Mr. Something Something

Last updated
Mr. Something Something
Origin Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres Afrobeat
Years active2003 (2003)–2009 (2009)
Past members
  • Larry Graves
  • John MacLean
  • Paul MacDougall
  • Liam Smithand
  • Johan Hultqvist

Mr. Something Something was a Canadian Afrobeat collective, based in Toronto, Ontario. The band consists of five permanent members, including percussionist Larry Graves, tenor saxophonist John MacLean, guitarist Paul MacDougall, bassist Liam Smith and lead singer Johan Hultqvist, [1] as well as loosely affiliated musicians, including jazz musicians such as Kevin Turcotte, Richard Underhill and Brian O'Kane. The band is known for their bicycle-powered outdoor concerts. [2] Their songs often contained political content.

Contents

History

Mr. Something Something was formed in 2003 by Graves and MacLean, who were childhood friends. The name Mr. Something Something is a play on the song "Mr. Follow Follow", by early afrobeat performer Fela Kuti, who has influenced the band's vocal style. [3] Graves, MacLean and Hultqvist began writing music for the group. In 2004, they put out their first self-titled album. [4]

The band's second album The Edge was released in 2005. [5] It was nominated for a 2007 Juno Award in the World Music category. [6] The 2007 release Deep Sleep was a collaboration with spoken word artist Ikwunga, an Afrobeat Poet. [7] [8] Deep Sleep was a frequently played world music album on Canadian college radio in 2007. [9]

In conjunction with International Car-Free Day 2008 Mr. Something Something presented Canada's first bicycle powered concerts at the Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto's Don Valley and outside infamous bike thief Igor Kenk's defunct bicycle shop. [10]

The band's album Shine Your Face was released in 2009. [1] That year the band toured around Canada, including a performance at the Guelph Jazz Festival. [11]

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantines</span> Canadian indie rock band

Constantines is an indie rock band from Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

King Cobb Steelie is a Canadian indie rock band formed in 1991 from Guelph, Ontario, and later based in Toronto. The band's most successful single was 1997's "Rational", from the album Junior Relaxer. Their music fuses elements of punk, grunge, funk, jazz and dance. The core of the band is singer/songwriter Kevan Byrne and bassist Kevin Lynn. A variety of other collaborators, including Sam Cino, Al Okada, Gary Dutch, Geoff Walton, Steve Clarkson, Mike Armstrong, Nathan Lawr, Don Pyle and Michelle McAdorey, have contributed to individual albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haydain Neale</span> Canadian singer-songwriter

Haydain Neale was a Canadian singer-songwriter from Hamilton, Ontario. He was best known as the lead singer of Juno Award-winning band jacksoul. Neale also served on the faculty of the Humber College Summer Songwriting Workshop and as president of the Songwriters Association of Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ohbijou</span> Canadian indie pop band

Ohbijou was a Canadian indie pop band that was based in Toronto, Ontario. The music of Ohbijou draws on pop, folk and bluegrass influences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spiral Beach</span>

Spiral Beach was a Canadian indie rock band, formed in Toronto, active from 2003 to 2009. The group consisted of vocalist and guitarist Airick Woodhead, vocalist and keyboardist Maddy Wilde, bassist Dorian Wolf and drummer Daniel Woodhead.

Bryan Webb, sometimes credited as Bry Webb, is a Canadian singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the indie rock band Constantines.

Paul Paul Haines was an American poet and jazz lyricist. Born in Vassar, Michigan, Haines eventually settled in Canada after spending time in Europe, Asia, and the United States; he had a long stint as a French teacher at Fenelon Falls Secondary School, in Ontario, Canada. Active in New York City in the 60s, he recorded Albert Ayler's Ghosts. A second recording made by Ayler called Spiritual Unity (1965) included a printed folio with text by Paul Haines called "You and the Night and Music."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Souljazz Orchestra</span>

The Souljazz Orchestra is a Canadian musical group based in Ottawa that has toured Canada, the United States and Europe. Their music is a fusion of soul, jazz, funk, Afrobeat and Latin-American styles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Shepherd (musician)</span> Canadian singer and pianist

Elizabeth Shepherd is a Canadian pianst, singer, songwriter and producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bicycles</span> Canadian indie pop band

The Bicycles are a Canadian indie pop quartet originally from Brantford, Ontario composed of Matt Beckett, Drew Smith, Dana Snell, and Andrew Scott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Danks</span>

The Danks are a Canadian indie rock band from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, founded by Brohan Moore and Alec O'Hanley. The current lineup includes lead vocalist Brohan Moore, O'Hanley on guitar and keyboards, Brian Murphy on bass, and drummer Phil MacIsaac. Chris Doiron originally played bass guitar, but was replaced by Andrew MacDonald.

