2007-06-26T18:29:00.000-07:00

People won't leave you the fuck alone.
They bother you at work, pushing contracts into your face when you're trying to weave through rush hour traffic. You've had a rough day to begin with; you just sat through a 3 hour meeting with your lawyer and ex-wife concerning the restraining order for her stalker. Shifts done, you go home hungry, but can only find baked goods in your cupboards; not a rice cake in sight. You try to relax to Bach's No. 2 Concerto, but are interrupted constantly by pleading calls from Ron Jeremy. You wear a card around your neck that reads "COUNTRY", but the teenager who makes minimum wage working at the grocery store calls you "freaky" anyways.

MP3: Buck 65 - Centaur (Acoustic Version)

2007-06-21T08:12:00.000-07:00

Buck 65 releases free EP on website

Buck 65 released a free, legal, downloadable EP called Dirty Work on his website, through which he hopes to present some solo work of his, thinking perhaps fans have seen more than enough collabo operations in the past year (which is undoubtedly true). You can download the EP in its entirety here.

MP3: Buck 65 - Indestructable Sam
MP3: Buck 65 - Rebel (Acoustic Version)

2007-06-21T07:36:00.000-07:00

Beirut's new record!

Oh sweet jesus, I don't know how I missed this one (must have been during my absence from the blogging world) but a while ago, Zach Condon of Beirut talked to Pitchfork Media about his new record coming out this year. After the wild success of last years Gulag Orkestar and the Lon Gisland EP released earlier this year, my expectations are through the roof for this next one, to be released October 9th on Ba Da Bing. The name hasn't been officially confirmed but Condon told Pitchfork that it will be called The Flying Club Cup.
Evidently, Condon's phase of middle-eastern, Balkan-influenced indie pop has eclipsed to make way for a more classical pop influenced sound.

I was listening to a lot of Jacques Brel and French chanson music-- pop songs shrouded in big, glorious, over-the-top arrangements and all this drama...very much throwing myself in the world of classical pop music

As was seen on Lon Gisland, Condon has been growing from one-man-band status to full orchestral numbers, which we can expect to upgrade once again on this record with help from Owen Pallet of Final Fantasy contributing string arrangements and guest vocals.

Tracklist:
00 A Call to Arms
01 Nantes
02 A Sunday Smile
03 Guyamas Sonora
04 La Banlieu
05 Cliquot
06 The Penalty
07 Forks and Knives (La Fête)
08 In the Mausoleum
09 Un Dernier Verre (Pour la Route)
10 Cherbourg
11 St. Apollonia
12 The Flying Club Cup

Tour Dates
06-22 Dublin, Ireland - Tripod
06-24 Pilton, England - Jazz World Stage (Glastonbury Festival)
06-26 London, England - KOKO *
06-28 Malta, Poland - Malta Festival
06-30 Istanbul, Turkey - Radar Festival
07-03 Paris, France - Trabendo *
07-05 Berlin, Germany - Postbahnhof *
07-08 Roskilde, Denmark - Roskilde Festival
07-10 Athens, Greece - Vrahon Theater (Gagarin Open Air Festival)
09-23 Princeton, NJ - Terrace F Club #
09-24 New York, NY - Society for Ethical Culture (Wordless Music Series) #
09-26 New York, NY - Delacorte Theater #
09-30 Montreal, Quebec - La Sala Rossa #
10-02 Toronto, Ontario - Danforth Music Hall #
10-04 Chicago, IL - Portage Theater #
10-08 San Francisco, CA - Herbst Theater #
10-09 San Francisco, CA - Herbst Theater #
10-10 Los Angeles, CA - Avalon #
^{*with dirty projectors
#with Colleen}

...and a little Gulag Orkestar to get you psyched:

2007-06-19T19:12:00.000-07:00

Icky Thump released today

Jack and Meg's latest was released today on Warner. Pick it up in the old, conservative compact disc format (ho hum) or in these Jack and Meg USB drives.

^{Yeah, I thought they were both supposed to be Meg too}

The custom designed, 512-megabyte drives holds the new album and can be bought at The White Stripes online store, but act fast as there are only 3,333 of each drive created.

MP3: The White Stripes - Icky Thump

Also, I found this indie music blog where you can download full albums and mixes in handy zip files...legally. Pretty intruiging, yes? I'm glad to see another anti-piracy advocate, fighting illegal downloading by providing you with loads of free, awesome, legal tunes. Please enjoy this!

FreeIndie.com

2007-06-19T19:03:00.000-07:00

Daft Punk got new suits!

Fresh face for the band, just in time for the concert in Montreal. Can't wait!

2007-06-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

Time for a glorious comeback...

okay, yes, I haven't posted in a long, long time, and no I don't really have a valid excuse other than I needed a break, especially with my exams. But, break's over, or break has begun rather, now that i'm free from the man for 2 months of summery-bliss and it's a perfect time to dust off the old blog.
But the title of this post doesn't refer to my absence. It refers to these guys' absence..from the music scene in the past year or two rather.

Spoon

They're back, and this time they're one hit-TV show/super-power promotional force free! Lucky for Spoon, hype proves to be resounding. This one, called Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga looks like it'll be one of the albums of the summer. Pick it up July 14th, out worldwide on Merge.

MP3: Spoon - Underdog

White Stripes

After listening to the first single from the stripes newest album, Icky Thump, I was delighted to hear that it's the same noisy, guitar-riff-driven rock and roll that I was hooked on two years ago when Get Behind Me Satan was released, save for the rockin'-est bagpipe solo I've ever heard. Looking forward to picking this up June 19th on Warner, and you should too!

MP3: White Stripes - Icky Thump

New Pornographers

They're coming around the rocky mountain one more time with some pure-bred, British Columbian folk-pop with Challengers, and this time, they're going "epic". The bands fourth studio album will hold string arrangements and overtly sexual lyrics. Out August 21st on Matador

MP3: New Pornographers - My Rights Versus Yours

2007-04-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

Good News For People Who Love Bad News: Modest Mouse @ Hummingbird Centre

Bad news is my hard drive crashed and all my music is gone, which is why I haven't posted in a millenium. Good news is I saw Modest Mouse last Tuesday, on my birthday, in Toronto at the Hummingbird Centre.
Opening was Love As Laughter, a mellow prog-rock band who reminds me of Black Mountain/Stephen Mcbean. They were decent, but again, I would have really loved to see Man Man open.
When Modest Mouse came onstage, my first appearance after seeing the stage setup was that clearly they didn't want to put either Marr or Brock center stage, as they were both on either sides of the stage. They opened with 'Paper Thin Walls', followed by 'Ocean Breathes Salty' and 'Dashboard'. The energy was high, so were the group of kids a couple rows ahead of us blowing smoke signals to the securty, who surprisingly overlooked it. Fortunately, there was no self-mutilation.
Sorry that's kind of a half-assed review, but it was almost a week ago and I have been pretty stressed out over this computer deal.
This weekend, pretty stupidly, I missed Basia Bulat in London, but I did ring in my new year with a group of friends so it was still a worthwhile weekend. Come back to London soon, Basia!

2007-04-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

Modest Mouse Goes the way of The Decemberists: Green Screen Challenge Pt. 2

Remember the Decemberists' fresh idea of having their fans finish their music video for 'O Valencia!' in their Green Screen Challenge, the winner, and the ensuing power struggle it sparked over at Colbertnation? Modest Mouse have released their own green screen footage for their second single off their latest LP We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank, 'We Have Everything' to be finished by you, the fans.
You can download the footage here.

2007-04-12T05:35:00.000-07:00

Chicagoans Have All The Luck

With the announcement of the ongoing lineup for the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago this summer, I was already shooting the green eye towards our Sufjan-loving, midwest friends, but with the lineup for the annual Lollapalooza music fest just being announced yesterday, I hardly think I can contain myself.

It's as follows: Pearl Jam, Daft Punk, Ben Harper, Muse, Iggy & The Stooges, Modest Mouse, Interpol, My Morning Jacket, Satellite Part, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Snow Patrol, The Roots, Patti Smith, Kings Of Leon, The Black Keys, Regina Spektor, Spoon, Lupe Fiasco, TV On The Radio, Pete Yorn, G. Love, Paolo Nutini, Amy Winehouse, LCD Soundsystem, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Silverchair, Femi Kuti, Yo La Tengo, The Hold Steady, Jack's Mannequin, Stephen Marley, STS9, M.I.A., Slightly Stoopid, Blonde Redhead, Sparklehorse, Sean Lennon, !!!, Blue October, Son Volt, Motion City Soundtrack, Polyphonic Spree, Peter Bjorn & John, Sliversun Pickups, Cansei De Ser Sexy, The Raptures, The Wailers, Roky Erickson, Tapes 'N' Tapes, Heartless Bastards, The View, The Cribs, The Fratellis, Ghostland Observatory, Tokyo Police Club, Rhymefest, Soullive, Cold War Kids, Annuals, Fields, Electric Six, Jim Noir, Elvis Perkins, Sam Roberts, Black Angels, Charlie Musselwhite, Aqueduct, Juliette & The Licks, Dios, Viva Voce, David Vandervelde, Los Campesinos!, Chin Up Chin Up, Ryan Shaw, Colour Revolt, Satin Peaches, Illinois, Arckid, Mickey Avalon, The 1900's, Bang Bang Bang, High Class Elite, Carry Ott, Matt Roan

whew.

2007-04-11T06:14:00.000-07:00

Shadrach Kabango

I don't follow hip hop nearly as closely as I follow indie, but I do know that Shadrach Kabango (Shad K to fans, Shadrach to fellow Londoners) ain't kidding around. His first release When This Is Over was incredible and he remains the best hip hop lyricist I've heard of. Apparently he was signed to some independant label within Sony Records but my facts may not be quite straight on that one. Regardless, he's awesome, he's from London, he went to my highschool, (he once performed at our end of the year "Centralpalooza" bash) and these singles should be in your library.

MP3: Shad K - "I Get Down"
MP3: Shad K - "Out Of Love"

2007-04-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

White Stripes Icky Thump Cover Art

Icky Thump is planned to be released June 2007 as the White Stripes begin to play various music festivals. For more Icky Thump details, go here.

2007-04-10T18:49:00.000-07:00

Volta's first single: "Earth Intruders"

This first taste of Bjork's sixth studio album Volta (released in North America May 7) couldn't excite me more about a) buying the album upon its release and b) seeing her LIVE at the Virgin Music Festival in Toronto, ON. For cover art, tracklist and tour dates, go here.

MP3: Bjork - "Earth Intruders"

2007-04-10T10:47:00.000-07:00

Indie Compilations For The Masses

According to Pitchfork Media, a number of independant labels are planning on releasing indie compilations of the genres most identifiable artists (Bloc Party, The Shins, Bright Eyes, Air, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, M. Ward, Ted Leo, Cat Power, Silversun Pickups, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Sonic Youth). Their market isn't, however, aimed at us already indie-rock-appreciators (or discoverers, purists, love-to-haters), but the mainstream, generation 'y' crowd; who the labels identify as the flavour of the month indie artist followers, and supporters (ipso facto, the label supporters) of tomorrow. Vice Record's Adam Shore was quoted in Entertainment Weekly last week (with facts that have yet to be confirmed, he says):
"We're partnering with MTV2, and the focus is going to be Wal-Marts, big box stores, red states, and TV advertising-- to really go beyond... We don't really expect indie rock stores to support this record. It's for the casual fan."

My opinion on all of this? If I didn't have one good, indie rock lovin' friend who turned me toward the genre, I would never have gotten in so blissfully deep. It's great for those perhaps not living in big cities where the underground music scene is strong, or is unlucky enough to not have been exposed to the genre often enough (or lucky enough to shop at Wal-Mart), to get a feel for the genre, but the idea of a sort of indie crash course doesn't shake me the right way. The independant music genre (now not necessarily independant) is an expansive, deep culture that cannot be summed up in an "Indie For Dummies" sort of compilation. White bread mainstream kids may find an indie tune catchy, but will they recognize the band's influences? Be able to relate the music to said influences? Catch on and laugh along when the band plays a David Bowie or Ace of Base cover at their live show? Buy their next album?
If this compilation inspires the infommercial-watching crowd to delve deeper in the the underground music scene, then so be it. I congratulate Matador Records for their wise business plan. But won't it ruin the image and purity of indie rock if you can call in to buy it for two easy payments of $9.99 (slashed price if they call within 10 minutes of the ad, naturally).

2007-04-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

New Porn Album Title

A. Carl Newman has released some more details about the Pornographers latest album, to be released in August, called Challengers

Carl Newman on song titles:

Most of them are there. What are they? Let's see. Well, Dan's songs are called "Myriad Harbor" and "Entering White Cecilia" and "The Spirit of Giving", which first showed up as a Sub Pop single b-side years ago, which never got released, so it seemed safe to do it again. What else is there? A song called "All These Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth" and "Go Places", there's a song called "Challengers", and there's a song called "All the Old Showstoppers". That's all I can think of right now. I'm always zoning out

Sounding good, A.C?

It definitely sounds like something that, when it's quiet, I think it's much quieter than it ever has been, to the point that there are actually songs that don't really have any drums. Or, a song that has no drums for the first half, but then the drums come in, and even then they don't come in that much. There's a little more instrumentation than we've really tried having before. We brought in a string quartet, and there's actually flute on it, there's going to be a little bit of trumpet. I feel like I kind of shied away from that in the past, but I thought, why not try it now? There was a long stretch there where I thought there were too many bands with strings and horns and flutes. Then I thought, I like those instruments, so I brought them in. Not that there's going to be that much of it on the record, per se, but you know, just wanted to add a few more colors to the palette

Righteous.

Also, 6 more bands have been added to the Virgin Festival in Toronto this September. On day 1, the Artic Monkeys, M.I.A. and Mute Math have been added to the lineup and on day 2 Metric, Peter Bjorn & John and Honeycut have signed on. The anticipation is growing....

2007-04-03T06:24:00.000-07:00

Bjork's Volta Tracklist, Tour Dates, Artwork

If that doesn't get you psyched about the new Bjork album, coming out May 8 in North America, I don't know what will.
Apparently the colourful artwork is supposed to represent the 'fun' attitude she faced this album with, contrasting the neutral and calm album covers in the past.

Volta Tracklist:

01 Earth Intruders
02 Wanderlust
03 Dull Flame of Desire
04 Innocence
05 I See Who You Are
06 Vertebrae by Vertebrae
07 Pneumonia
08 Hope
09 Declare Independence
10 My Juvenile

Tour Dates:

04-27 Indio, CA - Empire Polo Field (Coachella)
05-02 New York, NY - Radio City Music Hall
05-05 New York, NY - United Palace Theater
05-08 New York, NY - Apollo Theater
05-12 Chicago, IL - Auditorium Theatre
05-15 Denver, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre
05-19 San Francisco, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre
05-23 Vancouver, British Columbia - Deer Lake Park
05-26 Gorge, WA - Gorge Amphitheatre (Sasquatch!)
06-22 Pilton, England - Glastonbury Festival
06-28 Werchter, Belgium - Rock Werchter
07-01 Gdynia, Poland - Open'er Festival
07-05 Roskilde, Denmark - Roskilde Festival
07-25 Nyon, Switzerland - Paleo Festival
09-08 Toronto, Ontario - Virgin Festival

2007-04-02T04:46:00.000-07:00

Man Man to open tour for Modest Mouse

Can you imagine that? The boys of Man Man bouncing around, growling and mocking all over those white bread Modest Mouse fans. They won't know what hit them!
Unfortunatley, they won't be opening at the Toronto show I'm going to see, which is a huge disappointment. They would be such a sesh opener. Here are the dates that they will be opening:

03-30 Portland, OR - Berbati's Pan
03-31 Seattle, WA - Neumos
04-01 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard's on Richards
04-04 San Francisco, CA - The Independent
04-05 Los Angeles, CA - TBA
04-06 San Diego, CA - Epicentre
04-07 Tucson, AZ - Solar Culture Gallery
04-09 Boulder, CO - Club 156 (University of Colorado)
04-10 Omaha, NE - The Waiting Room
04-11 Urbana, IL - Canopy Club
04-12 Newport, KY - Southgate House
04-13 Gambier, OH - Horn Gallery (Kenyon College)
04-14 Oberlin, OH - Dionysus
04-15 Washington, DC - Rock & Roll Hotel
04-25 Montreal, Quebec - Metropolis *
04-26 Rochester, NY - Main Street Armory *
04-27 Boston, MA - The Orpheum Theater *
04-29 New York, NY - The United Palace *
04-30 New York, NY - The United Palace *
05-02 Providence, RI - Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel *
05-03 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory *
05-04 Greensboro, NC - Civic Center *
05-05 Atlanta, GA - Masquerade Music Park *
05-06 Birmingham, AL - BJCC Arena Concert Hall *
05-08 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues *
05-09 Austin, TX - The Backyard *
05-10 Grand Prairie, TX - Nokia Live *
05-12 Mesa, AZ - Mesa Amphitheater *
05-13 Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre *
05-14 San Diego, CA - Cox Arena *
05-16 San Jose, CA - San Jose State University *

*with Modest Mouse, Love as Laughter

2007-03-30T18:31:00.000-07:00

More bands added to P4K Fest!

Good news for Chicagians on the weekend of July 13-15 (or ambitious Londoners), the New Pornographers, Stephen Malkmus (genius behind Pavement) and De La Soul have been added to the bill. FYI a full weekend pass is $50, a refreshing sum compared to the Virgin Music Festival's $115 ticket price. Here's the bill:

Friday, July 13:

Sonic Youth performs Daydream Nation

Saturday, July 14:

Cat Power
Clipse
Iron and Wine
Girl Talk
Grizzly Bear
Battles
Professor Murder

Sunday, July 15:

New Pornographers
Stephen Malkmus
De La Soul
Of Montreal
Jamie Lidell
The Ponys
Ken Vandermark's Powerhouse Sound

2007-03-29T10:35:00.000-07:00

1 Week, 5 new CD's

This week, over two days, I bought Deerhoof's Friend Opportunity, Peter Bjorn & John's Writer's Block, The Sugarcubes Life's Too Good, Modest Mouse's We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank, and The Blow's Paper Television. The Blow I bought only because it was used and only $10 from Grooves and I have heard very good things about it, but I haven't been able to stop listening to it. I love the quirky beats laid down by YACHT keeping time for the beautiful vocals. I haven't thoroughly listened to the Deerhoof or Modest Mouse albums, but the Peter Bjorn and John and Sugarcubes albums are also really impressing me (unsurprisingly). I reccomend all 5.

MP3: The Blow - "Pile Of Gold"
MP3: Peter Bjorn & John - "Young Folks"
MP3: Deerhoof - "The Perfect Me"
MP3: Modest Mouse - "Dashboard"

2007-03-27T07:27:00.000-07:00

Mixtape: People Don't Dance No More...

It's true folks, people don't dance no more, so my mission last night when I should have been doing my homework, was to compile a list of songs so groovy, you'll want to shake it like your ass has the hiccups. Party Hardy!

MP3: !!! - "Heart Of Hearts"
MP3: Amy Winehouse - "Rehab (Hot Chip Remix)"
MP3: Asobi Seksu - "And Then He Kissed Me"
MP3: The Blow - "Pile Of Gold"
MP3: Brazillian Girls - "Jique"
MP3: Busdriver - "Casting Agents And Cowgirls"
MP3: Gnarls Barkley - "Smiley Faces"
MP3: Hot Chip - "And I Was A Boy From School"
MP3: Love Is All - "Busy Doing Nothing"
MP3: The Klaxons - "Golden Skans"
MP3: Matt & Kim - "Yea Yeah"
MP3: Muscles - "Ice Cream"
MP3: Of Montreal - "A Sentence Sorts In Kongsvinger"
MP3: The Rapture - "WAYUH"
MP3: Teddy Bears - "Cobrastyle ft. Mad Cobra"
MP3: You Say Party! We Say Die! - "The Gap (Between The Rich And The Poor)"

2007-03-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

Jill Barber @ London Music Club

Yesterday afternoon I caught Jill Barber and her brother, Matthew Barber at the London Music Club. I was especially excited to be seeing Jill Barber after my dad introduced me to her pretty folk music and I scored her EP Oh, Heart from a friend. Needless to say, it was a fantastic EP, but quite basic. So when I heard her latest LP For All time released on Dependant Records, the production value surprised me. I liked her when it was just her and a guitar strumming away, but I guess I haven't given it a good enough listen yet as I forgot the CD in my dads car on the way to my bus. I'm sure it'll grow on me.
But back to the live show, which was pretty impressive. Matthew Barber didn't really impress me as his music was mellow, coffee shop kind of tunes, very basically played on the acoustic guitar and piano. I thought his name sounded familiar, so it didn't surprise me when he said he plays Call The Office pretty often with his band. I'm not sure if I'd pay to see him again, perhaps only to see if he sounds better with a band.
Jill was fantastic, though. She brought along Les Cooper, who played guitar on the album, and the two of them played some of my old favourites from the EP and a heap of new ones from the LP which were quite impressive. If you have a thing for Jenny Lewis, Neko Case or more notably Basia Bulat, then you'll love Jill Barber's pretty folk/alt-country music.

You can also read a review of the show she played in Kingston by fellow Barber fan B(oot)log.

MP3: Jill Barber - "Measures and Scales [Live]"
MP3: Jill Barber - "In Perfect Time [Live]"

2007-03-23T15:17:00.000-07:00

Dr. Dog preaches...

Scott McMicken from Dr. Dog talked to JamBase:

"With the Beatles, I honestly think they are underrated" says co-founder, guitarist and singer Scott McMicken. "They've been established as great so firmly that people don't think about them enough. I'm nowhere near done being mystified by how incredible their songwriting was. I think any songwriter interested in the craft ought to be just flipping their lid about the Beatles every minute of every day."

Clearly Dr. Dog takes this proclaimation to heart because the one song I've heard off the new Dr. Dog album, We All Belong (released Febuary) is the spitting audio of many songs in the Beatles early career. Perfect example:

MP3: Dr. Dog - "My Old Ways"

- - -

By the way, check out the awesome artwork for Bjork's upcoming album, Volta

woo hoo hoooo

2007-03-23T14:41:00.000-07:00

White Stripes release Icky Thump details and tracklist

Yes, okay so I failed to mention that the White Stripes were putting out another album and going on tour when I heard about it because I felt that I finally got over my White Stripes phase. However, after watching the video preview for the band's upcoming album, Icky Thump at Pitchfork Media I felt that this is one phase that should be revisited.

The album is reportedly 48 minutes long and is to have no piano on any of the tracks. However, there will be bagpipes and synthesizers on some of the tracks. Tourwise, the band hasn't released any tour dates yet for North America but promises that "all 10 provinces and 3 territories of Canada, as well as the remaining 16 states of the United States the band have yet to play," will be visited.

Tracklist:

Icky Thump 

You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told) 

300 MPH Torrential Outpour Blues 

Conquest 

Bone Broke 

Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn 

St. Andrew (This Battle Is in the Air)  

Little Cream Soda 

Rag and Bone 

I'm Slowly Turning Into You 

A Martyr for My Love for You 

Catch Hell Blues 

Effect and Cause

2007-03-22T18:15:00.000-07:00

Peter Bjorn and John + Fujiya & Miyagi

You know how I just said how I love when two things I'm really digging end up merging? Well 2 minutes after posting that Souvenir Of Canada review, I headed on over to Pitchfork media and saw that Peter Bjorn and John and Fujiya & Miyagi (and Au Revoir Simone) are touring and coming to Toronto May 6th! Someone loves me up there, I know it!

Here are the dates:
04-13 Reykjavik, Iceland - NASA
04-14 Dublin, Ireland - Tripod
04-15 London, England - KOKO
04-16 Paris, France - Trabendo
04-17 Bourges, France - Le Printemps de Bourges Festival
04-28 Indio, CA - Empire Polo Field (Coachella)
04-30 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club *
05-01 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
05-02 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
05-03 Philadelphia, PA - Theater of Living Arts *
05-04 Boston, MA - Paradise *#
05-05 Montreal, Quebec - Le National *#
05-06 Toronto, Ontario - Phoenix *#
05-07 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center *#
05-08 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle *#
05-09 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue *#
05-12 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore *
05-13 Seattle, WA - Neumos *
05-14 Portland, OR - Doug Fir *
05-15 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's *
05-16 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's *

* with Fujiya & Miyagi
# with Au Revoir Simone

MP3: Fujiya & Miyagi - "Collarbone"
MP3: Peter Bjorn and John - "Young Folks"

2007-03-22T17:54:00.000-07:00

Souvenir Of Canada

Don't you just love when coincidentially things you're really into merge to create an incredible union? Like when Tim Curry signed on to be King Arthur in the Broadway production of Spamalot? As was my reaction when I heard that A.C. Newman (of New Pornographers fame) was doing all the music for the 2006 movie Souvenir Of Canada created by one of my favourite authors Douglas Coupland. Douglas Coupland's witty cynicism over A.C. Newmans incredible Canadian-bred indie-pop? Count me in!
And the pair sure delivered. The movie was about Douglas Coupland creating "Canada House", a sort of museum full of Canadian inside jokes that only we would understand (Windsor salt packages, Dad's cookies, plenty of Canadian geese and beer cans). The movie also bios parts of his career and talks about his relationship with his parents, the "most Canadian people he knows". It makes you feel really great to be Canadian, I gotta say, and have to giggle at all the Canadian souvenirs that apply directly to your life (for me, the most relevant are the Dad's cookies). He admits to being obsessed with mass media and advertising campaigns in the movie which is easily regarded as the 'souvenirs' in Canada house are about half Canadian artifacts or symbols, and half Canadian products, represented by their packaging or advertisements. Although I wouldn't say Canada is as much of a consumer's society as USA, which a foreigner might gather from watching the movie, the media symbols do effectively portray Canada and what we know ourselves, and others know us for.

2007-03-21T16:15:00.000-07:00

Still love Peter Bjorn and John like I do? You'll hate this guy.

Some guy hiding behind some blog persona is calling upon indie rock fans to stop Peter, Bjorn and John from becoming this years newest "buzz band" and planned on rallying them at last weeks SXSW (I'm a little late with this one but bear with me). He called upon bloggers to write about his cause, so I'm just following orders...

This is probably the stupidest shit I've ever heard. This proves the point of every one who classifies indie rock lovers as "snobs" or that the moment one of our bands gets popular, we discard them, calling them 'yesterday's news'. Just because PB&J are becoming popular does not mean the entire indie population must band together to shun them and leave them to white bread, mainstream kids. Frankly, they still rock whether they're top of the pops or not.
Also, one of his points is that mainstream corporations with regard PB&J as this years SXSW breakout band and welcome them as this years "buzz band" (his term, not mine), making them 2007's indie rock poster band. His argument is that PB&J are not significant enough to represent the indie rock community. All I'm hearing, though, is that maybe the mainstream will think that's all indie rock has got these days and maybe it'll go out of style again. Who cares what everyone thinks about us?! If they wanted to listen to indie, they would. And as for the whole "PB&J aren't significant enough" shit, if you care so much if the corporations think our bands aren't "significant", then listen to theirs. If we can still embrace Modest Mouse and the Arcade Fire as successful and talented indie bands, then we'll accept PB&J in the future, whether they become an indie poster band or not.

