Montrealer’s Arcade Fire posted a cheeky postcard giving clues to a new song being released. It states the following:
Howdy yall- Just finishing up pressing our new 12″. Should be in stores in the next couple weeks. God willing. Good luck with finals. See you this summer!”
It should be part of their upcoming release that’s scheduled to be coming out this year.
Add comment May 18th, 2010
Broken Social Scene is giving back to their fans yet again. In support of their new album, Forgiveness Rock Record, Toronto’s favourite indie mega-band returns with 4 in-store performances in the 4 top Toronto indie record stores tomorrow.
What a great way to recognize some of the best record stores in the city, and show the fans how a accessible such a behemoth-sized orchestral indie band can really be.
Sunday May 9th
2pm – Criminal Records (493 Queen Street West) - crimedoesntpay.ca
4pm – Rotate This (801 Queen Street West) - rotate.com
6pm – Soundscapes (572 College Street) - soundscapesmusic.com
8pm – Sonic Boom (512 Bloor Street West) - sonicboommusic.com
Add comment May 8th, 2010
Band of Skulls and the Whigs
Mod Club |04.28.10
7.5/10
It was a nice warm night in the city to check out one of my latest faves, Band of Skulls at the Mod Club on Thursday night. I’ve had a heart-on for this trio ever since hearing their catchy, head boppy track ,”I Know What I Am” last year. I can’t get enough of guy/girl vocal combos these days (ala The XX and Stars), and the blend of Russell Marsden’s raspy rocker and Emma Richardson’s warm sound is no exception.
Montreal’s Silver Starling opened the night with a short set of indie pop to warm the crowd. They were troubled with some sound issues; the bass overdrive and subwoofer was set to sloppy nightclub, and vocals were washed out. I also found lead vocalist Marcus Paquin’s voice wasn’t strong enough to carry the band, but it could have been the mixing issues (did you do a soundcheck?), which is a shocker as the Mod Club typically has great sound. The best songs of the night were “Closer” and “Something for Nothing” – the rolling drums and pulsing melodic sound was quite infectious, showing essences of the Stills/Arcade Fire.
The Whigs exploded onto the stage with a high octane set of garage rock. Lead vocals/guitarist Parker Gispert was a real showman with his Liu Kang karate kicks and speaker jumping antics. I was personally enthralled by the shag bopping stylings of drummer Julian Dorio, reminding of the Muppets’ Animal. He was the true key in driving their gritty power chord rock, with his smash-happy crash symbols and heart stomping bass drums. Their hit, “Like a Vibration” had a much stronger attack and grit than their recorded version, pumping up the crowd.
Once the Whigs left the stage, I was saddened to see about a quarter of the crowd bail before the Band of Skulls came on stage. I realize that the Whigs are more more established, and perhaps should’ve closed the night, but at least give them a chance!
Band of Skulls was smart to begin with a few of their known and heavier tunes “Light of the Morning” and “Diamands and Pearls”. Lead Marsden’s vocals were bang on and drew me right into their sound, even if the rest of the crowd was ready for bed. Emma Richardson wasn’t as strong as I would’ve liked, at times going a little over zealous at times with her vocals, likely to keep up with Marsen.
But overall I did find their stage presence a little lack lustre, with at times facing their backs to the crowd for a little too long and stiff banter with the crowd. To their defense, the crowd was quite drowsy and still coming down from the Whigs’ set.
What also didn’t help was playing their 7-minute rendition of “Cold Flame”, which happens to be one of my favourite tracks from their title album, “Baby Doll Face Honey”. I’ve always equated this track to be a cathartic finishing piece to cap off a hard party night. Placing it right in the middle of their set of wasn’t best choice in keeping the drowsy crowd awake.
Once they kicked it back up a notch with “I know what I am” and crowd favourite “Blood”, the energy did rise, but it never peaked. Was it a little too late? Thankfully, their encores “Hollywood Bowl” and “Honest” (see clip below) left on a good note, showing potential of what could have been.
Despite being overshadowed by The Whigs, overall The Band of Skulls did put on a decent show. With such a great breakout album, I’m still amazed that they haven’t caught on yet. After their tour this summer, they’ll back in the studios to recorded their follow up album. Perhaps then, they’ll get the attention they deserve.
-REVIEWED BY: ROBB ENG
2 comments May 1st, 2010
Tallest Man on Earth
El Mocombo
04.17.10
9/10
Undivided. That was the attention Kristian Matsson aka Tallest Man on Earth commanded from the well-dressed folk/indie crowd this cold Saturday night. It was a sold out show and highly anticipated return from this unassumingly sweet Swedish singer/songwriter. His intense scrawl stopped even the peanut gallery from the back bar to have a listen.
It can be tough for any solo act to fill out a half drunk crowd on any night, not to mention at the Elmo. Nurses opened the night with an unmemorable set of yowls, tambourines, singalongs and tings that I could have personally lived without.
