Blog: Herohill

Video Hits:: Dusted, Mike Feuerstack, Jim Guthrie and Leif Vollebekk

May 17, 10:51am Herohill
The Same Sky by Michael Feuerstack
Yesterday Shane bogarted my Listen Up style post, so it's time to issue a little James Brown style big payback. These video hits posts have fallen off our radar as of late, but a few great efforts have landed in the inbox and it's only right we share them with you. All of these artists deserve your time. So without further ado; Dusted - "Bruises" Mike Feuerstack - "The Same Sky" (acoustic) Jim Guthrie - "The Rest is Yet To Come" Leif Vollebekk - [...]
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Listen Up:: Reversing Falls

May 16, 3:23pm Herohill
These "Listen Up" posts are usually the Ack's domain, and truthfully I'm not sure what his main goal is for them, but I'm co-opting his style today because I really want you to listen to the self-titled debut from Montreal's Reversing Falls . Put on your hyperbole pants for this bit if you must, but I think this is my favourite record so far this year. High praise to be sure, but it should be taken with a grain of salt if you consider I'm merely the hill's "rap guy" and my old/new father lack of sleepness [...]
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Contest:: Win 2tix to see Hayden @ The Marquee

May 16, 10:06am Herohill
Talk about a trip down memory lane. I have such fond memories of seeing Hayden play shows in Halifax that this tour announcement melted my frozen heart instantly. Being a longtime fan, I would happily listen to one of Canada's greatest song writers play hits from the past, but Mr. Desser's latest record, Us Alone , is so fresh and important to today's rock climate that I hate to pigeon hole the experience. There's not much else I can say about Hayden's latest long player, but when I [...]
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Reviews:: David Myles In the Nighttime

May 15, 9:23am Herohill
I’m not naïve. With the commercial success that resulted from David Myles and Classified's last collaboration, the easy sell for Myles will be the companion EP that comes with his latest LP. The duo went back to the lab and Myles let Class create the beats and shape the tone of After the Party . Their collaborative relationship isn't new – the duo worked together in the past, long before they got discovered their Inner Ninjas, and the airplay and awards that accompanied that revelation – but the six-songs shows there was much still [...]
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Artist:David Myles
Title:How'd I Ever Think I Loved You
File Name:SoundCloud
Genre:Smooth

Pick a Piper – Cinders and Dust

May 14, 2:34pm Herohill
Pick a Piper - Cinders and Dust
Is it possible your Tuesday could use an extra dose of whimsy and wonder? Well you can get both of those from this rather lovely video from Toronto's Pick A Piper . Animated & illustrated by brothers Graeme and Kyle Reed respectively, the video tells a mesmerizing story of an industrous monk and his mysterious forrest foil. Despite hearing a lot about Pick A Piper of late, this is the first time hearing them, and I like what I hear. This T.O. trio (featuring members of Caribou) make a more organic-influenced electronic music with a wide variety of instrumentation [...]
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Navy Skies – Cut My Teeth

May 13, 3:44pm Herohill
Mondays, ugh, etc. A long weekend is coming, but it is not coming near fast enough. This calls for something to assist the rest of this day in going on it's merry way. For me, nothing does that trick quite like cranked guitars and a good sing along chorus or two. Toronto's Navy Skies offers exactly that with this recently released 73 for Cut My Teeth & Ontario Winds. Initially named Rebel Rebel, this foursome celebrated their new moniker by recording these songs with Teenage Kicks' Peter Van Helvoort, which was a wise move. The Skies sound is [...]
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Listen Up:: Shawn Mrazek Lives! Love is Bursting Through the Walls

May 13, 1:09pm Herohill
Has anyone ever been giddy with anticipation when it comes to the solo work of a drummer? (EDITOR NOTE: This doesn't extend to Phil Collins, as he is awesome, and that shall not be be questioned on our site ). Drummer jokes aside, it's not surprising the release of Shawn Mrazek 's debut solo record was met with little fan fare. Shawn has spent years hitting the skins for The Doers and The Evaporators , but Thought He Was Dead is his first effort standing front and center. [...]
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Artist:Pigeon Row
Title:Shawn Mrazek Lives! - Love Is Bursting Through The Walls
File Name:SoundCloud

