Category: Music

  • Mondays Rock

    All right: As a rule, Mondays certainly do not rock. But yesterday did.

    • First, and this likely isn’t news to anyone at this point, I had one of the most beautiful emails ever yesterday morning: “This is just a quick note to let you know first that Radiohead have made an album. It is called In Rainbows, and it is now available to pre-order exclusively from Radiohead.com”. Aside from the massive, huge, world-ending ramifications of digital, non-label distribution – hey, it’s a new fucking Radiohead album. They’re most likely my favourite band in the world, so this is seriously awesome.
    • Not quite as awesome, but still pretty darn cool, is the announcement of a new British Sea Power album, with the utterly brilliant title of “Do You Like Rock Music?” As luck would have it, I do like Rock Music, so this is happymaking. (As an aside: If you ever have the chance, go to see this band live. They’re pretty crazy.)
    • Moving back up on the Awesome Chart: Scott Pilgrim 4 is finished! Possibly released by the end of October!

    So you see, friends, Mondays shouldn’t always be feared. Sometimes they bring much glee and warm fuzzy feelings.

    (And hopefully October brings more productive and insightful blogging, because, man, I’ve sucked lately.)

  • The Long Blondes @ Lee’s Palace

    One of my new favourite bands, The Long Blondes, at Lee’s Palace in Toronto, June 11, 2007. They’re very good, and lead singer Kate Jackson is really quite lovely.
    Kate Jackson: Superstar
    Long Blondes @ Lee's Palace
    Opener Nicole Atkins & The Sea was excellent as well. It’s always nice to see an opener you’ve never heard of but who convinces you to buy their CD after a 30-minute set.
    Nicole Atkins, opening for The Long Blondes
    More photos at my Flickr account.

  • I am Happy

    So it’s not even 10 AM yet, and I’m already in a good mood. Why? Thanks for asking.

    Good News Item #1 came to my attention courtesy of the concert listings in Eye: The Long Blondes are coming to Toronto in June! This makes me very happy.


    However, there is the very real danger that I will become deleriously obsessed with Kate Jackson if I actually see her in person. I am willing to take that risk.

    Good News Item #2 came courtesy of my friend and yours, The Internet. Dark Horse has revealed the cover to Buffy Season 8, #6:


    Frankly, that’s not one of Jo Chen’s best covers. But it’s got Faith on it, and that makes me happy; the fact that Faith’s arc is being written by Brian K. Vaughan makes it super-duper happy. To be honest, I’d been looking forward to Vaughan’s arc moreso than Joss Whedon’s opening, but then Joss had to go and knock #2 out of the park, setting a pretty high standard. (Review forthcoming, perhaps? We shall see, I suppose.)

    So yeah, good day.

  • Under Byen Live

    Super-fantastic band Under Byen at the Mod Club, March 8.

    Under Byen @ Mod Club

  • Oh. My. God.

    Possibly the best news I’ve heard all year:

    Portishead play new songs at surprise live gig.

    I love Portishead. I’ve been waiting nine years for a new album. And while I’ll probably have to wait at least another year or two, this is at least an awesome step in the right direction.

  • Today’s Unconditional Music Recommendation

    Go and buy The Shins’ Wincing The Night Away. Totally addictve, upbeat, jangly indy pop. If you don’t love Australia, you have no soul.

    I just can’t stop listening to it, and every time I have a new favourite song.

  • I wish, I wish, I wish that something would happen

    The Bends is a fucking awesome album.

    This, of course, is obvious. But I haven’t listened to it for a while, and as I’m sitting here at work with it cranked up on my iPod, I just can’t help thinking this is a fucking awesome album. As much as I love Radiohead’s later works, there’s something special about The Bends: I remember buying it, largely on the strength of the video for Just, either at the end of high school or first-year university, and, like many things you experience at that age, it had a huge impact. Just is a masterpiece, I’ve always loved the title track, and Fake Plastic Trees makes me want lay in the dark and cry. (in a good way)

    When I saw them play at Molson Park in Barrie a few years ago, Thom Yorke had a bit of fun with the lyrics, singing “I wish it were the sixties, I wish we were Oasis,” complete with Gallagher-esque nasal whine. For a rock star with a penchant for being depressed and miserable, he’s quite a fun guy.

    Haven’t posted much this week, as you may have noticed; I’ve been fairly busy at work, which seems to be where I do some of my more productive blogging. And I’m going away for the weekend (my mother’s birthday was this week), so the drought may continue. Regular posting shall resume shortly.

    In the meantime, go and listen to The Bends. Go out and buy it, if you must. It’s a fucking awesome album.

  • Best Albums of 2006

    There were no real great albums in 2006. There were plenty of albums that had a few great songs and a few okay ones, but nothing that kept me hypnotized from start to finish. So this is a fairly difficult Top Five list – ask me again next week and it could all change. The best actual album I bought this year was probably Wire’s Chairs Missing, which was originally released in 1978; even though it was reissued this year, I shan’t count it.

    Knives Don’t Have Your Back – Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton: I’ve hard most of these songs at Haines’ solo gigs over the past couple years, but they’re still excellent here. Very simple, slow, and often gloomy piano pieces elevated into hypnotic beauty by Haines’ restrained but emotional vocals. “Crowd Surf Off a Cliff” is the sort of song to put on repeat while laying in the dark, and “The Maid Needs a Maid” and “Reading in Bed” feel like heartfelt personal diaries. Haines brings her sharp lyrics over from Metric; while this is certainly a well-defined solo effort, it’s also clear that Haines is the star of any stage she’s on, whether she’s joined by a rock band or a solitary piano.

    The Crane Wife – The Decemberists: I don’t love the whole album, but there are enough songs on here with catchy tunes and genuine emotion to make the list. The three-part title track, an adaptation of a Japanese myth, is lovely, and the civil war duet of Yankee Bayonet is nice and sweet. Closer “Sons & Daughters” is ridiculously catchy. I’ve stayed away from the Decemberists for a while, as they’ve always seemed like a stereotypically indie band that people adore for being lo-fi. But hey, they really are pretty darn good.

    You Can’t Break the Strings in Our Olympic Hearts – The Diableros: Back in the Spring, my girlfriend wanted to go and see Camera Obscura play at the Horseshoe. I was fairly indifferent – I like the band, but I just can’t help the feeling that they were all kicked out of Belle & Sebastian for being sissies. Suffice it to say that I cared even less about seeing the opening band, who, judging by the name, was some kind of Mexican pop band. It turned out the Diableros were not a Mexican pop band after all; after a few shaky songs, they revealed themselves to be a fun, shoegazey rock band with a great, dynamic rhythm. I picked up their debut album and was even more impressed: Olympic Hearts isn’t a perfect album, but it’s a consistently fun and well-executed one. Moral of the Story: Always watch the opening act.

    Samme Stof Som Stof – Under Byen: A couple months ago, there was an ad and a brief interview about the Danish band, both of which drawing general comparisons to Sigur Ros and a generally Scandanavian aesthetic of dark, depressing, haunting music. Naturally, this was quite enough for me, and I went out to pick up the album a day or two later. There are bits of Sigur Ros here, singer Henriette Sennenvaldt sounds a bit like Bjork at times, and it’s a dark, brooding album. It’s also quite a good one, mixing in louder, harsher tracks like opener “Pilot” and “Film Og Omvendt” with lighter, delicate pieces. Guitars are fairly limited, usually forming a backdrop for synths, strings, piano, and Sennenvaldt’s vocals. It’ll certainly remind you of other albums, but it manages to maintain its own identity. It’d be nice if I could understand any of the lyrics, but they certainly sound cool.

