Rheostatics | “Shaved Head”, “Aliens”, “Lovers in a Dangerous Time”

“Shaved Head” – Rheostatics

Rheostatics are the only band that’s seen me through the final stages of puberty, giant glasses, secret crushes, a move away from home, the burning of my high school diaries, my first relationship and fling and series thereafter, my travels, and my ultimate move here to Vancouver. I’m sure there’ll be more chapters that need their soundtrack score, but since they’ve thrown in the towel a few months ago at their final Massey Hall concert ever, I’m left to feed on nostalgia.

They were one of the first bands I’d seen live in Toronto (at the now defunct X-Rays on Queen West), and from that moment, they plunged me not only into the mid-’90s Toronto music scene but raised the bar to make me the curmudgeony judgmental music critic that I am now. They were artistically innovative and did a fantastic job at creating and fostering community within their fan base. Even fellow Canadian musicians, including ex-Barenaked Ladies’ Andy Creeggan and The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie, got in on the game.

Uniquely Canadian. Aside from those one or two American fans in the audience, I wonder if anyone outside of this country actually “gets” their stuff. Do you?

“Aliens” – Rheostatics

This was the first track I’d heard from them. Note the young Barenaked Ladies cameo at the beginning, to which they responded by inviting the Rheostatics in for their video clip cover of Bruce Cockburn’s “Lovers in a Dangerous Time”:

“Lovers in a Dangerous Time” – Barenaked Ladies