The Age of Electric

The Age of Electric was a Canadian rock band founded in 1989 with members from Lanigan and Regina, Saskatchewan. The members were Todd Kerns (vocals/guitar), Ryan Dahle (guitar/backing vocals), John Kerns (bass), and Kurt Dahle (drums/backing vocals).

The Age of Electric
Origin	Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Genres	Alternative rock
Years active	1989–1998, 2015–2017
Labels	Gods Teeth Ethel!, Mercury
Members	Ryan Dahle Todd Kerns John Kerns Kurt Dahle
Website	theageofelectric.com (defunct)

History

The Age of Electric band was conceived by Todd Kerns and Kurt Dahle circa 1986 and was born in April 1989, after waiting for their two younger brothers, John Kerns and Ryan Dahle,^[1] to graduate high school. The Dahle brothers traveled two hours north from their home in Regina, Saskatchewan to the Kerns brothers small home town of Lanigan.^[2]

The band's commercial breakthrough came with their independent EP Ugly in 1993, which set the stage for the major label release of their self-titled album in 1995.^[1]

In 1996, the Dahle brothers released an album with their side project Limblifter, which was also commercially successful in Canada.^{[citation needed]}

The band then released Make a Pest a Pet in 1997. The album produced the radio hit "Remote Control", which peaked at No. 9 on the singles chart in Canada^[3] and was later put on MuchMusic's diamond-certified compilation album, Big Shiny Tunes 2. Although it was the band's most successful album yet, being certified gold in Canada in 1998,^[4] tensions within the band led the group to break up after a 1998 tour as the opening band for Our Lady Peace. That year the band was nominated for a Juno Award as best new group.^[5]

The Kerns brothers then went on to form Static in Stereo with other members, including their brother Ryan. Dahle went on to work with The New Pornographers. Todd Kerns became the bass player and backing vocalist for Slash's band, The Conspirators, and has been inducted into the B.C. Hall of Fame. ^[6]

Reunion

The Age of Electric performed a reunion show in Calgary on August 29, 2015, their first public performance together in 17 years. Zuckerbaby was the opening act.^[7]

In 2016, the band announced plans to release a remastered, expanded two-LP vinyl reissue of Make A Pest A Pet in February 2017 to celebrate its 20th anniversary.^[8] Simultaneously, the band announced plans to release a new four-song EP the same month. The song "Keys" was released as the lead single from the new EP in November 2016. Both the Make a Pest a Pet reissue and the new EP, titled The Pretty EP, were released on February 17, 2017.

In March 2017, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Make a Pest a Pet, and to promotes its reissue and The Pretty EP, the band conducted a two-week cross-Canada tour.^[9]

Discography

Albums

• The Latest Plague (1991), Gods Teeth Ethel Records^[10]
• The Age of Electric (June 1 1995), Gods Teeth Ethel Records^[11]
• Make a Pest a Pet (1997), Universal Music^[12]

EPs

• Electric (1990), Independent^[13]
• The Ugly EP (1993), Gods Teeth Ethel Records^[14]
• The Pretty EP (2017), We Are Busy Bodies^[15]

Singles

Year	Song	Chart peak		Album
		CAN [16]	CAN Alt [17]
1991	"Aphrodisiac Smile"	-	-	The Latest Plague
1995	"Ugly"	80	-	The Age of Electric
	"Untitled"	50	24
	"Enya"	-	-
1997	"Remote Control"	9	10	Make a Pest a Pet
	"I Don't Mind"	59	-
	"Don't Wreck It"	42	-
2016	"Keys"	-	-	The Pretty EP
"—" denotes a release that did not chart.

References

1. Colin Larkin, ed. (1999). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Heavy Rock (First ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 446/7. ISBN 0-7535-0257-7.
2. "The Age of Electric". The Age of Electric. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
3. "Top Singles - Volume 65, No. 14, June 09 1997". RPM. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
4. "Gold/Platinum". Music Canada. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
5. Larry LeBlanc (February 21, 1998). "McLaughlin at top of Juno nominations". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. pp. 14–. ISSN 0006-2510.
6. "33 Vancouver concerts this weekend, October 19 to 21". Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly. October 19, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
7. Gregory Adams (July 20, 2015). "Age of Electric Reunite for Live Show". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
8. Gregory Adams (October 4, 2016). "Age of Electric Plot New EP and Expanded 'Make a Pest a Pet' Vinyl Reissue". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
9. Newton, Steve (March 25, 2017). "The Age of Electric kicks off Canadian tour..." earofnewt.com. Ear of Newt. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
10. "The Age Of Electric – The Latest Plague". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
11. "The Age Of Electric – The Age Of Electric". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
12. "The Age Of Electric – Make A Pest A Pet". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
13. "The Age Of Electric – Electric". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
14. "The Age Of Electric – The Ugly Ep". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
15. "The Age Of Electric – The Pretty EP". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
16. Peak positions for Age of Electric's singles on Canadian Singles Chart:

    • For "Ugly" "Top Singles - Volume 61, No. 9, April 03 1995". RPM. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
    • For "Untitled" "Top Singles - Volume 61, No. 23, July 10, 1995". RPM. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
    • For "Remote Control" "Top Singles - Volume 65, No. 14, June 09 1997". RPM. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved October 18, 2010.
    • For "I Don't Mind" "Top Singles - Volume 65, No. 20, July 21, 1997". RPM. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
    • For "Don't Wreck It" "Top Singles - Volume 66, No. 22, February 23, 1998". RPM. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
17. Peak positions for Age of Electric's singles on RPM Alternative 30 Chart:

    • For "Untitled" "Rock/Alternative - Volume 61, No. 19, June 11, 1995". RPM. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
    • For "Remote Control" "Rock/Alternative - Volume 65, No. 8, April 28, 1997". RPM. Archived from the original on August 17, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2012.

External links

• AllMusic entry for Age of Electric