rusting in the rain.

The metamorphosis at hand,
You’ll shed your weary skin
The new one on the land
Awaits your stepping in.

2

A tattered flag or beach umbrella
Staked like a spear toward the sky
You step up from behind it in your
Shimmering mirage pyjama

Roll out your bedouin carpet
And throw your armoire open
Let Eastern light illuminate
Your breakfast on the common

3

As if in somnambulant satire
Silicon Ron searched high and low
Toes rubbed numb from ankle dragging
Eyesores wearily encrusted

Nobody can see me now
Visible is not my racket
Easily collidable
In a polyhedron jacket

Complex crystal not dissolving
Sublimating into crowds

4

At rest or slow I give off a shower of neurons,
An engine idling and disengaged.

I will gather the turtles of Greece
The bells of India, a forest gem
Or marine phosphor in a robin’s egg.
I will fill my basket.

A million billion trillion stars
Have fallen from the concave velvet curtains
of my eyelids’ inner theatre.

I have wasted them. You will sweep them up
Peeper glitter litter sweeper.

5

Black Rabbit unblinking
A starry eye amidst the velvet fur of night
Twitching like sticks in the wind
Shivers and is gone

In a silent scamper
Unobliterates the sun and leaves you basking
Palely flickering watery eyes

In moments your skin cells bubble into action
Photosynthetic alarm clocks pealing with warmth
Bristling with new wonder at the day

Live At Home

2008-12-13T22:31:00.011-05:00

AIR HIGHWAY

DAILY ELECTRIC

SUMMER'S ONLY DAUGHTER

Reviews

2008-12-13T21:48:00.011-05:00

Metatasking (2008)

SPIN.com
electricroulette.com
dailyinfo.co.uk
exclaim!
the coast
chartattack.com interview
steelbananas.com interview
justwannarock.net interview (UK)
sentimentalist interview (NYC)

Hopeful Monster (2002)

exclaim!
chartattack.com
bees knees
calgary straight
canadian musician
amplifier
lesinrocks.com (france)
popnews.com (france)
betamusic interview (singapore)

Live Reviews

NOW (Toronto, February 2009)

SPIN.com

2008-12-13T21:38:00.001-05:00

Catch The Buzz: Hopeful Monster

Canadian songsmith Jason Ball gathers a psych-pop troupe to flesh out his bubbly electronic, harmony-laced numbers recalling the best of the Postal Service.

by JOE COSCARELLI
08.18.08

Hopeful Monster head Jason Ball began his studio experimentations in rural Nova Scotia, Canada before settling comfortably amidst the Toronto indie scene where he crafts '60s piano-pop throwbacks, building staccato, Zombies-style ditties and updating each with electronic flourishes. Ball -- with a recently cemented five-piece line-up, featuring members of the Hylozoists and By Divine Right -- delivers synth lines conjuring Grandaddy's bounce and emotive melodies that breeze over measured computer buzzes with the earnestness of the Postal Service.

Originally posted here

Electricroulette.com

2008-12-13T21:36:00.001-05:00

I've got a paid vacation and I'm headin' for the sun..."

Some cats got in touch and say "Hey! We think you might dig our LP!" and of course, I was left mutterin' into my chest and grumblin' "What the hell do you know? Jerknow how many bozos get in touch with lamo indie that sounds like The Liberti... whatthefug... is that Colin Blunstone?!"

Fact is, Hopeful Monster wear their influences on their lapels... and for the most part, they're the kinda influences that make me bubble at the snout. We're talkin' Lovin' Spoonful, Harry Nilsson, The Zombies and newest fave LeckRouleck band, The Junipers. Toytown is calling me back and I jusso happen to own a passport...

Where to start with these guys? Well, before I continue, I'll tell you that they hail from Canada. Of course, Canada is like America, if America was inhabited by nice people and wooden cottages. This may not be strictly true, but hey, who gives. If you wanted facts, you'd be reading some news website. So back to the fiction. Canada is filled with people who look like the cast of Northern Exposure and they all sit around smoking cigarettes and sharing cooking tips. Canada is a lovely place to visit. They even have guns legally and don't bother usin' 'em.

So what's that gotta do with Hopeful Monsters? Well, the prevailing sound of 'Metatasking' is one so laid back that, if you don't mind, could you pop a coaster under your head so you don't get your dreams on the carpet? The LP kicks off with 'Uncivilised' which is piano-led pianner popsike that could easily be on 'Odessey and Oracle', if Emitt Rhodes sat in on the sessions. Dig that! It continues too. From the opener straight into the stupendous 'Air Highway' which has something of John Sebastian about it. No lie. They hit those weird jazz notes through lullaby chords. The kinda songwriting that you ain't seen since when. "Come on darlin', open up your eyes..." swoons around in gorgeous ooooohing backing vox. Man, you'll throw away your guitar and give up.

Closer, 'Perfect Riddle', you start thinkin' of Harry Nilsson, Brian Wilson making his glorious pop on the cusp of Pet Sounds. Not quite Pet Sounds... but imminent. Basically, when this album... this band... are good, they're almost unparallelled. However, this ain't completely a joyous glide toward golden slumbers, nosir. See, the LP is blighted by some 'rockers'... namely, 'Alpha Disco' and 'Humpty Dumpty By The Bag'. Just think of the difference between The Zombies and Argent. When the amps are kicked into overdrive, this band don't work at all. When the low them to hum, then they feel like the best band in the whole world and you can't believe you ain't heard of 'em yet.

Somethin' tells me that they kinda agree. Go to their Myspace page (here) and it's all sunshine psychedelia. The rockin' tracks nixed. That said, it's not worth writing off a band on a coupla songs. Man, these guys are amazing. If they live up to their name (Hopeful Monster is a term used in evolutionary biology to describe an event of systemic mutation, which contributes positively to the production of new major evolutionary groups) they'll only get better. Here's hoping, as the world needs bubblegum psych like this.

Mof Gimmers

Originally posted here

Dailyinfo.co.uk

2008-12-13T21:33:00.001-05:00

Nostalgic delights from Canadian songster Jason Ball

Hailing from the land of beavers and maple trees, Canadian musical journeyman Jason Ball, aka Hopeful Monster, returns with his second album Metatasking. After a six-year hiatus, in which much gigging was done in a number of different guises, HM may have gained more experience, but no immediate cynicism.

