Pink Nasty
Mold the Gold
Indie/None

Pink? Yes, singer/songwriter Sara Beck’s voice sounds all shades of feminine pink from raspy magenta to vulnerable pastel. I can hear the influence of Fiona Apple in Sara’s velvet vocal delivery. Nasty? Not so much, more so the opposite with sweet and innocence pouring through each poppy ballad. Although there are the occasional naughty words (swearing) in the lyrics, when you spin Pink Nasty’s second album, Mold the Gold, you can’t escape the feeling of summer in the 1970’s. As if belonging to the soundtrack of Now and Then, I imagine slow dancing a safe arm’s length away from boys and staying up rebelliously late in the confines of a treehouse. This album evokes safe pop and quirky fun with 13 tracks ranging from tambourine shakin’, hand clapping, good ol’ chants/rants to very slow, acoustic tunes. The instrumental backdrop of guitar, drums and piano are quite simplistic, directing listeners to pay greater attention to the vocals. My favourite songs include vivacious “Take it Back” and groovy “Thirsty Thursday”, with my preference to stay clear of the duet tracks she sings alongside songwriter brother, Black Nasty.

www.myspace.com/therealpinknasty

www.pinknasty.net

-cAthy

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Plumerai
Ses Cogitans
Siber Records

According to their press release, the name Plumerai “comes from a French lullaby about depluming a bird". Interesting name for an interesting band, that despite the lack of feathers, they demonstrate they can still take flight. Although Ses Cogitans is only 4 tracks long, each song is longer than the average with, "Avernal" lasting about 7 minutes. After two years of instability, the four-member band has solidified their sound and declared this 2007 EP to be their true debut album.

Fronted by a female vocalist, Elizabeth Ezell delivers her raw feminine tones, resembling at times like a sexed up Bjork, ending her lines in subtle quirky vibrato. The keyboards, guitar, bass and drums converge in good chemistry, emitting their influential roots—80's punk and alternative—to create dark, mysterious, enchanting modern rock. Their raw energy is captured in their production process by focusing on greater live recording with minor overdubs. And this steer away for that studio perfect sound is rather quite perfect for them.

My ears welcome the long musical breaks with my favourite found in the last few minutes of “Avernal” where instrumental noise entwine to blood pumping climax, sounding appropriate for a Pulp Fiction soundtrack.

www.plumerai.com

www.myspace.com/plumerai

-cAthy Lee

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Pomegranates
Everything Is Alive
Lujo Records

With their 2007 debut EP Two Eyes leaving fans wanting more, Pomegranates deliver an additional round of experimental pop goodness with their first full-length album. The Cincinnati-based quartet continue their off road path, with a sound ranging from jangly guitar bands of old to modern acts like the Unicorns and Modest Mouse. With guitar-driven tracks and dance-worthy drum beats, the album evokes instant head bobbing and foot tapping. “The Bellhop” would feel timeless if it weren’t for the modern production value. “Honey Moon Pie” also opens with a pure 1960's feel, with Byrds-esque guitars and a Phil Spector-like drum beat before evolving and ending the song with the screeching wail of guitar distortion. Fuzzy, heartwarming indie pop, like everything, is indeed alive.

http://www.myspace.com/pomegranatesart

-Jon Brazeau

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The Ponys
Turn the Lights Out
Matador

Sure it’s is a typically weak indie rock title, but this album is not typical indie rock by any stretch.  With this album The Pony’s step up and prove themselves worthy successors to Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo.  The whole thing is doused with feedback making it a post punk/grunge/new wave pleasure complete with vocal effects and styling reminiscent of Television and My Bloody Valentine.  “Poser Psychotic” has guitar work that is way more Stooges sounding than the new Stooges album and on the whole, Turn the Lights Out has no shortage of songs that sound strikingly familiar. As most great albums tend to do, these tracks remind the listener of something they are sure they’ve heard before.  It’s the feeling when something has such a catchy riff that you are positive you must have heard it before because it grabs you right away.  For me it took about three listens before the songs stood out, and all of a sudden the hooks became more apparent and the melodies grabbed me.  I don’t mean to suggest that this is 100% original, as many of the moments seem snatched from the groups listed above.  I was even reminded of The Guess Who at one point, but this group is successful because they combine all of these elements into their own brand, creating something unique. 

The Ponys exhibit great patience with their songs, and therefore the album never seems rushed or too long.  They could have gone from quick rock song to the next but what makes it different is that the band has no issue with taking it down once and a while for a slower track, or going off on a spacey jam session.  Maybe the beat slows down, but the guitars are always wailing somewhere in the mix, with riffage that can rarely be found outside of the greatest pre-punk records.  This is a very strong album and not to be ignored!

www.theponys.com

Daniel Demois

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Pop Levi
The Return to Form Black Magick Party
Counter Records

UK funk phenomenon Pop Levi sets the party on fire with his debut LP, an addictive mix reminiscent of Prince, Blue Cheer and the Bee Gees but fused with a contemporary electro edge. Full of energy and great hooks, the album runs a gamut of related genres, from the twitchy electro sensibility of album single “Pick-Me-Up Uppercut” to the smooth disco trip of “Skip Ghetto,” to the bass-driven psychedelic rock of Blue Honey. As Pop Levi himself describes it, “it’s bad music for bad people.” Right on. Get your bad self onto myspace and check a sample of the man’s work, available at www.myspace.com/poplevi - or watch for him as he tours across North America with Swedish rock gods Mando Diao.

 - James Sandham

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Porcupine Tree
Stupid Dream
Lava Records

There’s a long story behind the Porcupine Tree. Born in 1987 in London, it is the work of one Mr. Steven Wilson. Wilson had been recording music in his home studio for several years when, with friend Malcolm Stocks, he came up with the idea of a fake, legendary, 70s psychedelic rock band, complete with false discography and bio. Retreating into the studio, he recorded several hours of music to back up the façade. The Porcupine Tree was the end result of this indulgent endeavour. Two years later their music was being featured on UK underground compilations and now, with the release of Stupid Dreams almost 20 years later, the latest in a long-ranging string of albums, the charade continues. But thought their background may be fake, the quality of the Porcupine Tree’s music is certainly not. Less psychedelic than some of its forbearers, Stupid Dreams is an enthralling album of experimental sounds, swelling guitar anthems, rolling soundscapes, and gripping choruses that immediately enthral the listener. Nonetheless, hints of early psychedelic influences still abound and comparisons to early Pink Floyd can’t be avoided. Plus, the CD features a neato DVD to boot. How can you lose?

Porter Wagoner
Wagonmaster
Anti-

The thin man in the rhinestone suits is back!  Another country legend is given a push and some backing to release new material.  When Johnny Cash and Rick Rubin teamed up for the American Recordings, they started a trend of revisiting forgotten territory, and Porter Wagoner is the next on the list that is deserving of a new audience and some recognition.  The difference between Wagoner and Cash though, is that Wagoner isn’t changing his sound the same way Cash stripped his.  This way, old and new audiences can each appreciate what Wagoner is and always has been: a master showman, with stone country credibility.  One Cash penned song appears on the album, and covers a topic that both he and Wagoner are familiar with.  The song Committed to Parkview tells the stories of broken dreams inside an asylum that both Cash and Wagoner had resided at one time or another.  It’s a simple song, with minimal instrumentation, emphasizing the sadness of the lyrics.  Allegedly the song was given to Marty Stuart to give to Wagoner many years ago, but he forgot.  Luckily he finally remembered when he began producing this album, so listeners can finally enjoy the chilling track.  The whole album is filled with similar songs and common country themes of love, religion and redemption.  At 80 years old, with a lifetime of highs and lows behind him, Wagoner has never sounded more honest or timeless.

www.anti.com

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Pretty Girls Make Graves
Élan Vital
Matador Records

It’s been said that Pretty Girls Make Graves sound a lot like Sleater-Kinney.

They don’t.

They do, however, sound nothing like they used to. The album title, courtesy of Leona Marrs, a recent addition to the Seattle quartet, speaks volumes of the direction the band has taken. In it’s literal translation, Élan Vital is “the driving force of life”, and to PGMG it means evolution. With equally shared efforts on tracks like, “Pyrite Pedestal” and “The Number”, you no longer hear their musical styling of yester-year; think less shouting for the sake of making noise with guitar duels to the death, and more lyrical melodies and instrumental compromise.

And while you may be thinking that another of your punk-rock bands has gone and matured, I will say that they have, but their follow-up effort to 2003’ debut, The New Romance, promises nothing and makes no apologies. I do dare you to try and press stop after hearing singer, Andrea Zollo’s strong, and mysterious vocals on the opening track, “The Nocturnal House”. It’s as if she’s standing at the end of a long tunnel, pleading to be heard and yet coming in loud and clear over the referee whistle at the beginning. Yes, change is good.

Former Treble Charger guitarist Bill Priddle returns to his indie rock roots with his new band, The Priddle Concern. Having also clocked in time with Broken Social Scene, Priddle’s album is filled with guitar-driven indie rock songs. A few familiar faces also make guest appearances, among them fellow Broken Social Scene members Brendan Canning and Justin Peroff as well as Stars’ Evan Cranley and Amy Millan (both of whom also spend time with the Toronto indie collective). The guests help flesh out the album greatly, especially Millan’s contributing vocals on “Back Around”, as her lush vocals provide the perfect extra ingredient to the acoustic tune. While there is some filler here, the album mostly hits the mark and shows a lot of promise along the way.

http://www.thepriddleconcern.com

-Jon Brazeau

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Priya Thomas
You and Me Against the World Baby
Priya Thomas/Boiling Pt

Almost two years ago, when You and Me Against the World Baby was originally slated for release, those in the know who had a chance to hear some of the early recordings were betting on this album as the one that finally garnered Priya Thomas the attention she deserved. 

While on tour in the UK is 2005, Thomas was approached by Paul Cartledge, who worked with Tony Visconti, who worked with David Bowie, T-Rex and Roxy Music, who was impressed with her art-punk, gas fire stage show.  He suggested remixing many of the tracks on the album to better capture her on stage presence with a more unrefined sound.

So after all of this time, with all of its mixing and remixing, the album seems particularly underwhelming.

Kudos to Priya for what she’s trying to do, which seems to be create a solid, head banging, rock out album full of inspired lyrics that make you think.  However, more often than not, this attempt seems to be buried underneath a bland rock-wash of similar arrangements that make you want to use your expectant, devil horned fingers to hit the “next track” button.  And how often can you use the word “baby”, really?

There’s real potential here and it’s unfortunate that it seems to be stuck in a vague cloud of guitars somewhere between “Patti Smith Hard” and “Souxie Sioux Lite”.  The 10 track album does pick up towards the end, most notably with track 8, “A Little More Fine” and track 9, “Fireflies”; the first songs which are clearly distinguishable from the ones that precede them.

This disc is worth a listen but I’m more interested in hearing what comes next.

- Sarafina DiFelice

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PROGRAMMED FOR DESTRUCTION
 SELF TITLED EP

 Programmed for Destruction wastes no time getting to
 the point of kicking your ass on their debut EP, with
 their killer riffs and punishing sound.  This band is
 a perfect mix of grindcore, screamo and straight up
 heavy metal giving them a very unique sound which is
 pretty impressive considering that the average age of band members is 16.

  If they sound this good now, it's scary to think what they'll be pulling out by the age of 20.

 The first track, "Infliction",  is an awesome way to introduce
 the listener to the PFD sound, in this track it's
 clear who has influenced their music, with shades of
 The Black Deliah Murder, Mysery Signals and Pantera,
 you get the sense that these guys clearly mean business.  This
 track is caked with layers of wicked guitar riffs and
 freakishly tight drums that are iced off with the
 ripping satanic barks from vocalist Jeff Donahue.

 The second track, "Volatile", showcases the band's killer
 musicianship throughout, with very difficult parts and
 changes carefully crafted to keep the listener on
 their toes and not for a second straying from sick-ass
 heaviness.

 The third track, "Reflection in Blood", touches on death metal
 while keeping it's songwriting maturity and slowing
 down at the right moments to keep the track complex
 and sounding well thought out.  "Reflection in Blood", is
 like a mini opus similar to tunes from Protest the
 Hero and Death.

 The fourth track, "Eradicated", demonstrates drummer Kyle Clarke's
 awesome ability behind the kit, where you can hear his
 tight double kick chops come out while
 keeping up with full-on coordinated insanity.  Once
 again the band pulls out the stops with complex verse
 to chorus changes over crushing guitar and bass riffs.

 I have a feeling that we'll be hearing a lot more from
 this hard-hitting band in the near future. If PFD can
 keep up intensity and keep writing killer tunes
 while continuing to pack halls full of screaming teen
 angst, then I think their dreams of becoming rock gods
 will be a definite possibility.

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Proton Proton
Proton Proton
Self-produced

Here are the opening line’s of Proton Proton’s website: “paul, roving and trilling through northern spanish lands, parks his flxible™ back in brooklyn. amidst saw dust, transformers, and soldering fumes, aron amalgamates harmonics into a single entity. kaboom—jarrod, the band's christopher robin, unleashes his ardor. proton proton began during long spontaneous sessions in a dark, carpet-lined room on the mediterranean coast.” What this means, whether any of this is relevant or even true, is beside the point. It provides insight in that if this absurdity were translated into musical form, you would be enjoying the sounds of Proton Proton. Parenthetically, however, one may be interested to know that at least the second sentence of the above excerpt has in fact been translated into music. It refers to the creation of Aron Sanchez’s gass, a combination of guitar and bass. Perhaps that is what gives Proton Proton the sound I so very much need. Or perhaps it is the kindred sound as found in early Bowie and Ima Robot. Or, perhaps, it is the hole in my soul that Proton Proton so neatly fills.

Ra Ra Riot
Ra Ra Riot EP
Unsigned

The still free agents Ra Ra Riot have put together a sweet little mix of youthful energy and developed musical talent on their self-titled debut EP. The “six friends getting together and jamming” notion can get a little tired at times and conjure up some scary ideas about what these so-called musicians might think music sounds like but thankfully Ra Ra Riot aren’t one of those six friends. They’ve avoided the indie cliché of making garbage garage rock and included some quaint melody in their pop/rock roots.

The six-track EP subtly sounds like Dexy’s Midnight Runners but the bandmates avoid falling into the trap of being a reincarnated ‘80s band. The thumping bass line, charming honest lyrics and fine violin strumming smoothly weave together to create a new successful sound.

They’re indie enough to be in their own musical world but unique and talented enough to avoid the “what the hell are these guys doing?” unattractive indie sound.

www.rarariot.com

www.myspace.com/rarariot

-Antoinette Mercurio

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Raccoo-oo-oon
The Cave Of Spirits Forever
Time-Lag Records

No, not just a whack-load of instruments all playing in dis (harmony) at the same time. No, you want to be repulsed, but at the same time you know you’re also looking, and listening for the “inside” of the sound, the only point at which art really exists. Like the eye of the storm, that eerily calm interior space of nothingness and yet everything. Think of listening to the four guys who make up the art rock/manic psych/punk-free jazz band as looking at a magic eye poster. Relax your mind, your eyes and most importantly your ears. The sounds will present themselves.

As the album progresses, I am finding a strong resemblance to Sigur Ros, especially on the last two of the seven tracks, “Forever” and “In The Woods”, respectively. The former begins with an exciting drumbeat that builds in feverish anticipation likening the listening experience to the opening of a martial arts competition. Listening to this album gives you the sense that their music precedes them and not the other way around; music for music’s sake.

http://raccoo-oo-oon.org

Mpress Records' founding lady returns with yet another musical offering, this one a sultry mix of soul, folk, pop, jazz, and a few subtle yet intriguing Irish and Middle Eastern influences. Yes, the album is certainly eclectic in influence if nothing else. But after a life in the music community, perhaps such eclecticism should be expected. Currently based in New York's East Village, Sage has been making music in one kind or anther since she was three years old. However, despite her sprawling history of musical releases, including everything from jingles for national ad campaigns to award-garnering folk releases, the music on Blistering Sun too often and too closely resembles that of her contemporaries. Many of the tracks - "Featherwoman," for example - fall too neatly into the mould long-established by just about every performer on the Lilith Fair tour. Nonetheless, other tracks such as the opener "Alright, OK" and "Hit Song" present a unique context for Sage's long-honed skills as a singer-songwriter. This results in the innovative and experimental balladeering that distinguished similar acts such as Ani DiFranco. The final word: you'd better like Lisa Loeb before you think of picking up this album.

www.rachaelsage.com

The Radar Bros.
Self-titled
Merge Records

The Radar Bros. are back and out with their newest album off of Merge Records titled Auditorium.  This is the Los Angeles’ band’s fifth album.  There’s something comforting and soothing about this album, as well as poetic.  The last track titled “Morning Bird” has the sweet sound of birds chirping softly away in the distance, a great way to end the album.  It’s the kind of album to put on and lay back on the grass looking at the clouds or the stars and their sound will put a smile on your face making everything relaxed and alright.  This album definitely has a way with words and is a great grab.  To get an idea of what I’m talking about check out www.myspace.com/radarbros.

Enjoy fellow music lovers!

-Danielle Cowie

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Rage
Speak of the Dead
Nuclear Blast

I was totally unprepared for what I was about to hear from this metal outfit out of Germany, known as Rage. From the moment I heard a trumpet blast to kick off the disc, I knew this was not going to be your average metal band. This powerhouse trio is back with their (wait for it) seventeenth release, and last year marked the band’s twenty years together. Impressive.

Keep an open mind as you listen to the first half of the album, which is mostly instrumental. Classical meets metal to form a unique sound on the new disc. Influenced by the beauty of classical music, the band recorded with the Minsk (White Russia) symphonic Orchestra. Some of the songs start off with long introductions, something that is not uncommon in the musical European tradition. They tend to be more varied and more willing to experiment with music. On “No Regrets,” one of their better tracks, there is a distinct piano in the background.

“Beauty” is another stand-out track, which starts off extremely gentle, and just seems to flow sweetly. After that, Rage loses the Orchestra and launches head on into full metal mode beginning with “No Fear” to attack you with their biting guitars and growling vocals.

Fans are treated to a bonus on the disc, which is a non-english version of the fantastic track “full Moon,”. Future special editions promise Spanish, German and Russian versions of the song.

