Toronto-based indie quintet Dinosaur Bones is on its way to Ottawa April 8. Made up of vocalist and guitarist Ben Fox, bassist Branko Scekic, keyboardist Dave Wickland, drummer Lucas Fredette and guitarist Josh Byrne, the band has been together for just over three years.
Fox said most of the band’s members met during high school, with the exception of Fox himself. Fox said he grew up in Cabbagetown, in the heart of downtown Toronto.
“Growing up in the big mean city kind of shapes your worldview. It also helped us get off the ground as a band,” Fox said.
Dinosaur Bones released its first full length album, My Divider, March 8, in addition to a preceding two track 7” vinyl EP, which featured tracks “Ice Hotel” and “Royalty.”
“We wanted to pick two songs on the farthest opposite ends of the spectrum as a band,” Fox said regarding these two songs. “They represented the furthest extremes as a sound and we wanted to show that we do a bunch of different things. It was also kind of a preview of the full length [album].”
Fox described “Royalty” as a “rollicking rock song” and “Ice Hotels” as having a more intimate feel.
Fox said his top musical priority is crafting honest and real lyrics. “They tend to come from real life and personal experiences, reflections and emotions,” he elaborated. “I think you can see through lyrics that aren’t honest.”
Going over the band’s history, Fox said touring with The Arkells was a milestone, as well as being on the band’s first proper tour. He also said their current tour with Tokyo Police Club is “an opportunity to learn for a band in our position.”
“It’s exciting and they’re bands we like and have been paying attention to for a long time,” he continued.
Fox also delved into interesting stories from on the road, in particular the tale of their missing bassist in Halifax.
“Our bass player, Scekic, once tried to steal a street sign in Halifax that had our guitar player’s last name,” Fox related. “He successfully got the sign off and walked away but the cops took him and threw him in the drunk tank.”
Fox said the band had a 14-hour-drive from Halifax to Montreal the next morning. “We said he better be in the drunk tank for not showing up,” he said.
The band picked up Scekic from jail and arrived just in time in Montreal for the show.
Dinosaur Bones has also travelled to Texas for the South by Southwest music festival. “I’ve never seen anything like it and it’s such an amazing road trip,” Fox said, adding he hopes to return.
Regarding their upcoming show, Fox said, “We’ve played [at Capital Music Hall] before with the Arkells and it was off the hook. Ottawa has been good to us.”
Dinosaur Bones plays alongside Tokyo Police Club and Said the Whale at Capital Music Hall April 8.