There are few places on the globe that Chicagoans pity in winter. Ottawa is one of those places. Currently, the town is glazed under inches of debilitating ice after what Canadians are calling the worst storm in memory. In a country defined by inclement weather, that's pretty bad.

On the phone from his hotel room in the stricken Canadian province, John Wozniak, lead singer and guitarist for Marcy Playground, is cheerful despite the fact that the kibosh has been put on his band's Montreal show. The cancellation will hasten Marcy Playground's return to the States for their first headlining tour and an accompanying media blitz, which includes appearances on Conan, Modern Rock Live and Rockline. Heady stuff to be sure, but Wozniak seems unburdened by pressures in the pipeline. At the moment, he would rather discuss the merits of Chumbawamba's "Tubthumping."

"I don't mean to slag Chumbawamba or anything. I think they write really excellent lyrics, but the melody to 'Tubthumping' is what made it such a huge hit," remarks Wozniak. "If ever there was a hit, that song is it. You can't get it out of your head. It's like 'Centerfold,'" Wozniak continues, humming the opening chords of the 1981 hit by The J. Geils Band. "Hats off to Chumbawamba for 'Tubthumping.'"

Discussing the mechanics of pop singles with Wozniak has special weight these days. "Sex and Candy," the first single off of their eponymous major label debut, is resting comfortably at the number one slot on Billboard's Modern Rock Chart for the fourth week in a row. The tune is breathy, hypnotizing and every bit as infectious as any verse-chorus-verse chart topper in years.

The NYC trio, consisting of Wozniak, drummer Dan Reiser and bassist Dylan Keefe, has fashioned an enviable career out of making charismatic post-grunge pop and for being, for lack of a better term, "nice guys." In a business that rewards Machiavellian tactics, the success of the "nice guy," is slightly anachronistic. Wozniak faces this accusation with a laugh. "Is that bad?" Clearly, it is not.

After EMI's untimely demise (their first label, which went belly up in early 1997), a group of pink-slipped EMI employees continued to work with the band to promote their orphaned debutàunpaid. With their help and the help of Chris Muckley, a music director at San Diego's powerful 91X, the band found a new home on Capitol Records -- an experience that, despite the rosy outcome, was a traumatic one for the band.

"We had spent all this time becoming friends with the people that worked at EMI," explains Wozniak. "When they lost their jobs it was depressing as hell. We were in Chicago at the time and [immediately] drove back to New York. We didn't sleep for a day and a half. We just kept going and spent the last few days of EMI with the people that we loved and cared about."

The band seems to inspire touching levels of dedication in those they come into contact with. Beth John, webmaster of a popular fan site called Recess, explains it this way, "Most bands don't give their fans the time of day. Marcy Playground is different. They're the most open-minded folks you can find. They listen to their fans, and more importantly they care about what their fans think and say."

Marcy Playground's presence on the Internet has helped the band's exposure tremendously. "I think [the Internet] is, as far as developing a close-knit relationship with fans, the only tool that could have accomplished that," says Wozniak. "There is actual communication between the band and the fans on the Internet. You can't do that over the phoneàIt has become a community as opposed to a band and fans."

With their fan base expanding exponentially due to heavy radio rotation, and with another single on the way ("Saint Joe on the School Bus") from an album packed-to-the-gills with hits, one might wonder how the all this excitement sits with someone whose idea of success used to be paying rent.

"My idea of success was selling 10,000 albums. Honest to God." Wozniak swears. "I'm not lying to you. That was my goal for record sales success. As far as personal success, I already accomplished that when I played for the first time with [bandmates] Dan and Dylan and said, fuck -- this sounds really great. I was successful way before any radio station picked us up, in my own mind. My real goal has been to be a good songwriter."

Judging from the imaginative and literate songs that Wozniak has penned thus far, it's probably time for him to pick a new goal.

BRANDON BARBER