They never get play on Top 40 radio, but they may get play on some Toronto stations like The Edge.

Me too. The 'Try Honesty' video used to be played quite a lot over here and I thought they were pretty cool at the time. I think I still have the CD thrown in a box somewhere.

Last.fm listener count: 37,845

The story of Mariana's trench is very similar to that of Hedley. They started off as a third-rate Blink-182/Good Charlotte clone and evolved into an even whinier (Canadian) Top 40 band.

I used to have a soft spot for their single "Shaketramp" due to it's slightly obscene lyrics and catchy chorus, but their recent singles which flood the radio waves feel like a watered down version of that with the annoying-as-f*ck vocals standing out even more. Seems to have made them more Canadian money.

And as with all of the other bands mentioned in this thread, the band's only popularity has been Canadian. Did you know their last album was certified PLATINUM (well, by the CRIA, which only requires sales of 80,000).

I used to like Shake Tramp also :o:



And did you know that the CRTC (basically our equivalent to the FCC) requires that the daily playlist of Canadian radio stations contains 30% Canadian content? That's why so many Canadian bands are popular here only - because they're being played non-stop on the radio.

I was waiting for that one.

EDIT: Christ, I loved Shaketramp in 2006, and now I can't believe what it sounds like (because it's not as pleasant as I recalled).

This thread seems to have created a more inclusive offspring

Yeah I know what you mean! Plus the video is just creepy and weird, and the singer looks so white that I think he might be dead.

OK, starrynight, or rather, Neil Young has an over-the-top whiney voice which is what made me fall in love with his music !

It`s a bit sad when a country feels it has to practise musical protectionism like that, but I`m sure Canada isn`t the only place it happens. If I was a Canadian dj, I`d be filling the quota with old-timers like the Rankins, Jerry Holland, K and A McGarrigle. Does that kind of music get any airtime ?

P.S: I like the way you`ve quoted the bands` listener counts, Alfred. That`s telling it like it is ! :laughing:

I'm sure it does, there's a couple of stations in Toronto that play "oldies" music. I rarely ever listen to them though.

I used to think it was hilarious, and now I just don't.

Yes, I guess you`re right. If you have round-the-clock traditional music, it must get pretty tedious !

I used to like a band from Canada, called Joydrop. I still play some of their songs every now and then

I actually only knew one song by them (until you posted that one):



That was a huge hit here, and then they kind of went nowhere after that.

Yeah, I touched on that a bit in the first post. 30% is quite a huge amount if you think about it. The local rock station around here usually fills that requirement by playing the exact same bands every day: Rush, The Tragically Hip, BTO/The Guess Who, Neil Young, and *shudder* Nickelback. Kind of defeats the whole give-new-Canadian-bands-exposure thing, doesn't it?

Same with the stations in Toronto. Q107 is the worst offender for constantly playing Rush, the Tragically Hip, BTO and the Guess Who. They all fit into their playlist of course, but sometimes it gets boring. And the more contemporary stations seldom play music from newer bands. So much for exposure.

Wintersleep's song 'Oblivion' seemed to have crept its way into the "Alt-Rock" stations within the past year-year and a half. I'm glad to see them finally get some exposure though, while I enjoy it, I always thought it made a poor single and it was released in '07, not even their most recent work.

I'm also pleased to hear bands like Metric and Tegan and Sara getting more airtime.

Nice thread, Alfred. Non of these groups came as a surprise to me, haha. All very deserving.

I quite like this lot:-



sorta like Big Star with actual discernible melodies and hooks and catches

I'm interested to know how well Big Sugar did outside of Canada during their highest point. I know Gordie Johnson went off and formed some kind of Texas band called "Grady" after they broke up, not sure how well that did. Might be another Big Sugar album out this year too, actually.

Haha, the New Pornos definitely don't deserve to be in this thread.

^^but I only know of Canadian bands big outside of Canada

I meant in the sense that they're not horrible.

