Foam Lake

Foam Lake

Foam Lake is a Saskatoon, Canada-based group made up of four Ross brothers. The band name comes from a place connected to their family: their mother grows up there and their grandfather lives and dies there. The brothers have been playing together for most of their lives, and they form the group in late 2008 after the sudden end of a previous band involving half of them.

Style and sound

The group plays indie rock with a post-pop leaning, combining synth textures, driving rhythms, contemplative lyrics and prominent guitars. Their sound also draws on swirling keyboard parts and jagged guitar work, with influences that include Neil Young, My Bloody Valentine, the Ramones, the Smiths and Magazine. Their father’s interest in drums and his record collection also shapes their approach, alongside electronic elements associated with post-punk and new wave.

Members and related projects

Tyler and Kalen Ross are also members of the rock trio the Warbrides. Paul Ross performs with the alt-country and shoegaze collective Slow Down, Molasses, and Barrett Ross is active in Chiba. Before forming Foam Lake, Barrett and Paul tour across Canada, parts of the United States and China as part of their earlier band, The Blood Lines.

Earlier activity

As The Blood Lines, Barrett and Paul play showcases at CMJ in New York, NXNE in Toronto and the Beijing Pop Festival. The band also appears on the cover of the New York Times following a trip to South by Southwest in Austin.