Ruby Coast: From Little Boxes Made of Ticky-Tacky to Indie's Next Big Deal
By: Bill Alexander
Watching the members of Aurora, Ontario's Ruby Coast swig savouringly from bottles of beer during their too-short set Sunday night at Sneaky Dee's, you might wonder if these "boy-sterous" suburbanites are even one birthday cake clear of legal.
Young ruffians they may be, but on stage as part of the 418th installment of the popular Wavelength series, the indie popsters prove they can run as tight a ship as any.
Offering up songs from their freshly released self-titled EP, Ruby Coast never stray from the task at hand - working as one to kick-out solid, energetic, well-oiled sounds that resonate after just a first few chords and rarely stray for a second.
Melding indie rock and pop, they lace their product with catchy hoots and hollers (as with "Neighbourhood"), and subtle electro elements that could turn the heads of many of Brooklyn's finest. Keith Bradford keeps a fierce guard over his keys, while true multi-tasker Nathan Vanderweilen maintains an untailored intensity, moving seamlessly from keys to guitar to percussion to whatever else he has lying around. While vocals may be the least impressive element at play, leader Justice McLellan fronts the act with a casual confidence and an abundance of potential.
"Brittle Bones" hooks the crowd (including fellow York Region alumnus Dave Monks of Tokyo Police Club), exemplifying the band's timely sound that seems to be exactly what young indie rock fans, and labels, are getting into right now. Refreshingly raw and unpretentious on stage, Ruby Coast seem primed to be shaped and sculpted by whichever record company is fortunate enough to get their hands on them. One can only hope that when it happens, Ruby Coast will maintain all the genuine promise and artistic merit they've shown at Wavelength.
Putting on a show the audience won't soon forget ("I was there when they played Sneaky Dee's y'all"), Ruby Coast is surely and truly one of the local acts, if not the local act, to watch in 2008.
