Upon (not so) recently finishing my look at the excellent indie-rock band Spoon, a thought occurred to me: why haven't I looked at a Canadian act yet? I've done British (Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Beatles) and American artists (Spoon, Beck) aplenty, but nothing from the rich popular music history of my own country. Where's my inflated sense of national pride? For shame!
Well, it's time to rectify that oversight. Question is: which artist to dive into? The Tragically Hip comes instantly to mind, they being a band I've listened to essentially my entire life. Then you've also got the extensive catalogues of Rush (haven't ever really gotten into them), Neil Young (who keeps making albums every month these days it seems) or Leonard Cohen (whom my dear dad excellently covered already). As for more modern acts (and ones I'm actually familiar with) you've got Broken Social Scene, Death From Above 1979, Arcade Fire... not a lot of albums to work with there but plenty of true classics among those few.
No shortage of options! But.... I've picked Sloan for a trifecta of reasons: they have lots of records to discuss, an extremely underappreciated dynamic among the four principal members... and finally that I've seen them live multiple times. That last point really is the one that seals the deal: they're just a really damn fun band to see play a show... more on that as we go.
Sloan it is! Join me as I dive deeper between the bridges on this one.
----
First of all, this is an incredibly unique band in regards to structure. The lineup has been mint-condition consistent since their inception in early 1991, save for touring member (and honourary "Fifth Sloan Dude") Gregory MacDonald on keyboards/backing vocals arriving in the mid-2000s. More impressive is that each of the four members write and sing their own songs, with each having a mandated equal presence on (almost) all of their studio albums. Seeing the band live (as I have many times) and watching them swap instruments so the drummer can play guitar and sing his songs.... has never not been delightful to behold.
Of course, a quartet of independent songwriters will invoke an unfair comparison with the Beatles, who surprisingly were not an initial influence on the Halifax Four. Sloan is regardless far more democratic and equal in how they operate, whereas Lennon/McCartney dominate the majority of the Beatles catalogue (not that I'm upset at the outcome). Also, if drummer Andrew Scott is Sloan's "Ringo", well... Scott is a far more interesting and compelling songwriter than Ringo ever has been, and likewise exceptional on the sticks to boot.
The origin of Sloan traces back to the Halifax music scene of the late 1980s. Chris Murphy played in a variety of different bands (which he is more than happy to name all of) and eventually met Jay Ferguson, which may or may not have been while Jay was riding a skateboard to a concert (depends who you ask). They formed a band called Kearney Lake Rd and enjoyed some local success, but the group broke up in 1990. Murphy had in the meantime met Andrew Scott, who was DJing at various clubs in Halifax, and the three began jamming together here and there.
Once the ashes of Kearney Lake Rd had cleared, Jay, Chris and Andrew began a new musical project but were in need of a bassist. After a couple of tryouts, they reached out to Patrick Pentland, whom they knew from various hardcore bands in the Halifax scene. After an initial run of small gigs, Chris Murphy and Pentland permanently traded instruments (with Patrick moving to lead guitar) and the true configuration of Sloan was complete. The name "Sloan" is based on a nickname of band friend Jason Larsen (who is the face on the cover of their debut release the Peppermint EP, the bargain of naming the band after him).
The journey of Sloan into present day was not without some bumps along the pathway. Their success was almost immediate: their debut full length album Smeared impressed Geffen Records enough to give the band a major record deal, but their sophomore effort was such a stylistic left turn Geffen lost all interest in promoting them, leading Sloan to effectively break up for a time. Eventually they regrouped, recorded some of the greatest rock albums in Canadian music history, and have now settled into a reliably excellent (even if somewhat still unknown, despite some big hits) rock and roll act.
With all that, lets take a bite into these Sloan records and see how they stack up against one another. Jay Ferguson himself has actually done this, back in the mid 2010s around when Commonwealth came out, and it's a great read. Nevertheless, lets consider this an updated look from an objective bystander and fan.
Also, as a quick note we will be comparing the 13 studio albums and not the two live albums (both are great) or the two EPs, Peppermint and Hit & Run. The 90s shoegaze-heavy Peppermint wouldn't rank very highly for me while Hit & Run probably ends up somewhere in the middle of the list (it is really good).
