Moist
Encyclopedia
Moist was a five-piece Canadian
alternative rock
band that was popular in the mid-to-late-1990s. The band was led by lead singer David Usher
, along with Mark Makoway (guitars), Jeff Pearce (bass), Kevin Young (keyboards) and Paul Wilcox (drums).
", "Silver" and "Believe Me".
In late 1996, Moist released their second album, Creature
, to favourable reviews. The album included the hits "Leave It Alone", "Resurrection", "Tangerine", and "Gasoline", all which were placed on high rotation on MuchMusic
. In addition to these, remixed versions of "Tangerine" also became hits both on radio and Muchmusic
.
Following the band's second record, David Usher
released his first solo album, Little Songs
.
In early 1999, the band regrouped to record one more album, the melancholic and soft-toned Mercedes 5 and Dime. The album was released in the summer of 1999 in Canada and later in 2000 in the United States. Singles included "Breathe", "Underground", and "Comes and Goes". While touring in support of their final album, drummer Paul Wilcox injured his back, causing him to miss the band's final performances.
David Usher
has continued to record, releasing Morning Orbit
in 2001, Hallucinations in 2003, If God Had Curves
in 2005, Strange Birds
in 2007, and Wake Up And Say Goodbye
in 2008. Jeff Pearce formed the band RYE, which released its first record, Wolves, in 2004, and Mark Makoway published a guide to the music industry, called The Indie Band Bible.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band that was popular in the mid-to-late-1990s. The band was led by lead singer David Usher
David Usher
David Usher is a British-born Canadian singer-songwriter. Formerly the frontman for the alternative rock band Moist, he embarked on a solo career beginning in the late 1990s.-Biography:...
, along with Mark Makoway (guitars), Jeff Pearce (bass), Kevin Young (keyboards) and Paul Wilcox (drums).
Biography
Moist formed in Vancouver, BC in the fall of 1992. Mark Makoway and Jeff Pearce had met while at Queen's University in Kingston, then moved to Vancouver and were already playing in an earlier incarnation of the group. Kevin Young and David Usher had also moved from Kingston to Vancouver a few years earlier, to go to school. The first version of Moist was just breaking up when the four decided to do some writing together. Encouraged by this, they decided to form the new band and started playing shows. A mutual friend introduced the band to drummer Paul Wilcox. They quickly wrote and recorded songs for an independently released, self-titled cassette. They spent much of 1993 touring Canada and writing material for an expanded release. In January 1994 they completed their first full length CD, which was titled Silver. Strong independent sales led to the band signing with EMI Music Canada. The album went on to sell 400,000 copies in Canada on the strength of singles like "PushPush (Moist song)
"Push" is the debut single by Canadian alternative rock group Moist from the band's first studio album, Silver. The song was very successful in Canada, peaking at #32 on the RPM Canadian Singles Chart. The song was also nominated for "Single of the Year" at the 1995 Juno Awards...
", "Silver" and "Believe Me".
In late 1996, Moist released their second album, Creature
Creature (album)
Creature is the second studio album by Canadian alternative rock band Moist, released in 1996. It featured the singles "Leave it Alone", "Resurrection", "Tangerine", and "Gasoline".-Track listing:All songs written by Moist.# "Hate"-3:47...
, to favourable reviews. The album included the hits "Leave It Alone", "Resurrection", "Tangerine", and "Gasoline", all which were placed on high rotation on MuchMusic
MuchMusic
MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
. In addition to these, remixed versions of "Tangerine" also became hits both on radio and Muchmusic
MuchMusic
MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
.
Following the band's second record, David Usher
David Usher
David Usher is a British-born Canadian singer-songwriter. Formerly the frontman for the alternative rock band Moist, he embarked on a solo career beginning in the late 1990s.-Biography:...
released his first solo album, Little Songs
Little Songs
- Track listing :# "Trickster"# "St. Lawrence River"# "Jesus Was My Girl"# "Unholy, Dirty and Beautiful"# "Forest Fire"# "Babyskin Tattoo"# "F Train"# "Million"# "Final Thoughts and the Last Day on Earth"# "Mood Song"-Singles:* * Jesus Was My Girl*...
.
In early 1999, the band regrouped to record one more album, the melancholic and soft-toned Mercedes 5 and Dime. The album was released in the summer of 1999 in Canada and later in 2000 in the United States. Singles included "Breathe", "Underground", and "Comes and Goes". While touring in support of their final album, drummer Paul Wilcox injured his back, causing him to miss the band's final performances.
David Usher
David Usher
David Usher is a British-born Canadian singer-songwriter. Formerly the frontman for the alternative rock band Moist, he embarked on a solo career beginning in the late 1990s.-Biography:...
has continued to record, releasing Morning Orbit
Morning Orbit
Morning Orbit is the second solo album released by Canadian musician David Usher. It was released on July 31, 2001. The album was certified Platinum by the CRIA in April 2002.-Track listing:#"How Are You?"#"Too Close to the Sun"#"Black Black Heart"...
in 2001, Hallucinations in 2003, If God Had Curves
If God Had Curves
If God Had Curves is the fourth album by David Usher, released in 2005 . The album includes the first single, "Love Will Save the Day", as well as 10 other new songs.Guest musicians on the album include Bruce Cockburn and Tegan Quin....
in 2005, Strange Birds
Strange Birds
Strange Birds is the fifth album by David Usher, released on March 20 2007. The album released four singles: "The Music", "Ugly Is Beautiful", "Some People Say", and "So Far Down".-Track listing:...
in 2007, and Wake Up And Say Goodbye
Wake Up and Say Goodbye
Wake Up and Say Goodbye is the sixth album by solo artist David Usher, released on September 23, 2008. Was nominated for a Juno award in 2009 for "Pop Album of the Year".-Track listing:# "The River"# "We Are Wolves Here "# "And So We Run"...
in 2008. Jeff Pearce formed the band RYE, which released its first record, Wolves, in 2004, and Mark Makoway published a guide to the music industry, called The Indie Band Bible.
Albums
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| CAN Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
CAN Cria A cria is the name for a baby camelid such as a llama, alpaca, vicuña, or guanaco. It comes from the Spanish word cría, meaning "baby". Its false cognate in English, crya , was coined by British sailors who explored Chile in the 18th century and were quick to describe the camelids onomatopoeically... |
||
| 1993 | Moist | - | |
| 1994 | Silver | 14 | 4x Platinum |
| 1996 | Creature Creature (album) Creature is the second studio album by Canadian alternative rock band Moist, released in 1996. It featured the singles "Leave it Alone", "Resurrection", "Tangerine", and "Gasoline".-Track listing:All songs written by Moist.# "Hate"-3:47... |
9 | 3x Platinum |
| 1999 | Mercedes 5 and Dime Mercedes 5 and Dime Mercedes 5 and Dime was the third and final album released by the Canadian alternative rock band Moist. Released in Canada in 1999 and in the United States a year later, it includes the hits "Breathe" and "Underground". The album was released with different album covers for the Canadian and United... |
4 | Platinum |
| 2001 | Machine Punch Through: The Singles Collection Machine Punch Through Machine Punch Through: The Singles Collection was a greatest hits CD by the Canadian alternative rock band Moist, released in 2001. The album featured one new song, "Sunday Comes," previously issued on the "Breathe" remix single.... |
- | |
Singles
| Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Main |
CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
CAN Alt. RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
CAN CanCon RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
CAN AC RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
||||||||||||||
| 1994 | "Push Push (Moist song) "Push" is the debut single by Canadian alternative rock group Moist from the band's first studio album, Silver. The song was very successful in Canada, peaking at #32 on the RPM Canadian Singles Chart. The song was also nominated for "Single of the Year" at the 1995 Juno Awards... " |
37 | 32 | — | — | — | Silver | |||||||||||
| "Silver" | — | 31 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| 1995 | "Believe Me" | — | 11 | — | 8 | — | ||||||||||||
| "Machine Punch Through" | — | 72 | — | 5 | — | |||||||||||||
| "Freaky Be Beautiful" | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| 1996 | "Leave it Alone Leave It Alone Leave It Alone may refer to:* "Leave It Alone" * "Leave It Alone" * "Leave It Alone" * "Leave It Alone", a song by Living Colour from Stain* "Leave It Alone", a song by Moist from Creature... " |
— | 3 | 6 | — | — | Creature Creature (album) Creature is the second studio album by Canadian alternative rock band Moist, released in 1996. It featured the singles "Leave it Alone", "Resurrection", "Tangerine", and "Gasoline".-Track listing:All songs written by Moist.# "Hate"-3:47... |
|||||||||||
| "Resurrection" | — | 8 | 5 | — | — | |||||||||||||
| 1997 | "Tangerine" | — | 25 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
| "Gasoline" | — | 27 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||
| 1999 | "Breathe Breathe (Moist song) "Breathe" is the first single by Canadian alternative rock group Moist from the band's third studio album, Mercedes 5 and Dime. The song peaked at #28 on the Canadian RPM Singles Chart. The song is featured on the soundtrack of the 1999 film, Stir of Echoes.-Tom Lord-Alge Mix:In 1999, the song was... " |
— | 30 | 5 | — | 22 | Mercedes 5 and Dime Mercedes 5 and Dime Mercedes 5 and Dime was the third and final album released by the Canadian alternative rock band Moist. Released in Canada in 1999 and in the United States a year later, it includes the hits "Breathe" and "Underground". The album was released with different album covers for the Canadian and United... |
|||||||||||
| "Underground" | — | 42 | 7 | — | — | |||||||||||||
| "Comes and Goes" | — | — | 10 | — | — | |||||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that country. | ||||||||||||||||||
- Note: The Rock/Alternative chart was dormant from 1973 to 1995, hence no ranking for Silver's singles.
Awards and recognition
- Won Juno for Best New Group at the 1995 Juno Awards.
- Won Juno for best video (Gasoline) at the 1997 Juno Awards.
- Won "Q107 Canada's Rock Award" for best album (Silver) in 1995.
- Won "Q107 Canada's Rock Award" for best group in 1995.
- David Usher won "Q107 Canada's Rock Award" for best singer in 1995.
- Kevin Young won "Q107 Canada's Rock Award" for best keyboard player in 1995.
- Won an MMVA (MuchMusic Video Award) for Favorite Canadian Group in 1995.
- The video for the song Tangerine won Best Video, and Best Director at the (MuchMusic Video AwardsMuchMusic Video AwardsThe MuchMusic Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic to honour the year's best music videos....
) in 1997.
External links
- Moist entry at JAM! Canadian Pop Encyclopedia