An Interview With The Brothers Darby and Erin Yule Who Make Up The Americana-Indie Rock Band, THE STATISTICS!

Born in an industry town, 800 kilometres from anything, The Statistics created their own unique style of Americana-Indie Rock. Comprised of Darby and Erin Yule, these two brothers accomplished more in 5 years through pure-grit and a love for the craft than most do in a lifetime. True singer-songwriter personalities mixed with an early love for punk rock helped Darby and Erin create a style that they can truly say is their own.

On September 6th, they released their brand new album, The Robson Street Hymns.

On the new album, Darby Yule shares: “I wrote the Robson Street Hymns about a time of great change in my life. I had just moved from a small town to a big city then right back again. I think this is an album for anyone who is a hopeless romantic or dreamer and is still trying to find their place.”

Here is their latest single, “Sparks In the Night”: https://youtu.be/h7iUfNM4xms

Connect With The Statistics Online Here:

Website: www.thestatistics.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/statisticsband
Twitter: www.twitter.com/statisticsband
Instagram: www.instagram.com/the_statisti

Learn more about The Statistics in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! So what does a typical day look like for this band? What is on tap for the rest of your day and week?

Thank you for having us. We both work full time so grinding it as an unknown band is always a little interested. We basically work full time jobs and then come home and song-write, book shows, do interviews, etc. We are always working on putting out new content in one way or another. Just constant creativity and work! It’s been a little different since the record came out because it has had a lot of press and attention. It really feels less like grinding and more like keeping up with all of the good fortune!

Now that we are more than halfway through the year, how would you say that 2019 is treating this duo so far? What are some goals that you have for this year and how close are you to reaching them?

It has been an awesome year! We actually made it onto national radio on CBC and a lot of the media that we’ve been aiming for! It’s been such a relief to share this music with everyone. We’ve been sitting on it for nearly two years so it feels really, really good to show you all. 

We would like to finish the year strong with some good shows and festivals as well as pick up some more steam on radio. We are focusing more on 2020 at this point.

Can you recall the moment when you thought you could be in this band together? Has anything surprised you about this musical journey so far? How did you come up with your name?

We always wanted to be in a band together since we were really young. Our dad played in cover bands for years so we were always around it. I (Darby) remember taking my little toy Casio Keyboard to his band practices and pretending to play along. Being brothers really changes the dynamic of the band. It’s kind of always been a thing for the two of us. 

Everything has surprised us about our musical journey! We don’t think you ever get a sense of what being a touring musician is until you do it. I (Darby) compare it to standing in front of a waterfall. There’s really nothing like it. Extreme highs and extreme lows. Actually, maybe it’s more like heroine. (Erin) always chasing a high you’ll never get back (laughs).. 

How do you think your hometown has influenced the sound and how you both carry yourselves in this band?

Oo this is a good one. Erin and I are both super proud of our hometown. It truly is home. We’ve grown up there, there are so many amazing people in Prince George. We love so many of them. We’ve had a ton of support throughout this entire process and we want to take this moment to thank all of those people. This is an interesting question for us though because we actually had some hometown drama on our album release day about one of the things that was said in our press release. We write songs for people who never felt like they fit in and we guess that rubbed some locals the wrong way. The fact is, we never really did feel like we fit into our hometown even though our roots are there. Most of the album is about growth and becoming the person you want to be and that includes questioning your roots. 

Why would you say that you two work so well together? Where is one of you weak where the other is strong and vice-versa? Why does this duo work?

We balance each other out very nicely. Darby tends to be more of a big picture “artistic director” type and Erin is much more analytical. We also really have similar values when it comes to music and creative endeavours. Our motto is “song first”. We are brutal with developing our music. We are like the Slayer of writing songs (Erin). 

We also have a lot of fun together. We spent a lot of our teenagehood and most of our adulthood trying to out-silly each other which really helps in the creative process. The first time we met a real industry professional, Garth Richardson (producer for Rage Against the Machine, Rise Against), we were taking turns wrestling our bassist on the floor of the studio. Nothing is too stupid for us. 

Let’s talk about your latest track “Maryanne.” What was the inspiration for this song? How did it come together? How would you say that it prepares listeners for your upcoming album, “The Robson Street Hymns”? What about your previous track “Sparks In The Night”?

I (Darby) wrote Maryanne looking around at relationships in our hometown. I noticed that there were people planting roots and people who just wanted out. I wanted to write an homage to both. I think it’s a good overall look at many of the themes of the record. It also really shows the marriage of Indie Rock and Americana. 

Sparks in the Night was the first track written for the record. It was about going down to all of the pubs in Vancouver and bragging to my other artistic friends about all of the things I wanted to do with music. It all seemed very fleeting in a way so I really held onto all of it when it was happening. It was very traumatizing coming back to Prince George because my anxiety got so bad that I had to leave. 

How do you think your sound has grown over the years? What about your songwriting process? How has that changed?

Well, we started playing Punk rock and Ska when we were teens. It’s developed into this real singer songwriter inspired version of that. We always thought that it was a really cool mix. We think that we have our songwriting process to thank for that. We always believed that  songs needed to sound good on acoustic guitar or piano first.  

Where do you think you are both happiest- in the studio recording new music, on stage performing or elsewhere?

We both love the studio. It’s all amazing in it’s own way though. We are very happy to play shows and meet people. We think we would really miss it if we had to choose. Studio is really the place we like the best though. It’s where you do the most songwriting and all of the decisions get made. It’s also the most competitive and intense that music gets and we are both hyper competitive people. 

What has been a favorite show of yours to date? What do you think makes an ideal performance for this band? Where are you excited to play at next?

We can’t really choose. We have had a lot of amazing experiences all over the place. We can say that our ideal performances are normally full band ones because they are a lot of fun. The fact is though, the super intimate ones where we play acoustic and Erin plays piano are really awesome in their own way. We’ve had some of our best ones doing that. 

How do you think being musicians and in this band gives you all the most joy in life today?

It’s doing what we love. Music is the ultimate freedom for us. We also believe that humans can’t be happy unless they are creating something and music is a massive job. You are always creating. 

We are currently living through a very trying and politically charged time right now so I am curious to know how your own music is reflecting this time period? If you don’t think it is, why is that?

We’ve actually stayed away from politics since we moved away from Punk. We are both strong believers that what you do on a daily basis will always affect change more than anything going on in politics right now. We know it’s cliche to say but be the change you want to be in the world. We also believe really strongly in treating others well. Just because you have a bad idea, doesn’t mean you are a bad person. Our music isn’t very political but it does encourage people to be who they want to be. 

Who would you love to work with in the future? Who are some of your favorite artists right now? What do you think would be a dream collaboration for this duo?

Ugh, we both love Jack Antonoff so much. It would be so fucking awesome to do an album with him. A little strange because our styles are so different but we think he would compliment  our stuff well if he was producing.

Where would you love to hear your music being played? A TV show, a movie, in your favorite store, etc…?

I (Darby) would love it if every girl who ever turned me down for a date was playing my song. Not to sound bitter but I could jump out of wherever I was hiding and yell “gotcha!” We are really in this for the petty revenge. 

What do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope people continue to take away from your songs?

We want to connect with people who are growing up! People who never fit in, maybe those who just like catchy melodies. We just want people to know that they are not alone and that there is community in being detached. 

Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers about your music?

Believe that it really is an original sound made by people who honestly care about music. Also, we aren’t going to jump out of a closet at you. Also believe that.