#13. Pretty Together (2001)
***
Like Spoon, Sloan doesn't have a bad album... but Pretty Together is an extremely uneven listen. It's heights are incredible: the roaring arena pleaser "If It Feels Good Do It", Pentland's "It's In Your Eyes", Chris Murphy's KISS ode "Pick It Up and Dial It" or his endlessly great "The Other Man" (inspired by a real life love triangle with Feist, at least according to them sneaky rumours). Andrew Scott has some soaring guitar numbers as well, his trademark off-kilter style producing the awesome "In The Movies" and the heavy "Never Seeing The Ground For The Sky".
Problem is, this record loses a lot of momentum when it slows down into melancholy. Sloan can do melancholy as well as anyone, but here it overstays the welcome. This record just completely loses energy at certain moments and the sense of drippy sweetness don't help matters. The group was riding a huge winning streak at this point, but this feels like they'd grown bored of the particular vintage rock sound of the previous few records and wanted to explore something more sombre. Points for trying, and this album has some peaks that rival almost anything in the catalogue, but too much of it bounces around like four dudes not quite on the same page as each other, which is rare for these particular fellas.
#12. 12 (2018)
***1/2
No, I'm not placing 12 in the #12 slot because this might be the only opportunity I'll ever have to make that joke. Actually, that sounds kinda funny. Nevermind! It's exactly why I'm doing it.
12 is an album I liked a lot more upon first listening to it, but on repeat listens I'm rather underwhelmed by it (see what I did there). Most of the songs don't really leave much of an impression... they're enjoyable to hear but don't melodically grab you in a way to insist a revisit. Murphy's "Don't Stop" is particularly grating in its callback to a far better song, and Pentland's usually reliable rockers seem too polished and clean.
The true highlight is Andrew Scott's bizarre (what Scott does best) closer "44 Teenagers" with its vague lyrics about letting the youth of today free to forge their own path. Scott himself has said he doesn't actually care all that much about the meaning of lyrics in songs, which explains a lot of his haphazard approach as a songwriter... but it somehow really works for him and here in particular.
Overall, 12 plays like a band that's been around the block and is making songs to please their longtime crowd. A decades old act settling into embracing their particular ways... it isn't bad as much as it's unremarkable, and one could surely forgive a band with this extensively reliable of a catalogue easing into a safe autopilot output in their later years. However, as their latest record proves (more on that later) these fellas were not ready for rock and roll bedtime quite yet... making this one all the more forgettable in its "okayness".
#11. Action Pact (2003)
***1/2
Man. Oh man.
A really tough choice to put this one so low on the list. I found this on CD at Ameoba Music in San Francisco in 2009, gave it as a gift to my dear friend who instantly loved it and we still talk about it to this day. It's an incredibly fun record: Sloan just embracing their love of KISS/70s rock and playing a bunch of balls-out guitar riff heavy tunes.
It falls somewhat flat in that the novelty wears a bit tired on the less inspired tunes, but most importantly this is the only Sloan album to not feature an Andrew song. He still plays drums on the record, but at the time of recording he was busy tending to his young growing family and so didn't have the time/energy/whatever to write any new fully formed songs. Jay in his own Sloan album ranking has Action Pact at the bottom for this very reason: it feels like an incomplete Sloan record without Andrew.
As is, it's an enjoyable 70s rock homage with several great melodies and a few absolute killer tunes (Pentland's "Backstabbin'" and Jay's "False Alarm"). Chris Murphy's "Rest of My Life" is pretty catchy arena rock too, and an obvious live show standard nowadays. A solid Sloan album, but it does hit more hollow than their truly best work.
#10. The Double Cross (2011)
***1/2
I've had eleven years to give this one many chances, but I just don't care for a lot of this album. Murphy's "Follow The Leader" has never captured me, Jay's "Green Gardens Cold Montreal" is one of his more forgettable ballads and Pentland seems to just be throwing fast riffs against a wall, aside from his truly awesome "Unkind".
It's a weird album front to back as well, with a disjointed sense you would normally predict in a band with four different principal songwriters. Following an intense tune like "Beverly Terrace" with the off-beat poetry of Andrew's "Traces" is a great exhibit of how cool and creatively diverse this band is, but for the purpose of this particular album it's an odd transition. Ferguson and Murphy seem to be in "serious songwriter" mode while the other two don't seem remotely interested in matching such soft emotional intensity.
