Toronto Music Scene

By: Sheena Lyonnais

February 17, 2008

       The ladies of Hunter Valentine obviously have some strong opinions on the politics of love and war.  They sing about it in a bitter, burdened way, yet they love to make a spectacle of the infamous four-letter word by playing a huge show on Valentine’s Day every year.

“It seems like a gimmicky thing but that’s kind of what we’re about, we’re about this heartbreaker, heartbroken romance thing,” said bassist Adrienne Lloyd.  “I love playing the shows because I feel like it’s a great mix of singles and couples and that’s been the highlight of my Valentine’s Days.”

 

 

This year’s rendition of the V-day show brought HV to the Reverb for an all-ages gig filled with a very diverse audience.  Typical punk rockers, loving couples of all sexual orientations, friends and fans who just wanted to rock out and dance to some honest, fun music.  Singer Kiyomi McCloskey entertained the crowd with her uninhibited questions such as, “I know this is all ages and I shouldn’t be saying this, but who just wants to get laid tonight?”

    While rock and roll goes hand in hand with sex and the question brought huge response from the crowd, the V-Day show is really all about love.

"Valentine’s Day is pretty much about this show and as a band we’ve committed to that so our loved ones are kind of understanding in letting us do this rock and roll thing, but happy to be a part of it,” Lloyd said.

“[The show itself] gets better every year, the other ones are always exciting, but it’s kind of like love in general.  It’s like you think you’re in love and then the next time you’re in love you think okay this is really love and that’s what each year is like for Hunter Valentine it’s almost like it’s for the first time,” she said.

HV have been hit with all kinds of questions regarding their own sex lives – known for being an open group of lesbians (McCloskey and drummer Laura Petracca even met at a lesbian bar), the status has been both a blessing and a curse for the trio.  There has been recent backlash over the band’s dedication to the queer community, especially since their recent video stirred up some controversy.

“Someone told us they heard someone call in and talk about us on a radio program in Toronto and I think it was because for our second video Staten Island Dream Tour.  They interpreted it one way and thought we were rejecting the Queer community through the message of that video and that wasn’t our intentions or our message at all, but it kind of hurt and made us feel a little sad that someone took it that way,” Lloyd said.

Lloyd doesn’t like the idea of people thinking they’re abandoning their roots, especially since they really just want to reach out to everyone.

    “I think most of all we feel really lucky to be able to play for everyone and I think that’s our goal that we can be positive role models for everyone, whether its young girls, queer people, old ladies, men, whatever.  If you look at tonight’s crowd, it was totally mixed and I think that’s our main goal to play to as many people as possible,” she said.

    Their relationships with each other have also come into question.  Everyone wants to know if three hot lesbian chicks in a band can really just play music and be friends without having anything more.

    “We’ve always been very clear on how we define our relationships and it’s actually more like siblings so you would relate it to being like brothers,” Lloyd said.  “For us it’s like that family tie that bonds you where you could have a fight with your brother or sister but you always know they’re going to be related to you and you’re going to love them no matter what, so that’s the defining point for how we relate to each other. That line has never been crossed, I can say that honestly on the record.”

    HV has been zigzagging across the country since the debut of their full-length album The Impatient Romantic.  They’re in the midst of an Ontario mini-tour that will eventually bring them across the border to Manhattan in March.  They’ve been playing shows there almost once a month hoping to land a deal with an American label, and although they are in talks, not much more can be said about that at the moment.

    They’ve also been writing new songs and revamping old ones, some of which they’ve been debuting on the mini-tour.  They’ve been doing interviews with big names like MTV and eTalk, and if that’s not enough to keep their schedule busy, they’re also working on a new music video.

    HV will be filming their third music video for Break This in March with director Colin Minihan (Social Code, 10 Second Epic) and they are recruiting fans to be in it.

“I’m just putting it out there, but if anybody is reading this interview and wants to be a part of it then please contact us because everybody is welcome,” Lloyd said.  “I kind of want to keep [the theme] a secret because it’s an amazing idea, but it’s going to be hot, action packed and different from anything I’ve ever seen before.”

    For more information on Hunter Valentine and the music video, check them out at www.myspace.com/huntervalentine .



Five facts you probably didn’t know about Hunter Valentine

• Kiyomi McCloskey is an excellent matchmaker

• Drummer Laura Petracca loves to cook

• Bassist Adrienne Lloyd’s worst Valentine’s Day was when a boy in her grade two class gave everyone an “I cho-cho-choose you” card except for her

• All three girls worked at an arts camp in Connecticut for a summer to test how dedicated they were to music

• The Impatient Romantic was produced by Julius Butty, made famous for his work with Alexisonfire and City and Colour 

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