Abdominal and The Obliques – Courage

May 12, 2:39pm Herohill
Abdominal and The Obliques - Courage (feat. my mom)
Now this is great. I don't want to go all crazy and proclaim this the greatest Mother/Son rap collabo ever, but it has to be in the mix. I kid of course, Abdominal's wonderful mother is the only Mom I can even recall being on a track outside of Hov's mom, never mind actually rapping. So kudos to her for having the, yes, courage to step up to the mic and trade verses with her vocally-gifted son. It makes for a perfect, rather heartwarming mother's day post. Plus, sidecars rule. If you haven't heard Abdominal's last album, [...]
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Listen Up:: Ruth Moody One and Only

May 10, 9:57am Herohill
It's hard to think of someone as talented and successful as Ruth Moody and feel like her songs are taken for granted. Somehow though, I do. As one third of the Canadian institution The Wailin' Jennys and an accomplished solo artist, Ruth has long outgrown the label of rising star of new artist. Unfortunately, in today's 15-minute news cycle, that means she is often forced to take a back seat for new names, undeveloped potential and bigger pageview stats. I'm not sure how, but somehow purity of sound is now a [...]
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Artist:True North Records
Title:Ruth Moody, "One and Only"
File Name:SoundCloud
Genre:Folk
Year:2013

The Antiheroes – Modern Day Riot

May 9, 1:47pm Herohill
Last week when I was bellyaching about not having any time to post on the hill (first world problems, etc), I mentioned that there were albums I'd been meaning to post on for a while, and Modern Day Riot from The Antiheroes was certainly one of the ones I was referring to. I've tried to say something similar in my previous posts on this T.O. duo comprised of Flex and Sha Prince, but the simple and plain truth is this: if you actually care about "real" rap [...]
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Bravestation – Somewhere We Belong

May 8, 3:29pm Herohill
Bravestation have a new EP entitled IV ready to see the light of day next week. This is a band I've been fond of for a few years now , but why should you care? Well, if you head out into the springtime sunshine with the lovely sounds of their new single Somewhere We Belong bouncing around your earholes, I bet you a dollar you'll feel better about things. All of the things. Well except for that dollar you're never getting from me. Over the last few years, Bravestation [...]
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Listen Up:: UBT Ego Orientation

May 7, 12:19pm Herohill
In the immortal words of Chet Harper, "sweet sassy molassy." Up until yesterday, if you had asked me about UBT I would have assumed you needed some sort of vaccine to clear that shit up. Now, after having my ear drums shattered with delightful noise, I know UBT is the band Priestess' Mikey Heppner started with his better half, Kathryn McCaughey. So what do you need to know about UBT? Well, Ego Orientation is filled to the rim with hand claps, big riffs and sing-along choruses. The last time we all came together over [...]
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Artist:UBT
Link Text:UBT - John the Painter
File Name:PSY_014_UBT_Ego_Orientation_07 _John_The_Painter.mp3
Year:2013

Quake Matthews – We Can Do Better

May 6, 2:47pm Herohill
Quake Matthews - We Can Do Better (feat. Freeway & RS Smooth)
We can do better. When it comes to the state of modern hip hop, I think you'd find more people who believe such a statement to be true, versus the opposite viewpoint. So we can do better, but do we really want to? When it comes right down to it, it's the ignorant, guns+money+swag+drugs+misogyny rap that sells and gets you featured on all the cool blogz (i.e. the ones opposite ours). So what's a guy like Quake Matthews to do? Being the best rapper Fairview ever produced certainly gets you airplay here at the hill, but [...]
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Beginnings & Endings:: Dark for Dark Warboats

