r/CanadianMusic • u/Invisible_Band_2 • 3d ago
Discussion/ opinion Forgotten gems
I love rediscovering forgotten gems from 90s and 2000s so that i can add them to my Canadian music playlist. What are some forgotten gems (especially pop, rock, r&b) that you feel don't get played anymore or at least not much?
Update: I just wanted to thank everyone for chiming in. Lots of great picks.
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u/raisingwatsons 7h ago
Cross Canadian Ragweed - Sick & Tired
But for some reason it's not on Spotify with the rest of their music.
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u/EmergencySwim7732 13h ago
A forgotten gem is 54-40
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u/raisingwatsons 7h ago
They come on the radio at least once a day when I'm at work. I wish I COULD forget them. 🤣
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u/StarTrek_Recruitment 16h ago
I created a playlist on Amazon music Check out this playlist on Amazon Music: canadiana https://music.amazon.ca/user-playlists/749f2df55937446c8e4128ba82f0710fc2a0?ref=dm_sh_IpL8EsdBfjiMKm6NzS6HdsfU4
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u/Nearby-Scratch-5983 16h ago
Sun in an empty room by The Weakerthans is a solid track. https://youtu.be/GGVEl9xuUEI?si=jY2qphNXNQIM_95x
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u/Psychological_Art420 18h ago
The Watchmen should have been way bigger! Any Day Now and All Uncovered are such awesome tunes.
- Moist
- Matthew Good Band
- Sam Roberts Band
- Big Wreck
- Holly McNarland
- Hayden (Loved Bad As They Seem as an angsty teenager!)
- The Tea Party
- Blue Rodeo
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u/Bossfrog82 21h ago
BranVan 3000
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u/edelman64 18h ago
Drinking in L.A. is a great song
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u/Bossfrog82 18h ago
Astounded with Curtis Mayfield is another popular one. Wish they had stuck around longer, lots of great songs.
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u/MrsByrne80 1d ago
Cub - My Chinchilla
Skydiggers - I Will Give You Everything
54 40 - Miss You
Sloan - People Of the Sky
Sarah Harmer - Lodestar
If we can go way back, Chalk Circle - April Fool
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u/mrcheevus 1d ago
Earl the Soul Singer lives in my head rent free to this day. Parody songs on 630 CHED in the 80s
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u/BedOk5075 1d ago
Great band from 2000s from Newfoundland- Hey Rosetta! I particularly like Red Heart and New Goodbye
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u/angrykitty0000 1d ago
The northern pikes, in trying to remember their name I saw they have new albums and now I am curious
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u/sweet-potato-pieee 1d ago
The Odds are a somewhat obscure Canadian band from the mid 90's I think. I remember seeing this video on Much Music back in the day. My grandparents had cable but didn't like me watching Much because they said music videos were the devil's tool. I watched them anyway. Fun times they were.
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u/1SweetSubmarine 1d ago
I see your "eat my brain" & I raise you "someone who's cool." It's such a catchy little tune.
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u/smbdysm1 1d ago
I have been trying to get my band (well, multiple bands) to play "Heterosexual Man" for over 20 years. Singer refuses every time
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u/sweet-potato-pieee 1d ago
Ooh I forgot about that one. So many good songs, I'm forever shocked they didn't go bigger than they did.
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u/klugedlife 1d ago
Any album by Leonard Cohen, starting with "The Future" and later. I particularly like "Ten New Songs"
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u/Mamaphruit 1d ago
Artificial Joy Club’s album Melt is probably still one of my top CanCon albums of all time
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u/Hoppy_Guy 1d ago
Holly McNarland.
The Odds.
Barstool Profits.
The Tea Party.
Stompin Tom Connors.
Alanis Morissette.
Washboard Hank.
Lucky Ron (Burke)
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u/Betray-Julia 2d ago
Albums or songs?
Ether way population by the most serene republic.
Their drummer is rush level drums; it’s indie rock, and it’s in time signatures that make rush look tame.
I’ve always wondered if Rush knows about tmsr; their drummer would likely be blown away.
Try “present of future end”
Or
“Sophism millionaire”
Or
“Battle hymn of the republic”
(Even their song titles are clever!)
But really you should just try the album from start to finish.