Watch for Speak of the Dead next month when it makes its North American release, and hopefully, as they are in Europe, they will be all the ‘rage’ here.

www.rage-on.de

- Charmaine Merchant

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Raising the Fawn
The Maginot Line
Sonic Unyon

The third album since their 2001 debut, Raising the Fawn’s “The Maginot Line” provides a good three-quarters of an hour of swelling drums and tumbling guitars, rushing melodies and half-dreamt lyrics, all recorded up “at Sarah Harmer’s home outside Kingston, ON March 05,” according to the liner notes. In the spirit of their affiliates Broken Social Scene, Raising the Fawn offers a ghostly, almost chaotic fare of aural intoxication. It’s good music for drugs. It carries you along with it. But perhaps not at first; it did take a while for it to grow on me, lordly sober as I was when I put the CD on. There is a lot of “ambient noise,” I guess you could say, in this album. You’ve got to get into it. It’s not a good album for making love to. It’s distracting, sometimes disconcerting. Performance can be affected. But if you’re forging on into the heart of a impassioned bender, or wallowing deep in the flames of a rising acid trip, or perhaps even you may simply be a spiritual type of person, this could be the music to put on. It’s very moody, and very groovy.

-James Sandham

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This Changes Nothing
Ready Fire Aim
Expansion Team Records

Dark synth pop is still alive, thanks to the debut album from Ready Fire Aim. Pieced together by singer Sage Rader and DJ/producer Stakka (Shaun Morris), the duo created an album loaded with twisted, hypnotizing synths, hard beats and Rader’s soft vocals. The sound is well established on opening track “End of Over” and through the course of the album the band rarely deviates from the formula. Rader’s vocals blend nicely with the music on “Beautiful Thing,” with his gentle vocals being an antithesis to the grimly layered syths and hard beats. However, the simplified lyrics demand more, especially on “So Fine” with the groan-inducing line, “You’re so fine/Gonna make you mine.” It’s a minor gripe though, as the album succeeds at creating dance-worthy tunes crafted by the gloomy side of the keyboard.

http://www.myspace.com/readyfireaimnyc

-Jon Brazeau

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The Reason
Things Couldn’t Be Better
Smallman Records / Warner

There’s no reason people shouldn’t pick up The Reason’s new album Things Couldn’t Be Better. From their opening track “My Broken Legs” to the intensely somber “Reset The Breaker,” this 12-track disc covers every mood and musical taste that a listener would be craving. Sounding a little like Bert McCracken from The Used, lead vocalist Adam White offers a youthful yet mature sound to the band’s cool rock, fine-tuned beats. Working together like a well oiled machine the band delivers a skillful simple sound that makes you think they’ve surpassed their small town status and moved onto to greener pastures but somehow they’ve maintained an adolescent passion about their artistic goals. At times bordering on emo, the few screaming verses that are sung can throw you off here and there but in the end you appreciate the track nonetheless. You realize afterwards the gut-wrenching verses and vocals work because this so-called labour of love the band created is indeed something that couldn’t be better.

Recorded in the summer of 2005 in a remote cottage in Ontario, the Hamilton natives let the music take them for a ride and in the end the music speaks for itself. Mellow and energetic with a yearning for trust and truth, this album is an honest expression of the band’s growth and optimism of things to come. If this is truly considered a departure from their last LP Ravenna, then I say keep going at it alone guys.

www.thereason.ca

www.myspace.com/thereasonrock

-Antoinette Mercurio
 

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Recoil
SubHuman
Mute Records

This is about the twelfth Recoil album to come out, but for those unfamiliar with them, it’s worth stating that Recoil is the musical project of ex-Depeche Mode member Alan Wilder. That said, it may be a redundant to comment that there’s definitely an element of Depeche Mode present in Recoil, but I will anyway. Beyond that you might also compare them to Moby because, like him, Recoil plays with discordant genres and fuses them into something new via a good beat and some catchy electro wizardry - witness, for example, opening track “Prey”. It’s got a definite British pre-rave era feel to it too, along the lines of Happy Mondays, but can then go and get all sound-scapey and ambient, and it’s like, “where did this come from?” But in the end, it doesn’t really matter, because it’s a solid album and probably the best course of action is just to go along for the ride and let Wilder look after the direction, because he’s been around, after all, and knows his sonic geography well.

www.recoil.co.uk

- James Sandham

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The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
Don’t You Fake It
Virgin

The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus are a true testament to what can happen when determination takes precedence over defeat. Having tasted success back in 2003 when they first came together, the band quickly reverted back to struggle - enduring label rejections and discouraged band members leaving.

But frontman Ronnie Winters’ (one of two original members left) belief in the band pushed on, and the pace picked up again when they brought in a couple of new guys (who were actually old guys who were friends of friends, or who Winters had worked with before) and signed to Virgin Records.

Now, these young Floridians (The average age is just 21) have burst on the scene with their debut Don’t You Fake It. But, please don’t let their age fool you. Their songs are chock-full of meaning, and Winters isn’t afraid to tackle tough subject matters like he does on the confrontational “Face Down,” a song about domestic abuse. Nor does he mind laying his soul bare in the gentle, creamy love song “Your Guardian Angel.”

Their refusal to be categorized is evident on every track, which borrows elements of pop- punk, pop, screamo, love ballads and even metal. “In Fate’s Hands” is angry and guitar-driven, while the melancholy “Cat and Mouse” has a pretty piano thread. At the disc’s completion, listen out for the bonus track. Armed with a steady line up, a fresh sound, and a growing fan base, it looks like the boys are ready to take the world on.

www.redjumpsuit.com
www.myspace.com/redjumpsuit

- Charmaine Merchant

The Red Button
She’s About to Cross My Mind
Grimble

“Cruel girl/ Why you gotta treat me like a fool, girl? / Bring me down with everything you do girl? / Break my little faithful heart in two, girl? /You cruel girl.”  Pretty cute right?  Given the retro looking cover art, these are the kind of lyrics I might have expected from The Red Button.  I also however expected there to be some kind of new spin put on the music.  I thought it might combine a little bit of modern bite like The Pipettes’ album does.  It took very little time before my first scan through the album helped me realize just how weak and futile the whole thing is.  This is what The Beatles might have sounded like if an uninspired Elliot Smith imitator was the lead vocalist.  This is as wholesome as they come, complete with obvious harmonies and sugary lyrics.  Phrases like “You’ve got a thing / that I can get used to,” or “She’s about to cross my mind” start to venture into ‘too cute’ territory.  Even in the genres heyday, this probably wouldn’t have had much of an impact. “Pop music the way God and Paul McCartney intended,” says John Borack.  Sorry Paul, but what have you done for me lately?

It’s possible I can’t stand this because it may be growing on me, but I’m not ready to admit that.  Even if I ignored my lyrical and structural qualms with these songs, as an album the whole sound tires quickly.  The music these folks are trying to revitalize was made for being played on singles, in a one or two song package.  Trying to stretch this sound over a full album is hard to pull off and in the past has traditionally resulted in a lot of filler between two or three singles.  That’s why they didn’t release LPs back in the day.  Despite being a short album, The Red Button can’t quite hold my attention for the full length.  They just can’t help sounding like the cover band for a failed pop group from forty years ago.  Even if you like this kind of thing, I’d suggest only venturing this territory if you’ve already exhausted all the classic brit pop available.

www.myspace.com/theredbuttonband
 

Daniel Demois

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Red Light Rippers
Nobody Likes a Rat
Fading Ways UK

A quote from the bands’ website states, “In a world where bands are a dime a dozen, Red Light Rippers have arrived to save the day.” Hmmm…Well…I’ll give them that no, they are not another generic dance/pop act, but, Red Light Rippers are just about as generic a rock act as there ever was.

Nobody Likes a Rat, the bands’ first full-length album, employs approximately every cheesy rock stereotype there is. Fast cars, fast women, and fast times? “Drag Race”, “Trailer Trash Trixie”, and “Addicted” are the first three songs. Musically, they remain as banal as their subject matter. For those who have been listening to sleaze/glam/punk rock for ages, there is nothing innovative about this album. It’s not bad…it’s just been done.

The influence of bands such as AC/DC, Van Halen and Guns n’ Roses can be felt; RLR emulate gritty, sleazy, 80’s rock well. However, the band doesn’t appear to have found their own sound, or their own style, and I’m not sure if they want to. The unsurprising cover of the New York Dolls’ “Pills”, which felt a little bit like a drunken sing-along at the Bovine, was conventional. This hard-rock “conventionality” is what makes the Rippers’ album so uninteresting. I wanted them to break out and do something tremendous, track after track, until…the album ended.

Thankfully, Staci T. Rat is an outstanding guitar player. The albums’ best ingredients are without a doubt, his. The intensity of his playing needs to bleed into the rest of their music. Perhaps something is lost in the recording. I can envision Red Light Rippers as a good live act, but the album feels incredibly lacklustre. Give them a chance to prove me wrong, they’re playing April 7th @ the Elmocambo (w/ Automatic and Romeo Liquor Store), and April 8th @ the Wick (w/ Dyneomight).

www.redlightrippers.com

Sara Percival

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Red Shag Carpet
Lift and Drop
Self-Produced

With a sound somewhere between Spoon and Wilco, Alberta’s Red Shag Carpet have released a consistent if not particularly innovative album of indie rock and roll. Piano-driven melodies such as “Drop” help to raise this album above its competitors, but Lift and Drop often lack the hooks to truly distinguish this work. Other notable tracks, such as “So and So,” are clever and catchy but again somehow miss the essential element of the great song status. Though they playfully tease the listener, they fail to grip the listener in that visceral way powerful music is supposed to. The result is an album that is enjoyable, danceable and upbeat, but not particularly memorable save for a select few tracks. Of course, to the band’s credit, the album has been completely self-produced – there’s no fancy label standing by to inject their magic commercial juice. Featuring Daniel Yarmon, Ted Ani, Allan Pickard and Matt Darrah, Red Shag Carpet are nonetheless a promising new outfit and touring furiously in support of their latest release.

www.redshagcarpet.com

James Sandham

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Reset

No Worries, No Limits

Union Label Group

Before there was Simple Plan, there was Reset. And I don’t mean that figuratively. Before Canada’s most commercially successful candy punk outfit actually became candy and blew up in the States, they were a bunch of hardcore kids cranking out blazing fast power-punk, singing about stuff that’s actually semi-relevant socially, and playing with punk masters like Pennywise and NOFX. I don’t know what happened, but I guess somewhere along the line they decided that being millionaires south of the border would be more fun than remaining poor, struggling and authentic in Canada, and I can’t say I really blame them for selling out. Their music may have suffered, but thanks to the Union Label Group, the best of Reset’s first two albums are now available, reissued almost ten years after the fact on this 25 song compilation. Sounds like most Canadian hardcore. Makes me want to rock out.

- James Sandham

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Richard Ashcroft
Keys to the World
Parlophone/EMI

With each Richard Ashcroft album, I miss The Verve less because the band’s ex-front man is doing more than filling the void. He’s leaving his own legacy. Ashcroft lingers in a place somewhere between depression and introspection; seemingly a lonely observer of the outside world weighing in on the bloody mess we call life with his guitar and army of rented studio musicians. The songs connect and they resonate which, at the end of the day, makes for a great album. Musically still very close to The Verve albeit less poppy and more serious, Ashcroft takes over the room with his distinct vocals leaving you no choice but to listen. A fine recording and worthy of repeat spins.

www.richardashcroft.com

Michael Cool

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Richard Swift
Dressed Up For The Letdown
Secretly Canadian

Presenting himself as “an honest man with some honest songs”, the ten songs on Richard Swift’s album are just that, an incredibly earnest collection of folk rock gems from an inspired and talented singer-songwriter. Each song is presented with an open-heart tenderness, wrapped in a self-deprecating humour and doubt that makes the whole album accessible and endearing. Dressed Up For the Letdown is anything but one.

Swift bounces back and forth between two distinct styles on the album, that of an acoustic guitarist and the other, a Late period-Beatles Paul McCartney-esque piano rocker. Richard Swift is fully capable of both methods of delivery however it is with a guitar in hand that he succeeds most brilliantly. “Buildings In America”, a gentle guitar track that builds to a fuzz-bass crescendo captures beautifully the embarrassed recognition of a failed relationship, as narrated by a hung-over and pathetic Swift. “Most of What I Know” a rocking reflection on faith, American imperialism and love, and the eerie title track also standout on a wonderfully thick album, both lyrically and musically.

The only fault to be found with Dressed Up For The Letdown is a mid-album sag found in the successive tracks “P.S. It All Falls Down” and the overtly long “Ballad of You Know Who”. It is here where Swift’s own self-criticism  “there’s no radio /that likes to play the songs/ of your lover’s sorrow” (plucked from the coy “Artists & Repertoire”) rings true.

Richard Swift’s penchant for songwriting and acute ear for melody is so mesmerizing you may find yourself humming “I wish I was dead/ most of the time” (the refrain from “The Million Dollar Baby”) with a smile on your face. Dressed Up For The Letdown is a near perfect album and a great early step in what looks to be a successful and prosperous career for Richard Swift.

www.myspace.com/richardswift 

- Sam Stilson

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Rilo Kiley
Under The Blacklight
Warner Bros.

If anyone else were to make this album, I’d hate it; I would trash it and then throw it in the trash. But because of Rilo Kiley’s frontwoman, the Queen of Indie, Jenny Lewis, and her delightful bandmates, Pierre de Reeder, Blake Sennett and Jason Boesel, it works.  Fresh from her solo tour, giving fans less than a second to refill their Kombucha tea cups, Lewis et al. work it out and by work I mean wringing out the tired, drenched hanky that catches all the tears of California’s lost ones.  From Lindsay to Perez Hilton and all that is inside the Hollywood sandwich, smatterings of sparkle and flash have dulled and broken down at a break-neck pace, leaving none other than Silverlake’s darlings, Rilo Kiley to pay mock (?) homage to their place of residence and to pull out into the glare, the seediest and seamiest bits and pieces of the Holyland. 

The album is a collection of less Jenny and those other guys and more togetherness, Lewis playing live alongside the band instead of out front in a recent episode of Jimmy Kimmel.  A smart move on her part considering the latest disc is glamourous, shiny and slap-happy without sounding bitchy, cheesy or annoying; hence my allowance of their focus on rougher, rowdier tracks like, “The Moneymaker” which surprised me when I heard it because it was almost brash and tacky at first, but after opening with such a warm lullaby as “Silver Lining”, crashing cymbals are in order for a wake-up/shake-up of Indie-rock and in Hollyweird; literally shaking the rich and famous from their self-indulgent slumber, or causing them to nod their heads in agreement over the bizarre bubble that has been created to preserve it’s inner workings. Like Hollywood, Rilo Kiley’s newest offering is entertainment at its best: weird, wild, soothing for a moment and then back to weird again.

http://www.myspace.com/rilokiley

-Jess Shulist

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The Riptides
Hang Out
Union Label Group

This is the latest full-length from Ottawa-based punks the Riptides. Like the rest of their decade-spanning catalogue, it’s pretty straight up, four-on-the-floor punk rock “with no gimmicks attached,” as their press release informs us. It’s punk from the Old School so all the band members have to have names like Andy Vandal (vocals) and Skottie Lobotomy (guitar). Easy comparisons abound to the cannon of punk – the Ramones (see “Detention”, a catchy little anthem), Joe Strummer, and DOA. Some Rancid comparisons apply too, but only because Rancid already sound like so many of the aforementioned bands. If you like your punk hard, raw, and gimmickless, this is a solid choice of an album. But hopefully you like your punk pretty traditional and repetitive too, because these guys serve up a hot, heavy dose to that as well. Check their website at www.theriptides.com.

- James Sandham

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Robert Pollard
Coast to Coast Carpet of Love and Standard Gargoyle Decisions
Merge Records

Robert Pollard’s Coast to Coast Carpet of Love and Standard Gargoyle Decisions go hand in hand.  These Merge Record discs are nothing less than enjoyable.  They are very refreshing albums to hear, kind of like a “no strings attached” albums.  Just pop it in your CD player and go.  Also it is a refreshing start to finish album.  Pollards voice is awesome in itself and the music is just good old rock.  “Our Gaze,” the first track off of Coast to Coast Carpet of Love, for example, is a great starter to an album because it catches on to you making someone curious as to how the rest of the album is.  “I In The World” is a great strumming and knee-slappin’ tune off of Standard Gargoyle Decisions.  They are both great albums worth checking out.

-Danielle Cowie

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Robert Pollard
From a Compound Eye
Merge Records

Weighing in at a whopping 70 minutes and 42 seconds, with two discs and 26 tracks under its belt, “From a Compound Eye” is one album you wouldn’t want any other way. It’s good. And those 70 minutes come to a close too soon. Drawing influence from the Beatles and the Beachboys – especially evident in the vocal harmonies – Robert Pollard fuses 60s-style pop with punk, psych, and prog. The result is a strong, guitar-driven album with catchy rhythms you can get into. Although at times I experienced what I can only assume to be some serious déjà vu – either I’d heard some of these songs before, perhaps under the auspices of REM or 54-40, or they were hitting a definite chord or resonance in me – the experience was a pleasant one. Some of the highlights from this all-around worth while album include “TheRight Thing,” “The Numbered Head,” and “Love is Stronger than Witchcraft.” The obvious criticism of an album like this, however, is that, at 70 minutes length, Pollard could have afforded to drop some of the weaker songs. At times the guitar work slides into patches of uninspired distortion and unoriginal, repetitive chord progressions, overwhelming they lyrics and resulting in an amateurish, garage-band sound at odds with Pollard’s decade-plus of musical experience. But such faults are excusable, few and far between as they are, and easily ignored in an album of otherwise solid pop-rock tunes.

