Broken Social Scene
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Broken Social Scene is a Canadian indie rock supergroup formed in 1999 (see 1999 in music) in Toronto, Ontario.
The band's core members are Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning. This duo recorded and released the band's post rock debut album, Feel Good Lost, in 2001, with contributions by Justin Peroff, Charles Spearin and Bill Priddle. However, when they played shows to support the album, Drew and Canning found it difficult to put together an entertaining show based on Feel Good Lost, which was an almost entirely instrumental album.
As a result, they brought in a number of friends from the Toronto indie scene -- Andrew Whiteman, Emily Haines and Leslie Feist -- to flesh out their live show with lyrics and vocals. Over time, the band also came to include contributions from James Shaw, Evan Cranley, Justin Peroff and John Crossingham.
All of the later guest musicians joined with Drew, Canning, Peroff and Spearin to record the band's second album, You Forgot It in People, in 2002 on the label Arts & Crafts. This album, an eclectic, restlessly creative collection of experimental yet accessible pop songs, became the band's critical and commercial breakthrough -- it was greeted with ecstatic reviews, and landed on many music critics' year-end Best-Of lists. More noteably it won the Alternative Album of the Year Juno Award in 2003. The album also included musical contributions by Priddle, Jessica Moss, Brodie West, Susannah Brady and Ohad Benchetrit, but these were credited as supporting musicians rather than band members.
On the supporting tour, the band consisted of Drew, Canning, Peroff, Whiteman and Jason Collett, along with whoever else was available to attend any individual show. Amy Millan and Gentleman Reg also joined for some shows. In 2003, the B-sides and remix collection Bee Hives was released. A new album, tentatively titled Windsurfing Nation, is due for release in the fall of 2005.
Awards and nominations
2003
- You Forgot It in People - Winner: Alternative Album of the Year Juno Award.
- Pitchforkmedia.com's #9 album of 2003 (http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/top/2003), #27 album of 2000-4 (http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/top/2000-04)
2004
- Stars and Sons - Christopher Mills, Broken Social Scene - Nomination: Video of the Year Juno Award.
Related bands
Most of the musicians who have worked with Broken Social Scene are members of other bands as well. These include:
- Apostle of Hustle - Andrew Whiteman
- Feist - Leslie Feist
- Do Make Say Think - Charles Spearin and Ohad Benchetrit
- Junior Blue - Justin Peroff and Kevin Drew
- Metric - James Shaw and Emily Haines
- Raising the Fawn - John Crossingham
- Stars - Evan Cranley and Amy Millan
- Treble Charger - Bill Priddle
- Valley of the Giants - Brendan Canning and Charles Spearin
Collett performs as a solo artist under his own name. Leslie Feist is also a solo artist, although her albums are credited simply to Feist. Apostle of Hustle, Junior Blue and Valley of the Giants are all BSS-style collaborative bands that were formed after You Forgot It in People was recorded and released. Canning was previously in the bands hHead and By Divine Right. Drew and Spearin were previously in the band KC Accidental. Whiteman has recorded as a solo artist, and was previously in the bands Que Vida and Bourbon Tabernacle Choir.
External links
- Broken Social Scene (http://www.arts-crafts.ca/bss/index2.html)