The Peak, Simon Fraser University's Student Newspaper since 1965, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6, e-mail: epeak@mail.peak.sfu.ca, phone: (604) 291-3597 fax: (604) 291-3786
Volume 91, Issue 5 October 2nd, 1995 Arts 

The Pursuit of Happiness

by Marla Mathis

With a new album “Where’s The Bone” out and kicking, the Toronto band The Pursuit of Happiness have launched their western tour of Canada, including two September performances at the Town Pump in Vancouver.

Since the birth of their first independent single and video “I’m An Adult Now” almost 10 years ago, The Pursuit of Happiness have toured Canada, the US, Europe, and Australia between recordings of albums “Love Junk,” “One Sided Story,” and “The Downward Road” in 1993. “We started out as kind of a drinking club,” says lead singer-guitarist Moe Berg. “ I don’t remember a lot of the first performances.”

A few things have changed since the band’s early days, though. The crowds are growing, some of the band members have come and gone, and Berg feels that the songs have evolved. “I’ve been trying to be more topical. This last year I’ve been trying to write more about things outside my life than just the weird things that go on in my head.”

Berg says Vancouver audiences have always been very supportive of The Pursuit of Happiness and he emphasises his enjoyment with road trips in general. He recalls a particularly memorable performance on their tour of Europe: “We were with The Eurythmics in Paris, and before the show they were handing out free chocolate bars to all the kids. When we were playing, everyone started throwing the chocolate bars on stage. And, sure enough, it happened again the next night. It was the closest I’ve come to being in a war.”

Recording, in addition to touring is a creative outlet for Berg. “I also enjoy recording. It’s something tangible, something you can hold in your hand when you’re finished,” says Berg, who wants to avoid the “computer-mixed” sounding album. “I wanted to record a live, spontaneous record. I wanted something that sounds human, something with spirit and energy. That, to me, is much more rewarding.”

But Berg also believes that such a devotion of time and energy into his career can take its toll on a musician's family and social life. “I don’t have a whole lot of friends outside the band. We are our family.” Berg says he thinks there are advantages to The Pursuit of Happiness being a gender-mixed band, because it brings a lot of different perspectives together. And, of course, “the bus smells a lot better.”

As far as other Canadian talent is concerned, Berg praises such bands as The Tragically Hip, and Blue Rodeo, and remarks at the “health” of the present Canadian music scene, but is still aware of the importance for bands to make it south of the border. “We never really broke into the American market. That’s always been our greatest achievement.”


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