REMY SHAND

Origin: Winnipeg, MB
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: Remy Shand's Take A Message was unlike any other song on the radio when it was released back in 2002. It was a huge breath of fresh air. He sold a lot of records, won a Juno, received a Grammy nomination, then vanished. Oh and he married one of the singers from that lame Sugar Jones pop group. Is he still making music? No one seems to know. It's a shame; he really had something great going on with his debut album The Way I Feel, and I think that a lot of people saw longevity in him.

JUST FOR LAUGHS GAGS

Origin: Montreal, QC
Cherchez La Moose: Just For Laughs Gags is one of the greatest Canadian TV shows of all time. Every single episode is hilarious. I always watch this show on Air Canada flights, and holding in my laughter is excruciating as I try to avoid waking the other passengers. When I first moved to Montreal, I secretly hoped that I'd stumble into a prank on this show - but of course, it only happens to the people who least expect it. These guys have pulled off so many clever pranks that it was hard to choose just one for Moose Tracks, but this waterpark clip is way too awesome not to post. 

EMMA MCKENNA

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Although it's just a prediction, I can see artists like Emma McKenna finding success in the next few years. We are going to tire of larger-than-life, style over substance pop divas and get into edgy, raw and opinionated female rock singers. McKenna is off to a good start; her debut LP Run With It was released earlier this year on Labrys Recordings, and the press is starting to show interest. Her music reminds me a bit of early PJ Harvey. She used to play in a riot grrrl band named Galaxy with friend Katie Stelmanis, who I also recommend you check out. 

JAPANDROIDS

Origin: Vancouver, BC
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: I found these guys on MySpace back in 2008. Their page was averaging about 4 hits a day. Their blog posts sounded a little disgruntled - it kind of seemed like they were going to break up soon. I thought to myself 'man, I hate this industry. So many good bands like this never get the credit they deserve and end up throwing in the towel.' SURPRISE! They blew up a year later. Glowing reviews in Pitchfork, Spin, and The New York Times. Huge online fanbase. Successful tours as headliners. They even had Montreal hipsters jumping around and shouting out the lyrics when I saw them live. Check out their album Post-Nothing, it's a winner.

STEREOS

Origin: Edmonton, AB
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: I have back hair. In other news, Stereos are still topping the Canadian charts and melting 11 year old girls' hearts with their brand of spineless too-bubblegum-for-Disney pop anthems. This video is for their artistic tour de force, Throw Ya Hands Up. Good Charlotte was just starting to fade from our memories....and then Stereos came along, ripped off their poser punk fashion, wrote some even more vapid songs, found a singer that looks exactly like Miley Cyrus' brother from Metro Station, and started to dominate the sharts. Oops, charts. I'm sure these guys would argue that they're "just in it to have fun and make people smile" or something. I don't buy it.

I MOTHER EARTH - 'One More Astronaut'

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: As much as I love Used To Be Alright, Levitate, No Coma, and Another Sunday (the list goes on), One More Astronaut is the track that always stands out in my mind as being this band's shining moment. It's catchy and perfectly written, the production still sounds amazing, and the music video is one of their most memorable. I used to be in love with the glittery stars dangling in the background in Edwin's shots; I even tried to replicate them, cutting out cardboard stars and covering them in tinfoil for my bedroom. If you had forgotten about I Mother Earth, make sure to check out 1996's Scenery and Fish, still an awesome album.

LESLIE NIELSEN

Origin: Regina, SK
Cherchez La Moose: I am not going to give you a Wikipedia overview of Leslie Nielsen's life. I am not going to list off his numerous accomplishments and name all of the awesome movies that he starred in. I am simply going to give you this five minute clip from Wrongfully Accused. It proves that this man is a legend. The part at 4:15 when the mischievous train peaks out from behind a rock almost made me die laughing when I was younger. Watching it again today, it still delivers. His brand of humor is timeless; R.I.P. Leslie Nielsen.

SWOLLEN MEMBERS - 'Fuel Injected'

Origin: Vancouver, BC
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: Moose Tracks is having an early Christmas this year. What can we expect in our stockings from BC duo Swollen Members? Lots and lots of cheese, wrapped with a nice bow. These guys have released some great tracks, so I'm not trying to hate. Fuel Injected was a big hit; pretty much everyone in my high school, including myself, liked it. How were we all so blinded by its cheesiness? For starters, Mad Child's lyrics totally suck in this song. I love his cocky tough-guy I'm-so-good pose/head bop at 1:05 after his wack verse. Prevail isn't at his best either. I cringe when he raps "triple ghetto gold, rocked and rolled" at 1:53. Who wrote these lyrics, Vanilla Ice? The fur coats in the video are ridiculous. That girl at 1:58 is ridiculous. Great chorus, though.

