Some of my Favourite Canadian 90's Albums

[jkokura]

I have three that I want to bring up as some of my favourites. This isn't exhaustive, just what I was reminded of through my iPhone's genius playlist during my flight just now. I'll be connecting in an hour and a half or so, so I thought I'd bless you with some Canadian knowledge and make you intrigued! These are all albums I fully recommend buying, not just seeing if you could listen to pieces. Get them.

1. The Watchmen "Silent Radar" - With their radio hit Stereo, I bought this album and was completely surprised as a teenager. The rest of the album is nothing like that track, which is stellar. I cast the album aside for a couple years, and picked it up (thankfully) when I knew more about music. Wow did it surprise me. Thoughtful lyrics, elegant song writing, and hooks all day long. Think of that mix of country and rock, like the Counting Crows, but Canadian. Three piece band, guitarist is known to favour SG's.

2. Big Wreck "In Loving Memory of" - Perhaps one of the best kept Canadian secrets is Ian Thornley. This massive man can wail like Chris Cornell, and play like nobody's business! The combination of his killer wall of guitars and the chugging low end and resounding Bass guitar made this album huge. Hits like The Oaf and Blown Wide Open, along with more thought provoking and melancholy songs like Under the lighthouse made this album instantly exciting as well as gratifying in the long term. For a real treat, listen to the masterful slide solo and finger picking acrobatics in the final track Overemphasizing. Three piece band, Thornley is known for a huge collection of gear, and a fondness for stacking multiple amps, as well as for crazy fuzz sounds.

3. Our Lady Peace "Naveed" - OLP were known for a number of albums, partcularly Clumsy which came after this album, but Naveed is the album that started them off here in Canada and around the world. Interestingly, the album is known for having a distinct syncopated drum tracks, which apparantly may or may not be the band's drummer playing in studio. Full of hit tracks like, Starseed and Naveed, this band carved themselves a distinct role in the world wide music scene based on the foundation of this album, my favourite of theirs.

4. I Mother Earth "Scenery and Fish" - Perhaps one of the most innovative and creative guitarists I know of is the creative genius behind this band, Jagori Tanna. Along with Jag's brother Christian on drums who rivals any drummer I know of in modern rock, and singer Edwin, formed the basis for what is perhaps one of the most intriguing talent to rise in Canada during the 90's. Only producing two albums with Edwin, S&F was the second of those by the way, before hiring a replacement singer after some drama ensued following the tour for this album. Refusing to bow to the pressure of labels, Jag Tanna wrote some of the most epic guitar, drum and percussion songs I've ever heard, with songs like Like a Girl, One more Astronaut, Raspberry and Used to be Alright featuring the spanky strat sounds so obviously inspired by guitarists like Santana and SRV, while managing to be distinctly individual in style and focus. For a huge treat, check out the final track of the album, Earth, Sky and C with a fantastic guitar solo (that at one point makes me think of the them of Megaman). Five piece band with the guitarist being the main creative talent behind the music and having a particular penchant for Strats and a particularly hard to find handbuilt amp.

5. The Tea Party "The Edges of Twilight" - Distinctly eastern in their approach to music, you can hear the influences of Zepplin, the Doors, and Floyd in this band's brand of heavy hitting and darkly beautiful music. Despite having one of the most ridiculously talented groups of musicians in Canada during the early 90's, the band took several albums to really gain momentum, with this album breaking them through to international fame. With songs like Fire in the Head, Sister Awake, and The Bazaar, Jeff Martin's blend of finger picking acoustic songs with HUGE Layered guitars and intricate vocal harmonies across a broad range makes the band's sound instantly reconizable. Blending complex time signatures and a 'morocan roll' format for their melodic take on the rock genre, the band's place in Canadian 90's music is guaranteed to stand out. For a special treat, listen to the almost out of place folk fingerstyle ballad Shadows on the Mountainside. Three piece band with a guitarist known for Les Paul's and a true talent for finger picking seemingly at odds with the Alternative genre.

Hope you've enjoyed. Go find these albums and listen to them all the way through.

Jacob

[irmcdermott]

I've been geeking on Tokyo Police Club's "Champ" album recently. Another great band from the Great White North.

And of course there is William Shatner's album "Has Been".....

[Myramyd]

I was really big into Tea Party back in the '90's. They lost me with all the Electronica later on but their first two albums were awesome. Edges was for sure their masterpiece.

J

[Haberdasher]

I liked Thornley's first solo album, but was a bit let down by the 2nd.  I always knew he came from Big Wreck but I've never had an occasion to listen to any of their stuff.  BTW, I agree he sounds a lot like Cornell, and in a good way.
Thanks for all the recommendations, I may check some of it out.

[snz728]

I agree with that list and they are good live bands too.  I also
enjoyed seeing the Headstones from that time.

[sgmezei]

Good list but you missed
Danko Jones
Big Sugar
Matthew Good Band (early stuff, well I liked them)

eh!

[gtr2]

I am very unfamiliar with all those bands Jacob.  I'll have to give them a listen, I'm always on the hunt for new music!  Thanks!

