by Jim Kelly

Who: Meraudio
What: Energetic modern rock with hooks galore
Where: Toronto, ON
To Contact: (416) 890-7581, info@meraudio.com, www.meraudio.com.

Meraudio is essentially the nom-de-rock of Toronto-based musician Matt Ruttan. Formerly known as Mer, Ruttan decided to alter the handle of his project when he learned that there are several similarly named bands in the US. After releasing a few EPs under the old moniker, Angels & Gasoline marks the first full-length CD under the Meraudio name. Calling his music “two-parts rock, one-part pop,” Ruttan aims for edginess, accessibility and sincerity in his music. “For me, the number one thing is always honesty in a song,” he explains. “I want to feel like I’ve exposed some part of myself. It’s gotta be honest and it’s gotta be edgy, but at the same time I’m pretty pop-oriented too, so it usually subscribes to that pop formula.” Angels & Gasoline is fuelled by energetic modern rock with accessible melodies, churning guitars and modern beats. Standout tracks include the upbeat opener “Wasting Me”, the ultra-catchy “Life For Forever” and, adding a change of pace for the closing cut, the aching acoustic ballad “Burdened Eyes”. The disc has been getting support from campus radio and Ruttan hopes to push it further, though he is currently focussing mainly on publishing. “I just wanna get songs into ears. That’s the bottom line.” If he keeps writing and recording the kind of songs that wouldn’t sound out of place on any modern rock radio playlist, you can bet that more ears will be filling up with the sounds of Meraudio.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 3rd, 2002 at 3:48 pm and is filed under Showcase. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.