RUSTY

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: Rusty's debut LP Fluke was one of the first albums that I ever bought. My favourite song on the album was California, so I was thrilled to find a video of the band performing it live...at Snow Job! I miss you, old MuchMusic. This song's lyrics are insane - it starts out sounding all romantic, until midway through verse one when Ken MacNeil sings "she moved down to LA, she met some dude ok....he sawed her head off with a knife." Wait, what?! Holy. How did I not realize that those were the lyrics when I was a kid? MacNeil's vocals were always the best thing about this band, and he sounds awesome in this video. I tried finding the official video for Misogyny, but it is nowhere to be found. 

CHANTAL KREVIAZUK - 'Surrounded'

Origin: Winnipeg, MB
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: Chantal Kreviazuk had already released God Made Me, Wayne, and Believer from her 1996 debut Under These Rocks and Stones before finally releasing Surrounded. I was expecting it to suffer from fourth-single-itis (i.e. decent, somewhat catchy song not strong enough to be a real single, but the album has been doing well and the label wants to milk it), but Surrounded was the best of the bunch. I love songs that don't show their brightest colors straight out of the gate. I get all excited every time Kreviazuk surprises us with that second chorus at 2:12. This song is about a former lover who took his own life. The lyrics and melody are exceptional, and I think it's the best song that she has written to date.

STRAPPING YOUNG LAD - 'Love?'

Origin: New Westminster, BC
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, spawn of Satan, and former Sears catalog model (jokes!!) Devin Townsend is a force to be reckoned with. Amazing talent. Amazing hair. Love? is one of the best metal songs to ever come out of Canada. It is so heavy, and so damn good, that it could even get the almighty Chuck Norris' panties in a knot. That's right .....I JUST WENT THERE.

THE TEA PARTY - 'Release'

Origin: Windsor, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: I recently re-watched the video for Temptation, the Tea Party's big single off of 1997's Transmission. It has held up well, and I'm still in love with the creepy snake monster in the sewer/dungeon. It still can't compete, however, with the beautiful, haunting Release. This song moves me - it always has. The lighting and cinematography in this video are unbelievable. The Tea Party has always been a little pretentious, but it works here. Release, which frontman Jeff Martin has stated is about women's rights, became a staple for their live shows, and it took my breath away when I saw them at EdgeFest in 1998.

TWO HOURS TRAFFIC

Origin: Charlottetown, PE
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Two Hours Traffic may appear to be a new up-and-coming band, but they've been playing music together for many years. These former University of Charlottetown students have gone on to release three LPs and receive a Polaris nomination for their 2008 album Little Jabs. These guys remind me of a few other young bands, most notably Tokyo Police Club and Yukon Blonde. All three bands understand pop songwriting through and through, and have yet to release any bad material. If you like Nighthawks, check out the videos for the equally great Stuck For The Summer and Noisemaker on YouTube.

ABANDON ALL SHIPS

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: Abandon All Ships found success after being featured on an episode of MuchMusic's disBAND earlier this year. The judges heaped copious amounts of praise upon them for fusing emo, techno, and metal. Sounds like a shit pizza if you ask me. Way to take every annoying played-out trend in contemporary pop music and spew it back out at us. I'd probably be less of a jerk if they seemed like cool guys. During their disBAND episode, the lead screamer had a diva hissy fit in front of established Canadian director Davin Black because the band wanted to incorporate lasers into their undeservingly-good-quality music video, but Black couldn't work it into the lighting. I figure the band was so upset about it that they decided to sabotage the video altogether by doing the lamest dance move imaginable at 0:22 and 0:30. Thanks for the laughs, guys.

V.I.P - 'Michael'

Origin: Barrie, ON
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: There was a lot of subpar pop music coming out of Canada during the late 90's/early 00's. Nothing compares, however, to VIP. That's right - Prozzak? Better than VIP. B4-4? Still better than VIP. The Moffatts? You're also forgiven. VIP might actually be the worst Canadian band of all time. They can barely sing on key, none of them are attractive, their dance moves are as simple and generic as they come, and they clearly have horrible taste, seeing as how they didn't outright reject recording Michael. My jaw almost hit the floor when I rediscovered this flaming turd a few months ago. I could bury it further, but there's no need - this song and its accompanying video are so bad that they practically make fun of themselves.

BLOOD DIAMONDS

Origin: Vancouver, BC
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: I know next to nothing about Blood Diamonds. His MySpace page is only three months old, and it contains very little background information. When Heart started to make its rounds on American hipster blogs last month, I decided to have a listen. I liked the song immediately, but it took me another few listens to realize just how fantastic it is. It sounds exotic, slightly early-90's (yet completely current), and it has major potential in becoming a big-city club anthem. It's my favourite piece of music to come out of Vancouver since I moved here. Hopefully Blood Diamonds is just warming up. 

