Imaginary Cities was a Canadian indie pop duo based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The project consisted of multi-instrumentalist Rusty Matyas, formerly of the Waking Eyes and a sometime collaborator of the Weakerthans, and vocalist Marti Sarbit.[1]
Imaginary Cities | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2010–2016 |
| Labels |
|
| Past members | Rusty Matyas Marti Sarbit |
History
editMatyas and Sarbit began collaborating in 2010. That year, they played a few live shows and began to record tracks for an album. In 2011, they continued performing, at first serving as the opening band for more established groups.[2]
Their debut album, Temporary Resident, was released in 2011 on the Hidden Pony label;[3][4] it went on to top Canada's campus radio charts.[1] That year, the band won a Western Canada Music Award for Best Pop Album of the Year[5] and was subsequently named as a longlisted nominee for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize.[6] To support the album, they played several dates in Eastern Canada and the US[7] as an opening act for Pixies.[1]
Imaginary Cities performed at a number of pop festivals, including the 2013 NXNE,[8] and gained a following in Germany.[9] The band released their second album, Fall of Romance, in May 2013.[10][11] Fall of Romance was produced, engineered, and mixed by Howard Redekopp, who has also worked with Tegan and Sara, the New Pornographers, and Mother Mother.[12]
In 2014, they collaborated with Porter Robinson on his song "Hear the Bells". In the same year, Matyas toured with The Sheepdogs as a guitarist following the departure of Leot Hanson from that band.[13]
Imaginary Cities stopped performing and recording in 2016.[14] Sarbit launched the new band Lanikai the following year.[15] Matyas suffered from alcoholism-related liver disease in 2017[16] and spent some time recovering before reemerging in 2021 with the solo project Rusty Robot.[17]
Discography
edit- Temporary Resident (2011)
- Fall of Romance (2013)
References
edit- ^ a b c "Imaginary Cities are here to stay". National Post, February 21, 2011.
- ^ Alex Hudson, "Indie rock and Motown meet in Imaginary Cities". The Georgia Straight, July 13, 2011.
- ^ "Imaginary Cities Perform "Hummingbird"". Exclaim!, December 13, 2011.
- ^ Alex Hudson, "Waking Eyes Offshoot Imaginary Cities Set Up for NXNE". Exclaim!, June 15, 2010.
- ^ "2011 Western Canadian Music Award Winners". breakoutwest.ca. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
- ^ "2011 Polaris Music Prize Long List announced" Archived October 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine. aux.tv, June 16, 2011.
- ^ "Imaginary Cities Announce North American Tour". Exclaim!. September 7, 2011. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
- ^ "NXNE 2013 in Review: Five Days That Will Live in Infamy". Torontoist, June 17, 2013.
- ^ "Imaginary Cities Is the Best Indie Band You Don’t Know Yet". Huffington Post, 06/04/2013/ Andrew Blackmore-Dobbyn, Ellen Dobbyn-Blackmore
- ^ "Imaginary Cities set to release highly anticipated second album". CBC News, May 16, 2013.
- ^ Ryan Reed, "Imaginary Cities: Fall of Romance". Paste, May 28, 2013.
- ^ "Fall of Romance - Imaginary Cities | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
- ^ "The Sheepdogs 'parting ways' with guitarist Leot Hanson". CBC News Saskatoon, July 2, 2014.
- ^ Sarah Murphy, "Imaginary Cities Serve Up 'Leftovers' EP Before Going on Indefinite Hiatus". Exclaim!, July 27, 2016.
- ^ "Marti Sarbit takes a trip from Imaginary Cities to Lanikai". CBC News Manitoba, March 18, 2017.
- ^ "'Dryuary' a lifestyle choice for some, but quitting booze was a question of survival for Winnipeg musician". CBC News Manitoba, January 13, 2019.
- ^ Eva Wasney, "Delivering delight: Musician's Rusty Robot project is two scoops of fun with a cherry on top". Winnipeg Free Press, July 8, 2021.