-James Sandham

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Rock Kills Kid
Knock Out
Reprise Records

Rock Kills Kid have been listed by Rolling Stone as one of the year's ten best new bands. They have been pegged by Blender as one of the top 20 bands to download, and featured in Spin, the Alternative Press and, somewhat incongruently, Penthouse. Yes, this Los Angeles-based quintet are a group on the rise. And pleasantly, Are You Nervous demonstrates that this rise is not built on hype alone. It is a solid debut album that evokes the sound of early U2 meeting the Cure and Modern English. Like their contemporaries the Killers, Rock Kills Kid deliver catchy, synth-driven new-wave hits in rapid succession, all flavoured by a gritty bite of lyrical urban realism. Unlike the Killers, however, who seemed to rise to fame almost overnight, RKK's bite comes from the genuine experience of living life hard. As their frontman Jeff Tucker recounted to Spin magazine, his times before RKK were so hard he was forced to live in his friend's recording studio "for close to three years. There was no shower, so I'd clean myself with babywipes." Are You Nervous is his long-deserved success.

www.rockkillskid.com

-James Sandham

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Rock Plaza Central
The World Was Hell To Us

After the critical success of Are We Not Horses (an album about robotic horses) Rock Plaza Central have decided to re-release this, their previous album.  I’m sure the reason for this is so that new audiences have a chance to pick up an album they may not know existed, but I still can’t help but laugh when the first lyric is sung: “You know I’m only in this for the money.” That being said, this is album is a nice slice of rootsy Americana that is worth a second look.  The arrangements are very casual and slow building, and the album on the whole feels quite grey.  It’s definitely not sunny where this was written and recorded.  Now I don’t mean to suggest that it is depressing or dark necessarily, but it is very bittersweet.  Most of the tracks have very peaceful instrumentation, which is often in contrast with the quivering voice of Chris Eaton.  Eaton sometimes sounds like Jeff Mangum, and his lyrics are sung with similar honesty and authenticity that only takes a track or two to fall for.  This genuine feel protects the more bizarre/silly lyrics, because when someone believes what they say so much, we tend to ignore how odd the words “We fuck like glaciers” sound.  The whole thing is not so cryptic though, and on songs like “You don’t need” Eaton’s sadness becomes infectious, which is what makes the best songs on this album so pleasing.  Follow the lyrics with some lovely horns, an accordion, some nice guitar picking and you’ve got a full sound that refuses to simply take a backseat.  The music on this album is just as important as the words.

One song that didn’t quite work for me was “Fuckup” in which Eaton sings “All of my relationships/I’ve fucked up” and rhymes “ways” with “ways.”  This serves as kind of an amusing intermission at the album’s middle, and is slightly amusing.  After that though, it’s back to the confidently sad feel of the first half, which makes me feel oddly comfortable.  There’s something wonderful about listening to somebody who seems so at ease with the sadness they are singing about.  

www.rockplazacentral.com

Daniel Demois

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The Rogers Sisters
The Invisible Deck
Beggars Group

A heavy dirty dance beat greets me on opener "Why Won't You." Definitely for dancers who don't find rock usually moveable and/or for rockers who find dance unmoveable.

Starting out playing Brooklyn loft parties that made even the too cool stand up and shake it, The Rogers Sisters have three other releases under their collective belt (Let's Fly Away, Purely Evil and Three Fingers). It's not hard to see their leap to opening for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs or the Kills.

A male and female (Jennifer) trade off lead duties on vocals with each song. "Your Littlest World," dips the mood slower and more psychedelic. "Money Matters" continues the laid back style with both vocalists harmonizing.

I dare you to try not standing up, tapping your foot, shaking your fist and inadvertently singing along. The deck is no longer invisible.

www.beggarsgroupsa.com

-Heather Rayment

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Rosewood Thieves
From the Decker House EP
V2 Records

You know when someone tells you that a band sounds like someone else, and when you hear them that is the only thing you can hear?  Before listening to this record someone told me that lead singer Erick Jordan sounded like a young John Lennon.  Lennon is one of my favorite artists of all time, so I was eager to compare the two.  Upon my first listen I could definitely hear the similarities, unfortunately that was the only thing I could hear.  I’ve listened to the 20 minute EP at least 10 times now, and tried with all my might to clear my mind of all preconceptions, but it’s far too late at this point.  On “Diamond Ring” the similarity is unmistakable.  I might have even believed that this was a lost Beatles track if I didn’t know better.

Although the John Lennon similarities were somewhat distracting, “From the Decker House” is a solid EP. A mix of moody piano tunes and country driven toe-tappers, this New York City band had to seclude themselves in the small-town of Deposit, NY to dig deep and come up with a collection of tunes that sounds straight out of the 70’s.  With influences like the Band and Bob Dylan, the Rosewood Thieves have put together a solid introduction to their music. I can’t wait to hear a full length record…now what did I do with my John Lennon box set?

www.rosewoodthieves.com

-Matthew Gorman

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Rum Runner
Guns at Cyrano’s
Stumble Records

Calgary’s perpetually struggling Rum Runner are back with a new line up of musicians and a new LP to boot. If you’ve heard these guys before, expect more of the same: Irish roots folk married to punk. For those of you who are Rum Runner neophytes, think the Drop Kick Murphys meet the Pogues. Or, just pick up a copy of the Mahones latest LP – it’s practically indistinguishable from Run Runner’s latest release except for the cover art. Not particularly original at best, blatantly repetitive at worst, Guns at Cyrano’s is clearly an album meant for the dedicated Rum Runner fan – no one else would pay for something so completely lacking in creativity - Rum Runner sound like they’ve reached the bottom of the barrel and exhausted all ideas with this LP. Hear for yourself at www.myspace.com/rumrunner.

- James Sandham

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The Rosewood Thieves
From the Decker House
V2

New York City quintet, The Rosewood Thieves, escaped the clutches of the city to record From the Decker House at, appropriately if not a little obviously, Decker House, a rickety white farmhouse in Deposit, NY, and the former home of the late Deposit socialite Bonnie Decker. Over six weeks they wrote and rehearsed the songs that would appear on the eponymous EP, and it sounds like the stripped-down, rugged aesthetic of the house may have rubbed off on the music. The result is like a grittier version of the Beatles-meets-the Band, something along the lines of Spoon. The opening track, “Los Angeles”, with its drifting vocal harmonies and merrily plodding rhythm, is a perfect example of this. “Diamond Ring” channels the same vibe while also incorporating the lo-fi sound of the White Stripes’ “Apple Blossom”. A great album of rugged folk pop that could only be improved by being longer. Hear it at:

www.myspace.com/therosewoodthieves

- James Sandham

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Royal Wood
A Good Enough Day
Dead Daisy Records

Self-taught one-man musical master and Toronto native Royal Wood’s third album is set for release Jan. 30 and showcases a mind-bending range of musical talent – all contained in one man! Royal Wood very capablely personifies the word “multi-instrumentalist.” But I guess he can’t take all the credit; his latest album also features musical support from such luminaries as Hawksley Workman, Kurt Swinghammer, Harmony Towbridge and Kevin Fox, and together they have created something quite beautiful. A Good Enough Day is a piano-driven LP comparable to the musical sensibilities of an early Elton John fused with the Beatles, carrying forth together the vocals of a young John Lennon. Gently rolling piano melodies carry Royal Wood’s resonant and softly spoken lyrics, and are accented by simple acoustic guitar arrangements and dreamy, sighed choruses. Check him online at www.royalwood.ca, or just keep an ear open: Royal Wood’s music is already featured in a variety of shows and movies, including “The End of Silence” (with Sarah Harmer), “the Surreal Gourmet”, and “This is Wonderland”.

- James Sandham

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Royksopp
Royskopp's Night out Live
EMI

Electroclash outfit Royksopp, huge in Europe, has released a live EP but it’s not obvious why they would do that at this stage in their career except as a quick cash injection by EMI (unlimited supply). The CD offers 9 songs recorded live in Oslo, 8 of which are indicative of Royksopp’s new sound – mainstream melodic dance. This may be an effort to capture a wider audience but it falls flat in terms of creativity. Reminiscent of Chris Sheppard’s Love Inc., the songs offer soft, mindless melodies and predictable beats. The lone standout being Remind Me, the clever and totally catchy synth-pop zinger. Not really worth the effort. You’re better off with one of their earlier full-length studio releases.

www.emimusic.com

-Michael Cool

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The Sainte Catherine's
Dancing for Decadence
Fat Wreckords

The Sainte Catherine’s are one of Canada’s hottest punk exports at the minute. They were picked up by US punk rock legend/all around goof-ball turned political activist Fat Mike of NOFX. With that knowledge it comes as no surprise that The Sainte Catherine’s were snapped up by such a label. The Sainte Catherine’s are one of an increasing numbe rof new punk rock bands that are very much in tune with the origins of punk music, and are doing their best to keep the scene thriving. These bands are playing hard, fast, aggressive music with a social conscience rather than some of the more self-obsessed punk rock bands that have been spawned in recent years. Bands like The Sainte Catherine’s are proving again that punk is well and truly NOT dead. Other bands such as Against me, Sinkin’ Ships, Pink Punk, are all bands that are showing that the only people who could believe that real punk is dead, are people that are just too lazy to see past MTV and all it affiliates.

The Sainte Catherine’s come kicking and screaming out of Montreal, naming themselves after one of the less attractive areas of the city. Their sound is above all loud, making full use of the three guitarists the band boast. While singer Hugo, (come on, you couldn’t be more French than a guy called Hugo could you?), lends his gruff and heartfelt vocals to the mix to make punk rock songs that sounds just like they were meant to.

The fact that all the members are still doing regular jobs, including a janitor, record shop assistant, and a full-time Greenpeace employee, now that is punk. No hanging around in coffee shops after recording sessions, no sir, it’s back to the office for these guys…or back to the toilets for some of them. This just fuels the punk feel to this band, they really believe and live punk rock attitude and clearly aren’t afraid of working really hard for it.

Although the band are hardcore punks they also clearly have one element which may also have led to them being picked up by a certain Fat Mike. A sense of humour. These guys aren’t sat around moping, they are also having fun while raising a little punk-fuelled Hell. Whether the songs are serious or not, you know a band with song titles such as “Ring of fire = 4 points”, “The international Badminton championship: La P’tite Grise vs Jeff” and “The shape of drunks to come” has to have a sense of humour. The fact that the band also has a side project dealing in the fine art of Country Western music, (Yesterday’s Ring), only seals this idea.

These guys are weird, funny and are the real deal as far as punk rock goes. Do yourselves a favour and go catch them when they tour with Me First and the Gimme Gimme’s. If nothing else it could be a good chance to wheel out that high school French we’re all dying to use again.

-Adrian Huggins

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Saint Etienne
Tales from Turnpike House
Savoy Jazz

With a career that spans over a decade, Saint Etienne have nestled into their “Darlings of Electro-Pop” well enough to make you believe Tales from Turnpike House is some sort of departure or musical growth. Taking a break from just twiddling there knobs, this is a concept album of sorts with the concept being the cd’s artwork and website. Apart from the superb graphic design team at work, Saint Etienne only manages to succeed when ripping off the brilliant career of Gilberto Gil as on track one, “Side streets” or “Sun in my Morning”. From there, the album quickly becomes a game of “what other song does this sound like?” When the acoustic guitar is mixed with processed drums, a la “Milk Bottle Symphony”, the album continues to veer into the kitsch, bubble gum sound that you either quickly become bored with or that makes you feel superior to your friends - who listen to bands that have “music videos”. Imagine P.J. Harvey’s bland, boring distant cousin. Firstly, I wish Saint Etienne’s songs were as interesting as the Cd’s cover. Secondly, I wish they did not seem so intent on getting you to join their “free fan club” at www.saintetienne.com - do not fret, you can purchase t-shirts there as well.

But in Saint Etienne’s defense, Jeremy Deller does mention Ege Bamysai by Can in the liner notes. I love Can.

-Jordan Somers

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The Salads
The Big Picture
Kindling Music

Dudes, I can finally use my favorite so-bad-it’s-good quip: “Fun times, noodle salad”. Yeah, I’m sure very few of you will remember that this is from Jack Nicholson’s character on As Good As It Gets where he snarkily snaps this and I laughed at the silly simplicity of it. From then on, I’ve slipped it in conversations but I mostly get blank stares and glassy-eyed looks when I try to explain. However, the first line of The Salads press release sheet states that “Over the course of the last ten years, Toronto band The Salads, have become Canada’s leading ambassadors of fun times.”

Well, if that were the case, we’re in for fun times, with The Salads. While at times they sound like any big name ‘screamy’ punk/ska/rock band like Third Eye Blind that has come out in the last five years, we must remember that they have been out for the last ten years and that they are the ambassadors of fun times (I’m aware I sound sarcastic. I am not) and are most probably the real deal. And maybe I am biased because this rock, reggae, ska, punk quartet are one of our very own, hailing from Toronto, but there’s something extra special about these guys that makes me want to throw my voice out screaming along to their smart lyrics.

And since The Salads will be performing during NXNE, maybe I’ll get to crash their show and ask them a pivotal question like: So what kind of salad are you guys?

I’m hoping it’s noodle. Fun times.

www.thesalads.com

www.myspace.com/thesalads

-Jess Shulist

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Remix Romance Vol. 1
Sally Shapiro
Paper Bag Records

A remix of Shapiro’s Disco Romance, this album serves as a nice complement to her 2007 debut. Shapiro’s breathy, dream pop vocals are woven together with disco-thumping beats and New Wave-inspired synths. There are exceptions, as Holy Fuck’s remix of “Find My Soul” sounds like one of their own. With the inclusion of acoustic drumming on the track, it’s a nice change of pace from all the electronic beats. Likewise, Woodhands’ remix of “Anorak Christmas” fuses acoustic and electronic drumming with keyboard licks. Between Interval’s remix of “Sleep In My Arms” changes things up a bit also and offers an ambient take on Shaprio’s work. However, the ten-track album feels a bit lengthy at times, especially Lindstrøm’s nearly 11 minute remix of “Time To Let Go” (Shapiro’s version is half that length). Still, it’s a delightful album with interesting interpretations of the original tunes.

http://paperbagrecords.com/bands/sally-shapiro

- Jon Brazeau

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Brass and Gold
Sean Ashby
Black Sparrow Records

Sean Ashby has worked mostly as a session musician and most notably as Sarah McLachlan’s guitarist but he finally emerges as a solo performer with this debut release. The album displays Ashby’s guitar expertise by combining grungy tunes with acoustic singer/songwriter ballads. Ashby’s vocals work better with the latter as his soft voice fits in nicely on title track “Brass and Gold” and gels with the string arrangement on “Nova Girl”. However, the album is mostly driven by radio-friendly, up-tempo rock tunes like “Star 98" and “Baby Yes”. Ashby continues to grow as a solo performer and his first album is a worthwhile listen.

http://www.seanashby.com/

-Jon Brazeau
 

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Sean Lennon
Friendly Fire
Capital Records

It’s been eight years since Sean Lennon’s last (and only) album Into the Sun, and, at least sonically speaking, little has changed. The summery piano, Brian Wilson-like overdub effects and twee acoustic guitars are all still present and accounted for on Friendly Fire. Unfortunately, the album’s mood has veered from jaunty and carefree ‘60s pop into darker territory, the subject matter revolving around his best friend’s death in a motorcycle accident. Compounding this tragedy, Lennon had not spoken to his friend since learning of his infidelity with Lennon’s then girlfriend, Bijou Phillips.

It is this move to the dark side that is the album’s weakness.  While the songs are catchy enough, with a fine eye for detail and pathos, Lennon is simply not accomplished enough as a vocalist.  Coincidentally, Friendly Fire suffers from the same trait as Bijou’s father John Phillips’s solo effort “Wolf King of LA,” issued thirty-five years earlier; Lennon’s vocals don’t carry the emotional heft and are somewhat lost in the effects-heavy production.

Bringing along friends helps the affair, even if they are incongruously the aforementioned Bijou Phillips and another ex, Yuka Honda. Special attention should be paid to the tracks featuring the talented multi-instrumentalist Jon Brion (playing organ on “Spectacle”; guitar on “Tomorrow”, and drum and bass duties on the title track). Spooky string sections lend a sense of emotional suffocation to the Friendly Fire’s lone cover, a murky but effective rendition of Marc Bolan’s “Would I Be the One?”

The package comes with a DVD containing a suitable series of Wes Anderson-lite videos. The Beastie Boys-friendly subject matter includes laser beam battles, hallucinogenic caballero fencing duels, and a tale of unrequited love at a rollerderby in 1982. Strewn throughout the hipster clips of mopeds and Gravitron-rides is a narrative devoted to Lennon and Phillips’ tragic love story. But, as aesthetically-pleasing and ambitious as the DVD is, the project is too conscious of itself as an Important Work of Art; one would want to be a serious fan to sit through until the end.

www.capitolrecords.com/seanlennon

- John Tracey
 

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Seconds to Go
Seconds to Go
Pop Culture Records

Seconds To Go are a five-piece out of London, Ontario, who cite a slew of influences including Radiohead, Foofighters and fellow pop-punksters, Face to Face.  In fact, Seconds To Go frontman Nick Harris and Trever Keith, vocalist for Face To Face, sound almost identical, it’s uncanny.   Perhaps it’s not surprising, since they worked together too.  Keith first signed the band to his own label imprint Antagonist Records before they got snatched up by Pop Culture Records.  A North American tour alongside both Face to Face and My Chemical Romance soon followed.

Now, after almost five years together, and no more delays, Seconds have unleashed their self-titled debut.  The signature guitar chugs are there, and it is unmistakably punk-rock, it’s just a tad disappointing.

Judging from what I heard on “YoungBlood” and “Soldier,” the highlights of the disc, Seconds are not a bad band.   Harris has an amazing voice which brightens the other tracks, but after a while they start to sound the same. The tunes just need a bit of spice to perk them up. Hopefully the potential that I caught a glimpse of here will present itself more fully on the next disc.

http://www.secondstogo.net

www.myspace.com/secondstogo

-Charmaine Merchant

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Secretary Bird
Self-titled
Seaward Records

LA-based trio Secretary Bird play the mellow, surf-infused pop for which their city is known, but with a doleful, melancholy undercurrent. It’s sweet and gentle, and at times I didn’t even realize I had it playing in the background – until I noticed I’d been tapping out the rhythm to the last few tracks. So while it’s likely a discs that’ll take a bit to grow on you, it’s nonetheless well worth the time it takes to warm up to. There’s a bit of an alt-country influence on some of the tracks - “Cornerstore”, for example – which adds to the group’s multifaceted style and sound, while others buzz off in a haze of soft distortion and drifting, ambient sound layers. Kind of reminiscent of the sound coming out of Toronto’s Broken Social Scene. But overall: pretty damn good for a band who don’t even appear to have a proper website.

www.myspace.com/secretarybird

- James Sandham

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Seedy Seeds
Change States
Eurodorable

The Seedy Seeds make pop music that consists of vocal harmonies and dance beats.  For a moment it seems kind of inappropriate, almost to the point of being obnoxious.  The same goes for the harmonies, which upon first listen seem obvious, derivative and forced.  The second listen through though, you will find yourself looking forward to those vocal hooks, which aren’t always lyric driven, and often consist of simple humming.  This is catchy pop music.  Sure, sometimes I hear something in there that reminds me of a Springsteen song (keyboard in ‘Rise to Receive’) but everyone borrows from everyone so what can I say about that. I might even suggest that at times The Seedy Seeds have a refined pop sound and harmony system similar to Yo La Tengo, quite evident on the track “Calliope.”  It may take a few tries to get through the whole thing, but once you have the return listens will get easier and easier. 

www.myspace.com/theseedyseeds

-Daniel Demois

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Seether
One Cold Night
Wind-up Records

I'll be honest with you, I never listened to the CD since the DVD is all the same tracks and with pictures is always better.  One Cold Night is an acoustic set with plugged in bass (Dale Stewart) and drums (John Humphrey).  Though even without seeing the concert, all of the songs hold up strongly.

