As though I needed yet another reason to justify a complete lack of posts on this blog, I've now taking on co-hosting duties for the recently revived Zunior.com Podcast . In its previous incarnation the podcast was done on a monthly basis by veteran Halifax-based host (and all around good guy), Steve Dinn . However, he's found it a bit tough to fit in to his increasingly busy schedule these days, so the torch has been passed to myself and good friend Luther Mallory . We're going to aim for a bi-weekly schedule [...]
Zunior.com is celebrating its 5th anniversary this weekend. In honour of that milestone, Canada's little digital music store is throwing a big hootennany at The Tranzac on Saturday night that promises to be an amazing evening of excellent music. Set aside the fact that I work for Zunior. Hell, even overlook that I'm playing this show myself (come early...!). I don't need any ulterior motives to peddle this show, as the sheer strength of the lineup alone leaves me salivating. Check it out for yourself: [...]
I have to admit, I wasn't exactly taken by the whole of Eats Darkness , the latest album from Apostle of Hustle . That said it took a definite upturn for me with the addition of "Blackberry," the last song on the album. Upbeat, rollicking and catchy, this tune distills everything I've liked about Apostle of Hustle since Folkloric Feel into one beautifully bouncy romp. Apostle of Hustle - Blackberry Hear more at the band's Myspace page or [...]
A first look at the SappyFest 2009 lineup has just been posted at the Sappy Records website and I think I just peed myself a little in excitement. Take a look at it yourself and see if you don't loose a little control: http://sappyrecords.com/SappyF est_09/lineup.html What a collection of bands! I missed the boat on submitting to perform this year, but I'm sure as hell going to try to make it to Sackville anyway this summer, as this lineup looks top notch (with more TBA). Info for purchasing [...]
I'm pleased to announce that Wax Mannequin , WHK favourite and all around awesome character, has a new album in the can. It's called Saxon and will be released on the Zunior Label at some point in July of this year. I've had the pleasure to see a lot of these new songs live over the last year or so and I don't mind saying I think it's his strongest stuff yet. Don't want to take my word for it? Fine, be that way. Zunior is offering up a free 2 song [...]
Hot damn! This is just what the groove doctor ordered. Family , the latest album from Montreal's Think About LIfe , is simply fantastic. It's a wonderfully layered, upbeat and candy-coated work of sheer exuberance that makes you forget your dog is dead. Frenetic, soulful, and infused with an ability to make you move, listening to Family is pretty much the most fun I can remember having in a while. Hell, if Graham Van Pelt wanted to leave Miracle Fortress behind for good in favour of doing Think About Life fulltime it [...]
New Pornographers front-man, A.C. Newman , has an undeniable gift for crafting engaging and epic tunes. This lead off track from 2009's Get Guilty is a perfect example of his ability to blend monumental flourishes with subtler melodies. Short in length, but huge in spirit. A.C. Newman - There Are Maybe Ten or Twelve Hear more at his Myspace page or buy a digital copy of Get Guilty from Zunior .
Every time I want to throw in the blogging towel (which, as you can probably tell by the eradic posting schedule lately, is often) something comes up that I just can't help but write about. The most recent musical firecracker-up-my-butt is The CFL Sessions , the latest project from Henry Svec . It's no secret that I'm a big fan of Henry's (Peter Mansbridge and The CBCs, The Boy from ET ). He's one of the most charismatic live performers around ( see here ) and his song writing is top notch. [...]
The Paper Cranes have an album ( Chivalry's Dead ) coming out later this year and that is a very good thing. In case that's not enough to get you drooling, they've offered "Telephone" in the meantime to tide us over. Imbued with the band's trademark bounce and featuring some delightful lead-guitar, this is a great omen for things to come. The Paper Cranes - Telephone Hear more at the band's Myspace page .
Testing Twitter's ability to interact with my blog.
