Vancouver duo Mu were supposed to ring in the arrival of their new EP at the Fox Cabaret last month, but a motor vehicle accident involving a van and vocalist/instrumentalist Francesca Belcourt a couple days ahead of a record release show made it painfully obvious to the pair that they had to stall the February celebrations. While the act's electronic-geared sophomore effort, II, is currently floating through the digi-sphere and on black vinyl courtesy of local label Boompa Records, the musician is looking forward to getting back onstage with co-founder Brittany Rand following a period of bed-bound incapacitation.
"That was the most troubling week ever, it was terrible," Belcourt tells Westender as she and Rand are enjoying early evening drinks and a plate of mac 'n' cheese at Main Street's Cascade Room. "I was biking down Adanac and I had the right of way. A van stopped at a stop sign super quickly and didn't look, kept going and I hit it. I went underneath and cut my leg open. That was the day before the music came out."
While Belcourt had contemplated getting through the planned gig on crutches, the band opted to take a breather to recoup and reconfigure their live show.
As it stands, performing has become a much different experience than when Mu first began issuing bedroom-crafted pieces of electro-pop in 2014. A self-titled debut had specialized in scintillating, synthetic soundscapes full of close-miked vocal harmonies and digital blip melodies, all of which prepped by the twosome. But live, their early concerts expanded the lineup to include additional members on guitar and drums.
The studio recordings on II were once again recorded by Belcourt and Rand in their bedrooms, and mixed lusciously enough to cover the occasional intrusive car honk. Rand explains that opener "Disarmed" began as a sound design project, an elemental layering of organ drones and digital wind chimes that eventually rises into a pillowy cloud of soft-pop synths and personal lyrics.
Elsewhere, "My Hunter, My Forest" involves haunted passages about a woman buried in the mountainside by her lover. Accompanying the abuse allegory is a powerful mix of shivered rhythms, spiritually in-tune vocal harmonies, and bird chirps.
While extra players once filled Mu's concert stage, having produced the more expansive II now has inspired Rand and Belcourt to handle samplers, pedal boards, guitar and keyboards on their own. Upcoming concerts won't just retread their recording sessions, though, and it's hinted that a group of choreographed dancers may be pushing Mu's live experience into brave new territory.
"One thing that we try to remind ourselves of is that a live show isn't just about playing in a fucking band," Rand notes of Mu's onstage esthetic. "It doesn't have to be ‘You on guitar and you on drums.’ That's not what we do! We're not making music in that landscape, so we're just trying to explore different ways of making music where that's not the main focus. And making the record is a totally different thing – we don't have to use the same tones, the same synths, the same anything."
In part, the close-knit dynamic of Mu stems from both musicians coming into the Vancouver scene as outsiders – Rand having arrived here from Northern Ontario and Belcourt coming from Cortes Island. Though the partnership talks up how it works together in close quarters, one of II's standouts taps into the out-of-sight bonds being built through social media. "Debauchery" weighs in on the relationships we're forming through our touch screens, with the duo cooing coolly of the situation: "debauchery ain't what it used to be."
"Our online identities are a huge part of our day to day existence in the same way that being depressed or being loved are a huge part of our daily existence," Belcourt says, cross-referencing a few other themes explored on II. "That one really was touching on the way Millenials act towards each other – it honestly comes from how you flirt online and end up meeting people, becoming closer to people [despite] interacting so distantly."
Citing its "old school electronica-type sound," Belcourt notes there's a nostalgic lean to the piece, and admits to longing for the days when we didn't feel the need to Snapchat every minute detail of a group vacation. While Rand cops to having developed a bad scrolling habit with her smartphone, thus exposing herself to a "whitewash of constant imagery," she also sees the value of being connected with your friends. And, with respect to "Debauchery," sharing art with your fans isn't what it used to be either.
She explains, "Constantly being thirsty for Twitter followers is one thing; I don't bother myself with that kind of stuff. But making good design, or a cool photo, I like doing that, I'm happy to do that."
• Mu's rescheduled record release party for II takes place this Thursday (March 31) at the Fox Cabaret. Tickets available here.
