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Cross Canada virtual Olympic roadtrip


MrMagpie

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Hello fellow Coldplayers.

As you all know I'm sure, the Olympics are going on in Canada. So I figured this would be a great time to show off and showcase of of the best bands in Canada. I'll be doing this by conducting a province by province snapshot featuring 2 bands from each Canadian province.

 

So here is a link. Let me know what you think of these artists. Some you may have heard of, others may be new. I hope you enjoy what you read and hear!

Comments and feedback welcome.

 

Stop #1 - Newfoundland

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Newfoundland

 

Full post with pics and links: http://wp.me/pFTey-7d

 

Newfoundland & Labrador

 

I was born in St. John’s Newfoundland. Even though I only lived their the first four weeks of my life, it has held a special place in my heart. When I was a kid, the Celtic rock group Rawlins Cross was my favourite band and inspired me to learn how to play the bagpipes. Later on in life Great Big Sea was a favourite of mine, their blend of original songs and traditional sea shanties. In recent years a few other Newfoundland artists have provided excellent songs that get regular or more than regular plays on my iTunes.

 

Band #1 Hey Rosetta! – St. John’s, NL

This six piece orchestral pop bands provides a big sound through passionate delivery of carefully crafted sounds and cleverly written lyrics. The violins and cellos combined with electric guitars, bass, and percussion give Hey Rosetta! a distinct sound that is hard not to instantly fall in love with. While their studio work is excellent, it is their live show that sets them apart from other artists. Each show they bring energy and excitement to each song they play.

 

Songs to check out: Red Song, I’ve Been Asleep for a Long, Long Time, Yes! Yes! Yes!, There’s An Arc

 

Band #2 The Mountains & The Trees – St. John’s, NL

Vocals, guitar, banjo, harmonica, drums, mandolin, you name it, and you’ll hear Jon Janes playing it. The folk rock singer/songwriter garnered quite a bit of attention with his EP Hop, Skip, & A Jump last year and has been busy at work on his new album set to come out sometime this year. He is constantly coming up with new ideas and pushing himself. He keeps his fans up to date with a monthly update as well as consistent twitter updates. An accessible up and coming musician that you can’t help but root for.

 

Songs to check out: Up & Down, Hospital View

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Vids and pics here: http://thebrokenspeaker.wordpress.com/2010/02/17/olympic-roadtrip-nova-scotia/

 

For the next few weeks the eyes of the world will be on Canada as Vancouver, British Columbia plays host to the Winter Olympics. So what better time to take a virtual road trip across this gigantic country and make pit stops in each province to check out some bands that you may or may not have listened to before. Every day (or second day) we’ll look at two bands from each of the 10 Canadian provinces. Buckle in, enjoy the ride, and help support the talented Canadian music scene!

 

Nova Scotia

It was Nova Scotia day today at the Olympics. Did anybody notice? I’m sure some Nova Scotian politicians were there watching it with their tax payer purchased iPods and generators. Politics aside, Nova Scotia is the province that I’ve grown up in, and naturally the music scene I am most familiar with. In my childhood I was a big fan of the Rankin Family and was always intrigued by the mystique of both Anne Murray and Rita McNeil. One of my first big concerts featured Nova Scotian acts Matt Mays, the Trews, and Joel Plaskett and really ignited my love of live Nova Scotian music. There is a lot of talent wrapped up in this small province and I couldn’t ask for more in terms of a place to live with a great music scene.

 

Band #1 – Rich Aucoin – Halifax, NS

Rich Aucoin is an artist always pushing the creative envelope. Well he is always pushing a lot of things. For example he rode across Canada on his bicycle to raise money for The Childhood Cancer Foundation. His debut Personal Publication EP is the ultimate do-it-yourself album featuring Rich playing a plethora of instruments. The album can also be synced with the original Dr. Seuss cartoon for How The Grinch Stole Christmas. His tunes consist of the perfect mixture of vocals, instruments, synth, and beats creating an irresistible mix that is bound to make your bones move. Keep your ears and eyes open for his next EP Public Publication featuring over 500 different artists sometime in 2010.

