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  The Mohawk Lodge - Wear 'Em Out
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With Wildfires, The Mohawk Lodge abandons their dirty folk leanings in favor of blue collar rock and soul. Whereas debut disc Rare Birds catered in campfires, the band�s sophomore record caters in forest fires. Listeners are unlikely to escape these unscathed.

The homespun charm of Rare Birds won the Lodge a loyal local following, as well as the tag �dirty folk.� Understandably compared to the work of Bonnie �Prince� Billy, Rare Birds earned acclaim from the music press and lead to the band performing at CMJ in New York City, NXNE in Toronto, and Pop Montreal in Montreal. Yet, even while enjoying the spoils of a successful debut, a new desire began to burn in the band. The Mohawk Lodge yearned to write a record with which they could emotionally connect to an audience on the most basic, highly rocking level.

That aspiration has now been realized with a vengeance. While early Mohawk Lodge material often extolled music as a form of celebration, each song on Wildfires seems a cathartic act of bloodletting. In the vein of vintage Springsteen and The Constantines, this is earnest songwriting that beats with vitality. Every track bristles with immediacy as Havdale gives voice to songs that seem essential to his survival.

Melodic �Hard Times� confronts the doubts inherent in modern life and suggests that �a little love can pull us through.� Armed with a strident rhythm, �Wear �Em Out� unleashes a poetic war cry complete with anthemic chorus. Choir-backed �Calm Down� and lilting �Timber� play out as lullabies assuaging further anxieties and paranoia. Bluesy �Heart of Lovers� brims with sanguine defiance, while impudent �Why Would You?� provides a self-effacing look at the life of an artist. The centrepiece of the proceedings is title track �Wildfires.� Stretching out over seven gripping minutes, the track masterfully melds the epic with the introspective.

Just as Wildfires finds Havdale mining new lyrical depths, and listeners will discover duelling dustbowl guitars, swirling keyboards, melodic bass, driving percussion, atmospheric brass and, occasionally, a full choir. Overseen by producer Darryl Neudorf (New Pornographers, Neko Case), Havdale enlisted a cavalcade of musical talent including guests Dan Boeckner (Wolf Parade), Jesse Gander (Ghost House), J.P. Carter (Great Aunt Ida), as well as regular collaborators Josephson, Arch, Samir Mallal and Cory Price.

In anticipation of Wildfires� release in early 2007, The Mohawk Lodge continues to leave concertgoers sated and stages sweat-stained as they entrench their reputation as a live band to be reckoned with. Bringing their working man�s ethic to the fore, the Lodge launch a three-pronged guitar assault supported by an airtight rhythm section. With reckless abandon, they elevate their live shows to incendiary, elemental affairs that are not for the faint of heart. Only those willing to let a little blood flow and abandon themselves to the flames need apply for admission.