With their debut EP set to drop on September 22nd at The Silver Dollar, Toronto rockers REBEL REBEL have a lot to celebrate.

Before the post-release chaos ensues (and everyone surely starts fighting for their attention) we caught up with guitarist/vocalist Travis Caine, multi-instrumentalist Kara Gauthier, and drummer Paul Cope to find out some of their favourite tracks – to keep things fair we let them have a couple bonus tracks for even numbers.

You can read their thoughts below and stream their “We Sound Nothing Like Bowie” mixtape by pressing play (duh!)

1. FOO FIGHTERS – Weenie Beenie
PAUL: Dave Grohl smashing the drums into tiny smithereens, great melodies over top of everything, and guitar tones that sound like the pawn shop amps that all of my high school bands used. A great, simple tune from a no-nonsense album that just sounds like Dave having a great time, probably head-banging with an undercut the whole time.

2. FEIST – A Commotion
KARA: FEIST has always been a big influence for me and this song’s instrumental arrangement is very compelling – I love her use of the violins and the rhythmic use of backup vocals. This song shows a darker side of FEIST not usually portrayed in her music.

3. THE SWELL SEASON – When Your Mind’s Made Up
KARA: Glen Hansard is a great songwriter and his songs carry so much passion. The raw tone of his voice alongside the soft, haunting tone of Markéta Irglová’s works perfectly together and is the balance I desire from a male/female duo. So much emotion comes out during the buildup of this song – Glen Hansard has a way of telling you something about yourself that you didn’t even realize.

4. GREG MACPHERSON – Broken Dreams
TRAVIS: Simplicity at its finest. You have the Springsteen-style pounding drums carrying the track the whole way through, a handful of chords (which only makes that small solo at the end pop more), and Greg’s Maritime drawl building and building with aggression until the song’s climax. It all serves as the backdrop for this lyrical powerhouse from one of Canada’s finest.

5. HOT WATER MUSIC – Better Sense
PAUL: This is, in my mind at least, “THE” HWM hit single… How can you not like this song?

6. IGGY & THE STOOGES – Search and Destroy
TRAVIS: No matter what path you take with punk rock, it always leads back to IGGY & THE STOOGES eventually. I doubt there’s much I can say about Search And Destroy that hasn’t already been said in some VH1 special: it’s loud, raw, and good.

7. PEARL JAM – Do the Evolution
TRAVIS: Stone Gossard sets such an awesome groove to this track right from the start with gritty guitar tones and a riff aimed directly at your jaw. Stylistically, the vocals are such a departure from typical Eddie Vedder, who completely loses himself in his performance with screams and shouts. To me, this is what the Doors would sound like if they were any good.

Bonus: ART BLAKEY & THE JAZZ MESSENGERS – The Core
PAUL: Jazz played louder than ever before; it’s virtuoso musicianship but no one’s taking it too seriously. ART BLAKEY’s good-times, poly-rhythmic drumming drove The Jazz Messengers for decades.

Bonus: WILCO – Via Chicago
KARA: To see this song played live is truly a life experience. This song is a good example of music and sound being used outside of a linear formulation. The chaos at points in the background succeeds at creating two opposing sounds that somehow work: they’re interconnected to create these theatrical moments, and I think it adds much to the visual of the song and enhances the story of the lyrics.