Money City Maniacs

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 7, 2005 9:07PM

Color Chicagoist confused when a band has the licks, the looks and the undeniable talent but remains largely ignored. Okay, when talking about Sloan it’s unfair to say they’re largely ignored, since they’re superstars in Canada. Oh wait. Canada. Okay, it’s fair to say they’re largely ignored.

We discovered the boys from Nova Scotia a few years ago when some friends opened for them on their One Chord To Another tour and we instantly fell in love. Little did we know that this was a reunion tour of sorts for Sloan since the band had briefly broken up after a short stint on Geffen records as a shoegazing grunge group earlier in the ‘90s. They had recently regrouped and now inhabited a wonderland located half-way between ‘60s pop and ‘70s swagger where every riff is killer and every harmony is sweet. They’re actually probably one of the most perfect pop bands to ever exist so it’s a shame they’ve never really caught on in America. Well, in any of the Americas south of Canada.

This hasn’t stopped them from releasing a greatest hits album and embarking on a “greatest hits” tour though. Chicagoist again applauds the pluck of the underdog and gives a standing ovation to Sloan as they pull into Chicago this evening to rock out with their collective Canadian cocks out at Double Door. This is a terrific chance to catch them since their set-list is sure to be heavily weighted with all killer and no filler and the evening is guaranteed to be a solid example of their spazztastic live show. Did we mention that the band has a tendency to switch around the instruments on-stage whilst playing as well? Awesome.

Word on the street also intimates that Chicagoist might just be at tonight’s show providing musical diversions from the soundbooth in the form of DJ sets before the show and in-between the band’s sets. Don't worry though, Sloan will more than make up for any musical mistakes we might make.