The Kramdens

The Kramdens
File:The Kramdens at Hillside Festival 2015.jpg The Kramdens performing at the 2015 Hillside Festival
Background information
Origin	Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Indie rock
Years active	1990–present
Labels	Sextant Records EMI
Website	thekramdens.com
Members	Craig Norris Robert Leader Michael T Plater Findlay Steve Knox Will Kee

The Kramdens are a Canadian Indie rock band formed in 1990 from Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

History

Craig Norris (lead vocals, accordion, keyboards), Robert Leader (drums, percussion, vocals), Michael T Plater Findlay (guitar, lap steel, mandolin, vocals), Steve Knox (guitar, banjo, harmonica, vocals) and Will Kee (bass) have been together sixteen years and throughout that time have produced four records.

The band released their first record ..."semi-stylish" in 1997 which topped many campus radio charts and led to a national TV appearance on CTV’s E-Now, as well as a showcase slot at the prestigious NXNE Music Festival. Their second record, "Radio For Now", was released in 1999 and garnered stunning reviews as well as gave the band its first airplay on commercial radio, including rotation at CHTZ-FM and CHOM-FM. 2001’s "Quiet Collision", was picked up by Sextant Records, a label with EMI and gained airplay for both singles “Sometimes I Feel” and “Breakwall.” On this CD the band recorded a cover of the New Order song "Love Vigilantes", to which a video was produced by director Angus McLellan of Guerilla Force Films and Bleeding Apple.

Appearances on Canada AM, Open Mike with Mike Bullard and a CASBY Awards nomination from CFNY-FM, or Edge 102 for Favourite New Indie Release helped build the band’s national profile. Along with an extensive performing schedule, 2003 saw the European release of Quiet Collision by TB Records. The band has spent the past year working on two albums – one, a full-length follow-up to Quiet Collision, and the other a special limited-release fifteenth anniversary album released in Summer 2005.

November 4, 2008, the band released its fourth full-length album. This self-titled disc was released by SunnyLane Records, and features ten new songs. Recorded over an eighteen-month period in the band's own studio, this album showcases a greater depth in songwriting and instrumentation than previous releases. With songs ranging from the familiar roots sound the band has been known for ("More Than I Deserve", "Mary Phelan Hill"), to more introspective, piano and synthesizer coloured ballads ("Winter Lightning", "The Ballad of Charles Lawrence Hannah","Before it Starts"), to brooding and explosive guitar-driven songs ("The Talbot Trail", "Out On The Roman Line"), this album is a significant departure for the band.

Members

Current

• Craig Norris (1990–present)
• Robert Leader (1990–present)
• Michael T Plater Findlay (1990–present)
• Steve Knox (1990–present)
• Will Kee (1990)

Discography

• ..."semi-stylish" (1997)
• Radio For Now (1999)
• Quiet Collision (2001)
• The Kramdens (2008)

See also

• Music of Canada
• Canadian rock
• List of Canadian musicians
• List of bands from Canada
• Category:Canadian musical groups

External links

• thekramdens.com