Said the Whale (BC)
Vancouver’s Said The Whale has been on a steady upward trajectory for the past six years, as relentless touring and a prolific string of releases have led to successes including a JUNO Award in 2011 for New Group of the Year and nationally charting singles. In 2013, the tireless five-piece — which includes dual songwriters Tyler Bancroft and Ben Worcester, drummer Spencer Schoening, keyboardist Jaycelyn Brown and bassist Nathan Shaw — will continue to break down doors by releasing its most adventurous and hook-filled batch of songs yet.
The band formed in early 2007 and, following some early EPs, released the debut-full length Howe Sounds/Taking Abalonia in 2008. Said The Whale began to amass a grassroots following through frequent tours, and they scored a string of Canadian radio successes with the albums Islands Disappear (2009) and Little Mountain (2012). In keeping with this inexhaustible work ethic, the band released another new collection of songs in the form of the four-song I Love You EP, in June of 2013.
The new material was penned in a surge of creativity that found Bancroft and Worcester letting their guard down and following their instincts. “My songs on this album are the most vulnerable songs I’ve ever written,” notes Bancroft. “Lyrically it’s the most honest I’ve ever been.”
I Love You EP is the sound of a band already on the top of its game breaking free from all expectations and boldly reinventing its identity. And with a new full-length close behind, expect to see more new sides to Said The Whale soon.
