(Sebastien St-Jean/QMI Agency)

It's no secret Montreal is home to some of Canada's most acclaimed bands, including Wolf Parade, The Dears and of course, Arcade Fire.

But in addition to these widely celebrated Anglo acts, the city also boasts an equally vibrant francophone music scene. And at the forefront of it is indie rock quartet, Malajube.

Formed in 2004, the group transcended cultural and linguistic barriers, becoming critical darlings and college radio favourites with its debut, Le Compte Complet, and with its 2006 followup, Trompe l'oeil, which spawned the minor hit Montreal -40 C.

Malajube's sonically playful new album La Caverne, in stores Tuesday, is filled with crisp guitar hooks, complex melodies and retro '80s synth sounds. If there was any justice in the world, it would break the band into the mainstream.

Drummer Francis Mineau isn't holding his breath.

"We stopped thinking that French songs or French artists will eventually make it big somewhere in the world," he says between sips of beer at a downtown Montreal pub.

"We just stopped believing this. And that's alright once you've made peace with the idea that everything that works on a big scale internationally is English. I mean, you can be big in French, but you're never going to be as big as Coldplay."

Despite Mineau's somewhat pessimistic outlook, bassist Mathieu Cournoyer says the band did initially set out to record an album that revisited the upbeat pop of Trompe-l'oeil rather than the gloomier prog-rock of Malajube's third CD, 2009's Labyrinthes.

Though Labyrinthes was well-received by critics and was short-listed for the Polaris Music Prize, it sold only 25,000 copies -- half the number of its more accessible predecessor.

"I think we wanted it to be a little more pop than Labyrinthes," says Cournoyer. "But I don't know if we achieved that in the end."

While some songs on La Caverne -- the synth-driven epic Chienne Folle, the bouncy Radiologie and the uber-catchy lead-off single, Synesthesie, for example -- have the shiny pop hooks and potential for radio play, a definite melancholy still permeates the album.

"Just before we went into the studio I was telling people that we were doing a pop album," recalls Mineau.

"But I realized by the time we finished it that it wasn't the album I thought we were going to do. There are some pop pieces, but it's darker overall than I thought it would be and I wasn't able to notice it until I was away from it for a while."

The darker parts of the album could be attributed to the album's recording location.

Mineau, Cournoyer, keyboardist Thomas Augustin and singer-guitarist Julien Mineau (Francis' cousin) hunkered down in what they dubbed a 'geodisic modern cave' and a 'modernistic igloo' located in Morin-Heights, 90 minutes from Montreal.

"It was only three weeks before we started recording that we found that place," says Cournoyer of the unique abode.

"The first time we saw it, we were like, 'Wow, this place is so weird.' It's in the mountains. And just the look of the house ... I'd never seen a house like that. It's like an igloo. I guess it inspired us a lot. It's even on the cover of the album."

Not only did the isolated location impact the album's mood, but also the time of the year. La Caverne was recorded from mid-October until early December, as winter descended upon the country.

"When we showed up there were some colours and trees and stuff," says Mineau.

"But as we were recording, the leaves just fell and in the end there was snow everywhere. The transition in the music just followed the seasons."

"Maybe that's why it's not a pop album," adds Cournoyer. "Pop albums should be recorded in summertime in Hawaii or something."

"Or Morin-Heights," Mineau chimes in. "But in the summertime. With a pool."

Four other Montreal bands that are making waves:

- Karkwa: The past year has been a good one for this five-piece rock band from Montreal. Not only did they win the 2010 Polaris Music Prize for their latest album, Les Chemins de verre, Karkwa also took home a Juno for Francophone album of the year.

- Les Breastfeeders: Led by colourfully attired frontman Luc Brien, Les Breastfeeders are one of the country's finest purveyors of '60s-inspired garage rock. Their latest album, Dans la geule des jours, finds them at their shakin' and shimmyin' best.

- Coeur de pirate: Also known as 21-year-old singer and pianist Beatrice Martin, Coeur de pirate has won France's equivalent of a Grammy for her song, Comme des enfants. The indie-pop songstress has also collaborated with The Bronx and Bedouin Soundclash's Jay Malinowski. She is working on the follow-up to her 2008 self-titled debut.

- Monogrenade: This 'Queb' quartet create lush indie pop using chamber instruments and keyboards.

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