Oddly lit in mostly bright charming colours you would expect to see only in a summer collection by Betsey Johnson.  Shot this past February 22nd in guitarist Pat Callahan's hometown of Philadelphia in Grape Street.  A particularly meaningful location for the band as Grape Street is where vocalist/guitarist Shaun Morgan and Stewart first met Callahan.  As expressed humorously in the interview segment, Callahan recalls having a set time to audition for the band, after they had seen him play live.  He had not only gotten the time wrong but slept through the audition.  He made it in time to help the band move their gear that they had already packed up.

For fans that were introduced via "Broken," it's here with other equally melancholic songs.  Singer Shaun Morgan's voice is strong, well on display and cannot be contained in the heavy thick sounded acoustics.  If "Broken" was just a teaser for you, you will not be let down by Morgan's deep feeling lyrics and Seether's fully realized musical renditions.  Well worth adding to rainy moods.

One of the oddest things was watching the hour long in-depth interview and being distracted by the blurring out of the beer bottle labels.  I would never have noticed or cared what beer they were drinking.  I guess it's so the beer company doesn't get free advertising, but it only piques curiosity as to what they are drinking.  Though they name so many beverages in their beer soaked stories, the blurring is curious.  They even thank beer for help "in the making of this project" and include a picture of alcohol bottles in the liner notes.

Night includes a new personal instant favourite and interviewer Pierre Robert's favourite song "Sympathetic," along with Morgan's favourite similarly unreleased gem of a single from Pearl Jam - "Immortality" along with an early incarnation of Seether when they were known as Saron Gas with rarity "Tied My Hands."  Fans will be excited to see that the CD also includes an alternate shorter mix of current single "The Gift."  Alright I give, I couldn't help but listen to the CD too.  The only other difference is the extended audience appreciation at the end of each cut.

There is also a video for "The Gift" with a behind the scenes making of tour with Morgan explaining its concept.  A handful of stills from the radio concert are included.  Unfortunately many are too shadowed.  A definite must for Seether fans.  If you've only dabbled with a couple of Seether songs, but loved them, this will convert you fully.

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Seis Pistos
Korima Punk
Discis Patito

This punk band that hails from Chihuahua, Mexico are probably not keen to be likened with the trendy canines that hail from their home state, but it’s a surprisingly apt comparison. The band members are feisty, cute, and small in stature, and they pack an enthusiastically noisy, yet non-threatening, bark. Featured at this year’s CMW, Seis Pistos proved, both in their live show and in this release, that language doesn’t really matter in punk rock. Most of the songs on this disc are in Spanish, though the band does wisely add in a few English tracks to avoid alienating English-speaking fans. However, with vocalist Iván’s motor-mouthed delivery, it’s often difficult to tell which language a song is in. The best songs on the album are the anthemic tracks anchored by Kenio’s skilful guitar playing and sung in Spanish like “Fuera,” “No Puede Ser,” and “GFF.” The fast-paced, basic punk recipe in this four-piece has been referred to as “Mexico’s answer to the Sex Pistols”, but they lack the snarkiness of the ‘70s Brits. The obvious sense of humour of this punk band (the English translation of their name is “Six Chicken Broths”) makes comparisons with groups like NOFX more appropriate. In fact, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Fat Wreck Chords (a label founded by NOFX singer Fat Mike) taking notice of this Mexican foursome in order to capitalize on the USA’s under-represented Latino punk rock market.

With singalong choruses sprinkled between mile-a-minute verses and strong instrumentals, Seis Pistos’ fourth full-length album shows that Chihuahua, Mexico should be recognized for more than just the purse-sized dogs currently sported by America’s super-rich blondes.

-Jennifer Fabro

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Seizure 17
She Owns You
Father Devine Records

Seizure 17 do post-punk grunge with a disturbed, anomic underbelly. Somewhere between the Stooges (“All I Want” has the whole “I Wanna Be Your Dog” thing going on), Nirvana and Lou Reed, it’s short, stripped down, guitar-driven music that sounds tailor-made to run from the law with. The minimalism of the sound and structure works well with the feeling of simmering violence that seems to infuse all four of the album’s tracks. And bassist Jamie Campbell has one of the best bios ever: she was “conceived on a 4th of July weekend in New Orleans in the cab of a truck that was being used to transport stolen cars. Forced to move north when the KKK put a price on her father’s head, she was raised in upstate New York, where she developed a passion for opera, painting and drugs.”

www.seizure17.com

- James Sandham

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Seizure Crypt
City of New York
Independant

Is there some rule in the speed core scene that you need to send all the paper bits of a CD layout sans jewel case? How’m I supposed to keep track of all of this stuff? Well, I guess with Seizure Crypt’s album, I can probably just give it all to some Quebecois squeegee kid to stitch onto his camo vest. At least someone has a use for this sort of tripe.

I think the rule of thumb in any music that requires yelling (I’m talking to you, hard core), is that if you can’t shriek, grunt, bellow with the big boys, then you really shouldn’t try it. Seizure Crypt attack their music with raw aggression, but Tom Reardon, Doug Williamson, and Mike SOS* all just sound like they’re going to cough up a lung trying to do a second-rate Henry Rollins impression. Varying time signatures and  thrash chords are buried alive beneath the impotent vocal onslaught, the brightest point being “Death Rider,” which as far as I can tell is basically a track inspired by Monty Pythons “I Like Traffic Lights,” except Mr. Reardon’s love for traffic control is not nearly as convicted as Idle’s.

Definately one for the squeegee kids.

*See my less than fawning review of SOS’s A Guide to Better Living.

www.seizurecrypt.com

- Christopher Langer

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 Seizure Crypt
 Hello My Name Is Madness
 3:16 Productions

 Fate is a cruel mistress. It lets people sleep-in with fire at their door.
 It tears apart lovers and kills goldfish. For this writer, fate has
 brought a second Seizure Crypt album in less than a year. Though the NYC
 speedcore quartet have made some small steps, they still rest firmly in
 the backseat of wrestling-loving, dead body-poking, gutter-throated
 America.

 As a band, Seizure Crypt have tightened up. It's easy enough to say that
 all the notes are (pretty much) in all the right places, but what remains
 is a fairly average metal record that's strangely dated (read: late
 eighties), though I suppose this is fair given that's when anyone other
 than the hardcore fans cared about speedcore. Though influences from
 Fugazi to Celtic Frost are at play here, there's no interesting adaptation
 of the blueprints. Chord progressions decisively jump from minor to minor,
 machine-gun drums blast out are little more than genre-specific talking
 heads, and the tracks stick true to their source material, with tracks
 like "The Deadened," "Where the Bodies are Buried," "Inhuman Nature," and
 closer "Eulogy" pointing in the obvious direction of the lyrical content.

 That being said, Seizure Crypt's new album is much better than last
 years offering. Their two-singer attack layers barks over growls quite
 well, considering that is wasn't even listenable one album before. Even if
 all this is for is to spit somewhat archaic material, I still have
 to say that Seizure Crypt are bringing a lot more to the table. Though the
 band sticks too much into the standard speedcore riffs, a few scattered
 bridges and outroes offer some variety, including an interlude on "Eulogy"
 that caries a little 'classic rock by way of John Frusciante' balladry to
 it. That being said, I still stand by my previous assessment of the band
 being "one for the squeegee kids," though their fan base is sure to grow
 incrementally as they continue to hone their sound.

 Christopher Langer
 www.seizurecrypt.com

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Sevendust
Alpha
7 Bros./ Asylum

Sevendust is a heavy metal band that experienced their 15 minutes during the late 90’s when asked to perform at Woodstock ’99.  Since then they’ve released five studio albums, each one doing progressively worse than the one before it. The bands that survive and stick around are the ones who can evolve their sound to keep grasping the attention of new fans.  A sound that is distinct to the early 2000’s when bands such as Slipknot and Mushroomhead were prominent, Sevendust have not changed their sound from when they first broke on to the metal scene.  Alpha is chalk full of power chord guitars and deliberately fast double bass drums.  Heavy metal has changed so drastically since Sevendust’s hay-day, but they might be the only ones who haven’t caught on yet.

http://www.myspace.com/sevendust

-Phil Kedrosky

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Shout Out Louds
Our Ill Wills
Merge Records

Swedish indie pop-rockers the Shout Out Louds have taken their oh-so-sweet gentle sound and injected some secretive ill wills on their sophomore album. Not even remotely unkind or hostile whatsoever, the 12-track Our Ill Wills LP is a nifty little chapter into their worldly lives. It’s been a couple of years since their debut Howl Howl Gaff Gaff and tracks such as “Normandie,” “South America” and “Parent’s Livingroom” reveal the quintet have been all over the place, reaping the benefits of their delectable sound.

Neither sugary nor folkie, the Shout Out Louds have managed to marry charming pop musings with crafty guitar and drum beat techniques to create a fluid, neat record. They’re indie enough in their sound to earn the respect without being extremely weird and losing it. A great little ditty of a disc, kind of reminiscent of a John Hughes flick – Molly Ringwald dancing in the library and all.

www.shoutoutlouds.com

www.myspace.com/shoutoutlouds

-Antoinette Mercurio

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Shulz
What Apology
Sudden Death Records

If you were missing eighties metal, this album may be for you. If you like the buzzing sound that bees make when they swarm across guitar strings, the British Columbia recorded and mastered offering from Schulz, may be what you've been looking for. What Apology is their debut album and brought to you by Sudden Death Records. The gruff voiced, somtimes gravel spolen, singer Jeff Borden, performing with Guenter Schulz on guitar, bass and programming, cover a slower paced, funked up version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart," the Joy Division classic just over half-way through the offering. The album closes out with further rough tracks.

-Heather Rayment

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Shy Child
One with the Sun
Say Hey Records

Shy Child is another band out of New York City making music for twitching white college kids and they’re bloody good at it. They’ve released more than a half dozen EPs, LPs, and remixes, and they’re currently touring in the UK and France. Not bad for a band without even a proper website. But I guess they’ve got better things than websites to build, and between the two members Shy Child manage to buzz out a completely infectious haze of dancey electro-rock and roughed-up New Wave. Some of the best tracks from the CD are “Summer” and the album’s throbbing opener, “The Noise Won’t Stop,” but the whole album is pretty solid and the duo’s style and ear for catchy beats are consistent throughout. Plus, in an act of wild desperado, they’ve reintroduced the keytar (the keyboard guitar, aka the guiboard) to rock dance music; not since the eighties has someone looked so cool playing it. And not only is it chic, but it also adds a fitting reminder of where Shy Child’s musical roots lay. It’s taken some time, but Shy Child may be the eighties most worthwhile legacy.

- James Sandham

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Siberian
Hey Celestial!
Sonic Boom Recordings

Sites like threeimaginarygirls.com claim to have “a crush” on Siberian - and it’s not hard to see why. They do “handsome” music - Coldplay-inspired tunes but with a bit more edge. Finn Parnell's vocals are strong and melodious. Paired with the rest of his Seattle-based quartet, it results in an album of respectable if tame indie-pop. While perhaps a little on the melodramatic, emotional side at times, the band channels groups like the Shins - on “Forty-Two” in particular - and have created in Hey Celestial! a decent little debut EP that may appeal to you if you have a taste for the softer side of contemporary pop-rock. “Talk to the Moon” is another good track, with its lilting Brit-pop influence and punchy drum beat. Not bad for something that grew out of a demo that wasn’t even supposed to be released.

www.sonicboomrecordings.com/artistinfo.php?bandid=42

- James Sandham

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Sidharta
The Sid Matter
Self-Produced

Sidharta are a hardworking, Montreal-based punk group who shout gritty vocals loud enough to shame Brody Dalle. Having already toured most of North America and Europe on their own ingenuity and resourcefulness alone, they are, unfortunately, slightly less accomplished on the musical front. Their sound hovers around a space only slightly more organized than complete chaos. It is raw, anarchic punk with little time to pause and even less time for structure, driven by often dissonant guitar and drum patterns. On top of this musical madness, singer Ouragan Jacquier proceeds to vomit bloody murder into the mic. Pretty crazy, but good tunes if you’re into epilepsy.

www.myspace.com/sidharta

- James Sandham

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Signal Hill Transmission
An Empty Space
Juice Records

There’s some pretty rockin’ numbers on this LA-based group’s third release, evoking a sound (if you can imagine something like this) somewhere between Bob Seger and We Are Scientists – with a few mellow tracks thrown in for flavour. So while this may not be the most consistent of albums, that’s also part of it’s appeal – there’s a little bit of everything on here. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Tracks like “Alright” – an ode to the virtues of 1970s music – are a little over-the-top cheesy and end up sounding somewhat artificial in the way Jet’s 1970s-inspired music can sometimes fail, but more often than not you can overlook the substandard lyrics in favour of SHT’s catcy, guitar-driven melodies. “Polyvinyl Acetate” is a great tune, and “No More Rides for Free” brings the cowbell back in a way not heard since the days of Blue Oyster Cult. So rock on like it’s 1979.

www.signalhilltransmission.com

- James Sandham

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Silence The Foe
Sweet, Sweet Suicide
Lujo Records

A hardcore band from Trondheim, Norway,they play modern hardcore, have done a few European tours, and played a number of festivals all over Europe, including the Norwegian version of the North by North West festival. Listening to this offering, it is clear to see why and how they have managed to get such a touring schedule. This opening track "Chaotic Mind" lives up to its name and the other songs pretty much carry this sensation on until you feel worn out listening to it. They do not fall into the hardcore-style trap of relying on screaming and yelling their way through, with the music coming a close second to the screams they can fit into a song. The guitar work from Audun Storset, Marcus Forgren and Roland Livar Kjenstad  are fantastic on their own, sometimes showing a much softer side; like the likes of Feeder, only with way more intense vocals. It makes for compelling listening, and could be billed as hardcore for the more relaxed and less intense. Not to detract from the heaviness of the band, it is more of a testament to how well crafted the music is in such songs as "As Holy Spirit" and "Penny For Your Lies". The vocals of Anders Voldronning often sound similar to that of the black/death metal genre, yet never make the music feel as dark as that style of music. Their music is very much lively and uplifting as opposed to being dark and overly aggressive. This is most certainly hardcore Scandavian style. It is extremely well produced and put together and sounds technically perfect for a band playing such heavy songs. Let's just hope their touring schedule carries on into the rest of Europe and North America again.

-Adrian Huggins

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The Silt
Cat’s Peak
Fig Records

Skilled multi-instrumentalists Ryan Driver (Deep Dark United), Marcus Quin (The Sharp Tongues) and Doug Tielli (The Reveries, The Draperies) play jangly, loose and messy country-folk-blues tracks that are at once familiar and alien on their third release Cat’s Peak. Comparable to Neil Young, but also similar to The Beta Band, the album is a collection of well-orchestrated, yet experimental songs.

Brooding but playful, improvised yet capable, The Silt avoid dwelling too long on one tone or quality. Robust harmonies erupt out of long, drawn out notes, while twangy guitars, flutes and organs casually (but not carelessly) reverberate and bounce throughout the record.

Weird and wonderful, The Silt are a tricky band to categorize. Memorable and recognizable, yet unpredictable and volatile, The Silt create a special, unusual and delightful kind of musical ambivalence.

www.myspace.com/thesilt

-Kate Robertson

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Sin Dealer
Dying to Live
Independent

Sin Dealer should be embarrassed to call themselves metal. The not so talented lyricist of the band forces us to listen to lines like "Look into my eyes/addiction doesn't lie" and "Well I'm rocker/and I'm a roller baby."  Wow, now there are some top shelf lyrics.  This CD just screams poser Mamma’s boys with tattoos.  These guys try and come off real bad ass but it isn’t working.  This CD is simply a hideous display of bad metal with unbelievably bad songwriting.

The only thing this album has to offer is decent studio production and respectable playing. How a band like Sin Dealer can survive today is absolutely mind-boggling.

- Andre Skinner

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Sinbeats
Sinbeats
Independent

When The Sisters of Mercy toured Germany at their peak in the 1980’s, something fascinating occurred. They left behind legions of black-clad fans. The Sisters are only an 80’s Goth-rock footnote now in North America and even in their home country of Great Britain, but in Germany they still maintain iconic status. The fans formed bands and continue to pay tribute to their masters. Take Sinbeats. It’s 2006 but if you’re expecting a modern sound with this latest release, you’ll have to look elsewhere. The album borrows heavily from First and Last and Always and Floodland (two of the Sisters most prominent releases) with everything from the brooding guitar riffs to the monotone vocals. Some of the melodies are identical to the genuine article. In some ways, this album is a bit of a trip. Flashbacks of sexy girls in Skinny Puppy tee shirts dancing to This Corrosion at a local Goth hang invade your brain with each song. On the flip side, the album disappoints due to the wholesale lifting of the sound and the concept. To top it off, the effort is quite amateur, drawn out in places where you expect it to rock, too quick to wail on the axe in places it should slow down – like a basement practice session, really. One would expect a little more from a band that traces its genesis to 1990.

www.sinbeats.net

www.exodusattack.com

-Michael Cool

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Skye
Mind How You Go
Atlantic/Warner

Nearly two years after the unravelling of Morcheeba, former front-woman Skye, reintroduces mellow with her hypnotic solo debut. Mind How You Go is a poignant and poetic offering of pure breathless tranquility.

The sweet, smoothness of Skye’s vocals lullaby us along an intimate journey. Tender, airy melodies drift over deeply rhythmic percussions… Hints of electronic blend with acoustic and strings. Jazz-like sensuality is dappled with melancholic sweetness in her eclectic style.

