By Scott Wolfe
One of Winnipeg’s most thrilling live acts is releasing their first full-length in July on local family label Transistor 66. I sat down at the Legion in the Exchange District with band members Julia Ryckman, J.P. Perron, and, later on, Patrick Short for some cheap beverages and to exchange a few words with this local trio regarding their highly-anticipated debut.
Stylus: To begin, out of curiosity I have got to know, why This Hisses and not The Hisses?
J.P. Perron: It’s kind of a weird iteration I guess, but not really. There is actually a funny quote addressing that on the new album. [Reads] When attempting to enunciate the group’s moniker, most tend to slur over the words carelessly, gurgling some incoherent mumble. However, such a cavalier introduction to This Hisses is calamitous at best.
Stylus: Brilliant and accurate, as I clearly demonstrated when this interview began.
JPP: Yeah I do that as well just the other day I called us The Hisses. People tend to like it though, however I can imagine that radio announcer would not.
Julia Ryckman: Also, ‘this’ is a word that hisses, which adds to our name.
Stylus: Each of you have been submerged in the Winnipeg music scene before with other acts such as The Gorgon [Julia], Mahogany Frog [J.P.] and Under Pressure and Electric Candles [Patrick Short]. But how did This Hisses come to be?
JR: When The Gorgon broke up, I had some songs I wanted to try and I thought of Pat because we had talked and jammed before. I also wanted to work with J.P. because he had always been my favourite drummer in Winnipeg and I knew he was available because he had just moved back from Montreal. I asked him at a party if he wanted to jam, but he was very guarded. Continue reading “This Hisses – Super Sibilant”