In exploration he TR/STs

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This article was published 02/10/2014 (4322 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Toronto’s TR/ST, the ink-black synthpop project of Winnipeg expat Robert Alfons, is all about creating an atmosphere — be it that of an after-hours club or the comedown from an all-night rager.

Atmosphere is the defining feature of Joyland, TR/ST’s sophomore album. Released this past March via indie juggernaut Arts & Crafts, the album sees Alfons strip away some of the shades-of-grey bleakness that defined 2012’s Juno-nominated debut TRST in favour of a more dance-floor-friendly sound, with an added emphasis on melody.

“It feels more like a dance record,” he agrees over the phone in advance of Tuesday night’s show at Union Sound Hall, which will be just the second show he’s played in his hometown. “I was listening to a lot of dance music and experimenting more with rhythm. I think I changed up how I wanted to write songs, but there’s still an emphasis on those mellow moments. It’s important to have that space on a record. It’s not just a bunch of songs. It has an arc.”

Alfons composes his gothic soundscapes on piano, an instrument he’s played since he was “10 maybe? I don’t know — I’m bad with that,” he says with a laugh. “I started playing because my sister played.” (Turns out this writer and Alfons studied under the same Winnipeg piano teacher.) “I think it’s the easiest for me to write on the piano. I feel the most comfortable with it. I’ve been in transit so much lately that I don’t own one, but that’s a goal. I love the sound of the piano.”

He formed TR/ST (orignally called Trust, but changed to avoid confusion with a French metal band) in 2009 with Austra’s Maya Postepski, releasing a handful of singles on Brooklyn’s Sacred Bones Records in 2011 before inking a deal with Arts & Crafts. TR/ST made major waves upon its release in 2012, earning not only the Juno nod but praise from tastemakers at Pitchfork, Vice and The Guardian UK, who were moved by Alfons’ icy, moody electronica.

The response was validation for an artist who used to second-guess himself. “I spent a lot of time being afraid of doing it,” he says of making music. “I created this project and pushed it out that way. This was just an outlet for me to create. It still is. It’s always changing.”

Postepski left TR/ST to focus on Austra shortly after the debut was released; Joyland comes as yet another iteration of a fluid and flexible project. Alfons wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s open to involving other contributors, but he’s also open to the possibilities that exist for TR/ST as a solo venture. “I’m allowed to play different characters and disappear them. There are less rules, I think, than if I made music under my own name.”

Alfons says he already has a blueprint for the next TR/ST album, but he’s interested in exploring video and other visual works to complement the music. He’s restless in his creativity.

“I’m inspired by lots of theatrics. I don’t know how that will manifest but I’m excited to explore it.

“I’m just looking forward to being able to create again after so much logistical stuff this year,” he adds, referring to this current album cycle. “(Promoting the album) has been fun — and fulfilling in a lot of ways — but I’m looking forward to focusing on creating.”

jen.zoratti@freepress.mb.ca