We Are Wolves
Encyclopedia
We Are Wolves are a Quebec
indie rock
band, based in Montreal
, consisting of vocalist and bassist
Alexander Ortiz, keyboardist
/backing vocalist Vincent Levesque and drummer
/vocalist Antonin Marquis. The band released their debut album, Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
with Fat Possum Records
, in 2005. They have toured extensively across Canada, the United States
and Europe
to support the album and have been playlisted on CBC Radio 3
. They also performed live on the first episode of that network's live concert series CBC Radio 3 Sessions
. Their second album, Total Magique
, was released September 4, 2007, with a new label Dare to Care Records
.
In 2005, they released the album "Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
" on the American label Fat Possum. We Are Wolves promoted the album with shows in international festivals including Le Rock dans tous ses états, Les Eurokéennes, Dour Festival, SXSW, CMJ, Virgin Festival
and Osheaga. They had their first North American tour in spring 2005. They opened for …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead and The (International) Noise Conspiracy
. In September of that year, they performed at North East Sticks Together. A second tour came in 2006 in which they supported the Gossip
in addition to some solo gigs across Canada and the United States. They completed a five week tour in Europe with Montreal act Duchess Says
, in summer 2006.
May 2007 brought the single “Fight and Kiss”. This EP
also features “Coconut 155” and marks the second chapter in their career. We Are Wolves presented their second full-length album “Total Magique” on September 4, 2007, in Canada and on October 2, 2007, in the U.S. They were well-received by the media and received press in Pitchfork Media
and Spin
. After sold out gigs in Quebec
, receiving the M-Galaxie Prize at M for Montreal and participating in four shows for CMJ, the band toured Canada, the U.S. and Europe in 2007-2008.
In September 2008, We Are Wolves won a Gémeaux Award for the Best TV Musical Theme for Bazzo.tv theme.
The song "Psychic Kids" is featured on the video game Midnight Club: Los Angeles
, and the song "Fight and Kiss" is featured on the video game Need for Speed: ProStreet
.
We Are Wolves released their third full-length album, Invisible Violence
, on October 6, 2009.
In Gran Turismo 5
the song Holding Hands from the album Invisible Violence is used in the game.
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band, based in 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...
, consisting of vocalist and bassist
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Alexander Ortiz, keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
/backing vocalist Vincent Levesque and drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
/vocalist Antonin Marquis. The band released their debut album, Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
Non-Stop je te plie en deux is the first album of Montreal group We Are Wolves. It was released in 2005.- Track listing :# "Little Birds"# "L.L. Romeo"# "La Nature"# "Snare Me"# "Namaï - Taïla - Cambodge "# "Non Stop"...
with Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records
Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording hitherto unknown Mississippi blues artists . Recently, Fat Possum has signed younger rock acts to its roster...
, in 2005. They have toured extensively across Canada, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to support the album and have 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...
. They also performed live on the first episode of that network's live concert series CBC Radio 3 Sessions
CBC Radio 3 Sessions
CBC Radio 3 Sessions is a Canadian radio program, which airs on the satellite radio network CBC Radio 3. Hosted by Tariq Hussain, the program airs in-studio sessions by Canadian musicians in the Radio 3 studios, including both live song performances and interview segments...
. Their second album, Total Magique
Total Magique
Total Magique is the second album of Montreal group We Are Wolves. It was released in 2007. The song "Psychic Kids" is featured on the video game Midnight Club: Los Angeles.- Track listing :# "Fight and Kiss" – 3:04# "Magique" – 2:25...
, was released September 4, 2007, with a new label Dare to Care Records
Dare to Care Records
Dare to Care Records is a Canadian independent record label. Based in Montreal, the label was founded by Éli Bissonnette and Hugo Mudie. The label maintains two separate imprints, Dare to Care for anglophone and francophone artists promoted across Canada and internationally, and Grosse Boîte for...
.
History
Around 2000, Alexander Ortiz and Vincent Levesque, both from the visual art world, along with Antonin Marquis, formed a band with synthesizers, bass, vocals and drums. In their own words the band likes to qualify their sound as “a post-punk landscape with analogue trees. Like rock after the postmodern explosion”. Nameless until 2002, Alexander showed up at the jam space wearing a home-made shirt with a skull spitting a synth displaying the inscription, 'We Are Wolves'. At that moment they decided to name the band We Are Wolves.In 2005, they released the album "Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
Non-Stop Je Te Plie en Deux
Non-Stop je te plie en deux is the first album of Montreal group We Are Wolves. It was released in 2005.- Track listing :# "Little Birds"# "L.L. Romeo"# "La Nature"# "Snare Me"# "Namaï - Taïla - Cambodge "# "Non Stop"...
" on the American label Fat Possum. We Are Wolves promoted the album with shows in international festivals including Le Rock dans tous ses états, Les Eurokéennes, Dour Festival, SXSW, CMJ, Virgin Festival
Virgin Festival
The Virgin Fest is a rock festival held in the United States and Canada, a spin-off from the V Festival held in the UK...
and Osheaga. They had their first North American tour in spring 2005. They opened for …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead and The (International) Noise Conspiracy
The (International) Noise Conspiracy
The Noise Conspiracy is a Swedish rock band formed in Sweden in the late months of 1998. The line-up consists of Dennis Lyxzén , Inge Johansson , Lars Strömberg , and Ludwig Dahlberg . The band is known for its punk and garage rock musical influences, and its impassioned left-wing political stance...
