The Unicorns
The Unicorns were an
indie pop band from
Montreal,
Canada.
The Unicorns were originally formed in December
2000 by
Nicholas Thorburn (stage name Nick "Neil" Diamonds, married to Hillary Stone, a small girl from a small town, as well as a host of other aliases) and
Alden Penner (stage name, Alden Ginger;
Elvis Presley's fiancée when he died was
Ginger Alden). They were later joined by drummer
Jamie Thompson (stage name J'aime Tambeur) and Max Groadie ("the American Roadie, né Bill Horwood").
The band self-released their debut album
Unicorns Are People Too in March 2003 through their own record label Caterpillars of the Community, with a limited press run of 500 copies.
In October of the same year they went back into the studio, recording several new songs as well as reworking a number of songs from their debut. The resulting second album,
Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?, was released in November 2003 on the label
Alien8 Recordings, and was a notable departure for a label that has traditionally released albums by Avant-Garde and highly experimental artists such as
Acid Mothers Temple and noise pioneer
Merzbow.
The album received glowing reviews from
The Village Voice,
NME, online magazine
Pitchfork and numerous other publications around the world, and it quickly earned the band a fanatical following on the indie-rock circuit. The band toured constantly for thirteen months following its release, initially supporting fellow Canadian band
Hot Hot Heat across North America before proceeding to play to sell-out crowds in Australia, Europe and the UK, as well as touring several more times across the U.S. and Canada.
In November of 2004, a split 7" between the Unicorns and similarly named noise artist
Unicorn for release on
Kitty Play Records was announced by the bands website and Pitchfork media but it was never finished.
The band's hectic touring schedule took its toll, however, and by the time of their Australian tour in December 2004 they were showing signs of exhaustion, playing reportedly lukewarm shows and verbally clashing with audience members. On
December 28,
2004, a short message appeared on the Unicorns'
website reading "THE UNICORNS ARE DEAD, (R.I.P.)", leading fans to speculate as to whether they had broken up.
In early February 2005
Pitchfork reported that The Unicorns had split. Also the website
Solid PR issued a press statement on the band's behalf confirming the claims of break-up.
Thorburn and Thompson continued to collaborate together as
Th' Corn Gangg (a pop/hip-hop project) and
Islands (a pop project). However, on
May 28,
2006, Jamie Thompson announced his departure from Islands.
Penner released a
7" on the
Melbourne-based
Art School Dropout label. The A-side,
The Ghost of Creaky Crater, was recorded in Melbourne on
December 19,
2004 while The Unicorns were touring the country. The release was limited to a hundred copies. Penner now performs under the name Dub Intefadah.
*
Nicholas Thorburn - stage name "Nick 'Neil' Diamonds"
*
Alden Penner - stage name "Alden Ginger"
*
Jamie Thompson - stage name "J'aime Tambeur"
*
Max Groadie - stage name "the American Roadie"
Albums
Three Inches of Blood (Early Demos)
Unicorns Are People Too (Caterpillars of the Community, March 2003) - limited to 500 copies
Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone? (Alien8, November 2003; Black/Pink vinyl released March 2004)
Singles/EPs
The Unicorns: 2014 b/w Emasculate the Masculine (
March 23,
2004) 7" on
Suicide Squeeze RecordsThe Unicorns: 2014 - EP
Unreleased tracks
*"Gut Stains"
*"Peach Moon"
*"Do the Knife Fight"
*"Haunted House"
*"Are We Expandin'? (In an Icecapade Meltdown)"
*"Let Me Sleep"
*"Big Kind Death"
*"Let it Go"
*"Abominable Snowman"
*"Livin' in the Country"
*"The Adventures of Bayou Billy"
*"Ebb Tide, Azure Sky"
*"Hanz"
*"Newfoundland"
*"I Do It (For Your Love)"
*
List of bands from Canada*
Th' Corn Gangg*
IslandsOfficial sites
*Secret Unicorns Forum — fansite which became official after the break-up
**"The Unicorns Story: After the Unicorns..."
;Fansites
*Alex Batko: The Unicorns
*Unicorns Are People Too