Well the main point of this thread is to discuss Canadian bands that are only popular here, and I guess that means only us Canadians would know about them :)

Well, people who aren't Canadian can learn about Canadian bands that aren't popular outside Canada by watching Canadian TV shows and movies :)

True, didn't think of that :usehead:

Last.fm listener count: 19,942

I feel a little bad about putting Arkells in this thread, because unlike all of the other bands here, they don't flat-out suck. But they are, in my opinion, pretty mediocre, with a rather ho-hum, laid-back, classic rock-inspired sound and only one really good song.

I saw Arkells open for Alexisonfire during the second night of a small rock festival near where I live. Obviously, I was there for Alexisonfire, but in order to see my favorite Canadian band play, I had to stand through 5 other bands, one of them being Arkells. Let me just say that the organizers of this festival did not do a good job of organizing the schedule. Arkells were the final opening act, and they played right after Moneen's (104,988 listeners) incredibly energetic set. I was definitely not in the mood for an hour of soft, jangly tunes following that.

Again, I don't want to rag on Arkells too much. They're not a bad band, there's no gaping stylistic flaws like the previous four bands, but they leave a lot to be desired. There's a lot of bands out there who do their same general style better, and I don't think the fact that they're young and Canadian should mean that they deserve to be put on a pedestal.

I like Arkells but I suppose they can be a little ho-hum. I've always considered them a bit of a poor man's Constantines. That being said, I thought they put on a surprisingly impressive performance when I saw them play Sonic Boom festival in September.

Don't tell me you're running out of steam, Alfie.

I have infiltrated your country and know all about your Celine Dion.

She's a good singer but I can't stand her music. My mom loves her though. She even bought the Las Vegas documentary thing and the tour video.

Yeah, I'm not saying that they're not good live performers, but I was NOT in the mood for their shtick after Moneen's awesome set. I don't even like Moneen THAT much but they put on one hell of a show.

Don't worry, I've got more bands in mind.

Oh yeah, I don't blame you. Moneen do put on one hell of a show.

Apologies for the absence, been pretty busy lately.


Last.fm listener count: 17,880

While Down With Webster are of a slightly higher quality, they are cut from the same cloth as Stereos: Canadian groups who perform a lousy blend of pop-rock and hip hop. This band was formed in the late 90's by a group of bratty middle-schoolers, and guess what? They still sound like a bunch of bratty middle-schoolers!

As I said before, Down With Webster are of a slightly higher quality than Stereos, but I do express slightly. DWW may not be high on autotune or repetetive, pseudo-gangsta lyrics, but their more PG-13 subject matter and unapologetic white-boy/cracka image is more laughable and cringe-worthy than it is charming.

No, down with Webster don't sing and rap about making friends with some random chick over the summer, but they do try to write sarcastic songs about celebrity culture, songs about drunken partying (because you can never have enough of those!), and rich bitches. For more discerning audiences, this is sure to be a turnoff.

I have a friend who is so obsessed with Down With Webster that it's not even funny anymore.

Haha yeah this song was pretty massive here for a while.

Oh, christ, they're Canadian?

That's the worst news I've heard all day.

Yeah, unfortunately, LOL! They're from Toronto. I actually know somebody who went to high school with one of them for a bit.

If I went to highschool with anybody who made that kind of music, there would have been a shooting.

666 posts! \m/

hahaha...Down with Webster is a lesser quality version of Hollywood Undead.

I like Do Make Say Think (I'm surprised no-one's mentioned them); and, of course, GYBE and Neil Young.

I don't know about Canadian bands that aren't known outside of Canada, obviously.

Charlee
Chilliwack
Crowbar
Five Man Electrical Band
Dillinger
The Hunt
April Wine
A Foot In Coldwater
Harmonium
Maneige
Sloche
Lighthouse
Frank Marino(Mahogany Rush)
Stampeders
Triumph
Warpig
Gordon Lightfoot
Joni Mitchell
Leonard Cohen