Want to leave an angry comment too? Here's his blog.

2007-03-21T15:48:00.000-07:00

What's all this about, then?

Well this is sort of weird..

Birmingham ska purveyors The Beat...join the ever-swelling ranks of bands reunited by announcing their first U.K. tour in over 20 years (via SPIN). That's great news for fans of the Two Tone pioneers, who parted ways in '83 (with members going on to form General Public and Fine Young Cannibals)...via Stereogum

Now if this is all true, then how did I score the incredible (and apparently impossible) chance to see the English Beat back in October of 2005 at Call The Office? Well I didn't do my research because it didn't really irk me then; hell, I was seeing the English Beat! But did they go one tour back then, break up, and now they're getting back together. I don't really think so. But that bad was definitley the English Beat, well at least it had Dave Wakeling in it, that's certain. Maybe it was Dave Wakeling and one of his many other ska projects singing English Beat (kinda like Axl Rose called himself and 4 strangers Guns N Roses).
Ah, well. So we beat on.

2007-03-20T18:43:00.000-07:00

Up and Comer: Richard Swift

I scored this catchy tune over at You Ain't No Picasso after they saw him perfrom at SXSW and called him a "musician's musician" after the Apples in Stereo along with other bands showed up to watch his set. To me, it sounds a lot like David Vandervelde's "Jacket", which I also love. You decide.

MP3: Richard Swift - "Paisley Park"
MP3: David Vandervelde - "Jacket"

2007-03-20T18:32:00.000-07:00

Good News and Bad News

The good news? Plenty of awesome album released today (today actually rivals the sensation that was January 23rd). They include Modest Mouse's We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank, LCD Soundsystem's Sound Of Silver, Panda Bear's Person Pitch, Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha, and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists Living with the Living. Too bad I can't keep up because I'm so incredibly broke (I don't even own last year's Joanna Newsom yet, oh the horror!).

The bad news? Jurassic 5 has broken up.

Yeah the good news out ways the bad news, but isn't that how it's supposed to me anyhow?

2007-03-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

David Bowie Covers!

Well I worked all day today so how about a couple of fun David Bowie covers to cheer you up after all your friends brag about seeing a zillion incredible bands at SXSW? Glad I could help.

MP3: Of Montreal - "Moonage Daydream"
MP3: Of Montreal - "Hang Onto Yourself"
MP3: Rilo Kiley - "Rock N' Roll Suicide"
MP3: Arcade Fire - "Five Years"

Hungry for more David Bowie covers? Have a thing for Portuguese and the acoustic guitar also? Check out Seu Jorge who covers David Bowie songs acoustically and in Portuguese in the movie The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (one of my favourite films and directors, Wes Anderson) or his release The Life Aquatic Studio Session with Seu Jorge

2007-03-18T18:05:00.000-07:00

Dawn Tyler Watson @ London Music Club

This afternoon at the London Music Club, I enjoyed the musical stylings of London-raised, Montreal-dwelling Dawn Tyler Watson, a fantastic jazz singer. I saw her last February in Montreal at this jazz bar called Upstairs with a three piece jazz outfit and she was really fantastic. Little did I know then that she a) was from my hometown or b) also sang folk, motown, blues, and rock with an acoustic guitar accompaniment, which today's show was. Frankly, I enjoyed her more as a jazz singer as her voice really shines scatting over the popular jazz songs she sang back in February such as "Ain't I Good To You" and "Route 66", but her powerhouse vocals did do a number over that acoustic guitar also so I can't complain. She played to a very receptive audience (filled with family and friends of hers) and was particularly interactive. I even won a free copy of their EP, and had a little chat with Dawn after the show. Overall I would say it was a good show, and definitley worth hauling your ass off the couch on a Sunday afternoon for.
Next week at the London Music Club is one of my personal favourite female folk singer/songwriter Jill Barber playing a set with her brother Matthew Barber, so I'm definitley looking forward to that. Unfortunately I cannot see the Great Lake Swimmers (maybe with Basia Bulat) that night because I'll be on a bus heading back to school. Once again, I hate boarding school.

2007-03-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

Holy Kissability, Thurston Moore!

At the Pitchfork Music Festival this summer, joining other artists such as Cat Power, Clipse, Of Montreal, Iron & Wine, Girl Talk, Jamie Lydell, Grizzly Bear, Professor Murder, and Ken Vandermark's Powerhouse Sound (and then some), Sonic Youth will be performing Daydream Nation in its entirety! THIS IS HUGE!!!

On July 13, at Chicago's Union Park, Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon, Lee Ranaldo, and Steve Shelley will perform their landmark 1988 album in its entirety, from "Teenage Riot" all the way through "Eliminator Jr.". Imagine the chaos of "Silver Rocket", the majesty of "Candle", the rollercoaster-ride of "Eric's Trip", up close and personal, exploding beneath the starry sky. Will Thurston and Lee break out the screwdrivers for "Rain King"? Will Mike Watt show up to do the answering machine message in "Providence"? Will Kim look incredibly sexy singing "The Sprawl"?

See y'all there!

2007-03-17T12:29:00.000-07:00

Elvis Costello & The Imposters Tour Dates

That's right folks, Elvis is at it again, going on tour with The Imposters (unfortunately not in Canada though). Does this mean there's a new album in the new works? One can only hope, but if there is, it appears Elvis is probably the hardest working man in this business seeing that he released a studio album and a live album last year alone. We appreciate it, Mr. Costello!

Elvis Costello - 2007 Tour Dates
May 2 - Los Angeles, House of Blues May 2
May 3 - San Francisco, The Warfield May 3
May 6 - Denver, The Fillmore May 6
May 8 - Minneapolis, Myth May 8
May 9 - Chicago, House of Blues May 9
May 11 - Detroit, State Theatre May 11
May 15 - Boston, Avalon May 15
May 16 - New York, Nokia Theatre May 16
May 18 - Washington, D.C., Nightclub 9:30 May 18
May 19 - Philadelphia, Electric Factory May 19

2007-03-17T11:46:00.000-07:00

Of Montreal @ La Tulipe

Sorry I haven't posted in 10 days but i've been in Montreal and couldn't get internet anywhere, which makes it all the more exciting to finally get back home.
Opening for OM were two MC's who called themselves the Grand Buffet. Although it wasn't a particularly musical set, the group was hilarious while interacting with the audience and in their lyrics (talking about such things as chlorophyll supplements, ghost managers and citrus fear). Finally, to a less than enthusiastic audience, OM blasted onto the stage opening with "Suffer For Fashion". The band was all clad in typical OM fashion, meaning lots of feathers, fishnets and glittery makeup with a couple of costume changes to keep things moving. Kevin Barnes didn't seem to me to be that much of a very electric performer like I would have suspected. He danced around and shook his money maker and whatnot but he didn't really seem to be into it. There also wasn't any audience interaction, which I also definitley expected. Although the costumes and theatrical tone of the music did make it a worthwhile show and colourful spectacle, the performance lacked electricity.

There also wasn't any full frontal which discouraged me a bit.

MP3: Of Montreal - "Suffer For Fashion"

Unfortunatley last night I missed the Great Lake Swimmers and Basia Bulat in Montreal, but I think they're coming to Centienall Hall sometime this week so hopefully I can catch them there. Also the Most Serene Republic was at the Salt Lounge last night but I missed them. Hopefully I can salvage myself at the Dawn Tyler Watson show at the London Music Club tomorrow night.
Oh and Jill Barber is coming to the London Music Club next Sunday and I can't go because I have to go back to school!
I HATE BOARDING SCHOOL!

2007-03-07T10:15:00.000-08:00

Basia Bulat

Basia Bulat, London ON sweetheart, is an incredible folk/alt-country/pop artist who finally is releasing an album this year in the UK. Rough Trade singed her after she released a couple of singles recorded in Montreal and they're absolutley beautiful! Her album Oh My Darling is due out in Europe and the UK in late April BUT she is still in search of a North American label (which is ridiculous!). If Leslie Feist, Stevie Nicks and Joni Mitchell gave birth, the baby would have Basia's incredible, tumbling voice. If you have any record company connections, please send along these singles.

MP3: Basia Bulat - "Snakes And Ladders"
MP3:Basia Bulat - "The Pilgrimming Vine"

2007-03-05T15:58:00.000-08:00

2007-03-04T13:44:00.000-08:00

Mixtape Miserablé

Time for another mixtape! The mixtape is becoming a regular feature on my blog where I gather together a compilation of songs to express a feeling, a theme or that the songs just fit right.

This week I've chosen to do a downcast version of the mixtape. I'm not having a particular bad weekend, actually its been in quite high spirits actually, but sometimes it just feels great to lie in bed and listen to incredibly melancholic music. If you find yourself spiralling down further and further into depression please pause and resume later when you're feeling a little less sadistic.

1. Raising The Fawn - Eta

This song isn't necesarily sad, it's actually quite hopeful, but if you're lying in bed on a particularly dreary day, it will make you cry long and hard. Plus it sounds so damn good at the beginning of a mix.

2. Cat Power - The Greatest

Like it or not, Cat Power can come off being very depressing. Especially this song which simply oozes all over your happiness and suffocates it.

3. David Bowie - Rock 'N' Roll Suicide
Well he's not typically who one thinks of when they think of sadness but in his more passionate moments, such as in this song he can really make you feel pretty shitty.

4. Elvis Costello - Tramp The Dirt Down
You know the songs you know you're one day going to want to play at your wedding or something. Well this song is the one I want played at my funeral (heck I could play this entire mix at my funeral). Mr. Macmanus wrote this one for the late Margaret Thatcher shortly after her death and included it on his album Spike and has unusual instrumentation (for Elvis anyhow) like the piccolo and perhaps the bagpipes too. Nonetheless, it's beautiful.

5. Tom Waits - Alice
This isn't the only time I've had a Tom Waits song in a mix, but the man does sing the blues well. I could listen to this song all day, if I didn't value my happiness that is.

6. The Constantines - Goodbye And Amen
This tune has a very slow start and takes a while for us to get started but once that lead singer starts, you're feelin' it. That heavy-stomached pitted feeling that is the only thing that holds down the tears.

7. The Dears - 22: The Death Of All Romance
At the risk of sounding like a sap, I can't tell you how many times I've cried to this song. Again, it's one that exudes so much passion in the vocals and string arrangement near the end of the song that breaks your heart.

8. Feist - Lonely Lonely
This isn't necessarily a depressing song but the soft, tiptoeing guitar line and Feists infamous voice creeping along turns out to be very downcast if you're in the mood to recieve it that way (which you will be in after you listen to all the songs previous to it)

9. Radiohead - Talk Show Host
This song was one of those songs you just can't stop playing for days straight, which explains why I was practically depressed those few days. It's hard when you find a song you like so much but it makes you feel so shitty.

10. Seu Jorge - Rock 'N' Roll Suicide
So yeah, I have two different versions of the same song on this mix (hey I could've also put the Rilo Kiley cover, couldn't I?) but it is a very sad song, especially when you take it back to basics like Seu does with his acoustic guitar and Portuguese vocals.

11. Neutral Milk Hotel - Two Headed Boy Pt. 2
This song I put near the end because although it is very sad, it also has tones of hope laced in which hopefully will pull you out of your depression before you stop listening to this mix. Everyone should listen to Neutral Milk Hotel.

12. Elvis Costello - God Give Me Strength
Again, I wanted to restore some of your hope with this last one which, also is pretty miserable because he cries about a woman who left him, it still is called "God Give Me Strength" (which is pretty evident when he passionately screams it nearing the end). This is a Costello favourite and usually wraps up the end of his albums, so I decided to follow his example and have it end mine.

2007-03-04T13:34:00.000-08:00

The Reminder continues to leak

Feist's 2007 release The Reminder continues to leak out into the web. Here are two more tracks:

"The Limit To Your Love" - via Counting Stars On The Ceiling
"I Feel It All" - via Faronheit

What can I say about them? They're both quite catchy, just like the other leak "My Moon, My Man" so I think we should all start to oberve that pattern here. "I Feel It All" is on the jangly side for Feist and I feel like it doesn't really show how great her voice is, but it is still a great song. Fortunately, "The Limit To Your Love" does include Feist's signature quirky swings and squeaks. Overall, I gotta say I'm pretty pschyed for this new album.

2007-03-04T11:05:00.000-08:00

Dan Bejar and I are kindred souls (and I didn't even know it until I bought a Swan Lake album)

It's true, ya'll, we're meant to be together and i'll tell you why.
His music alone threatens my virginity.
Before yesterday I had only heard two Swan Lake songs: "All Fires" and "The Freedom".
When I first heard "All Fires" I thought it was Modest Mouse. But that's completely irrelevant.
What's relevant is that when I heard "The Freedom" I thought "Man this bands lead singer sounds just like Dan Bejar!". Isn't it so embarrassing when people do that? Tell me about it!
In case you're wondering, Dan Bejar is in Swan Lake, and Destroyer, and the New Pornographers (I now have all three of their albums. Yee haw!)

I also bought Peter & The Wolf's The Lightness which once I heard "Safe Travels" I had to own.

MP3: Swan Lake - "The Freedom"
MP3: Peter & The Wolf - "Safe Travels"

2007-03-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

Yoko Dunnit (and takes the blame)

Yoko Ono, after years of being at the top of Beatles' fan's hit lists, has finally owned up to having a lot to do with the Beatles split.

