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I have watched the development of Tegan and Sara over the last few years, and it has been an increasingly satisfying experience. They are a duo who appreciate the necessity of rocking the beat, and are able to kick out the jams whenever it's necessary. When singing a simple ballad ensure that their stamp of originality is all over it. What sets them apart is they are not merely copy cat mainstream folkies trying to emulate someone else's riff, style or vocal inflection. They sound like themselves. Wow what a great idea! Have we forgotten that this is what musical artistry is all about? Haven't we all endured so many pale renditions of oldies on American Idol to know what the difference is? Maybe they should change the name of that show to American Oldies? One of Tegan and Sara's popular songs "Walking with a Ghost" has the post punk edge and snare beats with a "Cars" like Moog synth riff that stays with you. It has influences but still is all theirs. I love the way they even break into synth solo at the end to bring the song home. Stuff like this is missing from the charts, but we are spoon fed the same 80's reloads over and over from the same 80's artists like A Flock of Seagulls (who I like by the way) to Gary Numan et al. Even the Cars are extremely fresh sounding compared to the American Idol rehash. I think Tegan and Sara are on the right track and will become even more popular. They have a lot of fans waiting for them to be a big band. The problem is most Americans seem to prefer Mainstream swill these days. They will have to come up with something that covers all the bases to score big. This includes a stage show that dazzles the audience, showing their sweet good looks in costumes that give them a fresh look. And showing the non believers a little more on the next music video. Like maybe a sorcerer and gnome video with flying horses and oh well you get the idea. They will need a very cool tour logo, and some major tv, and media attention. If they do all of this they will be playing some US arenas. Is this what they want? The refreshing thing is even if they stay the same size as they are, playing small venues they are creating something of value. When you listen to Canadian artists Tegan and Sara you may not always hear the song you hope for, but you will always recognize their unique talent and their contribution to making music that is well crafted and original.

Learn more about this author, Jim Gordon.
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