Vancouver band Marianas Trench has brought forth a great concept album Ever After that weaves 12 songs together in a grand fairy tale. The band's third album shows off a creative and darkly artistic side, with one video ("Haven't Had Enough") being compared to a Tim Burton film, with lead singer Josh Ramsay vying for a sexy damsel in distress.

The four-member band includes Ramsay (lead vocals, guitar), Matt Webb (vocals, guitar), Mike Ayley (bass) and Ian Casselman (drums): a lethal combination of talent and propulsion that has cemented Mariana's Trench with Chad Kroeger's (Nickelback's frontman) label 604 Records.

Ever After is good. Radio stations galore have picked up on "Haven't Had Enough" and "Truth or Dare." The theme of the album is a complicated love story between a prince and princess, and it keeps the excitement up, breathing life into the slightly less than one hour of poppy punk rock.

If you are interested in more, note this: they are coming to the John Labatt Centre on February 20, opening for Montreal's Simple Plan and sharing the stage with All Time Low (a Baltimore, Maryland band) and These Kids Wear Crowns (another band formed in British Columbia).

There are those who complain that mainstream rock doesn't have the allure that more "under the radar bands" deliver. Whether a band is considered "indie" or not, it is nice to come across a Canadian group that has a strong delivery and a unique idea to market their album.

For more information, visit marianastrench.net.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars