Album Notes

“The music industry has completely forgotten that people want to be entertained and that’s what SLAVE to the SQUAREwave does.”
- Montreal Music Scene

Picture Devo. Now picture Devo, but with David Bowie as the singer. Now picture Devo with Bowie, but they’re all sporting Talking Heads suits and influences. Now picture a squarehead…and you might just begin to get the feel for the music of Toronto’s SLAVE to the SQUAREwave.

Brought together in 1999 at a rave, where singer Colin Troy and keyboardist Rob Stuart were each playing solo sets, SLAVE to the SQUAREwave was born out of a mutual admiration for the bands mentioned above…… a penchant for fat, funky bass lines…. that infectious retro dance beat and a flare for the dramatic on stage. Made complete through the addition of Andrew Starr (guitar) and Doug Lea (drums), mere words cannot describe the experience of their energetic live shows, where Troy easily takes the title of the most riveting front man to emerge in recent years!

The band’s incredible live show did not go unnoticed among judges of the 2003 Emergenza contest in Canada, who voted SLAVE to the SQUAREwave the best band in this country from over 350 contestants. Playing at the world Emergenza finals in Germany was the highlight for the band that year, where they performed for thousands of cheering fans. And speaking of cheers, the staff at Club Soda in Montreal, where SLAVE to the SQUAREwave opened for new wave legends The Fixx, said, “This is only the second time in 5 years that the opening act has received a standing ovation”.

2004 saw the band tour Florida twice; playing during the March break festivities in Boca Ratan, Ft. Lauderdale, Hollywood and Orlando, plus a three day stint in June at the Parliament House in Orlando. With a unique, clever, original mix of ‘80’s electro-pop and driving drum beats, SLAVE to the SQUAREwave also garnered the attention of one Howard Stern in the “Restless Restless” songwriting Contest on his American syndicated radio show. Placing in the top 30, Stern said “I would love to see these guys play live”.

Iconic Canadian DJ Dave Marsden remarked “SLAVE is better than Scissor Sisters” and called SLAVE to the SQUAREwave “The best band of 2006”. Several of SLAVE’s songs have been in steady rotation on 94.9 The Rock and on www.pulverradio.com. “Pumpin’ Up the “P” House” was heard in the long running TV series Degrassi: The Next Generation and Fashion Television, shown in over 70 countries worldwide, has placed several SLAVE to the SQUAREwave songs in its shows, finding a perfect balance of dance, funk, melody and upbeat rhythm for its audiences.The “P” House” track has recently been remixed by Toronto DJ’s Soundbluntz and is destined to become a national club hit!
Meanwhile the title track has also been remixed and serviced to alt rock and pop radio across Canada.

SLAVE to the SQUAREwave are set to release their major label debut, entitled “BIG CHANGE”. “Lyrically, this album is about post university graduate blues”, states singer Troy. “The album was written about the frustration of the middle class. It’s about human beings being eaten alive in suburbia … and about sex too !”

SLAVE to the SQUAREwave recently signed with Toronto’s newest indie record label Sparks Music.Sparks was created in early 2007 by major label veteran Larry Macrae and well known artist manager,promoter and marketer Jeff Rogers.They have joined forces with Andy Crosbie and Angus MacKay who owned and operated Ready Records,once home to Spoons,Blue Peter and the Demics.Sparks is housed within the offices of Sparks Productions[a commercial television production company] in downtown Toronto.