Thanks so much to Reg Allen for the interview! Reg was the drummer of the Ottawa, Canada, band Scarlet Drops who were around in the 80s and early 90s. Most indiepop fans may be aware of them thanks to the two singles that Harriet Records released but they had many more songs. Happily there’s good news. Harriet Records made a comeback last year and released a superb compilation titled “Scarlet Drops 1984-1992” with tons of songs by the Scarlet Drops that I think is essential for everyone! So don’t miss it! And if you want to know a little bit more about the band, please join me in this interview! (Also many thanks for sharing with all of us two still unreleased songs!)
++ Hi Reg! Thanks so much for being up for this interview! How are you? Are you still involved with music?
Still above ground and happy to do this interview. I switched from being a drummer and currently play bass in Ottawa band Good2Go ( good2go.bandcamp.com ). We play regularly in clubs/bars around the greater Ottawa area and have been together for 22 years.
++ Let’s go back in time. What are your first music memories?
My mother used to sing along to the radio to stuff like Dylan’s Blowin In The Wind so I guess it all started with tunes on AM radio in the early 60’s.
++ Do you remember what your first instrument was?
Pots and pans used to drive my Mom nuts. Then it was the piano but I wanted to be a drummer. I like making noise.
++How did you learn to play it?
I took piano lessons which I hated.
++ What sort of music did you listen to at home while growing up?
In the early days it was whatever was on CFRA or CFGO radio usually ’60 and early ’70s’s classic rock
++ Had you been in other bands before the Scarlet Drops? If so, how did all of these bands sound? Are there any recordings?
I played in bands in high school but when punk rock hit I was hooked and some of my friends disowned me saying I had lost my mind. I remember going record shopping with some friends who liked jazz and prog rock and I bought a couple of punk albums ( Ramones and Sex Pistols ) and they laughed at me. The clerk behind the counter said “Wow man good choices” so I felt vindicated. The punk/new wave bands that I was in before Scarlet Drops were The Clones, U-Mens and the Restless Virgins. An unreleased live recording of the U-Mens exists somewhere and I played with Restless Virgins for about 20 months but didn’t release anything while I was in the band.
++ What about the other members, had they been in other bands?
Dan played in Gleaming Speed Heap with me on bass and Glen Russell on drums. As well Dan was in a Vancouver cover band made up of work buddies and Deb has only been in the Scarlet Drops. After the Drops Deb wanted to spend more time with the kids. For a while I was the stay at home Dad so I was with them during the day.
++ Where were you from originally?
I was born in Winnipeg Manitoba, Dan was born in Pinawa, Manitoba and Deb was born in Timmins, Ontario.
++ How did you all meet? I notice you all have the last name Allen… are you related or how was the recruiting process?
Dan is my younger brother and Deb was my wife. I met Deb through friends while I was playing drums in the Restless Virgins.
++ How was Ottawa at the time of the Scarlet Drops? Were there any bands that you liked?
Ottawa had a small but thriving scene. Resin Scraper, Fluid Waffle, Crash 13, Randypeters, Daisy Killers were all cool bands.
++ Were there any good record stores?
Record Runner was where I bought most of my records. Other cool stores were Shake Records and Record On Wheels .
++ Or what about the pubs or venues to go check out up and coming bands?
The Downstairs Club, One Step Beyond, Zaphods ( Rideau St) and Barrymores were the places we used to go and see bands.
++ I am aware of some fantastic Canadian bands of the 80s and early 90s but not that many, so I wonder if you have any recommendations for obscure bands that didn’t get a chance to make it?
Off the top of my head… UIC ( great band), The Nils, DOA, The Subhumans, Purple Toads, Doughboys, L’Etranger, Sons of Freedom, The Gruesomes, Teenage Head were bands that probably should have been a lot bigger in America.
++ How was the creative process for you? Where did you usually practice?
Dan mostly came up with song ideas as he was the guitarist, but Deb and I also wrote a few tunes as well. Some tunes were created from jamming like Renny’s Riot. We practiced twice a week in a garage that we had sealed off so the noise wouldn’t attract Bylaw officers.
