Danko Jones
Canadians Danko Jones draw most of their inspiration from 70’s funk (on their early efforts) and hard rock (on later works), and consist of eponymous vocalist/guitarist Danko Jones, bassist John ‘JC’ Calabrese, and drummer Damon Richardson. Originally formed in Toronto, in 1996, they debuted a couple of years later with a loud, brash, self-titled E.P., then followed it with a slightly sleeker effort named My Love is Bold, in 1999. A lengthy silence ensued, but Danko Jones eventually combined these scattered early efforts into 2001’s I’m Alive and on Fire—A Collection of Songs: 1996-1999, and resumed their career significantly re-energized and extra-electrified for their first set of proper albums: 2002’s Born a Lion, and its even more accomplished successor We Sweat Blood. With their debts to the swagger and mindset of 70’s hard rock gods AC/DC and Thin Lizzy in full evidence, these albums received rave reviews everywhere (but especially in Europe) and led to widespread touring outside of Canada. Finally, two years later, the U.S. caught up when Razor & Tie released a slightly modified version of We Sweat Blood for American audiences.
