Canadian rockers The Trews launching US tour in Boston

With 18 Top 20 singles and six Juno nominations in their native Canada, high-profile gigs opening for the likes of The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and Robert Plant, and a sound that is reminiscent of Tom Petty or John Mellencamp, The Trews seem like a sure bet for success across the border.

With good buddy Rich Robinson, the Black Crowes co-founder/guitarist, guesting on three cuts, their latest album seems primed to be the catalyst for finally conquering the American airwaves.

That hasn’t quite happened yet, but with a 10-date U.S. tour kicking off Jan. 24 with a show at Brighton Music Hall, and a new album, “The Wanderer,” to promote, 2023 should be the breakthrough year for the Nova Scotia quartet.

The new album was actually started in December 2019 with some initial tracks recorded, including those three songs with Robinson, “Hidden Gem,” “Permissio,” and the sort of self-biographical tale of the band, “Faith and Fumes.” But shortly after that, the pandemic hit and everything had to go on hold.

“We felt so good when we had those first tracks done, but we had no inkling what lay on the horizon,” said Trews guitarist John-Angus MacDonald. “We were delayed a year or more and had to rethink the whole thing. Then we had a national tour scheduled for 2021, starting in January, and when the omicron wave hit, that was rescheduled to May-June, which felt like the final gut punch. But ultimately, I’m glad we had that time to step back and we kept working hard, writing new music and making demos. Right now we’re sitting on enough new music for probably three albums, although we may not use all of it.”

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The Trews are that rare rock band with brothers in it that has remained cohesive. In fact, John-Angus, his brother and lead vocalist Colin MacDonald and bassist Jack Syperek are all original members from the time the band was formed in 1997. Drummer Chris Gormley came aboard in 2018, and on tour, Jeff Heisholt joins the group on keyboards. Bands like The Black Crowes or Oasis certainly don’t make the case for brotherly love on tour, but rather friction and tabloid dustups.

“Our first album came out in 2003, so we like to mark that as our anniversary, and so 2023 will be our 20th anniversary as a band,” MacDonald said. “It’s crazy to think it’s been that long, but we were teenagers when we started. Is there drama with your brother? Of course, like in any band or with any brother, but Canadians don’t advertise our drama as much. We all have baggage but we rise above it. Making music together is the most important thing, much more than any drama.”

The Trews came by their musical style naturally, despite whatever trends went in other directions.

“We were those rare kids who listened to what their parents did, and liked it,” MacDonald said with a laugh. “We love Tom Petty. We loved those first Jimi Hendrix albums, The Rolling Stones and especially early Aerosmith. They were a foundational influence and we liked them so much we hired Jack Douglas − who’d produced those great Aerosmith records − to produce our second album. We were probably the last ones to see our music as heartland rock.

“We also have been called ‘Americana,’ and what I like about that category is that it is such a broad brush,” MacDonald continued. “I like the Lumineers, for example, and also Luke Bryan. I guess the common thread is really good songs, sung and performed by people who can really sing and play. But Americana can be anything from Appalachian folk to blues to country-western, and I like that.”

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The Trews were originally named after a Monty Python phrase, ‘One I’d Trouser,’ and then that was shortened to Trouser, and finally to just The Trews. Their career got a big boost in 2002 when they won a Southern Ontario radio station contest. Their debut album a year later, “House of Ill Fame,” was successful enough that they could seek out Douglas to produce their sophomore effort, “Den of Thieves” in 2005.

Their 2018 album “Civilianaires” hit No. 1 on the alternative albums chart in Canada. More recently, the April 2021 single “I Wanna Play” and its video (filmed in a deserted hockey rink) went viral as a universal plea for wanting to emerge from the pandemic and get out again.

“We are in a lucky echelon in that we are able to fully support ourselves as musicians,” MacDonald said. “We were able to scrape by during the quarantines. We did a lot virtually and other things, like an August 2020 drive-in concert that drew over 300 vehicles. We got by and then got past that surge last winter. We are certainly grateful to be coming out of all that stuff and hopeful that this summer will be as close to normal as possible. Now, we all know, being able to play and tour is not to be taken for granted.”

About five years ago, The Trews got new management, which sought to target their U.S. touring more efficiently, routing them through areas where fans had heard them on Canadian radio. That formula had been working well before the pandemic put things on hold.

“We do very well in places in the States that have been exposed to Canadian radio and media,” MacDonald said. “Western New York, Ohio, Michigan, parts of New England where we get the same level of exposure as we do in Canada, are all good for us. It’s more about just getting people to see us and hear us, and we’ve been trying to be smarter about developing our markets.”

The Trews have played Boston before, although not in a few years, and one show at Brighton Music Hall was very memorable.

