There are certain voices that are stitched into the fabric of Canadian alternative rock. Spend five minutes talking to Ryan Dahle and you realize he’s never really thought of himself as part of a “scene” — even though he helped define one.

In our latest episode of Once On Much, I chat with Ryan Dahle — best known for his work with Age of Electric, Limblifter, and Mounties — for a wide-ranging conversation that somehow felt both nostalgic and completely present-tense.

When I asked what he remembers about the so-called golden era of ’90s Canadian alt-rock — the era of Sloan, Our Lady Peace, The Tea Party, Moist, and I Mother Earth — his answer wasn’t about a scene. It was about survival. Rehearsal spaces in Vancouver. Long drives. Inside jokes. Being locked in with your bandmates and figuring it out as you went. They didn’t see themselves as part of a Canadian movement; they were just chasing what excited them, shaped as much by Seattle’s explosion as anything happening at home. The bands that embraced them — like The Odds and The Northern Pikes — were peers, not templates.

If there was a common thread, it was MuchMusic. For a generation, it was a tastemaker and lifeline, with shows like The Wedge and Power Hour shaping identities in real time. In a move that feels almost impossible now, he cold-called the station to pitch a 16mm video. It got played. Momentum followed — relentless touring, endless phone calls, pure hustle. When “Remote Control” landed on Big Shiny Tunes 2, it cemented something bigger than airplay: a million-plus CDs spinning their name into collective memory. From Limblifter’s rule-bending songwriting experiments to Mounties’ lightning-in-a-bottle collaboration with Hawksley Workman and Steve Bays, the throughline isn’t nostalgia — it’s curiosity.

Tracklist:

Did this conversation resonate with you? Let us know your favorite part! Follow Once On Much on Instagram, and share this episode with a friend!