In a burgeoning Montreal music scene, the pop-rock band Malajube has made a name for itself in part by sticking to its roots. Spurning English, the five French-Canadian friends belt out upbeat tunes in their native tongue, but have won over fans in the U.S. in spite of the language barrier. In 2004, they released their first album (Le Compte complet), which was a success in Quebec, but their rise to international success accelerated upon the release of 2006's Trompe l'Oeil.
Building on the success of its debut, the band hired veteran mixers and engineers to help boost the production values for its second record, blending raucous punk beats with indie-rock throwbacks on a catchy batch of songs. The album gained enough steam to land on the shortlist for the Polaris Music Prize in Canada, alongside Broken Social Scene and The New Pornographers.
Copyright 2007 XPN
