Previously described as a pop/rock/folk band, The Treble is set to release their debut album Modernaires on Feb. 10 with a markedly different sound than their earlier music. 

They say they’ve evolved since their earlier EPs, losing the folk descriptor and moving toward a more alternative pop/rock sound. 

“I think having made this new record and having spent so much time on it, we kinda figured out exactly what The Treble is to us and the kind of songs that we feel represent us best,” lead singer Mark Brusegard says.

In 2012, after a successful showcase in Los Angeles, The Treble caught their first big break and were signed to The Agency Group, now United Talent Agency. 

They quickly followed up this success by releasing their second EP and touring Canada, concluding the tour with a stop at Edgefest in Toronto alongside The Lumineers and Band of Horses. 

It was only after opening for Hedley at the MTS Centre in 2014 that the quintet realized they had to stop and catch their breath. 

Opening to an arena-sized crowd was something totally new to them, and it was a wake-up call for the busy band. 

“That was when we were like ‘Okay. We gotta get our heads on straight and figure out how to do this,’ and that was really when we started putting Modernaires together,” Brusegard says.

Reflecting on their older music, keyboardist Colin McTavish admits that it was geared more towards the live performance, specifically in bars. 

“When you’re playing in a bar at midnight to people that haven’t heard you, you have to find a way to get them to listen to you,” McTavish says, “and I would say that a lot of that EP (Northern Lights) was a product of that.” 

They say what really differentiates Modernaires from their previous music is the fact that they were able to hole up in their jam space and write almost every day for eight months. 

“Modernaires is more of the songs that we would’ve written if we were left to our own devices for a really long time,” Brusegard says. “Whereas with Northern Lights, we put it together while we were on the go.”

They also largely credit their change in sound to having worked with the prominent Canadian music producer Rob Wells, who has worked with Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, the Backstreet Boys and many others. 

To them, working with Wells was always about having a push and pull between their rock roots and Wells’ pop influence. 

“I think our goal, when we started working with him, was to have that tug of war and, if we all fight for what we want, we’ll get this thing that’s right in the middle, and that’s kinda what we got,” Brusegard says. 

He says Wells brought many of the songs to life in a really neat way.

Described as a dark, alternative pop/rock album, Modernaires can be found on iTunes, Google Play and Spotify on Feb. 10.

Published in Volume 71, Number 18 of The Uniter (February 2, 2017)