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The D'Urbervilles

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"Gunhammer!"

Location: Toronto, Canada

Websites:

• http://myspace.com/thedurbervilles
• http://thedurbs.ca/

Bio: The D'Urbervilles began in the Toronto suburb of Oshawa, Ontario as a means for childhood friends and underagers Tim Bruton (guitar, synth) and John O’Regan ... (more) (vocals, guitar, synth) to see rock shows at local bars. Equipped with little more than a borrowed amplifier, an Echo & The Bunnymen cover, and a band name lifted from a 19th century British novel, these enterprising youngsters played a few gigs and liked performing enough to keep the band together even though they'd reached the legal drinking age. After a few months they left town for arts school at the University of Guelph, Ontario, where they met future band member Kyle Donnelly (bass) and began to immerse themselves in a vibrant independent music scene that produced acts like Constantines, Gentleman Reg, and Royal City.

The core group found a practice space in the attic of a local thrift store where they were free to hone their craft on vintage gear until the wee hours most school nights. Weekends were spent performing, and without the means to pay for a vehicle, The D'Urbs often arrived minutes before showtime with their gear trailing behind in plastic red wagons.

After a year, the band had cobbled together enough money to record a self-titled EP. The five-song disc earned the group showcases at Pop Montreal and Toronto's NXNE. As word began to spread about a new band whose name no one could spell or pronounce (it's capital D - apostrophe - capital U - r - b - e - r - villes) and their frenetically engaging live performances, touring invites began to arrive from respected Canadian acts such as You Say Party! We Say Die! and Malajube. (less)