J-14 is scouting out the hottest bands around… and this week's pick is Marianas Trench.

Here are five things you need to know about Marianas Trench, whose album Masterpiece Theatre drops tomorrow, September 28!

  1. Marianas Trench is a Vancouver-based band made up of lead singer/pianist/guitarist Josh Ramsay, lead guitarist/backing vocalist/pianist Matt Webb, bassist/backing vocalist Mike Ayley, and drummer/backing vocalist Ian Casselman. One of the coolest parts about the band is that they sing in four-part harmonies! Even cooler? They performed at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

  2. Josh says their first album was "rock-flavored," but their new album Masterpiece Theatre has more of a pop feel that's mean to feel like an entire record, not just single unrelated songs. "I was more interested in having stuff that could all tie through and be thematic and exciting that way," Josh tells J-14.

  3. All the band members agree that their singles "Cross My Heart" and "Celebrity Status" are some of their faves to play. Matt says they're both are tons of fun to play and the crowd gives them a good reaction, and Josh says "Cross My Heart" was the first time they had a really big in Canada. "That was really exciting for me," he admits.

  4. Marianas Trench hung out with Justin Bieber when many Canadian artists came together to record "Wavin' Flag," a song that supported the victims of the Haitian earthquake, and at this year's MuchMusic Video Awards in Toronto. "He's very nice — kind of shy!" Josh tells J-14. "His guitar player, Dan, is a very good friend of mine."

  5. The band tours a ton, and they bring some interesting things with them on the road. "I like to have soap from home — I like to have consistent soap," Matt admits. Josh and Mike bring something slightly more common — their laptops. "It's my little escape from everybody else," Mike says.

Marianas Trench stopped by the J-14 office and gave a live acoustic performance of their song, "Beside You" — check it out below!

Tell us what you think of Marianas Trench!

Photo: Courtesy of Mark Maryanovich

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