King Cobb Steelie
Template:Short description Template:Infobox musical artist
King Cobb Steelie is a Canadian indie rock band formed in 1991 from Guelph, Ontario,<ref name=dropd>"Sonuvafreakin' Eh!". Dropd, Review by Darren Kerr of July 18, 1997 concert in Vancouver.</ref> and later based in Toronto.<ref name="Inc.2001">Template:Cite book</ref> The band's most successful single was 1997's "Rational",<ref name="Inc.1997">Template:Cite magazine</ref> from the album Junior Relaxer. Their music fuses elements of punk, grunge,<ref name="ReferenceA">Barclay, Michael; Schneider, Jason; Jack, Ian. Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance, 1985-1995. ECW Press, 2011</ref> funk, jazz, and dance. The core of the band is singer/songwriter Kevan Byrne and bassist Kevin Lynn. A variety of other collaborators, including Sam Cino, Al Okada, Gary Dutch, Geoff Walton, Steve Clarkson, Mike Armstrong, Nathan Lawr, Don Pyle, and Michelle McAdorey, have contributed to individual albums.
History
In 1993, the band, named for a special kind of toy marble, released its self-titled album, which fused progressive rock with dubstep sampling.<ref name="Inc.2001" /> In 1994, the band was signed to the EMI label, and released the followup album Project Twinkle.<ref name="Inc.1994">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The album received a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 1995.<ref>"Juno nominations". Hamilton Spectator, February 9, 1995.</ref>
Following Project Twinkle, the band also performed a number of improvisational shows under the pseudonym Junior Relaxer, which would become the title of their third album in 1997.<ref>Nick Krewen, "Off in a different direction: King Cobb Steelie explores new musical possibilities on their new CD Junior Relaxer". Waterloo Region Record, April 9, 1997.</ref> The album's lead single, "Rational", was the band's biggest hit,<ref>Bruce Mowat, "Lending an ear to King Cobb Steelie". Hamilton Spectator, May 1, 1997.</ref> and garnered the band a MuchMusic Video Award nomination for Best Video at the 1997 MMVAs.<ref>"MuchMusic nabs Bush, Blur for video awards show". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, August 25, 1997.</ref>
In 1999, as Junior Relaxer, the band gave a number of performances at Rancho Relaxo in Toronto.<ref>Howard Druckman, Template:Usurped. Chart Attack.</ref>
Percussionist Robin Easton participated as drummer 14 in the Boredoms 77 Boadrum performance which occurred on July 7, 2007, at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, New York.<ref name="BarclaySchneider2011">Template:Cite book</ref> That year King Cobb Steelie released an album, Destroy All Codes.<ref>Sean Flinn, "King Cobb Steelie Destroy All Codes". The Coast, December 6, 2007.</ref>
After several years of only occasional activity, the band played a 20th anniversary benefit show at Lee's Palace in Toronto, Ontario, on April 16, 2011, with proceeds going towards Ontario Hands & Voices, an organisation dedicated to supporting families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the fall of 2012,<ref>"King Cobb Steelie remains current". Waterloo Record, 2012-12-13 Michael Barclay</ref> the band re-released Project Twinkle on Pheromone Recordings and performed the album live in its entirety at the Horseshoe Tavern and at Van Gogh's Ear in Guelph as part of the Stay Out Of The Mall XI festival.<ref>Alex Hudson, "King Cobb Steelie to Perform 'Project Twinkle' in Full on Canadian Dates". Exclaim!, November 20, 2012.</ref>
On December 12, 2013, King Cobb Steelie released Goodbye Arcadia, a four-track EP. This was their first new material in nine years. That year they performed a concert in Toronto as part of the Long Winter concert series.<ref>Joshua Kloke, ". Exclaim!, November 09, 2013.</ref>
In April 2022, member Mike Armstrong died from a cardiac event.<ref>Alex Hudson, "R.I.P. Michael Armstrong of King Cobb Steelie and Change of Heart". Exclaim!, April 20, 2022.</ref>
Discography
- One's a Heifer b/w Duotang (1991)
- King Cobb Steelie (1993)
- Project Twinkle (1994)
- Junior Relaxer (1997)
- Mayday (2000)<ref>"10 Albums That Are Perfect For A Rainy Day!!!". Bloody Disgusting, By Jonathan Barkan on August 28, 2013</ref>
- Destroy All Codes (2004)
- Goodbye Arcadia EP (2013)
See also
- Music of Canada
- Canadian rock
- List of Canadian musicians
- List of bands from Canada
- Category:Canadian musical groups