OLD MAN LUEDECKE

Origin: Chester, NS
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Old Man Luedecke is a star. It might not come through in this music video for I Quit My Job, but if you ever get the chance to see him live, you'll see something special in him. He is an excellent storyteller, and he never misses a note on the banjo. He rightfully earned a Juno award in 2009 for his album Proof of Love, and his rising profile and steadily expanding fanbase will hopefully propel him to even more success in the near future. If you're looking for something genuine and unpretentious, give Old Man Luedecke a spin.

READY OR NOT

Origin: Mississauga, ON
Cherchez La Moose: I am probably going to get some raised eyebrows and "please tell me you're kidding" comments for this one, but I really like Ready or Not. I liked what I saw of it as a kid, but never followed it too closely. In 3rd year University, I had a TV in my room and would watch reruns of it on YTV at 11pm every night. I started watching it just for laughs; puberty drama, cheesy dream sequences, and an early 90's vibe were hard to resist. Oddly enough, I noticed after a while that I wasn't laughing at it anymore - I was laughing with it. Ready or Not is a genuinely funny show, and every character is relatable and three-dimensional. It's one of the most realistic shows I've ever seen. It also deserves kudos for having balls - The Disney Channel actually banned some of the episodes, one in particular involving Amanda fantasizing about her English teacher. Canada rules.

SKYE SWEETNAM - 'Number One'

Origin: Bolton, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: Not much to say about this one, except for that it's hella cheezay. Skye, Avril, and Fefe were a trifecta of Ontarionian brat terrors back in the early mid-2000's. This video for Number One doesn't quite match the dorkiness of Fefe's epic Bye Bye Boyfriend video, but we still get a cartwheel, a butterfly guitar, the number 1 written on Skye's hand, a heinous $2 cheetah skirt, and a backing band attempting - and failing - to add punk cred. Skye seems like she's having lots of fun in this video though, and I like that. The song is kind of catchy, and I like the harmony in the chorus.

TRANSISTOR SOUND AND LIGHTING CO. - 'Always Mayonnaise'

Origin: Winnipeg, MB
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: Craving something so obscure that even the band probably doesn't remember making it? Here it is. Transistor Sound & Lighting Co. made one album; it came out in the 90's, and it was pure indie rock perfection. Then they disappeared. Always Mayonnaise was the album's single, and as you can hear, it was pretty rough around the edges. Lo-fi, fuzzed out guitars - it also doesn't help that the song only plays in one of my headphones. You know what, though? It don't mean a THANG,  especially when a song rips this gloriously. 

ALEXISONFIRE - 'Pulmonary Archery'

Origin: St. Catharines, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: I think it's safe to say that Alexisonfire had some of the best Canadian videos of the 2000's. Oddly enough, their least inventive might actually be my favourite. As a single, Pulmonary Archery is furious, haunting, alternative, and exciting. The video doesn't bother with flashy editing, which is one of the director's wisest decisions; the quick fades between scenes add to the moodiness. The concept of a band playing music in a big house in the evening seems kind of boring, but the hallway shots, dim lighting, and closing scene with the dark blue sky add a lot of drama. The video is a great intro for a great band. What's up with MuchMusic though, misspelling their band name and calling the song Pulmonary Academy?! 

THE POP WINDS

Origin: Montreal, QC
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: It's tough to stand out in a city as artistic as Montreal. What I really like about The Pop Winds is how they stood out to me - not because of some sort of gimmicky band name, street hype, or zany look, but because they write very good music. They understand how to balance experimentation and structure really well. I also love how well they incorporate the saxophone into a lot of their music. It's been since Beck's The New Pollution since I really took that instrument seriously in indie pop. The Pop Winds are currently signed to so-hot-right-now Mile End label Arbutus, so you can expect to start hearing more about these guys soon.

LOVE INC. - 'Homeless'

**NOTE** The video that I had embedded has been taken down. Please enter "Love Inc. - Homeless" into YouTube to watch the official video - it's now the only one available and the embed code has been disabled. Here is the video for "Broken Bones" instead. 

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: Love Inc. found success in 1998 with their first two singles, Broken Bones and You're A Superstar. Those tracks still hold up today - but their third single? It was always terrible. Actual lyric from Homeless: 'time stands still, you mumble something about Jack and Jill, as you fall down the hill in this game of life.' Umm...what? When did they write these lyrics, grade 6?! It's all too obvious that Love Inc. has never been homeless, and that they've never met a homeless person before. The song drags on for what seems like ages, and even the video (which I like a lot more than the song) derails into a cheese factory at 3:52.