. In September of that year, they performed at North East Sticks Together. A second tour came in 2006 in which they supported the Gossip
Gossip
Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others, It is one of the oldest and most common means of sharing facts and views, but also has a reputation for the introduction of errors and variations into the information transmitted...
in addition to some solo gigs across Canada and the United States. They completed a five week tour in Europe with Montreal act Duchess Says
Duchess Says
Duchess Says is a Canadian punk band from Montreal. The band, formed in late 2003, describes its own genre as "moog rock".The band consists of vocalist and guitarist Annie-Claude Deschênes, keyboardist and guitarist Ismael Tremblay, guitarist and bassist Philippe Clément and percussionist Simon...
, in summer 2006.
May 2007 brought the single “Fight and Kiss”. This EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
also features “Coconut 155” and marks the second chapter in their career. We Are Wolves presented their second full-length album “Total Magique” on September 4, 2007, in Canada and on October 2, 2007, in the U.S. They were well-received by the media and received press in Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
and Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
. After sold out gigs in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, receiving the M-Galaxie Prize at M for Montreal and participating in four shows for CMJ, the band toured Canada, the U.S. and Europe in 2007-2008.
In September 2008, We Are Wolves won a Gémeaux Award for the Best TV Musical Theme for Bazzo.tv theme.
The song "Psychic Kids" is featured on the video game Midnight Club: Los Angeles
Midnight Club: Los Angeles
Midnight Club: Los Angeles is the fourth video game in the Midnight Club series of racing video games, not including Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition Remix. It was officially announced for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on January 11, 2008 by Rockstar Games. The game was developed by Rockstar San Diego...
, and the song "Fight and Kiss" is featured on the video game Need for Speed: ProStreet
Need for Speed: ProStreet
Need for Speed: ProStreet is the 11th installment of Electronic Arts' popular racing game series Need for Speed. On May 21, 2007, Electronic Arts published a teaser trailer of ProStreet, and officially announced it ten days later. It was released worldwide in November 2007. Its action footage was...
.
We Are Wolves released their third full-length album, Invisible Violence
Invisible Violence
Invisible Violence is the third full-length album by Quebec indie-rock band We Are Wolves, released on October 6, 2009.-Track listing:# "Paloma"# "Holding Hands"# "Walking Commotion"# "Dreams"# "Vague"# "Reaching For The Sky"# "Me As Enemy"...
, on October 6, 2009.
In Gran Turismo 5
Gran Turismo 5
is the fifth edition of the Gran Turismo racing video game series. Developed by Polyphony Digital and published by Sony Computer Entertainment, it was released for PlayStation 3 on November 24, 2010...
the song Holding Hands from the album Invisible Violence is used in the game.
Musical style
Their style is characterized by primal drum sounds, repetitive guitar riffs and bass motives, electronic instrumentation, and male vocals that represent rhythmic, rather than melodic, phrasing. Because of these elements, their sound has been described as "primitive" and this identity is represented by the band's moniker. One of their first shows was held at the art pavilion of Concordia University. Since then, natives of Montreal have seen them live in traditional venues, loft parties and art galleries such as Belgo, Saidye Bronfman Center and Fonderie Darling.Studio albums
- Non-Stop Je Te Plie en DeuxNon-Stop Je Te Plie en DeuxNon-Stop je te plie en deux is the first album of Montreal group We Are Wolves. It was released in 2005.- Track listing :# "Little Birds"# "L.L. Romeo"# "La Nature"# "Snare Me"# "Namaï - Taïla - Cambodge "# "Non Stop"...
- Fat Possum RecordsFat Possum RecordsFat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording hitherto unknown Mississippi blues artists . Recently, Fat Possum has signed younger rock acts to its roster...
- 2005 - Total MagiqueTotal MagiqueTotal Magique is the second album of Montreal group We Are Wolves. It was released in 2007. The song "Psychic Kids" is featured on the video game Midnight Club: Los Angeles.- Track listing :# "Fight and Kiss" – 3:04# "Magique" – 2:25...
- Dare to CareDare to Care RecordsDare to Care Records is a Canadian independent record label. Based in Montreal, the label was founded by Éli Bissonnette and Hugo Mudie. The label maintains two separate imprints, Dare to Care for anglophone and francophone artists promoted across Canada and internationally, and Grosse Boîte for...
- 2007 - Invisible ViolenceInvisible ViolenceInvisible Violence is the third full-length album by Quebec indie-rock band We Are Wolves, released on October 6, 2009.-Track listing:# "Paloma"# "Holding Hands"# "Walking Commotion"# "Dreams"# "Vague"# "Reaching For The Sky"# "Me As Enemy"...
- Dare to CareDare to Care RecordsDare to Care Records is a Canadian independent record label. Based in Montreal, the label was founded by Éli Bissonnette and Hugo Mudie. The label maintains two separate imprints, Dare to Care for anglophone and francophone artists promoted across Canada and internationally, and Grosse Boîte for...
- 2009