PONY UP! are an all-girl band out of Montreal whose quirky and raw folk-pop sound and confessional lyricism had them at number 47 in 2007’s H100 with their song The Truth About Cats and Dogs (Is That They Die). Their new album, Stay Gold, was released on May 30 through independent label Laughing Outlaw.
The album is therefore aptly titled, a reference to the 1980s cult film The Outsiders. A character named Pony Boy recites Nothing Gold Can Stay, a Robert Frost poem, the gist of which is what? “Don’t let the hard world get you down,” band member Lisa tells me – good advice for anyone, particularly struggling musicians in today’s economic climate.
Stay Gold is more of the galloping drum beats, jangly guitar and unprocessed vocals we loved on their 2006 album, Make Love to the Judges With Your Eyes, except that this time they worked with a producer rather than just an engineer. And not just any old producer – Murray Lightburn from The Dears! “We really needed somebody to say to us ‘play that guitar ‘til it fucking shines’ and Murray’s a bit of a slave driver, so it worked out well. Plus we all really admire him, of course.” Apparently the feeling is mutual, with Murray asking Lisa and Laura from Pony Up! to join The Dears on tour last year.
Lisa cites Texan band Okkervil River as a major influence on Stay Gold (apparently vocalist Laura used to have a “massive crush” on a member). Indeed, there are many similarities between the two bands’ styles: they both feature meandering guitar parts, pitchy vocals and both have a penchant for prominent keyboard. However Pony Up! has a more childlike quality to their music, with uplifting, building chord progressions and soaring, layered vocals which make you feel like you’re ascending a steep hill towards sunrise. This sweet, optimistic quality is particularly evident in their new song A Crutch or a Cradle – one of my new faves. So did Laura and the guy from Okkervil River ever get together?, I ask excitedly. “No, she has real love now,” Lisa laughs. “She doesn’t need fictional love!”
Well, Lisa’s calling card is about to run out, but I have one last question: what’s this I’ve heard about a secret band handshake? There isn’t one! “But you can pretend like there is,” Lisa says. Cheeky. As a consolation she tells me about the ‘Coconut Club House’, a pantry off their kitchen too small to stand up in, which band members Laura and Lindsay decorated with a tropical theme and used to write songs in. How old were they when they did this? “That’s exactly what my boyfriend asked me when I told him that story!” Lisa cries, then says somewhat sheepishly, “They were like, twenty!”
Pony Up! will gallop into town on Wednesday June 17 to play with The Devoted Few at ANU Bar. Doors at 8:30pm, tix through Ticketek.