Not a great listen as an album, but like any Sloan record there are some killer songs. "Unkind" again is just fabulous, Jay's "Beverly Terrace" grabs your attention with its melodic urgency and Chris Murphy's closer "Laying So Low" is a sweet little tune that burrows its way into your heart. I also absolutely love this cover.
#9. Smeared (1992)
***1/2
Your opinion of this album might most likely depend on how much you like early 90s shoegaze/noise pop. If Loveless by My Bloody Valentine is one of your favourite albums (you know I'm talking to you, good buddy), odds are you like Smeared a lot more than I do.
Sloan's debut album, recorded just a year after they formed, is very influenced by those sounds of the time, and so is tethered to its era. The dynamics of the band were also quite different at this point: Chris Murphy was more of the primary songwriter while the other three have just a song or two each singing lead.
I'm not really a shoegaze guy, although I agree Loveless is an astonishing piece of music. As for Smeared? My favourite songs lean towards the simpler tracks, such as Andrew Scott's poppy "500 Up" or the classic "Underwhelmed" (which they still play live and it always rules). "Marcus Said" and "I Am The Cancer" are pretty darn good too among the noisier songs. Patrick Pentland himself has since lamented how Smeared is very much a one-off in the band's history, feeling that they could've made at least one more record like this. That's all well and good (and I'm sure they would've made it excellent) but their quick left-turn on the second album is hard to argue against, even if it potentially cost them a larger chunk of fame in the early 90s.
#8. Parallel Play (2008)
****
While the previous Sloan albums on this list all have their moments, each one has some forgettable lulls or clunkers that diminish the overall listen as complete records. Parallel Play however, in my opinion, doesn't have a single weak song. It's just solid front to finish, with each member adding their own touches and personality to the proceedings.
With the Beatles, certain folks will say "this is a great Paul album" or here's "a great John record". You can apply similar attitudes towards Sloan, and as such Parallel Play is a really good Jay and Andrew album. Ferguson's "Witch's Wand" and "Cheap Champagne" are just wonderfully sweet pop rock songs, while Andrew's Bob Dylan ode "Down In The Basement" or split-second rocker "Emergency 911" are incredibly fun and catchy. Chris Murphy and Patrick Pentland have their moments as well, with Murphy's sharp lyricism very present on the adulthood lament "I'm Not a Kid Anymore" and Pentland's trippy guitar-work on "The Other Side". A great album if you're already familiar with the usual Sloan sound, but not my first choice for beginners.
#7. Steady (2022)
****
While Sloan's 2010s output was, pardon the obvious adjective, steady... a notable chunk of this later output has been guilty of leaving little lasting impression. Not to say any of it is bad, rather that it falls into the trap reliable bands like this have dug: "Oh cool, it's another solid Sloan album".
As such, Steady can't be described as a comeback since these wicked dudes never actually lost a step. Rather than a return to form, Steady is a return to energy. Whereas the forgettable moments of recent records feel a bit like the band going through the motions, here everything just sounds more alive and punchy. Like the Kool-Aid Man bursting through a wall: yeah, we still got it.
And the songs from each member are exceptional enough to back up this rejuvenation. Jay Ferguson is just wonderful on here, with the pop masterclass "She Put Up What She Put Down" (with Murphy's bass guitar doing an exceptional McCartney impression), the insanely catchy "Dream It All Over Again" or 70s rock homage closer "Keep Your Name Alive". Among the members Jay is the big record nerd of the bunch, and he pulls out his knowledge of diverse melodic tricks big time here. His three tunes are the highlight of the album.
Not to say the other members are slouching here either. Patrick Pentland's "Scratch The Surface" greets that perfect line of simple riffage and endlessly catchy (and the video is damn fun too... with each member wandering through Toronto doing various things... naturally Andrew just wants to paint in his garage). Chris Murphy is on his game as well, with the stomping opener "Magical Thinking", poignant "Nice Work If You Can Get It" and rockabilly tinged "I Dream of Sleep", which sounds more like a Wilco tune than a Sloan one. Andrew Scott is his usual off-beat self, with the deep dreamy "Panic On Runnymede", while Pentland's ballad "Simply Leaving" drips with real feeling. Not a longtime act going through any kind of motions whatsoever. Another damn great record from Sloan, and a reminder to the modern world of how sharp and keen these four songwriters really are.
