They built a little fort around the piano, a little fort made of sofa cushions, pillows, a bookshelf, and a door.

It was more than child’s play; it was a strategic move.

Red Shag Carpet wanted a clean acoustic piano sound, and they were at war with their own microphones.

So they walled one up inside the back of the instrument, to keep it safe and clean.

The plan worked.

On the band’s sophomore effort, Lift and Drop, every instrument got the "fort" treatment (well, okay, maybe not literally), allowing for plenty of breathing room and giving the vocals as much space as necessary.

Lift and Drop shows a band that has learned a lot in the years following the release of their self-titled debut album. The band is now more openly aware of how much influence bands like Wilco, Ben Folds, and Gomez have played on their sonic structures.

As such, they are not afraid to admit to the direction in which they’re headed– a spellbinding song like "Ground," which mimics some of Wilco’s deconstructive pop sensibilities, makes it even more obvious.

"It’s kind of hypnotizing because it’s so simple," explains drummer Allan Pickard, sipping a steaming cup of coffee as he’s comfortably slouched in a booth at a downtown diner. He leans forward and rests his coffee on the table, brushing aside empty creamer cups with his free hand. "We were playing this take where, at the end, the shit hits the fan, the wheels fall off, and the whole song goes kinda crazy..."

"And, of course, you can’t plan how it’s going to fall apart because it would sound so contrived," finishes bassist Daniel Yarmon. "So we took about 50 takes trying to get a natural-sounding destruction at the end."

On one specific take–one the band was sure hadn’t cut it–you can hear them arguing about how it’s not working, each member taking a turn at giving it a verbal shrug.

If it hadn’t been for producer Nik Kozub, that take–which is the one heard on the record–would’ve been trashed. Kozub knew better.

Yarmon, Pickard, pianist Matti Darrah, and guitarist Ted Ani are still learning about the business of their craft, something they had no clue about when they first started out in 2003.

At the time, all they knew was they wanted to start a band and tour–they even bought their van before they had a single song in the can, and it sat waiting in the parking lot until Red Shag Carpet had a record to promote.

"We did our first album without having done any touring," says Yarmon, seemingly unconcerned by his band’s tendency to do things backwards. "We didn’t know anything about the music business–we learned more and more about the kind of songs we wanted to write and the kind of album we really wanted to make as we were touring."

Over the span of one year, Red Shag Carpet ended up playing 120 shows all across the country, gathering fans the old-fashioned way. With little to no material to play, the band often had to stretch songs into jams in order to fulfill their live obligations–a technique they were prompt to abandon when it came to recording Lift and Drop.

"Every band probably goes through this, but I think [now] ‘less is more,’" says Yarmon. "We do this live too, now. It gives a room for–what is probably the most important thing–the melody and the vocals."

With Kozub as co-producer, Red Shag Carpet’s quadruple vocal mix (all of them sing) and sinuous pop rock became more effective, stripped of artifice, and straight to the point.

The band is still looking to get a deal with a label or a distributor, and their upcoming cross-Canada tour will be filled with high hopes and expectations. Lift and Drop certainly proves the band to be ready for the challenges ahead, even if they’ll probably tackle them unlike anyone else.

"I don’t think we have any pretensions that, you know, ‘we’re never going to be better than this,’ exclaims Pickard, grinning as he leans back into the booth. "I think we all fully understand this is just another stepping stone."