One of the contenders for the Kings of the Booty Shakers crown is undoubtably Hot Hot Heat. As with all of the aforementioned bands, they make us want to get down and get sweaty on the nearest dancefloor (or any floor, for that matter). And that's fine with them.

Believe it or not, Hot Hot Heat did not start out as the dancefloor mavericks they are today. Born not from any major metropolitan city, these boys hail from the mean streets of Victoria, British Columbia. Active players in the town's punk scene since 1999, it wasn't until about two years ago that they were restless and wanted to make a change in their sound. This decision led to the dismissal of their first singer. Taking his place was Steve Bays, who would now front the band as well as continue on active keyboard duty. "It was actually really weird," says Steve of the transition from background player to frontman. "I was very shy at first and it took about a year of playing shows before I really felt comfortable. Also, this is basically the first band I sang for and it took a while to learn how to project my voice. But now I love it and there is no way I could not do it in a band."

At the same time, guitarist Dante DeCaro was added to the reconfigured line-up while Paul Hawley and Dustin Hawthorne remained on drums and bass. The foursome progressed from punk band to one with a more melodic sound with songs that were catchy and more importantly, fun. After sending their demo out to various indie labels, Sub Pop responded and in the spring of 2002, HHH's EP Knock Knock Knock was released, followed by the long-playing Makeup the Breakdown only 6 months later. Within weeks, the band moved from major indie label to major major label (Warner Brothers). In the process, music scribes have referenced their sound to everyone from XTC to Elvis Costello. But it's those dang Cure comparisons that come up way too often (and to these ears at least, is a bit unfounded). "It's annoying but unavoidable at first, " says Steve about the being likened to Robert Smith. "Eventually people will know how we sound and there'll be no need to draw comparisons. The Beatles were originally 'just another guitar band' according to many people in the press. Now, they're just 'The Beatles'."