Album Review- The Beaches- Blame My Ex

As a teen in a rural area, instead of cable, we had satellite television. Because of this, I was often watching MuchMusic- the lower budget higher fun Canadian version of MTV The thing about watching Canadian programming and their content rules was finding some very talented Canadian artists. Equally, it was often puzzling to see a band be huge in their home country and have negligible impact in the US. There are dozens of bands that I loved at this time that fall on the spectrum of breaking big in the States to moderate success to almost no breakthrough. 

I can list off a whole string: Barenaked Ladies, Cowboy Junkies, TPOH, Moist, Tragically Hip, Blue Rodeo, Grapes of Wrath, Moxie Fruvous, Northern Pikes and many others. My stock in trade is alt-rock but it extends to Canadian only jewels from pop rapper Maestro Fresh Wes to glam metal bands like Haywire and Slik Toxik to blues rocker Colin James to legendary Canadian icons like Kim Mitchell and Stompin Tom Conners. 

Fast forward to the 21st Century and I am discussing Sirius Satellite Radio with a friend and he says I have to check the Canadian alternative rock station. It’s a Canadian heavy version of Alt Nation called the Verge. And I am taken aback. Again, some very talented bands dominate, they are radio friendly and yet, unknown here in the States. I have three favorites- Black Pistol Fire- alt rock a la Black Keys or Queens of the Stone Age, quirky songwriter Dan Mangan and female Toronto based four piece the Beaches. The Beaches (like Black Pistol Fire) are definitely trying as they seem to be consistently touring in the US and grabbing spots on big name musical Festivals. 

The Beaches played Lollapalooza last year and while at Applebee's ( don’t judge) I heard “Blame Brett” on an alt station in a batch of songs on a playlist with the new U2 single. I have to acknowledge that the Beaches are probably the last band in the world that I think I would like. 

I totally hate pop-punk (in the post-90s definition of the term) and that seems to be their stock in trade. It’s a “TikTok” record. Its a breakup record (Brett is Emmons of another one of those Verge bands Glorious Sons) Yet maybe I am miscategorizing them which is why reviews tend to mention 90s buzz bands like Veruca Salt and Hole instead of say, Paramore or Fall Out Boy (or they instead reference 80s New Wave or the early 00s NYC scene)- y'know, the stuff that I like Anyway, they are infectious and I can’t believe they have not blown up in the US. Even with an earworm like the (near) title track of second album Blame My Ex (or equally catchy 2019 hit “Want What You Got”), I think you need to listen to the records to see how talented they really are.