Alexisonfire

When a band names themselves after the world’s only lactating contortionist, you know you are in for something different; and as with the original act, you know that some people are going to be fascinated, some will be in awe, and some will consider the whole lot to be a complete and utter waste of time. This is a band of extremes: screaming and pleading, ugly and beautiful, poetic and obscene, obvious and sublime. You can think of them however you want. That is after all, the point.

Alexisonfire rose up out of the Southern Ontario underground in late 2001 like some monstrous and utterly captivating car-accident-in-progress. Hitting the ground with an immediate full head of steam, Dallas, Wade, George, Jesse and Chris have not only impressed the critics with their sour/sweet approach to performance and writing, but are recognized for their stellar musicianship, and the palpably pent-up tightness of the band live.

This is music for both sides of your brain. In your left ear, the poignant and melodic vocals of Dallas, injected with the devilishly sweet phrasings of the axe-wielding Wade, speak of impulse and introspection. In your right ear, George offers the testimony of the tortured soul, syncopated power-scream vocals that energize and counterpoint -- a couple of cartoon-character angels and devils sitting on your shoulders, offering two very different interpretations of the same musical message.

Alexisonfire knows that the fans aren’t stupid. The fans know the real deal when they see it, and in the case of AOF, they seem to have told two friends, who told two friends, and so on. During the year that followed the release of their self-titled 2002 debut album, the band has shot into the mainstream media like a streaker at an All-Star game: 3 videos reach the top 5 on MuchMusic (the first “hardcore” artist to ever chart at #1), a US deal with Equal Vision (cred-worthy home of Coheed & Cambria), a sponsorship with blink-182’s clothing startup Atticus, an MMVA nomination for the “Pulmonary Archery” video, a Best Video Award for “Pulmonary Archery” at The Indies (Canadian Independent Music Awards) , and everlasting status as the posterboys for hardcore crossover appeal. This may all sound like SOP for an up-and-coming rock ensemble, but wait a minute -- this is HARDCORE music, often described by members of the band as “the sound of two Catholic high school girls in mid-knife-fight.” This hasn’t happened before.

Nobody is more aware of this fact than the boys in Alexisonfire. Taking it all in stride, they remain guileless, affable, and capable of equal amounts of sarcasm and self-deprecation. They rock the MuchOnDemand studios like it’s a sweaty all-ages venue in St. Catherines, which in turn is rocked like they did when AOF germinated in the basements and rec-rooms of their now-proud but baffled parents not so long ago. Their songs scream of intellectual fury basted with ladlefuls of vocal pop melody; it’s a bipolar magnet, and if you stop and listen, or God forbid, see a live show, it’ll all oddly start to make sense.

Alexisonfire is a post-hardcore combo formed in Ontario, Canada, in 2001. Vocalist George Pettit, guitarist/vocalists Dallas Green and Wade MacNeil, bassist Steele, and drummer Jesse Ingelevics debuted in 2002 with a self-titled effort for the Toronto-based Distort imprint. The album did very well in Canada, garnering a lot of support for the band from MuchMusic video network. That exposure led to a distribution deal with the respected American hardcore and punk label Equal Vision, which then issued Alexisonfire's sophomore effort in June 2004. Watch Out! was even more ambitious than its predecessor, mixing moments of melodic grace with the wiry explosiveness that Alex had already trademarked. The next year, Ingelevics exited the group to be replaced by ex-Jersey drummer Jordan Hastings, as a split with fellow countrymen Moneen appeared on Vagrant that November. Green also worked on some acoustic solo material, released in 2005 under the moniker City and Colour. Alexisonfire had become an official part of Vagrant's roster by summer 2006, performing on their Warped Tour side stage and releasing explosive full-length number three, Crisis, that August. The guys then hit up the Reading and Leeds festivals in the U.K. prior to embarking on an extensive two-month fall tour of Canada. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide