Sloan

When it comes to perfect pop songs -- the kind that make you want to hum along and nod agreeably with each tantalizing chord -- Sloan have produced some of the best this side of the Beatles. Over the course of their evolution, they've made modest forays into noise pop (Smeared); produced hooky, true-blue classic pop (One Chord to Another); and delivered classic rock-influenced, slightly dirtied power pop (Navy Blues) with the same satisfying end results. Once their secret gets out, maybe Sloan will achieve the success they so deserve outside of their native Canada. Until then, they remain Halifax's most wonderful, engaging secret.