After touring exhaustively with controller.controller (Paper Bag/Universal) and living out of his rehearsal space, Scott Kaija needed a home to call his own. In September of 2006 he met Mick Jackson and John Hunter who had also split from their Toronto-based band Frontier Index (Rainbow Quartz/Universal). Scott moved into their Shaw Street home, converted his room into a studio and started writing and recording vocals, guitar and drum parts. These loose recordings quickly matured into fully realized songs as Kaija collaborated with singer/drummer Jackson, singer/guitarist Hunter, and bass player Daniel Brooks under the moniker of Medallions.
In Medallions, Scott's guitar continues to "stab and dance" as it did in controller.controller, but he explores new territory – lyrically and vocally on top of layered guitars. Jackson and Kaija trade off vocals and work closely to create lyrics and melodies that strive to be challenging and memorable. With Brooks and Hunter adding their rhythmic and melodic lines, the result is a flurry of guitar and vocal harmonies propelled by Jackson's hard-driving beats. Although the songs are primarily dark and deeply personal, there are a few tracks that come up for a breath of air – if only momentarily.
The members of Medallions have an extensive musical history, playing and touring across North America and Europe with many established artists such as The Cult, Franz Ferdinand, Death from Above 1979, OK Go, VHS or Beta, Sloan, Matt Mays, The Sadies, and Sam Roberts.
Medallions have written and recorded a dozen songs for their demo and plan on recording a full-length album in the fall. Their fiery live show is not to be missed.
