18 seminal fall albums that defined an era of Canadian music

Equal parts a bird and a turn-of-the-millennium chart monster, Nelly Furtado burst into the public consciousness in the fall of 2000 with her genre smearing debut Whoa, Nelly! Armed with the inescapable “I’m Like A Bird” as its lead single calling card, the Portuguese-Canadian singer-songwriter earned glowing reviews for a full-length that nimbly bounced between pop and folk tendencies with an ample dab of R&B in its DNA. Amping up the CanCon is Philosopher Kings frontman Gerald Eaton serving as one of the record’s producers. Yearbooks of the era have an ample Furtado lyric quotient, so keep that in mind if you’re tossed back in time for some reason.

There’s a distinct possibility that 9/11 brings to mind memories other than the release date of Nickelback’s Silver Side Up and yet here we are. The fall of 2001 saw the neo-grunge colossuses make the leap from modern rock success story to arena rock titans thanks to this record. Sentient goatee Chad Kroeger’s voice melted into the cultural landscape courtesy of the gargantuan hit “How You Remind Me” and is still being imitated today during the countless “ironic” karaoke renditions doled out from coast-to-coast. At last count, this full-length has gone eight times platinum. Not a bad consolation prize for an album largely panned by the critical cognoscente.

Following up the country-pop milestone Come On Over was an impossible task. That’s like trying to sort out a sequel to the moon landing. It just can’t be fathomed at this stage with technology we have. That said, Shania Twain still cranked out a heckuva follow-up in the form of the Up!. Shania dove further into pop sounds unlikely to be embraced by the Grand Ole Opry, so much so that you can snap up both a pop and country version of Up!. Millions of records were sold, a Super Bowl halftime appearance was nailed and we had 18 tracks to tide us over until she finally returned to the studio for the 2017 full-length effort Now.

Afterglow marked Sarah McLachlan’s return to knocking out a studio album and you can forgive her for the six year gap since Surfacing. She was busy conquering adult contemporary radio on both sides of the border with Lilith Fair etching out its own legacy on the festival circuit. The Haligonian’s 2003 effort tumbled out early that November and while it didn’t reach the heights of her late 90s blockbuster, Afterglow went double platinum and spawned that song that soundtracks those soulshattering ASPCA videos asking for help for abused animals. (It’s not exactly a party record.)

Long before Arcade Fire morphed into a self-aware version of U2 wrapped in art collective trappings and Grammy souvenirs, they were held aloft as a nouveau holy grail of indie by critics who had already mowed through the The _____s band gold rush of the early 00s. The Montreal-meets-Texas outfit’s full length debut Funeral earned breathless raves from reviewers and a robust fanbase of true believers. It’s hard to understate how much this record was considered hot shit at the time. Jim and Pam from The Office wouldn’t baptize their child in just any bit of band merch, y’know.

Fun Fact: In the mid ‘00s, it was law that 30% of all bands have Wolf or Wolves in their name. What a kooky time to be alive. Anyway, September 2005 saw Wolf Parade unveil their debut full-length, Apologies to the Queen Mary, to sparkling reviews after riding a wave of blogosphere (ask your parents) goodwill courtesy of three self-titled EPs packed with visceral indie. “You Are a Runner and I Am My Father’s Son” is probably knocking around a dorm room in this country as we speak. (As it should.)

2004’s Joyful Rebellion took k-Os from being a cult darling to full-on domestic superstar status complete with “Crabbuckit” being glued to the radio playlists across the nation. The fall of 2006 saw Kevin Brereton return with Atlantis: Hymns for Disco, an LP that would notch platinum status while backstroking a mix of hip-hop, pop, soul and indie sounds and earning NFL pregame show rotation status courtesy of a woozy treat “Sunday Morning.” Atlantis: Hymns for Disco earned five Juno nods in 2007, but wound up walking away with zero trophies.

*pounds chest dramatically* What would a roundup of blockbuster Canadian albums be without Celine Dion? The earth would swallow our offices whole if such an unthinkable event unfolded. Celine’s rock-tinged effort Taking Chances ticks the 2007 box of this adventure and it’s a record stuffed with notable names on the songwriter/producer end of things too. Linda Perry, Ne-Yo, Eurythmics gent Dave Stewart, former Evanescence dude Ben Moody and Aldo Nova were among the talents that helped Celine craft this sixteen-track offering.

Sensible Canadians had already sorted out that Kardinal Offishall was fantastic, but it wasn’t until the Akon-assisted “Dangerous” that his gifts were appreciated south of the border. The lead single from 2008’s Not 4 Sale cracked the Top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100 that year and didn’t fare too shabbily in Canada either (Juno for Single of the Year ahoy!). Rihanna, Clipse, T-Pain, Estelle and Glenn Lewis can be counted on the star-studded guest list. The barcode mouth on the cover still looks like a very silly mustache, by the way.

