Connexion

Websites:  No
Origin: Montréal, Québec, 🇨🇦
Biography:

Connexion were a Montréal, Quebec rock band whose brief recorded legacy captures a confident, transitional moment in mid-1970s francophone Canadian rock—when local bands were beginning to marry bar-honed musicianship with major-label production resources, without abandoning grit or identity.

The group had been active for several years before coming to wider attention, developing their sound in small clubs and cabarets around the Montréal metropolitan area. That period of relative obscurity ended when guitarist-turned-producer Dominique Sciscente encountered the band in a modest venue and immediately recognized its potential. Struck by the strength of the material and the chemistry of the lineup, Sciscente set aside his own performing career to focus on shaping and guiding Connexion, becoming the key catalyst behind their first—and ultimately only—album.

That debut, Connexion, was recorded in 1975 at RCA’s Montréal studios and released nationally by RCA Victor. The sessions placed the band in an unusually polished environment for a hard-driving French-language rock group, allowing their sound to be captured with clarity and weight. Guitarist Richard Vézina anchored the band’s instrumental approach with both electric and acoustic textures, while Emidio “Peanut” Verrillo handled guitar and lead vocals, delivering direct, expressive performances rooted in everyday language rather than theatrical affectation. The rhythm section of bassist Michel Barbier and drummer Salvatore “Toto” Sciortino provided a solid, assertive foundation, giving the album its sense of forward momentum and cohesion.

Stylistically, Connexion sits at the intersection of hard rock, blues-inflected rock, and emerging contemporary influences of the era. The band favored extended arrangements and deliberate pacing, allowing songs to unfold organically rather than conforming strictly to radio formulas. Lyrically, the material reflects personal resolve, social observation, and emotional directness—qualities that aligned Connexion with a younger generation of French-Canadian artists seeking authenticity over polish.

Although RCA supported the album with promotional singles and professional presentation, Connexion did not progress beyond this release. The band’s recorded output remains limited to the 1975 LP, yet that scarcity has only added to its reputation over time. Today, Connexion is regarded as a strong document of Québec’s mid-1970s rock underground—an album that reflects both the ambitions of its creators and a moment when francophone rock briefly stood shoulder to shoulder with its anglophone counterparts on major-label terms.
-Robert Williston