United Steel Workers of Montreal
Encyclopedia
United Steel Workers of Montreal (or USWM) are a six-piece alternative country
ensemble based in downtown Montreal
. At present, the band consists of Gern F (vocals/acoustic guitar), Felicity Hamer (vocals/accordion), Sean "Gus" Beauchamp (vocals/acoustic guitar), Matt Watson (electric guitar), Flipper Frumignac (bass) and Dylan Perron (banjo/mandolin). The band draws on punk rock
, bluegrass
and country
influences, and is part of a "citygrass" scene of alternative country musicians in Montreal which also includes Katie Moore
and Lee Mellor and the Mudhounds
.
The band began as an informal busking collective, playing every Tuesday in Montreal's Lucien-L'Allier
metro station. After about seven or eight months, they booked a rehearsal space and began to actively record and perform as a permanent band. Their debut album Broken Trucks and Bottles was released in April 2005 and featured Sean Moore on banjo, mandolin and guitar. Shortly after the album's release Moore left the band and was replaced by Kevin McNeilly, while session man Roger Dawson also became a member.
The new lineup followed with Kerosene and Coal in 2007. That same year, a Montreal Mirror
readers' poll voted them the third best act in the city, behind only Arcade Fire and electronic duo Team Canada. In 2007 Dawson left the band and was replaced by bass player Eddie Blake.
The band is currently signed to Toronto-based indie label Weewerk
.
They have toured extensively across Canada and the United States,and Europe including shows at the 2008 SXSW and Ottawa Bluesfest
. Their music has also been playlisted on CBC Radio 3
.
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
ensemble based in downtown Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. At present, the band consists of Gern F (vocals/acoustic guitar), Felicity Hamer (vocals/accordion), Sean "Gus" Beauchamp (vocals/acoustic guitar), Matt Watson (electric guitar), Flipper Frumignac (bass) and Dylan Perron (banjo/mandolin). The band draws on punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, bluegrass
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
and country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
influences, and is part of a "citygrass" scene of alternative country musicians in Montreal which also includes Katie Moore
Katie Moore
Katie Moore is a Canadian singer-songwriter based in Montreal, Quebec.She released her debut album, Only Thing Worse, in 2007, and followed up with Montebello in 2011....
and Lee Mellor and the Mudhounds
Lee Mellor
Lee Mellor is an Anglo-Canadian author and alternative country musician distinguished by his intricate lyrics and growly vocal stylings.- Music :...
.
The band began as an informal busking collective, playing every Tuesday in Montreal's Lucien-L'Allier
Lucien-L'Allier (AMT)
Lucien-L'Allier is the commuter rail terminal for the AMT Vaudreuil-Hudson, Blainville-Saint-Jerome, and Candiac lines in the Greater Montreal area in Quebec, Canada. Lucien-L'Allier is in Fare Zone 1. It is one of the two downtown terminals for Montreal commuter trains, the other being Gare...
metro station. After about seven or eight months, they booked a rehearsal space and began to actively record and perform as a permanent band. Their debut album Broken Trucks and Bottles was released in April 2005 and featured Sean Moore on banjo, mandolin and guitar. Shortly after the album's release Moore left the band and was replaced by Kevin McNeilly, while session man Roger Dawson also became a member.
The new lineup followed with Kerosene and Coal in 2007. That same year, a Montreal Mirror
Montreal Mirror
Montreal Mirror is a free English language alternative newsweekly based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with a circulation of 70,000, and reaches a quarter of a million readers per week. It is published by Communications Gratte-Ciel Ltée....
readers' poll voted them the third best act in the city, behind only Arcade Fire and electronic duo Team Canada. In 2007 Dawson left the band and was replaced by bass player Eddie Blake.
The band is currently signed to Toronto-based indie label Weewerk
Weewerk
Weewerk, stylized as ', is an independent folk, roots, bluegrass, country record label and artist-management company based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 2002 as an art-and-music salon series in the apartment of Teenage USA Recordings partner Phil Klygo and artist-curator Germaine Koh...
.
They have toured extensively across Canada and the United States,and Europe including shows at the 2008 SXSW and Ottawa Bluesfest
Ottawa Bluesfest
The Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest is an annual outdoor music festival that takes place each July in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. While ostensibly focused on blues, the festival has increasingly showcased mainstream pop and rock acts in recent years...
. Their music has also been playlisted on CBC Radio 3
CBC Radio 3
CBC Radio 3 is a radio station that consists of two parts devoted to Canadian arts and music: a radio service which is available on Sirius Satellite Radio and streaming audio, and several daily and weekly podcasts from the CBC Radio 3 website...
.
Discography
- Broken Trucks and Bottles (2005)
- Kerosene and Coal (2007)
- Three on the Tree (2009)