Tebby & The Heavy Bring the Heat on Their Debut Album, Heavy Afternoon

Tebby & The Heavy at Purple City. Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder).

If you’ve seen Tebby & The Heavy live, the band needs no introduction. Their set is one that leaves a mark. The Edmonton band’s live performances are soaked in reverb, equal parts haze and heat, and you’ll never forget the absolute power coming from their guitars. Their sound blends elements of shoegaze, surf-rock and psychedelia into something both nostalgic and completely their own. With their debut album Heavy Afternoon arriving on August 15, and an appearance at Purple City Music Festival just around the corner, we caught up with front-person Tebby to talk about the recording process for their debut album, their most memorable shows and the community within Edmonton’s music scene.

REVERIE: How did Tebby & The Heavy first come together? What’s the origin story behind the name and the band?

Tebby: We crossed paths in our music scene years ago. When we realized we were all into fuzz on bass guitar (a faux-pas to some) the stars aligned. The name follows that old-school format of a front person and the rest of the band being a personality or characters from a little universe like Buddy Holly & The Crickets. We wanted something that felt playful, but also reflected what we’re trying to do: blend older influences with newer sounds.

Heavy Afternoon is out on August 15.

REVERIE: What was the recording process like for the new album, Heavy Afternoon?

Tebby: It was a bit of a Frankenstein process. We stitched together parts from bedroom recordings, floor rehearsals, and layered guitars and vocals. I usually demo most of the songs on my own before bringing them into rehearsal, so when we hit the studio, we already had a blueprint. From there, we focused on building up the layers, choosing tones, and basically rebuilding everything in HD.

REVERIE: Your sound combines shoegaze with some surf-rock elements. What artists shaped that mix for you?

Tebby: We let our influences run wild and just play whatever sound feels right. On this album, I think you can hear a lot of shoegaze and neo-psych, with touches of grunge, surf, and post-punk. While writing these songs, I was listening to bands that lean into heavy layers of fuzz, delay, and reverb like Ringo Deathstarr and The Stargazer Lilies, but also some instrumental surf stuff like Satan’s Pilgrims.

REVERIE: The lyrics on the new album focus a lot on your disillusionment with the current state of the world. When you're writing lyrics, what are you drawing on?

Tebby: I usually start with the emotional tone of a song and let that guide the lyrics. Some are personal, some observational, and sometimes I write from perspectives I don’t agree with (especially when I’m trying to explore power dynamics or contradictions).

“Just Sayin’” is about how political systems avoid accountability. The endless finger-pointing while nothing actually changes. The song loops in a way that reflects that. “In My Shadow” is a satire of fragile masculinity. The lyrics are exaggerated on purpose to show how ridiculous and gross that mindset is. By the end, it’s meant to feel uncomfortable, like, ew, who actually thinks like this? “Soothe” looks at how mental health is often treated like a checklist. The first half is someone trying to self-soothe in the “normal” ways, and the second half the song (and the person) unravels. The acceptance of the chaos becomes the actual release.

Tebby & The Heavy at Bob-Sled. Photo credit: Daman Singh (@damaann_).

REVERIE: We're excited to see you again at Purple City in September! Are there any bands you're looking forward to finally seeing live? Any favourite fellow Edmonton artists you'd like to shout out? 

Tebby: We’re stoked to be invited back! We haven’t seen Wand or the Mystery Lights! I’ve had Purgatory by Mystery Lights on repeat for months, so getting to play with them at Palomino Smokehouse on September 7—right after our Purple City set—is wild.

As for local faves playing the fest, absolutely. Edmonton’s scene is stacked! Bad Ham are a fierce punk band that we’re playing with at our album release party on August 22 at The Aviary. Verttigo are a super cool dream-pop project and old friends of ours. Dual Nature is our drummer Dave’s other post-punk band, and Hydracat is a stoner-rock band that always puts on an exciting live performance. Honestly, the list goes on. We’re lucky to have a community like this and a festival like Purple City that champions it.

REVERIE: You've also played with headliners L.A. Witch before. What was that show like? 

Tebby: It’s one of our favourite shows we’ve played. It was also one of the first major events at Dive Bar after they renovated it into a live music space. Dive Bar literally built the stage for that festival (Cherry Cult Fest)! Personally, I’m a huge L.A. Witch fan. I’ve got all their records, and I’ve been especially into the post-punk direction on their new album DOGGOD. They have such a dark, effortlessly cool intensity. Sharing a bill with them in that room was a very special moment to me.

REVERIE: Do you have a most memorable or most chaotic live show that you’ve played so far?

Tebby: One of the most memorable was playing Swamp Fest in Regina last summer. They literally drive you to an island by boat, and their mascot is a swamp creature named TAB, which stands for Toxic Amoeba Blob. The vibes were phenomenal, and we had the best time. We’re stoked that we’ve got dates booked for Regina and Saskatoon coming up. It will be so nice to see everyone again!

REVERIE: If Tebby & The Heavy were soundtracking a film, what kind of movie would it be? And who’s directing it?

Tebby: Something weird, queer, with a lot of shoegaze — probably a film directed by Gregg Araki.

Tebby & The Heavy will play Purple City Music Festival in Edmonton, opening for L.A. Witch on Friday, September 5 and are playing The Palomino in Calgary with The Mystery Lights and Witch Victim on Sunday, September 7.