The band is currently made up of: Max Kerman (vocals, guitar), Mike DeAngelis (vocals, guitar), Nick Dika (bass), Tim Oxford (drums), and Anthony Carone (vocals, keyboard, guitar)
Originally called Charlemagne, the band changed their name when another band of the same name threatened to sue them. The band is named after Arkell Street in the Westdale neighbourhood of Hamilton, ON, near McMaster University, where they lived and would practice their music. All five original band members attended McMaster where lead singer Max Kerman graduated with an honours BA in Political Science. Kerman met guitarist Mike DeAngelis at a McMaster Welcome Week event where the two discovered they had an identical taste in music.
In 2006, they signed with Dine Alone Records, and have since signed with Universal Records Canada and Last Gang Records.
Arkells' debut album Jackson Square was released 28 October 2008 on Dine Alone Records. In late 2008, Arkells toured Canada as opening act for Matt Mays & El Torpedo.
In April 2010, Arkells won the Juno Award for New Group of the Year, and on May 15, 2010, were picked to open for Them Crooked Vultures at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. They made headlines while playing a set at Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto after the 2010 Much Music Video Awards, when rapper Shad and pop singer Kesha joined them onstage to freestyle and sing along during a cover of Ms. Jackson by Outkast.
In 2011, the band wrote and recorded their second album Michigan Left, which was released on October 18 of that year. On 6 October 2011 it was announced that Dan Griffin would be leaving the band to go back to school. He was replaced by Anthony Carone.
In 2012, Arkells won the 2012 Juno Award for Group of the Year.
On May 13, 2014, the band released the single "Come to Light", and confirmed the title of the record would be High Noon. The record was released on Dine Alone/Universal Records, August 5, 2014. The band would go on to with the Juno Award for Group of the Year and the Juno Award for Rock Album of the Year at the 2015 Juno Awards. High Noon was also long listed for the Polaris prize in 2015.
On October 23, 2015, the band released a new EP, "Study Music", which they self-produced and released on Universal Music Canada/Dine Alone Records.
Arkells began teasing new material from their forthcoming album on tour in the spring of 2016. The fourth album, Morning Report, was released on August 5, 2016.
At the Juno Awards of 2017, Arkells were nominated for Juno Award for Group of the Year and the Juno Award for Rock Album of the Year. They performed their viral hit "Drake's Dad" live on the television broadcast
The Arkells released their fifth studio album, Rally Cry, on October 19, 2018, accompanied by a Canadian tour featuring Lord Huron as the opening act. The tour featured the Arkells' largest arena show at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on February 16, 2019.
On February 25, 2020 the band released the new single and video "Years in the Making". Later that year, on July 30, they released the single "Quitting You", and announced the release of Campfire Chords, a full-length album featuring acoustic versions of earlier songs, on August 20. Each member recorded his part at home during the COVID-19 quarantine and sent it to Carone, who then edited, mixed and produced the pieces into complete songs.
On March 25, 2021 the band released the new single and video "You Can Get It", featuring guest vocals by K.Flay.
11:11
Arkells Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But it wasn't for me.
You were up at the front
To tap on your feet
I was back at the bar
You had your eyes on the stage
You had an "X" on your hand
To tell them your age.
I didn't put my money on it
But I was
Hoping that you would be here
If I was something that you ever wanted
Then I'm all ears
You made a wish at 11: 11
I held your hips at 12: 34
There was a kiss just waiting to happen
A cab was calling outside the door
Oh, I knew from the beginning
Oh, it was you from the beginning
Excuse the disguise
Or the ones before
I've been convincing myself
There could be something more
I said, "If you go home
And you get on the phone,
And you tell your girlfriends about me
I'll go home
And I'll sleep on my own,
And dream of a girl named Lonnie."
