We make some good music here up north. Here are the Canadian bands that I enjoy the most. This is not an official ranking, but rather a celebration of the acts that have had the most lasting influence on my taste.
Rush
You may be familiar with some Rush songs, but unless you have really gone down the rabbit hole, your familiarity with the band is probably limited to their most radio-friendly efforts: a very small portion of their catalog. Perhaps that is one of the craziest things about Rush to me. 90% of their work is too technically advanced, long, or obscure to ever make its way to the radio. Yet, they have a massive fanbase, myself included, that they sold out arenas to play to. I have nothing against “Fly by Night” or “Closer to the Heart”, but that really is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what Rush is capable of technically and creatively. Playing piano at a high conservatory level (I appreciate it now mom!) and the guitar from a young age, I was naturally compelled to investigate the band after I heard “Limelight” when I was ten or so. From there I went on to explore some of their best work including “Hemispheres”, “2112”, and my favorite “Farewell to Kings”. To this day, I still don’t really understand how the fuck you get a sound like that out of just three people. I guess it helps when you have arguably the greatest drummer of all time, one of the best guitarists of all time, and one of the best rock bassists of all time. Lyrically, the majority of Rush songs have sci-fi, dungeons n dragons, and fantasy feels about them. The words were never particularly personal but they were philosophical. Songs like “Xanadu” and “ Freewill” paint these massive scenes with both the words and intricate arrangements, time changes, key changes, and impeccable precision. What is also interesting is how they “leveled up” over time. Beginning with almost Led Zeppelin blues-based efforts like “Working Man” and “Fly by Night” to that Synth/Prog Rock sound they worked towards in the 1970s. There is a reason no one covers Rush songs…. They can’t
Tragically Hip
Usually, I resist the idea of convincing myself to like something under any sort of “ you’re supposed to because..” type of logic. For example “You should like the Tragically Hip because they are Canadian”. It may have started that way, but the band grew on me over time as I heard them on the radio plenty especially after Gord Downie’s final performance with the band that was televised. I need to mention that this logic did not work for me when it came to “Great Big Sea” because I think that they absolutely suck. The Hip grew on me because as I matured I started to appreciate the storytelling ability of Downie. Songs like “38 years old” and “Fifty Mission Cap” take true Canadian stories but deliver them in ways that make me want to care. More accurately, they make me believe that these stories are something I should care about because they are uniquely Canadian.
Blue Rodeo
I am by no means a diehard Blue Rodeo fan but I have long had a soft spot for the band because they remind me of my father. We aren’t close anymore but I tend to cling to things that he likes because it reminds me of a time that we were. My dad loves Blue Rodeo. He is from a small town in Alberta so maybe it’s that the hospitable, western, and feel-good quality a lot of Blue Rodeo songs have. My dad’s favorite is “Till I am myself again” but mine is “Rose Colored Glasses” because it makes me appreciate the people I have known who have a beautiful innocence about them. Do you know the type? That person who sees the best in everyone always has a smile and wants others to see the glass half full. Cherish those people no matter how annoying their positivity may be in the moment. The world needs more of them. It makes me sad when one way or another they lose their “rose-colored glasses” and are just like the rest of us. I think my dad was one of those people once but life beat it out of him. They are an awesome band that gets a spot on my list just on the strength of that song alone and what it means to me.