Toronto punk rebels The Bare Minimum unleash Doomed City — a chaotic, funny, and defiant love-hate ode to their hometown, celebrating DIY culture, community, and creative resistance in a vanishing underground scene.
1. “Doomed City” feels like both a love letter and a middle finger to
Toronto. What pushed you to capture that contradiction in these four tracks?
We wrote a full dystopian concept album about Toronto, but it felt bleak, so we
added songs celebrating the hidden joy of the city's underground culture.
2. The EP opens with “Weirdos in Basements,” which perfectly sums up the DIY
spirit. How important is that underground community to your identity as a band?
The DIY scene isn’t a stepping stone, it’s the destination. This EP made me
realize I don’t care about “making it” anymore, I just want to be a small band
that refuses to go away.
3. “Fare Inspector” is a sharp critique of Toronto’s transit system and the
way it targets everyday people. Was there a specific incident that inspired it?
A friend who was an immigrant with limited English and on welfare got slapped
with a $400 fine for simply being confused by the fare machine. It showed me
how broken and predatory the system is.
4. The title track, “Doomed City,” really captures urban alienation and
burnout. How do you balance frustration with the humor and energy that run
through your songs?
Humor is our Trojan horse for ugly truths. Frustration goes down easier with a
laugh, and sometimes it's the only way to sneak past the censors.
5. “We Can’t Bring Drums” turns touring chaos into comedy. What’s the most
absurd or disastrous tour moment you’ve ever had?
Once we ended up playing a random laundromat, good show.
6. Your sound blends skate-punk roots with a distinctly Toronto edge. How do
you see your music evolving within that local scene?
I sometimes worry if there will even be a local scene left with rents rising
and venues closing. For now, I just want to support younger bands and treat
them better than I was treated when I was starting out.
7. You’ve been active in promoting DIY culture — from documentaries to
social media interviews. What drives that commitment to community beyond the
music itself?
People need places to be creative that aren't mediated by commerce or
controlled by algorithms. That space is shrinking fast, it's not going to save
itself.
8. Punk has always thrived on social critique. What issues in Toronto (or
beyond) do you feel most urgently need that punk spotlight right now?
Obviously there's a lot worth screaming about today, but what punk does best is
remind people they can actually do something. Start a band, organize a show,
write something; just create without permission. Third spaces are vanishing
partly because of rent hikes, but also because we've been trained to scroll
instead of build. 'Doomed City' is about living in a city of 7 million and
feeling completely isolated because the only way you interact with it is
through consumption.
9. The EP feels fast, chaotic, but also deeply intentional. How do you
approach writing and recording songs that sound raw without losing their punch
or message?
I've stopped chasing perfection. Some of my favorite albums were recorded in a
day and full of mistakes. When writing, the first idea is usually the best. I
cap myself at two or three tweaks max, then we commit.
10. You’ve played both basement shows and big festivals like Pouzza Fest and
NXNE. How does your performance energy shift between those two extremes?
It doesn’t change at all, I’ll play my heart out even to an empty room.
11. “Doomed City” feels like it was made to be played live — sweaty, loud,
unfiltered. How do audiences usually react to these new songs?
The reaction’s great! Playing DIY shows means we’re not expected to play the
“hits,” so we can push the songs into chaos and subvert the spectacle of
performance.
12. Finally, what’s next for The Bare Minimum? Any upcoming shows,
collaborations, or releases on the horizon after Doomed City?
We have a show on Nov 8 with Liver, Peopleviolence, and Cosmic Drifter. After
that, just keep cranking out albums into beautiful obscurity.
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