Strange Advance | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
Genres | New wave |
Years active | 1982 | –1995
Labels | Capitol |
Website | www |
Past members | Drew Arnott Darryl Kromm Ric deGroot Ian Cameron Joey Alvero David Quinton Paul Iverson |
Strange Advance was a Canadian new wave band formed in 1982 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They were nominated for a 1983 Juno Award as Most Promising Group of the Year and again in 1985 as Group of the Year. Their 1982 album Worlds Away was a Canadian gold selling record.
Strange Advance was initially made up of Drew Arnott (keyboards, percussion, vocals), Darryl Kromm (lead vocals, guitars), and Paul Iverson (bass). The three met in Vancouver and founded the group in 1980. Initially called Metropolis, they were forced to change their name after discovering a band in Germany using "Metropolis."
The group's first album, Worlds Away featured the title track, "Worlds Away," which saw modest airplay in North American markets in 1983. The album was produced by Bruce Fairbairn, known for his work with Loverboy and Prism, but featured a very different sound from those groups. Rather than commercial hard rock, Strange Advance's music was a fusion of progressive rock and new wave, with a heavy reliance on synthesizers and keyboards.
Iverson left the group after the first album and was not replaced. The group's 1985 album 2WO also went gold in Canada and was produced by Arnott, using an extensive array of session players, and brought the band their first big Canadian hit with "We Run." Strange Advance had never played a live gig prior to 1985, so Arnott and Kromm added musicians Ric deGroot (keyboards), Ian Cameron (guitar, violin), Joey Alvero (bass) and David Quinton (drums) to the line-up as session players, and supported the first two albums with a tour of Eastern Canada.