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Sloan (band)

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Sloan

Sloan is a power pop quartet from Halifax, Nova Scotia. The band was formed in 1991 when Chris Murphy and Andrew Scott met at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD) in Halifax; Patrick Pentland and Jay Ferguson joined soon after. In 1992 the band created their own record label, Murderecords, for themselves and other Halifax area bands, and released the Peppermint EP. Later in 1992 they released their full-length album Smeared on Geffen Records.

Name

According to Sloan's official website[1], the band's name refers to a friend's nickname. Their friend Jason Larsen was called "slow one" by his French-speaking boss, which with the French accent sounded more like "Sloan". The original agreement was that they could name the band after their friend's nickname as long as he was on the cover of their first album. As a result, it is Larsen who appears on the cover of Sloan's Peppermint EP.

Geffen

In 1994 Geffen did not promote Sloan's second album, Twice Removed, due to artistic disputes[2], although it sold well in Canada. Spin named it one of the "Best Albums You Didn't Hear" in 1994. A 1996 reader poll by Canadian music magazine Chart! ranked it as the best Canadian album of all time, only two years after its release.[3] The same poll in 2000 ranked the album third, behind Joni Mitchell's Blue and Neil Young's Harvest.[4] However, in the 2005 poll once again ranked the album first, dispelling doubts that the 1996 vote was premature and overzealous.[2]

After being dropped from the Geffen roster, the band went on hiatus and were rumoured to have broken up, but in 1996 they released the widely praised One Chord to Another on their own Murderecords label. They continue to release albums, including 1999's live album 4 Nights at the Palais Royale. In 2006, they released their eighth disc, Never Hear the End of It, which contained 30 tracks, all on a single CD. Their latest US record deal is with Yep Roc Records.

Songwriting

Sloan performing at the Sudbury Summerfest 2007 in Sudbury, Ontario

All four members of Sloan write their own songs, and when they play live they switch instruments accordingly. Usually the band performs as follows: Murphy is on lead vocals and plays bass, Pentland is also on lead vocals and plays lead guitar, Ferguson plays rhythm guitar, and Scott plays drums.

While Murphy has written an overall majority of the band's songs, Pentland is nonetheless responsible for having written many of Sloan's most recognizable hits. Perhaps more noteworthy, however, is the fact that every member of the group has contributed at least two songs per album, with only the following exceptions: On 1992's debut LP, Smeared, Scott and Pentland are credited with just one song each, while on 2003's Action Pact, Scott has no songs, for according to Eye Weekly, that album's producer, Tom Rothrock, essentially randomly selected tracks out of the band's submissions in the interest of creating a more streamlined sound. Scott's songwriting output at that time may also have been somewhat diminished because he had recently become a father[5].

A Sides Win: Singles 1992–2005

Main article: A Sides Win: Singles 1992-2005

A Sides Win: Singles 1992-2005, including two new songs, "All Used Up" and "Try to Make It", was released on May 3, 2005. The package includes a DVD featuring music videos and live performances for each of the compilation's songs, including documentary footage of the videos' making.

Never Hear the End of It

Main article: Never Hear the End of It

Never Hear the End of It was released on September 19, 2006. All the members of the band have contributed on this album. The first single "Who Taught You To Live Like That?" was released July 18, 2006. The second single released is "Ill Placed Trust". The band filmed a video for "I've Gotta Try" in Los Angeles in January 2007, and the song will presumably be the album's third single.[6]

Discography

Sloan performing at the Sudbury Summerfest 2007 in Sudbury, Ontario

Studio albums

Live albums

Guest appearances

(features a cover of Dion's "Little Diane" featuring Andrew, Patrick and Chris of Sloan)

Honours and awards

Twice Removed was named the best Canadian album ever recorded in a 1996 reader poll by Chart! magazine.[3] In the 2000 poll, the album was voted third,[4] but in the 2005 poll it once again ranked first.[2]

Juno Awards

East Coast Music Awards

  • 1993: Nominated – Album of the Year (Smeared), Entertainer of the Year, Pop Rock Recording of the Year, Song of the Year ("Underwhelmed"), Video of the Year ("Underwhelmed")
  • 1996: Won – Alternative Recording of the Year
    • Nominated – Pop Rock Recording of the Year, Video of the Year ("People of the Sky")
  • 1997: Won – Alternative Recording of the Year, Group of the Year
    • Nominated – Pop Rock Recording of the Year
  • 1998: Nominated – Single of the Year ("Everything You've Done Wrong"), Video of the Year ("Everything You've Done Wrong")
  • 1999: Nominated – Group of the Year, Video of the Year ("Money City Maniacs")
  • 2001: Nominated – Group of the Year
  • 2002: Won – Video of the Year ("If It Feels Good Do It")
    • Nominated – Album of the Year (Pretty Together), Entertainer of the Year, Group of the Year, Rock Recording of the Year, Songwriter of the Year ("If It Feels Good Do It")

References

  1. ^ "Fan F.A.Q. - Top 10 Questions (Aug 2000)". Retrieved 2006-07-28.
  2. ^ a b c ChartAttack.com: Sloan's Twice Removed Named Top Canadian Album Of All Time (2005)
  3. ^ a b ChartAttack.com: Top 100 Albums Of All Time (1996)
  4. ^ a b ChartAttack.com: Top 50 Albums Of All Time (2000)
  5. ^ "Sloan finds focus with new producer". Eye Weekly. Retrieved 2006-07-28.
  6. ^ "Sloan | Bowery Ballroom | 1.18.2007". Sound Bites. 2007-01-19. Retrieved 2007-01-25. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
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