My initial impression of Metatasking was that I was being beaten by the bastard child of The Beach Boys and Beck, weaving away from dreamy fists of honey, with punches of sound washing over my ears like a lazy river of chocolate. My mind began harking back to a more innocent time when I didn't need to be aware of my sugar intake; halcyon days when I would dance naked in the dusk next to a speaker blurting out mid tempo riffs laced together with liquorice shoelaces and 'mind expanding' pop poetry. After a few more listens, I have to admit, my initial impression hasn't changed.

The songs are well-produced, hypnotic soundscapes with some nice changes of pace initially. It is comparable with much of Beck's back catalogue, although is neither lyrically or sonically as avant-garde. The lyrics appear trippy and twee, although I detected an air of cynicism reminiscent of HM's compatriots Eels. The clue, I suppose, is in the band's name. It has some of the bouncing synth of Grandaddy, though is nowhere near as lyrically fraught whilst, particularly towards the second-half of the album, it drifts towards the Beach Boys when they were at their dreamiest.

As the album progressed I found that some of the songs were in danger of meandering into obscurity, but overall it's a strong piece of work. If you want to be reminded what it felt like to play with Lego, prior to life taking you in its grip and nothing ever seeming like quite so much fun after, or to prance around in a summer of ridiculous clothes as a post- GCSE sixteen year old, then this album is a perfect accompaniment. Not quite life imitating art, but the beginning was more fun than the end.

Stephen Jones

Originally posted here

Chartattack.com Interview

2008-12-13T21:29:00.005-05:00

"Hopeful monster" is a colloquial term used in evolutionary biology to describe a rapid development of species on a macro level. In the Canadian music scene, Hopeful Monster are a fine pop band who mix Zombies-like melodies with subtle metaphor-drenched lyrics. [...]

Much has changed for [founder Jason] Ball since recording Hopeful Monster's debut. He got married, became a father and made a number of moves between Toronto and Halifax. All the while, he continued to write and record tracks for the new album.

"I started some of the bed tracks in Seabright [Nova Scotia, site of Nervous System studio], then [wife] Catherine and I moved up to Toronto and we lived in a succession of apartments, recorded a little bit here and a little bit there, wherever I was living," explains Ball. "And then finally when Catherine was pregnant with Zola, we rented a house and it had a basement and it was there that I did the other half of the beds and a whole lot of overdubs."

The five years spent on Metatasking contrast the intense labour of the first album.

"We spent about three or four months — practically around the clock — eating, sleeping and then recording," Ball explains of his work with [Nervous System partner Paul] Aucoin. "Just a couple of us, and bringing out session players from Halifax."

The overall feel of the band changed [in the years following the initial recording sessions]. The eponymous album featured spacious orchestral elements, which made it difficult for Ball to find musicians willing to commit the time needed to learn the material. So he decided to go in a more straightforward direction with his new material.

"It's always challenging to have a band, because people who like the songs don't realize that they are hard to play compared to some other songs. So I tried to write easier songs, and they called for different arrangements. I was able to get people to come in and play parts that they made up rather than parts that I made up.

"I tried to write songs that would have a guitar solo and let [By Divine Right leader] Jose Contreras or whoever play a solo instead of having a string quartet play what they are told, or it would be a total mess. Jose and I are old friends. I played on [BDR's] Good Morning Beautiful, though I only played one show live." [...]

Hopeful Monster play their first full band gig [in more than a year, featuring Jose on guitar], drummer Gavin Maguire, keyboardist Jeff Heisholt and bassist Jeremy Little at Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern on Thursday on a bill also featuring Madison Violet, Brothers Cosmoline and David Celia.

"It's David Celia's show at the Horseshoe," explains Ball. "We met when he came out to play in Halifax earlier this year.

"He had this upcoming gig soon after my return to Toronto, and I'm not so good at being on top of booking. So it made a lot of sense for me to be on that bill with him. This is the record's coming-out party. I'm done with it. Now it's the world's turn."

Ball hopes the show and album will lead to someone putting the self-released album out on a larger scale.

Chris Burland

Originally posted here

Exclaim!

2008-12-13T21:28:00.002-05:00

Some recording projects just seem to have a miraculous touch to them, and JBall’s debut as Hopeful Monster is one of those. Pieced together in rural Nova Scotia at his own Nervous System Studio, Ball writes and performs much of this sweeping, layered pop record, piling horns, strings and extra touches atop his simple, catchy melodies and managing to keep the whole under control—something that acclaimed Elephant Six producer Robert Schneider, dealing in similar circumstances, often has trouble doing. In many less experienced musicians, ambition is one thing, execution quite another, which is why hopeful monster comes off as such a masterstroke. From the quieter, more introspective tracks like “Universal Donor” to the zippier Zombies-esque romps, to the delicate balladry and ambitious arrangements, Ball manages to pull it all off with aplomb. His familiarity with the landscape of pop’s history allows him to both submerse himself in it and subvert it from within, like “Goldmine.” A remarkable debut that sparks hope that this Hopeful Monster is a marathon runner, not a sprinter.

James Keast
exclaim.ca

Chartattack.com

2008-12-13T21:24:00.004-05:00

Here's To Hopeful Monster

Until recently, 2002 seemed destined to be remembered as the year the music died. Many of the hyped critical releases have passed by this reporter with little interest or sympathy. […] Then a little package from Halifax's Hopeful Monster landed on my desk a couple of weeks ago and I'm in love, well, maybe just very very happy and sappy. Multi-instrumentalist Jason Ball with the help of Paul Aucoin has made the best solo pop album since Todd Rundgren's amazing tour-de-force, Something/Anything. The self-titled release skitters through many different styles: pop, new wavey electro-pop ("River Reflective") cool Bacharachian piano-pop ("Daily Electric") and spacey-pop — all this in just the first two songs. Throughout this album I find myself singing along to lyrics like "I want you so bad I damn myself to hell" from "Goldmine" and banging on any surface to "Stars Are Photomagnets" and "Cobra Wings." This is my favourite album of 2002 so far!!

Chris Burland

Originally posted here

Bees Knees

2008-12-13T21:24:00.001-05:00

Canada’s very own Great Lakes would have to be Hopeful Monster. Demand a refund on your latest Sloan record, and get this record! Hopeful Monster is all about the Zombies, Rundgren, Lilys, Love, Wilson and Parsons. You get 60s orchestra pop with lush strings, bubblegum, r&b grooves, and country-tinged songs all within the first few tracks. Hopeful Monster is one man for the most part—Jason Ball—and you can tell he has spent loads of hours in a studio, as this project has the sound of someone who plays, produces, and engineers. It’s full to the very last note, and hard to imagine a better Elephant 6 record not made by those Athens/Denver collective.

