Ascot Royals: Evil I Know

By Kerry Doole

Ascot Royals: "Evil I Know" (Slaight Music/Sony Music Canada): This Toronto-based modern rock quintet made a splash last year at radio with the single "The Best Is Yet To Come." That title is proving prophetic, as Ascot Royals have just delivered a new cut that is a bona fide winner.

It begins with a strummed guitar and the passionate vocals of Jimmy Chaveau, then builds quickly with hand claps, shouted 'hey's, and layered keyboards and guitars, then repeats this pattern in a textbook example of how to give a three-minute rock song real dynamism.

Lyrically, it tellingly probes life in these volatile times. "People are crazy these days, drawing lines in the sand, something I don't understand," it observes, adding "building walls like it's a game, I wonder what they're hiding."

The new track comes on the heels of the band's recently-released New Skin EP, which featured collaborations with such notables as producers Gavin Brown (Metric, Billy Talent), Eric Ratz (Monster Truck, Arkells), Gianni Luminati (Walk of the Earth, Steve Aoki) and Neil Sanderson (Three Days Grace), and showcases Ascot Royals as one to watch very very closely.

A rip-roaring combo in performance, Ascot Royals are now winning new fans on an extensive cross-Canada tour with Big Wreck. Dates here