In a way, both John and I ruined our careers by getting together, though we weren't aware of it at the time. My initial reaction to rock music was, "Oh dear, how simple can you get?" At first I thought John would carry on with The Beatles and I would do my own things, but he felt it wasn't right that we were working separately, that the union we had might not last, because of the pressure of the world.

It's all bollocks that your career was ruined, Yoko, but you're not John freakin' Lennon.
On the other hand, this single called "Toy Boat" from her latest collabo-proj Yes, I'm A Witch is pretty rad. You can get it via Music Slut.

In other news, Amp Camp and Pitchfork end a long and successful friendship resulting in cheaper prices over at Amp Camp and no more shitty album obligatory sales. I say it's a good thing, and i'm siding with Amp Camp. You can the full story from Amp Camp reviewer and all around righteous dude Walter Pillman

...our days of giving Pitchfork a cut of your sales are gone. Watch for the best prices on the net to go even lower. Watch for Califone vinyl re-pressings. Watch for us to have hard-to-find imports long before Insound.

2007-02-28T13:24:00.000-08:00

Gui Borrato, Dean & Britta and Tokyo Police Club

Skatterbrain and Pitchfork like the Brazillian techno producer Gui Boratto and his new album Chromophobia. You should too.

MP3: Gui Boratto - "Beautiful Life"

Tokyo Police Club has released two brand new singles for download called "New Song" and "Graves". You can score them at Daytrotter.

It was 2 years ago today that Luna played their last show at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC. Chromewaves mourns but has hope for Luna-born, up-and-comers Dean & Britta and their fantastic new CD, Back Numbers.

MP3: Luna - "Only Woman Bleed"
MP3: Dean & Britta - "Singer Sing"

2007-02-27T06:09:00.000-08:00

New Videos from Modest Mouse and Tokyo Police Club

BUT you won't be able to watch them unless you live in USA because MTV is whack.
Video: Tokyo Police Club - "Cheer It On" (at MTV's Overdrive)
Video: Modest Mouse - "Dashboard" (at MTV's Overdrive)
MP3: Modest Mouse - "Dashboard"
MP3: Tokyo Police Club - "Citizens of Tomorrow (Space Ballad)

Anyone remember that song "Chacaroon"? (It may help to try to remember any resort you've been to in Central America where they usually play it perpetually). Well Stereogum has added it to their regular feature Yo! MTV Crap. I'm a little insulted. Personally I think the video, in all of its laser and tracksuit glory is pretty dope. You decide.

2007-02-25T17:21:00.000-08:00

Scott Walker, I love thee!

I am so so SO obsessed with this Scott Walker song I was compelled to dedicate an entire post to it and it's wonder. (Notice I've become more impulsive with my posts lately and if I'm excited about something, even if it's small, uninteresting or irrelevant, I still post it? We're all victims of our impulses anyway though right?). I heard it first in the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and it's been in my head since then.

MP3: Scott Walker - "30 Century Man"

2007-02-25T06:01:00.000-08:00

Sunday Mixtape

This morning when I got up (after watching High Fidelity last night and getting in the mood for it) I put together a compilation of songs that I've been feeling lately. So may I introduce the first of the mixtapes that will be soon be a regular feature here. If you too have the songs, listen to them in sequence. I can't put all the tunes up for download because some are a bit older, so i'm not going to put up any for good measure. Enjoy!

1. Snowden - Anti-Anti
A good starter because it drives into the song without blowing out the whole compilation too early, and the song starts right away, none of that introductory baloney.

2. The Golden Dogs - Nineteen Hundred Eighty-Five
The piano riff at the beginning will blow your mind and stick with you all day long, but it's too long to start off with, so it makes a perfect second song to heighten the stakes a bit.

3. Dr. Dog - My Old Ways
So after we blow your mind, we're going to bring it down a bit with something a bit more mellow and foot stompin', like Dr. Dog's "My Old Ways", with a piano line that just skips along to the Beatles' like singing.

4. The Harlem Shakes - Carpetbaggers
This one is a real finger snapping, bop along down the sidewalk with headphones in your ears kind of song that meshes well with Dr. Dog before it, and what's to follow. I wouldn't put it anywhere else than in the middle because it ties the mix together pretty well.

5. Swan Lake - The Freedom
This song starts slow, but gains momentum into a driving song so it also wouldn't work anywhere else but in the middle. Plus, it's a damn good song, and the lead singer of Swan Lake sounds just like Dan Bejar on it.

6. David Vandervelde - Jacket
This is a great song, but works as more of a transition song on this mix because it has enough jangle to prepare us for the next track but the same zippy voice as the Dan Bejar sound-alike one before.

7. The Geraldine Fibbers - California Tuffy
This one is the real kicker. It is a pretty old song and not very well recorded, while all the others are new and well recorded so to make this song fit between all the others isn't easy. But with David Vandervelde's voice still sticking in your head, it prepares you so the Geraldine Fibbers can drop kick it right out again and blow your mind while doing so.

8. Cold War Kids - We Used To Vacation
I didn't believe the hype about the Cold War Kids for a long while because their name led me to believe that they'd be the same old young, kitschy band trying to hit home with heavy subject matter but when I finally listened to "We Used To Vacation", they sound like real professionals and the heavy subject matter works. I think it all hinges on their lead singer though. If he didn't have such a mature, professional sounding voice, this song would be all wrong. Anyways, it works into the mix because it is a heavy song and starts to bring you back down to earth after all those party songs.

9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps
I am not a big YYY's fan, but I've always had a thing for this song and with the opening tremor of that high note, you could literally put it anywhere in a mix and it would work. That being true, I feel it works best at the end to contrast the CWK and whats to follow.

10. Bishop Allen - Corazon
You know those songs you hear and you just know, before looking at the album, that it's the song finishes the list. The "last listen" sound is a very distinct sound, and you only know it when you hear it. Well, Bishop Allen's "Corazon" couldn't be a better topper and goes out on a light, remember it until next week kind of tone.

2007-02-24T18:51:00.000-08:00

Dean & Britta

Meet Dean & Britta, former members of Luna and now doing their own thing as a duo. If you're into Luna and the jangle, you'll probably want to check them out. Dean & Britta talked to the Village Voice about their post-Luna career:

"We could have kept making Luna records, but the world doesn't need 15 of those," Dean says. "We're a little closer to this record, but really, you don't know who's going to get exposed to it. There's a lot of luck and timing involved."

Picture a pair of smiling faces, strumming their guitars and softly singing on top of a mountain. That's what I see when I listen to this song.

MP3: Dean & Britta: Words You Used To Say

2007-02-24T15:14:00.000-08:00

Kevin Barnes explains the nudity

..and it was all for world peace!

Barnes said, "I always wanted to perform naked...it's kind of my concept, to bring world peace to the Earth if everyone had to stand naked in front of their peers once a month. I think it's good because it forces you to sort of come to terms with any sort of body issues that you might have and it sort of like cleanses your emotional palette.

"A lot of people get this anxiety that's like 'I was naked in front of an audience!' and stuff, but I think it's kind of cool for people to be able to face that without going to jail. That's the thing, too, I had to pick Vegas because that's the only 21+ venue we're playing on this whole tour, and I didn't want to become a sex offender, because that would be pretty dreadful."

MP3: Kevin Barnes Interview

Sorry I didn't post all day yesterday. There was just NOTHING going on! I couldn't think of a single thing to post about. So to make up for it, I've made the "On Repeat" songs in the sidebar MP3's (well some of them). Enjoy 'em!

2007-02-22T15:33:00.000-08:00

Kevin Barnes does the no pants dance

Lead singer of Of Montreal Kevin Barnes stripped down to his birthday suit at a Las Vegas show last night and proceeded to sing about half a dozen songs in the nude. An audience member also said that gay and straight porn was playing on a television monitor at the back of the stage.
Frankly, I don't quite know what to expect when I see them in 2 weeks in Montreal.
If you're up for it, you can see the uncensored photos at Pitchfork, but be warned, it's not work/classroom/family living room friendly.
I guess he stripped because he was 'suffering in his fashion'.

MP3: Of Montreal - "Suffer For Fashion"

2007-02-21T19:08:00.000-08:00

New You Say Party! We Say Die!

Controller Controller tour buddies You Say Party! We Say Die! are set to put out their latest Lose All Time March 20th on Paper Bag Records (home of my favourite death disco-ians, Tokyo Police Club, and the Fembots). Check out the new singles, y'all!

MP3: You Say Party! We Say Die! - "Monster"
MP3: You Say Party! We Say die! - "Oppurtunity"

2007-02-21T08:19:00.000-08:00

Everybody Needs To Know It's The Year Of The Panda Bear

Like I've said before, Panda Bear is going to be big this year. Get on top of things with these singles (can you tell I'm loving the new-found MP3 blog status?).

MP3: Panda Bear - "Comfy In Nautica"
MP3: Panda Bear - "Bros (edit)"
MP3: Panda Bear - "Young Prayer"

2007-02-20T13:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Fat Tuesday!

To celebrate, I've rounded up a bunch of dank MP3's, all of which I've been listening to since I got 'em. Enjoy!

MP3: Love Is All - "Spinning and Scratching"
MP3: Peel - "In The City"
MP3: !!! - "Yadnus"
MP3: Chin Up Chin Up - "This Harness Can't Ride Anything"
MP3: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - "Oregon Girl"
MP3: Ramona Cordova - "Take Flight"
MP3: The Bird And The Bee - "I'm A Broken Heart"

And if you're in George, Washington on May 26-27 you can go check out the Sasqautch Music Fest which released its lineup today:
Saturday, May 26th:
Bjork
The Arcade Fire
Manu Chao Radio Bemba Sound System
M.I.A.
Citizen Cope
Neko Case
The Hold Steady
Grizzly Bear
Ghostland Observatory
Electrelane
Two Gallants
The Slip
Loney, Dear
Aqueduct
The Thermals
Viva Voce
The Blow
Gabriel Teodros

Sunday, May 27th:
Beastie Boys
Interpol
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Spoon
Bad Brains
Ozomatli
Dandy Warhols
The Black Angels
Mirah
Tokyo Police Club
Money Mark
St. Vincent
Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter
Smoosh
Common Market
Helio Sequence
Minus The Bear

...all this and a promise for more shows to be announced later.

2007-02-19T08:53:00.000-08:00

Return of the Kings

We're getting in some great new stuff from our favourite oldies. Check out the new album covers and singles from:

Blonde Redhead

MP3: Blonde Redhead - "23"

Dinosaur Jr.

MP3: Dinosaur Jr. - "Almost Ready"

2007-02-18T19:31:00.000-08:00

Na na na na naaaaa na

I'm going to see Aerosmith this summer in Sarnia! Isn't that so Dazed and Confused?
The irony of it is I will be pretty dazed and confused. bahahah PARTY!

2007-02-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

It took me a real long time to figure out something so simple, but I finally figured out how to post MP3's! Well not any random MP3's from my library but only one's that are already uploaded to the internet. Nevermind, all you need to know is that I won't have to navigate you away from this page to get all those nifty songs I talk about all the time.
To stream the songs I post (listen to them on the internet) just click on the link. To download the song, (on mac) hold on the option key and click and hold on the link. You may have to hold up to ten seconds or so, I just always hold it for a real long time, and when you let go it'll start to download. If not, go back and try again until it does (or unless you have a more efficient way, let me know). On PC's, just right click on the link and say 'Save File As...' or something along those lines.
And in celebration, I have a rare Modest Mouse track courtesy of I Guess I'm Floating. Enjoy! and expect more to come.

MP3: Modest Mouse - Nothing New

2007-02-16T14:30:00.000-08:00

Yo! Pitchfork Crap

Pitchfork Media posted the Decemberists brand new video for O, Valencia! (you can download it over there, but I don't know if you'll want to). The video sets up a sort of gangster, mob scene kind of deal with lead singer Colin Meloy as the hero, and guitarist Chris Funk as the double agent. Mr. Meloy needs to flee the country with his lady friend to escape the wrath of her father, "The Boss", and seeks the help of Mr. Funk for passports and identification. He tells Colin to go to the Valencia motel to pick up everything he needs. Colin and his lady friend go to the Valencia hotel, pursued by a bunch of hitmen. I won't give away the ending, but it is a rather graphic video for such an upbeat song. In fact, the video in no way whatsoever fits with the song. The director also directed the Decemberists award winning video for "16 Military Wives", and uses the same kind of captioning to help us through the story but instead of it being a whimsical addition, the captions also seem out of place. Overall, I'm really unimpressed. They should have stuck with the green screen challenge

2007-02-16T06:09:00.000-08:00

Loving Leslie Feist? Of course you are. Everyone does. Well then you'd already know that her new album, The Reminder is due out in May. And you also probably know that you can score the first single, 'My Moon, My Man' over at Gorilla vs. Bear. Oh good, so now that we're all caught up...

Also, The Acorns just signed to Paper Bag Records, same label as Controller.Controller, Tokyo Police Club and You Say Party! We Say Die! You can get a couple of their tunes over at Chromewaves.

2007-02-15T08:33:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is over and I already posted my List of Favourite Anti-Valentine's Day songs (like 2 hours ago) but Stereogum posted some damn cute indie valentine's. Here's my favourite:

2007-02-15T06:41:00.000-08:00

Love stinks, so let's listen to some tunes

So yesterday, I posted my Valentine's Day List of Favourite Valentine's Songs when I was in the mood for all things lovely. But today I'm feeling like my regular, cynical self and, to celebrate, I want to post all of my favourite anti-Valentine's Day songs. Remove all of yesterday's valentine's from your line of sight and we'll begin:

1. The Dears - 22: The Death Of All Romance
I first discovered this song when I saw the video for it on Muchmusic's The Wedge. Needless to say, I was depressed for the rest of the week. But I gotta say, the Dears pull off melancholy lyrics and depressing crooning well.

