The Rural Alberta Advantage is a Canadian indie rock band that formed in 2005 in Toronto, Ontario. The band consists of Nils Edenloff on lead vocals and guitar, Amy Cole (Robin Hatch between September 2016 and January 2018) on keyboards, bass, and backing vocals, and Paul Banwatt on drums.[1] They have released five albums and are signed to Paper Bag Records in Canada and Saddle Creek Records internationally. In 2011, they were nominated for a Polaris Music Prize.
The Rural Alberta Advantage | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | Indie rock |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Labels | |
| Members | Amy Cole Nils Edenloff Paul Banwatt |
| Past members | Robin Hatch |
| Website | theraa |
History
editThe Rural Alberta Advantage was formed after the band members met while organizing an open-mic event at The Winchester in Cabbagetown.[2] The band's name was coined by Edenloff's brother, when he wrote in an e-mail to Edenloff that he was planning to explore "the rural Alberta advantage" by spending some time back on the family farm near Donalda, Alberta where they had spent part of their childhoods.[3]
First formed in 2005, the band recorded a demo tape and released an EP independently before completing their first full-length album, Hometowns, in early 2008. Hometowns was recorded and produced from April 2007 to March 2008 by Roger Leavens at BoomBox Sound in Toronto, Ontario. The band toured extensively across Canada, including shows at the Pop Montreal and Halifax Pop Explosion festivals, to support Hometowns.
The band was selected as eMusic's featured artist of the month for November 2008.[4] The band subsequently signed to Saddle Creek Records in 2009, and Hometowns was re-released by the label in July.[5] The band was also selected as the X3 Artist of the month by Aux.tv, CBC Radio 3 and Exclaim! for July 2009.
Their second LP, Departing, was released on March 1, 2011.[6] The album was named as a longlisted nominee for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize.[7]
Their third album Mended with Gold was released on September 30, 2014. In the fall of 2014, Mended with Gold was featured on NPR's All Songs Considered list for the top albums of September.[8]
On September 12, 2016 Amy Cole announced her departure from the group via the band's website. On September 18, the band announced a new tour with keyboard, bass pedal and backup vocals being supplied by Robin Hatch. On November 7, the band announced that their fourth studio album is forthcoming.
Their fourth studio album The Wild was released on October 13, 2017. Its lead track "Beacon Hill" was inspired by the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires.[9]
In January 2018, the band announced that Cole had rejoined their lineup.[10]
On March 31, 2022, their second EP The Rise was released with six songs.[11]
To build up anticipation for their 2023 tour, the single Plague Dogs was released on January 31, 2023.[12]
Discography
editAlbums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN [13] |
US Heat [14] |
US Indie [15] | |||||||||||||||
| Hometowns |
|
— | 49 | — | |||||||||||||
| Departing |
|
— | 4 | 30 | |||||||||||||
| Mended with Gold |
|
— | 8 | 38 | |||||||||||||
| The Wild |
|
68 | — | — | |||||||||||||
| The Rise & The Fall [16] |
|
TBD | TBD | TBD | |||||||||||||
| "—" denotes album that did not chart or was not released | |||||||||||||||||
EPs
edit- The Rural Alberta Advantage EP (2006)
- The Rise (2022) - Label: Saddle Creek [17]
Singles
edit| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN Rock [18] |
US Sales [19] | ||||||||
| 2009 | "Frank, AB (Remix)" / "The Deadroads" | — | — | Hometowns | |||||
| 2010 | "Drain the Blood" | — | 50 | ||||||
| 2011 | "Tornado '87" | 45 | — | Departing | |||||
| "Stamp" | — | — | |||||||
| 2014 | "Terrified" | 40 | — | Mended with Gold | |||||
| 2016 | "White Lights" | 36 | — | The Wild | |||||
| 2017 | "Beacon Hill" | — | — | ||||||
| "Brother" | 31 | — | |||||||
| 2018 | "Bad Luck Again" | 34 | — | ||||||
| 2022 | "Candu" / "AB Bride" | 33 | — | The Rise | |||||
| 2023 | "Plague Dogs" | 37 | — | The Rise & The Fall [16] | |||||
| 2023 | "Conductors" | The Rise & The Fall [16] | |||||||
| "—" denotes single that did not chart or was not released | |||||||||
Compilations
edit- Friends in Bellwoods (2007): "The Air"
- Friends in Bellwoods II (2009): "Rough and Tumble" (early version of "Barnes' Yard" from Departing)
Music Videos
edit- Vulcan, AB (2014) - Mended with Gold
- Not Love or Death (2015) - Mended with Gold
- Brother (2017) - The Wild
- Bad Luck Again (2018) - The Wild
- 3 Sisters (2022) - The Rise EP
- Plague Dogs (2023) - The Rise & The Fall
References
edit- ^ "Advantage: Team Rural Alberta", eye weekly, archived from the original on May 22, 2011, retrieved March 3, 2021
- ^ The Rural Alberta Advantage, Wavelength, archived from the original on March 4, 2016, retrieved March 3, 2021
- ^ http://exclaim.ca/Music/article/rural_alberta_advantages_prairie_home_companion "Rural Alberta Advantage's Prairie Home Companion"]. Exclaim!, June 23, 2009.
- ^ "US Archives - Wondering Sound". emusic.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2010.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage Sign with Saddle Creek". Exclaim!, May 1, 2009.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage reveal new album, ‘Departing’" Archived 2011-01-27 at the Wayback Machine. aux.tv, December 6, 2010.
- ^ "2011 Polaris Music Prize Long List announced" Archived 2015-10-02 at the Wayback Machine. aux.tv, June 16, 2011.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage Announce 'Mended with Gold,' Premiere New Track". Exclaim!, July 8, 2014
- ^ "News « The Rural Alberta Advantage". www.theraa.com. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
- ^ "Amy Cole Rejoins Rural Alberta Advantage | Indie88". 24 January 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
- ^ Megan LaPierre (31 March 2022). "The Rural Alberta Advantage Take Their Percussive Indie Rock to New Heights on 'The Rise' | Exclaim!". exclaim.ca. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage release new song, "Plague Dogs"". www.sonicradio.ca. Jan 31, 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage – Canadian Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage - Billboard Heatseekers". Billboard.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage - Billboard Independent". Billboard.
- ^ a b c "The Rural Alberta Advantage Announce New Album, Share "Conductors": Listen". Stereogum. 2023-09-06. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage Release New \\\'The Rise\\\' EP: Listen". Stereogum. 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
- ^ "The Rural Alberta Advantage – Canada Rock". Billboard. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
- ^ "Billboard.biz". billboard.com. Retrieved 3 January 2017.