Jaffa Road are a Canadian world music group based in Toronto, Ontario. The band mixes ancient and original poetry in Hebrew, Spanish and English with belly dance rhythms, pulsating dub grooves, improvisations, and a global mix of instrumentation, including electronica and dub. The band was nominated for a 2010 Juno Award for their debut album Sunplace in the category World Music Album of the Year.

LAL is a Toronto-based collective of musicians representing Uganda, Bangladesh, Barbados, and India featuring vocalist Rosina Kazi, laptop musician Nicholas "Murr" Murray, and bassist Ian de Sousa. The group's sound fuses South-Asian roots, West Indian fruits, and melancholic vocals with jazz and hip hop influences, down tempo grooves, broken soul, and electro. Their song lyrics are socially conscious poetry.

Wavelength is a music series and annual festival held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The project was founded in 2000 by Jonny Dovercourt, Duncan MacDonell, and Derek Westerholm. It was founded on the basis that many others would share their enthusiasm for independent music from Toronto. The concept evolved from an open-table meeting of musicians and enthusiasts on September 11, 1999, this then developed into a weekly Sunday showcase and annual festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Bowen (musician)</span> Canadian trumpet player

Ben Bowen is a Canadian trumpet player and children's musician from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Bowen studied jazz trumpet at York University and Humber College. He is a session musician for various other bands and as of 2024 has been involved in over 40 studio albums.

Steve Dawson is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and music producer. Dawson has produced albums by Jim Byrnes, Kelly Joe Phelps, Old Man Luedecke, The Sojourners, and The Deep Dark Woods. He has won two Juno Awards. He frequently collaborates with keyboardist Chris Gestrin, bassist Keith Lowe and drummer Georr Hicks. He has been a member of the duo Zubot & Dawson, and of the group The Great Uncles of the Revolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Polaris Music Prize</span>

The 2015 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 21, 2015 at The Carlu event theatre in Toronto, Ontario. The event was hosted by children's entertainer Fred Penner.

Eccodek is a Canadian musical group based in Guelph, Ontario, known for their fusion of world music and electronic music styles. The band is composed of core member Andrew McPherson and a rotating collective of musicians who collaborate on the band's releases. They have twice been nominated for the Juno Award for World Music Album of the Year.

The Phonemes were a Canadian indie pop band from Toronto, Ontario, active in the 2000s. A trio whose core members were vocalist and songwriter Magali Meagher, bassist Liz Forsberg and drummer Matias Rozenberg, the group's two releases on Blocks Recording Club also featured guest contributions from Owen Pallett, Katie Crown, Bob Wiseman, Steve Kado and Leon Taheny.

<i>Rumble in the Jungle</i> (compilation album) 2007 compilation album by Various Artists

Rumble in the Jungle is a 2007 compilation album released by Soul Jazz Records. It compiles early 1990s ragga jungle tracks.

References

  1. 1 2 "Mr. Something Something Shine Your Face". Pop Matters, Ryan Reed, 6 July 2010
  2. ↑ "Eco-conscious band reinvents power cycle". Toronto Star, By John Goddard. May 30, 2009
  3. ↑ "Mr. Something Something Dig Deep". Exclaim!, By David Dacks Nov 26, 2007
  4. ↑ "Mr. Something Something Mr. Something Something". Exclaim!, By David Dacks Nov 01, 2004
  5. ↑ "Hip bop". The Coast, July 12, 2007
  6. ↑ "Ghanaian musician refused entry". Modern Ghana, reprinted from the Toronto Star, 9 October 2008
  7. ↑ "CD REVIEWS". Toronto Star - Toronto, Ont. Terauds, John. Nov 20, 2007 L.9
  8. ↑ "Mr. Something Something and Ikwunga The Afrobeat Poet: Deep Sleep", EarShot!, By Peter Bradley Jun 11, 2008
  9. ↑ "The National International Chart For the Week Ending: December 18, 2007". EarShort.
  10. ↑ "Mr. Something Something's pedal power". Robert Everett-Green, Globe and Mail, Sep. 25, 2009
  11. ↑ "Guelph Jazz Festival Featuring the Ex & Getatchew Mekuria, the Stone Quartet, Shuffle Demons". Exclaim!, By Nilan Perera Sep 18, 2009
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.