++ What’s the story behind the band’s name?
Basically made up quickly before our first show at Bert’s Bar in Algonquin College in the fall of 1983.
++ Who would you say were influences in the sound of the band?
Geeez everybody The Clash, the Ramones, X, Dead Kennedys, Jimi Hendrix, Velvet Underground, Motorhead, the list could go on and on.
++ Last year Harriet Records made a comeback and one of their first releases was a retrospective by the Scarlet Drops. Had you been in touch with Tim all this time, or did this come as a surprise? Did it take a long time to put together this compilation?
It took about 10 months to get it finished. Part of the problem was to locate all the reel to reel and DAT tapes so we could get the best results sound wise. Most of them were in storage in Vancouver. Then everything had to be compiled and mastered. I hadn’t been in contact with Tim very often until we connected via social media and he sent a mp3 of Early In the Morning taken from an old cassette tape. That was the spark that got the project rolling.
++ The compilation has 24 songs. Are these all your recordings? Or are there more unreleased tracks?
There’s about another 15 to 20 tunes that remain. Some of which we released on limited edition cassettes in the ’80’s. Here’s a sample (in the Listen section below)
++ Your first release dates from 1986 on a label called ZOP Records, it was the “Poor Flowers” 7″. Who were ZOP Records? Was it yourselves?
Our first cassette actually came out in early 1984 and our first vinyl EP was in ’86 .Yes it was a label we made up. ZOP is short for Zonophone.
++ On this record there’s Simon Pure playing guitar. What happened to him?
Don’t know what happened to Simon…probably in a pub somewhere getting rowdy.
++ Then you signed to Harriet Records from Boston. How did this happen? And how was your relationship with the label? Did you ever play in Boston?
We never played Boston. Our relationship with Harriet started when we sent a copy of Poor Flowers to Tim’s Incite Fanzine for review and he expressed interest in releasing a single on Harriet. Our relationship with Harriet has always been great. Tim’s a cool guy to work with.
++ The artwork of your singles was created by the artist Jean Smith. It is very distinct and cool. Did you art direct? Or you let her do what she thought best?
Jean Smith (Mecca Normal) is a friend of Tim and he suggested we use her to create the cover art for the singles and we thought that was cool . She’s an awesome Canadian artist.
++ Both Harriet 7″s were recorded at Gadomski Studios. Was this your favourite place to record? Or did you have better experiences at other studios?
Glen Russell who operated Gadomski in his basement was a friend of ours so we liked to record there as it was a relaxed environment plus Glen always knew what he was doing.
++ On the compilation I notice that two tracks were recorded in London, in 1986. Was the band living there? Playing there? What’s the story of the band in England?
We lived in the outer London borough of Bromley (Downham Estate) played a little and recorded a few tunes. London was a culture shock for us coming from small city Ottawa.
++ Speaking of England you had a tape released on Acid Tapes called “Moose Power A-Go-Go”. Was the connection with Acid Tapes from the mid-80s? Or how did you end up working and releasing this tape with them?
We read an article about Acid Tapes and sent them a copy of Moose Power A Go Go. They liked it and released it. Simple as that.
++ Why was this tape album not released as a CD or a vinyl LP?
No money. We were poor and Deb and I had two kids to support so we basically couldn’t afford it. A lot of other local bands were in the same boat. Cassettes were a lot cheaper to mass produce etc.
++ Was there interest from any other labels at the time?
Moose Power A Go Go got a great review in CMJ and we received letters of interest from Epic Records, Capitol Records and a few other labels requesting copies which we sent out but I guess they thought Scarlet Drops had no commercial potential as they responded with rejection letters… which we taped to the wall in the rehearsal garage.
++ You appeared on a bunch of compilations too. On one of them, “The Keeping Secret”, you made a song for “Jimmy Swaggart, the televangelist! Was he famous in Canada?!
Ol’ Jimmy was broadcast on TV in Canada on Sunday mornings. The conman was always asking for money. Sometimes we’d watch his pathetic show after smoking up but we could only bear 10 minutes or so. Ernest Angley was a lot more entertaining in a sleazy kind of way.