#6. Commonwealth (2014)
****
As will be inevitably mentioned later with their White Album homage, Sloan is a group very aware of its various influences and favourite artists... even if none of the four will mutually agree on a single one (that isn't Public Enemy).
KISS is a band quite beloved by Pentland, Murphy and Ferguson at the very least... and so KISS's infamous "solo" project was undoubtedly on their minds during the conception of Commonwealth. If you don't know, in 1978 each member of KISS released a full length solo album (in character as their KISS personas) with extremely varying results. Ace Frehley's is considered to be quite good, while Peter Criss' one is on the short list of worst 70s albums... (I'm not a KISS fan so I can't really judge).
Well, Sloan has the advantage of each member actually being an excellent and distinctive songwriter, so a similar solo album-type project would work far better in theory. The difference here is that instead of being four separate solo albums, each member gets half a vinyl side isolated for their own songs. This is rather unique among Sloan records, as beyond Chris Murphy dominating much of Smeared and Andrew Scott exclusively on drums for Action Pact, each album features a smattering of all four's musical output and rarely will anyone get two tracks in a row.
Jay Ferguson kicks off the enterprise and does so with a pair of Jay classics in the precisely melodic "You've Got a Lot On Your Mind" or poppy rush of "Cleopatra". Chris Murphy comes in next, and while some of his output here comes out as well-made but half-finished ideas... it all builds up to "Misty's Beside Herself", which is just so goddamn wonderful. What a gorgeous tune.
Pentland starts off the second half and is very much in "I've got one catchy riff, it's a song" mode, which works because the dude has an excellent ear for such things and his electric guitar can carry the affair. It alternates between trippy atmosphere and sheer crunchy guitar, and is probably the most consistent section of the four. To close it, Andrew Scott unleashes the longest song in Sloan canon (because of course it would be Andrew)... his collage of various little songs "48 Portraits" clocking in at over 16 minutes and jumping in all sorts of melodic directions. It's not the most accessible Sloan thing, but is fascinating as a listen and at the very least is an impressive showcase of Andrew Scott's atypical musical approach.
Commonwealth, beyond the four solo EP quirk, does what the best Sloan albums do by showcasing the unique skills of each of the four songwriters, and dividing them up in such a way really helps to display how different their styles can be. It isn't quite on par with their best output, but each member certainly shines brightly at multiple points. The cover is great too (it admittedly took me a while to spot the members).
#5. Never Hear The End of It (2006)
****1/2
In my mind, the top two Sloan albums are fairly easy to choose. Ranking the ones in the 3-5 range? Not so easy, and Never Hear The End of It is much closer to 3rd than it is to 6th.
This very much Sloan's "White Album" and deliberately so, with the exact same number of songs (30) and likewise various dives into all types of musical genres as the Beatles original.
It wasn't initially the plan, probably, but at the time of making the record Andrew Scott (more involved after his half-absence on Action Pact) only had a bunch of short snippets for songs that didn't fit together. The band embraced this concept, with each member likewise contributing a few songs barely a minute in length to compliment the fully formed tunes Murphy, Ferguson and Pentland already had.
The result is, frankly, a more consistent listen than the actual White Album. At this point in time, Sloan was such a polished band working on the same page together that they could pull off a project of this level of ambition while still retaining their signature sound throughout. The White Album is far more experimental for its time, sure, and its highs are jaw-dropping.... but so much of it plays like each Beatle individually doing their own thing, damn the others not in the room. Never Hear The End of It still plays like a Sloan record because even if the ideas were created separately, it still sounds unmistakably like them, even if its Pentland's Halifax hardcore homage in "HFXNSHC", Scott's effect heavy "Golden Eyes", Murphy's irresistibly poppy "Set In Motion" or Ferguson's piano ballad "Light Years".