Calgary Straight

2008-12-13T21:23:00.001-05:00

Going Coastal

Where do they come from, these bottomless reserves of melodies that evoke every great Californian pop moment of the past 30 years –whether the Beach Boys or Flying Burrito Brothers or Fleetwood Mac – without mimicking any of them? And why is that their most generous springs are almost all clustered in Nova Scotia, lying in wait for yet another local prodigy to harvest an album’s worth of them and then share them with the world? And why does our country continue to ignore them while, overseas, tongues wax ecstatic?

Last year, Halifax’s the Heavy Blinkers released Better Weather, an evocatively titled masterpiece seemingly broadcast from an alternate universe in which AM Top 40 radio dictates the tenor of life. It remains one of the best classicist Canadian pop record in years, but it has strong competition in this debut from Hopeful Monster, the vehicle for one Jason Ball. Written, performed and produced by Ball at his rural home studio in Seabright, he and a supporting cast of over a dozen have created 11 songs that strive to do justice to a bygone era of pop in which grandeur was requisite, size mattered (think Phil Spector, Pet Sounds).

Hopeful Monster gets down to business immediately, “River Reflexive” letting loose a flurry of horns, harmonies, and Who-like drum flourishes while Ball declares “Someday when the stars are all in line / I’ll make gospel of the cliches.” Perhaps better still is “Daily Electric,” a Theremin-dappled gem that imagines the Banana Splits taking over from Brian Wilson after his late-’60s meltdown, but fronted by the Zombies’ Colin Blundstone. There’s also a clutch of lovely chamber-country ballads; the pedal steel that weaves throughout “Universal Donor” sounds as if it’s been left to fend for itself in the desert, while “Cobra Wings” and “Silver Lining” rise out of their initially disconsolate moods to become widescreen testimonials to joy. Another under-the-radar homespun classic. What will it take to make more people hear the brilliance in our midst?

Michael White

Canadian Musician

2008-12-13T21:22:00.003-05:00

A Welcome Addition

Hopeful monster is an evolutionary term, referring to the process by which an organism mutates to the point of being recognized as a new, unique species. Likewise, Hopeful Monster, the band, springs from recognizable musical DNA to create something worthy of celebrating on its own terms.

An ace arranger, JBall revels in studio layering and stacks of harmonies a la Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys or more contemporary soundscapers like The High Llamas. "Both of those references have pretty sophisticated arrangements, which is something that I've been working towards," says Ball. "They're both good shoulders to be standing on."

What keeps the baroque sound of Hopeful Monster intriguing is the infusion of rootsy elements, like steel guitar and fiddle, punches of horns here and there, and brightly strummed acoustic guitars. Among the standout tracks, "Daily Electric" offers Bacharachian horn parts, bouncy pop piano and theremin. "Goldmine" is a deftly written ballad adorned with steel guitar and vibes, and "Cobra Wings" shimmers and soothes like an afternoon in the shade of a palm tree. Ball's voice is the perfect instrument for these tunes, evoking comparisons to pop vocal princes like Todd Rundgren or Carl Wilson.

Hopeful Monster is a welcome addition to the diversity and ongoing evolution of East Coast music.

Jim Kelly
canadianmusician.com

Amplifier

2008-12-13T21:21:00.001-05:00

Hopeful Monster’s mastermind Jason Ball plays guitars, keyboards, bass, percussion, mandolin and theremin, but this isn’t a one-man show. Creating what could be described as an “analog orchestra” (also populated with strings and horns), Ball has given this disc a lush and quirky sound. If the theremin signals a clue into Ball’s love of the Beach Boys, then the sweet layered vocals and the sunshine pop vibes make his affection explicit. Separating Ball from the other would-be Wilsonians is his creative use of country elements (particularly Dale Murray’s invaluable pedal steel playing). While “River Reflexive” and “Daily Electric” kick the record off to a bouncy start, the twangy and dreamy “Universal Donor” slows the pace. Instead of writing about surfing and girls, Ball favors rather knotty lyrics (“cast me off this naked bough/ the fruit is rotten”) that make his songs more esoteric than engaging. Its notable that “Goldmine,” which recalls both early Todd Rundgren and Neil Young, stands as the disc’s most emotionally direct track as well as one of its most memorable songs. With one foot in the ‘60s Space Age and the other in a desert sand dune, Ball has created a beguiling sound for his Hopeful Monster.

Michael Berick

LesInrocks.com (Paris)

2008-12-13T21:20:00.001-05:00

C’est un petit disque précédé d’aucune rumeur, emballé dans une pochette assez moche, dont on sait juste qu’il est l’œuvre d’un certain Jason Ball, songwriter-musicien-producteur des environs de Halifax, Canada. Le pitch est assez simple : c’est un album de
pop-songs aux commodités douillettes et à l’amabilité sans accroc. On y chante remarquablement bien des choses relativement raffinées et érudites, il y a un peu partout des c(h)œurs qui pourraient aisément faire chavirer ceux des filles, l’instrumentation est riche d’une quinzaine de bonnes volontés venues prêter main-forte au tenancier des lieux. Pourtant, au bout de quelques écoutes, la conviction commence à se forger que Jason Ball n’est pas qu’un simple copiste plutôt doué, mais qu’il est bien le cousin par alliance des Jon Brion ou Jason Faulkner et le digne compatriote des Ron Sexsmith ou Heavy Blinkers – ces derniers étant d’ailleurs remerciés sur la pochette. Disons que sur l’échelle des (bonnes) vibrations, Ball n’est pas loin des derniers barreaux.

Après un faux départ power-soul anabolisé aux cuivres mais déjà empreint d’une grâce inhabituelle, on entre dans le vif du sujet avec Daily Electric, où le mélange trombones-theremin provoque d’inoubliables étincelles et des embrasements qui ne vont nullement se raréfier en chemin. L’écriture déliée, creusée de mille détails de production remarquables, rappelle certaines des plus ambitieuses constructions seventies de Todd Rundgren (Goldmine), et la ferveur qui attise l’ensemble pourrait ressembler à cette portée de jolis monstres qu’auraient pu avoir ensemble les chevaux étincelants de Mark Linkous et les lamas culminants de Sean O’Hagan. Dans trente ans, les chercheurs d’or qui tomberont sur cette pépite crieront au chef-d’œuvre. Ne les attendons pas.