OUR LADY PEACE - 'Superman's Dead'

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category:  NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: The Superman's Dead video....Serial Joe....seemingly unrelated. But wait - who's the young guy/girl in this video? Could it be....Ryan Dennis from Serial Joe?!?! Sure is. I was madly in love with Our Lady Peace as an early teen. I used to have dreams about their music videos - it was that level of obsession. These guys put out some amazing stuff in the 90's; Naveed and Clumsy are still classic Canadian rock albums. It all went downhill after guitarist Mike Turner left the band in 2001. Have you heard their last few albums? Didn't think so - keep it that way.

SERIAL JOE

Origin: Newmarket, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: Serial Joe have nothing to be ashamed of. If I landed a record deal when I was 13, I guarantee you I would have put out a nu-metal album as well. This video for Obsession is cheesy but harmless, and it brings back good memories. Frontman Ryan Dennis mostly stuck to rapping about skateboarding on Serial Joe's debut EP Kicked, which was a smart move - at least he wasn't rapping about thug life or hating how cold and heartless the world is (hi Staind! and Linkin Park!..and most other nu-metal). I recently discovered Serial Joe's new band; they're named High Kapitol. A picture on their MySpace shows the band dressed from head to toe in jeans, scowling at the camera....with frosted 90's hair. Shudder.

INFINITE

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: 1 EP. 5 songs. All singles, all made into music videos. This clip for Take A Look even won the MMVA for Best Independent Video. The follow-up? Never happened. Infinite was the truth; with lyrics reminiscent of Nas, he brought storytelling to the next level in the 90's. His former group Ghetto Concept also deserves a shoutout for their quality rhymes - these guys are as real as they come. Infinite showed so much promise on his 360 Degrees EP that I was convinced a full length would follow, especially after it became such a hit. Infinite was a compelling talent with an air of mystery, and his disappearance from the scene only made him more intriguing.

ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK?

Origin: A campfire somewhere in Quebec
Cherchez La Moose: Submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society, I call this story.... The Tale of MY NEVERENDING LOVE FOR THIS SHOW. In fact, Are You Afraid of the Dark? is quite possibly my favourite television show of all time. Everything from its ingenious premise, scary opening credits, endless creativity, and appealing themes made it popular with kids, both on YTV in Canada and Nickelodeon in the US. It's pretty crazy - look up some of the old episodes on YouTube and you'll be surprised at how high the view counts are. Classic shows live forever. Goosebumps is still jealous.

FIVE GAMECHANGERS

Every once in a while, a Canadian band or musician comes along and totally rattles the music scene. Soon after, dozens and dozens of carbon copies start emerging from the woodwork. But they'll never be quite as good....and you know why? Because they're not GAMECHANGERS. Here are 5 Canadian success stories who switched up the game and made a huge impact. Please note that this is not a Top 5 list, and it will not be organized and displayed in any sort of order.

ARCADE FIRE

Year of Game Change: 2004
Origin: Montreal, QC
Genre Facelift: BAROQUE POP
Cherchez La Moose: Does the Arcade Fire really need more praise? No. Are they even the best band to come out of Montreal in the mid 2000's? Who knows. The stars truly aligned for these guys though, and they managed to eclipse fantastic bands such as Stars, Wolf Parade, The Stills, The Unicorns, and The Dears on their path towards world domination. I will say this much though - Arcade Fire are a very special band. 2004's Funeral is still amazing, and their latest release The Suburbs blew me away. If you don't believe the hype surrounding this band, listen to the song No Cars Go from 2007's Neon Bible - it will convert you. In the meantime, here is the video for the excellent Rebellion (Lies).

SLOAN

Year of Game Change: 1992
Origin: Halifax, NS
Genre Facelift: INDIE ROCK
Cherchez La Moose: Sloan might not be as hip these days as they used to be, but they were the band with supreme indie cred back in the 90's. I could have chosen a handful of other awesome bands from Halifax to fill this slot, but none of them wrote a song as flawless as 1994's pop gem from heaven Coax Me. Sloan also founded Murderecords, a label that started small in '92 and went on to release records for bands such as Thrush Hermit, The Inbreds, and The Super Friendz across the decade. 

AVRIL LAVIGNE

Year of Game Change: 2002
Origin: Napanee, ON
Genre Facelift: MAINSTREAM POP ROCK
Cherchez La Moose: "Dude, you wanna crash the mall?" Bahahaha. Avril Lavigne was a huge deal when she released Complicated. I'll admit that it was an ingenious move signing her to a Major. Who wasn't ready for an anti-Britney figure, feisty and rough around the edges? Too bad Avril was a total poser who quickly became the poster child for bratty suburban upper-middle-class punk wannabes. This list is about Game Changers though, and as much as it kills me to say this, she totally changed the game. Avril started a major fashion trend in this video, and her "I'm real and raw and, like, totally non-conformist" attitude spawned tribes of similar female recording artists in the early 2000's.

