photo by leila

Camp Radio leader Chris Page has an enviable rock pedigree, which stretches back to his teens, when he helped to form Glengarry, ON punk outfit The Stand GT. The Stand's blue collar DIY ethic was a thing of legend. They toured Canada countless times in the late 80's and early 90's, releasing scads of cassettes, 7" records and CDs on various imprints, and left their mark on CanCon's rock tree in blood.

As the Stand's members married, reproduced and faded into the 'real world,' Page's rock itch refused to wane, and the Glen Nevous Retraction was created as a solo vehicle for his songs. You Clean Up Pretty Good was a toe-dipping into the solo waters; few copies made it into circulation. As confidence grew, Sell Out Slow went into production, finally seeing the light of day in 2002.

Page's third effort comes under his own name, his first on the Kelp label. It's clear in both the songwriting and the name changing that Page realizes he doesn't need to hide anymore: Decide to Stay and Swim shows few signs of timidity. Strummer, Bragg and Portastatic's Mac McCaughan are summoned, treated with the urgent guitar calisthenics of Malcolm Young. Decide also swings low, careening into balladry and showing a maturity unheard in Page's previous work.

A new Chris Page album is in the works, and could emerge as early as late 2007! Check out Page's own web emporium at www.thestandgt.com.