The Bicycles are a Canadian

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

quartet originally from

Brantford, Ontario Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...

composed of Matt Beckett, Drew Smith, Dana Snell, and Andrew Scott (formerly of

the Meligrove Band The Meligrove Band is a Canadian indie rock band, based in Toronto, and consisting of Jason Nunes on vocals, guitar and piano, Darcy Rego on vocals and drums, Brian O'Reilly on guitar and synthesizer, and Michael Small on bass guitar. History T ...

History

Beckett, Smith and Lee grew up together

and started writing songs in their teens. They moved to Toronto and recorded the acoustic EP ''As Is'' in 2000 before recruiting Scott and Snell to create a five-piece band. In 2006, they released ''

The Good, the Bad and the Cuddly ''The Good, The Bad And The Cuddly'' is the debut album by Canadian pop band The Bicycles. Randy Lee left the band following the release to join The Hylozoists. Despite playing together as a band for nearly five years, the band's debut wasn't ...

'' with Fuzzy Logic Recordings. Recorded with

Dan Bryk Dan Waldemar Bryk (born September 23, 1970) is a Canadian-born singer-songwriter and recording artist. Originally from Toronto, Bryk is currently based in Durham, North Carolina. A songwriter and keyboard player, Bryk has released five full-leng ...

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and

José Miguel Contreras By Divine Right is a Canadian indie rock band led by guitarist and vocalist José Miguel Contreras. History The band was formed in 1989 by high school friends Contreras, drummer Mark Goldstein, bass guitarist Liz Teear and guitarist Steve Berma ...

, the album features complex, lush arrangements with a

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The ...

sound. The band supported the album with a tour of Canada and the United States, including a supporting slot with

The Boy Least Likely To The Boy Least Likely To is an English indie pop duo, composed of composer/multi-instrumentalist Pete Hobbs and lyricist/singer Jof Owen. History Owen and Hobbs both grew up in the village of Wendover in Buckinghamshire. After meeting at schoo ...

in 2006. In 2007, they released an interactive board game based upon the album. 2008 saw Lee leave to play violin with

the Hylozoists The Hylozoists are a Canadian instrumental rock supergroup formed in 2001 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The band's name is derived from hylozoism and was started as a side project of record producer and multi-instrumentalist Paul Aucoin. H ...

. The now four-piece band rejoined Contreras to record and release their second album, the 38-minute, 19-track '' Oh No, It's Love''. Featuring songwriting and lead vocals by all four members, the album spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Canadian campus radio chart. ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' magazine noted The Bicycles in their February 2008 issue in their ''City Guide to Toronto'', claiming "If

Wes Anderson Wesley Wales Anderson (born May 1, 1969) is an American filmmaker. His films are known for their eccentricity and unique visual and narrative styles. They often contain themes of grief, loss of innocence, and dysfunctional families. Cited by so ...

ever cottoned on to (The Bicycles) swooning chamber pop, which draws from

the Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...

and

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...

, he'd soak his scarf with tears of joy." In March 2009, the band announced an indefinite hiatus. Snell joined Reg Vermue, Scott went to

Sebastien Grainger Sebastien Alexandre Grainger (born 11 April 1979) is a Canadian singer and musician, best known as drummer and singer of the alternative rock duo Death from Above and the singer and guitarist for his band Sebastien Grainger and The Mountains. H ...

and The Mountains, Smith recorded a solo album under the name 'Dr Ew'. After playing a few unannounced shows in early 2012, The Bicycles re-formed with the full original line-up and played a new material to favorable reviews. The band released the album, ''Stop Thinking So Much'' in April 2013. As of 2017, Scott was playing with the band Biblical; Smith with the band Bunny. According to its Facebook page, The Bicycles' most recent concert was at Toronto's

Lee's Palace Lee's Palace is a rock concert hall located on the south side of Bloor Street West east of Lippincott Street in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The two-floor facility in The Annex neighbourhood has a long history prior to being adapted in Sept ...

in November 2017.

Discography

*2000: ''As Is'' *2006: ''

'' *2008: '' Oh No, It's Love'' *2013: ''Stop Thinking So Much''

Videography

*2007: ''The Good, the Bad and the Cuddly: The Interactive DVD Board Game''

References

External links

Official websiteThe Bicycles' Facebook Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bicycles, The Musical groups established in 2001 Musical groups from Toronto Canadian indie pop groups 2001 establishments in Ontario

History

Discography

Videography

See also

References

External links