Christophe Conte

Popnews.com (France)

2008-12-13T21:18:00.001-05:00

Curieux objet ce "Hopeful Monster", objet de grande classe mais tellement hors mode et si dédouané de toute velléité de modernisme qu'il interpelle. "Hopeful Monster", mené par un certain Jason Ball, est un grand disque de pop en forme d'hommage à la musique des 60's à tendance orchestrale. L'album est ainsi parsemé de clins d'œil au "Odessey & Oracle" des Zombies ("Daily Electric"), au baroque de Left Banke ("Goldmine") ou au confort luxuriant de "Pet Sounds" (" Cobra Wings").

Le disque promène donc l'auditeur parmi des morceaux à l'évidence rare et orchestrés somptueusement. Assurément, vous tomberez dans le panneau de ces pop songs dont l'unique vocation est de vous décrocher un sourire niais ou de vous faire vous sentir amoureux, de celles qui vous donnent l'impression que les oiseaux chantent sur votre passage. Les instruments abondent comme pour renforcer ce sentiment d'onirisme intemporel: cordes, trompettes, pedal steel, clavecin. Le chant est raffiné et d'une rare justesse.

Pour résumer, "Hopeful Monster" est un peu le disque que Tahiti 80 rêverait d'enregistrer. La voix de Jason Ball rappelle d'ailleurs étrangement celle de Xavier Boyer. Quelques similitudes avec Sondre Lerche ou Divine Comedy sont également discernables mais c'est résolument vers les années 60 que cet album se tourne. "Hopeful Monster" donne d'ailleurs parfois plus l'envie de se replonger dans les classiques sus-nommés que d'actionner le mode "repeat", une fois ses onze chansons écoulées. C'est son unique limite. Les morceaux se bonifient, du reste, lorsqu'ils se teintent d'accents country ("Silver Lining"), se revêtent d'une couleur soul ou se dotent de claviers vintage. Quand ils se décident un peu à aller voir ailleurs, en somme.

Ce disque n'en demeure pas moins au-dessus du lot des productions pop actuelles. Ce monstre là est à suivre de très près.

Mr. Morel
popnews.com

Betamusic.i.am (Singapore)

2008-12-13T21:15:00.003-05:00

Chung Horn Lee interviews Jason Ball

1.What was the first record you owned?

Motley Crue “Theatre of Pain”

2. How did you come up with the name Hopeful Monster? It’s all mainly just you, isn’t it?

Hopeful Monster is a term that archaeologists use to explain gaps if the fossil record. A hopeful monster is the offspring of an animal of one species that is different enough from its parent that it has to be considered a different species. Like if a horse gave birth to a unicorn.
It was just me at first, then my room-mate Paul Aucoin helped me record an album of my songs. Now Paul is busy with other bands (The Sadies, The American Flag) but I have a 6 piece band that plays songs from the album and some new naterial. Their names are Andy Patil, Damien Moynihan, Dale Murray, Dave Christensen and Greg Fry.

3. You live in rural Nova Scotia. What is it like?

It’s beautiful, I grew up here so I can’t help loving it. My studio is near the ocean in a little valley called “Rocky Holler.” There are trees everywhere except a little marsh between my house and the beach. Mostly the coastline is pretty rocky and wild, I think its romantic. Very quiet too, I find it inspiring, easier to concentrate than in the city.

4. Why did you call your studio Nervous System and what do you use in the studio?

Because I wasn’t very confident about it when I started—but I also like the double meaning: it’s the nerve centre of all my recording projects, so in a way it helps me organize my inklings into gestures.

Basically its computer-based—I use a mac with Pro-Tools, and some other software. I like to use vintage analog pre-amps, amplifiers and effects to give the sounds some grit—digital recording is very clean, some people think its TOO clean, but if you can get good sounds at the input stage, they’ll sound EXACTLY the same during playback.
My friend Brenndan McGuire owns some of the studio’s best gear—he has recorded albums with Sloan, By Divine Right, Sam Roberts and A LOT of other Canadian artists. We use his mixing console, a YAMAHA PM 2000 from the mid-seventies. Parliament and Ted Nugent both recorded albums on it.

5. What’s it like now where you live--are people against the US-Iraqi war?

Opinion is divided, but most of my friends are artists and they tend to be pacifists. Plus they don’t have much to gain from it—many of the supporters of the war are involved in economic machinery that depends on the kind of foreign policy that this war is meant to protect. They lose their jobs when the companies they work for aren’t able to turn resources into profit. Artist don’t make any money anyway, so they have nothing to lose, and they’re used to looking at things with that in mind. Personally, I’m interested in the question of sovereignty versus world government.

6. I have a friend whom I played your record for. He was shocked because he felt that you existed for other people, because your music had touched him so intimately. Your thoughts?

I’m happy to hear your friend felt that way about our music. I think people carry around a lot of references in the back of their minds, they make categories of things they like and don’t like—when they find something that reflects their own preferences, it’s like they “couldn’t have said it better themselves.” I always think I’m too self-absorbed, but I kind of hope that by pursuing my own instincts, I will become part of a community made up of those whose instincts have lead them in the same directions. In the end, its really a big, never-ending conversation between me & you & your friend & Todd Rundgren & all the other artists who have touched each of us in the way your friend describes.

7. "Daily Electric" reminds me so much of the Elephant 6 bands--the baroque arrangements, the vocals, the harmonies. Are you a fan?

I’ve heard some Elf Power I really liked, but to be honest I’m not very familiar with most of the roster. That’s the third comparison though, so I better check it out!

8. How long have you been writing songs and making music?

I started playing piano when I was three or four—picking out melodies, just fooling around. I took some lessons for a few years when I was a teenager, started playing guitar and writing songs when I was about sixteen.

9. How did you get your record released on Brobdingnagian?

My friends’ band the Heavy Blinkers had a couple of records out with the label, so they introduced me to Dennis Stewart (label owner) and we talked about it, made some plans and out it came!

10. Do you have a day-job?

Not really—between producing records at the studio and working as a lighting technician for local film & TV productions, I’m able to dig myself out of debt a couple times a year. Now the record’s been out for almost a year, I’m starting to see some royalty money, and the band makes a little. I’ve never been able to fully get into my music projects unless I have some time and space to let the ideas sprawl—Contract work is better for me in that way, but the income is unpredictable, so it’s a double-edged sword.

11. If you had to give yourself a job reference, what would you say?

Depends on the job, I guess. I hope its one that will let me give them CDs instead of a resume—in that case, I’d give them the hopeful monster CD and the new Heavy Blinkers CD (produced at Nervous System), because they both demonstrate my ability to write and record music that is (I think) both original and accessible.

12. My favorite song on your album is "Universal Donor" .Since you referred to “my own blood would be rejected”, may we assume you know what blood type is a universal donor?