In 2009, the world continued to operate under the spell of adult contemporary crooner Michael Buble and his soundtrack to your parents doing The Wild Thing. Crazy Love served up more of the singer’s gently cheeky songbook, including the soft rock radio juggernauts “Haven’t Met You Yet” and “Hollywood,” as well as covers of the Eagles and Van Morrison. Mind you, it wasn’t like the dude was going to go churn out a horrorcore album, so it’d be silly to expect a complete curveball.

John O’Regan only served up a limited amount of Diamond Rings goodness before morphing into later in the decade, but his two DR full-lengths carved out their legacy in impressive fashion. October 25, 2010 saw the release of the Diamond Rings debut Special Affections that was the subject of much critical adoration and a Polaris longlist nom because we had started doing that by that point. O’Regan’s glammy appearance grabbed the eye, but it was his potent blend of pop acumen and razor sharp lyricism that left their mark.

Josh Ramsay’s goofball blend of pop-punk, gleemo and unapologetically goofy pop is on full display with this 2011 Marianas Trench release. Ever After is a concept record that plunks Ramsay into Toyland which should probably be the biggest Your Mileage May Vary red flag you could come across. Fans were onboard to tag along to Toyland. The album went double platinum and continued Marianas Trench’s reign as Simple Plan’s dorky drama class cousins.

Speak of Carly Rae Jepsen these days and you’ll see critics and pop fans dissolve into a puddle of giddy praise and pamphlets on how CRJ is criminally underrated. In 2012, we were just beginning to understand her knack for doling out amazing pop tunes. (Well, unless you were watching her season of Canadian Idol.) Powered by the momentum of the undeniable instant classic “Call Me Maybe,” Kiss tumbled out in September 2012 radiating with richly colored bops, technicolor daydreams and duets with the likes of Justin Bieber and “Fireflies” fella Owl City. Jeppo would beat out Celine, Bieber, scumbags H*dl*y and Marianas Trench for Album of the Year honors at the following year’s Junos.

Dropping in September 2013 on October’s Very Own, Drake continued to swell his stature as more than just a hip-hop titan. Nothing Was The Same serves as a hit-stuffed document that confirmed Drake as a full-on cultural institution and an artist competing in the elite level of the bracket. Oh and he trotted out Shoppers Drug Mart (COMPLETE WITH THE ACTUAL GODDAMN UNIFORMS) in a video like it was a perfectly natural thing to do. Cuts like “Started From the Bottom,” the Majid Jordan aided “Hold On, We’re Going Home” and “Worst Behavior” were embraced like new national anthems and why wouldn’t they? Drizzy’s empire building was in full effect in the fall of 2013.

She made us move and (time permitting) groove with accompanying choreo that looked so intense you could imagine Olympians dropping dead trying to keep up. Calgary’s Kiesza hit dancefloors like a thunderbolt in 2014 thanks to her house smash “Hideaway” and the proper full-length would eventually tumble out in October of that year titled Sound of a Woman. Nothing on that record managed to top “Hideaway,” but what could? We’re still waiting on the follow-up in 2018.

Controversy and visits from the cops kept The Biebs awfully busy in 2014, but the following year he rolled out Purpose to further signal the former teen sensation’s navigation towards EDM-tinged waters. Justin’s period in the wilderness had the singer in a rather apologetic mode on the record which inspired a lot of unpacking of believed nods to his ex Selena Gomez. Singles like the Jack U team-up “What Are U Now,” the tropical house offering “Sorry” and the acoustic kiss-off anthem “Love Yourself” (co-penned with Ed Sheeran, no less) ticked the box of smash hits and stomped out the notion Justin’s time was through. Next up? A few years of being on call to guest on EDM bangers and whatever DJ Khaled’s got in the kitchen.

You know you’re hot shit when you can get Daft Punk to get their circuitboard-powered asses onboard for a project. The Weeknd took his next step on the R&B-pop superstar staircase with the suitably enormous LP Starboy. Clocking in at a massive 18 tracks, there’s some impressive star power on display beyond the Daft Punk pair-ups. Kendrick Lamar, Future and Lana Del Rey all pop in for this triple-platinum recording that still had some gloom lurking within its megawatt neon charms.

A nation mourned when Gord Downie passed on October 17, 2017. Ten days later came the final completed album from the Tragically Hip frontman. Introduce Yerself cracked the #1 slot on the album charts because how couldn’t it? Naturally, Downie’s trademark songwriting genius is on full display on this sprawling 23 track double album and the Canadian cultural legend would earn Artist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year honors posthumously at the 2018 Juno Awards. We miss you, Gord.

The jury’s still out for what fall release should swoop into this spot. Who’s your leading contender? Send us your take on Twitter and chug a cider knowing you’ve done the lord’s work.