Fans of Morcheeba should not be disenchanted with this project, although it is a serene departure from the heavy trip-hop beats that made Morcheeba so popular during the 90’s. Mind How You Go is much more delicate and personal for Skye, as she has written on all songs and been present throughout the entire project. The ambience is very intimate. No longer just the mouthpiece of another’s vision, this album is undeniably, hers.

Eyes close and body sways…Skye woos us with a cool, beautiful harmony that is the epitome of chill.

www.skyewebsite.com

-Sara Percival

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The Slackers
Peculiar
Hellcat Records

This is the sixth album from New York based, ska/punk/ roots band the Slackers. The band are on punk legends Rancid’s record label Hellcat records, and on hearing the band for the first time, it is not hard to see why. They seem to take the style of Rancid in their most ska and mellow moments. Although to simply say this would be an insult. The Slackers stand alone, and have a loyal fan base across North America and Europe, as was evident as they recently packed out many punk haunts across Europe including Germany, Britain and Holland.

The band, while on a punk rock label do play a pretty much straight up ska, similar to the likes of the Specials, and The Beat, but with a New York accent in the form of vocalist Vic Ruggiero, which sounds strangely like Rancid’s frontman, Tim Armstrong on a very good day. They also have a bit of a reggae feel to them especially in songs such as “Crazy” and “Capo” which are all thoroughly danceable which of course adds to the appeal of this band. The rest of the band include Jayson Nugent on Guitar, Glen Pine on Trombone, Ara Babajian on drums, Marcus Geard on bass and Saxophone is taken care of David Hilyard. They must have a big tour bus. But all these members make the band such a great musical force who produce some great songs in the space of this album.

“I’d rather die happy” is a relaxing, acoustic number, which sounds almost like Sublime at their most chilled out and reflective, you almost hate the fact you aren’t on a beach listening to it. On closer listen though, the lyrics seem to have a real old blues feel to them in the self-loathing and tales of struggle.

“What Went Wrong” is yet another song, which sounds different, but perfect alongside the rest of the album, its much more of a slow dare I say love song. It is a sad one though, with some great backing vocals that really show what great musicians this band are, despite the raw ska punk feel they have. Title track and lead single, “Peculiar” and “Keep it simple” really sum the bands feel up, with a real swing in the beat which really does make you sway a long to it, so you could only imagine what these guys are like in concert with a room full of people skanking the night away.

This is a great album, which works on so many levels as it is full of relaxed numbers and up beat songs that all seem to sound like instant classics that have been around for years. They also have a big social conscience as is demonstrated on songs like “International war criminal” and “Propaganda” which really keeps the punk rock flavour alive and also ties in with Two tone legends The Specials, acting as a social voice, well getting people dancing. Skantastic.

www.theslackers.com

-Adrian Huggins

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Slave to the Square Wave
Big Change
Sparks Music

Slave to the Square Wave aren’t the most innovative band, but what they’ve chosen to emulate - New Wave by way of the Cure, Flock of Seagulls, and David Bowie, with maybe just a touch of Talking Heads thrown in - almost sounds better done by them than by the originals. Big Change, SSW’s debut LP, is an album full of singles that, at times, may feel as though you’ve heard them elsewhere, but is nonetheless infectious in its smooth pop sensibility. The album’s opening track, “Sinners of Saint Avenue” gives you a taste of what you can expect throughout much of the album: catchy guitar riffs anchored by strong synth-driven hooks, slick production, and Colin Troy’s effortlessly cool pseudo-Brit accent. He’s got the whole Robert Smith thing going, minus the hair and makeup. This album heralds a whole dance revolution just waiting to happen.

www.slavetothesquarewave.com

- James Sandham

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Slayer
Christ Illusion
Abstract Recordings and Warner Bros. Records

Not only have these metal masters been around since the dawn of time, but they still manage to rip into our souls with powerful force, as evidenced by Christ Illusion debuting at Number 5 on the Billboard Charts. For those of us that have followed their career, we know that Slayer has always carried bouts of controversy mixed with lyrics that hold nothing back. We hear Slayer’s expression of politics and war throughout the album, with such tracks as “Flesh Storm” and “Jihad.” “Eyes of the Insane” and “Black Serenade” delve deep into the mind of the soldier during and after battle. Slayer manages to stay progressive as ever and wank their way with psycho drum fills and ripping guitar solos. The comforting vocals of Tom Araya continue to prove that he can still belt his insides out. They will be touring Europe heavily to support the new album and to learn more, check out www.slayer.net or www.myspace.com/slayer.

-Rayna Slobodian

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Slayer
Christ Illusion (CD/DVD)
Red Ink Music/Sony

This fully-loaded reissue of Slayer's latest album "Christ Illusion" comes with bonus tracks and a DVD of live footage and videos and it packs more punch than Bob Villa's nail gun.  Cover to cover the music is fast and furious as the unapologetic Slayer deliver a speed/thrash cocktail equal in intensity to their ground-breaking 1986 epic "Reign in Blood".  RIB is the obvious benchmark - an album that Slayer has not been able to top since they levelled the place with it 21 years ago creating an insanely fast and powerful machine gun metal sound that countless wannabes have not yet matched.  Subsequent releases have been a combination of genius and disappointment but these old guys cannot do wrong in the eyes of millions of rattleheads worldwide.  "Christ Illusion" smokes albeit lacking the hooks and groove that made their sound so deliciously sinister in the past.  Regardless, it blows most modern day thrash/black/death metal bands (most of whom they spawned) out of the water.  While RIB was rejected by Geffen for having all too realistic songs about satanism, necrophilia and Nazi concentration camps, "Christ Illusion" follows a similar path with themes of Islamic terrorism ("Jihad"), anti-Christianity ("Skeleton Christ"), and, you guessed it - satanism ("Black Serenade").  Not Slayer's best but listening to it still sends shivers down your spine creating the impression that shit is finally going to hit the fan and that the apocalypse is upon us. 

http://www.sonymusic.com/artists/Slayer2/

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Sleeping In The Aviary
Oh, This Old Thing?
Science Of Sound

Sleeping In The Aviary sound like another teenage angst garage band. The songs on, Oh, This Old Thing?, are frenzied, bitter and angry with a hint of comfort hiding underneath it all. Fleeting moments of emotional anxiety flounced by desperate drums and hard rocking guitar strings accompany each song, making the singer sound more neurotic than he might actually be.

The first four songs are thankfully pretty short so you breeze through them quickly. But then “Sign My Cast” comes along and you realize you don’t want to “sign the [singer’s] cast” but rather beat him over the head with it. Why are teenagers so angsty? Those are supposed to be the best years of our life yet we waste them on angry music, bitter feelings and useless existential questions we’ll never know the answers to. Oh, This Old Thing manages to accomplish that youthful vigour of moody depression and heated hormones so prevalent in our teenage years.

Perhaps the only good thing about this album is that each song seems shorter than the previous one, making it relatively painless. That and track 10, “Lanugo.” With some trombones in the background a la Mighty Mighty Bosstones, the singer’s gut-wrenching dismissal of his lover and their time together seems convincingly justified. Oh, This Old Thing? isn’t something I would call a complete album. It sounds more like something the band recorded on-the-spot, in a moment of emotional despair. Not exactly a top choice for me but if you like whining, self-pitying, post-grunge rock then feel free to indulge.

www.myspace.com/sleepingintheaviary

www.sleepingintheaviary.com

-Antoinette Mercurio

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Sleepy Brown
Mr. Brown
Purple Ribbon/Virgin Records

Sleepy Brown is best known as the sunglasses-wearing guest vocalist featured on many of Outkast’s biggest hits. He has lent smooth and catchy choruses to chart-toppers like “The Way You Move” and “So Fresh And So Clean”. Sleepy has also enjoyed a successful career as one-third of the Grammy-winning production team Organized Noize, responsible most notably for TLC’s ‘Waterfalls’ and the first two Outkast albums. With an excellent resumé to back him up and perhaps a thirst for the spotlight, Sleepy has put together his debut album, Mr. Brown, in hopes of making it big on his own. Unfortunately the album is about as generic as its title.

Sleepy Brown’s contributions to Outkast albums have always walked a thin line between ‘incredibly lame’ and ‘so silly it’s awesome’. His complete immersion in the funkdafied, soulful, falsetto voiced R&B stereotype of the seventies is ripe with camp, but at the same time it’s harmless and a lot of fun. In small doses Sleepy can usually come off looking pretty cool. However stretched out over a full album his shtick wears incredibly thin and what we get is a collection of overtly long and lame as hell R&B songs bursting with clichés. We get it all, from Marvin Gaye-like ‘oohs’ to downright embarrassing Barry White-type monologues (“You wonder why I stare at you all the time,baby?”).

“Lyrically Sleepy” offers nothing new (“Ho ho hum/ I love it baby/When you’re going down on me”), and as deft as he can be as a producer, the beats on this album are just boring.

It’s uncanny that a man who has crafted so many catchy hooks in his career could produce such a forgettable album. Even sadder is that the one track on the album that is worth its beans “I Can’t Wait” is actually an Outkast song lifted off the Barbershop 2 soundtrack, featuring Mr. Brown on the chorus. Poor Sleepy, always the bridesmaid…

 www.sleepybrown.com

- Sam Stilson

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The Sleepy Jackon
Personality (One Was a Spider, One Was a Bird)
EMI/Virgin

No, this is not Sleep Brown, the buttery-voiced hook man for Outkast. This is Sleepy Jackson, the trip pop alt rock one man band from Down Under.

It seems like that these days the indie world (whatever that actually is) can’t decide whether they still love the Flaming Lips of whether the band’s recent fame and progressively strange marketing moves warrant the distain they received between Transmissions from the Satellite Heart and The Soft Bulleten. The same goes for Mercury Rev’s last outing, generally derided as hippy fluff. So what of a band that connects itself to the two bands in its own press?

The Sleepy Jackson aka Luke Steel does not live up to his EMI-spun press, which likens him to both Brian Wilson and Jimmy Hendrix, but the native son of Australia does pen songs in the Flaming Lips mold, sort of in the mode of “This Here Giraffe” meets a Mentos advert. Personality was apparently even supposed to be recorded by super producer David Friedman; though it sounds like whoever they got in the end (Scott Horscroft) was a decent facsimile, which is what this album really is. Not the “perfect pop album” it’s author attempted, but a strong alternative leaning pop album that deserves much of the praise it has gotten from Mojo and NME, but not necessarily the epic comparisons that it wishes it had achieved.

A notably strong effort that fails to live up to its own press. If only EMI’s PR department was a little more reserved this album could (for this writer) fit amongst the top of the year. However, the bombastic claims it makes fall a little short of this mark. But honestly, Hendrix?

www.thesleepyjackson.com

- Christopher Langer

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Slingshot Dakota
Their Dreams Are Dead, But Ours Is The Golden Ghost
self released

Slingshot Dakota is out with their 2008, self released album titled Their Dreams Are Dead, But Ours Is The Golden Ghost.  What an altogether sweet and colorful album.  With Carly Comando’s emotionally beautiful voice and Tom Patterson’s talent on the drums, it makes for a richly melodic combo.  The opening track “The Golden Ghost,” is a great song to begin the album with lyrics like, “‘cause we are more than this song could ever say,” followed by the cute and honest song “Until The Day I Die,” with lyrics such as, “I just wanted to say that you are one of the few people to make me feel so beautiful.”  It’s an indie-pop album with a lot of energy and enthusiasm by the two. To put it simply, it’s just a really nice album and you can check some of it at www.myspace.com/slingshotdakota.

-Danielle Cowie

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Small Arms Dealer
Patron Saint of Disappointment
Deep Elm Records

Long Island, NY,-based quartet Small Arms Dealer do punk rock the way it was meant to be done: rough, raw, and brimming with misunderstood frustration. Eschewing the recent trend towards lyrics about the mall or the injustice of being young and subject to parental wishes, SAD prefer instead to vent about the emptiness of existence, the hypocrisy of society, and the struggle with meaninglessness. And just in time too. It’s like ever since Avril Lavigne and Sum 41 what passes for mainstream punk forgot about all this. But SAD are bringing nihilism back big time, all via a flurry of distorted guitars, crashing drums, and furious, two-and-a-half minute anthems. It’s more than you’d expect from a band who’s song titles (ex. “Fake Beard. Real Moustache”, “Who Farted?”) can, at times, read like the incoherent outbursts of naughty four-graders. But then they’ll go and do a totally powerful tune like “Oh, My Stars and Martyrs” or “Ill Gotten Gains” and it’s like, is this the same band or what? ’Cause I’m ready march into destruction.

www.smallarmsdealer.net

- James Sandham

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The Smashup
Being and Becoming
Warcon

At certain points on this disc, the SmashUp seem to have a near-poetic grasp of the English language. At others, they seem to be playing word-association with a good thesaurus on hand. But mostly, they seem to be pouring out the biggest and fanciest words they can think of just to sound smart.

An example of this, from a track called “Rachel’s Day”: “The mud-bloody earth so sanguinely runs to embrace the ash the corporeal return to penetrate stone the firebirds rise take wing through the mantle like seraphim fly.” If those lyrics made sense, I might be impressed by their vocabulary – but they don’t, and I’m not. However, most fans of the SmashUp are probably more concerned with the anguish of their persecuted suburban existence and whether their jet-dyed hair is falling just-so over their eyes to notice how overwrought the band’s sound is.

That is not to say this punk/screamo band is not talented, because they are. Lead singer Watt White shows admirable range, screaming with anguish one moment, gently whispering the next, and then unexpectedly belting out a catchy melody with the ease and control of a classically trained performer. The rest of the band’s performances are equally tight and adept.

“Never Going to Kill Us” is the band’s self-proclaimed anthem, and listening to its pop-punk infused shouting you can practically feel the sweaty horde of fans pumping their fists and singing along beside you. Later, with the slow-paced ballad “Dreams,” the band seems to be making a bid to be the next radio friendly alt-rock band in the vein of Default or Three Days Grace. And the final song, “Murder to the Mattress,” is about abortion and unwanted pregnancy. Lyrics include this passage: “This fate that a mother decides/ This violent mercy/ Forgive me my delicate child/ May God speed you to grace/ you’ll never see my face/ God’s will is good./ What could you know?” The band doesn’t take a firm side on the contentious issue in the song, but their frequent reference to God/God’s will through the album, as well as the song’s very title “Murder to the mattress” hint at the band’s beliefs, which probably go against those of most punk rock fans.

In summary, this album is energetic and varied, and the musicians deserve credit for their talent and expertise. Just don’t pay attention to the words.

www.thesmashup.com

-Jennifer Fabro

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Social Clash
Demo
Self-produced

Social Clash don’t get much sympathy from me other than because of the fact that they’re indie and Toronto-based and trying to make it on their own, but when it comes down to it, their music’s pretty bad unless you’re really upset with yourself, or hate your parents. Lots of tortured screaming. Lots of breaking it down to get soft and sensitive for a moment or two. It’s kinda been done, guys. And it’s kinda hard to understand anyone over sixteen getting this bent out of shape, unless its over issues of a humanitarian scale - and Social Clash don’t really make it there with their lyrics. But keep trying, because “For More” has potential - a great building, tribal percussive beat and some anthemic “whoa-oa” chants. The other three tracks on the demo: meh.

- James Sandham

www.myspace.com/socialclash

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Society of Rockets
Where the Grass Grows Black
Underpop Records

Don’t judge a book (or CD for that matter) by its cover. If you were to glance at the cover of San Francisco’s Society of Rockets new record you might think you were in for a heavy dose of Goth or death metal. This couldn’t be further from the truth. S.o.R kick off the album with the classic sounding rock tune ‘Tangerines and Cigarettes’, a catchy radio-friendly jaunt whose underlying horn section does a good job of supporting the guitar driven song. From there they move on to a more familiar sounding territory with the twangy ‘Out in the Evening’ which takes a sharp turn into the Alt-Country category. The rest of the album jumps back and forth between the two sounds. The Society experiment with many different sounds on ‘Dr. X’ and ‘End of the Line’, but they sound a lot more comfortable on the country driven songs ‘Ballroom Kicks’ and ‘Suicide Summer’. Overall I thought it was a solid album, but the Society would be better off in choosing one direction and going forward with it, rather than trying to do too many things at once.

www.societyofrockets.com

-Matthew Gorman

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Some by Sea
On Fire! Igloo
SideCho Records

Some By Sea is a classic example of a band that should stick solely to acoustic sets. Their music is abrasive in its lack of subtly, and can sometimes come across as whiney and immature. I believe this can mostly be attributed to the guitar and base. Basically, they just don’t work. The composition overall is way off, it makes On Fire! sound like it was made by a bunch of sad little MySpace boys, blow drying their hair and taking pictures of themselves in awkward positions. The piano and cello are ill-directed at times as well, but do sound lovely nevertheless. I do honestly believe that if they switched the guitar to acoustic, played up the cello, and fiercely edited it down they would have a great sound. This album immediately evokes Weakerthans, so if you like that sad emo boy sound then this is for you. There is no doubt that they have a lot of potential, they just need to make something that will please more than just the ears of teenage girls who think that knitting is ironic.

-Mikalya Carson

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Society’s Parasites
Self-titled
Hellcat Records

LA-based hardcore outfit Society’s Parasites wear their musical heart on their sleeve. If the name alone isn’t enough to suggest what this album’s all about, one look at the Olde English lettering and black-red-white colour scheme should confirm any doubts that yes, this is a punk album and one of the hardest variety. But despite the band’s somewhat generic packaging, they nonetheless manage to surprise - if not with their innovation on the genre, then with the pure ferocity with which they deliver their searing fast guitar riffs and dissonant, off-beat vocals. There is only the barest room for structure on this album, the quartet preferring, it seems, to dedicate all attention to squeezing out every last ouce of aggression possible, on a four-man mission to destroy everything. Because truly that is what this album is: a full on assault, a sonic Mongolian horde, crashing the gates of all that is established and leaving nothing but wreckage in their wake.

www.myspace.com/societysparasites

- James Sandham

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Solace of Requiem
Utopia Reborn
Ruptured Silence

There is a place in my heart for total insanity and bone-crushingly heavy music. Speedcore acts like the Agorophobic Nosebleed or Toronto’s the First Seed fall into this category, as do over-the-top schlock rock bands like GWAR. But bands like Hatebreed and Cannibal Corpse annoy the hell out of me. I mean, come on – do these guys actually take themselves seriously? Unfortunatley, it seems they do. And equally unfortunately, SoR falls into the latter of these two categories of heavy music. I know it’s probably not a good idea to knock a group as apparently angry and violent as SoR sound, but the last thing we need right now is another band of testosterone-fuelled psychopaths acting like angry violence is cool. There’s enough of that in the world already and it definitely sucks. Solace of Requiem: your name and album art may look like a Delirium CD, but it’s fooling no one. You’re on notice!

www.solreq.com

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Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
Broom
Independentbr>

Were you missing your ooh ahhs and sing along quiet foot tapping rock with happy pop tinges? Me too. Sweep up Broom into your collection and we can hold hands, skip, lick lollipops and smile as we blow bubbles with this fantastic mood uplifter that borrows its get in get out mindset from punk. All ten of its short songs clock in at just over thirty minutes. Written and recorded by, first names only please, John, Tom, Will and Phil "at Will's house in the attic and downstairs," according to the album's liner notes, between the fall of 2004 and winter 2005.
Instead of coffee, try this perfect morning pick-me-up.