++ The other compilations I was curious about were the ones released by What Wave Records. It seems they were promoting Canadian up and coming bands? Who were they? And were you friends or familiar with these bands
What Wave was a fantastic Canadian fanzine and I’m still in contact with Whatwave Dave and listen to his show https://radiowestern.ca/program/radio-what-wave-0. I was familiar with some of the bands Dave would feature in his zine like UIC , Purple Toads, The Nils and The Gruesomes. Scarlet Drops had played on the same bills with all 4 bands when they played in Ottawa.( UIC at Olivers Pub – Carleton University, The Purple Toads – Roosters Coffeehouse – Carleton University, The Nils – Barrymores and The Gruesomes at Zaphods on Rideau St. )
++ I think my favourite song of yours might as well be “Cling”, wondering if you could tell me what inspired this song? What’s the story behind it?
Honestly…Can’t remember…it was 30+ years ago.
++ If you were to choose your favorite the Scarlet Drops song, which one would that be and why?
I don’t really have a favorite SD tune. I tend to like different tunes on different days. Same goes with favorite bands.
++ What about gigs? Did you play many?
Scarlet Drops played about 60 or 70 shows. Some years were busy and other years we’d be gigging less.
++ And what were the best gigs you remember? Any anecdotes you can share?
Opening for Social Distortion was fun. Mike Ness has a reputation for being an asshole but he was nice to us. Playing at Irene’s Pub was always fun as well. One night when we played there we played so loud the dart boards fell off the wall.
++ And were there any bad ones?
Not that I can remember….but there were a fews shows that were sort of lacklustre ….probably my fault as I wasn’t playing the tunes fast enough.
++ When and why did the Scarlet Drops stop making music? Were you involved in any other bands afterwards?
The Scarlet Drops ended in ’92. Dan was going to Toronto for school and Deb wanted to focus on the kids without the constant hassle of looking for babysitters etc. I continued to play with Dan in Gleaming Speed Heap which was a sporadic sort of band and then in 1999 I formed Good2Go ( good2go.bandcamp.com ) with singer Maureen Hogan.
++ Has there been any the Scarlet Drops reunions?
Nope and there probably never will be.
++ Was there any interest from the radio? TV?
CKCU-FM in Ottawa were great as they played Scarlet Drops on a regular basis as they did with a lot of other local bands. A few of our live shows were filmed by Rogers Cable 22. We also got played by various college stations in the U.S. and Canada.
++ What about the press? Did they give you any attention?
Actually some of the best press we received was from College Music Journal (CMJ) in NYC. As well CKCU had a publication called Trans FM that gave us some great coverage.
++ What about fanzines?
Incite was great and Tim did a few reviews. Also What Wave , Maximum Rock n Roll and Flipside reviewed our cassettes/singles and gave Scarlet Drops positive reviews.
++ Looking back in retrospect, what would you say was the biggest highlight for the band?
Getting the great review in CMJ and having singles released on Harriet Records was pretty exciting.
++ Aside from music, what other hobbies do you have?
I used to walk/hike a lot but not so much anymore as I’m fat, old and lazy.
++ Never been to Ottawa so I’d like to ask a local about what you would suggest checking out in your town, like what are the sights one shouldn’t miss? Or the traditional food or drinks that you love that I should try?
Ottawa is a fantastic place with a metro population of 1.5 million. If you’re into outdoor activities like hiking, boating, skating , rock climbing, camping, getting chased by bears and moose then Ottawa’s a great place to visit. Ottawa also has some great live venues and festivals to check out.
++ Anything else you’d like to add?
Thanks so much for the interview. Please check out the attached SD tunes.
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Listen
Scarlet Drops – Cling
Scarlet Drops – Accept These Ways (unreleased)
Scarlet Drops – On a Beautiful Day (unreleased)
One Response to “:: Scarlet Drops”
Great interview! My favorite SD song is “Cling” as well, FWIW… Thanks for the unreleased & non-compiled tracks—looking forward to hearing them.