Interview by tosnob

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Pree is the new band from ex-Le Loup member May Tabol. Their debut EP, A Chopping Block, came out on March 24th.

Recently I had the opportunity to do a Q&A with May. Here's our conversation:

T.O. Snob: First off, thank you very much for taking the time to speak with us. You are about to release a stellar EP A Chopping Block. What should fans expect from it?

May Tabol: There's a lot of energy that made its way into the records. At some points, it comes across as very sharp and pointed, and at others, completely blurred and unbridled. A sort of metamorphic rock you'd find at the edge of a volcano- unwieldy and strange, but also irresistibly pocketable.

T.O. Snob: How does it differ from work you did previously with Le Loup?

MT: It's difficult to compare the two projects since they occurred at very different points in time. Pree has certainly been colored by Le Loup. ACB was my first venture into recording though, so the first experience was a live and traveling one, whereas the latter involved a summer in a basement and a lot of head-banging and hair-tearing figuring out what directions the album should take. Luckily I've had wonderful people to work with for both projects, so it's been a pretty rewarding experience all around.

T.O. Snob: I've heard the EP and it is very good. When can we expect a full length from the band?

MT: Come winter, there will be an LP.

T.O. Snob: What inspires you to write?

MT: I'm a very quiet person, so writing has been a means of shaking off whatever I can't or shouldn't say. I fell in love with songwriting because it involves the articulation of an idea followed by its immediate containment within a song or an album. It's a fundamentally absurd process, which is probably why I'm attracted to it.

T.O. Snob: Pree is a strange name if I may say so. What does it mean and where did it come from?

MT: It has a few meanings that really struck me- as a French surname, someone who lives by a meadow. As a verb, to taste or prove. It also comes from a Neutral Milk Hotel song, A Baby for Pree. I wanted a name to go with the face of the songs, something small and impish but carrying a sort of power in its own right.

T.O. Snob: If you collaborate with any artist in the world who would it be?

MT: James Mercer or Michele Gondry.

T.O. Snob: If you weren't making music what would you be doing?

MT: Settling into a life of quiet desperation. Or going to law school.

T.O. Snob: What is your guiltiest musical pleasure?

MT: Thin Lizzy.

T.O. Snob: Finally, is there anything else you'd like to say to your fans in Toronto?

MT: Keep an eye out for Pree sightings in the near future. ; )

T.O. Snob: Thanks again for taking the time to speak with us.

MT: Thanks for the thoughtful questions!