Rural Alberta Advantage make a jangly, wonderful mess of a sound that has elevated the band to “beloved” status after just two albums — Hometowns and Departing. And with a new record on the way and a monumental show at Massey Hall on July 8 (with Great Lake Swimmers), things are about to get a lot bigger for the Toronto-based trio.

The new album, according to singer and guitarist Nils Edenloff, was recorded this winter at Candle Recording Studio in Toronto. And although it won’t be a big departure, the band, along with the production team, were interested in capturing more of the band’s live sound.

“I feel like there is a lot more textures going on with this record,” he explains. “There was a lot more preparation before going into the studio with this record. We worked out some ideas beforehand. And also, this was a lot more collaborative than ever before.”

This doesn’t mean the organized chaos that characterizes the band is going anywhere, anytime soon. 

“I mean, I don’t feel like it’s a crazy departure when you hear it,” says Edenloff. “It falls into our realm of the RAA sound, I guess. Maybe just a little more fleshed out and bigger sounding. And, there is a lot of heartbreak and loss on it, I guess. That’s something I’m sort of always drawn to — the sad and beautiful things.”

The band formed around an open mic night at the Winchester Kitchen & Bar in Cabbagetown Edenloff hosted along with drummer Paul Banwatt. Apparently, nobody came. Ever. So, they had a lot of time to figure out what they wanted to do as a band.

Although there have been various incarnations, when Nils and Paul added Amy Cole to the mix, something clicked. And Rural Alberta Advantage happened. Now, the band is prepping for a huge show at Massey Hall on July 8.

“It’s super-exciting to be able to play there, just, a venue of that sort of calibre and history is pretty amazing,” he says. “And it’s amazing to, you know, to mention it to certain people who maybe sometimes don’t understand the level we’ve gotten to, like ‘Oh, that Massey Hall, not some new place called Massey.’ ”