The varying equation of determining what is a best new band, a rising band or a potential star is often a complex one. But above anything else, the one prerequisite that’s more important than anything else is that band needs to be great and have its brighter days ahead of them. That’s certainly in the case for Canadian indie/post-punk rockers Born Ruffians. 

Usually a band that’s been around for the amount of time that this quartet has been wouldn’t be considered a best new band, but its impressive resume speaks for itself. Formed in Midland, Ontario before moving to Montreal. The group signed with UK-based electronica label Warp Records, where they released two EPs and two full-lengths.

What put them on music listeners’ radar was “This Sentence Will Ruin/Save Your Life,” as well as a cover of Grizzly Bear’s single “Knife” that the band recorded live on Seattle’s venerable KEXP. Both received airplay in their native Canada on CBC Radio and allowed them to build a following not only amongst their peers but also internationally.

Born Ruffians has toured with indie powerhouses like Franz Ferdinand, Caribou, Peter Bjorn and John, Hot Chip, The Hidden Cameras and Canada’s preeminent rockers (sorry Nickelback), Toronto’s own Tokyo Police Club. Playing with these bands help the band grow a larger profile, at least in countries that aren’t the United States.

The band’s appeal lies in their combination of intelligent guitar-driven rock that combines crunchy synths, exquisite vocals along with catchy lyrics that are easy to sing-along to. Unlike other outfits at this point in their career, they know who they are as a band yet continue to get better. Besides, how many groups would willingly take part in a comedic web series (2009’s Nirvana the Band the Show) playing themselves? Not many.

Birthmarks, the group’s latest release and first on North Carolina indie label Yep Roc (along with Toronto’s Paper Bag Records), is a step forward for the quartet. It took three years to make the album, which was written and demoed in a farmhouse in rural Ontario, faraway from any distractions that could have taken away from their songwriting, though some of the songs were conceived by frontman/chief songwriter Luke Lalonde while on the road or at home on his trust laptop. The result is a focused album and the candid moments of spending time at the farm were recorded as part of a documentary that can be seen on their website.

For whatever reason, Canadian rock bands get overlooked in the States, unless they’re horrible, then they unfathomably become popular. Hopefully Born Ruffians can achieve the degree of success Stateside that they have in their native land. The band certainly has the formula to have long-term success, even if they are perhaps destined to be forever an indie favorite.