Alvvays (CA)

About

Alvvays, the Toronto based Canadian indie pop band, spell their name the way they do because a band called Always was already signed to Sony. A small detail, but it tells you something about the dry wit running through their whole deal. Built around singer and guitarist Molly Rankin and keyboardist Kerri MacLellan, the band landed hard with their 2014 self titled debut, which hit number one on the US college charts and earned a Polaris Music Prize shortlist spot. Their sound sits somewhere in jangle pop territory, with Rankin's own compass set firmly on strong melodies over genre allegiance. She cites the Magnetic Fields and Teenage Fanclub as touchstones. Second album Antisocialites followed in 2017, and third album Blue Rev in 2022. Both won the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year, and Blue Rev's single "Belinda Says" picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Music Performance.