The Montreal band Sadie Hawkins was founded by chance roughly four-and-a-half years ago and since then, they've played shows across Canada with a huge variety of acts, including The Weakerthans and The Paperbacks. Recently, the band changed their name to Mia Verko, recorded their first full-length, self-titled album and put it out on The Mintaka Conspiracy label. Mia Verko's upbeat songs, honest lyrics and exciting live shows have earned them considerable praise and recognition. Erin Letson recently got to speak to the band's singer, Rémi Labrecque, via e-mail.

How many people are there in Mia Verko? We are five. We switch our instruments around from time to time, but we usually stick to me, Rémi, on vocals and guitar, Gabriel on guitar and vocals, J-L on bass, Phil on keys and Luc on drums.

Where are you all from? We live in Montreal, but Luc, Phil and J-L are all originally from the town of Alexandria in Ontario. I'm from Saskatchewan originally, while Gabe grew up all over Canada.

So what happened to the name Sadie Hawkins? We mostly just felt that after four years, we'd grown out of our old name. Plus, nobody in Québec could ever pronounce Sadie Hawkins right, so we figured it wouldn't hurt to find something a little more bilingual-friendly.

Where has been your favourite place to play so far? It would be impossible to name one specific venue or city, since great shows are never a guaranteed thing, and we've had amazing experiences in venues we hate as much as we've had terrible experiences in cities we love.

How does the lyric-writing process work? Is there just one lyricist or is it a team effort? I usually write out some lyrics and bring a rough sketch of the songs to the band, and then we work them out both as a group and individually.

How do you guys feel about the music scene in Montreal? We feel great about it! There are some awesome bands here who work hard and who love to tour as much as we do, so we try to help each other out. Also, Brian and Meyer from Blue Skies Turn Black are the lifeblood of a healthy movement emerging in this city.

Who are some of your favourite indie bands in Canada right now? The Paperbacks, The Burdocks, The Sourkeys, Tremblay 73, Made in the World, Spengler, Burn Rome in a Dream, Immaculate Machine, Sylvie, Despitado, The Frenetics, Letdowns, Malajube, Novillero, Weights & Measures and probably many others who we will kick ourselves for forgetting.

What is Mia Verko's ultimate goal? World domination.

Haha, excellent. So what are some of the good and bad things about being in a band? Bad: Having to scrounge up money for van repairs all the time, and condescion from real people in the 'œreal world.'? Good: The fact that the kids who come to shows are always open to new things. Travelling. Making new friends, meeting up with old friends. Having the opportunity to play with bands who are truly innovative, as well as inspiringly uncompromising.

How would you describe your album in five words or less? Best shorthand description: 'œpassionately fictionalized truth-rock.'?

Finally, what motivated you to play at Wavelength? I was looking to book a Toronto show for us with The Firebird Band and before long, Eric from the Viking Club offered to book the event and finally, we added his band to the party as well.