One of the great mysteries, if you’re in a rock band, is what makes a certain song sink or swim on radio.
For instance, the tune Big Slice by Montreal’s Jonas and the Massive Attraction “didn’t float” for months after being released as a single last June.
Then suddenly in October, radio stations across the country began playing it, and Big Slice started rising until it peaked in January at No. 7 on the Canadian rock charts.
“It’s basically been in the Top 40 in radio since November,” said the group’s Juno-nominated frontman, Jonas Tomalty, who performs a St. Patrick’s Day concert at The Vat on Thursday.
“I don’t know why . . . maybe they had a pocket and they were looking for that kind of rock song and they picked ours.
“As Canadians, we like the big, shameless, rock ’n’ roll, balls-to-the-wall song that’s a real foot stomper — a real speeding ticket song,” the singer added, with a chuckle.
Big Slice seems to be all of the above. Even its broad message jives with popular culture. “Everybody wants a big slice — of life, or whatever it means to you,” Tomalty said.
Jonas and the Massive Attraction appears to have come out of nowhere for Western Canadians, but the band in its former incarnation, simply titled Jonas, has had a big fan following in Montreal for the past seven years.
The group played to 7,000 fans at the Bell Centre, home of the Montreal Canadiens, and toured across North America in 2004 with Van Halen.
The debut near-platinum-selling album, Jonas, featured the hit single Edge of Seventeen, and was nominated as Rock Album of The Year at the 2005 Juno Awards. That same year, Tomalty was also nominated as New Artist of The Year.
“We’ve had great success in Quebec and Montreal — we’ve always charted there,” he said.
Now that the group has expanded its rhythm section and its name, and radio stations across the country are giving it airplay, Tomalty said, “the rest of Canada has been really good to us, too.”
The 31-year-old, who toured in Europe last summer, is really looking forward to coming West to play for Red Deer fans because “I hear Red Deer is a real rock ’n’ roll town.”
Jonas and the Massive Attraction is even slated to make a return trip here to perform this summer at the Central Music Festival.
Tomalty springs from a musically supportive Anglo-Quebec family. His dad used to play the harmonica and banjo for the kids before bedtime, while his mom sang lullabyes.
The teenage Jonas met his bandmate and best friend, guitarist Corey Diabo, when both were musicians jamming around Montreal some 14 years ago. He calls Diabo, who shares his idolatry of Procol Harum guitarist Robin Trower, his musical “brother.”
Jonas and the Massive Attraction is also made up of J.S. Baciu on bass and Martin Lavallee on drums.
The next single being released on radio is Seize the Day — and Tomalty hopes it floats.
Tickets for the 8 p.m. concert are $10 at the door.
lmichelin@www.reddeeradvocate.com