Falling leaves are not the only noteworthy shade of red in the city this week. Vancouver-based electronic rock band Dear Rouge will be showing its colours downtown with a performance at Mavericks on October 29.
Dear Rouge is led by husband and wife duo Drew and Danielle McTaggart. The name is a play on words referring to Danielle’s hometown, Red Deer, Alberta. The group officially formed in 2012 after both members spent several years touring as musicians under separate projects.
“When we started Dear Rouge it was to keep music fun,” explains Drew. “And to do it really pure and organic, making the songs without worrying about the destination.”
Six months after Drew and Danielle married, they quit their jobs to fully dedicate themselves to Dear Rouge.
“People always say being in a band is like being married to four or five people,” he says. “We are married twice over because after the road we still hang out with each other.”
In April 2012, they released a four-song independent debut EP Heads Up! Watch Out! It was followed six months later by a second EP called Kids Wanna Know. This recording won Dear Rouge Peak Performance Project of the year – the largest artist development project in Canada.
In 2014 the group broke the top 20 of the Canadian Alternative Rock and Modern Rock charts with singles I Heard I Had and Best Look Lately. Later that year, they signed to Universal Music Canada. In March 2015 Dear Rouge released its debut album Black to Gold. The record single, ‘Black to Gold,’ hit #2 on the Canadian Alt-Rock charts by May.
“It is not that we want to continue playing music for the rest of our lives, we have to,” he says. “That is what we are built to do.”
Dear Rouge is supporting the release of its new album by headlining stages across Canada, the United States and Europe this fall and winter.
“My favourite part about being on tour is that you are committed to being on your toes all the time,” explains Drew. “Even though you are playing the same songs it feels different every single night.”
Ottawa is special to the band according to Drew. He encourages people to come introduce themselves at the concert.
“If you have heard or haven’t heard our music, listening to it live is a great time to experience it,” he explains. “When you listen to the record in the car you know how the songs are going to be, but when you come to a live show it is completely unpredictable.”
Certainly the band’s punchy guitar hooks, uplifting synth layers and Danielle’s powerful vocal deliveries will make it a show worth watching.
To purchase tickets or learn more about the band, visit the Dear Rouge website. Their show will take place at Mavericks, on 221 Rideau Street.