While
(like the White Album) it isn't the best listen front to
back, since it moves around so much without any regard for natural flow... some of the songs on here are
just incredible. Truly among the very best this great band has ever
produced in their long history. Chris Murphy's "Fading Into Obscurity"
is just a sublime journey throughout all the various feelings the title
suggests. Jay provides a pair of killer short pop melodies in "Before The End of
The Race" and "Can't You Figure It Out", Andrew Scott's sometimes frantic vignette songs
help glue the entire haphazard album together and then Patrick Pentland... I mean,
the dude wrote and sings "Ill Placed Trust"... possibly the greatest
pure power-pop rock song I've ever goddamn heard. It's so, so damn good... a song that outdoes even their biggest most famous hit at its own game.
#4. Between The Bridges (1999)
****1/2
While Jay likes the cover a lot more than I do (not a fan of the intense gray and you can barely see the lads), Between The Bridges very much follows the vintage formula of the previous album (even the hit single does this), except the band seems a bit more self-freed to follow whatever musical rabbit hole may present itself. This results in Andrew Scott's long guitar workout "Sensory Deprivation", East Canada nod in slow building "The NS" or Chris Murphy's sappy "The Marquee and the Moon". It isn't as tight as the killer double punch of their previous two classics, but this is where each member really starts spreading their different melodic wings.
It doesn't really matter whatever the intention was (aside from "Losing California" which is obviously trying to be "Money City Maniacs The Sequel") because this is a phenomenal album. Sure, it loses some steam in the middle with Murphy's overdone "Marquee" and Jay's rather slight "Waiting For Slow Songs", but this record doesn't pull any punches when it punches. Pentland's "Friendship" is an irresistible retro guitar lick, Jay's "Take Good Care of The Poor Boy" shimmers in its caring portrayal of a fallen rock star, Andrew Scott's "Delivering Maybes" is so good he himself later reuses the melody on his long Commonwealth opus, while Chris Murphy (whose independent songs are comparatively few on this record) devotes a lot of his energy into singing fabulous backing harmonies (a trend that continues onward upon every great Sloan record).
Between The Bridges is somewhat overshadowed in the canon, considering their three releases before it are all ahead on this very list... but it's a damn fine continuation of what the band was doing so well in this era. Perhaps lacking the iconic nature and moments of those records above it, but still equal in spirit and impressive evolving skill.
#3. Twice Removed (1994)
****1/2
The infamous left turn that confused Geffen Records to the point of ditching the band, and the band (thinking this was curtains) broke up shortly after. Andrew Scott relocated to Toronto so to be with his now-wife, and the rest of the group, frustrated with the lack of support and reception their second album had gotten... all went their separate ways for a while.
It seems insane to think now, because Twice Removed is just such a rich, understated, timeless and wonderful record... but this is not what was in vogue at the time. Geffen perhaps thought they had found the Nova Scotia Nirvana, a young grungy group with an enigmatic frontman (Murphy) that understood the proper balance of noisy guitars with pop harmony. It's certainly difficult to forgive Geffen throwing this shortsighted torpedo and very nearly depriving us of so much great Sloan material beyond 1994... but none of the band members seem overtly bitter about it these days so I will follow the example.
Instead, lets talk about how damn great Twice Removed is. After the shoegaze and dreampop guitar layers dripping through Smeared... Sloan abandoned the zillion effect pedals and stripped down their sound for their sophomore LP. And boy... there's just a rich collection of vivid songwriting on here, all the more impressive considering this is the first true Sloan album wherein each member gets multiple songs. They'd only been around for three years at this point! Yowza.
Chris Murphy's presence still dominates much of it, with his cutesy opener "Penpals" and iconic "Coax Me" becoming classics amongst the fandom ("Coax Me" is still damn wicked). His "Bells On" is likewise great also, with its quiet-loud Pixies influence (without the underlying nastiness of Black Francis' sound).
Patrick Pentland really starts to shine here, finding his power pop (a term he hates) chops with the catchy "Worried Now" and his underappreciated softer side with the incredible closer "I Can Feel It"... a deceptively innocent-sounding acoustic song (sung with band-friend Jennifer Pierce, possibly the last time anyone not of the four sings a notable vocal on any Sloan song) that might be about a poisonous infatuation or just puppy dog love. It's hard to tell, and Pentland himself certainly is playfully vague about it. Whichever way you take it, it's simply marvelous in its melodic sweetness. One of their truly best songs.