Yeah, again with the double meaning—I’m type O. Now I’m not sure if that’s the right blood type, but it doesn’t really matter if you take it metaphorically—it’s the self-sacrifice that’s the focus of the song. The idea is that we hope to benefit society by suffering all the big & little blows that fate deals us—it costs us, but we pass on wisdom to save others the experience.

13. But seriously, I love the pedal steel and the way the melody wends its way up and up when you sing “….but I missed the cup”.

Thanks.

14. This album sounds like it took some time to record. Would you work differently next time?

Definitely. I had to do it that way because it was my first record (as a producer, anyway…) but the next one will be a lot more stripped down. We’re working on songs now for a recording session in July—we want to get all our ya-yas out while we’re rehearsing and record only the best parts of these brainstorms. This way we do the exploring outside the studio. But there’ll still be plenty of experiments when we record—hopefully more sonic than musical though. I’d like to have a clearer vision of the songs, BEFORE we start tracking.

15. What do you think is holding back the Canadian music scene from taking the world?

There are plenty of Canadians who have made big impressions on the world music scene—Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Shania Twain & lots more—but mostly they have come into world focus through the American music industry. There just isn’t the market potential in Canada to pour the kind of money into a wide variety of artists that the American companies do. But more and more small-scale artists are able to create international opportunities in a grass-roots way: separate licensing for different territories, with each niche label promoting artists to the extent they can afford. In this sense, there may be dozens of people all working independently worldwide to promote a given artist. With email its not hard to create & maintain these connections. It would be nice to have the money to make a massive media blitz, cuz people will buy things if you tell them enough times—but its rewarding in a different, maybe more important way when there are so many people doing the legwork just cuz they love the music.

Lyrics

2008-12-13T20:50:00.003-05:00

Metatasking

uncivilized
dream car
humpty dumpty by the bag
air highway
rocky holler canon
alpha disco
landwarning
landslide
follow me down
pay the rent
perfect riddle

Hopeful Monster

river reflexive
daily electric
instructions for winter lovers
universal donor
trilobite
goldmine
stepping in
stars are photomagnets
cobra wings
silver lining

Uncivilized

2008-12-13T20:44:00.002-05:00

In this disguise it's no surprise
you can't find me
I'm a smoking gun but there's noone
creeping up behind me

If all of these thoughts were trees
we'd be surrounded
Think twice and there's no two ways around it
We'll leave it like we found it
Uncivilized

The king is gone, the rebel pawn
wins the battle
But snakes won't fail to chase their tails
and choke on the rattle

If all of these thoughts were trees
we'd be surrounded
Think twice and there's no two ways around it
We'll leave it like we found it
Unpopular, unbounded and
Uncivilized

I got a pay vacation and I'm headed for the sun
Until the dust has settled
A life of recreation and a time for everyone
We'll break the bank and sink the tank

If all of these thoughts were trees
we'd be surrounded
Think twice and there's no two ways around it
We'll leave it like we found it
Uncivilized

I got a pay vacation and I'm headed for the sun
Until the dust has settled
A solar inclination and a time that's just begun
It's gonna get better

I got a pay vacation and I'm headed for the sun
Until the dust has settled
A life of recreation and a time for everyone
Let's make it better

Dream Car

2008-12-13T20:43:00.003-05:00

When all of your dreams come true
I wanna be the guy who rides beside you down the avenue
All that you need me for
To give you the kind of love you never had before

It gets so hard, no one ever listens
Seems so far, we’ll never go the distance
Can’t hold on forever, signs of failure everywhere

But don’t despair!

If all of our hopes die hard
I’ll be the guy who’s rolling right beside you down the boulevard
All that I want to do
Is give you the kind of love you need to get you through

The time has come to step into our vision
We’re not too young to make our own decision
Even if it kills us? The Voice Of Reason fills the air

But I don’t care!

In our dream car, every road’s familiar
But is it real?
Open highway like money in the bank
I don’t know if I’m in the trunk or in the tank
Or at the wheel

When all of your dreams come true
I wanna be the one who’s always right there riding next to you
All that we have is NOW
And we’re gonna make it through somehow, somehow

Humpty Dumpty By The Bag

2008-12-13T20:43:00.001-05:00

So buried in winter I lost my memory
So I pulled the splinter and spent the dowry

If I could trade my bow in for an arrow
I'd bring you all my love in a wheelbarrow

Inside the plastic I
Found a hidden flyer
I won the contest
But let the claim expire

It's a grain of sand in a field of cotton
No, it's not gone, it's just forgotten

But when I take my crown, my trophies in the sun
It'll come around, you'll all get some

Inside the plastic I
Found a hidden flyer
I won the contest
But let the claim expire

What begins in lore will end in laughter
While we learn the moral we live the chapters

A periodic species loves a hero
For leaving tracks and feces at ground zero

Inside the plastic I
Found a hidden flyer
I won the contest
But let the claim expire

Air Highway

2008-12-13T20:42:00.001-05:00

My baby’s asleep, I kiss her cheek and stroke her hair
Wake up darling, winter comes as no surprise
Air is the only highway that takes us there
Come on darling, open up your eyes

I want to lie awake beside you, make up and try to
Cool down Kitty, must you go
When there’s no reason for you to be leaving?

The lady awakes, evaporates and I inhale
Tastes like summer, feels like I’ve been numb for years
Over and over I ask myself: can this be real?
Gracious lady, I will love you always dear

I want to lie awake beside you, make up and try to
Cool down Kitty, must you go
When there’s no reason for you to be leaving?

Rocky Holler Canon

2008-12-13T20:41:00.000-05:00

If ever I doubt you, I'm lost without you
I miss you always, all through these long days
Don't ever leave me—I need you, believe me!

(Midnight, I wake to moonlight on slumbering skin)
(Midnight, moonlight on her slumbering skin)

I never asked for riches,
But I’d be a fool not to hold out my hat
Now all I’ve got is wishes,
& wishes won’t bring your love back

If ever I doubt you, I'm lost without you
I miss you always, all through these long days
Don't ever leave me—I need you, believe me!

I never asked for roses,
But I was the fool when I took off my glove
Now all I want to know is—
Is it too late to bring the love back?
Our love should’ve been above that!

