Northern Ireland had also exposed him to The Sex Pistols and post-punk bands like The Cure, early Cult, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. By 1986, Pentland had formed a hardcore band with Cliff Gibb (later of Weasel Faced Judge, Thrush Hermit, Cool Blue Halo, Doug Mason), John Johnson (later of The Donner Party Reunion), and Scott Hiltz, called The Ripping Convulsions. The name was shortened to the Convulsions by their first gigs—several house parties in the suburbs of Halifax. The group recorded two tapes featuring songs written primarily by Pentland and Johnson, and performed a handful of shows in the Halifax punk scene, before disbanding in the summer of 1987. Pentland, Gibb, and Johnson formed a noisecore outfit in the fall of 1987, recording one song under the name Toxic Waste. Reflecting their growing interest in American alternative guitar bands such as Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., and Pixies, Pentland and Gibb formed Happy Co. with Melanie Rusinak (later of Tag (JALE), Chaz Rules, Cool Blue Halo, Black Pool) in late 1987. Rusinak's father had taught Pentland saxophone in junior high school. Happy Co. marked the first time that Pentland took on lead vocals, as well as becoming the main songwriter. Again, Happy Co. played a handful of gigs in the Halifax scene, which by then included Kearney Lake Road, composed of future Sloan members Chris Murphy and Jay Ferguson. Happy Co. continued on into 1990, adding Brad Baxter (formerly of Dread Scott, which included Ben Ross—who would go on to replace Gibb in Thrush Hermit) on second guitar, but eventually ended when the members decided to devote more time to finishing their various post-secondary pursuits. In January 1991, Pentland was approached by Chris Murphy to join a new band he had started with Jay Ferguson called Sloan. The new band, rounded out by drummer Andrew Scott, quickly compiled a setlist of original songs, and played their first show at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, two weeks after Pentland joined. The band is currently active, recording and touring with all four original members. Pentland has written for several music publications and dabbled in blogging, with revealing entries about the band's performances and tours. He has also contributed a song to the children's show Role Play, and performed music for several television commercials. In 2005, Pentland began releasing electronic/ambient music online under the name Destroy Tomorrow 666. He