Dear Rouge in Concert
Vancouver, BC-based indie-pop outfit Dear Rouge centers around the husband-and-wife duo of Danielle and Drew McTaggart, a pair of West Coast scene fixtures who initially prioritized their matrimonial union over their musical one. Upon recording a debut EP in 2012, the couple were content to have Dear Rouge (a nostalgic nod to Danielle's hometown of Red Deer, Alberta) be their casual Bandcamp pastime, with no designs on pursuing a proper musical career. But after submitting their music to local radio station 102.7 The Peak's indie-band competition on a lark, Dear Rouge found themselves the surprise recipients of the $102,700 grand prize — and swiftly went about capitalizing on the momentum by turning their part-time project into a full-fledged touring group. By 2014, their self-released singles "I Heard I Had" and "Best Look Lately" were all over Canadian modern-rock radio, and it's no mystery as to why.
Combining Danielle's radiant voice and soaring melodies with Drew's cracking indie-rock guitars and shimmering new-wave synths, Dear Rouge sounded festival-ready from the get-go, while tours with Canadian rock heroes the Arkells and U.S. synth-pop sensations Phantogram solidified their reputation as one of Canada's most exciting live acts. Dear Rouge signed to Universal Music Canada for the release of their 2015 debut album, ‘Black to Gold,' with the seductive, M83-inspired title track hitting No. 2 on the Canadian alt-rock radio charts en route to the band's Breakthrough Group of the Year victory at the Juno Awards. But the 2018 sophomore release, ‘PHASES,' sees them expand their vision to widescreen proportions with the help of an eclectic crew of collaborators, including former Hot Hot Heat singer Steve Bays and Canadian indie-folk icon Dan Mangan. The result is an album that retains all the anthemic indie-pop appeal of their debut, but with a greater willingness to smother the songs in huge dancefloor-ready grooves and sky-high neon synthscapes.
