Cool and mysterious new band alert: Not Of, a Toronto-based two-piece made up of 40-something lifers John Ex on guitars and vocals and Jason Seance on drums, synth and backing vocals. Their bio is as abstracted as their band photos, and apparently John Ex once played in Broken Social Scene – so their names have been tweaked, too.
All that really matters, though, is that their eight-song debut album is a distorted blast of hella well-produced, smartly crafted, fearsome, loud noise rock that would fit well on a bill with METZ, Greys and maybe Crosss. Keeping the local connection going, the Beverleys sing-scream on three tunes, most notably the excellent Blood Thief.
Mathy second song New Atlantis has wicked progressive tendencies, Serves You Right has unexpected gothic textures, while melodic The Mark shows off Ex’s cleaner singing abilities and reaches remarkably riotous heights. Those melodious moments, in fact, set Not Of apart from the post-rock pack, evoking 90s-era pop-grunge.
Blah blah blah. Just go to the show.
Top track: The Mark
Listen to more here. Not Of throw an album release party at Magpie on Saturday (April 18).
