Billboard July 19 1997

Canada

Bran Van 3000 Gives Canada‘Glee’

DJ Compiles Eclectic SetFor Audiogram Debut

BY LARRY LeBLANC

TORONTO-One of the mostnovel Canadian albums in years. “Glee” by Bran Van 3000, features20 Montreal-based musicians, DJ’s,rappers, and vocalists led bycelebrated club DJ/ video director Jamie Di Salvio (aka Bran Man).

 The album,released in Canada April 15 by Montreal-basedAudiogram Records, has had it’s lead single, reach No. 39 on BroadcastData Systems’ contemporary hit radio chart in Canada for the week endingMonday (14), while it’s video is in medium rotation at Much Music.

 According to Audiogram, the album has sold 5000 units inCanada. At this point it is only available in Canada.

 Distributed nationally by Distribution Select of Montreal,the debut album deftly runs through the pop music spectrum. Tracks like“Highway To Heck”, “Couch Surfer”

“Hardrockin’Cincinnati,” and “Drinking In L.A.” contain such unlikelyhybrids as trip-hop pop,country surf,and acid-jazz punk, as well as more mainstream pop, funk, jungle, and psychadelicsounds.

Additionally, the songsare jam-packed with radio, television, film and music samples, with everythingspliced together in a hook-laden sonic blur.

 Besides Di Salvio, “Glee” features an impressivecast of Montreal players, including vocalists Stephane Moraille, Sara Johnston,and jayne Hill; guitarist Adam Chaki; and Bob

Eaglesham and Rick Rigbyof lo-fi/ hip-hop duo Shine Like Stars. There are also vocal cameos fromQuebec’s French music pop star Jean Leloup, John Kastner of theDoughboys, Eval Manigatt, Martha Wainwright, and rappers Steve“Liquid” Hawley and

Nervous Duaine Larson

 Produced by Di Salvio, Haig Vartzbedian, and “ElectricPierre” Bergen, all the tracks…

To be continued... on next page.