Top tracks
Listeners also bought
Other Post-Rock/Experimental albums
Other College Rock albums
Put your hands on the remote! browse music »Ambiguoso by Parlour Steps
view larger image
fave it Post-Rock/Experimental | College Rock
12 tracks | 49 minutes
Released Jul 2007
on Figment Music
Click
for a 30-second preview. All tracks are 192kbps high fidelity sound quality. Protected WMA $0.77 or unprotected MP3 $0.88.
listen album 30sec. shuffle buy CD review album promote album
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:01 Only Mystery lyrics BUY MP3 04:01 Only Mystery lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:01 Only Mystery
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 03:40 Hot Romance lyrics BUY MP3 03:40 Hot Romance lyrics "GIFT MP3" 03:40 Hot Romance
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:29 World As Large lyrics BUY MP3 04:29 World As Large lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:29 World As Large
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:11 What the Lonely Say lyrics BUY MP3 04:11 What the Lonely Say lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:11 What the Lonely Say
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 03:00 The Garden lyrics BUY MP3 03:00 The Garden lyrics "GIFT MP3" 03:00 The Garden
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 05:41 Gargoyles Passion lyrics BUY MP3 05:41 Gargoyles Passion lyrics "GIFT MP3" 05:41 Gargoyles Passion
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 03:16 Thieves of Memory lyrics FREE 03:16 Thieves of Memory lyrics "GIFT MP3" 03:16 Thieves of Memory
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:14 The City You'd Move To lyrics BUY MP3 04:14 The City You'd Move To lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:14 The City You'd Move To
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:32 Haunt the Park lyrics BUY MP3 04:32 Haunt the Park lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:32 Haunt the Park
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 03:07 There But For the Grace lyrics BUY MP3 03:07 There But For the Grace lyrics "GIFT MP3" 03:07 There But For the Grace
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 03:57 Blazing Light lyrics BUY MP3 03:57 Blazing Light lyrics "GIFT MP3" 03:57 Blazing Light
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 05:34 A Pagan and a Cook lyrics BUY MP3 05:34 A Pagan and a Cook lyrics "GIFT MP3" 05:34 A Pagan and a Cook
Art rock intent on making you move set to words intent on making you think.
Bio / Background
Parlour Steps are creating something new: Thought-Rock! This is art-damaged beauty, music that is both stormy and playful; reflective of their west coast Canadian home of Vancouver. Within the modern, popular landscape, influence is drawn from emotional rockers Arcade Fire and Pixies, combined with the lyrical elements of Sufjan Stevens and Tom Waits. Unafraid of asking big questions and taking musical risks, the world is taking notice of this exceptional band.
“Thieves of Memory” has been chosen from over 15,000 entrants as a winner in the world renowned International Songwriting Competition (http://www.songwritingcompetition.com/winners.htm), placing Parlour Steps, and in particular chief songwriter Caleb Stull, in the international spotlight.
“Thieves of Memory” can be heard on the Adidas Website.
“Thieves of Memory” was just released internationally on the Sonicbids Listen Vol. 2 Compilation (http://www.sonicbids.
↓ more ↓com/parloursteps), raising money for hurricane relief as well as showcasing some of North America’s best independent talent.
They can be heard on the Canadian television drama “ Whistler”, now syndicated in the U.S.
Parlour Steps have released their fourth full-length record “Ambiguoso” , distributed nationally by Scratch Records (http://www.scratchrecords.com). Radio play, podcasts, and web-streaming have launched the band’s music to listeners across the continent. CBC, college, and university radio play, in Canada and the U.S., has seen Parlour Steps charted in the top fifty played and requested artists in their format
The band is comprised of Caleb Stull singing and playing his guitars, Julie Bavalis singing and playing her bass guitar, Rees Haynes playing guitars, and Robert Linton banging his drums.
2007 is seeing Parlour Steps touring Canada and the U.S. in support of their new record, furiously playing to all open ears. See their website for live dates in your area.
Someone else's words:
Mason Wright, National Post
Published: Friday, June 29, 2007
If the prospect of something called "thought rock" seems slightly dull or too intellectual to be any fun, let Parlour Steps drummer Rob Linton set things straight.
"Even though it's cerebral, it's also very optimistic, which is one of the things I love about the group," Linton says from the driver's seat of the band's rental van on the way to a gig in Hamilton. "There's a uniqueness to the songs that I really enjoy. It's probably very common to hear people describe their own music like that, but consider that as somebody describing Caleb's songwriting."
"Thought rock" is the term frontman Caleb Stull has coined for his band's unique brand of melodic, textured music, a style that has them gaining notoriety in their native Vancouver and embarking on their first tour of central Canada this week.
"Thought rock comes from wanting to engage people in some sort of hypothetical conversation," says Stull, also the band's primary songwriter. "I find myself really distilling lots of cultural stuff and social stuff into trying to find the basics of what we are and who we are to each other."
From that lyrical foundation, Parlour Steps -- made up of Stull, Linton, guitarist Rees Haynes and bassist/vocalist Julie Bavalis -- craft upbeat, soulful songs characterized by vocal harmonies and carefree guitar riffs.
"This is the cool dichotomy of the band: From that cerebral, very mental place of the lyrics, we work on songs on a much more intrinsic level," Stull says.
Parlour Steps' fourth independently recorded album, Ambiguoso, finds them taking a more straight-ahead approach to songwriting and has the rare quality of featuring both kinds of songs: those that grab the ear right away and those that grow on the listener, revealing themselves little by little.
Ambiguoso's signature track, Thieves of Memory, fits neatly into the first category, having beaten out more than 15,000 other entries to win a 2005 International Songwriting Competition award. Though careful to qualify the importance of winning such an award, the band recognizes its benefits.
"It was really bragging rights," Stull explains. "People see that in our bio, and it's nice. It kind of sticks out. Journalists see it and say, 'Oh, they actually popped out for a moment above the bubbling din of everything else.' "
With a solid fan base back home, the next logical step was to tour the country's most populated region, a decision that has taken the band to Hamilton, Toronto, Windsor, and Ottawa in the past week, with gigs in Montreal last night and another in Toronto tonight.
"It's a foot in the door," Linton says. "We need to be heard somewhere outside of Vancouver."
"As much as we in the West hate to admit it," Stull adds, "the Toronto-Montreal area is sort of the cultural centre of Canada, so to not play here would be kind of ridiculous. We want to come out here and play a little bit to some new audiences."
And as part-time musicians who hold down day jobs, there's an element of escapism involved as well.
"I call this my ego trip," Haynes says, "because I get to go take a break from my regular job and be a rock star for 10 days."
"A rock star who sleeps on floors and loads his own gear, but a rock star nonetheless," Stull adds with a laugh.
-Parlour Steps play tonight at Ciao Edie, 489 College St., Toronto.
mwright@nationalpost.com
© National Post 2007
↑ less ↑





