Stabilo (originally Stabilo Boss) was a Canadian rock band from Maple Ridge, British Columbia. They formed in 1999 and are best known for the songs "Everybody", "One More Pill", "Don't Look in Their Eyes", "Flawed Design", and "Kidding Ourselves".

History

Formation

Members Jesse Dryfhout and Christopher John (then Chris Moerman) were high school classmates who played in a band called Molly after writing the song "Everybody". This recording marked the first appearance of bassist Karl Williaume. Released independently in early 2001, the album quickly sold out of its first pressing as Stabilo Boss gained more popularity in the local Vancouver music scene.

About a year later, a DJ at Vancouver's XFM radio station decided to play "Everybody" on their music competition show, Chaos. "Everybody" proved to be more popular than songs from more well-established artists and remained in the station's Top 7@7 charts for nearly a month. Due to the increased exposure, the band sold 5000 copies of their album and reached the notice of major labels.

Around this time, the band released The Beautiful Madness EP which they sold only at their live shows. The EP was recorded live off of the soundboard and featured a grand piano on all 4 tracks. It quickly sold out.

2003–2005: Name change and Cupid?

While considering contract offers from major labels, the band recorded a new album at Mushroom Studios in Vancouver, owned by John Wozniak (Marcy Playground). According to John, Wozniak liked the band so much that he "basically just gave us free time there". By 2003, the band had completed the album, produced by Wozniak and local musician/producer Jon Anderson (Radiogram/Jonathan Inc).

A few months later, they signed a deal with EMI Canada and shortened their name to Stabilo. In an interview, Dryfhout stated that the band's name came from the Stabilo Boss brand highlighter they used to write down possible band names. The first single, "Flawed Design", was co-written with Kevin Kadish. It was played on radio stations across Canada (and in nearby U.S. areas such as Detroit), rising to Number 1 on the Canadian charts. The music video was aired on MuchMusic, MuchMoreMusic and Most Requested.

In April 2006, Stabilo was interviewed about their unusual choice to feature two lead singers. Dryfhout stated: "Some people really like what we do. They get tired of hearing the same voice over and over again, but some get confused and it throws them right off. If they don't have a guy standing front and centre, they don't know who to worship." but lost to Mobile. In November 2007, Stabilo was awarded a SOCAN award for "Flawed Design" as the pop song that achieved the greatest number of plays on Canadian radio for 2006.

In 2012, Marcy Playground released the album Lunch, Recess & Detention, which included the song "Brand New Day", featuring vocals by Jesse Dryfhout.

Bass player Karl Williaume now plays with Canadian reggae singer Caleb Hart as a member of The Royal Youths.

Christopher John has released several solo albums, starting with The Missing (2009). His most recent release was Resonant (2022).

Discography

Albums and EPs

  • Kitchen Sessions (1999)
  • Stabilo Boss (2001)
  • The Beautiful Madness EP (2002)
  • Cupid? (2004)
  • Happiness and Disaster (2006)

Singles

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|-

! rowspan="2"| Year

! rowspan="2" style="width:15em;"| Single

! colspan="2"| Peak chart<br />positions

! rowspan="2"| Album

|- style="font-size:smaller;"

! width="45"| CAN<br>Hot AC<br>

! width="45"| CAN<br>Rock<br>

|-

| rowspan=2| 2001

! scope="row"| "Everybody"

| —

| —

| align="left" rowspan="2"| Stabilo Boss

|-

! scope="row"| "One More Pill"

| —

| —

|-

| rowspan=1| 2004

! scope="row"| "Everybody" <small>(re-release)</small>

| 9

| 18

| align="left" rowspan="1"| Cupid?

|-

| rowspan=3| 2006

! scope="row"| "Flawed Design"

| 1

| 18

| align="left" rowspan="4"| Happiness and Disaster

|-

! scope="row"| "Kidding Ourselves"

| 21

| —

|-

! scope="row"| "Don't Look Into their Eyes"

| —

| —

|-

| 2008

! scope="row"| "Starting Fires"

| —

| —

|-

| colspan="5" style="font-size:8pt"| "—" denotes releases that did not chart

|-

|}

References

  • One More Pill - Official Fansite since 2002 (Archived)
  • Official Stabilo MySpace Page (Archived)

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