The Birthday Massacre

A Canadian darkwave ensemble fusing electronica, goth, and new wave, the Birthday Massacre first surfaced in 2000 under the name Imajica before adopting their present moniker ahead of the 2002 debut album Nothing and Nowhere. Mainstream recognition arrived during the 2010s via Hide and Seek and Under Your Spell, both of which registered on domestic and international charts, and the band delivered their eighth studio album, the dark and atmospheric Diamonds, in 2020.

The group originated in London, Ontario, under the spelling Imagica, drawn from Clive Barker’s fantasy/horror novel of the same title. Its founding members included frontwoman Chibi, guitarists Rainbow and M. Falcore, bassist Aslan, keyboardist Dank, and percussionist O.E. After completing a seven-song demo, Dank departed and the remaining musicians moved to Toronto, where a second demo appeared in mid-2001. With the name change to the Birthday Massacre, they issued their first full-length release, Nothing & Nowhere, during summer 2002. Following O.E.’s exit, keyboardist Adm and percussionist Rhim joined for the 2004 EP Violet. Adm departed before an expanded European edition of that EP appeared on Germany’s Repo label; in 2005 the band signed with Metropolis Records for North American and U.K. distribution and added keyboardist O-en for a Western European tour.

Walking with Strangers, their third album, came out on Metropolis in 2007 and was followed by a tour alongside Mindless Self Indulgence and Julien-K. Pins and Needles arrived in 2010 and was succeeded the next year by the EP Imaginary Monsters. Hide and Seek, issued in 2012, achieved modest chart placement and favorable reviews, prompting the Birthday Massacre to crowdfund their sixth album, Superstition, which surfaced in late 2014 and was supported by an extensive North American trek plus dates in Brazil and the U.K. The 2016 release Imagica collected the original four-track demos from the band’s earliest period. Under Your Spell followed in summer 2017, registering strongly across multiple U.S. Billboard charts. Three years later the band returned with the brooding and mystical Diamonds, marking their twentieth anniversary.