RASCALZ

Year of Game Change: 1998
Origin: Vancouver, BC
Genre Facelift: HIP HOP
Cherchez La Moose: It doesn't get more classic than Northern Touch. Rascalz are amazing - remember when they bitchslapped the Junos and rejected their award because the Best Rap Recording category never got televised? Talk about a defining moment. Their 1997 album Cash Crop is still one of the best Canadian hip hop albums of all time. Northern Touch posed the question 'how awesome would it be if 3 of the best MC's on the West Coast joined forces with upcoming legendary director Little X, star-in-the-making video model Melyssa Ford, and 3 of the best rappers to ever come out of Toronto?' and answered it with an unwavering 'VERY.'

BILLY TALENT

Year of Game Change: 2003
Origin: Mississauga, ON
Genre Facelift: SCREAMO
Cherchez La Moose: There were a handful of awesome screamo/post-hardcore/alt rock Canadian bands in the 2000's (I'll be covering them soon), but Billy Talent was the first to break through to the mainstream. Despite the fact that they are considered trendy and pop nowadays, they had a really fresh alternative sound back in 2003. Some might say that Billy Talent are "screamo-lite," and I'd agree with that - they're just a rock band with a style that became popular after releasing their debut album. Even the music video for Try Honesty looked different than what I was used to seeing on MuchMusic. It was a look that bands such as Three Days Grace grabbed hold of and butchered to death. Three Days Grace....Volcano Toss....destiny.

SUMMER 2010 TOP 5

Summer 2010 was a personal favourite of mine. Road tripping across the US, moving to Vancouver from Montreal, starting a new school...and starting this blog! There was a lot of great music that came out this summer as well. The following is a Moose Tracks exclusive - the Top 5 Canadian songs from Summer '10.

WOLF PARADE - 'Cloud Shadow on the Mountain'

Origin: Montreal, QC
Position: NUMBER FIVE
Cherchez La Moose: Wolf Parade has been one of my favourite Canadian bands since their 2005 debut, Apologies to the Queen Mary. Their sophomore album was criticized for being inconsistent and for sounding like two EP's had been glued together. I didn't really care - every song was great, and I consider it a pretty underrated album. Expo 86 was released a few months ago, and while songwriters Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner sound more unified and collaborative this time around, the album hasn't blown me away. It still has a ton of great songs though, most notably the opener Cloud Shadow on the Mountain. The song cuts off early in this fan video, which is pretty tragic, but it was the only one posted on YouTube.

CARIBOU - 'Jamelia'

Origin: Dundas, ON
Position: NUMBER FOUR
Cherchez La Moose: Jamelia, a fan favourite from Caribou's exceptional 2010 album Swim, is a bit of a grower. Once it clicks with you though, it really clicks. I would be happy to shower it with accolades, but here are some awesome YouTube comments that are way more entertaining:

iamloganhearmeroar: "The 9 people who disliked this video are living in the non-future!"
goldenpollen: "Jamelia is presenting you the funfair dreams of your childhood in gold."
brainlessBC: "I'm lovin it. McCaribou."
canyousaythat: "Absolute cosmic reassurance."
skizzle555: "...This is what listening to Nina Simone in outer space is like."

I highly recommend listening to album tracks Kaili and Odessa as well.

TOKYO POLICE CLUB - 'Wait Up (Boots of Danger)'

Origin: Newmarket, ON
Position: NUMBER THREE
Cherchez La Moose: Easily one of my favourite bands from the past few years, Tokyo Police Club never fails to put a smile on my face. Their latest album, the appropriately-titled Champ, continues their impressive winning streak. It says a lot that after several EP's and full-lengths, I have yet to hear a bad song from these guys. Although they tend to stick with one songwriting formula (short song, verses and chorus repeat a few times, soaring climax, end song abruptly right when you want it to keep going), it's a formula that is working really well for them. Wait Up (Boots of Danger) is a perfect summer single, and the video's dog pool party is cuteness done right.

RAGHAV - 'So Much'

Origin: Calgary, AB
Position: NUMBER TWO
Cherchez La Moose: When summertime rolls around, it's all about Top 40 for me. It just makes me happy. I discovered Raghav's So Much on MuchMusic back in July, and I didn't know what to think. The song is trendy, the video is pretty standard, and the obligatory Kardinal Offishall guest spot gives me CanCon vibes. The song has a great chord progression though, and Raghav swags up that melody as if he already knew that this was going to be his breakout single.

DRAKE - 'Over'

Origin: Toronto, ON
Position: NUMBER ONE
Cherchez La Moose: The anthem has arrived. Not only is Drake's Over the best single of the summer, but it's one of the best hip hop songs in Canadian history. Oh and don't even get me started on how flawless the eye-catching video is. This is Drake's Big Moment, and everyone knows it. The track's beat is cinematic drama, powerful yet understated enough to let Drake's memorable hook take center stage when it needs to. It's the best track off of his new album, the solid-yet-slightly-overpraised Thank Me Later, and it's what I'll remember of Drake once his hype machine eventually cools off.

RAISED BY SWANS

Origin: London, ON
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: I almost classified these guys as Lost In The Wilderness, but they finally released their long-awaited sophomore album No Ghostless Place earlier this year. Raised By Swans' debut came out at a time when the soft rock fad popularized by bands such as Coldplay, Keane, and Snow Patrol was starting to turn people off. We Were Never Young is a single from the new album, and it thankfully has found an audience because it was also used in the Atom Egoyan film Chloe. The song gives me chills, and it has a timelessness to it that leads me to believe that Raised By Swans have more to offer than their more popular peers.

A Message

I have the next two weeks off from school, and I will be traveling to London, Ontario to hunt some moose with my friends. Kidding! I would never injure a moose. I will be visiting my sister, who is awesome. I might try and blog a bit here and there, but I'll be away from the computer most of the time. Come back to check Moose Tracks at the start of October though, I have lots of exciting things planned!

-Moose X 

MEMORYHOUSE

Origin: Guelph, ON
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: I don't usually hype bands that only have a few songs. I also tend to question a band's authenticity when they just happen to come out with a sound that is very of-the-moment. Such is the case with Guelph duo Memoryhouse - but you know what? I love this song and video, and nothing else matters. I first heard it earlier this year, right before my trip to Niagara Falls. The song played over and over in my head as I stood by the edge, feeling the mist of the crashing waves. Memoryhouse have another great song and video on YouTube; it's called To The Lighthouse, and it's equally as awesome.

KITTENS

Origin: Winnipeg, MB
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: Kittens are brutality. I discovered them last year, purely by luck, while researching a different Canadian 90's band that they used to tour with. There are a lot of heavy bands in Canada - a bunch in Winnipeg, even - but none of them actually intimidate me like these guys do. When the singer mumbles "don't do it again to me, don't do it again...." I have to look over my shoulder to make sure he's not standing there with an axe. Kittens rip through Jack Knife like their best friend's dog's dad's ex-wife's life depended on it. They have a bunch of other awesome videos on YouTube that are just as ferocious and enigmatic.

BRAN VAN 3000 - 'Drinking in LA'

Origin: Montreal, QC
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: "Hi, my name is Stereo Mike!" This song is a total nostalgia trip for me. Drinking in LA was on the radio every 30 minutes or so in the Summer of 1997. These days when I hear it, all I can think of is warm sun, camping, golfing with my Dad, and being prepubescent. Oh, and not knowing most of the lyrics, but singing along anyways, murmuring similar-sounding words instead. Bran Van 3000 played a free outdoor show in downtown Montreal a few Summers ago, and I decided to attend because I wanted to support them. Turned out the entire city wanted to show support as well, because the turnout was one of the craziest things I've ever seen. So yeah, no worries Stereo Mike - no one has forgotten about you.

CUBE

Origin: Better left to the imagination

Cherchez La Moose: Cube shivered me timbers back in high school. I hadn't heard much about it beforehand, but the movie box always seemed to stick out at my local rental store in Nanaimo. Cube proved to me that Canadian cinema can be badass. It's scary, thought-provoking, and extremely resourceful considering how much needed to be created with only a shoestring budget. The Saw franchise borrowed a lot of ideas from this movie - in fact, Saw 2 is almost the exact same movie as Cube (except it's gorier and not nearly as imaginative). Some of the acting in Cube is less than stellar, but overall it's a great premise with an awesome ending. I don't recommend the sequel, but the prequel - Cube Zero - is also worth checking out.

HEDLEY

Origin: Abbotsford, BC
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: A beautiful baby moose was born the same day that Jacob Hoggard was eliminated from Canadian Idol....and that same moose ate a poison berry and died the day that Hoggard's new band signed with a Major label. Obnoxious attention whores bother me, and so does painfully generic songwriting, so it was inevitable that I was going to trash Hedley. Did we really need another craptastic mainstream rock band from BC? It also chafes my balls that these guys' songs are used almost every single week for routines on SYTYCDCanada. Smarten up, CanCon. Oh and nice job plagiarizing Hoobastank on this lame track I embedded.

FEFE DOBSON - 'Bye Bye Boyfriend'

Origin: Scarborough, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: A part of me feels bad for Fefe Dobson. She hit it big with her debut album, recorded an edgier follow-up that never ended up being released, got dropped by her label, then disappeared. She made a comeback earlier this year and generated a hit single with the catchy synth pop track Ghost, but Bye Bye Boyfriend is what I will always remember her for. This is a great comedic video - too bad it's supposed to be serious. My favourite moments are the trying-way-too-hard-to-be-edgy seatbelt strangulation at 2:21, the epic teenage sweet revenge nod at 3:08, and the split second orgasm at 3:23.