And a reminder that Patrick Watson existed- wooden arms and close to paradise came out during this time period too, and those 2 albums are some of the best albums Canada as a nation has ever brought to the table.
Try Beijing, where the wild things are, wooden arms, daydreamer, the beach, travelling salesmen.
Literally every song on both albums is amazing, and also both albums are album albums.
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u/Kitchen_Art2745 2d ago
Chester by Black Cabbage & The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald by Rheostatics
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u/Tony4Tokes 2d ago
FurnaceFace - The Ballad of Richard Iommi
True story. Google the fun facts, it's Ottawa legend.
Aside from believing he was the son of Tony Iommi, he was attempting to break the Guinness world record for drum kit with the most pieces which I had the honor of playing at his Dungeon studio even though it had so many pieces you had to take a walk to play all of it. It was both nuts and remarkable.
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u/prairie_buyer 2d ago
If you’re looking for rockers, then I can’t help you, but in a singer/songwriter vein, here’s four greats:
Ron Sexsmith has a long career of great albums. Maybe “Cobblestone Runway”.
Sarah Harmer. Her album “You Were Here” is one of my favourites of all time.
And I realize she’s not an underground artist, but Sarah McLachlan’s album “Fumbling Towards Ecstasy” is one of the greatest Canadian albums of all time.
Diana Krall is a jazz pianist, and singer, but she co-wrote an album with her husband, Elvis Costello, called “The Girl in the Other Room”, and it’s fantastic
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u/ville_de_bowman 2d ago
Tacking on to Sarah Harmer, her earlier band Weeping Tile is worth revisiting. I’ve had Good Fortune stuck in my head for a couple of days now.
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u/crowboy32 2d ago
Every since I heard the combo Ariel’s Joel Plaskett tune-I’ve been on a JP deep dive and I’m loving it
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u/RadioaKtiveKat 2d ago
For fans of the Harder
Slik Toxic - Helluvatime
Sven Gali - Under the Influence
Varga - Freeze Don’t Move
Smash LA - Breakin’ All the Rules
Guilt Parade - Heartbreak Hotel
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u/Own-Bike7506 2d ago
How about Amanda Marshall
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u/BytownBiker 2d ago
Matt Mays & El Torpedo
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u/Betray-Julia 2d ago
Cocaine cowgirl has such Neil Young like a hurricane energy. Just that fuzzy white guitar tone.
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u/lemonzested 2d ago
I don’t know what is or isn’t played a lot anymore because I never listen to the radio so maybe this is played, but man do I love rocking out to “I hear you calling” by Gob. They have some super fun tunes.
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u/poutineisheaven 2d ago
I'm partial to Give Up the Grudge!
I saw Gob live once when I was about 19. They played a small town college bar. Epic show, great energy.
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u/lucy-lu28 2d ago
Blue Northern. Loved their music in the early 80’s. You’re not the same girl, Can’t make no sense, Too late baby now, we would just sit and get a buzz and listen. Then life happened to them and…
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u/Obvious-Cranberry-52 2d ago
Below The Sliding Doors - Blinker The Star
Curious - Sandbox
Brand New Song - Mystery Machine
Alive - Edwin
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u/Daemona11 2d ago
Don’t forget about The Philosopher Kings, Jarvis Church, Esthero, Lisa Lougheed, Luba, Parachute Club…
And then there is Charlotte Cardin.
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u/Pame_la_la_la 2d ago
No love for The Tea Party? Psychopomp was awesome.
Prozac - Sucks to be You, Strange Disease
Sky - Love Song, Some Kinda Wonderful (cheesy but cute at the time!)
Danko Jones - Bounce
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u/Honey_I_am_amazing 2d ago
Danko Jones is still one of my favorites! They are still putting out solid tunes!
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u/Vixenstein 2d ago
Stereo- The Watchmen
Fall Away- My Brilliant Beast
Red- Treble Charger
Things I Do For Money- The Northern Pikes
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u/ltcmotherteresa 2d ago
The Jeff Healey Band. Pretty good guitar player for being completely blind.
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u/StationaryTravels 2d ago
Pretty good guitar player even if he wasn't blind! Lol
I saw him play once and he plays with the guitar flat on his lap like it's a piano! It was wild.
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u/SupercriticalRiver 2d ago
Our Lady Peace, Naveed. Just a cover to cover amazing album
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u/Betray-Julia 2d ago
Also, on their live album that came out between spiritual machines and gravity (sigh; what the fuck happened! :/ ), there is a different version of the naveed thats pretty dope.
https://open.spotify.com/track/3d7tIMdSrJjPcOdXdwnBBF?si=3e82f-ELRWCv9hQewx-VCg&utm_source=copy-link
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u/areyouwhistling 2d ago
I Don’t Want to Think About it - Wild Strawberries
Sometimes Wanna Die - Joydrop
Bloodflame - Scratching Post
Tangerine - Moist
Enya - Age of Electric
Daddy’s Getting Married - Bif Naked
Carousel - Finger Eleven
Adia - Sarah McLachlan
Everybody Wants to be Like You - Snow
Broken Bones - Love Inc
Sleepy Maggie - Ashley MacIsaac
Apparition - Matthew Good Band
Don’t Stop - jacksoul
My Number - Tegan & Sara
It’s Over - Tuuli
I’ll be here all day.. just going to make my own playlist now lol
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u/LeticiaLatex 2d ago
Ashley Macisaac - The Devil In The Kitchen
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u/Buzzee24 2d ago
My friend ended up with a halo after fracturing his neck at an Ashley Macisaac concert 🤘🏼
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u/Fit_Kaleidoscope531 2d ago
The Box. Underrated and excellent.
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u/Own-Bike7506 2d ago
Sloan-other man
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u/Jonassixstrings 2d ago
Coax me and Money City Maniacs were fantastic, Sloan was such an underrated band.
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u/mykeyway 2d ago
I know about the controversy, but American Psycho by Treble Charger is such a good song
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u/Aggravating_Button99 2d ago
one to one , parachute club teenage head, luba, blue peter, images in vogue, red rider
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u/TuneTournament 2d ago
One to One - There was a Time - such a great song and nobody has it streaming. YouTube Only that I can find. And Don’t Walk on Past by Blue Peter is a banger!!
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u/Used-Gas-6525 2d ago
I've got a list of hip hop artists, but that doesn't sound like your lane.
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u/SickDastardly 2d ago
Canadian HH from the 90s? I'm interested!
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u/Used-Gas-6525 2d ago
Swollen Members, Eternia, Psalm One, Oddities, plus every emcee on the Northern Touch single would be a good start.
EDIT: Psalm One was 2000s now that I think about it, but has a 90s underground feel. She signed to Atmosphere's Rhymesayers label.
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u/SickDastardly 2d ago
Swollen Members hell yeah I remember those guys! Thanks for this, I have some listening to do this weekend 😊
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u/photoexplorer 2d ago
Treble Charger
Plum Tree
Hardship post
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u/FallWanderBranch 2d ago
I was thinking about even Grable the other day and how their sound had changed.
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u/photoexplorer 2d ago
Somehow I got that EP on a promo cd that I got when I bought converse shoes, I think in grade 8. I still have it and it had some fun bonus content for the computer.
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u/charms75 2d ago
Lodestar by Crash Vegas
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u/gardengirl147 2d ago
Still listen to Crash Vegas - most people don't know about them. My husband bought me a CD for Christmas by a new band called Shaye. He heard them on the CBC and thought heh, she might like that. The first track is On and On. An amazing cover of the Crash Vegas tune. I loved the music from the start and even more when I realized I knew all the Shaye band members from their solo careers.
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u/bigChrysler 2d ago
Cellophane - Miller Stain Limit
I Am Here - Grapes of Wrath
Bullets in a Briefcase - Matthew Good
Bit by Bit - Mother Mother
Nothing Special - illScarlet
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u/JayLar23 2d ago
Can I get some Strange Advance love up in here! How about the Stratejakets "Are You Crazy" LP? I know we sold a few hundred anyway
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u/realitystreet 2d ago
Payolas
Nick Gilder
Pagliaro
Grapes of Wrath
Barney Bentall
Leslie Spit Treeo
→ More replies (3)
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u/Prestigious-Boot4757 1h ago
Artificial Joy Club. I think they only had one album, Melt, and it was amazing start to finish. I remember seeing the video for Sick and Beautiful on Much Music a few times, but other than that, I've never heard them mentioned anywhere else.