THE DICKENS really started at a fall 1999 gig at Ted's Wrecking Yard in Toronto.
It was the final show for singer PAUL EMERY'S band BILL PUDDLE.
A year after releasing a critically appreciated but poorly selling self titled record,("one of the best things to happen to the queen west scene in years" TIM PERLICH-NOW MAGAZINE) the band was calling it a day.
In the audience were future dickens SIMON LEWIS and JOHN MACDONALD.Also coincidentally future dickens guitarist DUNCAN BLAIR was performing that night his final show with his band THE MUMMERS. Lewis and macdonald loved the buzzy power pop and a few months later offered to produce an acoustic threesong e.p. for emery and guitarist Patrick Gregory.
the threesongs e.p. came out beautifully and marked the end of the emery/gregory duo as django came calling gregory's name.
in 2001, EMERY/BLAIR/LEWIS/MACDONALD got together as PAUL EMERY AND THE DICKENS AND Started gigging around playing electric versions of th threesongs and bill puddle material. Emery brought in some more new songs and a band began.
2003 saw the release of their first record "LIVES OF THE FUTURE BLESSED". It contained some great moments but still has the sound of a band searching for it's musical legs.
In 2005 THE DICKENS release a 7" single (produced by PETER J.MOORE -Cowboy Junkies)WHITE COOKIE/THE LOVELY ONES that sees the band hitting it's stride. Chiming guitars, powerful pop, good lyrics and melody. there is a cool video produced by STEVE MUNDAY for WHITE COOKIE you can see here.
It's 2007 and THE DICKENS will release their new self titled l.p. on October 13th and it's a blast of Neil Youngish, new wave power snap crackle pop!
HERE'S WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE NEW DISC:
The Dickens: NNNN
"In a year that gave us the doc Let's All Hate Toronto, which invited the rest of Canada to tell us why we sucked so bad, it surely would have been easy to lash out defensively. This local indie rock/alt-country quartet, though, takes a decidedly more proactive stance on civic pride.
The Dickens's second disc is a love letter to the Big Smoke, a collection of songs that are as much a throwback to the city's 90s alt heyday as they are a celebration of every wide-eyed whippersnapper with a guitar who hopes for a shot on the Horseshoe stage. Nostalgia and good intentions aside, the album works purely in terms of how genuine and full of life the band sounds, as on the celebratory Downtown Is Awesome, a retooled homage to Randy Newman's I Love L.A. for the local all-ages matinee indie set. Fun and attitude-free."
-Evan Davies, NOW Magazine, Oct. 11/07
Hats Off To Gord Cumming
The Dickens
S/T, Independent
"A good old hockey arena song that sidechecks any the Hip have penned. In particular if your girlfriend didn’t give a f**k about hockey then this rambunctious and spunky number is the perfect puck-chasing track....John Critchley (13 Engines) is the producer here. Gord Cumming is the TO singer/songwriter mostly known for his band The Lawn."
-Scene and Heard with Will McGuirk
The Dickens
"This rock’n’roll band is led by Paul Emery, a veteran of the Toronto club circuit who’s now better known as the owner of one of the city’s most musician-friendly watering holes, the Communist’s Daughter. Time behind the beer taps hasn’t brought creative rust though, as this disc is his best yet. He’s given able assistance by his band mates and the production by fellow vet John Critchley (13 Engines). There are no frills here, just melodic yet gritty songs that’ll brighten your day. One reference point could be mid-period Replacements, and there’s a Westerberg-ian gruff honesty in both Emery’s vocals and his down to earth songwriting. There’s no concession to trends either, as demonstrated by the occasional un-hip but effective guitar solo and his defence of the aged Stones in “I Will Hold Your Spot,” an album highlight. Paul pays justified tribute to a Toronto indie rock hero in “Hats Off To Gord Cumming,” one that does Cumming (the leader of the Lawn) justice. The Dickens also pay tribute to their hometown on “Downtown Is Awesome” and, in turn, this is a disc Toronto can be pleased to call its own."
Hey – just a reminder to listen in FRIDAY afternoon at 4:30-6 pm CST to hear THE DICKENS on “This Great White North” an ALL CANADIAN music show from Austin, Texas It’s on 91. 7 KOOP-FM Listen here
"Sounds like wind blowing in a wheatfield, train rolling down the line, rain coming down on a old tin shed, steel, wire and a rusty heart. Boots of leather and dust and ash. Mollasess and coal and stone. Wedding rings and buried bones of love broken and burnt. Tales and the footprints, ravenswings and souls are earnt"
Hi there Dickens! Please enjoy out well-intended spam:
New songs by the Microphobes on the Microphobe page! Join the Microphobes to listen to songs by the Microphobes! New! Microphobes! Jet-powered! Microphobes, away!
i'm ridin' my very cool bike to Mitzi's Sister so i will get to your show on time! ah! downtown is awesome and so are the dickens! ah! ah! your Dakota show was amazin' ah! ah! ah!... expectations are high!
You also may be interested in the campaign to persuade the CBC to give Radio 3 (and Canadian indie music) a national television show and a campaign is getting ready to launch to persuade the Canadian government to pass a series of tax initiatives which would make it easier for Canadian artists of all stripes to make a living as full time artists.
Thanks for the invite, and we hope you'll enjoy some of our music.
Like your songs, and the 'White Cookie' video is great! But the third song ('Lives of the Future Blessed') won't play for some reason. Any idea why this could be? Or does the song actually consist of half a second of silence?
In any case, cheers again, and keep the zombies at bay,
The Microphobes
