Our Lady Peace's Raine Maida says 'O Canada' moment in Edmonton gave him 'chills'
It's not easy no matter what you're doing. I think at the end of the day, you get better at communicating … sometimes you find a much more balanced place in terms of what's important and what everyone's expectations are. But I think at the end of the day what kept OLP going was it was always about the song first. It's always about being inspired to write songs and go into the studio and record music and go play it live … and that hasn't diminished at all … The songs we recorded for those OLP30 albums we did in Nashville … it felt like those old days … where it's not about money, and it's just about that feeling in a studio and that feeling of having the hair on the back of your neck stand up. We've always tried to keep those moments at the forefront.
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Is there a Canadian artist that had a big impact on you guys?
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There's so many from Joni Mitchell to Rush to Neil Young to the (Tragically) Hip. But Leonard Cohen has always been this elder statesman of Canada. I started in music more as a poet. I was writing during math class. That was my vehicle to getting the thoughts I had in my head out. So, I always felt a strong connection to Leonard Cohen.
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I saw you guys play in a small club in Chicago back in 2000 and it made me wonder if there was an artist you never got to see that you wished you had?
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There's one, and it's one of the biggest regrets of my life. We had just finished a tour in the U.S. and flown home from Texas. I was exhausted. My voice was done and my body was wrecked. But we were on Sony, and so was Jeff Buckley, and he was playing the Danforth Music Hall. We got home at 1 in the afternoon and I got to my apartment and I fell asleep, and I slept through it. I don't think Jeff Buckley ever came back to Toronto because he passed away shortly afterwards. Not seeing him live is definitely a regret.
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We did a show before we announced this OLP30 Tour at Lee's Palace. It was amazing walking back into that place. The smell of that bad draft beer. It was exactly the same. Thank God, nothing has changed about that venue. We've played CBGB in New York back in the day and now it's a fancy clothing store and the Viper Room is still here in L.A., but who knows how long that will last. The fact that Lee's is still there, smelling the same way … The show was phenomenal. That was a big highlight. It made it fun to remember. There were days that I played there on a Tuesday night and there was six people in the room. So to come full circle was pretty special.
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