Note:  this article is eligible for the Share & Win CMW Contest!  RT or Share from our Facebook page for an entry into the main draw!

As we gear up for the festival, allow me to introduce a band I wish was playing the fest this year.

Hamilton, Ontario’s City And The Sea has been around for a few years, technically speaking.  Now sporting a new line-up and the polish of a band that’s toured Canada and Europe with eyes wide open, City And The Sea evokes that era of music I dearly miss, the late 90s.  It was an amazing time for rock, back when alternative truly embodied a sonic feel that doesn’t always translate today.

The lead single off their latest release, EP Action Figures, is the full throttle, straight up rocker “Strange Feeling”.  Their sound is that delicious place where old school rock and roll meets indie rock sensibility, with vocal harmony work that flushes out the blues-tinged guitars and a pleasantly abused drum kit.  The band often draws comparisons to the likes of Foo Fighters, an astute comparison, but I’m more immediately reminded of The Black Crowes or Tom Petty with the modern spin of the likes of Amos The Transparent.  I’ve been saying for a while that Hamilton is a secret powerhouse of incredible talent, and this band certainly does not disappoint!

OTM sat down on the virtual couch (the most comfortable one in existence) with Nick Cino, the pipes of the band, and discussed all of the things that matter most:  music, life, and world domination.

OTM: The Mayan Calendar was lyin’! Now that we’ve lived to see 2013, what albums are you looking forward to this year?

Nick Cino: One of the records I was looking forward to most in 2013 already came out: Biffy Clyro’s Opposites. They’re an awesome Scottish rock band and it’s a double album, really great. Otherwise, I’m definitely anticipating the new Strokes record, Comedown Machine and the soundtrack to Dave Grohl’s Sound City documentary! I think 2013 is going to be a great year for straight up rock music.

Last year, “Gangnam Style” exploded onto the scene. If you could dictate the song or trend that would become the viral monster of 2013, what would it be?

I want quality music videos by quality bands to be the viral monster of 2013! Too many hits are given to memes and videos that required no effort and no creativity.

If you could recruit anyone to direct a music video for you (Go wild! You’re not footing the bill), who would you choose and what song would you want them to tackle?

Dave Grohl just directed a video for Soundgarden, so I’d love to have him direct one for us. He’s got a great sense of humour and I think he would make a really fun video. I would get him to direct the video for “Railroad” off our new Action Figures EP and let him go wild with his imagination.

Share with us something that fans would find intriguing, but no music writer has managed to draw out of you yet (sorry about that, by the way!).

We toured Italy a few years back, and stayed in this very nice small town. Out late one night after a gig, the cops stopped us, told us to get off the road and go back to our villa. This nice little small Italian village had a serial killer on the loose.

If you were to be sponsored by a board game, what board game would you proudly bear the name of?

RISK! Because we are bent on global domination.

Spice World: terrible movie that should have never been made, or five clever, self-deprecating women taking the piss?

I saw Spice World in the theater back in ’97, and went to their reunion tour in 2008. Spice World is the A Hard Day’s Night of the 90’s.

Your first concert: who was it, and how old were you? More importantly, how was it?

Aerosmith at Copps Colliseum, 1998, 15 years old – it was amazing! They played all their hits and more! Every band should look up to them on how to put on a stage show.

In the spirit of Shaun Of The Dead, what was the second album you ever bought?

I think that goes back to Aerosmith again. Big Ones was the 2nd album I bought with my own money. I’m glad it wasn’t Hootie and the Blowfish (that was the 1st).

The world is ending in ten minutes. You can listen to one and only one song before the world ends. What song do you go out on?

The Beatles – THE END…  “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”  Blissful.

What can we look forward to from you in 2013?

More music and more shows! We spent most of 2012 writing and in the studio, so we’re itching to get back out on the road. And we have lots of new songs we’ve been playing live, we’re hoping to get into the studio very soon to make some new tunage.

City And The Sea may not be playing CMW, but Toronto-area music lovers can catch their set March 7th at Lee’s Palace. To celebrate the release of Action Figures, OTM is giving away a copy of the EP! All you have to do is retweet this post (be sure @OTMidnight is tagged!) or share from our Facebook (opentilmidnightblog). Winner will be contacted March 2nd, 2013!

Check out Action Figures below and visit City And The Sea’s official site.

http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/v=2/album=1977962453/size=grande3/bgcol=FFFFFF/linkcol=4285BB/