2. Dinah Washington (Verve remix) - Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby
This isn't in any way a depressing song, in fact it's quite lively. But Dinah tells off her flakey boyfriend in such a way that suggests that she's had it with love. You'll feel the same way, while you're shaking your rump to the music.

3. Tom Waits - Alice
Mr. Waits is lovestruck by a certain Alice, who seems to have broken his heart. His low caroling rumble, and the wailing sax melt into your skin and make you, aswell, 'fall through the ice of Alice'. One of the saddest songs I've ever heard.

4. Elliot Smith - Cupid's Trick
Elliot Smith admits to having been on all kinds of drugs when he wrote this song, and doesn't remember what he was thinking but with lyrics like "Cupid's trick comes/Down to shake and deal/The stupid kick that makes me real", the message isn't that mysterious.

5. Feist - Lonely Lonely
Although it has painstakingly beautiful lyrics ("Paper, paper obsolete/how will you reach out to me?"), and a hopeful tone, the song is called 'Lonely Lonely'. Oh, Missus Feist, why you gotta sing so blue?

6. The Fugees - Killing Me Softly
I know this song is a cover, and Wyclef's out of place "Yo's" do take away from the downcast tone, but I don't have the original so this'll have to do. But props to whoever did write it because the lyrics are beautiful, and absolutely suicidal. And that Lauryn Hill! Lady sing the blues so well.

7. Gogol Bordello - Bordello Kind Of Guy
This isn't exactly anti-Valentine's Day material because it says nothing to do with love, or lack thereof. But listen to it, and you'll see how it is pretty much the opposite to everything Valentine's Day. St. Patricks Day? Maybe.

8. Reel Big Fish - Kiss Me Deadly
Bad ska covers make bad love sounds.

2007-02-14T10:42:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day!

Tired of reading about the Arcade Fire? So am I. So here's a list of my favourite Valentine's Day songs instead. Refreshing, i'nit?

1. Arab Strap - Cherubs
I can't post MP3's because I haven't figured out how yet, so let me paint you a picture. The surly lead singer of Arab Strap mumbles 'I see cherubs' repeatedly while a mellow acoustic guitar plays over a dub drone. No, it's not your typical Valentine's Day love song, but the title and subject matter inevitably categorizes it. Deal with it.

2. Belle & Sebastian - I Love My Car
A charming love tale of a man and his car. Yeah, alright, not quite Valentine's Day material but it's a damn catchy song.

3. Bjork - Like Someone In Love
Bjorks crooning voice over a delicate harp would seem like a clash of sounds, but add in lovestruck lyrics and you've got the perfect Valentine's Day dream sequence soundtrack for you and your significant other.

4. The Cardigans Lovefool
We've all heard it, and we've all danced around to it (most likely while wearing a cardigan for good measure) pleading along with lead singer Nina Persson for love. Don't deny it, we're all lovefools too.

5. Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter
Like him or not, this song yanks pretty hard on your heart strings. Who is that mysterious girl standing on the beach who Damien can't take his eyes off of? Heaven only knows, but we all hope she feels the same way.

6. Elvis Costello - Alison
He ain't gettin' sentimental (like those other sticky valentines) and he don't know if she's lovin' any of them, but damn it, his aim is true, and that's good enough for me.

7. Feist - Now At Last
On top of a hill, with fresh wind and robins, and Leslie Feist. That'd make anybodies Valentine's Day.

8. Heart - Crazy On You
No, it's not because their name is Heart, or because the chorus repeats 'Crazy On You' over and over, it's the face melting acoustic guitar solo at the beginning that makes this a Valentine's Day song. If that doesn't get you in the mood, I don't know what will.

9. Jill Barber - Oh, Heart
Lord, her voice is beautiful! And her mellow, romantic lyrics are ideal date music. If you haven't checked out Jill Barber yet (because you haven't heard of her, because few have), please do.

10. M.I.A. - U.R.A.Q.T.
Need a date this Valentine's Day? Make a mixtape with the queen of abbreviations hip-shaker U.R.A.Q.T. for your crush. Not only will your admiree surely get the message, but they'll also get a song they can get down to.

11. The Mountain Goats - Woke Up New
Although their latest album is called 'Get Lonely', this is still an ideal Valentine's Day pick. Can't you hear the jangly guitar and pleading "What'll I do without you?" over a montage of lovers sitting in a field or something? Yeah, I think in film..

12. PJ Harvey - This Is Love
Is your Valentine's Day leather clad and nose studded like PJ Harvey's? "This is love, This is love that I'm feelin'" Yeah, I feel it too, PJ.

13. Shad K - Out Of Love
The name is misleading as you may think that this is more of an anti-Valentine's Day song, but when Shad confesses that he's tired of the pretentious girls and he "wants a Claire Huxtible" instead, your feeling the same way. Hey, if I had a Claire Huxtible I'd tell her shyly that I wouldn't go anywhere without her beside me too. NOTE: if you haven't heard of Shadrach Kabango yet (which wouldn't surprise me because he's a Londoner), then please pick up his CD 'When This Is Over'. It beats every single G-Unit album out there (and i'm including the Snoop Dogg remixes, y'all).

14. The Shins - New Slang
Here's my best dating advie; take a girl out to a café, play her 'New Slang' and tell her that The Shins will change her life. She'll be yours forever.

15. Squarepusher - Hello Meow
Oh, so I'm the only one who gets turned on by rapid techno beats?

16. The Stills - Still In Love Song
If you saw the Stills pump out this song live in a small, sweaty venue you'd still be in love too.

17. Yeah Yeah Yeah's - Modern Romance
Hearing Karen O softly sing "There is no modern romance" is somehow incredibly romantic. Go figure!

..And tomorrow, after i'm feeling nice and bitter because Valentine's Day is over, I'll post some of my favourite anti-Valentine's Day songs. Stay tuned!

2007-02-13T10:45:00.000-08:00

Let me tell you about my obsession with Elvis Costello

I feel it's time to share with y'all why I am so crazy about Mr. Macmanus after all. Well truth is, it's kind of a family affair. My father got me into him when I was a kid (I was named after the Elvis Costello song 'Veronica' which is my real first name). We used to sing it all the time drving me to and from Weldon Park Acadamy (another story for another day). He gave me my first Costello CD, Spike and introduced me to all the songs on it. We also went to see Elvis together in Montreal this past summer. 2006's My Flame Burns Blue was my favourite album of the year and his latest release with Allen Toussaint has a couple of gems that I won't forget either. I know this is pretty out of the blue, but I thought it was about time I paid homage to the greatest man in music.

2007-02-13T07:09:00.000-08:00

If you're feeling predictable and the new NP album

Chromewaves is feeling Said The Gramaphone and their showcase of new music. So should you.
And I know that the New Pornographers have been a popular topic on here lately, but why the hell not. They've been talking to Chart about their new album. A.C. Newman:
"We're looking to be all done by the end of April-ish for a release later this year."

I'm pumped.

2007-02-12T18:42:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the inconvenience folks, but I think I got my facts straight now

Well when I posted the link for Dinosaur Jr.'s single over at Pitchfork, I didn't quite research because if I had gone on over to Chromewaves earlier, I would see that they already posted that the new album is called Beyond and is due out May 1st. They also have another single over there for you called 'Been There All The Time'. Here's the tracklist:
Almost Ready
Crumble
Pick Me Up
Back To Your Heart
This Is All I Came To Do
Been There All The Time
It's Me
We're Not Alone
I Got Lost
Lightning Bulb
What If I Knew

2007-02-12T10:41:00.000-08:00

A weekend in London and I'm $80 in the hole

I cannot hold onto a couple of bucks. Especially when I go to Grooves in downtown London and see all the CD's I've been deprived of lately. This week, they're Of Montreal's Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? (which is completely valid because I'm seeing them in March), Pavement's Wowee Zowee (which I got second hand for $20 and is absolutley incredible! Had I known I would have bought it ages ago for full price), Yo La Tengo's I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass and Destroyer's Destroyer's Rubies (I saw New Pornographers last weekend sans Dan Bejar so I wanted to check out what he was doing with this time when he could've been rocking out with me and the NP's in the bitter cold).

Oh, when I said that Dinosaur Jr. would be coming out with a new album this year, I didn't expect it so soon, but I was surprised to see a new single called 'Almost Ready' up on Pitchfork. You can get it over there.

Also, if you voted for the Plug Awards, here are their list of winners:

Album of the Year: Band of Horses - Everything All The Time
New Artist of the Year: Arctic Monkeys
Female Artist of the Year: Neko Case
Male Artist of the Year: Sufjan Stevens
Indie Rock Album of the Year: Yo La Tengo - I Am Not Afraid of You And I Will Beat Your Ass
Metal Album of the Year: The Melvins - (A) Senile Animal
Hip Hop Album: Spank Rock - Yoyoyoyoyo
Americana Album: Band of Horses - Everything All The Time
Punk Album of the Year: CSS - Cansei De Ser Sexy
Electronica/Dance Album of the Year: Thom Yorke - The Eraser
DJ Album: Girl Talk - Night Ripper
Avant Album of the Year: Xiu Xiu - The Air Force
Artist of the Year: J Dilla
Live Act of the Year: Broken Social Scene
Song of the Year: Band of Horses - The Funeral
Record Producer of the Year: J Dilla
Music Video of the Year: Wolf Parade - I'll Believe in Anything
Album Art: Hot Chip - The Warning
Record Label of the Year: Sub Pop
Live Music Venue of the Year: Bowery Ballroom
Music Festival of the Year: South by Southwest
Music Website of the Year: Pitchfork Media
Music Blog of the Year: Brooklyn Vegan
Magazine of the Year: Paste
College/Non-Comm Radio Station of the Year: KEXP, Seattle, WA
Record Store of the Year: Amoeba Music
Best Music DVD of the Year: The Pixies - loudQUIETloud
Zine of the Year: Wax Poetics
Speciality Show of the Year: Sirius Left of Center - Blog Radio
Podcast of the Year: WOXY.com Lounge Acts
Internet Radio Station of the Year: Woxy.com
Online Radio Station of the Year: KEXP
Online Record Store of the Year: Amazon.Com

No comment on the Grammies...

2007-02-09T10:53:00.000-08:00

Well, That's Embarrassing!

Possibly the lamest album promotion attempt of all time happened yesterday when the Scissor Sisters performed on the daytime soap opera Passions. But don't take my word for it, see it yourself!

2007-02-06T09:33:00.000-08:00

Peter Bjorn and John's Writer's Block due out today!

..with an additional bonus CD to punish those of you who imported it. I, unfortuneatley won't be able to get my hands on it til the weekend when i go home. I also plan on finally pickingup Fujiya and Miyagi and Of Montreal. There are so many CD's I need to get but can't! I hate money!

You can get a second opinion of the Golden Dogs/Yoko Casiono's show over at Chromewaves, but for some reason he doesn't have a New Pornographers review, which I was looking out for. I guess he wasn't man enough for the cold...

2007-02-04T18:58:00.000-08:00

New Pornographers @ Nathan Phillips Square

^{A pretty old picture but i didn't take any pictures at the show}

Despite -25 degree weather (or so), the band still managed to play an incredible, electric performance and really connected with the audience. The set was on the short side, but understandably seeing as they were all freezing. A.C. Newman entertained the audience with delightful banter as the band had to retune their instruments after every song. For me, it was incredibly exciting to be seeing them as they were one of the first indie bands i started listening to it and still listen to today. They played majority of songs from Twin Cinema and a couple of Mass Romantic and Electric Version as well. Neko Case couldn't be there because she was on her solo tour but the woman who stepped in (i didn't catch her name) had a very similar voice and didn't take anything away from the performance. During the encore, the band was taking requests and I was screaming "From Blown Speakers!" at the top of my lungs. Luckily and to my delight, they played From Blown Speakers which completely made the show for me. Overall, completely don't regret freezing my digits off for that incredible performance!

- - -

Today and yesterday I've felt the most regret for choosing Ridley, because over the past 2 days not only i had tons of fun going to London parties or having fun with London people, but a) i realized how broke I am and how i wouldn't be if i was home and b) I'm missing Malajube and Apostle of Hustle when they come to London. I'm absolutley heartbroken! God if there wasn't enough regret in the past 1 1/2 terms, if i could just come home for the next semester I could see these INCREDIBLE shows and have the money to enjoy them. GOD why the year when both Apostle of Hustle AND Malajube are coming London. Why this fucking year!?

On a high note, I may be going to Bonnaroo. It's not in anyway final, but i was offered the chance so hopefully, HOPEFULLY it happens. That would make up for all the missed shows this year..

2007-02-02T06:24:00.000-08:00

Jeff Scheven stikes again!

^{My man's the dapper young feller far right, with the black gloves}

Have you seen/heard about the new TV On The Radio video for "Province"? Because it's all over the blogs. Well, the drummer of my favourite band, and the object of my personal crush, directed it! That's right, Jeff Scheven has been around the block directing videos, but TVOTR is big time stuff. Them blipsters are from Detroit or something, yet they found a Torontonian. You can watch the video over at Stereogum or check out Jeff's website here

Last night I went to see The Golden Dogs at Call the Office

^{photo:iheartmusic.net}

They put on an excellent show! The first song in I could tell they write great indie pop music, and that there's no way their CD sounds as good as their live show. Buuuut I bought it anyway. Opening for them were the Yoko Casionos, who were poppy but, as Arielle and I discussed in full while waiting for the Golden Dogs to set up, very 90's teen soundtrack-y. If I were to get their CD, I probably wouldn't be able to get past that and not really enjoy the music. The crowd was very promising though, which Arielle and I couldn't help but delve into a bit. Overall a great fuckin' night! And my first show in a long while..

