False Heroics

Based in Brantford, Ontario-- False Heroics attracts alt-pop-rock enthusiasts with a taste for what has been described as "a sort of shy, ecstatic spectacle". Grungy post-rock mixed with hi-fi pop makes for a crisp sound that's a little to the left of radio. "Someone said we're as if Oasis covered Sufjan's Seven Swans," explains guitarist Michael Nicholson, "or Incubus, but not sucking. I'm not sure I agree."

False Heroics' debut album "The Salvation Navy", is an unromantic saga--an epic panorama where the poor of the world are displaced, teenaged capitalists whine over unrequited love, and the Lord God dialogues with shopaholics. One of the album tracks, "Shonar Bangla", is an excerpt from the anthem of Bangladeshi freedom fighters--penned by the Nobel prize-winning poet Rabindranath Tagore. This, along with sweatshop rocker "To Dhaka With Love" has a lot to do singer Adam King's years in Bangladesh as the son of Baptist missionaries.

"A lot of the imagery and references in the album come from my experiences in Bangladesh," comments King. "I've been trying to deal with the tension of consumerism vs. poverty, eternal salvation vs. momentary pleasure, cultural imperialism vs. social justice missions and the search for truth. Somehow that translated into my singing about colonial seaships, missionaries and corporate outsourcing (oh my!)."

While still in his childhood, King was already writing songs, mostly pieces about jungle birds, sunrises, Jesus and the occasional coup-d'etat. At age 18, he moved back to Canada, and met Jared Korstanje (bass/vocals/hurdling), Michael Nicholson (guitars/vocals/woodwinds), and Jon Grime (percussion/vocals/keys). It was a random and beautiful marriage of convenience. They released an EP called "Stars Gone Black" in late 2003, and CD orders began coming in from as far away as Spain and Holland. Confidence and momentum were building, but then the news came. 23-year-old guitarist Michael Nicholson had germ cell cancer. The band went into hiatus and Nicholson went into chemotherapy.

The months passed.

The band continued to work on the full-length album they had already started, sandwiching the recording between post-secondary degrees, weddings and King's Green Party campaign. News came that Nicholson was in full recovery and the band finished their record, began polishing their live show, and started gearing up for the next chapter in their less-than-complete saga.

False Heroics are looking for shows, vegetarian recipes, and will do PR ops for eco-anarchist charities and/or evangelical bible colleges.