Alden Penner (born 12 January 1983) is a Canadian musician and producer best known for his work with

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, Clues, and for his solo output.

Career

The Unicorns (2000–05)

In December 2000 Penner formed

with

Nicholas Thorburn Nicholas Thorburn (born 27 November 1981), also known by his stage name Nick Diamonds, is a Canadian musician originally from Campbell River. He has fronted numerous bands such as The Unicorns, Th' Corn Gangg, Islands, Reefer, and Human Highw ...

in Campbell River, British Columbia. The duo's first release was a limited edition CD entitled '' Unicorns Are People Too'' on their own label, Caterpillars of the Community. This was shortly followed by their début LP '' Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?'', released by Alien 8 in North America and Rough Trade in the UK. With the addition of drummer Jamie Thompson the band embarked on a hectic tour of North America, Europe and Australia throughout 2003/04 before announcing their split in January 2005.

Solo work and Clues (2005–10)

Penner's first release as a solo musician was a limited-edition 7-inch entitled ''The Ghost of Creaky Crater''. The single was recorded in Melbourne whilst the Unicorns were on tour and released by the label Art School Dropout in 2005. Penner reissued the single on his own Montreal-based label Take This Hammer in 2006, soon followed by a split 7-inch with Brendan Reed (formerly of

Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member ...

) entitled ''Surface To Air Missive / I Love What U Did''. Penner and Reed then formed Clues, playing their first show at the

Pop Montreal POP Montreal is an annual music festival occurring in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the early fall, usually at the end of September or the beginning of October. More than 400 bands are scheduled to play in more than 50 venues across the city, most ...

festival in October 2007. Clues' self-titled debut album was released on 19 May 2009 by Constellation Records, and toured across North America and Europe throughout 2009. The band have been on "indefinite hiatus" since 2010. Also in 2009, Penner was credited as producer and musician on the soundtrack to the film '' Paper Heart''. He had previously worked as a composer on various independent films, including the 2005 Larry Kent dark comedy ''The Hamster Cage'', ''Surfing The Waste'' ("a musical documentary about dumpster diving"), and ''The Visible Will vs. the Invisible Wall'' in which Penner collaborates with

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n refugee Abdelkader Belaouni.

The Hidden Words (2011)

In 2011 Penner spent time travelling across North Africa and the Middle East before releasing a solo EP entitled Odes To The House on the Netherlands label Beep! Beep! Back Up the Truck. He then returned to Montreal and reunited with drummer Jamie Thompson, forming another new group The Hidden Words with musicians Eric and James Farr, Marie-Claire Saindon and Neah Bahji Kelly. In late 2011 they self-released an album entitled ''Free Thyself From The Fetters of this World'' in which Penner took lyrical inspiration from Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...

. Penner described his exploration of the Baháʼí Faith around this time: "I discovered a lot of things that I already agreed with, but that were articulated in a way that I found very empowering... It radically shifted my thinking." Penner left the Baháʼí community in 2013 due to personal differences with others.

''Exegesis'', Unicorns reunion and ''Canada in Space'' (2013–15)

In late 2013 Penner released a solo EP, ''Precession'', followed by a self-produced LP entitled ''Exegesis'' which he released through his Bandcamp page on 4 February 2014. The album features songs recorded during his time with The Unicorns and Clues, as well as more recent compositions influenced by the

and the Canadian poet

Alden Nowlan Alden Albert Nowlan (; January 25, 1933 – June 27, 1983) was a Canadian poet, novelist, and playwright. History Alden Nowlan was born into rural poverty in Stanley, Nova Scotia, adjacent to Mosherville, and close to the small town of Windsor ...

. Around this time it was also announced that the Unicorns would reunite to support

on a handful of arena shows. On 21 September 2014, the Unicorns played a headline show at the Pop Montreal Festival, but have not played any shows since. In early 2015, Penner released new track, "Meditate", featuring friend and collaborator,

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears'' and portraying a young Chuck B ...

. Penner subsequently announced a new EP titled ''Canada in Space'', to be released on 29 June 2015 on City Slang records, and a

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

an tour of the UK,

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and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, featuring Cera as both support act and a member of his backing band.

Discography

Albums

* '' Unicorns Are People Too'' (with the Unicorns, 2003) * '' Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?'' (with the Unicorns, 2003-reissued 2014) * '' Paper Heart'' soundtrack (with

and Charlyne Yi, 2009) * '' Clues'' (with Clues, 2009) * ''Free Thyself from the Fetters of this World'' (with the Hidden Words, 2011) * ''Odes to the House EP'' (2011) * ''Precession EP'' (2013) * ''Exegesis'' (2014) * ''JUNE 04 EP'' (2014) * ''Canada in Space EP'' (2015)

References

External links

Alden Penner on Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penner, Alden 1983 births Place of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian singer-songwriters Canadian record producers Canadian indie rock musicians Canadian Bahá'ís 20th-century Bahá'ís 21st-century Bahá'ís 21st-century Canadian male singers The Unicorns members Canadian male singer-songwriters