New Music Spotlight – Enrights

Photo by Alexa Elder

High-energy Kingston kings of party rock, Enrights, kick things up a notch with their brand new EP, Holding Me Back // Club Soda – Out March 29. The Ontario quartet pulls inspiration from the legendary rock vibes of yesteryear and serves an exuberant and addicting nod to early 70s & 90s rock ‘n roll mixed with a fresh, modern twist.  

We caught with guitarist/vocalist, Andrew Wright to talk about self-recording their releases, and the band’s excitement for growing into this fun, new throwback sound.

 

JA: You’re showcasing two different realms of indie-rock with ‘Holding Me Back’ having a 60s/70s feel and ‘Club Soda’ capturing a 90s garage-rock vibe.  Can you go through how you grew into this throwback sound?
AW: I think the throwback sound came naturally for us, almost without us realizing. We play a lot of gigs where we have to fill 3-4 hours of music, so that means plenty of covers. I think we started to enjoy how fun and simplistic a lot of the classic rock stuff we were playing was and that came out in the two songs we wrote this time!

JA: On this EP you’ve gone a bit darker, with both songs touching on past regrets, present rejections and fears for the future. Tell me a bit more about your lyrical influences.
AW: As far as lyrics go, I think the tonality is dependant on what’s going on in our lives. Jack [McAvoy] (Guitar/Lead Vocals) and I were pretty busy with work, and in the middle of winter, we always tend to write darker songs. Jack wrote ‘Holding Me Back’ about uncertainty, whether it’s about relationships, school, work, etc. and being unsure of why you aren’t making a change in your life.

I had the verses of ‘Club Soda’ written about foreseeing a relationship ending but it wasn’t tied together until I was spending time with Jack and our friend Allen and one of us mentioned Club Soda as a great album title, and I think the tune just popped in my head.

We are likely going to go for a full-on throwback sound which I am very excited about!

JA: What was the writing and recording process like this time around? Is this EP self-recorded as well? If so, what new techniques had you learned since your last release that made it into the recording process?
AW: This EP was self-recorded as well. I tried to make it a bit more focused and worked on a “less is more” approach. With the self-titled record, it was filled to the brim with synth noises, crazy pedal effects and plenty of other things that I found sometimes took away from the songs. This time around I wanted a more stripped back sound in hopes that would bring more focus to the songs.

JA: Aside from the release show you have at The Mansion, what other plans do you have for the year?
AW: We currently have a tribute show in Kingston for our hometown heroes The Tragically Hip and The Glorious Sons. Otherwise, we are planning on dropping another single this year then beginning to write our second full-length! We are likely going to go for a full-on throwback sound which I am very excited about!

Grab a copy of  Holding Me Back // Club Soda on Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Play music. Catch them on March 29th at The Mansion in Kingston, ON with Long Range Hustle and Skye Wallace.  Stay up to date with Enrights through Facebook and Instagram.