Our Lady Peace
Our Lady Peace (sometimes shortened to OLP)[1][2] is a Canadian rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario in 1992.[3] Led by lead vocalist Raine Maida since its formation, the band currently also features Duncan Coutts on bass, Steve Mazur on guitars, and Jason Pierce on drums. The band has sold several million albums worldwide,[4] won four Juno Awards, and won ten MuchMusic Video Awards—the most MMVAs ever awarded to a band (tied with Billy Talent).[5] Nineteen of their singles have reached the Top Ten on one of Canada's singles charts (those being the overall Singles Chart, the Rock Chart and the Alternative Rock Chart). Between 1996 and 2016, Our Lady Peace was the third best-selling Canadian band and the ninth best-selling Canadian artist overall in Canada.[6]
"OLP" redirects here. For the religious symbol, see Our Lady of Peace. For other uses, see OLP (disambiguation).
Our Lady Peace
OLP
1992–present
- Mike Turner
- Jeremy Taggart
- Jamie Edwards
- Robin Hatch
- Chris Eacrett
- Jim Newell
- Paul Martin
Our Lady Peace has released ten studio albums, one live album, and two compilation albums, with their debut album, 1994’s Naveed, having reached quadruple platinum in Canada. Naveed contains their breakthrough single, "Starseed", which peaked in the Top Ten on both the US Mainstream and Alternative Rock Tracks charts, and the title track, which reached No. 4 on Canada's Alternative Rock Chart. Their 1997 album, Clumsy, which reached No. 1 in Canada, is considered their signature and most widely recognized work.[7] Clumsy was certified as Diamond in sales in Canada with its title track reaching No. 1 on Canada's Singles Chart and its lead single, "Superman's Dead", reaching No. 2 on Canada's Alternative Rock Chart. The album was certified platinum in sales in the US with the title track peaking at No. 5 on the US Alternative Rock chart. OLP's 1999 album, Happiness... Is Not a Fish That You Can Catch, also reached No. 1 in Canada and was certified triple platinum there. Its singles "One Man Army" and "Is Anybody Home?" reached Nos. 1 and 2 on Canada's Alternative Rock Chart. The band's first four albums are often praised for their unique sound and style, with singer Maida being called "erratic" and "truly unrivaled"[8] as a vocalist.
Their fifth album, Gravity (2002), is considered to be a "radical departure" from OLP's distinctive style.[9] Maida has confirmed the change, calling Gravity "vastly different" from their previous records.[10] Gravity reached No. 2 in Canada, where it became the group's fifth straight (and last) double platinum seller, with its "Somewhere Out There" and "Innocent" songs reaching No. 1 and 2, respectively, on Canada's Singles Chart. Gravity was their highest charting album in the United States, reaching No. 9 on the strength of "Somewhere Out There" being their most successful single on the US Hot 100 (No. 26) and reaching No. 7 on the US Alternative Rock Chart. Their 2005 album Healthy in Paranoid Times also peaked at No. 2 in Canada and went platinum in sales.
Having released three studio albums with only moderate success between 2009 and 2018, their sequel album Spiritual Machines 2[11] was released in 2021.[12] The album's first single, "Stop Making Stupid People Famous" (feat. Pussy Riot), was released in June 2021.[13]
Our Lady Peace founded the Summersault festival that toured across Canada in 1998, and again in 2000.[56][57][58] The 1998 tour ran from late August to early September at outdoor venues in Barrie (north of Toronto), Quebec City, St. John's and Shediac (New Brunswick). The concerts featured headliners Our Lady Peace along with a slate that included I Mother Earth, Sloan, Garbage, Treble Charger, Bucket Truck, The Crystal Method and Moist.[59][58][60][61]
There were discussions of a Summersault festival for 1999,[62] but the tour did not return until 2000; the second iteration of the festival featured a larger, more impressive roster of bands, with a more extensive Canadian itinerary.[56][58] Over the first half of August 2000, the festival played at outdoor venues in eight of the largest Canadian metropolises.[63]
Our Lady Peace's headlining set from the 2019 Summersault Festival was released on YouTube Live in 2020. Primarily filmed on September 13, 2019 at Landsdowne Park in Canada's capitol city of Ottawa, ON. The performance features some of the band's best-known hits. As part of the release of the concert, Our Lady Peace offered discounts at their online merch store. All proceeds from the sales went to two major food banks, one in the United States and one in Canada, respectively.[64][65]
The 2000 tour featured 11 bands.[63][66][67][68]
2019 Festival lineup:
Musical style and themes[edit]
Our Lady Peace has been described as grunge,[70] post-grunge,[71] alternative rock,[72] and hard rock.[73]
In the band's early years, especially on Naveed and Clumsy, their overall sound was often compared to alternative rock and grunge bands including Soundgarden, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Pearl Jam.[8] The band's melodic structure was also said to echo that of bands such as The Beatles and Led Zeppelin.[8] Lead singer Raine Maida expresses much admiration for vocalist Mike Patton and his versatility, calling him "by far one of the best singers and best showmen in rock", while also naming the song "Everything's Ruined" by his band Faith No More among his favorites.[74] Maida's voice was called "erratic" and "truly unrivaled" in his field.[8] In albums Naveed through Spiritual Machines, Maida sang in a countertenor vocal register and was known for his frequent use of falsetto. This singing method, in combination with the band's melody structure, often gave many songs a surreal sound and effect.
The band's song "Whatever" was used as professional wrestler Chris Benoit's WWE theme song from 2002 until his death in 2007. Our Lady Peace had not performed the song live for a number of years prior to the murder/suicide of Benoit and his family in 2007. In a 2012 interview, the band stated that they would never play the song live again due to the circumstances of Benoit's death.[75]