2007-01-31T10:48:00.000-08:00

Brooklyn Vegan gave Peter Bjorn and John a naaasty review of their Bowery Ballroom perfomance in NYC, but Gorilla vs. Bear has a video of them performing live on Conan which is pretty dope. You decide...

2007-01-28T08:37:00.000-08:00

Reason to hate Fall Out Boy #346: They're pompous idiots!

Pete Wentz, biggest douchebag on earth, said this about FOB's new album's leak:

"This could potentially be one of the biggest leaks there is. If you think that every year computers, iPod, internet music grows exponentially and we're probably one of the biggest bands in rock music on the internet. ... Our job is to put out records and tour and make music. What are we gonna do? Sit at the plant and watch everybody? Some guy working minimum wage, why would he care how it affects us? It's a multi-pronged thing."

Thank you, Pete, for giving me another reason to hate your gawdawful band. Or maybe he just overlooked The Arcade Fire's Neon Bible leak which has been the latest buzz for weeks, or maybe Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot when it was leaked. Get humble, douche!

2007-01-27T19:20:00.000-08:00

2007's "It" Bands (as anticipated by myself)

That's right folks! You can get a heads up on all the bands to look out for this year (or better yet, check out immediately and get the I-told-you-so satisfaction when they're the next Sonic Youth), all in one convienent place. Aren't you lucky!
Already it's shaping up to be a good year, and we're not even finished January. Afterall, we've already passed the one day wonder that was January 23rd, also known as the day all indie kids maxed out their parents credit cards on new releases. We've also seen promising comebacks, or plans to comeback from Modest Mouse, The Shins, Radiohead, Bjork and Smashing Pumpkins. The bills for Coachella and Bonnaroo 2007 have been released, along with it many reunions of our favourite old timers such as The Police, Rage Against The Machine and The Jesus and Mary Chain. All this, and the blogsphere has been buzzing with bands on the uprise. Here are some of the bands that I do believe the hype about:

Andrew Bird

You heard it here first, Andrew Bird will be 2007's man of the moment. His new album, Armchair Apocrypha is already making a huge splash on countless b l o g s. That much coverage has to account for something, right? Plus his first single "Heretics" is slammin'. Get it at I Guess I'm Floating.

Deerhoof

^{How could you not love such a happy looking band?}

Again, going to be big, big, BIG this year. Gorilla vs. Bear has jumped the gun and called their single "Matchbook Seeks Maniac" their favourite song of 2007 (and you can score it over there too). Their January 23rd release Friend Opportunity will be all over the place in the next 11 months, so get on that!

Menomena

Just ask the guys over at Amp Camp. Their new album Friend and Foe has been in their 'Featured Albums' section for a while now, and shows promise of staying for another little while. Very accessible, shinslike music makes for popular sales over there. You can get a couple of MP3's over at Stereogum('Wet And Rusting' reccomended).

Panda Bear

^{(I'm afraid I can't find a picture because all google images generates is pictures of panda bears)}

The last, but certainly not the least. Panda Bear's new album Person Pitch is going to be so gigantuous this year in the indie/blog world, Google images will have no choice but to have loads of pictures of Panda Bear, rather than panda bears. Many, many blogs have sung their praises, most notably Gorilla vs. Bear's obsession with the new album. Please, for your sake, pick this one up! You can grab a couple of MP3's over at Gorilla vs. Bear.

2007-01-26T07:01:00.000-08:00

I know I posted that article I wrote for my school newspaper before, but i redid it with some better bands. Enjoy!

- - -

Band Spotlight: The Best Bands You’ve Never Heard Of.

So you want to listen to indie rock and roll? You want to rythmlessly sway back and forth at concerts, chatting it up with people you’ve never met before about how the band you’re watching was better on their first album, and their latest stuff is a little over-produced? Well, I can’t help you. It takes years to build up a collection and vast foundation of useless band trivia to become a true indie rocker. But these bands are the best in the genre and listening to them will at least get you a head nod from experts (if not a long-winded explanation of how the lead singers side project is better than the band itself).
The Smiths:
I thought I’d start with the basics; the Smiths are kind of old news but are an important cornerstone in the genre. They were a very successful indie band from the 1980’s British invasion and were internationally recognized for their electric live performances and beautiful studio albums. They were fronted by the acclaimed lyricist Morrissey, warmly nicknamed the Pope of Mope for his melancholic and dark lyrics, and one of the most influential frontmen in indie rock. Although they aren’t together anymore, Morrissey has taken on a successful solo career and his still recording critically acclaimed albums.
You’ll like them if you’re into: Coldplay, Belle & Sebastian, Any band with strong accents
Recommended Album: The Queen Is Dead
Recommended Tracks: Bigmouth Strikes Again, Vicar in a Tutu

M. Ward:
Ah, indie pop. My all-time favourite oxymoron. And why not when a man like M. Ward writes such beautiful indie pop music. The refreshing simplicity of his music and unforgettable lyrics will give your ears a welcome vacation from over produced drone, whether you’re into that or not. Don’t like to hear politics in your music? Neither do I. I associate politics with complications and frills, which Post-War is not. The name is misleading, but the album is incredible, no strings attached bliss. Not only does he deliver on this album, but his live show is also not something you should miss. Do your ears a favour and pick this one up today.
You’ll like him if you’re into: Bob Dylan, the acoustic guitar
Recommended Album: Post-War
Recommended Tracks: Chinese Translation, To Go Home

Fujiya & Miyagi:
As a general rule, I usually steer clear of bands which have names I can’t pronounce as I figure if their name is, the music must also be over my head. But as we saw with Post-War, things aren’t always what they seem. This band is neither Japanese, nor a duo as their name would lead you to believe. They are actually a trio from the UK who share interests in early-90’s electronica and alter egos (Fujiya is Steve Lewis, & is David Best, and Miyagi is Matt Hainsby). Yes, they are technically an electronica band, but don’t be intimidated by the genre title. If there is one band who will get you into electronica, it will be Fujiya & Miyagi (or Hot Chip in my case). Fujiya & Miyagi have just released their latest album, Transparent Things last month and you can bet it’ll be a vital 2007 collection piece. So take a chance, pick it up, and delve into the wonder that is electronica music.
You’ll like them if you’re into: Heavy bass lines
Recommended Album: Transparent Things
Recommended Tracks: Collarbone, Ankle Injuries

2007-01-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

Need It..Got It

After weeks of antici....pation! I finally got the new Shins CD; Wincing Away The Night. I also got Malajube's Trompe L'oeil and Wolf Parade's Apologies To The Queen Mary, a couple of CD's that has been on my "Need It" list for months now. I brought Wincing Away The Night to school because I already got emails asking to rip the CD. Where as the excitement of buying a just released CD gone, and why has 'ripping' become so popular. I can't really talk because I rip CD's all the time, but if people want it so bad, why don't they just buy it.
My french teacher has a collection of 700+ CD's and is selling all of them because he said he's backed them all up on his computer, which only further proves my point.

2007-01-24T11:07:00.000-08:00

Oh, and this just in, Dinosaur Jr. seems to be coming out with a new album this year. Stay tuned for more on that.

2007-01-24T10:14:00.000-08:00

Pictures of the New Dinosaur Jr. Nike Dunks

Pretty dirty, huh? Well also pretty expensive, so I probably won't be getting them, as they are $150 and too lush for my taste.
They're released Febuary 10th in Toronto.

2007-01-23T05:45:00.000-08:00

The Day Is Finally Here!

Today is one of the best days of 2007 for CD collectors, as pretty much all this years anticipated and acclaimed albums have been released TODAY! Just in case you didn't know, here's a list:
Justin Dorion - Woke Myself Up
Dustin Kensrue - Please Come Here
The Good, The Bad, and the Queen - s/t (UK only)
Field Music - Tones Of Town (UK only)
Fujiya & Miyagi - Transparent Things
Rob Crowe - Living Well
Of Montreal - Hissing Fawna: Are You The Destroyer?
The Shins - Wincing Away The Night
Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
Animal Collective - People EP
Bird And The Bee - s/t
Kristen Hersh - Learn To Sing Life A Star
Vietnam - s/t
Menomena - Friend And Foe
Youth Group - Casino Twilight Dogs

I don't exactly have the budget to get all of these, nor do I want every single one, but you can bet I'm going to get my hands on The Shins, Of Montreal and Fujiya & Miyagi, and if I'm feeling up for it then I'll also get Menomena and Deerhoof.
You Should Do The Same!

2007-01-16T08:38:00.000-08:00

This is a article I wrote for my school newspaper, and although the issue doesn't come out until valentines day, I have nothing to write today so I'm putting this in. Enjoy!
- - -

So you want to listen to indie rock and roll? You want to rythmlessly sway back and forth at concerts, chatting it up with people you’ve never met before about how the band you’re watching was better on their first album, and their latest stuff is a little over-produced? Well, I can’t help you. It takes years to build up a CD collection and a vast foundation of useless band trivia to really become a true indie rocker. But these bands are the best in the genre and listening to them will at least get you a head nod from experts (if not a winded explanation of how the lead singers side project is better than the band itself).
The Smiths:

I thought I’d start with the basics; the Smiths are kind of old news but are an important cornerstone in this genre. They were a very successful indie band from the 1980’s British invasion and were internationally recognized for their electric live performances and beautiful studio albums. They were fronted by the acclaimed lyricist Morrissey, warmly nicknamed the Pope of Mope for his melancholic and dark lyrics, and one of the most influential frontmen in indie rock. Although they aren’t together anymore, Morrissey has taken on a successful solo career and his still producing critically acclaimed albums.
You’ll like them if you’re into: Coldplay, Belle & Sebastian, Anyone band with strong accents
Recommended Album: The Queen Is Dead
Recommended Tracks: Bigmouth Strikes Again, Vicar in a Tutu

The Decemberists:

Ah, indie pop. My all-time favourite oxymoron. And why not when bands like the Decemberists write such beautiful indie pop music. They are fronted by the charismatic Colin Meloy, a man with a passionate relationship with his acoustic guitar, and backed up by guitarist Chris Funk. This past year they released The Crane Wife, an incredibly well received concept album based on a Japanese folk tale and their first release on a major label. They take cues from influential 90’s indie bands such as Neutral Milk Hotel who also did the tragic concept, pretty acoustic guitar dance on their album In The Aeroplane Over The Sea.
You’ll like them if you’re into: Neutral Milk Hotel, 18th Century Fables
Recommended Album: The Crane Wife
Recommended Track: O, Valencia!, Summersong

The Shins:

Yes, I realize that the article is called ‘The Best Bands You’ve Never Heard Of’, and you have heard of the Shins, but they are still an indie band, and I chose them for one important reason: they have a new album coming out in 2007 (January 23rd, to be precise) and I’m sort of following a pattern here. That’s right folks, you heard it here first (unless you follow this kind of thing as closely as I do), the Shins are releasing a new album called Wincing Away The Night. It has yet to be released, but through the magic of the internet, I streamed the entire album and I have to say it looks promising. The same old Shins writing style you know and love, but much better produced coupled with a clear higher budget for recording. Some girl sitting in a café once told me “The Shins will change your life”, and although I can’t say my life has changed much since I began listening to them, they’re arguably the most recognized indie band out there and have made many people slightly happier (the kind of happy you can only get from listening to that good old indie rock and roll).
You’ll like them if you’re into: The OC or Garden State
Recommended Album: Wincing Away The Night
Recommended Track: The Phantom Limb (first and currently only downloadable single)

2007-01-14T08:21:00.000-08:00

Why do I keep buying more and more cds when I don't even get the time to listen to them? I haven't even gotten through my Neko Case CD in its entirety yet, and i've had it for months. I just bought a self-titled Specials album (which caught my eye because it was produced by Elvis Costello) and Sean Lennon's 'Friendly Fire'. Well, to be fair, I've listened to both those albums through already even though I just bought them a couple of days ago, but I still have a bunch I haven't gotten through yet. My problem is I go back to London, go to Grooves and get a kind of Grooves fever. I have to buy, buy, buy all the CDs i want but clearly don't have the money for ( I still have a long list of 2006 releases i have yet to get)

Speaking of releases, here's a list of 2007 releases that I'm really anticipating:
1/23 The Good, The Bad, The Queen (uk only)
1/23 Fujiya & Miyagi - Transparent Things
1/23 Of Montreal - Hissing Fawna: Are You The Destroyer?
1/23 The Shins - Wincing Away The Night
1/23 Deerhoof - Friend Oppurtunity
1/23 Menomena - Friend and Foe
2/06 Apples in Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
3/06 !!! - Myth Takes
3/20 LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
3/20 I'm From Barcelona - Let Me Introduce My Friends

As you can see, January the 23rd is going to be quite a big (and expensive) day. Mark your calenders!

2007-01-07T11:29:00.000-08:00

I went on a little shopping spree on Thursday and splurged on 7 cds. Yeah, it was a lot but 4 of the 7 were used and great
prices. I got:
NaS - Hip Hop Is Dead
Nina Simone - Remixed and Reimagined
Cat Power - The Greatest
Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
Bob Dylan - Greatest Hits Volume 1
Lady Sovereign - Public Warning
The Smiths - Rank

I'm pretty happy with all of them, especially the Nina Simone album. It's a great listen, pick it up.

2007-01-07T10:09:00.000-08:00

Back to school tomororw and not terribly happy about it..

_{This is obviously an old picture of OM but Google images pretty much only generates pictures of Montreal when you type in the band name}

but I just bought my Of Montreal ticket for march so I guess things are looking up..
You can get their brand new single from Jan 23rd's 'Hissing Fawna: Are You The Destroyer?' called 'Labyrinthian Pomp' at Stereogum, along with a preview of the fold-out album art.