-Heather Rayment

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Sondre Lerche
Dan in Real Life Soundtrack
Virgin Records

Sole declared artist for the soundtrack of Dan in Real Life, Sondre Lerche injects his intuition for acoustic placement, vocal sophistication, and simple lyricism. It’s the type of album that is easy to take in because you don’t have to think; it has logical changes in the melodies, an uplifting musical atmosphere, and straightforward messages.

I haven’t seen the movie, but based on the simplistic, endearing, warm, and safe music, I get the feel of a wholesome, family-oriented flick. You know the kind that promotes values and friendships (But don’t quote me, for this is based on superficial reasoning). And now I must see it, because this cat is always killed by curiosity.

“To be Surprised” has heavenly acoustic plucking, like an angel playing a harp. And Sondre sings with vocal range, “When I wrap my arms around you, every mistake we made crumbles”. This song is consistent with the rest of the tracks, which are slow, ballad-like songs styled in classy threads. Think top hats, glittery gowns, and shiny black pianos. Sondre’s “Human Hands”, written by Elvis Costello, gives off that classy adult contemporary feel, alongside well-known track “Fever” and a duet performance with Regina Spektor in “Hell No”.

But I prefer to avoid adult contemporary music when I can. I most related to “Airport Taxi Reception” (also found on his former album Phantom Punch) which I vividly remember from my last and more memorable encounter with Sondre Lerche. I understand this is a soundtrack, but I also understand that he was edgier and more original with his other sound. Time to turn back the hands of time.

http://daninreallife.movies.go.com

www.virginrecords.com

*cAthy Lee
 

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Sondre Lerche (and the Faces Down)
Phantom Punch
Astralwerks

Phantom Punch, the 7^th release from Norwegian born Sondre Lerche with his musical entourage (the Faces Down), is a savory cocktail worth the buzz it has stimulated. With a mix of the following ingredients: an ounce of pop, a dash of rock, and enough edge, it will be sure to shake listeners the right intoxicated way. One can escape mundane reality voyaging Lerche’s bright vocal tones as they effortlessly fluctuate highs and lows in soothing satisfaction, all the while maintaining that joyful state, which usually fades after first consumption. The 11 tracks showcase both quick-paced edge with choppy acoustic guitar riffs and sweet strumming ballads, while the album provides video and demo bonuses.

With a strong sense of self, the music leaks unique style on a landscape of musical copycats. But if I must pin them down, I think the Strokes meets Cake meets The Dears. While Lerche thinks, “Orange Juice meets Fleetwood Mac & My Bloody Valentine meets Gilberto Gil & Os Mutantes meets early Elvis Costello & Prefab Sprout & XTC meets Thomas Dolby meets Steely Dan circa Katy Lied, kind of thing”.

Infused with energy, delivered theatrically, the lyrics are self-reflective themed with love and life. There is optimism and lightness in this music that will be sure to add an extra spring to your step. And the musical transitions and placements are creative, novel and sound beautiful spontaneity (though I know they are tirelessly deliberate). And contrary to what Lerche belts out in one of his songs “You don’t want to feel the Phantom Punch”, I am sure we really do. I totally feel it. My personal favourite is “The Tape”, which is a first play instantaneous catch.

Cheers! Come here and unwind.

 www.sondrelerche.com

www.myspace.com/sondrelerche

-cAthy Lee

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Sonic City
Sonic City
Phd

Although the band may wish to move beyond this singular taking point, I nonetheless feel compelled to include it in the first sentence of their review: their guitarist is only 12 (gasp)! Judging by Sonic City’s promotional material, this fact appears to be their main selling point. For that matter, having listened to the album, it could also very well be their only selling point. I don’t mean to crap on a little kid’s band, but being 12 really isn’t enough to build a band on – or a following. They’ve already lost my interest, and I only got the album a few days ago. Granted, a guitarist of such quality and of such young age is pretty cool; the little bastard has even played with Les Paul. But the fact remains that talented as he may be, Sonic City’s music is pretty bad. Maybe it’s because curfews, homework, and teenage love happened so long ago that I have trouble relating to their angst-driven emo-pop. Or maybe it’s because I’m already inundated by a steady stream of similar refuse from every commercial rock radio and TV station. Either way, Sonic City’s music is neither original nor creative nor, apart from buddy on the guitar, particularly well played. But then again, that doesn’t seem to present much of a barrier to commercial success these days; perhaps being 12 will prove sufficient to carrying the band after all.

www.soniccityband.com

-James Sandham

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Sonya Kitchell
Words Came Back to Me
Velour Music Group

Remember holding your best friend's hand when you were five? A lazy, joyful voice greets me, sometimes in a slightly smoky haze. Piano tickles me with glee. Sunday mornings and Saturday's dusk never had a better mood filler. Sexy music and vocals board me on a "Train." Slow lovelies wash me away on a "Cold Day." Quiet, simple melodies underlay a sure steady vocal on Sonya Kitchell's Words Came Back To Me. And I for one am sure glad that the words and music came to Kitchell. Weather-beaten memories appear as words and pictures as Kitchell's liners, complete with faded postage on the front cover, waiting for you to rediscover old lovers, haunts and sweet burning recollections. Wait a moment or two, as the last song finishes, another begins.

As I listen to a CD, I don't want to muddy it in any way by knowing any more than what my ears hear. As I started reading Kitchell's biography, her age jumped out immediately. Not in a bad way. I have to say I hate it when I hear, oh so and so sounds so much older because they are so talented and how could a younger person produce that? Yes it drives me crazy because why wouldn't they be. So I won't say exactly how old she is. Part of the reason I won't say is because the music should speak for itself. Kitchell is a classy dresser and her air of confidence makes her ageless, like the music itself.

www.sonyakitchell.com

www.velourmusic.com

-Heather Rayment

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The Sorrys
The Last Clear Thought Before You Fall Backwards
Chrissy Horse Music

The Sorry’s are a quartet from Nova Scotia - Halifax, to be precise - who, like fellow East-Coasters Dog Day, do a simple, stripped-down form of rock-pop without the pretence. Their debut album, The Last Clear Thought Before You Fall Backwards, is a catchy collection of short songs that demonstrates the best of the emerging Canadian indie rock genre - great hooks, straight forward and relatable lyrics, and an individualist, DIY ethos that cuts through the crap. And while this ultra-basic production does have the potential to become a bit repetitive after long exposure, the Sorry’s quick tunes and catchy rhythms manage to avoid the worst of this. Drawing a certain level of influence from 60s pop groups like the Equals (opening track “Druthers,” for example and the excellent fifth track, “the Falls) and, to a lesser extent, the Beach Boys, the Sorrys rough up the candy coating on those sounds for something comfortably familiar yet at the same time distinctly unique.

www.thesorrys.com

James Sandham
 

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SOS
A Guide to Better Living
3:16 Productions Inc.

On the official website, we find out that SOS takes its name from their generation’s cry to the world for help. How provocative. How epic. How dated. Something is definitely amiss in the gestation of SOS, as their sound seems to be drifting backwards rather than building forwards, relegating their music to those pining for the aesthetic of the mid-90s.

I picked up this album from the ol’ unclaimed pike because it was described as metal, and I have a fondness for any band that listens to Maiden. SOS is not such a band. Rather, they sit awkwardly on the convergence point where grunge cynicism bleeds into contemporary pop rebelliousness. On “Star Killers” vocalist Mike SOS bellows that he “won’t give a fuck when this song never makes it to the radio,” which is probably for the best because no worldly force could ever get this song on the FM dial. This sentiment rings hollow, or in the very least archaic, as the last time using the word ‘fuck’ incited the Gen X crowd was probably that time Prime Minister Chrétien called that guy a fucker. So though they try, SOS rages against the machine about as much as the logo on their CD, which appears to be the Men Without Hats’ logo minus the crossed circle.

Sonically, SOS range from a paint-by-numbers pre-grunge act to a second tier post-grunge act, though they never really hit the stride of either the Screaming Trees or Tripping Daisy of which there sound smacks of. At the end of the day, this album is guilty of seriously stepping on the toes of its forefathers - too bad for these rebellious men with hats. A guide to better living this album is not. Not by a long shot.

www.sosnyc.com

Christopher Langer

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The Soul Of John Black
The Good Girl Blues
Cadabra Records

John “JB” Bigham does not sugarcoat anything. The blues singer quickly establishes this brutal, raw emotional energy on the opening track “The Hole” off his latest album The Good Girl Blues. “The Hole” is a snakey, seductive beat where Bigham twangs his guitar and wails that “he’s down in the hole.”

The slow, slithering appeal of “The Moon Blues” reveals Bigham has done his homework and learned from the greats such as Al Green, Miles Davis – whom JB has written songs for – and John Lee Hooker.

“I Got Work” taps into some Motown flavour and showcases a raw, smooth, sexy side of the singer as he croons “anyway you want it / anyway you need / I’m gonna put in some work girl / and bring you to your knees.”

Moving away from the sexiness, JB claims he needs a “Good Girl” and uses his deep, electric guitar to entice the young female to get on the “love train.”

Halfway through the album it’s obvious Bigham is a true blues singer at heart and he wouldn’t feel comfortable in any other genre. His coarse, manly singing paired with intimate, stripped songwriting defines the blues genre in a big way. Rather than try to wing it or play it off as some producer’s side music project, Bigham ingests the blues and spits it back with his own signature on it.

Raw, real and ruthless, JB bangs out the dirty, gritty blues and sucker punches the listener with an old school Southern musical beat down. This is not an album for the faint of heart but definitely one for those who can hold their liquor and gut it out with the best of them.

www.thesoulofjohnblack.com

www.myspace.com/thesoulofjohnblack

-Antoinette Mercurio

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…The.Sound.Of.Us…
From Basements and Bedrooms
Unsigned

First, this chimera with a Hot Hot Heat body, a Nickleback tail, and a head somewhere between Pop Will Eat Itself and Lincoln Park needs a name change.

Second, though the 604 Imprint may listen to this album more than once, the late 90s or early 00s are too recent to have vintage appeal, and as From Basements and Bedrooms is executed with far so much “epic” seriousness to be taken lightly, it definitely can't be taken seriously.

Thirdly, even if this record is a little above “meh” by radio rock standards, radio rock is hardly the standard-bearer for the genre.

Lastly, for anyone who wished 1999 never really ended, from the small town to the frat house, this mixed affair is right up your alley. But you probably don't read this.

So eat a bag of dicks.

- Chris Langer

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The Sounds
Dying to Say This To You
Warner

ABBA, meatballs, Ikea, lovable muppet chefs… lots of cute, popular things come from Sweden. Rock/pop band The Sounds is no exception, though they do have a bit more of an edge than some of their countrymates.

The first track, “Song With A Mission,” is a brash, confident, guitar-heavy 70s rock song with bits of gospel thrown in to complement singer Maja Ivarsson’s very rock ‘n roll voice. She at times sounds like a small child, and at others like a sultry, otherworldly vamp, but always with a twinge of the Swedish accent and a good helping of smoky raspiness.

The album loses its momentum a bit after its fantastic start, and is comprised mostly of predictable, sugar-high, poppy love and lust songs with power guitars and synthesizer effects. Track 5 is “Night After Night,” an overdone but memorable ballad that seems to be about a failed relationship. “Night After Night” is also reprised in the last track, where it works much better sped up and without the buzzkill piano of track 5.

On the very catchy “Hurt You,” Maja is joined by an unspecified male singer and a lot of programming effects. “Running Out Of Turbo” is another attention-grabbing track (“Hey! Hey! Hey!/ That’s what I say!” is the main refrain), and the unlisted rehashing of “Night After Night” closes out the album satisfyingly.

It’s not really clear what these Swedes are “Dying to Say” to listeners. They’re not doing anything particularly new or innovative – but at least they’re doing it well.

www.the-sounds.com

-Jennifer Fabro

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Southcott
Flee the Scene
Rust Records

This is the first full length album by young American band Southcott. The band originates from Rockland County, New York and are certainly a band that you would class as “emo”. Before you all put this down and move on, do give them a chance. People are so quick to write of bands like this and the whole emo scene at the moment. It is not hard to see why, as so many of the bands sound exactly the same, from the way they sing and play, right down to the themes of break-ups and growing up. But Southcott are actually pretty good. “Red lights and Rooftops” is an instantly catchy tune, which will have you singing along by the end of it, whether you admit to it or not!

They have a happy sound to them rather than a miserable self-pitying feel, putting them along the likes of Yellowcard, Jimmy Eat World and Sugarcult, rather than the bands that…oh shit I forgot what they’re all called, but they may as well be the same. You see my point.

Other album highlights include “Where the Tabloids Won’t Find Us” and “Vengeance isn’t the Right Word”, that is on the first listen, after that the other songs seem to catch up and lodge themselves in your head as well, which I guess is a good thing for the most part.

For a young band Southcott sound very professional and do not come across like a band who just got lucky. They have a well-polished feel to them that doesn’t sound stale or contrived, it just sounds like they have a good knack for writing a good song.

“We’ll Take This Outside 12:45” is one of the best songs on the album and shows a band that are growing musically, with “We’ll Take This Outside 1:17” finishing the second part of the tale and the album off excellently.

Southcott will undoubtedly be shot down as another emo/pop-punk band, but they really are worth a lot more than that. It is obvious that they are good now and are only going to get better and better, instead of just doing what every other band in this genre are doing. Good luck to them.

-Adrian Huggins

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Sparklehorse
Dreamt For Light Years In The Belly Of A Mountain
Capitol Records

I don’t think Sparklehorse is capable of making a bad album. This could merely be my own personal opinion, but I tend to take it as pure undeniable fact. This being said, the title track off of Sparklehorse’s new album is a b-side from his last album, (one that Sparklehorse front man Markus Linkous called his “Godspeed! You Black Emporer” track,) which certainly points towards the artist’s difficulty in choosing a direction for the follow up to his heartsick tour de force.

It says it right there on the second page of Dreamt For Light Years In The Belly Of A Mountain’s insert, amidst the bleeding thorned hearts, maple leaves, trees, and bees, “STATIC KING.” After Wonderful Life, an album so chalk full of pregnant pauses and delicate sadness that Tom WaitÕs guest appearance was just too damn cheery, Markus Linkous has returned to his fuzzed-out brand of college rock more similar to Good Morning Spider than to his previous release.

Dreamt... has Linkous moving much sonically to fill the gap left by his now-departed and oft-compared-to contemporaries, Grandaddy. This consists of an upping of the average track’s tempo (from “sleepy dirge” speed to “making out on The OC” speed), the departure of guests Nina Persson and PJ Harvey from backup vocal duties, the demotion of guesting Tom Waits from vocals to piano, and the prominent inclusion of wunderkind producer Dangermouse. Though indubitably Dangermouse’s contributions will have the hipster set drooling, they don’t seem to change the formula much from Linkous’ first two LPs. The drum programming from “Don’t Take My Sunshine Away” could easily have been done by the Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd, who shows up later on “It’s Not So Hard.” Also with the Dangermouse tag comes the use of electronic bips and blurps that may have sounded cutting edge on a 70s era Who record or at home on a modern rap crossover, but are too forcefull to fit fully into the Sparklehorse mold.

The tracks on Dreamt... provide more unity than previous Sparklehorse releases, but after a five year hiatus some of us were expecting something phenomenal, not just a strong indie rock album. I suppose we’ll have to wait with bated breath for the apparent Sparklehorse/ Dangermouse collaboration to see how much water’s really at the bottom of Linkous’ well...

www.sparklehorse.com

Christopher Langer

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Spectacular
Find Yourself
DHF Records

Spectacular’s new album Find Yourself, starts out less than spectacular (ouch). The first tracks roll out positive reggae/dancehall clichés and not half as well as some other recent albums. It isn’t until the furious kick of “Loud,” where Spec and Mighty Tolga spit ragga over a double-time club-ready beat that listeners begin to understand that Spectacular is out to challenge dancehall thrones. “Loud” is followed up by the veritable grind-a-thon of “All My Love,” soon to be outlawed at high school dances across the land. Guest vocalist Yell and Spec seem to get along famously, or in the very least they have more chemistry than half of Scarlett Johansson’s relationships (plus the track lasts longer – ouch again). Unfortunately, by “Never Let Go” the love songs have grown a little stale, and despite a killer hip-hop finale, Spec finds himself wading through some middle of the road material, clutching his jewels to his chest. However, this Trenchtown local has already made a name for himself in Europe, and with skills that at their best put the Bujus and Beenies to the test, Spectacular may very well find himself some love over here in North America.

In related news, big up/snaps to DHF Records, as apparently independent German labels have way better taste in dancehall than American subsidiaries.

www.dancehallfieber.com

- Christopher Langer

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The Spill Canvas
No Really, I’m Fine
Sire Records

Two spills make a right. Spill Magazine meets Spill Canvas, though through different mediums, they have the same goal: to uncover art. At first play, SC is undeniably radio ready with their studio crispness, solid vocals, emotional lyrics, and predictable but ever-pleasurable chord changes. It’s catchy emo alt-rock in a safe mould for 102.1, somewhere between Something Corporate, Finch and Further Seems Forever.

No Really, I’m Fine is a fitting album title: With all the heartbreak, the haunt of a former lover, the last but resilient seed of hope, and suffering without want, all listeners are inclined to ask, “Hey man, are you alright?” “No Really, I’m Fine”, responds the album cover. But the deeper and more accurate layers reveal “There is a part of everyday when I lie to myself and say that it’s okay” (lyrics from “The Truth”).

