i recently made a mix CD of the main songs i'd like to use for the show. i'm not going to go into how i'm tragically stuck in the 20th century, but the experience reminded me of how little i address the show's music here.
that being said, here are some of the featured artists on soundtrack;
Japandroids:i heard about this amazing garage-sounding rock band through the Polaris Music Award, of which they recently made the [short] long-list of nominations. this group definitely delivers some solid rock on-demand. its fun-energetic rythm is what makes it perfect for the show.
The Stills:if you haven't heard of the stills yet - its not too late. i saw these guys open for metric in 2005 and they haven't lost an ounce of the energy they had then. one of the problems i've had in selecting the soundtrack is not picking too many songs from one band, and the stills were definitely one of those bands i had a difficult time picking only one.
Protest the Hero:one of the hardest rocking, riffing and energetic bands i've ever heard. the talent that goes into some of their riffs are comparable with those that made iron maiden famous. adding fresh flame to old metal, these guys are single-handidly restoring credibility to Canadian metal.
Matthew Good Band:who doesn't rememeber a half-dozen awesome tracks off the top of their head from this amazing band? though he ventured into a solo-career that i didn't follow as much, the original band put out some classic modern-rock songs that mesh perfectly with what i'm trying to accomplish with the show.
Metric:a great band whose past is overshadowed only by their bright future. fantasies (2009) was metric's strike back, demonstrating they are far from being done producing hot, original music with melodic ferocity. one of the most difficult selections for the soundtrack was the first season's big fight between Derek and Danielle. i had spent weeks and months searching for the perfect song; and it didn't exist until this album came out. a must-must listen.
Joel Plaskett:a great, great addition to Canada's reputation as a producer of top-notch folk music. Plaskett manages to be Canada's answer to Wilco, except without all the depressing band in-fighting (i hope). Plaskett's got a range of musical talents which he displays in a mixed, but otherwise impressive discography.
Wintersleep:
meshing modern emo with some 90s grunge these guys manage to pull off a sound not many can. where some bands would try fill their bridges with uninspired power-chords, Wintersleep never misses an opportunity to insert a well-timed riff behind their vocalist's talented wails.
The Constantines:an underground Canadian legend for years, these guys provided phomenonal live-performances that would have fooled you into thinking these were platinum-selling professionals. glad to see they're getting some radio attention these days. MUCH DESERVED.
.Moneen.:while Alexisonfire and Billy Talent [deservedly] got a lot of attention in the resurgence of Canadian punk-rock in the early 2000s, it was .Moneen. that i felt was the greatest contributing artist to the genre. pushing the limits of their instruments, the band put out at least two albums that were contenders for album of the year. amazing presence live.
Controller.Controller:some call it disco-revival; i call it electric-rock. either way, controller.controller was one producing some of the raddest tunes at the time of their breakout album, History (2004). C.C. manages to project that club atmosphere without sacrificing the beat and replayability.
Tegan and Sara:i'll be honest - some of Tegan and Sara's songs were the inspiration for the whole show. with great energy, beat and melody, this duo puts out super-charged guitar-riffs accompanied by two of the prettiest voices in the industry today.
Arkells:the Arkells are one of those new great everyman bands that is just so easy to put-on and enjoy. they are putting out some great tunes that reflect traditional song-writing but don't feel old in any way. along with Japandroids, these guys manage to have a polished sound yet have that garage feel. definitely a great up-and-coming group.
Death From Above 1979:how much can you really say about this great band? though they've tragically parted ways, this duo put out some of the best industrial rock this millenium. mixing rugged bass riffs with epic drum-beats earned these guys much-deserved international recognition.
Holy Fuck:controversial name aside, every bit of attention these guys get is worth it. though there are many great songs on this off-beat electronica album, Lovely Allen is one of the very few tunes that have appealed to me as a theme song for the show and thus i thought i would mention this talented band.
i think that's all i have to say about music for now. this is by no means the entire artist-listing for the unofficial soundtrack of the show - just a few bands that if you weren't already enjoying, i thought you might.
one of things i realized going through my itunes to create a soundtrack for the show is that there is a tremendous amount of GREAT Canadian music out there waiting to be discovered. word-of-mouth is one of the best ways to advertise a product and so i hope that both this blog, and in the future, soundtrack provide coverage and accessibility for the great music this country's going to be producing.
as i said earlier, work is progressing on episode IV, so expect some updates on that later next week. hope you're all having a great week and are looking forward to the weekend as much as i am!
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