CMW 2008: Tom Fun Orchestra
Friday March 07, 2008 @ 11:30 AM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff

Tom Fun Orchestra

Hometown: Sydney, NS
Official Website: www.tomfun.ca
Members:
Ian MacDougall (guitar/vocals)
Alicia Penney (guitar/vocals)
Morgan Currie (violin)
Donald Calabrese (bass)
Dave Mahalik (accordion)
Victor Tomiczek (banjo)
Devon Strang (drums)
Zach MacLean (guitar)
Albert Lionais (trumpet)

Tom Fun Orchestra are fresh off the release of their debut album, You Will Land With A Thud, and are popping up all over the place. They recently performed on CBC's televised Barenaked East Coast Music! special, and have reached #16 on CBC Radio 3's Top 30 chart. But they don't just plan to play shows in Canada this year — they also have their sights on a tour of Ireland and the U.K. in the spring. ChartAttack disrupted guitarist/vocalist Ian MacDougall during craft time to ask him a few questions.

So, you're about to play the big industry event that is Canadian Music Week. What's the most shameless thing you've ever done to promote your band?

My shames are usually after shows, when all the promotions are done! (laughs) Our last time on the road, we played a show in Montreal and busked in the subway — all nine of us — with a guy dressed up in a bear suit handing out flyers for our show that night. That was probably the most shameless thing we've ever done.

What's the hardest part about being an up-and-coming band?

Being broke — that's hard. (laughs) But just people trying to classify you and pigeonhole your sound. But that's not that hard. Being broke, now that's hard, especially with nine members!

How important is it for your band members to circulate and flirt with the audience before or after the show?

It comes to us pretty naturally. I mean, we're pretty spread out anyway, with so many of us. And it's not so much flirty I think as it is just being silly.

Have you ever stolen from someone else's rider? If so, who was it and what did you take?

We have definitely grabbed booze from other folks… We might've taken beer from Joel Plaskett.

Have you ever been graded before according to ChartAttack.com's Rock 'n' Roll Report Cards?

Not that I'm aware of. Have we? [No.]

Does the idea of being graded bring back bad memories of being in elementary school or high school?

I always got very satisfactory on my report cards! I was a keener until I was 12, and then I turned bad. But I am totally up for it. I will be excited until we get a bad grade, and then I'll be totally disillusioned by the music industry.

Have you done anything new or interesting this week?

Well, right now, I am cutting out heads of band members from Company House Records and pasting them over a series of flowers. Now that's probably our most shameless CMW promotion! (laughs)

Tom Fun Orchestra plays the Horseshoe Tavern on March 8 @ 3:20 a.m. as part of the annual Chart/Horseshoe/Canadian Music Week showcase.

—Jen White