Alvvays to get Friday lunch rolling. From their 2023 appearance at the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago, July 21, 2023.
Alvvays are a Toronto-based band who have been building up a steady fanbase and word-of-mouth these past several years, ever since getting started in 2011.
Alvvays (pronounced “always”) originated in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, before heading to Toronto, Ontario. It consists of Molly Rankin (vocals and guitar), Kerri MacLellan (keyboards), Alec O’Hanley (guitars), and Sheridan Riley (drums). Their self-titled debut studio album, released in 2014, topped the US college charts. Their second studio album, Antisocialites, was released on September 8, 2017. Their third studio album, Blue Rev, was released on October 7, 2022.
Antisocialites and Blue Rev each won the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year. All three of their albums were shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize. The song “Belinda Says” from Blue Rev was nominated for Best Alternative Music Performance at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.
Alvvays’ music has been described as jangle pop by the music press and its members. According to Rankin, the band’s emphasis is primarily on strong melodies rather than for a specific genre. The band has been compared to Camera Obscura; Rankin noted she shared vocalist Tracyanne Campbell’s “fondness for the pathetic perspective.” Rankin sought inspiration from Stephin Merritt, frontman of the Magnetic Fields, appreciating the honest but lighthearted nature of his lyrics. Rankin’s personal influences include The Magnetic Fields, Teenage Fanclub, Dolly Mixture, The Smiths, Celine Dion, Pavement, The Primitives, Oasis and Australian indie-pop group The Hummingbirds. While the band does not have an overt Celtic music sound, Rankin acknowledges that she was immersed in the genre from childhood, and it has a discernible influence on the way she sings and writes melodies.
Dunno about you, but this gig has put Friday in a much better light than when it started. Alvvays are one of those bands that are just good at what they do. They’re honest and the music has heart and depth. That’s the whole shopping list in a nutshell – bookmark their site and refer to often. Stay tuned.
In the meantime . . .
