The Rural Alberta Advantage

The Rural Alberta Advantage, aka The RAA, is a Toronto based trio who plays heartfelt and earnest indie with strong rock accents. They often establish an expansive sound that gives their songs some breathing space, but at the same time, they also like to push the tempo up with a sense of urgency. Drummer Paul Banwatt plays a crucial role in that regard. He hammers the beats and attacks the cymbals with the swagger of a hardened rock drummer, and in doing so, he adds more body to the songs and more momentum. They generally favor a dramatic flow in their music, where they have a tendency to turn up the intensity levels, which sends vocalist Nils Edenloff's distinct voice soaring to match those heights. They sound like a much bigger band when they have all kicked things up to the next level.