YUKON BLONDE

Origin: Kelowna, BC
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Yukon Blonde are having quite the year. They received some great reviews and even a longlist Polaris nomination for their debut album, which they have been touring North America non-stop to promote. Their harmonies bring Fleet Foxes to mind, but these guys throw more of a classic rock feel into the mix. There is an official video for Wind Blows, but it's really boring and it doesn't add anything to the song, so here is a fan video instead.

SIANspheric

Origin: Hamilton, ON
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: I used to hate this song and video when I was younger. Imagine watching it on MuchMusic in broad daylight, in the middle of the afternoon, when you're 13 years old. I rediscovered it two years ago and wanted to have another laugh at it, but not a single chuckle was made. I became obsessed with it, watching it every morning before work in November of 2008. I would eat a bowl of oatmeal, sit in my cold, dimly lit apartment, and feel the warmth of a thousand suns every time the song switched from minor to major at 1:45. SIANspheric still have a MySpace page, and they have some other great songs uploaded to YouTube if you're interested.

DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 - 'Romantic Rights'

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: Death From Above 1979 didn't last long, but they still managed to make a huge impact. Romantic Rights was total sex when it came out in 2004, especially for 80's kids who were starving for a fresh spin on alternative rock. It's too bad these guys hated each other, because they were well on their way to world domination after releasing the now-classic You're A Woman, I'm A Machine LP. Maybe it was strategy - break up when you're at the top, and make your fans worship your one album even more. As much as I wish that I could have seen them live, I'm not going to hold out for a reunion any time soon...(or ever). 

BIF NAKED - 'Lucky'

Origin: Winnipeg, MB
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: Bif Naked has written some great songs over the years. Lucky is not one of them. What's fascinating here is that the song and video both start out promisingly, but get progressively worse at the exact same moments. All is well up until the second verse, where she throws in the cringeworthy 'roses' and 'poses' rhyme. Meanwhile, the camera focuses in on a picture of her and her lover....at a Western saloon? Why is he in the picture? Where are the roses? All of a sudden, really fake-looking birds emerge and Bif does some hammy acting. Later in the song, when she is screeching "tiiiiiiime to let youuuu know" out of tune, her string orchestra reappears looking like drugged out hookers who got their dresses thrown into a paper shredder. The song finally hits its emotional climax at the end, and hearing Bif shout DEEEAARR! DDEEEARRR! is enough to make me want to toss myself into a volcano.   

STACEY TOOKEY

Origin: Edmonton, AB
Cherchez La Moose: So You Think You Can Dance Canada features dancers with as much talent and X factor as any other version in the world. What I find to be lacking in the Canadian series is innovative and memorable choreography. Stacey Tookey is on a mission to change that. She choreographed several of the best routines in Season 1, was scouted for the US version, and is becoming a fan favourite down in the States as well. The routine that I uploaded is from Season 2 of our series, which features the talented Kim Gingras and Emanuel Sandhu from Montreal and Vancouver, respectively. The routine is art in motion - everything from the costumes, dancing, lighting, and music are all perfectly matched and cohesive. The moments where Gingras and Sandhu freeze and a sepia tone lights the stage (meant to represent a dated photograph, I'm assuming) are more profound than anything I've seen to date on our series.

A Message

I have decided that today is a day of new beginnings. Moose Tracks will still focus predominantly on music, but it will also branch out every so often and feature classic television shows, films, and artists who are pushing the boundaries for Canadian art and entertainment. Good day, and thanks for reading.

-Moose X

AZEDA BOOTH

Origin: Calgary, AB
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Back in 2008, glitch pop mavericks Azeda Booth stirred up quite a bit of interest when they released In Flesh Tones, their debut full-length. Even influential tastemaker Pitchfork gave them a well-deserved 7.9 rating. They have been keeping a very low profile as of late, and judging from their Myspace profile, it appears that they have lost a member and are now a duo. Squall is from last year's Tubtrek EP, and it is a good introduction to what the band has to offer. Mark my words, these guys are something special - download their EP for free at azedabooth.net.

