Band Bio: Introducing Greys from TOronto

One of the things that stands out about bands from the 90's was their uncanny ability to have a physical location attributed to their sound. It happened with punk often being associated with Washington or California. With grunge and mathrock, it came from Seattle and Chicago and now, somewhere down the line, we can throw Greys from Toronto into the brickwork of the wall of noise that makes these bands standout.

Now, jsut because they are a new band that sounds like some other older bands, by no means makes them a throwback band. Although math rock and shoegaze are not words we get to use in our daily music vocabulary all too often anymore, those that hold this music close to their hearts will be happy to know that Greys is a legitimate addition.

Simply put, they display the raw, aggressive, yet artful and progressive traits bands haven't had in over a decade - especially in their hometown. Greys aren't hosting dance parties, nor do they have singer/songwriter side-projects. They just play very, very loud rock music - and yet it's so much more.

Much is to be accredited to the bands lead singer and guitarist, Shehzaad Jiwani, who is bringing you original material that is very complex and layered. His musical influences ring through in a way that only an appreciative musician could do justice to. If you are looking for some light hearted music to dance to, you won't find it here. They are throwing dance rock out the window and blowing it away with the distortion from their amps.

The band worships at the altar of the almighty riff, yet champion more angular rhythms of math rock. They have a knack for melody, but they bury them in their convoluted song structures. This may make them out to be proggy in some respect, but they value the economic and bare-bones ideology of quick and precise punk rock.

Put it this way: if Fugazi suddenly displayed a penchant for stoner rock riffs; if the Jesus Lizard canned David Yow for the singer of Shudder To Think; if Nirvana never released Nevermind; if the nineties never ended - this is the alternate universe in which Greys exist.

If you're into it, they'd love to have you. Ditch the dance party and come get real