 

Songs to check out: Brain Wilson is A.L.I.V.E., 10,342 Cuts for the US, Behold the Lamb!, Empire State of It

 

Listen to Rich’s myspace here

 

 

 

Band #2 – Wintersleep – Halifax, NS

Wintersleep is one of those indie rock bands who consistently put out excellent music and makes you question why everybody doesn’t like them more than they do. There music is a little rockier and darker than other bands out of the province. Paul Murphy’s lyrics are intelligent and intriguing, painting unforgettable images in the listeners mind. While they can write the catchy three minute songs such as Weighty Ghost which garners airplay and universal love, they are also capable of righting five plus minute songs such as Danse Macabre which melts into calculated instrumental chaos.

 

Songs to check out: Laser Beams, Weighty Ghost, Jaws of Life, Danse Macabre

 

Listen to them here

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Vids and pics in the full post here: http://thebrokenspeaker.wordpress.com/2010/02/19/468/

 

For the next few weeks the eyes of the world will be on Canada as Vancouver, British Columbia plays host to the Winter Olympics. So what better time to take a virtual road trip across this gigantic country and make pit stops in each province to check out some bands that you may or may not have listened to before. Every day (or second day) we’ll look at two bands from each of the 10 Canadian provinces. Buckle in, enjoy the ride, and help support the talented Canadian music scene!

 

Prince Edward Island

P.E.I. is Canada’s smallest province, but this hasn’t prevented it from producing some fantastic artists lately. I’m not overly familiar with many bands from the Island although over the past year I have seen Boxer the Horse, Two Hours Traffic, and Catherine MacLellan. Unfortunately all of my childhood memories associated with PEI involve Stompin’ Tom Connor’s Bud the Spud or a tape by somebody we knew called “Riding on the Ferry to PEI”

 

Band #1 – Two Hours Traffic – Charlottetown, PEI

This indie rock band has a knack for writing songs with catchy hooks, memorable choruses, and fantastic harmonies. Having Joel Plaskett lend a hand in producing their 2007 album Little Jabs certainly helped the band hone their craft and gain attention by the Canadian music scene. A Polaris Prize nomination for this album was proof of this. Their most recent album Territory has also been met with positive reviews. So if you’re looking for some easy to listen to, fun, indie rock, Two Hours Traffic is the band for you.

 

Songs to check out: Noisemaker, Nighthawks, Jezebel

 

 

 

Band #2 – Catherine MacLellan – Summerside, PEI

Catherine MacLellan is everything you would ever want in a female folk singer songwriter. She draws on sounds, themes, and ideas of Canadian folk greats Joni Mitchell and Neil Young while bringing her own fresh elements to songs. At this years In the Dead of Winter music festival, she showed the introspective aspects of her songwriting as almost every song told a personal story or was about people in her life. This all come together to provide a warm sound that can be a nice break from cold, generic, and impersonal music.

 

Songs to check out: Singing Sands, Set This Heart on Fire, Too Easy

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pics at the full post here: http://thebrokenspeaker.wordpress.com/2010/02/19/olympic-roadtrip-new-brunswick/

 

New Brunswick

I feel a tad guilty writing this article as I have embarrassingly little knowledge of artists from New Brunswick even though they are a neighbouring province. That is not to say music is dead in New Brunswick. Two of Atlantic Canada’s top music festivals take place there; the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival every September in Fredericton and the marquee indie Sappy Fest in Sackville every summer. This spotlight features arguably the most important person in New Brunswick’s music scene and an up and coming band popular in the bar scene. Unfortunately I’m not overly familiar with either artists discography so I have not included the usual “songs to check out” feature.

 

Band #1 – Julie Doiron – Moncton, NB

Julie Doiron is perhaps the best known and most recognizable current New Brunswick artist. She has/is on a few indie heavyweight labels such as Sub Pop (Fleet Foxes, the Shins, the Postal Service) and Jagjaguwar (Bon Iver, Dinosaur Jr). She first started with rock band Eric’s Trip in the early 1990s but has been performing as Julie Doiron since their break up in the mid 90s. Her use of electric guitar keeps things interesting and sets her apart from acoustic based singer songwriters.

 

Band #2 – Weak Size Fish – Fredericton, NB

I’ll start off by saying I have not listened to much by these guys, but I have a friend who has seen them a bunch and really enjoys their tunes. They released their first album Off We Go in March 2009. They also were finalists for CBC’s Galaxie Rising Star Competition and played a number of festivals and ECMA showcases last year. The six piece band provides a high energy fusion of reggae and rock.

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