Alpha Disco

2008-12-13T20:40:00.005-05:00

Got a hornet buzzing up my sky
There's a whispering wind beneath my lazy wings
Sun beating down on my tears
Got something like fire in my ears, making them ring

Time will make it true
I've nothing left to do —
But love you

Come on baby give me one more kiss
Does it really have to end like this, on Saturday night?
Quit talking when we get tongue-tied
Get a little out, keep a little inside, we'll be alright

Time will make it true
I've nothing left to do —
But love you

It's for free, it's right now, come to me
(Let's just be together)
In a moment we'll touch and you'll know
(Now if not forever)
Can't keep the birds out of the trees

Oh, what am I to do?
A little grace is all I need
An open window to a candle I can see

No shelter in this backyard
Nothing calling me not so far up into the clouds
Thought a mirror was a window pane
Ran out the door, arms out in vain, there was no one around
Just that sound

You—shining for the blind
Now I've nothing on my mind
But loving you

It's for free, it's right now, come to me
(Let's just be together)
In a moment we'll touch and you'll know
(Now if not forever)
Can't keep the birds out of the sky

Oh, what am I to do?
A little grace is all that I
Need, and I'll come to
And fly toward the light

Landwarning

2008-12-13T20:40:00.001-05:00

If you hear the landwarning song
You better start shaking
Drop everything and run along
I hope you make it

Cuz she's been waiting for a rain day with you
So bring on the typhoon
Let the earth start shaking

If you don't hear the good morning bell
You might as well ring it
Clap your partner's hand, you might as well
Go on and ring it

Cuz she's been waiting for a rain day with you
So bring on the typhoon
You know the song now sing it

This is a landwarning
This is a landwarning
This is a landwarning
So get inside

Baby when I'm shaken to the ground
I get uplifted
I'm out waving arms and legs around
And walking the gifted

Cuz I've been waiting for a rain day with you

This is a landwarning
This is a landwarning
This is a landwarning
So stay inside

When it rains lend an ear to the warning
Cuz on the other side's a brighter morning

When it starts to come down like it should
We're all gonna feel it
Get washed away, it feels so good
You gotta believe it

Cuz we're been waiting for a day that's coming soon
So bring on the typhoon
Let the bells start pealing

Landslide

2008-12-13T20:39:00.001-05:00

I got the guns I can stick to
Got a vision of what I gotta do
All I need is you

Not that I'll never doubt you
There's just something I love about you though
And this one thing I know

I've got to keep you by my side
It could've been some other guy
But I won by a landslide
I won by a landslide

I've got to feel it deep inside
It could've been some other guy
But I won by a landslide
I won by a landslide
For once in my lifetime
I won by a landslide

I've gotta give you a warning
Try and remember it in the morning too
Cuz this will bury you

I know it wasn't your first time
But if it has to be my last time around
Then let it all come down

It's always been some other guy
But for one moment it was I
Who won by a landslide
I won by a landslide
For once in my lifetime
I won by a landslide

Follow Me Down

2008-12-13T20:38:00.000-05:00

Follow me down & down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below
Follow me down & down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below

I’m down, I think I’m gonna stay that way
All around, seems like people just don’t know what to say

I’ve tried to get my heart into this game
But this time, like it or not, I’m giving a lot up in its name

I found out everything that I had feared
Was coming true & I don’t know what to do,
So take my hand, just

Follow me down & down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below
Follow me down & down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below

I’m through—out of time with nothing to do
I’m through—out of line with nowhere to go

I found out everything that I had feared
Was coming true & I don’t know what to do,
So tag along and

Follow me down cuz down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below
Follow me down & down we’ll go
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below
I’ll lead you laughing on the way below

Pay The Rent

2008-12-13T20:37:00.001-05:00

I got a head of fire pacing 'round alone
I got no humble pie, got no comfort zone
Just a bed that's burning

I thought I knew it all
I found out I'm still learning
When my plans hit the wall

All of my hope is lost, I'm a hollow shell
Can't get to sleep at night, I can't break the spell
Keep my heart from yearning

I thought I knew it all
I found out I'm still learning
When my plans hit the wall
Crashed and burned, took a fall

You know I'll pay the rent, pass the buck
Only live for awhile so I'll live it up
Cuz I would rather set myself on fire
Than give up

I'll never understand what the red eye knows
Chasing the shadows down where the daylight goes
As the world keeps turning

I thought I knew it all
I found out I'm still learning
When my plans hit the wall
Crashed and burned, took a fall

Pay the rent, pass the buck
Only live for awhile so I'll live it up
Cuz I would rather set myself on fire
Than give up

Ooh la la la oooh
Ooh la la la oooh
Yeah I would rather set myself on fire
Than give up

Perfect Riddle

2008-12-13T20:36:00.000-05:00

Stones know it, insects in amber know it
But they're not telling
Here's a nibble, impossible pie inside invisible bellies

For awhile our love will perfectly come true
Darling its in you, I'm starting to believe it's in me too

It comes in circles, a wheel that turns itself around
Without squeaking
A perfect riddle, the ends justify the middle
Silently speaking

In awhile our love will perfectly come true
Darling its in you, I'm starting to believe it's in me too

We're complete there, lines that never meet will meet there
Ad infinitum
It's no secret but Darling you and I can keep it safe inside
And move outside

For awhile our love will perfectly come true
Darling its in you, I'm starting to believe it's in me too

River Reflexive

2008-12-13T20:35:00.002-05:00

It streams and you latch onto it and off you go
And all that you know is half witted

Someday when the stereotypes come true
I'll surprise you honey
One day when the stars are all in line
I'll make gospel of the cliches

So come on over baby paint my eyes
Oh you're illustrious
You know every body hurts until it cries
And if its everybody it must be us

I came up empty
Like an open string of pearls
You know a line is not a loop
It can't contain you

It streams and you latch onto it and off you go
And all that you know is half witted
Believe in everything that you see
Know what you know, commit to it

It streams and you latch onto it
It streams and you latch onto it
It streams and you latch onto it
It streams and you latch onto it

Daily Electric

2008-12-13T20:35:00.001-05:00

Dressed daily in electric light, I’m a yellow jacket
Don’t pull the plug, but I just might—
It keeps me static—
Get rectified and quit this racket

I woke up late but I’ve got two strong legs for running
Chased midnight into the afternoon
It’s been a long time coming
Gearing up and counting down to something

We climb down on the hook and hang together
A coronation and the whole town shook
But we just shivered
Lift the ground and fly off into the river

My crown broke through the shell, now I’m a free electron
Swinging on a flying trapeze
It looks so easy
Electrifying, death-defying
I dropped the crutch and kept on standing

Instructions for Winter Lovers

2008-12-13T20:34:00.004-05:00

Pour some water over me, it makes me come alive
For every one you owe to me I bet I owe you five
Racing candles to the sea in half a walnut shell
Just look at where it's gotten me — off like a shotgun

How could I know this would come true?
Would you surrender even when pursued
To the centre of your halo?
Cuz baby I've been slow to realize
You're not my pillow
You make me come alive

I shook all the pollen from the tree and like chlorine it stung my eyes
The last gift from a honey bee is one kiss and then it dies
Anyways I love you deeply and you know it all too well
There's too many systems running me and just one saline solution

This time it's now or never
We're out shopping for a new forever
And ever after all we've been through
So don't wake me if I'm dreaming
You're where I come to
You wake me up inside

I'm trying not to pass the buck
So hand me my take out cup
With one last taste of brandy
Since I spilled the bottle

I don't like to be so melodramatic
But I'm wrapped in plastic
And I can't feel you

Universal Donor

2008-12-13T20:34:00.001-05:00

The wind swept the sand dunes
We taped up the doors and windows
In the dust and the darkness
Our footprints were lost

In the Garden of Eden
Our sins were worth repeatin'

Now I'm always pouring water
But I missed the cup
Now it seems like I spend all my time
Mopping up

The guard at the mission
Lay blind with cyclops vision
And I hid on the outside
And watched through the glass

As he slipped in among them
In a flash, his blade had undone them
And I just waited
Hoping he'd pass

Now I'm always pouring water
But I missed the cup
Now it seems like I spend all my time
Mopping up

The same old fear resurrected
My own blood would be rejected
And my love would fade before it flashed

So I raised my hand up to heaven
Now I wish that I'd never asked

Cuz I'm always pouring water
But I missed the cup
Now it seems like I spend all my time
Mopping up

Trilobite

2008-12-13T20:33:00.003-05:00

Don't we mythologize
Left and right lobotomized

Three daughters in a boat
Two will sink but one will float

This frozen trilobite
Shook its frozen head with all its might

But now its set in stone
Even though you only crawled across it once
A million years ago

Goldmine

2008-12-13T20:33:00.001-05:00

Oh darling why can’t you be mine?
I see you all the time
And every day you touch me like an angel
I want you so bad I damn myself to hell
Don’t make me clarify myself

Why can’t I take my own advice?
Even when I know I’m right
I can’t seem to help myself from falling into lies
I need you in ways I can’t even hope to recognize
But you make me start to fantasize
Oh yes you do darling
Oh darling bury me alive

Cuz baby you’re a goldmine
And you make me so happy sometimes
But you know I’ll rob you of your wealth
And you know, you don’t have to break out
Just because the door’s on fire
And I’ve taken all I needed for myself
Left you an empty shelf
I took just what I needed for myself

So come on darling, show yourself to me
And lift me with your fingers from this well
If only my soul and senses could agree
You’d make me clarify myself

Cuz baby you’re a goldmine
And you make me so happy sometimes
But you know I’ll rob you of your wealth
And you know, you don’t have to break out
Just because the door’s on fire
And I’ve taken all I needed for myself
Left you an empty shelf
I took just what I needed for myself

Stepping In

2008-12-13T20:32:00.001-05:00

If you survive the friction of the sky
Your pod will reach the earth with all that it contains
If you escape your orbit round the moon
Upon reentry you are wrapped in flames

So cool off your skin
You float beneath the waves
And let the change begin
With a phosphorescent glow
You bring forth the spark you know

As you approach the limit of your landing
Collect your gyroscope and step in on the fly
It's just a dream that flutters on your shoulder
So shake it off and hang it out to dry

So cool off your skin
You float beneath the waves
And let the change begin
With a phosphorescent glow
You bring forth the spark you know

If you survive the friction of the sky
Upon reentry you are wrapped in flames
It's just a dream that flutters on your shoulder
So shake it off and hang it out to dry

Stars Are Photomagnets

2008-12-13T20:31:00.000-05:00

When glitterbugs are waving from the sky
Waves are all around us, everything is rushing by
We're canonized, forgetting where we are
And stones are leaping up towards photomagnetic stars

Everything that's scattered will come home
Brand new and unused
All the forces will gather in the free zone
Unmoved and unknown

We're joining bodies, casting webs around
Matter's great in difference when light distorts to sound
Because we see them we resist the call
But one day I'll wake up flying skywards — anchor, ship and all

Everything that's scattered will come home
Brand new and unused
All the forces will gather in the free zone
Unmoved and unknown

Cobra Wings

2008-12-13T20:30:00.001-05:00

Cobra wings break my fall and lay me down gently
Dream bellows collapse and lie empty
I reached out to touch the prize — well where is she?
He looked back with spinning eyes, made me dizzy

Caroline! Carolina!

I threw my balance to the wind — I thought I was flying
So let me feed the earth this empty skin cuz I'm dying
Cast me off this naked bough — the fruit is rotten
And lay me gently in the leaves where all is forgotten

In Caroline! Carolina!

These cobra wings won't break my fall

Silver Lining

2008-12-13T20:29:00.001-05:00

Red is what I look for when I'm blue
And gold is the only thing that glitters
It makes me so lonesome here without you
That I'm overcome with shivers

I'm sleeping inside a silver lining
Colours drifting, the sun is shining
The sun is shining

Is it what I wished for or just what I found
I see myself in shiny things
My head is so heavy I fell to the ground
I closed my eyes, woke up weeping

I'm sleeping inside a silver lining
Stirrups ringing, the sun is shining
The sun is shining

Now the lights from the street sweep the ceiling
And the bells are ringing twenty nine times in the morning
Oh in the morning

Art and Posters

2008-12-13T15:59:00.039-05:00

Press Photos

2008-12-13T15:42:00.032-05:00

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Video Archive

2008-12-13T15:34:00.031-05:00

All videos feature 16 bit, CD quality audio!

