RIYL: Collective Soul, Pearl Jam, Counting Crows
Consider the Canadian invasion complete. If the flood of talent from the great white north hasn’t reached your headphones yet, you won’t need to wait much longer. From Drake’s minimalist Hip-Hop and Arcade Fire’s anthemic indie-rock to Justin Bieber’s pre-pubescent hysteria, Canada has been serving notice as of late to its southern brothers to step it up. Enter “The Trews”, a modern rock foursome with eyes on the gaping hole that Nickelback seems destined to leave sooner or later. Since congealing from the primordial soups of Nova Scotia in 2001, The Trews have slowly gained notoriety and are now a formidable presence in the Canadian music world.
With the release of their 2008 LP “No Time for Later”, The Trews rocketed into the national spotlight with a Juno nomination for Rock Album of the Year at the Canadian Grammys. The recognition was well earned, as “No Time for Later” showcases taut songwriting with more lyrical depth than your typical American fare and some nicely choreographed aggresion.
With a voice that at times recalls Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz and more often Collective Souls’ Ed Roland, Trews lead vocalist Colin MacDonaldw orks some welcome wit into his singing, and covers an impressive range of topics, from a deabeat roomate in the title track to his less-than-ideal eccentricties in “Paranoid Freak” and “Cant Stop Laughing”. The album alternates between harder-rocking numbers and slower quasi-ballads but stays faithful to the modern rock formula of drums, guitar and bass with no real frills to be found.
“Be Love” sets the tone early on, a charming fusion of guitars and emoting that would be best described as hard-driving hippie rock. Vegans might want to steer clear but MacDonalds message is refreshingly positive and forward-thinking as he witnesses “Mother Nature changing the world” and ferociously proclaims that we should all “Be Love” in the chorus.
Later into the set, “Gun Control” is another winner that finds MacDonald tackling the school shootings that are starting to seem all-too frequent in the states these days. South of the border for these guys means you and me, amigos, and MacDonald seems earnestly outraged at the politics that give nutbags the “Freedom to take other peoples freedom away” as he wonders “Is this what has to become/ of the USA?”. Taking a cue from Neil Young, MacDonald seems to have the perfect perspective to serve up some biting commentary on our state of affairs, and like most of the tunes on “No Time for Later” the ferocious rocking in the background helps the song acheive a tasty potency. Fans should stay tune for a new full length slated for release sometime in 2011.
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More Information
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http://www.thetrewsmusic.com
http://www.bumstead.com
http://www.notimeforlater.com