The hard-hitting duo of Cambridge, Ontario's HotKid have just released a brand new full-length called Someday Somehow . Just in case 10 adrenaline-filled tracks weren't enough to get your ears salivating (...or waxing, I guess?) the album's price should ought to seal the deal...because it's FREE! That's right, you can download the whole shebang for zero spacebucks from Zunior. Just click image below and get your fists ready for pumping: Here's a track from the album to get your tails wagging, but seriously, [...]
What albums do you take with you on a 3 week drive from Toronto to Newfoundland and everywhere in between? The answer: ALL OF THEM, as it's a damn long time in a car. Thankfully, between a bevy of iPods, stowaway CDs stuffed in the car doors and those that we would accumulate on the way, there was more than enough music to go around. Of course, just like how Entire Cities won me over on a drive to Windsor last year , a few albums clawed their way to the dashboard more memorably than others this [...]
Wow. It's been over three months since my last post. I swear I only planned on taking a couple weeks off in the new year, but time flies and all that. The good news is that I've been productive in my absence, as I finally got off my butt and recorded an album of my very own! It's under the name Dog Is Blue and is called ... Makes Ghost Noises . I wasn't going to post about it, as it seemed cheesy to write about my own album, but I saw Jen and [...]
Here we are folks: I've finally gotten off my festively-enlarged ass (seriously, between Mom's holiday treats and Dad's beer I gained about 8 pounds) and finished my top albums of 2008. As per usual, these are all Canadian releases, as that's where the ground is closest to my ears. Here they are roughly arranged in descending order (very roughly): The Olympic Symphonium - More in Sorrow Than in Anger (Forward Music Group) I was a huge supporter of The Olympic Symphonium 's 2007 debut, [...]
Sweet peanuts, 2008 is running out fast! I've only got a couple of days to get the rest of my lists in order before the year is in the books. In the spirit of pressing on, here are my favourite EPs of the last twelve months. Initially a much larger list, I scaled it back to my top 5 (not really intended to be in a particular order, but turns out its a good indication of my favourites from top to bottom). Looking at it now I realize these are all similarly upbeat, hook-laden doses of indie pop, [...]
It's Christmas Eve and the festive-booze is about to start flowing. The next few days are likely to be packed, so I thought I'd better get the second part of my favourite Canadian songs of 2008 done before the holiday fun starts. If you missed part 1, here it is . Otherwise, on to the second half. Once again, these songs are arranged in a mixtape order that I found pleasing ( download the whole thing in a zip file here ): Human Highway - The Sound ( Moody Motorcycle [...]
It's about damn time I got around to looking back on 2008. What can I say, December's a busy month. That said, I've spent the last few weeks pouring over the music that passed my way this year and am finally ready to divulge my favourites. There's nothing like diving in head first, so here are my 30 top Canadian tunes of the last 12 months. For ease of posting I've divided this list into 2 parts-essentially two mix-tapes, each subjectively arranged in a way that I thought would make a nice listen all the way through. Here's [...]
I've been hoping to add a "favourite songs of 20083 feature to this year's best-of retrospective. In that regard I've been digging through some standout tracks of the last 12 months and just couldn't help but give this excellent song by Paul Linklater a chance to shine on its own first. Taken from his epic 2008 release, Smooth Sailing and How (which I talk about here ), "Hard Time of Year" is seductive, catchy and undeniably full of funk. It's evident from the first note of the "Superstition"-esque riff that this [...]
It's December, so that pretty much means fighting through crowded shopping malls, going crazy with last minute work before the holidays and trying to convince your mom that they should by you another guitar pedal (ok, maybe that's just me). Whatever the case, we're all busy this time of year. Thankfully, the good folks at Pop Echo Records are making it a bit easier for me to get off my lazy butt and post by announcing a free compilation in honour of the holidays. Available here for a limited time , the [...]
Wolves, Hawks and Kites
Listen to Daft Punk’s “Horizon”, the Japanese bonus track for Random Access Memories
Baauer knocks trap music out of the park with Disclosure ‘You & Me’ remix