“We did a show at Brighton Music Hall and Al Kooper came to see us,” said MacDonald of the rock legend who played with Bob Dylan and founded Blood, Sweat and Tears. “That was a thrill we can’t forget. And I also recall that maybe 10 years ago, we played at the Paradise Lounge and while we were in the front room, The Black Keys were in the main room, so of course we snuck back to see them.”

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MacDonald enjoyed seeing The Black Keys play at the Winter Classic last week, when the Bruins hosted the Penguins at Fenway Park, and said his band loves to play sports-related gigs too.

“We’ve played at a hockey playoff game in Edmonton and in the fall of 2021 we played the tailgate party at the Grey Cup, which is the Super Bowl of Canadian football.”

The Trews all get along well, and all contribute to the songwriting. This is their seventh studio album, and they also have two live albums.

“We’ve always found that whoever brings a new song idea in, it can be made better by bringing in the rest of the guys,” MacDonald explained. “Colin, as the singer, brings the bulk of the lyrical load, but we all contribute to everything else. There might be subtle artistic differences, but we find if you can get in the ring together and hash it out, the final product will almost always be better. We’re not a product of a singular songwriter, but I’ve always liked ‘band sounds’ anyway, that amalgam of different voices.”

On the new record, the title cut “The Wanderer” is a classic rock ‘n’ roll breakup song, told from the road, while “Can’t Afford to Be Lonely” rocks a couple degrees harder, verging on Aerosmith/Cheap Trick territory. The three tunes with Rich Robinson tend toward the softer side of The Black Crowes, more a jangly, folk-rock sound that seems like something Petty would’ve loved.

'Just a Mortal Man'

We are a little late but we caught the excellent documentary "Just a Mortal Man: The Jerry Lawson Story" on PBS last weekend. First shown about a year ago, the film details the life and times of the former lead singer of The Persuasions, the groundbreaking a cappella group famously discovered by Frank Zappa. The vocal quintet became internationally famous in the 1970s, with their otherworldly harmonies and gospel-inflected arrangements bringing a new perspective to rock and soul music.

At the height of their fame, Lawson had to deal with a serious drinking problem, but he managed to eventually conquer it. There is some delightful local interest, as Lawson met his second wife for the first time at a show at the old Paul's Mall jazz club on Boylston Street in Boston, and they were together for more than 40 years.

Shortly after caring for his mother as she declined and eventually died from effects of dementia, Lawson left The Persuasions in 2003.  Incredibly, after decades of musical success, he needed to work so he became a mentor and counselor to developmentally disadvantaged adults near his Arizona home.

Eventually he dabbled in music again as a solo singer and with the vocal group Talk of the Town.  Lawson got to see a rough cut of the documentary, which makes a strong point that he is every bit as important a soul icon as better-known stars such as Otis Redding, but became ill and died at age 75 in 2019, before it was finished. It is a superb biographical film, with many varying perspectives on Lawson's times and challenges, and his ultimate triumphs, but every one agrees, beyond his soul-stirring singing, Lawson was also the ultimate good guy.

Upcoming concerts: Dwight & Nicole, Sarah Borges

THURSDAY: The Buoys of Summer heat up The Sinclair.  Back to the Mac offers a Fleetwood Mac tribute at City Winery.

FRIDAY: Bearly Dead begins a two-night stand reprising the music of you-know-who at Soundcheck Studios. Forever Young is the premier Neil Young tribute band, at The Narrows Center. The Floozies rock The Paradise Rock Club. Strangelove is a tribute to the music of Depeche Mode, at Brighton Music Hall. The Sinclair welcomes A Band of Killers, plus the sublime soul of Dwight & Nicole. World music meets rock when Tamikrest arrives at City Winery.

SATURDAY: It's Comedy Night at The Spire Center, with a triple-header topped by Boston's Jimmy Dunn. Americana songbird Sarah Borges gets into the groove at The Narrows Center. Rock and Roll Playhouse does its tribute to the Grateful Dead at The Paradise Rock Club. DJ Scott Helms spins at The C-Note. If you can't find enough Irish music in Quincy (said by no one, ever), catch the Boston Celtic Music Festival at The Sinclair. Flamenco music star Maria Jose Llego gets City Winery heated up, while songsmith Colby James and the Ramblers take over the Haymarket Lounge.

SUNDAY: If you're sick of the NFL, or stop following when the Patriots are done, a cool Sunday hang is 4 to 8 p.m. every Sunday at Players in Rockland, where the blues jam is hosted by the Michelle Rockwell Band. "Harvest at 50" celebrates the music of Neil Young's iconic album, with the band known as Harvest & Rust, at City Winery.

The Trews

Where: Brighton Music Hall, 158 Brighton Ave., Allston

When: 8 p.m. Jan. 24

Tickets: $16 in advance

Info: 617-562-8801 or Ticketmaster.com

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Music Scene: Canadian rockers The Trews launching U.S. tour in Boston