the beach boys, phil spector, the kinks, flying saucer attack, the band, townes van zandt, daniel johnston, beat happening, sonic youth, tom petty, polvo, hank williams, tears for fears, meat puppets, dinosaur jr, wilco, black flag, bill callahan, neil young, beau brummels, yo la tengo, dwight yoakam, stereolab, tom waits, elvis costello, sebadoh, sly and the family stone, gram parsons, royal trux, eric's trip, brian jonestown massacre, jesus and mary chain, pavement, fred neil, jim o'rourke, joy division...
Record Label
Maple Music/Grifter Music
Type of Label
Indie
Influences
the beach boys, phil spector, the kinks, flying saucer attack, the band, townes van zandt, daniel johnston, beat happening, sonic youth, tom petty, polvo, hank williams, tears for fears, meat puppets, dinosaur jr, wilco, black flag, bill callahan, neil young, beau brummels, yo la tengo, dwight yoakam, stereolab, tom waits, elvis costello, sebadoh, sly and the family stone, gram parsons, royal trux, eric's trip, brian jonestown massacre, jesus and mary chain, pavement, fred neil, jim o'rourke, joy division...
Playing rollickin' piano-based country-tinged college rock, Great Bloomers astound with subtlety - delicious hooks, stunning harmonies, expert musicianship and songwriting well beyond their years
FACEBOOK.COM/GREATBLOOMERS
Bookings:
Lauren Schreiber - shamelesspromo@gmail.com
Publicity:
Kat Stewart - kat.stewart@maplemusicrecordings.com
PRESS
"Speak of Trouble shows that Great Bloomers are one of the best new bands in Canada." - I Heart Music
"This is Canadian History in the making - Be part of it. The album cover perfectly reflects the music because this album should go straight to the top of the list as being the soundtrack to many lazy weekends at the cottage this summer! Sickly contagious!" – Tuesday Guide
" Ascendant Toronto quintet Great Bloomers scream "CBC Radio" and "Canadiana,"… Harmonious ramblers like "Lobbyist" and "Dark Horse" recall a frillier Cuff the Duke and are emblematic of the band's fallback roots-rock stance, yet the Bloomers obviously have an ear for a broader range of pop styles, referencing a Paul McCartney piano line on the title track, echoing Mark Kozelek on "Admit Defeat" and taking air like Broken Social Scene fronted by Rufus Wainwright on chugging "The Young Ones Slept" and "This Ain't You." Closer "Thorn In My Side" is a pop hit… Gentlemen, this is totally one of those records that'll score you points with girlfriends, wives and girls that you wanna score with. - Toronto Star
"Their new LP, Speak Of Trouble, is a huge jump in sound for the band and shows a maturity that only comes from hours on stage and in the jam space. It’s quite obvious the young band is influenced by some of the greats – The Band, The Beach Boys and an affinity for Sonic Youth’s feedback and distortion come to mind for me – but even subtle tips of the cap come off as respectful instead of aping. The Great Bloomers are working hard to form their own sound and seemed more concerned with writing songs that stand the test of time. A lot of Canadian bands have exploded onto the scene and made some waves with catchy hits lately, but Great Bloomers seems to be setting up to make a career out this, instead of just writing some killer tracks that fade in this digital age." – Hero Hill
“A continuation of the danceable indie roots-rock from their self-titled 2007 EP, Speak of Trouble demonstrates a marked musical maturation and an embracing of eras past, complete with narrative lyrical recollections of youthful hope and exploits and an already-classic sound reminiscent of warm AM radio textures.” - Torontoist
“Despite the relative youth of Toronto’s Great Bloomers (both the band itself and its five members), their debut full-length is an accomplished exercise in inventive songwriting. The 11 songs draw from Brian Wilson, Neil Young, Queen and other respectable vintages, but often the tracks move effortlessly in surprising directions partway through, making Speak Of Trouble feel incredibly diverse and substantial. Solid musicianship, memorable melodies and singer Lowell Sostomi’s sincere, unruffled vocals hold everything together.” - Carla Gillis, NOW Magazine
"Melodically gifted local upstarts Great Bloomers proved that the hype surrounding their upcoming debut album is warranted. Their rustic-tinged tunes display the band’s precocious knack for Constantines-like grit rock." - Jason Keller, NOW Magazine
“It’s been barely a week since Speak of Trouble was released into the loving embrace of the music-consuming public, but there’s already a quiet frenzy of buzz building around the album. And curiously, many discussions of Great Bloomers seem to focus on the band’s inherent Canadianness. As far as I can reckon, the most Canadian thing about the five-piece outfit is this: the songs on Speak of Trouble demonstrate the best and most noble qualities we like to associate with our national identity. Namely, they’re delightfully affable, they’re founded in solid, salt-of-the-earth traditions (sun-bleached country, winsome melodic rock), and they have an effortless ability to make you feel really, really good.” - Sarah Liss, EYE Magazine
Great NXNE preview in Now Magazine, 'Great Bloomers are big news this time around thanks to Speak Of Trouble, their full-length debut, whose sophisticated mix of Beach Boys harmonies, piano pep, guitar-driven roots rock and seamless genre-bending has garnered high praise since its release on Maple in May'
Just a reminder to listen to GREAT BLOOMERS on THIS GREAT WHITE NORTH for our NXNE SPECIAL SHOW! It's an ALL CANADIAN music show FRIDAYS 4:30-6pm CST on 91.7 KOOP FM in Austin, Texas. You can listen online at www.KOOP.org.
Excellent review of 'Speak Of Trouble' in Exclaim Magazine, 'Tying it all together is singer Lowell Sostomi's versatile voice, as suited to country rock as it is to '60s doo-wop (as shown on the title track's break down). Few bands can lean on familiar influences and turn them into a great record the way Great Bloomers have done here'
L-sos, what's up bro? the new cd is incredible, I can't stop listening to it!! I miss you tons man, we gotta get together soon and catch up. I hope everything is going great for you and the band. Keep up the sweet tunes, and definitely give me a shout if you're ever in fort erie or if I can come up to toronto for a visit. Lotta love bro, take care
Nice article in Eye and CD review in Now Magazine, 'Their debut full-length is an accomplished exercise in inventive songwriting. The 11 songs draw from Brian Wilson, Neil Young, Queen and other respectable vintages, but often the tracks move effortlessly in surprising directions partway through, making Speak Of Trouble feel incredibly diverse and substantial'