Sparrows was a three-piece post-hardcore band originally from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Formed in 2010, the band consists of vocalist/guitarist Dan Thomson, guitarist Alex Pley, and drummer Jon Busby. In March 2015, the group was named one of Alternative Press magazine's "100 Bands You Need to Know".
History In 2010 lead vocalist and guitarist Dan Thomson recruited Marco Cellucci to form a band which would become the original Ottawa based iteration of Sparrows.Sparrows says Ottawa is ‘the perfect size’ for aspiring talent, Griffin Elliot, Retrieved from Charlatan.ca, 2012-12-04 After releasing their first EP Goliath in May 2011 (with the addition of bassist Richard Hill and touring guitarist Krys Blaney) the group shifted into a complete lineup change the following January in which Devlin Morton, Brandon Dejardins, and Rembrandt MacLeod would replace Hill, Blaney, and Cellucci.Loud local rockers Sparrows bask in debut US tour, exciting new releases, Ryan Pepper, TheFulcrum.ca, 2012-09-18 The band released their LP Cold Ground in July 2013 through Broken Heart/Kat Kat Records before moving to Toronto and continuing to tour extensively performing across Canada and the United States including festivals; SXSW, NXNE, Canadian Music Week, and the Ottawa Bluesfest.
In April 2014 Jon Busby, and Justin Sears would replace Morton, and MacLeod with Matthew Sears taking over from Brandon Dejardins during the fall of that same year. In 2015 the group was signed to Toronto-based aggressive rock label New Damage Records and shortly after released their second EP Dragging Hell in August of that year.Exclusive Stream: Sparrows – “References To The Dead”, Retrieved from NewNoiseMagazine.com, 2018-05-17Toronto's SPARROWS Sign With New Damage Records; New EP Due This Summer, Retrieved from Bravewords.ca, 2015-06-04 Following the release of their EP bassist Matthew left the band (citing personal reasons) and was replaced by Kevin Dennison and after another series of North American tours the band released their debut LP Let the Silence Stay Where It Was in October 2016 on New Damage Records.New Damage Records announces Fiends of Winter tour, Cassandra Popescu, Retrieved from CanadianBeats.ca, 2016-12-22 In March of the following year bassist Kevin Dennison ended his tenure with the group with replacement Jaret Maillet stepping in until October 2017. Prior to the departure of Maillet the band supported Grammy Award winning American metalcore group Norma Jean during their "Polar Summer Tour".Norma Jean - Polar Summer Toronto, Retrieved from Norma Jean Facebook, 2017-05-23
In May 2019 the group announced their third studio album Failed Gods via Sound Anxiety Records with the addition of bassist Jack Panic.Sparrows Goes Quiet And Then Explodes On New Song "A Little Crowded Death", Greg Kennelty, Metal Injection, Retrieved from MetalInjection.net, 2019-05-29 The following month the group debuted the video for their single "Fifth Helena Drive" featuring local Toronto venue Sneaky Dee's, the same day the restaurant announced their collaborative dish "Fifth Helena Homefries".Watch Toronto Post-Hardcore Unit Sparrows' New Video for "Fifth Helena Drive", Joe Smith-Engelhardt, Exclaim.ca, 2019-06-27
In November 2019 the band announced via Facebook a new lineup featuring Thomson, Busby, and the addition of guitarist Alex Pley.Hello Everyone, Sparrows Facebook, Retrieved from Facebook.com, 2019-11-16
In September of 2020, Sparrows released the two song EP Death Crown digitally. These two tracks were recorded earlier in 2020 with Mario Quintero of Spotlights.
Sparrows played their final show on Friday the 13th of March, 2020 in Oakville, Ontario. Initial Covid-19 lockdowns began around this date. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Sparrows' Daniel Thomson and Alex Pley began writing songs for what would become their next and current project, Toronto band lowheaven. lowheaven has already toured the United States supporting headliners Holy Fawn.
Musical style Sparrows is considered post-hardcore utilizing melodic elements of punk and rock throughout their music.From the Road: Sparrows, Alex Auxier, Retrieved from OrangeAmps.com, 2013-10-22 In 2013, Alternative Press described their sound as "If Moneen sounded evil" as Moneen guitarist/vocalist Kenny Bridges had produced three records for the group. A 2019 article from Metal Injection compared the group's blasts of distortion and use of dynamics to the American alternative metal group Deftones.
Band members Final line-up Dan Thomson – lead vocals, guitar Jon Busby – drums Alex Pley – guitar
Former members Justin Sears – guitar Jack Panic – bass guitar Jaret Maillet – bass guitar Kevin Dennison – bass guitar Matthew Sears – bass guitar Rembrandt MacLeod – drums Devlin Morton – guitar Brandon Desjardins – bass guitar Krys Blaney – guitar Marco Cellucci – drums Richard Hill – bass guitar
Discography Sparrows have released three EP's and three albums
EPs 2011: Goliath 2015: Dragging Hell 2020: Death Crown
Albums 2013: Cold Ground 2016: Let the Silence Stay Where It Was 2019: Failed Gods
Music videos "Cave Eater" (2016)Sparrows Cave Eater (Video), Gregory Adams, Exclaim.ca, 2016-08-16 "References To The Dead" (2016)Sparrows "References to the Dead" (video), Sarah Murphy, Exclaim.ca, 2016-01-27 "The Written Rules Of Choking" (2017)Video Premiere: Sparrows – “The Written Rules Of Choking”, Retrieved from NewNoiseMagazine.com, 2017-07-10 "A Little Crowded Death" (2019) "Fifth Helena Drive" (2019) "Worship Song" (2019)Exclusive Premiere of Sparrows New Video for “Worship Song”, Outburn Magazine, Outburn.com, 2019-07-30
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