Promotional Music Videos

Small (425 x 320)

uncivilized
stepping in
stars are photomagnets
river reflexive

Large (720 x 540)

uncivilized
stepping in
stars are photomagnets
river reflexive

Performance Videos

Live At Home 2008:

air highway
daily electric
summer's only daughter

UK Tour November 2008:

landslide (london)
a foot in the dream (london)
pay the rent (rugby)
universal donor (northampton)

the junipers 1 (northampton)
the junipers 2 (northampton)
the junipers 3 (northampton)

david celia (oxford)
mostar diving club 1 (oxford)
mostar diving club 2 (oxford)

Thursdays in April 2009 at The Local:

no alibi (april 9 with string duo)
new start (april 9 with string duo)
daily electric (april 9 with string duo)
summer's only daughter (april 9 with string duo)

walk through this world with me (april 16 with pedal steel)
silver lining (april 16 with pedal steel)
perfect riddle (april 16 with pedal steel)
will you be there (april 16 with pedal steel)
she (april 16 with pedal steel)

river reflexive (april 23 with rhythm section)
air highway (april 23 with rhythm section)
daily electric (april 23 with rhythm section)

new start (april 30 band)
daily electric (april 30 band)
no alibi (april 30 band)
universal donor (april 30 band)
cobra wings (april 30 band)

Wednesday, December 16 2009 at The Dakota:

uncivilized
rocky holler canon
pay the rent
perfect riddle
daily electric
no alibi
summer's only daughter

Saturday, April 17, 2010 at Aeolian Hall, London

summer's only daughter
no alibi
angel spies
forest fire (lily frost)

Thursday September 16, 2010 at Bread & Circus, Toronto

body arithmetic
new start
summer's only daughter

Contact Hopeful Monster

2008-12-13T15:14:00.003-05:00

163 Parkside Drive
Toronto ON M6R 2Y8
Canada

(416) 519-0661

jason.meredith.ball {at} gmail.com

Email link on profile page

Sign up below to get updates about the band delivered to your email inbox. Join the street team too, if you'd like to help promote Hopeful Monster in your town.

Mourning Dove Festival

2008-12-13T13:19:00.018-05:00

MDF on myspace

It pours outside...

Michael Oconnell

Ruth Minnikin

the view from backstage

...guests trickle in

Dave Carmichael & Melissa Trottier

Norway

2008-12-13T13:17:00.004-05:00

Stars Are Photomagnets Video Shoot

2008-12-13T13:16:00.016-05:00

Produced by Firewatch Films

Storyboard by Jason Ball

Watch the video

Nervous System Photos

2008-12-13T13:06:00.011-05:00

Sessions

Friends

Volley-pong

Setting

Photo Archive

2008-12-12T23:11:00.011-05:00

Nervous System 2002 - 2003
Stars Are Photomagnets Video Shoot 2003
Norway 2003
Mourning Dove Festival 2007
Mourning Dove Festival 2010
CBC Radio 2 Canada Live Concert Taping

Hopeful Monster Story

2008-12-12T10:48:00.090-05:00

Hopeful Monster began as a recording project at songwriter Jason Ball’s Nervous System studio in Seabright, Nova Scotia. There, he and studio partner Paul Aucoin of The Hylozoists spent the first few months of 2001 recording two albums—Hopeful Monster and The Hylozoists’ La Nouvelle Gauche, both released by Halifax's Brobdingnagian Records. In 2002, Hopeful Monster began playing live shows in Halifax and showcased in Montreal and Toronto. Jason and Paul (on drums) were joined by Dale Murray on electric guitar and pedal steel; Andy Patil on bass; frequent collaborator David Christensen on organ and flute; and vocalist/vibraphonist Damien Moynihan.

Between local performances and productions at Nervous System, Hopeful Monster made two videos in 2003, for River Reflexive and Stars Are Photomagnets. Heavy Blinker Greg Fry took over on drums. In June, Jason toured Norway and UK to promote the European release of the debut album by Norwegian indie label Hype City Recordings, traveling and performing with Sufjan Stevens, Emil Nikolaisen of Sereena Maneesh and label owner Frode Stromstad. While in Oslo, he was invited to perform at the wedding party for Of Montreal star couple Kevin and Nina Barnes.

In 2004, Jason returned to Europe as a member of The Heavy Blinkers, opening shows with solo Hopeful Monster sets in Germany, France and UK. When his wife Catherine became pregnant with their daughter, Zola Calliope, in 2005, Jason stayed close to home, playing keyboards in the Hylozoists and with chanteuse Lily Frost, as well as harmonizing in vocal pop trio The Wilderness with fellow songwriters Andrew Rodriguez and Jason Kent. The Wilderness performed only a few times, opening for international sensations Rufus Wainwright and Arctic Monkeys, before disbanding. For two years, the Ball family lived quietly in the Nova Scotia countryside. Jason branched out, teaching sound recording at a Halifax college and taking up the job of organist in a remote seaside church. In July 2007 the Balls hosted the first (and hopefully not last!) Mourning Dove Festival in their yard and living room.

In the early months of 2008, Jason and family relocated to Toronto. The second Hopeful Monster album, Metatasking, was released at Toronto 's Horseshoe Tavern on June 19, in a limited edition, hand-decorated jacket; a new band line-up was introduced, featuring By Divine Right front man Jose Contreras on guitar, bassist Jeremy Little, drummer Gavin Maguire and keyboardist Jeff Heisholt. The album consists of tracks recorded with the original Halifax band members, as well as tracks recorded in Toronto with Jose and Gavin and members of The Wilderness and The Hylozoists. Exciting mixes by Heavy Blinker Andrew Watt feature harmonies by Jose, The Wilderness and by Jason's lovely wife. A web video for opening track "Uncivilized" was made and the mp3 can be downloaded for free here.

Metatasking is available online (CDBaby / iTunes / Zunior) and is distributed in Canada on Gooseberry Records. To promote the re-release of the debut album (CD Baby / iTunes), a new video for "Stepping In" was cut from archival footage.

In November 2008, Jason returned to UK for a solo tour; over the last two years, Hopeful Monster has appeared around Toronto in a variety of configurations, featuring Jason and Jose plus several others, swelling at times to a ten piece mini orchestra. In fall 2009, Jason embarked on a fruitful, six month hibernation, writing and arranging nearly two dozen songs for the third Hopeful Monster album. The new material is a revisiting of Hopeful Monster's orchestral pop beginnings, informed by a decade of writing, performing and producing. At the core of the arrangements are Jason on piano, Jose on electric guitar, and a string section featuring violinist Randy Lee and cellist Alex McMaster; this quartet premiered some of the new songs at a North By North East showcase in June, 2010.

In October, Hopeful Monster was chosen to represent Nova Scotia in CBC Radio 2's Great Canadian Song Quest, in which an artist from each province and territory created a brand new song about a road elected by Canadians via the Song Quest website. Hopeful Monster's song "The End Of Road (Can't Believe It's Over Now)" celebrates No. 1 Highway, which runs through Nova Scotia's Annapolis valley. Recording sessions for the new album will begin in the new year at Jose's Chicano Power studio in Caledon, Ontario.

Visit the photo archive for more pics from this series

Hopeful Monster Videos

2008-12-11T13:01:00.015-05:00

UNCIVILIZED

Watch large version (720 X 540)

STEPPING IN

Watch large version (720 X 540)

STARS ARE PHOTOMAGNETS

Watch large version (720 X 480)

RIVER REFLEXIVE

Watch large version (720 X 540)