Globe and Mail Article- February 7, 2001

Boys will be men
Although the trio may look the part, SoulDecision insists
they're not like other boy bands, ALEXANDRA GILL writes.
They're in their late 20s, write their own songs
and, yes, they play their own instruments

ALEXANDRA GILL

Wednesday, February 7, 2001

VANCOUVER -- The members of SoulDecision are as cute as the mocha Kahlua ice cream pie they crave but dare not eat. And the newly anointed multiple Juno nominees look particularly scrumptious at this very moment, as they bounce around a booth at Earl's family restaurant in their hometown of Vancouver, moaning about their expanding waist lines, ogling the waitresses and playing with their tiny new cellular phones.

Like all successful boy bands, the trio neatly fits the cookie-cutter mould carved out by a North American music industry that is currently pigging out on an insatiable teenage appetite for bubble gum pop:

There's Trevor Guthrie, the dimpled, blond singer-guitarist "cute one" who makes the girls swoon; Dave Bowman, the faux-obnoxious percussionist-vocalist "naughty one" who leads the band's rhythm-and-blues-inflected harmonies and catchy pop tunes; and Ken Lewko, the quietly contemplative keyboard-playing "serious one" who is sexually ambiguous enough to keep all of their fans happy.

Despite the poster-boy good looks, it quickly becomes clear that this is a ruthlessly ambitious group with a carefully cultivated image -- right down to the platinum blond highlights on the tips of Guthrie's consciously messed hair -- designed to milk the teen idol brand for all its worth.

Contrary to popular perception, these guys are not inexperienced ingenues who have been thrown together by a filthy rich Svengali down in Florida because they can bust a good move. They're all men in their late 20s, who write their own songs and play their own instruments.

"We're not inexperienced little boys when it comes to life or business," Bowman, 28, playfully snarls as he sucks back a fruit juice with "brain boosting" herbal additives to combat his hangover. "We've been around the block a few times."

The fellows first met back in 1991, when they were first-year students in the music program at Capilano College. And after 10 years of writing music together and pumping out independent singles during the lean years of grunge, the band previously known as Indecision finally hit platinum last year with a debut album, No One Does It Better, which garnered them five hit singles in the United States, opening spots on the road with Christina Aguilera and 'N Sync and, most recently, three top Juno nominations.

So now that they're about to take off in Canada and hopefully earn a little bit of respect that they claim the rock 'n' roll industry brigade here has denied them for so long, these men want to growl it out loud and clear: Although they may look the part, they're not like all the other boy bands.

"First of all," says Guthrie, 27, stabbing the air with his chopsticks, "boy bands should be called boy groups. Because they're not bands. They just sing and dance. We are the only real boy band because we are a band. We actually play instruments, hence 'the band.' "

"And we don't dance," Bowman adds, suddenly snapping his rubberneck away from the blonde passing by.

"Well, we do a good jig," Guthrie jokes, "but you know what we mean."

Lewko, 29, nods. "If we looked like [Radiohead singer] Thom Yorke, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

While these clean-cut gentlemen may appear boyish at first glance, they're adult enough to accept the realities of the business. "The only reason we're out there," Guthrie explains, "is because the boy groups made pop accessible to everybody and they made it work. And now the labels are saying, 'Hey, these guys are doing something different. Let's see if it works.' "

The guys make no apologies about the pretty promotional photos distributed by Universal Records, a teen-friendly Web site that includes their astrological signs or the company they obviously disdain, but nevertheless keep.

"Why did we tour with 'N Sync?" Guthrie interjects. "Because they paid us $100,000. No, um . . ."

Bowman jumps in. "It was a huge opportunity for us. You know, exposure that you just cannot pay for. It's all pop music, but we obviously approach it from very different angles. But you know what? They're extremely talented guys . . . and they put on a really, really great show."

As for Christina Aguilera, the men are slightly less chivalrous. A wave of raised eyebrows rolls around the table at the mere mention of the young pop star who still didn't know who they were after three months of touring together.

"She's a sweet kid," Guthrie smirks.

Bowman lets out a loud snort.

Lewko extends a slick olive branch. "Christina was very busy. She was recording three different albums. From what we heard, she was having some financial problems and changing managers. So she was a little stressed out."

There's one aspect of their boy-band image, however, that certainly ruffles their smooth exteriors. Not unlike the princesses of pop, SoulDecision put out sexually suggestive songs that don't give away too much. But like real men everywhere, they take great offence at the suggestion that their coy ballads makes them sound like virgins.

"Who the hell said that?" Bowman yells. "Do they know how old we are?"

Guthrie looks astonished. "And we love girls."

Lewko hangs back from the conversation, curiously aloof.

"Not to say we're deviant," Bowman adds, making a big, macho display of throwing his arms over the back of the booth, "but we've lived a little."

They immediately launch into a heated defence of their lyrics. Faded, Guthrie says, pointing to their No. 1 hit, "is about getting drunk and getting laid."

"It's a hunting anthem," Bowman enthuses, as Guthrie belts out the chorus to Hungry Like The Wolf (Duran Duran being one of their many musical inspirations).

"And Only In My Mind," Guthrie adds, quick to make a point that doesn't exactly help his case against celibacy, "it's all about masturbation."

The band's "defiance" extends to what they perceive as a deep-rooted prejudice against pop in the Canadian music industry, a bitter point they return to several times.

"If a band like Matchbox 20 comes out," Lewko explains, "they're immediately assumed to be legitimate because they're a rock band, even though sometimes they don't write their own stuff."

But in the end, the guys are confident that their musical integrity will help them survive when the boy-band bubble bursts. They've already relocated to Toronto, where they claim audiences are more accepting of diverse styles, and have lofty ambitions of some day attaining a stature to rival U2's so they can eventually direct their career as they choose.

"U2 can wait to put out an album until they feel like it," Lewko says. "They can do whatever they want." But what about the Junos?

"What about them?" Bowman retorts.

Last year, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences relegated the band into an embarrassing slot as presenters during the prebroadcast concert. This year, SoulDecision will be returning as fully-fledged performers during the live broadcast with three of the top nominations (best group, best single and best album) draped around their neck. Isn't that proof of some newly earned respect?

"We're very, very happy," Bowman says sarcastically. "We've been nominated for the three most prestigious awards you can get nominated for. They've definitely given us some respect by throwing us in with people like the Barenaked Ladies, Our Lady Peace, the Matthew Good Band and the Tragically Hip. Either that or they did it on purpose to make sure we lose."

Oh, stop that pouting. It's time for SoulDecision to make up their minds. Are they boys or are they men?

SoulDecision will perform at the Vogue Theatre in Vancouver tonight; the Spectrum in Montreal on Friday; the National Arts Centre in Ottawa on Saturday; the Hamilton Place in Hamilton, Feb. 13; the Drink in London, Ont., Feb. 14; the Music Hall in Toronto, Feb. 15; and at Juno awards gala on March 4.