Speaking of their best, Twice Removed also gives us Andrew Scott's probably best known tune: "People of The Sky", with its slowly ascending progression, abstract story and unusual structure (what's a "chorus"?). Even almost three decades later it still has a strange energy and freshness to it, like a captivating tale you know well yet still brings you enjoyment each time you revisit it. It's a song they still play live frequently and it's always fun to see the always enigmatic Chris Murphy switch onto the drums for it... the dude plays drums like he's flailing about on a busy street corner trying to catch the attention of a cab, his glasses in constant danger of distastrously falling from his nose (and Murphy himself is indeed a terrific drummer, but it looks objectively goofy to behold).
Many of the differences in their records Twice Removed onwards are fairly subtle to those not super familiar to the entire catalogue. Lots of Removed certainly doesn't sound too much like the more rockier elements of their best known stuff: there are hints of it developing here of course but there's more of a youthfulness to these songs than the polished mature pop we see on even the next record. Jay Ferguson sure as hell never wrote a song like "I Hate My Generation" ever again (unfortunate because that song also rules).
But if we're comparing these entries "as albums" instead of pivotal importance , Twice Removed has just a couple of duds (Murphy's "Shame Shame" and Scott's long "Before I Do") that don't quite go anywhere and bring the overall work a tiny step down. Skip those, and the record is nearly flawless and endlessly re-listenable. Even though this album does still sound like a 90s record because of the production, not a lot of people were making music that sounded like this in 1994 and it has helped this brilliant album age brilliantly. A true classic.
#2. Navy Blues (1998)
*****
This is one where I'm both extremely biased because of personal connections, but it also doesn't matter in this case since this album is universally regarded extremely highly in Sloan fandom. As it should be.
"Money City Maniacs" was the first Sloan song I ever heard, and I'm surely far from alone in that fact. Countless people have heard it in Canadian arenas at sporting events as "that song with the siren" and likely half of them have no clue who even plays it (a reality Jay Ferguson notes has at least "helped pay the bills" over the years).
What I will say to my own introduction is that I was about eleven, watching a lot of music videos at the time. MuchMusic used to have a weekly Top 30 (and also.... actual music) and one week in 1998 this song and video debuted somewhere in the 20s. I had no clue who they were, and the image of these nerdy looking, glasses-wearing dudes rocking out was so bizarre to my young mind... but I just loved the song instantly and still do. It's one of those "heard it 1000 times and still gets me in the good spot".
Thing is, it might be one of the weaker songs on Navy Blues. Seriously. It's a classic tune no doubt, an endlessly addictive riff and rocker (about nothing more than a practical joke), but Blues is far too impressive front to back to needlessly hide in the shadow of the band's superhit.
It's probably the most complete Sloan album, by which I mean all four members are at the top of their games and each deliver multiple standout songs in their individual canon. Pentland has gone full speed into re-interpreting 70s hard rock, with "Maniacs" and the equally stomping "Iggy and Angus" (the song Thin Lizzy forgot to write). This might be Andrew Scott's most consistent record also, as the maestro of off-beat delivers the fun "On The Horizon", the cleverly orchestrated "Sinking Ships" and the sometimes trippy "Seems So Heavy". All are great, and fit into the overall sound of the record seamlessly.
Chris Murphy is just in full-on "writing hooks" mode, with the opening "She Says What She Means" pounding that riff into your mind, the sing-along pop of "Keep On Thinkin'" and saloon-like piano of "Chester The Molester". Not to be outdone, Jay gives us the beautiful clapping pop of "We're Gonna Get It Started", one of my very favourite Sloan songs ever, and the sweet but sad farewell of "I Wanna Thank You".
I could talk about every song on here because each one deserves the attention, but one among them stands out even more. "Suppose They Close The Door" with its drastic shifts in melodic direction that shouldn't work, but do so brilliantly.... all the while being a tune lyrically contemplating the merits of revenge both bleakly and cheerfully. Just... wow. Chris Murphy and Andrew Scott share songwriting credits on this one, which is itself unusual (Murphy and Ferguson often collaborate and sing/work on each other's songs, but Andrew Scott's efforts are usually very much completely his own). One gets the sense Andrew wrote the verses while Murphy wrote the catchy but lyrically sinister chorus.