Heavy heavy emotional unburdening, magnified sonically with piano and organ keys, vocal strains, whimpers and screams, and brought to rock life with electric guitar power and drumming thunder. This 12-track album has guest appearances from Andrew McMahon (on piano) and Anthony Green (backup vocals in “Bleed, Everyone’s Doing It”), and includes song “Saved”, which was originally recorded for the Superman Returns soundtrack.

I like “Connect the Dots”, a slow track with simple electric drumbeat, delicate jumpy guitar notes in the verse and a liquid guitar solo. This song, also like the acoustic track “Lullaby”, is about unconditional pampering and undivided attention to one’s idiosyncrasies, the kind of song that ignites a female yearning and fantasy—that her boyfriend could write a song like this just for her.

I know all your favourite spots and tonight we will connect the dots (lyrics from “Connect the Dots”)

It’s the way that you blush when you’re nervous/It’s your ability to make me earn this/I know that you’re tired/Just let me sing you to sleep (lyrics from “Lullaby”)

*Sigh* All I want right now is a boyfriend like this…

 www.myspace.com/tsc

www.thepsillcanvas.com

www.sirerecords.com

*cAthy Lee

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Star Anna
Crooked Path
Malamute Records

Malamute Records' rising talent Star Anna is the definition of great alt country, with a style comparable to Lucinda Williams and Neko Case in production and songwriting.  Her smooth voice and seasoned tone takes the listener on long journeys into her personal life, and it's this rare story telling talent that Star Anna possesses that makes her music really stand out.

Specific tracks that really hit home are "If Wishes Were Horses" an amazing track that instantly puts you in the driver’s seat of a scenic summer drive through the country.  It's loaded with hooks, and awesome instrumentation that shows off that bands musical chops and Star Anna's exceptional songwriting skills.
"No Surprise" is a really nice slow jam with velvety vocals, lazy guitars and a real comfy vibe. "Five Minutes to Midnight" is quite simply a killer, a show stopper that will leave you breathless. This album will blow you away.

-Andre Skinner

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Stars of the Lid
And Their Refinement of the Decline
Kranky

From atop the tired, majestic cloud where Stars of the Lid call home, comes another eclectic lesson in dreamy drone-ambient music. And Their Refinement of the Decline is a noble effort from the Austin, Texas natives who have released seven albums since 1993. For those not familiar with drone music, it’s the tired sister of ambient music involving minimal instruments and drawn out single notes. On And Their Refinement… central musicians Adam Wltzie and Brian McBride paint elaborate soundscapes of melodic violoncello-driven ambiance. It’s hard to find a standout track as the entire double disc plays as one solid orchestra leading the mind on a sonic adventure. The epic “Don’t Bother They’re Here,” clocking in at just over 10 minutes long, wouldn’t be out of place in an adventure film score.  Stars of the Lid’s, And Their Refinement of the Decline, is the perfect album to fall asleep to.

– Andrew Seale

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Starsailor
On the Outside
EMI

Vol. 1

Starsailor are a rock band from England. They do English rock. Think Coldplay, sometimes reminiscent in the vocals; elements of Oasis; maybe a bit of Interpol tossed in there. Other than that, I don’t what I can say. It’s not exactly a unique sound. But it’s solid. If you like any of the aforementioned bands you’ll likely find Starsailor appealing. In fact, if you generally appreciate radio-friendly anthemish rock, you’ll like this album. It’s comfortable listening – not “easy listening;” there is angst involved in this album, passion and alienation in those earnest vocals, but it’s the emotional equivalent of a BigMac: sure, there’s beef in there, but so processed and standardized that it barely qualifies as such. But perhaps that’s too critical; there were some standout tracks. “In My Blood” is brought to life by a slight gospel tinge, and “Keep Us Together” is pretty damn catchy in fact. But generally, as I said, the album is probably best described as “solid,” again in the sense that a Big Mac is solid.

-James Sandham

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STATIC THOUGHT
In The Trenches
Hellcat Records

It comes as no surprise that Static Thought has wound up recording for Tim Armstrong’s Hellcat records.  The band bears quite a resemblance in sound to Armstrong’s punk outfit Rancid, with an intensity that was present on Rancid’s albums before they softened up.  The vocals are reminiscent of Lars Frederiksen’s grating voice, but are sung with an intonation and occasional slur similar to Armstrong, with many of the words being slightly off time or sounding difficult to phrase.  The themes of the album are pretty standard censorship and corruption of the youth type fare.  An older audience may not appreciate these tired punk clichés, but the youngsters are likely to eat it up.  Even the title of the album is a little bit too loud for my liking, but punk isn’t exactly a subtle genre, and what they lack thematically they make up for in their enthusiastic delivery.  One of the more exceptional tracks is the response to Hurricane Katrina entitled “Dead and Gone.” The song features the lyrics ‘They’re fucking gone,’ which may not be the most compassionate or thoughtful response, but it is angry, and to the point.   

Static Thought is all about volume, and they’ve got it in spades.  The album is tight, the twin guitar assault is in your face, and there is no shortage of ripping solos. The group is off on the right foot, and they have clearly chosen the proper bands as influences.  Static Thought pride themselves on their straight ahead punk demeanor, and front man Eric Urbach claims that aside from the obvious targets in each song, the music is an attack on the poppy faux-hawked bands finding acceptance in the mainstream. ‘In The Trenches’ is their effort to make an album that is punk as it was before it became fun.  This is bile, anger and resentment, and it’s exactly what their audience will be looking for. 

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Steve Dawson
Waiting For The Lights To Come Up
Black Hen Music
 
Dynamically rich and tasteful would be a great way to begin explaining how this new CD from Steve Dawson sounds.  Having paid his dues as a producer for years in various Canadian recording studios, Steve has been actively releasing solo projects for well over 10 years.  His attention to detail and craftsmanship as a songwriter and producer really shine on this new album.
 
This CD truly get going on track 2, "Dry as our luck", it introduces the listener to Steve Dawson's seasoned songwriting skills and amazing acoustic guitar chops.  It's a beautifully crafted tune, with impeccable production that really draws you in with its rhythmic folk appeal.  Next up is a killer blues piece called "Fire Somewhere" which features some amazing slide guitar playing and sweet female backup vocals.  There is one funny sounding keyboard harmonica that kind of throws the tune off kilter a little with its very synthetic sound.  On track 5, Steve pulls off and amazing version of Dylan's "Walking down the line" which features some amazing acoustic finger picking and a Leslie organ solos.  Bob would surely approve.
 
The album chugs along with great diversity and is just so genuinely country/roots-y, its hard to hit the stop button.  Track 8 "Hurricane" is a welcome ballad with great metaphors such as how "Silence hits like a hurricane missing its mark", among many others in on the tune.  Track 9 is a nice little acoustic jam that once again showcases Dawson's exceptional guitar skills.  This is a chilled out tune that has a tasty xylophone added over top of a Lanois-esque keyboard in the background.  Steve Dawson is a great Canadian ambassador to country/folk music, and should definitely be heard. 

Andre Skinner

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The Stooges
The Weirdness
Virgin Records

The Weirdness?  There is nothing weird about this album, except that it is painfully conventional.  If you’ve come here looking for the one review that doesn’t slam The Stooges’ comeback then stop reading.  Sure it’s easy to pick on Iggy.  He’s old, he’s hideous, and he’s still topless.  He does deserve some credit for consistently putting out new albums, even though he’s been coasting off of five albums from thirty years ago.  Let it be said though, that Iggy should have a statue erected for those five albums.  When he appears in the movie Snow Day as an easy rock listening ice rink supervisor it’s kind of funny.  Nothing wrong with a little bit of the old irony right?  It’s supposed to be funny though.  This steaming pile of an album is so appalling that it’s not even close to humourous.  Why record new music?? Why not go on tour and play the old songs if you’ve gotta’ do anything at all? Why sully the Stooges perfect track record?  The musicianship on the album is pretty good, fast paced rock, but Iggy just sucks it up.  So many of the Stooges songs featured repetitive lyrics, but they were authentic.  Iggy made you feel the impending doom he sang about, and there is nothing more wonderfully filthy than The Stooges back catalogue.  The Rolling Stones were Dirty Rock?  Listen to Fun House’s raunchy saxophone, or that moment when Iggy tells you he’s “gonna stick it deep inside.”  That stuff still sounds potent today.  Why release something that is watered down and doesn’t come close to touching the inventiveness of Fun House?  Iggy has never been the most subtle character, but listening to him claim that his “dick is growing like a tree” is such painfully obvious high school imagery.  The whole album is littered with similar moments. He moans about mankind, and proclaims his “idea of fun is killing everyone.” Good god man you’re killing me with this shitty album!  It’s just so contrived; and instead of focusing on the songs Iggy has chosen to focus on fitting into an old caricature.  This album should have been scrapped and the tapes destroyed. This isn’t even outtake material. These are concepts that should have been ignored from the get go.  Where’s Bowie when you need him?

www.myspace.com/iggyandthestooges

Daniel Demois

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Street Drum Corps
Street Drum Corps
Warcon Records

Interesting, A bit like the wonderful and highly imaginative “Stomp” Strange in places, but a really interesting listen.

The album starts off with “Police Beat introduction” which flows quickly into the first full-length song “Wrecks” This is for the most part an “instrumental” album. I use the word instrumental loosely as it is basically three percussionists, Bobby Alt, Adam Alt, and Frank Zummo and they do not play things that could be exclusively found in a music shop. No, no these guys use their imagination and whatever happened to be laying around the house. Things like buckets, kitchenware and aluminium garbage cans are used here. But be assured they do use RECYCLED aluminium garbage cans, every little bit helps right?

This use of household objects is again very much in the vein of Stomp. This is a good album for this genre, if you will, as there are moments where you forget it is just a few guys with drums, the fact that there are few vocal samples thrown in, within songs “Body sounds 101” and “Bang”, for good measure which make the music feel much more like hip hop or dance music, rather than “experimental”. This album does sound like hip hop, on a budget, only with less profanity and murder confessions. And one thing is for sure if this doesn’t get you tapping your knife and fork or garbage cans, I don’t know what will.

This is a fun and really interesting album, which manages to steer clear of ending up as just background noise, just don’t give it to children or overly active house mates, or you will never sleep or see half your kitchen again.

www.streetdrumcorps.com

-Adrian Huggins

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The Streets
The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living
Locked On Records

The follow up to his sophomore LP A Grand Don’t Come for Free, the Streets’ Hardest Way trades A Grand’s two-step hip-hop beats for more dance club friendly rhythms, while retaining the Streets’ distinctive lyrical stylings. For those of you as yet unacquainted with the Streets, he’s probably best described as the musical equivalent of Coronation Street: working-class, dramatically mundane, and quintessentially British. At least, that may have been the best way to describe him on A Grand; since then, however, things have changed distinctly. No longer is the Streets struggling to make a grand, using cheap cellphones, and “roaching a spliff at ’is girl’s gaff,” to employ his particular vernacular. The disillusioned working-class lout he was has now made it. And while retaining the accent and values of his past self, the context in which they exist has altered dramatically. Fame and wealth have introduced a whole new set of problems for the Streets, and these are chronicled throughout Hardest Way. The bottom line is that if you loved the first album, you might be a little disappointed with this attempt; the authenticity that made A Grand so appealing seems forced on this album. On the other hand, if this is your first introduction to the Streets, and you enjoy quirky lyrics rapped with a Birmingham accent, this album is worth checking.

-James Sandham

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Subtitle
Terrain To Roam
Alpha Pup

Terrain to Roam is one of the biggest blips on the underground hip-hop radar this year. Though I’d like to follow this up by tacking a “best of ‘06” label onto it, Subtitle comes across as an artist fighting his form, paving the way for one of the more conflicted albums of the year. Subtitle (Giovanni Marks to his mother) is without doubt an emerging talent as far as lyrics are concerns. Terrain to Roam tends to stay within the safety of the “what’s wrong with hip-hop” tent, but there are glimmers of a larger mind behind the standard underground grumbling, giving hope that one day Subtitle will release the proverbial “next level shit,” using his wry humor and hard-hitting frankness to roam over wider terrain than he does here.

To make matters worse, while Subtitle looks good on paper, his style is defined by struggle- his distinctively nerdy enunciation draws the comparison to Mike Skinner, though Subtitle’s rapid fire university-bred vocabulary is not nearly as entertaining as Skinner’s white bread blues.  Subtitle seems to spend a lot of time in Europe with acts like TTC, and his style would seem to fit either the British or French styles of beat making to American ones, as even with tracks donated by Madlib, Th’ Corn Gangg (for Christ’s sake...), and current lablemate Daedelus among others, Subtitle seems to have a good idea as to where he wants to end up, but doesn’t really know where he is.

www.giovannimarks.com

Christopher Langer

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Sultan
Yoshitoshi Montreal
Yoshitoshi Recordings

Yoshitoshi Recordings are at it again, but this time they’ve chosen Euro-Canadian hotspot Montreal as their house music haven and local DJ Sultan as the master mixer. A high energy blend right from the beginning, Sultan uses his keen skills to add some personal flavour to some of the tracks, while staying true to the hard-partying scene that is Montreal.

A DJ of global proportions whose shared turntables with the likes of Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren and Deep Dish, Sultan manages to keep his cool throughout the 14-track mix to elicit some heavy duty beats like “Together We Rise” and “Aidan.” The intensity is high on this record with rare moments of chillness but it all works together to create a stellar house album.

With residency at David Morales’ club Stereo, Sultan is definitely the ruler of the records in Montreal and Yoshitoshi is just one example of his wicked vinyl play.

www.yoshop.com

www.djsultan.com

www.myspace.com/sultansoultan

-Antoinette Mercurio

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Summer Hymns
Backward Masks
Misra

This is music for either an early morning or a late night.  It’s this kind of stuff that will either make you smile at its innocence or cry at how melancholy it is.  That is at least the intended response.  After a while though, I conclude that the album never really gets off of the ground.  The songs don’t really have any hook, instrumentally or vocally.  Lead singer Zachary Gresham is definitely the focal point and his voice is the dominant sound on this album.  The rest of the band is strictly background, repeating similar bass lines and guitar riffs to the same leisurely beat on each track.  Once in a while there is a brief instrumental break, that is likely meant elevate the energy level, but it doesn’t.  For an album that features a fairly nice sound on the surface, it is amazing how flat it falls after a track or two. 

Gresham sounds like a cross between Wayne Coyne and J. Mascis, but his lyrics are pure Coyne.  He sings things like “I wanna love you in the most physical ways” or “I’m trying to not to go insane,” but in the end it’s hard to feel any pity for this guy and his somber whimpers just become annoying.  Up until the last Lips album, Coyne could pull off innocent lyrics because he just seems like such a nice guy right?  But if the Flaming Lips can get trapped in their own sound like they have, what hope has Summer Hymns got.  Innocent lyrics can only take you so far, and unfortunately Summer Hymns don’t have a musical guru in the background coming up with a bombastic sound to support the vocals.  This is an album I wanted to like, but ultimately, it’s just a tedious.

www.summerhymns.com

Daniel Demois

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Susheela Raman
Music for Crocodiles
EMI

This shouldn’t be taken the wrong way, but I think the easiest way to describe this album is to say that it’s the kind of stuff you might expect to hear and see for sale at Starbucks. Or, alternatively, it’s the kind of music you might find recommended in the LCBO’s Food and Drink publication. Mind you, this is in no way meant to disparage the artist – or the listener for that matter. In fact, I found this album quite enjoyable. It’s been sitting (not inactively) in my player for the past couple days now. Upon hearing the sounds issued forth, people have complimented my taste. I’m serious. What this says about me or the people who frequent my apartment is another matter; the issue remains that this is a good CD, regardless of whether it’s likely to be sold in Starbucks or the Taj Mahal. It is, however, most definitely of the mellow, yuppie variety. It is what Norah Jones would sound like were she to incorporate an Indian influence with her music. Lilting, soft, savoury, accented by hints of the exotic – a description of the album reads like a bottle of wine. But let’s not be too cool. The album is indeed pleasant. Incorporating the work of contemporary Western producers as well as that of traditional Indian musicians, Raman creates a cultural fusion whose arrival on the mainstream music scene is long overdue.

www.susheelaraman.com

-James Sandham

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Swan Lake
Beast Moans
Scratch Records

I have to apologize. I have for quite some time rained as much as I could on Spencer Krug’s parade of critical acclaim. However, where I to dismiss Wolf Parade as infantile Unicorns-aping and Sunset Rubdown as under-fueled and infantile Wolf Parade-aping, Beast Moans shows Krug in very good company, with Dan Bejar (of Destroyer and the New Pornographers) and Carey Mercer (of From Eyes) sharing frontman duties. Krug definitely plays up to the next level under the tutelage of these slightly more seasoned songwriters, showing off a more mature, more sentimental side to his music. As a whole, Swan Lake allow their songs to build from quiet contemplation of vocals, guitar, or keyboard into soundscapes awash in manic guitar strumming, sparse drums, and digitally crushed organs, and in only a few cases do they forget to taper off the sonics before they grow stale. The only mark against against Beast Moans is that sometimes the “psychedelic” folksiness moves into rabid guitar strumming (as in “Nubile Days”), which may not warrant criminal charges but- well, it’s really the only setback on a rather superb album from a rather superb band. 

If one were to consider which were the standout (or iTunes store worthy) tracks, “Widow’s Walk” starts the album strong, with Bejar’s typical word-jammed verses, Krug’s unusually clear crooning, and Mercer’s psychedelic keyboard arpeggios. “All Fires” also warrants standout status, as does the schizophrenic Bell and Sebastien impersonation on “Are You Swimming In Her Pools,” perhaps the best track on an album filled with complex, rewarding material. 

There. I did it. I got through the review without using the supergroup angle...

www.jagjaguar.com/swanlakeband/

Christopher Langer

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Swearing at Motorists
Last Night Becomes this Morning
Secretly Canadian

truly wanted to like Swearing at Motorists’ fourth official studio release, Last Night Becomes This Morning. But ultimately, this Dayton, Ohio duo disappointed. The music intelligentsia seems to unanimously call Dave Doughman and Joseph Siwinski’s project “lo-fi” but does not “lo-fi” refer to simply more than instrumentation? Has “lo-fi” simply become the lazy music critics’ semantic game to describe the genre-less?

