Mean Red Spiders are a Canadian

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band from

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Ontario. Their music is largely guitar-based

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

influenced by

psychedelic music Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as Dmt, DMT, Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, mescaline, ...

. The band makes extensive use of

distortion In signal processing, distortion is the alteration of the original shape (or other characteristic) of a signal. In communications and electronics it means the alteration of the waveform of an information-bearing signal, such as an audio signal ...

, digital keyboard loops, recorded voice samples, and

effects pedal An effects unit, effects processor, or effects pedal is an electronic device that alters the sound of a musical instrument or other audio source through audio signal processing. Common effects include distortion/overdrive, often used with el ...

s, creating a repeatable orchestrated

wall of sound The Wall of Sound (also called the Spector Sound) is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the conglomerate of session m ...

style with vocals. Usually categorized by some reviewers into the

shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with dream pop) is a subgenre of indie rock, indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion (music), distortion and effects, a ...

dream pop Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such ...

, or

space rock Space rock is a music genre characterized by loose and lengthy song structures centered on instrumental textures that typically produce a hypnotic, otherworldly sound. It may feature distorted and reverberation-laden guitars, minimal drummin ...

genres. This band is not to be confused with the earlier British R&B group from Ipswich, Suffolk, of the same name (1985–1993) who issued two albums, ''Nude Guitarist in Wet Lettuce Frenzy'' (1987) and ''Dark Hours'' (1991); the

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band made up of members of

The Chesterfield Kings The Chesterfield Kings are a rock band from Rochester, New York, who began as a retro '60s inspired garage band, and evoking the sounds and styles of 1960s psychedelic rock music. The current lineup features longtime members: Andy Babiuk, M ...

; or the UK outfit performing under the same name.

History

The Mean Red Spiders formed in Toronto in September 1993. The original members were lead vocalist Greg Chambers, guitarist David Humphreys, drummer Don Goldrick, who named the band, and bassist Nick Andrews. They began performing in clubs and bars in Toronto. Andrews left the band soon after, and Lisa Nighswander joined to play bass and sing. In 1995, drummer Goldrick left the band, and after a few shows with Paul Boddum, Adam Rosen was hired as a replacement. That year they self-released a tape, ''El Diabolo''. The album ''Places You Call Home'' was co-produced by Dave Newfeld with Mean Red Spiders. It was recorded in 1997 and 1998 in the basement of a rental house at Bathurst and Lawrence, and combined with some bass, guitar and drum tracks recorded by Al Forte in 1996. The album was released in 1998 by Teenage USA, and included Minesh Mandoda on keyboards, guitars, and loops. In 2000 the band released ''Starsandsons''; this album was recorded and produced by Newfeld at Stars and Sons Studio located in

Chinatown, Toronto Chinatown, Toronto (also known as Downtown Chinatown or West Chinatown) is a Chinese ethnic enclave located in the city's downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is centred at the intersections of Spadina Avenue and Dundas Street West. The ...

. In 2001 the band toured in the eastern USA. Humphreys left the band, and guitarist Rob Boak (of Interstellar) joined, contributing three songs to the album ''Still Life Fast Moving'' and touring with the band in 2002. Jeff McMurrich recorded and co-produced this album in his studio at Dupont and Spadina and in the band's Pod Studio. At the time of the album's release in January 2003, Mean Red Spiders personnel were Boak, Rosen, Mandoda, Nighswander, and Chambers. Boak left the band early in 2003 and Dave Rodgers (of Neck/Christiana) joined. Humphreys later rejoined the band in 2007. Mean Red Spiders continue to record and release material, while also playing in Ghostlight, a free-form improvisational collective featuring members of Mean Red Spiders along with James Anderson and Scott Cameron.

Other band members

Other musicians that have been in MRS include: *Martin (vocals on ''El Diabolo''s

Devo Devo is an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs ( Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a No. 14 ...

cover "Mongoloid") *Leanne Davies - Drums (of Amor de Cosmos/Mason Hornet) *Jim Bravo - Drums (of Jim Bravo & the Beethoven Frieze) *Antony Seabourg - Drums

Discography

*''El Diabolo'' (1995) *''Places You Call Home'' (1998, Teenage USA) *''Starsandsons'' (2000, Teenage USA) *''Still Life Fast Moving'' (2003, Clairecords)"Mean Red Spiders Still Life Fast Moving"
''Exclaim!'', By Craig Dunsmuir Jan 01, 2006 *''I Am the Sea'' (2014, self-released)

References

External links

New Music Canada: Mean Red Spiders profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mean Red Spiders Musical groups established in 1993 Musical groups from Toronto Canadian alternative rock groups 1993 establishments in Ontario