Oshawa, ON Based Rock Band My Own Addiction Display Resolve In “Back To You” From Self-Titled Album
When the world is chaotic and your personal life is in shambles too, it can be hard to find the strength to move forward. Yet no matter how difficult life can get, there is always something worth holding on to. Oshawa, ON-based rock band My Own Addiction embodies this resolve in their new single, “Back To You.”
Steady drums from Todd Burrows and bass from Tim Reesor open the song, punctuated by lead guitarist Andrew Losier. By the time the husky vocals of lead singer Alexandra Augustine come in, the song has properly kicked off with lyrics about military propaganda that are cleverly linked to a personal wound in the heart.
“The propaganda brought us out here to win, and the lies are absurd and the chances they look slim,
The armies fought until they no longer could, and the end was approaching, death was understood,
And there’s a bullet now wedged in my heart and I won’t let this wound keep us apart”
Moreover, the song’s chorus links the verses especially well. On the surface, it appears to be about finding your way back to a lover despite “dying” of a bullet wound to the heart. When considered alongside the other verses discussing military propaganda and school shootings, the chorus has a deeper meaning of learning to live on for those you love despite all the violence and strife in the world.
Of the song’s inspirations, Augustine states,
“One thing that wounds me deeply is the loss of innocence. Around the time that I was working on this song, there was a school shooting that happened. I had to get it out on paper, and the story that unfolded was that of someone desperately wanting to get back to those they love and writing a letter to tell them.”
Moreover, the song is one facet of the band’s upcoming self-titled debut album, which features themes of personal vices and addictions that are reflective of someone trying to live life to the fullest. The song’s boldness carries over from the album’s previous track “Cigarette”, which shows a sexier and playful side.
Watch the video for “Back To You” below and learn more about My Own Addiction via our mini-interview.
Care to introduce yourself?
We are My Own Addiction, a mainstream rock and roll band out of Oshawa, Ontario. We’re a four-piece female fronted rock band who just released our self-titled debut album this month! We’ve got Andrew Losier on guitar, Todd Burrows on drums, Tim Reesor on bass and Alexandra Augustine on lead vocals. The guys were all in other bands pre-pandemic (Game of Tones, Carbon, Electric Magma) but we all came together in the fall of 2022 to create My Own Addiction.Â
Tell us about the process of writing and recording “Back To You?”
‘Back To You’ had quite an evolution to it. In fact, right before we went to the studio, it was almost set aside as a song that didn’t really work. The song always started with Todd on the toms (in fact it was called “The Tom” song for a long time before the lyrics came together,) but each verse was longer and we had the chorus repeat twice more, it dragged on. It was sort of a ‘sleeper’ of a song. Then Alexandra came in with the lyrics, and we started to throw bits on the cutting room floor, and the song really came together. Once we had cut it down, it allowed us to slow it down as well, which added more space for the sound and message of the lyrics.Â
When Alexandra had begun writing the lyrics to the song, she had been watching a documentary on war veterans and their discussion on writing letters to their loved ones inspired her to explore the emotion of writing a potential last correspondence to someone you love. Thematically that evolved into what the verses became. The concept of dementia, mental illness, and school shootings became intertwined within that theme – but at the crux of it, the lyrics delve into fighting for love no matter what is in the way.Â
When it came to recording the song, we went to Haggarty Sound Studio and Barry made it so easy to turn this song from a song on the album to our single. He captured the rawness and pacing of the song perfectly.Â
What’s it like being a musician in Oshawa?
Oshawa’s got an incredible music scene. It’s also a tight-knit community – you essentially know everyone by one or two degrees of separation. We also rehearse in an old 1900s school building that was converted into a rehearsal hall and it has musicians rehearsing there every day, so there is an element of musicians congregating together and supporting one another. Being a musician here also allows the ability to extend to other parts of Toronto and the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) so it’s a community that expands and an area that has a lot of opportunity.Â
Who was the first Canadian artist to blow you away?
Tim: Jeff Healey – cause that guy could plaaaaay! The first time I saw him was in the movie Roadhouse with Patrick Swayze. I was really into the blues then,  and that was right up my alley.  Then I kept running into him around town.  Sometimes I would pay to go see him,  other times he would just show up at a local pub and jam with the guys.   No matter what he was playing he was full of soul.  My favourite memory was a time I was dragged to the Eaton Centre against my will. I ended up going to chapters to look at nerd books and saw 10-15 chairs set up in a clearing.  So I stuck around for a couple of minutes and all of a sudden Jeff showed up with his jazz wizards.  He played trumpet that night. It was so amazing.
Andrew: Triumph because that guy could really play and sing amazingly.
Todd: Neil Peart because my 1st concert was Rush when I was 14. The entire band is filled with amazing musicians, but Neil was a spectacle to watch live.Â
Alexandra: It was Mariana’s Trench for me. Their Fix Me Album, originally. Something about their lyrics and music made me feel seen as a teen. I’m also a stickler for storytelling lyrics and metaphors and Josh Ramsay is not only an incredible vocalist, but his lyrics always got me thinking and picturing live scenarios which is something I love to explore as well.Â
You’ve been making music for a while now, what’s one piece of advice you can offer to those starting out?
To those starting out: Stick with it. Stick with what you love. Don’t be afraid to play things that you think others may not like. Don’t be afraid to evolve and grow. Don’t be intimidated by others who you think are better than you. In fact, those musicians are who you can learn from. A lot of people will have opinions and will tell you there is a “right way to do things” but there isn’t really... Do what you want, think outside the box. Music is a subjective art form, and it should speak to you authentically before it can speak to anyone else, so be natural and above all else, enjoy it! It has got to be fun.
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