reviewed by Michael

Born Under A Veil is the debut album from this Toronto quintet, and their brand of pop-rock is sure to get some major attention.

The Ruby Spirit is far more than just a band with a female lead singer- this album is rare in the sense that every instrument this band plays gets some prominence on Born Under a Veil‘s six songs.

Yes, there are multiple guitar solos, there are bass solos, and there’s even a drum solo.

These six songs should grab you right at the start- “Tin Can Bees” is full of guitars and drums that complement each other well creating a very catchy song (which is at the time of this writing still repeating in my head). It begins with the lyric “No one knows what I’m going through/ We hate where we live but love the view.”

“Ruby Dog” is another great song which features a very prominent bassline which adds group vocals towards the end. Once again, pretty damn catchy.

In some moments the band hits a pop-punk swagger- in others, the band will make you want to dance. The band obviously possesses a great deal of energy; that would explain why they were able to secure headlining spots in such venues as Lee’s Palace and the Phoenix.

I find it hard to believe that this is the first recording to come from the Ruby Spirit- the songs already possess a polish that one would expect at least from a sophomore album.

Top Tracks: “Tin Can Bees”; “Caligari”

Rating: Proud Hoot (Really Good)