Those others couldn't hold a candle to ya
But you were glowing in the dark
I was nervous just standing with you
You were glowing in the dark
And you weren't even trying
Your dirty blonde hair
Had me going wild
You were a little bit shy then
There's no denying something so true
In the lyrics of Arkells's song 11:11, the singer tells the story of meeting someone new at a bar where they are both watching a band play on stage. The person the singer meets is "all done up" and clearly not there for them. Despite this, the singer can't help but hope that this person will choose to be with them. The chorus talks about the magical time of 11:11 when people make wishes, and 12:34 when something is about to happen. The singer and the new person end up holding onto each other and sharing a kiss. The singer is upfront with their intentions, telling the new person that if they go home and tell their friends about them, they'll dream about them too. The song ends with the singer being completely enamored with this person whom they call "Lonnie."
The song is essentially about the excitement and uncertainty of meeting someone new and the hope that this new person could be "the one." The singer is enamored with Lonnie from the moment they meet, despite being completely unsure of their chances. The use of 11:11 and 12:34 as magical times further highlights the hope and possibility surrounding new love.
Line by Line Meaning
You were all done up,
You were dressed up nicely.
But it wasn't for me.
You didn't dress up for me.
You were up at the front
You were at the front of the stage.
To tap on your feet
You were tapping your feet to the music.
I was back at the bar
I was standing at the bar.
You had your eyes on the stage
You were focused on the music being played.
You had an "X" on your hand
You had a mark on your hand to identify your age.
I didn't put my money on it
I wasn't sure if you would show up.
But I was Hoping that you would be here
But I was hoping that you would be here.
If I was something that you ever wanted
If I was something that you were looking for.
Then I'm all ears
Then I'm listening to you.
You made a wish at 11: 11
You made a wish at 11:11.
I held your hips at 12: 34
I held your hips at 12:34.
There was a kiss just waiting to happen
We were about to kiss.
A cab was calling outside the door
There was a cab waiting outside.
Oh, I knew from the beginning
I knew from the start.
Oh, it was you from the beginning
It was you all along.
Excuse the disguise
Sorry for pretending to be someone else.
Or the ones before
Or for previous mistakes.
I've been convincing myself
I've been trying to convince myself.
There could be something more
There could be something more between us.
I said, "If you go home
I said, "If you go home.
And you get on the phone,
And you call your friends.
And you tell your girlfriends about me
And you tell your friends about me.
I'll go home
I'll go home.
And I'll sleep on my own,
And I'll sleep alone.
And dream of a girl named Lonnie."
And I'll dream of someone else.
Those others couldn't hold a candle to ya
Those others were not as good as you.
But you were glowing in the dark
But you were shining in the darkness.
I was nervous just standing with you
I was nervous just being near you.
You were glowing in the dark
You were shining in the darkness.
And you weren't even trying
And you didn't even have to try.
Your dirty blonde hair
Your light brown hair that looks a bit unclean.
Had me going wild
I was really attracted to you.
You were a little bit shy then
You were somewhat timid at that moment.
There's no denying something so true
It's impossible to deny the truth of our attraction.
Contributed by Alexandra R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
ana oak
One of my fav bands 😍 they deserve the world
Carrie F
Yes there amazing 🤩
Peter Sharphead
The Arkells are one of the most down to earth bands that I know. They have great stage atmosphere & always seem comfortable in front of a crowd. I've seen them twice at K-Days & cannot wait to see them again. I hope you guys come back to Edmonton & continue making amazing music !
Wrecker '56
Best video I've seen in YEARS! Brings a smile to my face & a (happy) tear to my eye.
Vidhya Bavanala
You folks never cease to amaze me! too good!!!
Clarissa Marlene
Such an inspirational song, so catchy & loquacious 👏🏻⚡️✅👌🏻🔥🤩
dorothy
I can't believe I didn't know this song 4 years ago. This is such a nice song💓
Kasandra Black
I love this song and watching the video makes me love it more.😀 I also like that at the end in the store you can hear “Never Thought That This Would Happen” playing in the background.
SirTastyCakes
Those two have better chemistry than most big screen couples. Great casting.
baruka
this band makes me want to go to Canada