As a record, Navy Blues is just a fabulous romp through classic rock/power pop (a term the band hates I know) with fun catchy tunes drenched in great hooks and more than enough changes of pace and tone to keep the whole enterprise from becoming repetitive. Combine that with how each of the four songwriters get their own shining moments and you've got the makings of a unique rock masterwork here. While in my opinion it isn't quite their best, this is truly when Sloan hit their stride and settled into the distinctive sound and band still going strong today.
#1. One Chord To Another (1996)
*****
A musical masterpiece that swims in its obvious influences and yet takes them in its own distinct creative direction, and the whole thing very nearly was never even conceived.
After Twice Removed underwhelmed (see what I did there again), Sloan essentially broke up. Andrew Scott moved to Toronto with his eventual wife (the band still considered Halifax their homebase at the time), Chris Murphy was already touring with another band and the other members were already considering their next moves post-Sloan. They still played a few shows here and there to oblige certain commitments, but there was no appetite or intention to continue once that dried up.
The group had also been working on their own independent label, Murderecords, and eventually the idea came about to make one last Sloan record to help launch and promote it. With the pressure lowered, they found working on this album a far more positive experience than previously. That record ended up becoming One Chord To Another, and the considerable success of it both made Sloan a lasting name in the Canadian music scene and convinced the band to stay together. Thank jeebus.
The sessions were apparently very relaxed ("like we were back in control of our own career" according to Ferguson) and this shines through in the music. Where Navy Blues is a powerful rush of sound, One Chord plays through with a soft elegance... any rough edges smoothed and polished. Even the rocking opener "Good In Everyone" uses manufactured crowd noise as if to explain its rowdiness.
Front to back, the album is just loaded with prestine melodies. From Ferguson's wonderful "Junior Panthers" where the piano notes sound like they're dripping through a wooden floor, Murphy's lyrical wit in full sharpness on "Autobiography", Pentland's fabulous "Can't Face Up" or Andrew Scott's "A Sides Win", which is truly the most Beatlesque song on a album constantly compared to that term (that piano tone hopped on a time machine from Sgt Pepper).
A friend of mine argues that the closer (Andrew's "400 Meters") is what keeps this from being a perfect pop album, but I rather like "400 Meters" in its weirdness (it is very out of place I'll agree). Aside from that, this is a work that simultaneously feels retro and fresh, taking a clear 60s pop influence and making it unmistakably their own thing. A well crafted innovation that doubles as invention, and is endlessly easy to revisit. Many later Sloan albums in moments approach this level of near pop-perfection, but never surpass it. Just a marvelous, marvelous record on a melodic level that few groups have ever approached.
Before we go, I'd also be remiss to not give deserved due to the "Fifth Member" of Sloan, just to further the playful Beatles parallel here. If you've ever seen Sloan perform live in the past fifteen years, you've probably noticed a bearded fella, possibly in a sailor's hat, on stage with some keyboards (usually standing behind Jay). That would be Gregory Macdonald, who joined the band in 2006 as a touring member to play keyboard parts and sing backing vocals. Unlike the argued over famous Fifth Beatles like Billy Preston, Eric Clapton or George Martin, Macdonald doesn't seem to feature on any Sloan studio records (although he might?), but as a constant presence in their live shows for over a decade and a half... he's certainly a member of the group in some undefined spiritual fashion. He also likes to make a good caesar.
And that's Sloan. A band once primed to be the next "big thing" in the early 90s, have an undeniable superhit that almost everyone in this country has heard, and yet due to various circumstances are far from a household name, nor have they enjoyed any kind of "we can retire at any time now" type of financial success. But thirty years in they continue going strong, still put on a hell of a live show (and the crowd knows to chant "SLOOOOOOOAAAN" at just the right moments), still pump out quality rock records and are delighted to engage with the modest fanbase they do have (this is most likely Chris on the social media, for the record... he self-describes as the biggest fan of his own band, heh).
A true Canadian treasure, long may they rule.
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