Hotel Mira
Hotel Mira is a Canadian alternative rock band formed in Vancouver in 2010. It consists of Charlie Kerr on vocals, Mike Noble on bass, Clark Grieve on guitar and keyboards, and Cole George on drums.
History
The band members are all originally from the Greater Vancouver area. Kerr and co-founding lead guitarist Oliver Mann formed a core project in 2007 while still in high school, with Christopher McClelland joining in 2009 and Graham Serl rounding out the lineup for JPNSGRLS in 2010. Live shows were integral to the band from its beginning, performing in battles-of-the-bands and packing out any venue that would allow teenage performers and their audiences.Prior to 2010, JPNSGRLS was known as the Beauties, but due to a name conflict with an existing band, the group changed its name to Japanese Girls. This was chosen as a tribute to another band they admired—an all-female Japanese indie group called Mass of the Fermenting Dregs. However, upon realizing the name caused difficulty when searching for the band online, they switched to using the disemvoweling JPNSGRLS.
JPNSGRLS was nominated for the Sirius XM Canada Independent Music Award for Emerging Artist of the Year in April 2015.
In January 2016, after the recording of their second full-length album, Divorce, was completed, Mann announced via Facebook that he was leaving the band for other pursuits. "As some of you already know, 2016 will be a big change for me, in the fact that I have recently decided to leave JPNSGRLS. It was a tough decision to make, but something I had been thinking about for a long time", he said. "Being a part of JPNSGRLS was amazing, and I am sad to leave it. I got to see so much of the world and am very proud of what we had accomplished over the last 8 years". After the band mounted a search and auditioned several musicians, Colton Lauro, also from the Greater Vancouver area and having worked with several area acts as well as being a session musician, became the band's new lead guitarist in the spring of 2016.
In April 2018, Kerr announced via several social media platforms and the band website that the group was retiring the name JPNSGRLS and rebranding as Hotel Mira. He also announced a new iteration of the band lineup, as Serl and McClelland had left in January 2017. Lauro would stay on as lead guitarist and Mike Noble was added as a new bass player. Along with these changes, the announcement also included a new single, "3AM Lullaby"—the first as Hotel Mira.
After releasing a self-titled EP in August 2018, Hotel Mira released their first full-length album, Perfectionism, on Valentine's Day 2020. With this release, the band was now rounded out by the addition of Clark Grieve on keyboards and Cole George on drums—both previously session musicians with several bands in the Vancouver area. Lauro left Hotel Mira in 2021.
Releases
''The Sharkweek EP'' (2013) as JPNSGRLS
JPNSGRLS made their debut with The Sharkweek EP in June 2013, distributed by Light Organ Records. The record was produced and engineered by Justin Brown and co-produced by the band and Mike Paton.Reviewers noted the band's unique combination of syncopation, cohesion, modernity, and experimentation with lyrical content, musicianship, and influences. The first single and video released from The Sharkweek EP was "Vancouver Grizzly", and the video for the follow-up single, "Monarch Butterfly", debuted on Diffuser.fm in January 2014. JPNSGRLS also played at the BIME Festival in Bilbao, Spain, in November 2013, in support of the record.
The single "Red and Green" was included on Light Organ's Christmas album Sleighed, also in November 2013, with the video released at Christmas 2014.
''Circulation'' (2014) as JPNSGRLS
For their full-length debut, having now been fully signed by Light Organ Records, the band went into Vancouver's Greenhouse Studios with producer Steve Bays, and engineer Greg Calbi. Circulation was recorded in seven days without a click track. The album was released in North America on July 15, 2014.Singles issued from the album in North America were "Mushrooms", "Smalls", "Tiger", "Circulation", and "Southern Comforting", with official full videos released for "Mushrooms", "Smalls", and "Circulation".
Overall, reviews of Circulation were positive and called particular attention to the record's energy and how it would translate live, and vice versa—noting the uplift of the rhythm section and the contrasting darker lyrical content. Reviewers also noted that JPNSGRLS' combination of 1990s alt-rock and post-punk revival created a complex modern rock sound that made it a 2014 musical peak. AbsolutePunks review indicated it was 'easily one of the best rock albums of 2014'.
In dissenting reviews, Alan Ranta of The Georgia Straight stated that Circulation was "a little inconsistent and under-developed" as a whole but concluded that "hooks abound... so the future holds promise", while Ride the Tempo also made mention of "uneven" results—expressing frustration by saying that JPNSGRLS clearly had the capacity to be "exceptional", while also admitting that the songs were "solid and enjoyable".
The single "Smalls" went straight to #1 on CBC Radio 3 Top 30 Canadian Indie Songs and held that place for four weeks in April/May 2014. It went to #5 on the CBC Radio 3 Playlist overall the week of May 30, 2014. It reached #24 on Mediabase's Alt Chart, and stayed at between #26 and #28 for a further eight weeks. The video for "Smalls", directed by Nathan Boey and partly inspired by the film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and the stop-motion films of Tim Burton, was put into heavy rotation on Canada's MuchMusic in July 2014.
