Nathan Wiley remembers Vancouver’s 1990s needles and goons on The City Destroyed Me

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 24, 2007

By Steve Newton

Nathan Wiley was 20 years old the first time he moved away from his home in Summerside, P.E.I., setting his sights on Vancouver, where he stayed for eight months. Now, 10 years later, that visit has inspired the title track of his new CD, The City Destroyed Me.

“Too many dents in the armour,” sings Wiley as the sombre tune unfolds, “Too many eyes in the park/Too many needles in the daytime/Too many goons after dark.” Vancouver’s tourism board needn’t fret too much, though, because Wiley’s original impression of Vancouver wasn’t as harsh as the title suggests.

“It was just an overwhelming experience,” he explains from a tour stop in Toronto, “just a lot to take in. And that’s basically what that song is about to me–it’s about the feeling of being swallowed up by a city.”

The music on Wiley’s latest disc isn’t as immediately accessible as the melodic pop-rock of his previous releases–2002’s Bottom Dollar and 2004’s High Low–and the subject matter is murkier, too.

“It’s the kinda record that you have to spend a little more time with,” he says, pointing out that the leadoff track, “One of the Worst Ones”, was written “from the point of view of somebody trying to drag you down”.

Wiley found support for his challenging material in Steve Berlin, who–as well as playing saxophone and keyboards in Los Lobos–has produced such diverse acts as the Tragically Hip, Faith No More, and Michelle Shocked. Wiley had been impressed by the aural stamp Berlin put on the Tragically Hip’s Phantom Power CD, but would learn that the producer’s personality and work ethic were as important as his technical skills.

“He really put me at ease,” Wiley notes, “and he lived and breathed this record the whole time we worked on it.”

A third set of ears became involved in shaping The City Destroyed Me when local mixing ace Mike Fraser–best known for his work with multiplatinum earbusters Black Sabbath, AC/DC, and Metallica–took over down at Bryan Adams’s Warehouse Studio in Gastown.

“When he would get the songs close [to finished], he’d call us in,” Wiley explains, “and he just about nailed it every time on his own. He brought things out in those tracks that I didn’t even know were there.”

The next time he visits the city that swallowed him whole a decade ago, Wiley–who plays the Media Club on Friday (October 26)–won’t be put off by the proliferation of needles and goons ­.

“I love Vancouver,” he stresses.