Genres Indie rock
Pop Labels Grumpy Cloud Records | Years active 2005 (2005)–2012 Website Official Website | |
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Origin Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Associated acts The Horribly Awfuls, True Hussars, Boats, Paper Moon, The Weakerthans, Propagandhi | ||
The Consumer Goods was a Canadian indie rock/pop band originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Their politically charged music earned both praise and contempt, and made them controversial figures in the Canadian indie rock scene in the 2000s. Between 2005 and 2012, they released four records and scored two significant hits including "…Sam Katz," a polemic against Winnipeg's mayor that went into heavy rotation on local radio, much to Sam Katz's embarrassment, and "Hockey Night in Afghanada," an anthemic call for the separation of hockey and war-mongering that "managed to thoroughly embarrass the folks at CBC Sports when they submitted the song to CBC's contest to replace the Hockey Night In Canada Theme." The band also toured Canada extensively, graced the cover of Uptown Magazine, charted in over 50 independent radio stations in Canada and the US, and were nominated for two awards (including one of CBC's annual listener-selected "Bucky Awards"). Principally powered by activist/teacher Tyler Shipley, the band relocated to Toronto in the late 2000s and released its final album there, produced by Dale Morningstar and featuring Dave Clark and Bob Egan. They are often compared to other politically minded acts from Winnipeg, most notably The Weakerthans and Propagandhi. The Consumer Goods appeared on the Winnipeg-based Grumpy Cloud Records.
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Band members
The only permanent member of The Consumer Goods was Tyler Shipley, who currently lives in Toronto where he is a published academic writing on the global financial crisis, labour and social movements, the politics of professional sport, and Canadian support for the 2009 military coup in Honduras. He is also a political activist in the CUPE 3903 union at York University. Other members of the band included:
Guest musicians have included: