Fresh Snow are a Canadian instrumental post-rock band from Toronto, Ontario. [1] They are most noted for their 2013 album I, which was a longlisted nominee for the 2014 Polaris Music Prize. [2]
Formed in 2010, the band consists of guitarist and keyboardist Tim Condon, bassist and keyboardist Andy Lloyd, guitarist Brad Davis and drummer Jon Maki. [3] They first united to play a show at Duffy's Tavern in Toronto; the following year they released their first recording, a 7" split single with METZ. [3] Strongly influenced by krautrock, [4] the band took their name from Neu!'s song "Neuschnee 78".
They released I in 2013, [5] and followed up with the EP WON in 2015 [6] and their second full-length album ONE in 2016. [7]
Tanya Tagaq, also credited as Tagaq, is a Canadian Inuk throat singer, songwriter, novelist, actor, and visual artist from Cambridge Bay (Iqaluktuuttiaq), Nunavut, Canada, on the south coast of Victoria Island.
William Joel MacDonald Plaskett is a Canadian rock musician and songwriter based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was a member of Halifax alternative rock band Thrush Hermit in the 1990s. Plaskett performs in a number of genres, from blues and folk to hard rock, country, and pop.
Wintersleep is a Canadian indie rock band formed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 2001. The band's original lineup consisted of vocalist and guitarist Paul Murphy, guitarist and keyboardist Tim d'Eon, and drummer Loel Campbell. In 2002, Jud Haynes joined the band as bass guitarist until 2007. In 2005, Mike Bigelow joined on keyboards until 2006, after which he played bass, until 2016. Since 2006, Jon Samuel has served as a backing vocalist, keyboardist, and guitarist, while Chris Bell has served as a backing vocalist and bass guitarist since 2016. Bigelow returned to the band in 2021. In 2005, Wintersleep opened for Pearl Jam for two shows in St. John's, Newfoundland at the Mile One Stadium. The band received a Juno Award in 2008. To date, Wintersleep have released seven studio albums.
The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize; the prize was increased to $30,000 for the 2011 award. In May 2015, the Polaris Music Prize was increased to $50,000, an additional $20,000, sponsored by Slaight Music. Additionally, second place prizes for the nine other acts on the Short List increased from $2,000 to $3,000. Polaris officials also announced The Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, an award that "will annually honour five albums from the five decades before Polaris launched in 2006." Details about the selection process for this prize are still to be revealed.
Shadrach Kabango, known professionally as Shad or Shad K, is a Canadian rapper and broadcaster. Beginning his career in 2005, has released seven studio albums and three extended plays. He won a Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year in 2011 and five of his albums have been shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize, the most short-list nominations of any artist in the prize's history. In 2013, CBC Music named Shad the second-greatest Canadian rapper of all time. Shad hosted Q on CBC Radio One from 2015 to 2016, and hosts the International Emmy and Peabody Award-winning documentary series Hip-Hop Evolution on HBO Canada and Netflix.
The Besnard Lakes are a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Formed in 2003 by the husband and wife team of Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas, the band also includes Kevin Laing (drums), Richard White (guitar), Sheenah Ko (keyboards) and Robbie MacArthur (guitar).
Karkwa is an indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, formed in 1998.
Miracle Fortress is a Canadian indie rock band based in Montreal, Quebec. The band's studio work is primarily a solo, project of songwriter Graham Van Pelt, who is accompanied by the rest of the band during live shows.
Zeus is a Toronto-based Canadian indie rock band signed to the Arts & Crafts record label. Its members include Rob Drake, Carlin Nicholson, Mike O'Brien, and Neil Quin. The band have released three albums and one EP since 2009. They have also served as the backing band for Canadian musician Jason Collett.
Siskiyou is a Canadian indie folk band formed in Vancouver, consisting of singer-songwriter Colin Huebert and guitarist Erik Arnesen.
Austra is a Canadian electronic music band from Toronto, founded in 2009 by composer, singer-songwriter, and producer Katie Stelmanis. Stelmanis is the only permanent member of the project, with a rotating live band that has included Maya Postepski (drums), Dorian Wolf, and Ryan Wonsiak (keyboards). It previously also featured the twin backing singers Sari and Romy Lightman of Tasseomancy. The band has released four studio albums—Feel It Break (2011), Olympia (2013), Future Politics (2017), and Hirudin (2020).
Yamantaka // Sonic Titan is a Canadian experimental music and performance art collective. Formed in Montreal, Quebec and currently operating in Toronto, Ontario, the group was founded by Ruby Kato Attwood and Alaska B – former members of the defunct Montreal noise rock band Lesbian Fight Club – and now features Ange Loft on vocals and percussion, Joanna Delos Reyes on vocals and guitar, Brendan Swanson on keyboards, Hiroki Tanaka on lead guitar, Brandon Lim on bass guitar, and Aylwin Lo on projections and lights. Ruby Kato Attwood left the band at the end of 2014. Past members have included John Ancheta on bass and acoustic guitar, Walter Scott, Shub Roy, Alana Ruth, and Adrienne Mak.
This is a summary of the year 2013 in the Canadian music industry.
METZ is a Canadian punk rock band formed in 2007 in Ottawa, and currently based in Toronto. The band consists of guitarist and vocalist Alex Edkins, bassist Chris Slorach and drummer Hayden Menzies. In an interview with Austin, Texas zine The Cosmic Clash, Edkins has labeled METZ's style as punk rock, "at the core."
PUP is a Canadian punk rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario in 2010, originally under the name Topanga. PUP's debut album PUP was released on October 8, 2013, on Royal Mountain Records. In December 2013, PUP signed with SideOneDummy Records and re-released their debut album in the United States on April 8, 2014. The group was in the studio in late 2015 recording their second album The Dream Is Over which was released on May 27, 2016, through SideOneDummy. The band's third album, titled Morbid Stuff, was released on April 5, 2019. This Place Sucks Ass, a six-track EP, was released on October 27, 2020. Their fourth album, The Unraveling of PUPTheBand, was released on April 1, 2022.
Alvvays is a Canadian indie pop band formed in 2011, originating from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and subsequently based in Toronto, Ontario. It consists of Molly Rankin, Kerri MacLellan (keyboards), Alec O'Hanley (guitars), and Sheridan Riley (drums). Their self-titled debut studio album, released in 2014, topped the US college charts. Their second studio album, Antisocialites, was released on September 8, 2017. Their third studio album, Blue Rev, was released on October 7, 2022.
Dilly Dally were a Canadian alternative rock band from Toronto. The band consisted of Enda Monks, Liz Ball, Annie Jane Marie (bassist) and Benjamin Reinhartz (drummer). They announced their breakup on March 2, 2023.
Andy Shauf is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Regina, Saskatchewan. He plays several instruments, including guitar, drums, and clarinet.
The Beaches are a Canadian rock band formed in Toronto in 2013 by Jordan Miller, Kylie Miller, Leandra Earl, and Eliza Enman-McDaniel (drums). The band released two EPs titled The Beaches (2013) and Heights (2014) before signing to Universal Records. In 2017, they released their debut album Late Show, which led to the band winning the 2018 Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year.
The OBGMs (The oOohh Baby Gimme Mores) are a Canadian punk rock band from Toronto, Ontario. They are most noted for their 2020 album The Ends, which was a shortlisted finalist for the 2021 Polaris Music Prize.