    Gang of Losers – The Dears: I have to admit – this was something of a disappointment. I’d heard a few of the songs at some of the band’s incredible live shows, and they didn’t quite measure up on CD. Gang of Losers feels consciously restrained after the grandiosity of No Cities Left, and I’m not sure the change is for the best: The Dears are best when dealing in great big emotion. Still, plenty of discs would look weak when compared to the band’s exceptional shows, so perhaps I shouldn’t hold that against the album. The title track is still wonderful, Ticket to Immortality is surprisingly raw and sentimental for Murray Lightburn, and Death or Life We Want You is a great rocker. A few songs have to grow on you, like the excellent I Fell Deep, but there’s not a bad track on the disc. Even if there’s disappointingly few great ones, it’s still a very good CD.

  • And now I am sad.

    The worst musical news of the century thus far:

    After eleven years as a band, Sleater-Kinney have decided to go on indefinite hiatus. The upcoming summer shows will be our last. As of now, there are no plans for future tours or recordings.

    We feel lucky to have had the support of many wonderful people over the years. We want to thank everyone who has worked with us, written kind words about us, performed with us, and inspired us.

    But mostly we want to extend our gratitude to our amazing fans. You have been a part of our story from the beginning. We could not have made our music without your enthusiasm, passion, and loyalty. It is you who have made the entire journey worthwhile.

    With love and thanks,
    Sleater-Kinney

    First the Delgados broke up. Now this, which is perhaps even more crushing; S-K were even better, with more than a decade of seriously ass-kicking albums. From Dig Me Out to the overwhelming awesomeness of The Woods, Sleater-Kinney were always moving forward, always a few steps ahead, or to the left, of the mainstream music scene. The Woods, in particular, was a huge step in a new direction, and I’d have loved to hear where they went from there. But on the other hand, if it’s time to go, there are few better albums to leave as your final legacy.

    Farewell to one of my favourite bands. I can see Carrie coming out with a new project first, but hopefully Corin’s amazing voice and Janet’s beautiful beats won’t be far behind.

  • Radiohead, June 9th, Hummingbird Centre

    North by Northeast, the nifty Toronto indie music festival, is happening this weekend. A couple hundred bands, playing across a couple dozen clubs, it’s a chance to see some very good (and occasionally very bad) up-and-coming bands. It’s great fun. But this year, it’s going to suck.

    As good as some of the bands are, none of them are Radiohead. And when you go and see Radiohead on Thursday, and anyone else on Friday (and possibly Saturday), they’re going to look pretty sucky.

    The last time I saw Radiohead, they were merely good, bogged down by performing in the crappy SkyDome and touring an album I wasn’t terribly enthused about. I almost wasn’t going to go to this show, after tickets to the two Hummingbird Centre gigs sold out in about .05 seconds, but a friend had an extra ticket and offered it to me. You really can’t say no to Radiohead, and a good thing – they were back in top form last night.

    The new material they’re debuting sounded pretty good: Much simpler and more low-tech than their recent albums, very rhythm-driven on a few songs. This may be the album full of three-minute pop songs they’ve been talking about since OK Computer. Also, a foray into surf music. Brand new songs seldom have the same punch as the classics; what’s interesting and promising now will doubtless be superb the next time they tour. I have no idea what any of them were called, being able to make out very little of what Thom Yorke was saying, but I imagine most, if not all, will be on the new album.

    And the old stuff was, of course, pure gold: They played Fake Plastic Trees five songs into the set, which is a good sign when you can make the audience cry in less than half an hour. Heavy on OK Computer: Climbing Up The Walls, Karma Police (which turned into a sing-a-long; very eerie to hear 2,000 people singing “this is what you get / when you mess with us”), Lucky (even spookier and darker than before), Paranoid Android (to close out the main set), then Let Down in the encore. Just also showed up in the encore, as did a very dark You and Whose Army, and the second encore consisted of a three-drummer performance of There There.

    The only songs really missing were How to Disappear Completely and National Anthem, which they played the night before. Would have been nice to hear The Bends, but now I’m just being greedy.

    Also, I bought buttons and a poster. Huzzah for Stanley Donwood.