JUSTIN BIEBER - 'Baby'

Origin: Stratford, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: There's no way I'm nominating Justin Bieber for Volcano Toss. HE IS ONLY A CHYLD! (Ahem, sorry - I invent new ways of spelling words when I get worked up). I'll admit, J Beebs is becoming J Dweebs in his latest interviews; what's with the new accent and slang? You are not from Atlanta, Justin! His latest album, 2010's My World 2.0, has some surprisingly decent pop tunes, and lead single Baby is a fun summer song with a catchy melody. The Stuffed Crust Pizza moment happens at 1:34 when Bieber performs a moronic pool table roll, but otherwise, he's in full swag mode on this one.

jackSOUL - 'Unconditional'

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: It is a privilege to include jackSOUL in this blog. Haydain Neale was a gifted singer-songwriter who, over the span of 13 years and 5 albums, found commercial success in the challenging Canadian soul/R&B landscape. jackSOUL disbanded in late 2009 after Neale passed away from lung cancer, at the age of only 39. I am thrilled that someone finally found the official video for Unconditional and uploaded it to YouTube. This song was the soundtrack to many late nights in University for me. The vocals and bass between 3:05 and 3:20 give me chills every time.

LAURA BARRETT

Origin: Toronto, ON
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: I was fortunate to see Laura Barrett perform live twice in Montreal. The first was at Cagibi, where my drunk work friends cackled through the entire set. The second was at Barfly, where people were talking, playing pool, drinking, and not paying attention to her. It's a shame, because she is a technical wizard at the kalimba, and she plays it flawlessly on stage. If you like this song, venture over to her Myspace page and listen to Bluebird, a fireworks display of skills from her recent album Victory Garden.

CASTLE PROJECT

Origin: Vancouver, BC
Category:  LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: Videos like this one are why I wanted to start this blog. Although The Airways managed to achieve light-to-medium rotation on MuchMusic in the mid 2000s, it only has about 1,090 views on Myspace, and it hasn't even been uploaded to YouTube. This video proves that you don't need a big budget, pyrotechnics, hyper-editing, or a lead singer hamming it for the camera - all you need is a great idea. Other tracks from Castle Project's full length debut can be heard at myspace.com/castleproject and are available for purchase at zunior.com.

ALANIS - "Too Hot"

Origin: Ottawa, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: Jagged Little Pill was an excellent album. You Oughta Know was the best song ever written at the time  ...about Dave Coulier. Poor Dave, he didn't cheat on her - he was just ready to start a family, and Alanis had different priorities (such as graduating from Junior High). Who knows, maybe she felt that she was "Too Hot" for him. My original video pick was for her fourth single, but unfortunately the embed code was disabled. The song is named "Plastic," and it describes her contempt for plastic guys. Meanwhile, her pop persona during this time was fake as hell. Isn't it ironic? ;-)  

B4-4

Origin: A small-town-Ontario bridge where trolls dwell
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: Care to know why these creepers are named b4-4? It's because there's 3 of them, and the number 3 is "before 4." I didn't just make that up, trust me. This video is absolutely hysterical from beginning to end, but the best moment has to be at 0:14. You'd think it was a cracked-out Aphex Twin creation, but no...it's something much more demented. The twins in this group have moved on and found success with RyanDan (another genius band name), and Ohad apparently moved to LA. B4-4 left major skidmarks on Canada's underpants, but videos like this will be cherished forever.

THE TRAGICALLY HIP - 'Bobcaygeon'

Origin: Kingston, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: It took me a long time to warm up to the Tragically Hip when I was a teenager. The slightly twangy sound from their early albums never appealed to me. I was all geared up to dislike Bobcaygeon when it first hit MuchMusic, but I fell in love with it instead. If this song came out 20 years from now, I have a feeling it would be just as good. The video compliments the music perfectly, and the extended embrace at 3:19 is one of my all-time favorite music video moments.

DOG DAY

Origin: Halifax, NS
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Halifax is home to a lot of excellent bands, and Dog Day is among the best. Frontman Seth Smith is an ace songwriter, and his skills as a director shine in this clip from their 2009 album Concentration.  If you don't love the dog's nose poking through the door at 1:14, my heart weeps for you.

DL INCOGNITO

Origin: Ottawa, ON
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: DL Incognito isn't nearly as obscure as some of the artists that I'll be covering in the future, but it still pains me that he isn't more well-known. He has a huge catalog of music, and all of it is quality. I am also a huge fan of Universal Love, a should-have-been Canadian hip hop classic and one of the many highlights on his debut album, A Sample and a Drum Machine.

Welcome to Moose Tracks!

First off, thank you very much for visiting the site. I have never blogged before, but I promise I'll try my best.

The purpose of this blog is to showcase Canadian talent from the past 20 years. The bands/artists/videos chosen to be featured on the blog will fall into one of the following categories:

NORTHERN ELIXIR: a timeless Canadian classic.
EMERGING ANTLERS: buzz-worthy new/current talent deserving of recognition.
STUFFED CRUST PIZZA: kind of bad for you, but it's still cheesy and delicious.

VOLCANO TOSS: horrible in every way. A disgrace to Canada and to Moose everywhere.

LOST IN THE WILDERNESS: awesome, obscure, and underrated.

I will update the blog every few days. Enjoy!