Danny Michel 

Danny Michel found his way into Showcase in the September/October 2000 issue of Canadian Musician and it was long overdue. Michel has been putting out albums since 1997 and currently has four solo albums to his credit. He was also both the bassist and guitarist for the Ottawa-based band Starling (who also appeared in Showcase in July/August of 1998) and was there long enough to see the band get signed to Time Bomb Records before leaving to give more attention to his solo efforts. The solo album that landed him in Showcase was 1999's Fibsville, which was called "one of the best listening experiences in a long time" by Jim Kelly. Since then, Michel has gone on to record Tales From The Invisible Man for Maple Music (2003).

Serial Joe 

After relentlessly playing in their parents' basements for a year, Newmarket's Serial Joe appeared in the May/June 1998 edition of Showcase in support of their album KICKeD. At the time, the oldest member of the band was only 14 years old and the public and critical acclaim they got for the album earned them an opening slot for KISS. The band went on to record their self-titled, sophomore album for Aquarius in 2000 with producer Dave Ogilvie of Nine Inch Nails and Jane's Addiction fame.

J. Englishman 

Although he appeared in the May/June 1998 Showcase with his group Tomorrow The World, J. Englishman has since gone solo and in 2000 released his debut, Poor Lil Rockstar, on Warner. Following that release, Englishman resurrected Let Records, the label on which he released Tomorrow The World, to promote new talent and to put out his own future recordings. As well, other than working on his own material, Englishman co-wrote Deception's debut record in 2001.

Maren Ord 

Following her appearance in that same May/June 1998 issue of Showcase (it was a good couple of months), while auditioning for a slot on Lilith Fair, Maren Ord caught the attention of Terry McBride (manager of The Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLachlan) who brokered a deal with Nettwerk and Capitol to release Ord's Waiting in 2000. Ord is currently working on new material for a second album with Randy Bachman.

Kardinal Offishall 

At 20 years old, Toronto hip-hop institution Kardinal Offishall appeared in CM's Showcase section in March/April 1998with his album Eye & I. Since then, Offishall (born Jason Harrow) has recorded another album for MCA as well as an EP. Harrow has also built a reputation for himself working with other rappers including Choclair, Checkmate, and Thrust. He produced much of Choclair's album, Ice Cold, and played several instruments on the tracks including the piano hook on the single "Let's Ride".

Sky 

Sky hold the distinction of being (probably) the only group in history to win the Juno for "Best New Group" after they had disbanded. When they were featured in CM's March/April 1998 issue however, Sky were only just on the cusp of breaking worldwide (a fact pointed out by Karen Bliss at the time) with Piece Of Paradise; an album that would debut at number six on Canada's pop charts, making it the highest Soundscan debut for a Canadian artist to that date.

Emm Gryner 

After surfacing in Showcase, there is precious little that offbeat songstress Emm Gryner hasn't done. Gryner released her major label debut, Public, on Mercury Records in 1998 and has since recorded two albums and a DVD for Dead Daisy. As well, Gryner has lent her considerable vocal and piano talents to such venerable names as David Bowie, Rob Zombie, Tommy Lee, Chris Chaney, Earl Slick, and Bran Van 3000.

DSK 

When DSK (aka Dead Surf Kiss) appeared in Showcase in March/April of 1997 they had already broken up and gotten back together under the name Meeker and gotten a new lead singer named Nathan Dillon. The members of "the most dysfunctional band in Canada" were still not satisfied in Meeker and disbanded again shortly thereafter. Luckily DSK/Meeker bassist Rich Priske and guitarist David Genn stayed in contact and found still one more vocalist/self-professed "control freak" named Matt Good. With the addition of drummer Ian Browne, The Matthew Good Band was formed and in 1999 double-platinum history was made with Beautiful Midnight debuting at number one on the Soundscan chart. After MGB dissolved and Good struck out on his own, Priske has stayed on board to play bass on Good's first solo album, Avalanche.

Mudgirl 

Kim Bingham's resume is just gigantic. When she appeared alongside her compatriots in Mudgirl in Showcase in September/October 1996 she was already several years into a musical career that has currently been going for 15 years beginning with Montreal's Me, Mom, and Morgantaler. Mudgirl released just one EP, First Book, before going on hiatus but Bingham has since occupied her time as the guitarist in David Usher's band (and was responsible for reproducing the falsetto vocal part in "Black Black Heart" live), performing guest vocals on Marcy Playground's 1999 release Shapeshifter, and most recently forming The Kim Band. The Kim Band released their fist album, Girlology, to critical acclaim in 2001. Kim has since changed gears again in joining Nelly Furtado's live band in 2004.

Moist 

In May/June 1994 Showcase's then-columnist Terri Humphries remarked that Moist would be "a band that a generation can follow for years to come." And what do you know? She was right. Since releasing Silver (the album that Humphries reviewed and also earned the band a devout following) Moist has gone on to multi-platinum success with their subsequent albums Creature (1996) and Mercedes Five and Dime (2000), and been awarded two Juno awards. With the band currently on hiatus, the members have kept busy; David Usher continues to perform as a solo artist (Moist members Jeff Pearce and Kevin Young are in his backing band) and won two Juno awards on his own, while guitarist Mark Makoway became a producer and founded Rumblecone Music in Toronto.

Our Lady Peace 

An embryonic incarnation of Our Lady Peace's demos fell onto CM's doorstep in July/August 1992 but no one could have expected what happened after that. Following a few line-up changes, Our Lady Peace have recorded five critically acclaimed studio albums, a live CD and DVD, won four Juno awards, and have become arguably one of the biggest bands in Canada. The US has followed Canada's lead in accepting OLP; both 1997's Clumsy and 1999's Happiness Is Not A Fish That You Can Catch appeared in the Billboard Top 200 albums list and garnered the band a slot on the bill at Woodstock 1999.

Ron Sexsmith and The Uncool 

Since his May/June entry into Showcase in 1991, St. Catharines-born songwriter Ron Sexsmith has become one of the most acclaimed Canadian musicians in the world. Elvis Costello called Sexsmith's self-titled major label debut the best album of 1995 and has also received similar praise from some of rock's greatest icons including Paul McCartney and Elton John. Now, with six albums to his credit, Sexsmith has further heightened his profile by going out on tour to support Richard Thompson, Coldplay and The Wallflowers, as well as lending his voice to such eclectic acts as Shonen Knife and Fountains Of Wayne. With all that said, in spite of the name Sexsmith gave his band in 1991, Sexsmith has indeed become very cool 13 years on.

The Barra MacNeils 

Hailing from Cape Breton, NS, The Barra MacNeils have been making music since they were children. The group of siblings were barely into their teens when they started playing professionally. The group released their self-titled debut independently in 1986, which they sold off the stage and locally in Cape Breton. The album received positive critical attention, but not large sales.
By 1989 a couple of The Barra MacNeils were almost old enough to drink; but more importantly were the other highlights that year that included the release of their second record, Rock In The Stream, and an appearance in CM's September/October edition of Showcase.
Since that appearance, the MacNeils have gone on to record seven albums of both traditional and original material, made regular performance appearances on The Rita MacNeil variety show, opened for Celine Dion, and broadcast performances in both Canada and the US on PBS. Sales and acclaim have continued to improve for the MacNeils as they enter their 24th year of professional performance.

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