TMOE ran though his repetoire effortlessly with a powerful voice distinctly familiar to Dylan, Gutherie, Bon Iver, among others. As blatant a similarity to the similarities to the great folk songwriters from the past, TMOE still maintained his own unique European sound that make it his own. Highlights included his passionate “The Gardner”, “Honey won’t you let me in”, “King of Spain” and “Where do my bluebird fly”. Matsson has great energy and movement during his intricate fingerpicking interludes, bouncing back and forth around the stage and making mysterious eye contact with whatever random crowd-folk he’d come across.
What stunned me most was the silence throughout most of the the set. Granted, there were still a few balks and clinks from empties from the back bar, but overall the crowd was here to really listen to TMOE..and I mean listen. This included minimal use of flash photography and blurry cell phone snapshots, or even beer runs. The aggressive shushing and the odd “shut the fuck up” only further demonstrated the miliant attention the crowd demanded. This undivided attention only amplified his music, lyrics and stage presence.
TMOE even ended with a quiet love song, rather than a Dylan-esque power strum finale for his encore. It was a gutsy move, but it paid off in spades. The crowd stayed with him until the very end, uncovering how tall this little man’s music really is.
-REVIEWED BY: ROBB ENG
Add comment April 18th, 2010
Sweden’s latest folk singer/songwriter Kristian Matsson from Tallest Man on Earth comes to Toronto this Saturday. Matsson has an immediately stark resemblance folk rasp of Bob Dylan but with intricate acoustic finger stylings that balance this scruffy voice. Although his lyrics don’t match up to the D-man, he brings it all to life on stage. With the show already sold out at the El mocombo, and a 8.3/10 Pitchfork rating on his “Shallow Grave” release, he’s doing something right.
Tallest Man on Earth w/Nurses
04.17.10
El Mocombo
SOLD OUT
VIDEO: The Tallest Man on Earth: Where Do My Bluebird Fly
Add comment April 14th, 2010
Dan Mangan stopped by to perform at CMW on March 12 as part of a BC music showcase. If you like what you see, he’ll be coming back to play a show at the Horseshoe on Apr 22. Here is a clip of him playing “Basket”, dedicated to his grandfather. Fantastic.
Add comment April 8th, 2010
Sunfields @Rancho Relaxo
01.29.10
I love those Friday nights after a long work week when plans suddenly come together on the fly. It was one of those evenings when I came across the melodic country/folk sounds of Sunfields at Rancho Relaxo, despite the bone marrow chilling temperature that night.
Sunfields is the brainchild of frontman and lead singer Jason Kent from the Dears. For a relatively new band, you could sense they’re experience and maturity as musicians. From their solid vocal harmonies, grassroots country guitars and a touch of pop, you couldn’t help but listen. Late in their set Jason put on an incredible trio piano set of melodic ballads that had a lot of potential to be a crowd favourite. You could sense Neil Young, Wilco and Joel Plaskett in their music and couldn’t help but want to hear more.
Keep your eye out for these guys when they release their first album.
Sunfields myspace: http://www.myspace.com/sunfields
Top Tracks: “If it Be” and “In the Sun”
Add comment January 30th, 2010
Voting for the short list for the 2009 Bucky Awards from CbcRadio3 is now open. Sure, some of the lists shed a bit MTV music awardsish (e.g. Sexist musician), but all in all the Canadian artists on deck are solid.
There are some emerging artists like Hey Rosetta! and Dan Mangan, plus some established acts including Metric and Joel Plaskett. It’s also a great way to check out some new artists who’ve made it on the list.
VOTE!
Add comment November 16th, 2009
GoodLife Fitness is celebrating it’s 30th Anniversary by rewarding its members though their “GoodLife 30Rocks” event.
It’s a private party at the Air Canada Centre this Thursday, Nov 5. The Tragically Hip will be headlining the event, and it looks like winners who’ve won tickets at the GoodLife fitness outlets are selling them on Craigslist. So if you’re a GoodLife Fitness member, try and snag a seat to see the Hip one more time before the year closes!
Note: We’ve also heard that Nickelback may be headlining or supporting the Hip, but let’s hope that’s just a nasty rumour to discourage tickets from being sold!
1 comment November 4th, 2009
There’s always something special going on in Toronto… somewhere. And more often than not, for great music it’s a the Dakota Tavern (see clip below) near Ossington and Bloor. Yesterday was no exception, with Glen Hansard from Swell Season (from the movie “Once”) performing a secret show in prep for their performance November 2nd at Massey Hall.
Read the great cover article on this week’s Eye Weekly for more information. I was able to see them last year at the same venue, and was utterly blown away. They are promoting their new album, Strict Joy release this fall.
-ROBB ENG
Add comment October 29th, 2009
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