New to my radar, Toronto alternative rock act Call the Wolf just released a video for their single “Black Moon” last month.
Alternative rock may be a broad term to describe a band but it’s only for lack of being able to pinpoint a sub genre. When I first heard this band I heard influences of everything from Thrice to Linkin Park and Deftones.
There is certainly a post hardcore element to the band, blending clean and unclean vocals seamlessly.
Those comparisons were only from my first initial listen to the single. Once I sat and listened to the album as a whole I noticed how clean it was.
Their self titled debut album was mixed by Sam Pura (State Champs, The Story So Far, The Dangerous Summer) and he definitely deserves credit for how great this LP sounds.
With such a myriad of obvious influences, I thought it was more than appropriate to have Call the Wolf talk about their Top 10 favorite albums.
Preston’s Picks
The Misfits- Walk Among Us
“Walk Among Us is The Misfits first full length album. Every song is a classic, and the themes of horror and sci-fi in the lyrics were bizarrely relatable to me as a kid because I just loved movies and comics. My older brother had the Danzig 1 record, so I was already familiar with The Misfits. I always thought the images in the magazines were ridiculous because they really didn’t need the gimmick, you know? The songs were amazing on their own. Walk Among Us is the perfect introduction to The Misfits, but anything post Danzig isn’t for me.”
Bad Brains- Rock For Light
“When I was a kid I found a cassette mixtape on the sidewalk. On one side was Bad Brains Rock For Light, and at the time grunge was huge and I was listening to all the Seattle stuff. Randomly finding Bad Brains was a revelation. To this day, the intro to “Big Takeover” gets me so stoked. I realized when the album got to “Sailin’ On” that I had previously heard that song on college radio and that Rick Ocasek from The Cars produced this utter classic. Every song is a perfect representation of the band, just so much energy. It got that PMA!”
Black Flag- Damaged
” The same mixtape I found with Bad Brains (obviously) had a second side. It was labelled Black Flag Damaged. I already knew all about Black Flag as I was already listening to Rollins Band, but this was a front to back brutal, angry, hardcore record. Rollins actually always scared me as a kid. Hearing Damaged, I was now fully terrified. When “Rise Above” played, I knew it immediately from college radio, but when “TV Party” came on, I finally put everything together. The radio show I was listening to was called “Saturday Night TV Party”, and I later found out my neighbour Dave was the host. That was definitely his tape. Thanks Dave!”
Green Day- Dookie
” I already owned 39/Smooth. I bought it from an indie music display at a skateshop in Saskatoon called Duna’s. It was conveniently displayed beside the florescent hair dyes and hacky sacks, to complete your full 90s skate-cred. I was just learning guitar and loved how easy the songs were to pick up. A month later Dookie came out, along with the “Longview” video, which was the perfect song for a teenage kid from a prairie city. I was also able to watch them on TV for Woodstock 94, which was definitely the most memorable part of that whole concert. Despite getting pelted with mud and grass, they owned that stage like superheroes. Dookie still holds up on modern rock radio with classics like “Basket Case”, “She”, and “When I Come Around”. There’s a real sweetness to this record. Just honest and vulnerable songs from a band on the verge of superstardom.”
Andrew’s Picks
Sum 41- Does This Look Infected?
“My parents took me to see Sum 41 in Ottawa while they were touring this DTLI, my first real, big concert. I was front row center against the barricade, that show changed my life. This album is perfect front to back. “The Hell Song”, “Over My Head”, “Still Waiting” and “Hyper Insomnia” are my stand out tracks. Great hometown band.”
Blink-182- Enema of the State
“I love this album because it was everything you felt as a teenager who skateboarded, played in bands, and wasn’t necessarily very “cool”. Also, Travis Barker’s first album with the band, which is when I learned how to play punk beats. Stand out tracks for me are “Going Away to College”, “Adam’s Song” and “Anthem”.
Protest the Hero- Kezia
“This album lit a fire in me to be a better drummer and even guitarist. The musicianship on this album blew my mind, especially by teenagers. A concept album that builds and builds and offers moments of serene melody in all the right places. If you like shedding, aggressive drums and operatic punk vocals Kezia delivers. I highly recommend “Blindfolds Aside”, “Nautical”, and a “A Plateful Of…”
Chris’ Picks
Elliott Smith- Either/Or
“I listened to this for about 6 months straight after I first heard it. The chord structures, arrangements, and melodies are still as heavy to me now as they were when I first heard it. The songwriting is just incredible.”
Converge- You Fail Me
” Amazing musicianship, writing, and this record is my favorite lyrically. Jacob Bannon’s lyrics, especially on “Last Light” are just devastating. The production, engineering and guitar tones are awesome as well, and the rhythm section is insane,”
Matthew Good Band- Underdogs
“Matt Good is my favorite Canadian songwriter. The lyrics, the tones, the melodies…all incredible. The musicianship is great and the arrangements are excellent, and the lyrics “say” a little more than other radio rock did at the time.”
Check out Call the Wolf’s newest video for “Black Moon”