That's all for now, seeing as I have a lot of packing to do but i'll post more when I get into my routine.

2007-01-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

Thank goodness for Christmas money and Boxing Day sales...

because otherwise I wouldn't have the means to update my collection with a couple of vital 2006 releases. On boxing day I wasn't going near the mall, but I did head on downtown to Grooves where they had a buy-3-get-4th-free deal. I picked up Final Fantasy's 'He Poos Clouds', Belle & Sebastian's 'The Life Pursuit', Beirut's 'Gulag Orkestar', and Camera Obscura's 'Let's Get Out Of This Country'. Somehow I didn't believe the hype about these album upon their actual release and either ignored or never got around to buying them. But with all the 2006 Best Of Lists released, I realized all the gems that got away. There's a couple more I have yet to pick up such as Peter, Bjorn and John's 'Writer's Block', Joanna Newsom's 'Ys', Cat Power 'The Greatest', Grizzley Bear's 'Yellow House', The Hold Steady's 'Boys and Girls in America', Yo La Tengo's 'I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass', and Malajube's 'Trompe L'oeil'. Yeah, quite a ways to go I realize. But to be fair I just started getting into the blog thing (reading them that is) a couple of months ago so I missed a lot of the hype about these albums. They'll all make their way into my collection soon.
For 2007, I can't wait for the realease of some highly anticipated albums such as The Shins 'Wincing Away The Night', Of Montreal's 'Hissing Fawna, Are You The Destroyer?' and The Apples In Stereo 'New Magnetic Wonder' (all of which I plan on picking up upon their actual release and not at the end of the year).

This year I plan on going to see The New Pornographers in Toronto on Febuary 3rd, The Roots on March 24th in Toronto and Of Montreal over my spring break in Montreal (date unknown at this point)

Yep, looks like it's going to be a great year.

2006-12-26T09:45:00.000-08:00

RIP JAMES BROWN

..on a lighter note I've added all sorts of delicious links to the sidebar including Stereogum's list of top 10 blogs of 2006, and all of my favourite band sites. Aren't you lucky!

2006-12-25T16:46:00.000-08:00

Gorilla vs. Bear posted his favourite music videos of 2006 (among other things). I hadn't seen any of them but I was very familiar with the songs (as they were a couple of the best of 2006), so i checked them all out. His favourite was Peter, Bjorn and John's 'Young Folks' video:

which was good, but not as good, I'd say, as one of his runner ups Hot Chips 'Over and Over' video:

Also one of my favourites is still The Concretes video for 'The Chosen One' which I've posted earlier..

2006-12-19T16:47:00.000-08:00

Work has been keeping me down. In the meantime check out brooklyn vegan's list of favourite 2006 albums or one of Pitchfork Media's many lists for 2006.

2006-12-12T07:36:00.000-08:00

Turns out that the rare VU record that was on ebay, which reached a price of 155,000 on the auction won't be sold to the mysterious buyer "mechadaddy".

The buyer's friend apparently went onto his account and bid on the rare acetate while he was unawares. mechadaddy "can't even afford to pay for gas" and sent an apolegetic email to a frusterated Warren Hill explaining them mess. Brooklyn Vegan has the whole story...

2006-12-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

I just want to say that Beck, although seeming to be a bit merose at times, is a fantastic performer. I'm in love with 'Clap Hands' which isn't even worth hearing unless you see it live with the whole dinner table thing, and his posse of troubadors and hipsters make my day a lot better. Here is 'Clap Hands' and 'Nausea':

2006-12-11T08:35:00.000-08:00

Has anyone ever noticed that The Decemberists "Crane Wife" and Neutral Milk Hotel's "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" are very similar albums?

Not only the cover art (similarily old-time drawings), the concepts (both tragic stories made into albums) and the general song structure (opens with upbeat acoustic song, followed by instrumental song with a little more diverse instruments and a long 10-minute ballad thrown in the middle) but even the tunes are written the same way. Both bands wield their acoustic guitars religiously while throwing in a trumpet or piano here and there. The lyrics are both lamentable but moving and profound. Don't mistake this as me bashing them, because I think they're both great albums, but maybe the decemberists should try to mix it up a bit next time.

2006-12-10T18:49:00.000-08:00

I bought Neko Case's "Fox Confessor Brings The Flood", Girl Talk's "Night Ripper", and Tom Waits "Orphans:Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards" this weekend. I kind of went crazy out of Grooves withdrawal. I was about to buy Joanna Newsom's "Ys" instead of Girl Talk, but the friendly Grooves clerk said it was horrible. I then heard a single off the album on the way back up to school on the radio and immediately regretted not buying it, because it was a great song. I gotta say I do really value that mans opinion and this is the only time he's done me wrong.

I'm loving this Concretes video I caught on Much Music's Wedge (the only much music show i watch, the rest is filth). Not only is it a great song, but the video is awesome. Enjoy!

2006-12-07T18:02:00.000-08:00

You've seen everyone else's, and now here's mine. The list of 2006's Greatest Albums! In some ways the easiest, and some ways the hardest thing I've done all day (and i wrote a history exam this morning). The top three I couldn't have chosen faster. They jumped out as me as the greatest albums I've listened to all year hands down and deserved their titles. But as I went on I found it harder and harder to narrow it down to a final cut. So I present to you the revised, and rerevised masterlist! Enjoy!

10. M. Ward - PostWar

The soft and muffled, but simplistic sound of M. Ward's music is a refreshing vacation from the hustle and bustle of a lot of music today. What's the matter with just a guitar and a set of beautiful and unforgetable lyrics? Bob Dylan did it in the 60's, revisited by Neutral Milk Hotel in the 90's, and M. Ward is doing it again with Post War. Don't like to hear politics in your music? Neither do I. I associate politics with complications and technicalities, which Post War is not. The name is misleading as the album is incredible, no strings attached bliss.

9. Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye

This is a clear top-tenner. Junior boys put out beautiful electronica beats. Hands down. 'Nuff said.

8. Amy Millan - Honey From The Tombs

I'm not really one to buy a country album, but I made an exception this year with Amy Millan's alt-country wonder. She's already one of the indie queens of our generations (of Broken Social Scene and Stars fame) and when she goes ahead and puts out a solo CD, of course its worth checking out. And it was definitley worth the while, because it's a great album. Beautiful melloncolic songs about skinny boys, losing boys and drinking. So what if it's country?

7. K-OS - Atlantis: Hymns 4 Disco

It only took one listen of this album before I loved it. I'm a self proclaimed K-OS fan and loved Joyful Rebellion, but Hymns for Disco feels right. It's a little more mature and a little better produced then Joyful Rebellion with many more hip hop elements (never fear, he still breaks it down this the acoustic guitar from time to time). Definitley deserves its spot.

6. Hot Chip - The Warning

Who wouldn't agree with this? As soon as I heard 'And I Was A Boy From School', I needed the album. As soon as i heard the album, I needed to see them live. Well I still have yet to see them live because I missed them when they came to Toronto, but it's gonna happen.

5. Sufjan Stevens - The Avalanche

Well I loved 'Illinois', so naturally I love 'The Avalanche'; It's mathematical! Sufjan writes beautiful indie rock music and definitley delivers on this 'Illinois' retake. I especially like the title track and 'The Perpetual Self', along with, of course, the many versions of 'Chicago'. Thanks Sufjan!

4. Beck - The Information

This album could show up on this list solely for the stickers. The delightful stickers that he included with the jacket with a blank cover you're supposed to decorate. And then I listened to it. By far my favourite Beck album to date.

3. Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope

I actually saw Regina live in concert before giving this album a good listening to. Sometimes I actually prefer to do that, because already there are songs that jump out at your when you do start listening to it. You hear them live, forget them, then as soon as you hear the album you remember them instantly and can sing along to the entire song. It's feels phenonimal.This album was much more refined than 'Soviet Kitsch's rusty appeal, but they're both fantastic albums. Regina is a charming and beautiful performer and songwriter, and has gained herself a life long fan.

2. Thom Yorke - The Eraser

I was never a big Radiohead fan short of their hits, but I really hit it off with Thom Yorke. I bought his album before I started to get into electronica (which was earlier this year, yes), and it really helped bridge the gap between pretty indie music and electronic drone (i mean that in a good way. I've grown to love the electronic drone).

1. Elvis Costello - My Flame Burns Blue

Not an obvious chart topper, I realize but most definitley deserves the title. I'm a self proclaimed Costello fanatic (by influence of my father) and always have been. Not only this one hell of a jazz cd, but it's live! And this is only one of two jazz albums he put out this year. And frankly the man is a human fucking jukebox, and should be commended for it. Haven't heard of this album? Do yourself a favour immediatley and pick it up.

2006-12-06T19:03:00.000-08:00

When in rome...

Have you heard about the super rare Velvet Underground Chelsea street sale find? Of course you have! Who the hell hasn't?
One lucky sonovabitch, Warren Something, was rummaging through a street sale in Chelsea, New York when he found a weathered VU record and bought it for 75 cents. It appeared to be an old copy of the Velvet Underground and Nico's legendary album produced by Andy Warhol, but when he got around to playing it the record started with "European Son", not the same song as what the original album started with. So he did his research and found out it was the original recording of the album, BEFORE Andy Warhol got his hands on it and started pushing it to recording labels. This record is arguably the rarest piece of pop art material of all time. The auction started on ebay at 20K and now has gone up to $133,000! That's quite a profit...

I've added some links to the sidebar of some other real horrorshow blogs (where i get some of my delicious information). Please take a look!

After reading blogger large hearted boy's list of favourite albums from 2006, and the long list of other blogs and website that have listed their favourites, I've decided to compile my own list. Stay tuned for that...

In the mood for a blast from the past by any chance? And why not go one better and watch a one hit wonder from the vaults? I adore this video by Cake (who by no means deserve to be one hit wonders). It had some minor play on MTV and muchmusic and the like but its possibly only because of this adorable video. I love the street vendor grumbling about 'some super girl that feminists would approve of'. Enjoy!

2006-12-05T09:19:00.000-08:00

My lack of blogging can be explained from my back breaking exam schedule this term.
I haven't had a moment to take to do any new music listening or anything of great import that the general public would like to read. The only news I've gotten is that if I do end up going to Montreal this spring, which i still hope is on, I will be seeing Of Montreal there. Thrilling? No but im excited, and that'll have to do for now. I will have delicious news after exams on the 12th.
Until then...

2006-11-22T05:53:00.000-08:00

Toronto is getting some pretty good acts..

like Sean Lennon! He's coming to Toronto on the 13th. The Toasters is on the 9th, LCD Soundsystem is on the 23rd. Joel Plaskett Emergency, Cat Power and the Philosopher Kings. It's going to be a good holiday.
I really wanted to go see Sean Lennon, but the show is 19+ and you need something ridiculous like 10 pieces of government id and your fingerprints to get in. It would have been a hell of a show. His newest album, Friendly Fire is supposed to be exactly what everyone would expect; just like his father's music. His first album was nothing like this. Completely his own, which i can really respect. But Friendly Fire sounds just like Papa John's music. His voice sounds just like his fathers, as you can tell in this preview to Friendly Fire..

It looks like I'm going to see LCD Soundsystem though. At least I'll catch one good show over the holidays..

2006-11-15T05:24:00.000-08:00

Well I haven't blogged in a while, and for a good reason..

..I've had nothing to talk about! I didn't end up going to Jurassic 5 last thursday because tickets were practically sold out and a whopping $37. So I decided against it. So really i have no new music news to report on..
I did however pick up two cds when i went home last weekend. I got Hot Chip 'The Warning' which I was really overdue to buy. It's a really great one. And it is also feeding my growing love for electronica. I also got English Beat 'What Is Beat?'. They're an amazing ska band, one of the well known godfathers of the genre. Surprisingly, I saw them at Call The Office last October on a very small scale tour. God knows why they came to Canada, or better yet, why they came to London (ON) but I was thrilled. It was one hell of a ska show, and one I'm betting I won't ever be able to see again so I'm pretty lucky. I've always had a tough time finding an English Beat cd anywhere, so you can imagine my surprise when I found one in a used cd store under the miscalaneous "E" section. The store clerk was shocked too. Well, he was shocked because be though it was a 'The Beat' cd instead of 'The English Beat'. He had never heard of the English Beat...

2006-11-05T12:15:00.000-08:00

How (i heard) the Bob Dylan concert went..

..because i didn't go! I had the chance, but i lost it. The Foo fighters opened though and I heard they were great, but a little amateur (who isn't when you put them before a legend who's been performing for 40+ years). They played a full acoustic set but apparently it really rocked the house. I know a couple of people who bought the ticket just for the foo fighters then left before dylan. Bob himself didn't really impress a lot of people. Apparently he played very little of his classics and mostly off his new cd 'Modern Times'. Everyone I've asked who went to see the concert haven't even listened to the album yet, so that may have explained why they were so disappointed; they were probably all expecting classic dylan. But apparently he did do a couple old ones in a new way, which I have to respect. I hear he doesn't like to play his old stuff so pretty much he's doing it just for a crowd pleaser.
This has sparked a little realization in me. Big time arists like The Who, Elton John and Bob Dylan wouldn't have come to London a couple of years ago. I can explain their appearance in a couple ways: a) we now have the JLC, a really big, really popular venue for big acts b) pirating and c) lack of would-be massive CD sales.
Big time artists who should be living off their enourmous and ongoing record sales aren't anymore because of pirating. OR they haven't sold their music to iTunes yet and so people just don't bother buying their music. No one buys cds anymore. So all these big time acts are forced to go on tour to keep a steady, and sky high income. There just isn't a demand for CD's anymore. Have you noticed that CD stores like HMV have become dominantly a DVD store. The CD section is usually pushed into the back in a significantly smaller section then the dominating DVD's.
So poor Bob, Elton, Roger, Pete, Keith and John have to go on tour. Which is great, for us. We all hear about these classic and legendary performers and their knockout shows and naturally will pay $85 a pop to see them. But these guys are getting pretty up there. Dylan is 65 for pete's sake. I wouldn't want to be on the road at 65.
I'm really speaking for the artists at this point which I shouldn't be. Maybe they want to continue touring, but how long can this continue? Without the liability of record sales they have to tour late into their years.