The follow-up single "Tiger" hit #1 on the CBC Radio 3 Top 30 Playlist Chart for the week of August 6, 2014, spending eight weeks on the chart in total and rising again to #2 the week of September 2, 2014. On the CBC Radio 3 Top 30 Indie Canadian Songs Chart, it went straight to #7 and remained on the chart for eight weeks.
"Southern Comforting" would go on to become a Spotify sleeper hit, racking up over two million plays by the end of 2018.
Circulation debuted on the CMJ 200 at #96 in July 2014, spending ten weeks on the chart, with a top position of #35 in August 2014. On Exclaim! magazine's Earshot National Top 50, the album debuted at #34 in July 2014, topping out at #27 in August 2014.
In the UK, BBC Radio 6 Music debuted "Smalls" in March 2015, with New Music presenter Lauren Laverne referring to the single as "feisty" and remarking on the "huge guitars". The British press compared JPNSGRLS to their own independent music scene, with NME Radar name-checking Arctic Monkeys for comparative musicianship but making clear vocalist distinctions. Q magazine debuted "Mushrooms" as one of "5 Songs to Hear This Week" for the week of March 9, 2015, instead referencing the Strokes for comparison.
Circulation was released in the UK and Europe in April 2015. The video-only single "Brandon", directed by Rayln Gladue, was initially released exclusively on the German website Noisey, in May 2015. Both the song and its video were inspired by Boys Don't Cry, a 1999 film starring Hilary Swank, which told the story of Brandon Teena, a trans man who was raped and murdered in Nebraska in 1993. The British Columbia Teachers' Federation listed the "Brandon" video as a recommended resource for teachers, relating to LGBTQ social justice issues.
''Divorce'' (2016) as JPNSGRLS
JPNSGRLS' sophomore album, Divorce, was released on July 22, 2016. Steve Bays, again, produced some tracks, along with Tom Dobrzanski and David Schiffman. Mastering was once more done by Greg Calbi. Recording took place in Vancouver's Monarch Studios and in Los Angeles.Preview reviews for the album were positive and strong, with one reviewer pointing out the maturity and progression of the album from the time of Circulation. "Kerr moves away from predictable 'indie-rock' clichés, with Divorce being essentially a collection of unorthodox love songs; about letting go rather than holding on, about love as a two-way street, about what could have been, and about how we approach love in the modern world", wrote music website Circuit Sweet, adding, "The driving dominance of the Serl-McClelland rhythm section pumping out masterful and edgy layers, combined with the well-placed cross-section of electric guitar tones is a strand running throughout." It went on, " is of a more mature, melodic alternative-rock sound without losing any of JPNSGRLS infectious energy."
British music website FMS went further in its take on Kerr's abilities as a lyricist, stating, "The tales of isolated youth, love and lust that filled their first album, Circulation, make a welcome return, set apart from the pack by the quality of songwriting from lead singer Charlie Kerr... His songwriting captures elements of the witty social insight of Alex Turner, the sing-a-long choruses of the Gallaghers and the honest emotion of Jesse Lacey and weaves it all together, as Kerr swings from vitriolic roar to crisp falsetto, singing with such passion that the listener cannot help but be pulled into his world... Whilst JPNSGRLS continue to experiment with their sound and influences, Divorce is a testament to the band's craftsmanship and talent as they create one of the best indie rock albums of the year so far."
Post-release reviews of Divorce were also largely positive. "Stupid fun meets adult themes and wins in the end", said Muso's Guide, who also gave the album "a thumbs up", called the track "A Comprehensive List of Things I Love" "charmingly summer tinged" and stated that the "band's strength in depth is amply plumbed on subsequent track 'Circus' as they slow things down just the right side of cornball". Substream Magazine wrote that "Divorce offers a wholly refreshing take on indie rock that traverses several areas of the genre and its adjacent variations... It's catchy, structurally innovative, and sonically invigorating, with riffs riding riffs to victory, sure to accept its trophies atop 'best of 2016' podiums aplenty." "The band have drawn clear influence from the likes of the Hives and Arctic Monkeys but added their own unique touch", said Clunk Magazine—giving it 7.5 stars out of 10 and going on to say that Divorce "is cohesive, infectious and has multiple layers of intelligence through the songwriting".
