Parlour Steps

Caleb Stull, who leads Parlour Steps, applies the label "thought rock" to his group's output, a phrase whose awkwardness hints at greater solemnity and self-importance than the Vancouver, British Columbia quartet actually delivers. Comparable to other Canadian indie rock acts spanning Destroyer through Arcade Fire, the band embraces sweeping, large-scale textures; yet the folk, country, and jazz threads running through their songs lend them the character of a Canadian counterpart to the Decemberists. The project began in 2000 after Stull, originally from Victoria, British Columbia, relocated to Vancouver and assembled an initial five-piece configuration that included a dedicated violinist. Two modestly distributed, self-issued records followed—2000's The Myth of Summer and 2003's Hours of Tremor—before Stull secured a consistent roster comprising guitarist Rees Haynes, bassist and backing singer Julie Bavalis, and drummer Rob Linton, all three of whom had previously collaborated in a jazz ensemble during music school. The solidified group issued its first single, "Libertine Takes a Lover," in 2005; the track later anchored their breakthrough release, The Great Perhaps. After inking a deal with the Massachusetts indie imprint Nine Mile Records and completing their initial wide-ranging tours of Canada and the United States, Parlour Steps delivered their fourth album, Ambiguoso, at the start of 2008. Keyboardist Allyson Mara subsequently came aboard, freeing Stull from his previous live multi-instrument duties.