Today I finally found Regina Spektor's 'Soviet Kitsch'

I've been looking for this silly album for ages! Ever since I heard the quirky song 'Poor Little Rich Boy', I had to have it. Grooves never carried it, and if there's one thing you can learn about Grooves it's that you shouldn't order a CD from there because it'll take a millenium for them to get it in. So I just waited it out, always looking for it when I went in, but never expecting to see it. Well, it payed off, because today they actually had it in. Arielle and I let out a loud gasp that shook the whole store. I'm ecstatic. I've already listened to it once and it's brilliant! I also bought Squarepusher's 'Hello Everything' which I didn't realize was a completely instrumental album, but rocks pretty hard nonetheless.

2006-10-31T06:20:00.001-08:00

Plans change for the better and the worse...

^{Jurassic 5}

This past saturday, as I was in peterborough freezing my ass off in the cold rain for a field hockey tournament, Arielle called me and told me she's getting Bob Dylan tickets and we're going. I'm ecstatic! My dad was already going but hadn't invited me (thanks a lot dad!) and i really wanted to see him live. I hear that everyone should see Dylan live at least once in their lifetime. On Sunday, however, we learned that Air's aunt, who was going to score us the tickets, gave them away to someone else. What is it with family that they think to eager 16 year old girls DON'T want to go to Bob Dylan. Of course we wanted to go! Oh well..

But I also learned that Jurassic 5 was coming to London and playing at Cowboys (a truly haneous country-themed bar). but J-5 was J-5. I'm getting a posse to come down to see them. It's on my November break too so that'll be a nice little vacation-thing..

I'm obsessed with A.C. Newman's 'A Slow Wonder'. If you like the New Pornographers, then you'll love A.C.'s solo (he's the lead singer, and a fabulous songwriter). It's really upbeat and perfect for summer (or those of us in summer withdrawal). The man writes beautiful indie pop music.

2006-10-27T05:21:00.000-07:00

I had a major revelation last night.
I was talking to my good friend Kaes about how he picked up and moved to Banff for 6 months. He was talking about how he got to snowboard all day and party all night. After his 6 month contract is finished at the hotel he's working at, he'll come back home and finish highschool.
Why can't I do that?
Oh right..because my parents would tear my throat out. Wouldn't it be lovely though. My dream would go a little different, though. I'd get a part time job in some really suave base city, like Montreal or Toronto. I'd work when i need to and the rest of the time I'd travel in my van with a couple of friends and go see bands play all over the country. I'd just pick up and take off whenever I wished. There'd be no pressure to go to school or get a real job. I'd just have fun. I couldn't do that my whole life or anything, but for a year or so that'd be so dope.
This definitley makes me sound like I have no morals or goals. Going to Ridley College doesn't make me the ideal candidate to pursue a life like that. But why can't I just take a year off after highschool and drive around in my van? I wouldn't be dependant on any one; the point is that I'd actually be independant.
I have a feeling my parents would object (with their fists) if I ever told them my plan, but i don't really see why. I would still go to university, I'd just take a breather for a year. I wouldn't be moving forward, but i wouldn't move backwards either. I'd just relax.
Which brings me another problem. I work all summer long at a full time job and a part time job. This past summer I found myself wondering what I have to look forward to? What long term relaxing time will I ever get if I do what my parents want me to do, which is go to university right after highschool. I work all school year at school, and I work all summer at my job. What do I have to look forward to other than change?
That's why this year off idea is perfect for me. Plus if I'm going to get a career as a music journalist (which is what i think I want to aspire to be) or something along those lines, it would be great 'field work' if i travelled around for a year and saw bands play. That's practically job experience.

2006-10-24T11:08:00.000-07:00

Why can't we all just get along?

Scottish band Arab Strap announced that they broke up. What is wrong with bands these days? Can't they sort out their differences and keep producing face melting rock and roll?
Well Arab Strap hardly produced face melting rock and roll. Their music was quite a bit more mellow than that, but they were slammin'. I think they've put out something ridiculous liike 8 studio albums and 2 live records in the last 10 years of their career. They're going to release one last called 'Ten Years of Tears' with a bunch of singles, some b-sides and a few rarities.

On the other hand, the Pixies announced that they are going to release a new album. They regrouped a little while ago while Frank Black was doing his solo thing. At least there's some hope for bands..

2006-10-23T13:39:00.000-07:00

Next weekend in London ON...

...is the LOLA fest. I think this is the first year they're doing it. It's a music fest right on Dundas street at Richmond. Some bands that'll be playing are Tokyo Police Club, Jon Rae and the River, and this band i forget the name of, BUT this guy at Grooves told me that it is pretty much a Canadian superstar band with one of the guys from Arcade Fire, Feist and a couple of others. So now im psyched to say the least...
Also coming up this weekend is the annual Rocky Horror Picture Show viewing at midnight at Rainbow Cinemas. I went last year with Arielle, but there wasn't a huge turn out. It was however, a lot of fun. This year I'm going to drag Arielle along again and some of the south girls. I'm not going trick or treating this Halloween so i might as well continue one of my halloween traditions.
I finally bought the new M. Ward cd yesterday. When I brought it up to the counter, the friendly Grooves clerk flipped; he said he couldn't stop listening to it. I've just flipped through it once, but it sounds great. Lately I can't stop listening to the song 'Go Go Gadget Gospel' by Gnarls Barkley. It pumps the hell outta me. Go download it, you pirates!

2006-10-17T10:45:00.000-07:00

I'm always asking myself if it's better to have many cds that I listen to once in a while or few that I can listen to all the time. I constantly finding myself in a music store heavily weighing the decision to buy a new cd because I don't know if I'll have the time to listen to it. I buy about a cd a week on average, but they build up faster than you'd realize. Sometimes I don't get a chance to listen to a new cd until a week or two after I buy it.
My dad has a billion cds, but usually only listens to one once and thats it, it goes back to the vaults. I never want to get to that point with my music. I want to have a relationship with each of my cds. And I do at this point. There are a bunch of cds that bring me back to a weekend at a friends cottage or a trip to another city.

Please do yourself a favour and listen to a Regina Spektor cd today. She'll change your life.

2006-10-15T09:53:00.000-07:00

It's a sad day for dancehall...

^{Controller.Controller: Colwyn, Nirmala, Ronnie, Scotty, Jeff}

Nirmala Basnayake, the lead singer and goddess of my favourite band Controller.Controller, announced that she would pursue a different path and left the band. I am absolutley horrified. The band on a whole was incredible, but Nirmala brought a electricity to it that no other vocalist could have. Her dulcet voice could be soothing and sweet, but would also strike powerful tones, accompanying the boys mathematical guitar style. A perfect example is my favourite song by the band. Here is the video for 'History' off their first EP which shares the same title. The video was directed by Jesse (I don't know his last name) from Death From Above 1979.

Death From Above 1979 also broke up about a year ago and since then Jesse has started his own Trance/Electronica group called MSTRKRFT. Sebastian, the other half of DFA'79, has started no known musical projects since the break up. I heard a rumour that Sebastian may hook up with the Scotty, Colwyn, Ronnie and Jeff to try to put something together. Nirmala has said that she doesn't plan on starting or joining another band again, but I can't see her working a regular 9 to 5. See her perform live and you'll agree hands down.

2006-10-10T07:41:00.000-07:00

Montreal was incredible! It really couldn't have gotten any better.
We arrived on the train at around 8oclock on Saturday night, and from there we went straight to this really nice jazz bar.
There was this jazz trio and an amazing singer named Dawn Taylor Watson. She sang some jazz favourites and jammed with this colourful trio. It really was a great act.
The next day we got an early start at the day and headed down to St. Laurant to shop. There was this thrift store called preloved that Arielle had wanted to go to so we walked what seemed like miles to get there, but I have to say it was worth it. They buy all these vintage clothing and cut them up for fabric. Then they follow a pattern to make sweaters, dresses and purses among other things with all this great vintage fabric. (Air spent a whopping $250 there alone)
We then metroed down to St. Catherines, the commercial shopping centre of Montreal. It's a fun strip but is overwhelming. I prefer St. Laurant because it has much more boutiques and less brand name chains.
I racked up a bill of $150 in total, not including food, transportation and concert tickets.
I bought a jacket, a scarf, a hot chip tshirt, a book and 3 cds. (add that to the 2 cds i bought in london on friday and the one that arielle burnt for me i have 6 new ones)
They are:
Beck - The Information
Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope
Brazillian Girls - Talk To La Bomb
AC Newman - The Slow Wonder
Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye
TV On The Radio - Return To Cookie Mountain

All of which are critically aclaimed and the latest release by each artist.
After shopping, we met my step sister Carolina and her boyfriend Dave for dinner. We went to this great place that looked like someones living room. It was somewhat of a tea house but had mexican food. It was a really nice place. Arielles aunt then picked us up and took us to the Regina Spektor show.
The show was sold out and she was incredible. She's a real character witha gorgeous voice. Her music is indescribable but here is video for 'Fidelity' off her latest album 'Begin To Hope'.

After the show Arielles half brother picked us up. We were planning on going to a free Constantines show on St. Laurant but when we got there they wouldn't let us in because the bar was way over capacity. We went down the street for coffee, came back in an hour, but it was still packed so we just called it a night.
The next day we got on a train to head home. Pretty uneventful except for the fact that i lost my train ticket and had to buy a new one (that's something that i would do) so i'm $80 in the hole. We also so a naked man standing on the side of the train tickets when we were approaching Toronto. But that was about it...
Overall, fab weekend.

2006-10-04T06:01:00.000-07:00

2 more days of school...
I am so incredibly ready to get the hell out of here.
I like Ridley, but it's really draining. I was home less than 2 weeks ago and I still miss it unconditionally. Plus, I'm going to Montreal this weekend with Miss Arielle Goldschlager and I couldn't be more excited.
So here comes Beck with another album release. I kind of thought he had his thing with Odelay and Guero and that was it. I assumed he would be living on royalty checks from every time "Where It's At" and "Girl" played in a movie or car commercial, but he's still pushing them out. This latest one is called The Information. I haven't bought it yet but I hear its a real keeper. I don't know if it's disloyal to have so little hope in the guy, but I am really genuinely surprised he's back (was he ever gone?).
Another album I've been panning for is M. Ward's Post-War. At first glance, it struck a Niel Young chord with me; another artist who is protesting war on his album is all we need (i guess?). It can make for passionate and good music, but it also can get whiny and unoriginal in my opinion. But I've heard a couple of songs on this one and I've found neither.
I'm also really excited to come home this weekend so I can pick up these too. Like I've said, St. Kitts is no good for buying cds. Grooves, here I come!
Arielle and my Montreal agenda goes a'somethin like this:
-Hop a train to the monty on Saturday morning. Catch up with Arielle
-Arrive in Montreal. Throw down our bags in Air's aunt's apartment and go back out the door to a jazz bar to see an act.
-Party all night long.
-Sleep
-Get up
-Have an Eggo
-Shop shop shop
-Dinner and The Regina Spektor Concert
-Party Hard-y
-Sleep
-Get back on a train and head back to St. Kittskis.

I'm freaking ecstatic.

2006-10-01T11:27:00.000-07:00

I went to The Beat Goes On today. It's the used cd store in the Ridley square, and the only music store within 5 miles. I was really hoping itd be able to live up to Grooves, the London indie music nirvana. I was pretty disappointed to find that they didn't have any of the cds i was looking for. Well, they did actually have one, but i bought it, so now they have none.
I bought Sufjan Stevens "Illinoise". I already have his latest "The Avalanche". It was a pretty dumb move on my part to buy "The Avalanche" before "Illinoise" but I did. "The Avalanche" is all the outtakes and songs that didn't make the cut from "Illinoise", so it really doesn't make sense to have the one without the other. Regardless, now i have both.
I remember when I discovered Sufjan. I was skimming a list of the greatest jazz cds of all time. I saw his name and remember coming across it before, so I found some of his music and got really into it. Looking back it doesn't make a lot of sense that he was on a jazz cd list and now i really wonder which album that could have been.
I went into The Beat Goes On really hoping I'd find either, or both, of two cds i've been really wanting for a while. The first is Regina Spektors "Soviet Kitsch". For pete's sake, I'm going to see her next weekend. But I love most of the tracks on this album and have been panning for it for a while now. But the only Spektor I can find anywhere, if i can find one period, is "Begin To Hope" which I'm sure is great, but I don't like to get an artists latest album without buying an album or two from earlier. But naturally, no go at The Beat Goes On. The second album i was looking for is Husker Du's "Zen Arcade". Husker Du was a big time indie band in the 80's, pretty much as big as you can get for independant music in the 80's which was almost completely of the radar. This album is a critics favourite though and I really want it. I've heard if you're going to buy 3 indie albums from the 80's they should be Sonic Youth's "Daydream Nation", which i have, Husker Du's "Zen Arcade" and The Minutemen's "Ten Nickels On The Dime". I haven't heard anything from the latter but maybe i'll look into it soon.
The only other cd stores in St. Catharines is chain stores like HMV and such. I've asked this Husker Du in a chain store before actually and I got only blank faces.
Oh well. So I Beat On.