Josh

[Mark_McQ]

I LOVE the Tea Party. Hugely underrated band. I always see them as a modern day Zeppelin. Just don't understand why they never exploded in a mainstream sense, they're phenomenal.

[loves_guitar]

Matthew Good Band (early stuff, well I liked them)

Matt Good frequents my Starbucks. He gets a Venti Pike Place.
BTW, has anyone listened to his new album? I think it just has or will soon be released.

+1 to "Silent Radar" by The Watchman. AWESOME album!

Another 90s Canada band I love is The Odds (from Chiliwack, BC!) "Eat My Brain" and "Someone Who's Cool" are two of my favourites from them.

/j

[jkokura]

Good list but you missed
Danko Jones
Big Sugar
Matthew Good Band (early stuff, well I liked them)

eh!

Sure, there are tonnes of great bands from Canada, and definitely some great ones from the 90's. I didn't forget about those bands, I just didn't mention them or may not feel the same as you.

I heard some Danko Jones stuff, and even saw him live. I wouldn't equate him with the bands I mentioned before, but his stuff is enjoyable. Neither do I own or really want to own a full album of his. Big Sugar was surely fantastic, but because of their much smaller market success I don't think of them in the same boat as the other bands either.

Matt Good is another category entirely, and I surely could have included them, and in fact I will.

Matthew Good Band "Underdogs" - Matt Good's early incarnation as the Matthew Good Band is perhaps even more successful than his touted recent albums. Known as an eccentric (aren't all great artists), Matt's edgy politically and socially fuelled lyrics resonated with the 90's culture of rebellion against authority, and even as late to the game as Underdogs was, being released in 1998, it still captured the attention and affection of many in North America. Hits like Everything is Automatic and Indistructable still see regular radio play, and are wonderful examples of the hard hitting alternative genre with deep lyrics semi-hidden beneath catchy hooks and moving grooves. Check out Apparitions for an emotionally charged, dynamically medodic experience. Front man Matthew Good provides all the creative talent for this band, and also plays guitars.

I've been geeking on Tokyo Police Club's "Champ" album recently. Another great band from the Great White North.

If you like that, go check out Arcade Fire's first album (if you haven't already, they're huge right now) and Broken Social Scene's stuff as well. I kinda like indy alternative that Canada's been responsible for. Canada has waaaay more talent per capita than most North Americans would realize. Also check out Feist and Metric if you like female singers in the same genre.

Also, if you haven't ever heard of them, check out the east coast band Wintersleep. Their album "Welcome to the Night Sky" is perhaps one of the most thought provoking indy/alternative albums I've heard in a while. Musically fantastic, and thoughtful interesting lyrics. You'll find yourself moved and moving!

And of course there is William Shatner's album "Has Been".....

Don't bring Bill into this. There's no need.

Jacob

[irmcdermott]

If you like that, go check out Arcade Fire's first album (if you haven't already, they're huge right now) and Broken Social Scene's stuff as well. I kinda like indy alternative that Canada's been responsible for. Canada has waaaay more talent per capita than most North Americans would realize. Also check out Feist and Metric if you like female singers in the same genre.

Also, if you haven't ever heard of them, check out the east coast band Wintersleep. Their album "Welcome to the Night Sky" is perhaps one of the most thought provoking indy/alternative albums I've heard in a while. Musically fantastic, and thoughtful interesting lyrics. You'll find yourself moved and moving!

Jacob

I am a fan of all of those bands. Been listening to Arcade Fire since "Funerals" first came out.

A friend of mine just went to see Rush in concert here in Nashville the other day, and man would I have liked to go to that one. Canada does have a bunch of great bands. However, I'm still bitter over the success of Nickelback

[jkokura]

Nickelback is a love/hate thing for some people. People either really, really love them, or love to hate them. I think they've done a good job of releasing the same album a half dozen times about every year and a half and making a ridiculous amount of money by doing that.

What'd you think of Wintersleep? Have you listened to any of the 90's stuff I mentioned? All these other bands you've mentioned are definitely far removed from the goodness of the 90's... Rush before and the indy stuff after.

Jacob

[irmcdermott]

I really don't care too much about Nickelback, it was more of a joke, just like the Shatner reference

I really like Wintersleep. I didn't know about them until the performed on Letterman in January.

I was just up in Toronto in February and one of the local audio techs I was working with was telling me about a lot of the bands you mentioned.

I've always been an OLP fan, ever since I heard "Superman's Dead" on the radio back when it first came out. Not the 90s, but I really like their "Spiritual Machines" record.

So, it looks like I've got some records to buy  

On a different, non-90s, note. I "interviewed" (aka met for coffee) with the Christian band Article One in 2009 after their bass player decided to leave to possibly hop on the road with them. I think they are out of London, Ontario. Would have been cool, but they didn't have enough dates lined up for me to be able to pay my bills, so I turned it down before finding out if they were interested in me. But their music isn't bad, and man does their first record have some great bass lines. Would have been fun!

[jtn191]

maybe they're not "cool" but The Barenaked Ladies were a band that got me into music in the first place.

Plus Neil Young is super cool

[jkokura]

Dang. Now I have to go find my copy of "Gordon"

Jacob