May 6, 10:33am Herohill
The purity of these harmonies could stand defiantly against any storm. A ray of sunshine that could slice through fog, winds, torrents of rain. A warmth that somehow even makes goodbye feel comforting. The first pass of "Warboats", the standout track from the debut Dark for Dark record of the same name, is a simple slice of beautiful folk that floats lightly, but rich vocals and sweet harmonies are not really a unique identifier in folk music. The true beauty of this group is revealed in the final version of Warboats. Much like [...]
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Pigeon Hole – Chimp Blood

May 3, 10:21am Herohill
Time, we have none of it! As an addendum to the Ack's post from the other day I'm putting up this drive-by of a post to extoll the virtues of Vancouver duo Pigeon Hole and their latest record Chimp Blood . Like everyone else, my workload is ever-increasing and on the homefront we're continuing our quest to spawn our own Naedoo starting 5 with the birth of our 3rd son a couple weeks ago. So yeah, time for reasoned, thought out reviews is non-existent> BUT there are records, songs and videos that deserve to be [...]
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Listen Up:: Weaves Hulahoop

May 2, 9:51am Herohill
You hear people say things like, "food doesn't taste right" or "I just can't see people right now." To that, the supposed crippling pain of a breakup, I offer a resounding FUCK YOU. Ben Harper once said that he would never mess with someone else's blues, hoping they would never mess with his. I get that, but selfishly, I'm putting everything in unfair rankings. You know when food starts tasting funny? When it's being served on sterile trays or through a tube. Oh, and I think I finally understand when you can't bear to see another person. [...]
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Self Taught – No Fear (Figured Out)

May 1, 2:53pm Herohill
Self Taught - No Fear (Figured Out) x Josh Hardwick
I've been meaning to post this video for a while, but today is the perfect day to finally get around to it. The sun is finally out here in Halifax, which maybe/hopefully means spring might finally be in the air, and the laid back vibe of this song (from Self Taught's recent album Feast of Fools ) make it perfect lazy summer day listening. Plus the hazy, sun-kissed visuals of the video, which features 14 year old longboarder Josh Hardwick cruising through Burnaby BC, is as summery as it gets. And he's doing awesome wheel-slides, which I used to [...]
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Mailbag:: Quiet Parade & Jerry Leger

May 1, 9:02am Herohill
Jerry Leger & The Situation- Den Of Sin
Hey look. It's Bill Simmons' tired gimmick where he steals his fans best ideas and claiming them as his own! Or, I'm just super busy and these records are nice and deserve more time than I can give them right now. If you live in Halifax and fill out a ballot for The Coast Best-of survey, you've heard of Quiet Parade . Also, thanks for never voting herohill best website, jackass. Front man Trevor Murphy - a.k.a., Acadian Bacon - has transformed his stripped sown solo effort into a full band affair, [...]
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Polaris Preamble:: My Top 5… so far

Apr 29, 9:21am Herohill
I'm not even sure if people read any of the pre-Long list pieces about Polaris anymore. With 240 people writing in their fictional ballot and ten times that ready to tell why those choices are wrong, it's a torrent of maybes and what ifs. Basically, it's the music nerd mock drafts, and we all saw how accurate those were this weekend. Either way, the reason I take part in Polaris every year is that for a brief moment - the 30 minutes or so it takes to announce the 40 albums that end up on the Long List [...]
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Artist:evening hymns
Title:Asleep in the Pews
File Name:SoundCloud
Genre:Ambient Folk
Artist:Hayden
Title:Old Dreams
File Name:SoundCloud
Genre:Folk Rock

Favorites-13:: Mike Feuerstack Tambourine Death Bed

Apr 26, 12:29pm Herohill
It's fitting that Zach Braff is about to successfully complete a kickstarter for Garden State Two: Electric Whimsy-loo as I soak in the new Mike Feuerstack record. For better or for worse, Garden State is now associated with the realization that music (or maybe just The Shins) can change your life. I've honestly never felt that way about a band or a song, but without question certain musicians have become part of my life. There are a handful of artists whose words I value like extremely personal bar stool conversations. They have sound tracked [...]
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