I Disconcur...

I borrowed two albums from the radio station last week. Both were bands from Alberta. Both were bands I first heard about when I missed their shows in Edmonton. I thought the similarities ended there. Two very different styles of music. Vailhalen are a super group from Calgary they play the kind of rock guitar riffs that you like and instead of pyrotechnics they add tasteful percussion and sulky synth lines. Their songs are well written and thouroughly enjoyable. Jay Crocker is something else. Hailing from Edmonton his live band might also be considered a super group (some of the members play in band called Superband) but he doesn't really play what you're expecting. He has a big band sound with a taste of Tom Waits-ian supernatural. The thing that is really amazing is that Jay Crocker not a multi-instrumentalist wrote all of the parts himself. Now what really really draws these two bands together is that they are both on the same label. Saved By Radio. There completely by accident I recognised the logo that had the cd cases not been stacked in just the right way I wouldn't have. And I wouldn't have known who to thank but now I do. Thank you saved by radio so far you're doing a good job of your stated goal to bring excellent Canadian music to my attention.

The General - Vailhalen

Wake Up Honolulu - Jay Crocker

Saved By Radio