Glide Magazine gave the album 8 out of 10 stars, also calling out the single "Oh My God" for particular attention, stating that "the song showcases what JPNSGRLS does best, combining post-punk's energy and riffing with the raw power and emotion of grunge". The site went on to say that "relentless in its intensity and deceptive in its intelligence, Divorce serves as an apt follow up to JPNSGRLS' critically acclaimed debut." In their review, the Louder Than War print version also gave Divorce 8 out of 10 stars and stated that "the thundering indie rock of 'A Girl from a Different Dimension', cool guitar effects of 'Trojan Horse' and infectious riff of 'Bully for You' mark them out as witty, fun, and intense indie rock in the same league as the Strokes and the Libertines. Full of verve and energy, these are unorthodox love songs about letting go."
In mildly dissenting reviews, NME had the initial view that the album was "packing angst-ridden, power-chord-heavy rock played at breakneck speed" and that "Divorce is sprinkled with enough inventiveness to make it a success" with "gems to mine here", but ended by stating that "Divorce is by no means a bad record, but nor is it a particularly memorable or noteworthy one." Stuart Derdyn of the Vancouver Sun said in his review of the album that "Charlie Kerr has the requisite swagger in his voice and enough range to go from a seductive and detached lower register to high-pitched howling on 'A Girl from a Different Dimension'... While the group is mostly thrashing full-on, it displays a great sense of pop hooks on the super-catchy 'A Comprehensive List of Things I Love'—complete with call-and-response girl-group-style choruses. It doesn't all work. 'Holding Back' and 'All of Myself' are plodding filler and the slower numbers generally leave little or no impression."
JPNSGRLS debuted Divorces first single, "Bully for You", exclusively via the PopMatters website in April 2016, with wide release set for April 15. PopMatters called "Bully for You" "an empathetic expression of male sympathy over the everyday misogyny that women must face." Kerr's statement on the song was that it is "an observational protest song about the ceaseless, unfair treatment of women from the point of view of a cisgendered man."
In an interview with Jon Williams of The Zone 91.3, a radio station out of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, Kerr expanded on this first by referencing the historical trope of rock music misogyny and not wanting to be on the wrong side of that but also saying that he was "frustrated by stories from female friends, of oppression and unfair treatment", and that "maybe it's not our place as men to comment on it, but I haven't seen men say much."
German alternative music site Visions noted the socio-critical theme of the single and shifts from the band's previous work, along with the group's continuing ability to segue seamlessly between indie, pop, and blues rock. Other music sites also commented on the explosive nature, both musically and lyrically, of "Bully for You", with one stating it was 'raucous rock at its best... filled with intense riffs, impassioned lyrics and exciting instrumentation.' The video for "Bully for You" was released simultaneously via the British music website Clash and the American music website Impose. Directed by Kevan Funk, it initially appears to be a violent fight in a boxing ring between two men that then subtly changes to an intimate dance. "We have created this piece from a place of hope empathy and compassion. The song "Bully for You" is essentially a protest song about the lack of gender equality in the world. And a big component of what society teaches boys, growing up, is to reject everything about themselves that is traditionally feminine, which ultimately leads to men seeing women as less than human," Kerr said.
Before wide release, Yangaroo had "Bully for You" as the number one "most active indie" for the week of April 11, 2016—meaning the "most streamed and downloaded singles during the given period on releases not directly promoted to radio by any of the 'major' record companies". "Bully for You" debuted on the Billboard charts at Number 49 on the Canada Rock National Airplay Chart for the week of May 28, 2016, remaining on the chart for thirteen weeks running, with highest chart position at number 42.
On May 10, 2016, JPNSGRLS live-streamed a one-off video event via the Light Organ Records website. This served as a live-shot video for the second single, "Oh My God", and also to announce the release date for the Divorce album. The video showed Kerr, initially in a balaclava, being chased by a police officer through a purpose-built set in the Light Organ headquarters—half-destroying the set in the process—and ending up caught with the band while performing in the studio. The video was later released in regular format via the New Noise Magazine website. The single "Oh My God" went on to hit Spotify Canada's Viral 50 at number ten for the week of June 2, 2016—based on the number of people who shared the track divided by the number who listened to it—across Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Spotify itself. In October 2016, JPNSGRLS debuted the video for the single "Trojan Horse" via the CLRVYNT website. In it, the band is playing in a Stranger Things-style basement to a couple of aliens. Directed by Thomas Affolter, the video captures the filmic obsessions of the group along with the theatre of the absurd suggested by some of the lyrics.
On the week of August 9, 2016, Divorce debuted at #36 on Exclaim! magazine's !Earshot National Top 50 charts—jumping 22 slots the following week to #14 and a further 8 slots the week after that, to #6.
The album stayed on that chart for a total of fourteen weeks, re-entering the Top 20 several times and also hitting the monthly !Earshot Top 200 Charts at #16 for August 2016, #14 for September 2016, and #33 for October 2016. Divorce also charted on the North American College and Community Chart, debuting at #21 the week of August 16, 2016, hitting its highest spot the following week at #10 and staying on that chart for a total of ten weeks.