HAYDEN - 'Bad As They Seem'

Origin: Thornhill, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: Hadyen's Bad As They Seem, which dates back to 1995, was a personal favourite of mine during my University years. The song is mopey yet beautiful, and the lyrics somehow manage to be depressing, creepy, and romantic, all at once. Ultimately, I think that there's probably a lot of guys out there who can relate to Hayden's slice-of-life musings. It has 90's Canadian indie classic written all over it. 

BRAIDS

Origin: Calgary, AB
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: It's official - Braids just blew up. Say hello to your new it-band, Canada. They started generating buzz a few years ago back in Calgary, where they were known as The Neighbourhood Council. They managed to accumulate an impressive amount of press for only having released a few songs, and I was on the fence as to whether or not they just had the right connections. I am really happy to admit that I was wrong though, and that they are actually worth the hype. They just released their debut album Native Speaker, and it sounds like a million bucks. It's interesting, well-written, and it is starting to get some major attention in the US. Lammicken is my current favourite from the album, but I recommend Lemonade and Glass Deers for newcomers.

1 GIRL 5 GAYS

Origin: Toronto, ON
Cherchez La Moose: I get a kick out of watching this show. I love learning things about people, and despite the fact that some of the show's personalities fit into gay stereotypes, every one of them is an individual and has a lot of interesting stories and opinions. My favourite thing about 1 Girl 5 Gays is how all-out it goes when discussing sex. It's liberating. Full blown conversations about semen, for instance, shouldn't be censored or made for some sort of gross-out punchline. It's funny how we can watch a program at 8pm and witness bodies being blown in half, yet we need to wait until 11pm to see something with nudity or graphic sex references. 1 Girl 5 Gays is pushing things in the right direction, and every episode contains at least a few hilarious quotes or revelations.

ERIC'S TRIP

Origin: Moncton, NB
Category: LOST IN THE WILDERNESS
Cherchez La Moose: When I think about early 90's Canadian indie rock, I don't think about New Brunswick and Eric's Trip - I think about Halifax and Sloan. Eric's Trip was the first Canadian band to ever get signed to Sub Pop Records, which is bragging rights for eternity. 

Could you possibly look more legit than this? Not only did they have the perfect image, but they wrote a lot of great music as well. Julie Doiron is still making music today and has done very well for herself as a solo folk-rock singer-songwriter. 

HABITAT 67 & FARINE FIVE ROSES

Origin: Montreal, QC

Cherchez La Moose: Montreal is Canada's coolest city. There's tons of diversity, an amazing music scene, a giant rollercoaster park on a separate island, a mountain in the center of the city, a Biodome, a Biosphere - the list goes on. Two of my favourite landmarks are Habitat 67 and Farine Five Roses. I thought that I had stepped into an alternate dimension the first time I saw Habitat 67 in person. No picture can do it justice - it's that awesome. I have always wondered what it would be like to live in one of the apartments. Farine Five Roses is a little more puzzling, in that it's really just a flour mill in Griffintown....but it's somehow so much more. Citizens of Montreal cherish it, fans have created blogs about it, and even musicians have tipped their hats to it (Miracle Fortress named their album Five Roses, for example). The building is situated close to the awesome indie venue Friendship Cove, and I'd always make sure to pass by the glowing sign on my bike after seeing a show. 

HIGH HOLY DAYS

Origin: North Bay, ON
Category: VOLCANO TOSS
Cherchez La Moose: High Holy Days (gah, even their band name makes me squirm) are so bad they're   good   just hella bad. I'd rather eat turd jambalaya than listen to their entire album. Many kids want to be doctors and astronauts when they grow up. These grown men want to be ....Creed. All My Real Friends is a weak single - even back in 2003, when I paid less attention to songwriting, it occurred to me just how bad this song is. The chorus, build-up during the bridge, and outro all hint that a big rock-out moment is around the corner, but everything simply fizzles. The cliched video is no better - even the door slam at the end of the video is just plain bad.

WOMEN

Origin: Calgary, AB
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Women went on an "indefinite hiatus" (a.k.a. they broke up) after tempers flared live during a now-infamous show in Victoria late last year. They were on tour promoting their 2010 album Public Strain. I recently listened to the album for the first time, and there's no doubt in my mind that these guys are/were worth the hype. Shaking Hand, taken from their debut, is a good example of what makes Women special - the perfect balance between consonance and dissonance, the feel-good outro, the intricate guitars and time signatures...I could go on. I'm classifying these guys as Emerging Antlers because they still have so much to give. Whether or not it will be as Women remains to be seen.

SHAWN DESMAN - 'Electric/Night Like This'

Origin: Vaughan, ON
Category: STUFFED CRUST PIZZA
Cherchez La Moose: Shawn Desman is cheesy. Period. He's a talented guy, but I have never been able to take him seriously. I can't tell if he knows he's cheesy, and that is what intrigues me about him. The outfits in this video are tackier than ever, and his dancing at 0:56 is extremely dorky (are girls attracted to this?!), but here's the thing - his music is actually getting better. Shiver surprised me last year by not being lame, and I had Electric on replay a few nights ago. I've seen him in interviews, and he seems like a genuinely nice guy. He also scores bonus points for using the SYTYCD cast for his videos.

MAKEOUT VIDEOTAPE

Origin: Vancouver, BC
Category: EMERGING ANTLERS
Cherchez La Moose: Lo-fi noise pop has been a major trend in indie culture these past few years, and although it feels like it's on its last legs, Vancouver duo Makeout Videotape makes me want it to stick around just a little longer. Deborah is an interesting song, and I love the WTF-ness of the video, but you need to hear a collection of their songs to fully appreciate their songwriting skills. Kudos to Unfamiliar for signing them.  

PROTEST THE HERO - 'Blindfolds Aside'

Origin: Whitby, ON
Category: NORTHERN ELIXIR
Cherchez La Moose: I can't wait to hear the new Protest The Hero album, due out in the first half of 2011. It will be hard to top 2008's incredible Fortress, an album filled with so many riffs and ideas that you'd think they spent their entire lives writing it. This band is so technically proficient and ambitious that my hunch tells me we won't be disappointed. Blindfolds Aside was a major "wow" moment when I first saw it on MuchMusic. The fact that these guys are from Whitby is so classic. They have earned every bit of positive press they've received, and I think that they're one of the best bands in Canada at the moment.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope you all have a happy and exciting year. Thanks again for reading Moose Tracks.

-Moose X