As I was saying, there is promise somewhere in Swearing at Motorists, but the concept far outweighs the reality. The result, which sometimes sounds like Ian Curtis punching Weezer directly in the mouth collectively, lacks the kinetic energy the duo may possess in concert. On the positive side, it is the album’s (for loss of a better term) “throw away” songs including "Losing the Battle, Losing the War" and "Lost Your Wig", that do manage to capture the emotional rawness the rock pieces with drums lack (sorry Joseph). After extensive touring, this is the band’s first album since the 2002 The Flag Signals Goodbye. According to the band’s promo material, Last Night Becomes This Morning "chronicles the struggle to live life on the road in spite of lack of fame or fortune”. When all the linguistic gymnastics by critics and the record company are said and done, I just found this effort, for the most part, mediocre.

But in Joseph Siwinski’s defense, those are some bad-ass sunglasses you sport on your promo photo.

-Jordan Somers

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Tacoma Redd
A Momentary Misfortune
Independent

On the cover of Tacoma Redd’s A Momentary Misfortune one of the guys is wearing a Bionic shirt. Has Jonathan Cummings already invaded the T.O. without some sort of early warning system coming into effect? We should have learned our lesson from the Katrina/FEMA debacle.

Local boys Tacoma Redd are out of the gates with this EP; produced by the Pursuit of Happiness’ Moe Berg, who I saw being harassed by a homeless guy for an autograph (he’s the singer, right?). Though the crunchy radio-riffs of their debut get the job done, the mid-nineties quality of TR’s vocals (think Incubus gone power pop) did it for me about as much as the aforementioned homeless guy’s hug did it for poor Moe. Apologies if it wasn’t Moe, whichever member of POH was victim to a random hobo-hugging.

Our very own Spill Magazine gave Tacoma Redd a shining review for their live show, and though I have yet to witness the “full throttle” sound the band apparently brings live, on the album they end up coming across as an older version of any Much Music Cancon, with fairly generic riffs, harmonies and hooks. This in itself isn’t necessarily an unforgivable thing, but like the west coast American town they apparently take their name from, Tacoma Redd suffers from being a little too typical. Their influences list both Husker Du and the Doughboys, but they would have fit much better on a Doughboys tour circa-1994 and wouldn’t likely get to sniff a Husker Du tour from any period.

The production value is fairly slick, which could either be a saving grace or responsible for wearing down Tacoma Redd’s sound that one reviewer (Jeremy Shum) has likened to Thin Lizzy. I get the feeling that Jeremy Shum has never heard a Thin Lizzy album if he thinks Tacoma Redd have any sort of ‘classic’ sound, especially comparing them to such a quintessential rock group. If Shum is hinting that he thinks that TR are future rock royalty, the throne must most certainly have been abdicated.

At this point all I can say is that maybe you should check out this supposedly great live show and take a pass on this EP. A momentary misfortune indeed...

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Tahiti 80
Fosbury
TMG

For me Tahiti 80 hit the spot – but probably only because I got their CD just before hitting the Scissor Sisters’ Koolhaus show. Tahiti 80 caught me in the mood for disco – and delivered, big time. But maybe too much so in some cases, because whereas, for example, the Scissor Sisters manage to do disco with a super-gay flare of dance club camp, Tahiti 80 stick way too close to the relatively more earnest Beegees model – which isn’t bad in short doses, but gets tiring over time. It’s a tough balance to strike. Tahiti 80’s music is fun, upbeat and sythetic, and the US release of Fosbury comes with a bonus EP (if you need more even more disco than the LP provides), but overall lacks the depth and resonance necessary to distinguish itself as anything more than a goodtime album you quickly forget. It’s the musical equivalent of a one-night stand.

- James Sandham

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Tall Hands
Self-titled
Pulse

Their self-assigned genre is “boat rock.” What exactly this categorization is intended to convey is a mystery but, according to singer Justin Raisen, “when a boat rocker hangs out with yacht rockers he has to tone it down a little.” You can draw your own conclusions about what that means. But artistic pretences aside, a more widely understood way to describe the Tall Hands’ sound would be Velvet Underground meets Elton John. The Tall Hands’ piano and acoustic guitar driven melodies fuse perfectly with Raisen’s powerful if slightly burnt out sounding vocals. This is quintessential New York music, drifting up from your speakers like city street sounds to a top floor apartment. It is eclectic and vibrant, weary at times but still optimistic. Slightly theatrical at times, but always catchy and upbeat, the seven songs that comprise this EP come to an end far too soon. Standout tracks include the opener “Fifteen on Ice” and “Medici.”

www.myspace/tallhands

-James Sandham

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The Teeth
You’re my Lover Now
Park the Van Records

Yet another strange find from the Park the Van label, the Teeth are a quartet affiliated with the Philadelphia scene that started to gain attention with the success of fellow Philly rockers Dr. Dog. Like Dr. Dog, the Teeth do an eclectic sort of jam music that draws influence from psychedelic rock but also has its own distinct style and doesn’t seem to quite fit into any one genre. Some songs are slow and waltzing, like “A Fight in the Dark,” a strange geek-rock spin on early 60s soul. Others, like “The Trumpets Blared” and “Walk Like a Clown”, are fast and almost frantic. “The Coolest Kid in School” is a perky little jam with a giddy-up beat. So really, this album’s all over the place.

www.theteeth.net

- James Sandham

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Tegan and Sara
The Con
Superclose Records

Twin sisters who live on opposite Canadian coasts – Tegan on the west side (Vancouver) and Sara on the east side (Montreal) ensures that they pretty much have the Canadian Indie scene covered. No matter how far apart they are, they do have that twin connection that everyone who is not a twin is fascinated by. BUT, I’m here to talk about their new album and not their beat-to-death “twin thing” that does factor in for them just a little bit of marketability.

So aside from that, the sisters have managed, with their superclose musical team, to deliver an album that is at the same time familiar and soothing in it’s Tee and Ess qualities (quirky, button-nosed cute, with singing that doesn’t quite sound like singing, or talking) yet new and able to push a bit further along the line of musical experimentation.

Tegan and Sara’s fifth album, The Con, starts with a song penned by Sara, “I was married”, which gives the listener a push into philosophy, metaphor and insouciance that, if you haven’t noticed by now, encompass many of Sara’s songs.  Every other song on the album save for a couple are offset by Tegan’s pop-heavy/lite songs that are quick to filter into your brain and stay for the night, like one of my favorites’, “Soil Soil”, which sounds an awful lot like “Where does the good go”, from their last album, So Jealous. Sara’s songs are more contemplative and eerie, like “Walking With a Ghost” from So Jealous, which also bears a small resemblance to the first track on this album, “I was married”.  How you like your bread, with butter or honey, is up to you, but the slice you grab may just feel like a “knife going in”. Mmmm, delish.

http://www.myspace.com/teganandsara

-Jess Shulist

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Telepathe
Farewell Forest
The Social Registry

"Pet Communicator" stands out and is so full in sound, with tribal rhythmic drumming and crying melodic guitars, that you almost don’t notice that there are no vocals until the dense, dark, layered, music box, rock based second song "Blinded Mouths". Bringing a banging on pots and pans rhythm, that carries through to the third song "Envoy". The filtered female vocals are used more as a musical accompaniment than, for the most part, real decipherable words. "The March" closes out with a creepy horror B movie sound that your mom warned you not to watch when you were eight and still had nightmares from such horrors.

The Will Lemon III silk screened inner and back cover both have fantastic visual interest. The rubber stamped looked mass of flowers and birds would make a great shirt design. The black lined red and purple back cover perfectly illustrates the sounds found inside Farewell Forest.

For the adventurously inclined, at just over fifteen minutes the self co-produced and co-recorded effort with their “good friend” David Sparks, the sound conjures up just what you think the word telepathy would.

www.thesocialregistry.com
www.thesocialregistry.com/releases/tsr025.htmll

Heather Rayment

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Terra Diablo
ST
Nocturnal Records

Like an indie Keane, Coldplay, or to a greater extent the Wedding Party or Snow Patrol, Terra Diablo's self-titled release is slick Britpop all but ready for the majors. Featuring a former member of Snow Patrol who checked out before the band cashed in, TD’s own attempt to reach the top of the pops may be guilty of too much apathy and too little character, but their tried, tested, and true UK rock formula will have consummate fans of the genre more than satisfied, even if the genre actually died with Blur and only now exists in the post-apocalyptic zombie known as Jarvis.

www.terradiablo.com

- Christopher Langer

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These United States
A Picture of The Three of Us At the Garden of Eden
United Interests

A Picture of The Three of Us At the Garden of Eden is the infinitely long titled album of These United States, the band disguise for the songs of singer/songwriter Jesse Elliott. Singing in a soft cracking voice that reminds strongly of a slightly more awake Jack Johnson, Elliott’s songs are mellow, bright acoustic rock tunes. Musically, These United States blend guitar base tracks with layered percussion, keyboards, electronic drum kits, choral singing and anything else the band could shake, strum or blow into. Lyrically, Elliott’s poetry is dense and contains more than a couple quotable couplets. While the songs never rise above a mid-tempo swing they contain a melodic pop sensibility that recalls at times a solo Paul Simon. Simply put, A Picture of the Three of Us... is a pleasure to listen to.                   

www.theseunitedstates.net

- Sam Stilson

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Think About Life
Think About Life
Alien8 Recordings

Despite being a fresh new Montreal band, and despite being personally invited by Wolf Parade to play as their support act during last summer's autumn tour, Think About Life's debut LP fails to impress. Maybe groups like Wolf Parade and the Arcade Fire have set the bar too high. Or maybe the hype of being associated with the Montreal scene invites inevitable disappointment once the product is finally released. Or, as seems to be the case, perhaps Think About Life simply don't have a lot to offer beyond their reputation for coolness. The band may be lead by Graham Van Pelt, studio proprietor and one of the main organizers behind Montreal's super hip party-palace the Friendship Cove, but where he's leading it appears to be over well-travelled ground. Think About Life's sound lacks distinction and innovation, too closely evoking the stripped down post-punk feel of predecessors like Television and Talking Heads without capturing the pioneering ethos that established those bands' influence. The group does shine, however, on their track "What the Future Might Be," featuring L.A. rapper Subtitle. Unlike the rest of the album, this is a standout track that fuses genres into a bold and creative new style of sound.

http://thinkaboutlife.org

James Sandham

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Thom Yorke
The Eraser
XL Recordings

Alright calm down, the end of Radiohead is not in sight just because Thom Yorke decided to make this album, although the same was probably said about DFA 1979 and they just called it quits recently.

Anyway, fans that feel uneasy about this latest turn of events will have their brows smoothed when they listen to an album that is not far from the digitized siphoning-off of emotion that Thom et al. usually produce. While each of the nine tracks on the album feature Yorke's painful fumbling at trying to coexist in a world that builds you up as it cuts you down, the general reflection is solemn.

Most surprisingly, Thom swings a beat upwards on "Atoms For Peace" where he appears to be giving the world a second chance to prove him wrong while hopelessly lamenting the heart-breaking isolation of a future that quickly becomes the present with no acknowledgment for the present or the past.

www.theeraser.net

Jessica Schulist

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THOR
Devastation of Musculation
Smog Veil

Pretty much every scene, local or otherwise, has its grandfathers. The Seattle sound had its Melvins, just as the New York art rock set had the Velvets and the pupae industrial scene had its Throbbing Gristle. Though not nearly as ubiquitous to his genre as these acts, it is my firm belief that Vancouver’s metal scene will always be firmly indebted to one man- Jon Mikl Thor. Without THOR’s brand of classic heavy metal meets Mr. Universe showmanship, the city’s metal bands would likely have less of an inclination towards Conan the Barbarian aesthetics that make it so entertaining.

Perhaps Robert Hicks and company at the New Times sum up THOR best. “Imagine Hulk, Chippendales, the Norse god of thunder, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, and Superman all rolled into one man. That'll give you an idea of the appeal of Thor.” Described by Thor himself as a heavier endeavor then previous albums, Devastation of Musculation describes the process of destroying one’s body in the pursuit of physical perfection. What this translates to is chugging guitar riffs and anthem-like solos which fall somewhere between classic hard rock and metal and the somewhat dated metal of the 90s. This is not to detract at all from the album though, as nearly every single moment of Devastation... approaches either truly epic or in the very least golden cheese. Perhaps the standout moment of Devastation... is “Cold White Ghost,” which makes a serious drive to bring back the classic rock power ballad.

It’s not to say that this album is amazing. Thor is not as young as he used to be, and his voice is growing hoarser with every album (notice on the Viking portrait inside the album, Thor pilots his Viking war boat with reading glasses). However, this doesn’t really even matter, as this just makes him sound lmore and more like a Viking, if not the actual lord of thunder himself. This quality complements THOR’s live show, where the lead vocalist bends metal bars with his teeth, explodes water bottles with his thunderous lung power, and battles evil demons in front of awestruck fans. Though it may be an impossible to bottle THOR’s live lightening, Devastation of Musculation is a strong, entertaining album which will slay metal unbelievers from Vancouver to Valhalla.

www.thorcentral.com

Christopher Langer

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Those Transatlantics
Knocked Out
Suburban Sprawl Music

From Mount Pleasant, Michigan, come Those Transatlantics, diligently trotting out their third sonic release. Clocking in at just under an hour, the 13 tracks that comprise Knocked Out are pop-rock stripped to its most basic elements. Simplistic but catchy, the songs are innocently upbeat and unnaturally wholesome college bar music. In fact, I'd have to say I question the sanity of a band that sounds this happy - there's something creepy about it, evident on the first track, "Boys and Children Sing for Summer," in particular. Nonetheless, Knocked Out remains sweet without being saccharine, and immediately gets in your head. Based around the pop staples of simple beats and equally simple guitar work, and fleshed out with the obligatory dose of "na na na" choruses, Knocked Out incorporates the essentials of the pop genre. With beautiful vocals by lead singer Kathleen Bracken and guitarist/vocalist Michael Spence, Those Transatlantics deliver an infectiously joyful sound comparable to the Cardigans, the New Pornographers or a more polished Mouldy Peaches.

www.thosetransatlantics.com

James Sandham

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Tiger Army
Music From Regions Beyond
Hellcat Records

With the release of their latest album, Music from Regions Beyond, Tiger Army may be what all the kids are talking about today, but this is no flash-in-the-pan buzz band. Music from… is in fact the fourth from the pseudo-goth, LA-based punk trio. No strangers to the music scene, these guys have been around since the mid nineties, working their way up and playing gigs at legendary places like 924 Gilman in Berkeley, CA, where groups like Rancid and AFI got their start. It was in this way that they came to the attention of Tim Armstrong, Rancid frontman and co-founder of Tiger Army’s current label, Hellcat Records. As Music from… makes clear, Tiger Army was a solid investment for him. While it retains a touch of the psycho-billy sound the Tigers made their name with on tracks such as “Pain,” drawing comparisons to classic acts like the Misfits, it also fuses a poppy sensibility that may just be what’s needed to take this band into the mainstream. Whether that’s a good thing or not is debatable - some may accuse the band of selling out and softening up their more hardcore roots - but it’s certainly brought the trio broader attention. “Ghosts of Memory” is a prime example of this pop influence, and tracks like “As the Cold Rain Falls,” with it’s synth-anchored beat, could even be mistaken for the Smiths. It may not be for punk purists, but Music from… is an undeniably diverse album from one of punks breaking bands.

www.tigerarmy.com

- James Sandham

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Tim Armstrong
A Poet’s Life
Hellcat Records

My interest in modern punk music pretty much peaked when I was about 19 or 20 years old, and Rancid was definitely at the top of the heap in my eyes.  Great instrumentation, barely coherent vocals, and signs of growth gave their records a quality that was worth returning too.  I was amazed by the scope of experimentation on the album, Life Won’t Wait, and equally impressed by the return to fast-short rawness present on their follow up to Rancid.  Now, if Tim Armstrong’s solo debut had come out somewhere in this time frame, I might have had some great things to say about it.  I might hint at how impressed I was that he decided to take things down a notch, but because of recent Rancid and side projects that have grown pretty soft already, this is just another in a string of letdowns for fans of the old Rancid.  Tim Armstrong has made a fairly obvious sounding reggae tinged album, for mall punks who think he’s revealing a softer side of himself.  It’s all pretty easy going, which is kind of nice for one or two tracks, but wears off quickly.  It also seems that Armstrong is trying to actually sing, covering lead and back up vocals on most of the songs.  Anyone who knows Armstrong knows he doesn’t have much of a voice, which is part of his charm.  When a voice like his combines with original and raw music it works, but with these slow beats and ska horns he just sounds old.  The title might indicate this is some kind of examination of his life because he is an aging punk.  Many of the songs speak of regret, and second chances, which might have worked if he really stripped things down.  Instead though, the album is packed with obvious production gimmicks and effects.  The end result is something that doesn’t qualify as reggae or ska or punk, but just gets muddled in the middle somewhere.  This comes with a bonus DVD featuring a bunch of music videos.

www.hell-cat.com

-Daniel Demois

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Tin Bangs
Heavy-handed Darling
Constant Crush Music

This young, fresh Toronto band rocks hard like the entire last third of the 20th century. Blending top-notch pop-rock vibes from ‘60’s surf-pop, to a broad spectrum of New Wave influences with a 21^st century modern rock sensibility, Tin Bangs is fast being realized for they are, and their popularity is resultantly achieving exponential growth. They’re set to open for The Killers on Oct. 20 @ the Kool Haus, the latest in a string of increasingly high profile gigs. Excitingly catchy, impassioned and swaggering vocals, up-tempo high energy riffing for ears at play; Strong wafts of New-Garage, Punk, Surf, and persistently driving rhythms makes this all-too-short five-song EP an introduction to a band that’s sure to be launching a full length in the not-too-distant future. Tin Bangs is a strong positive indicator for Toronto’s happily bourgeoning rock scene. Constantly catchy, but never annoyingly so, these local boys know how to vary up sounds and melodies with a persistently high-energy exuberance that’ll keep impressionable fans of The Killers rocking out hard later this month to their new favorite band.

www.tinbangs.com

- Jesse Kline

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To the Lions
Baptism of Fire
Goodfellow Records

One look at To the Lions’ debut album, Baptism of Fire, and you know what you’re in for: hardcore madness. And they waste no time getting to the point. Lions jump in without restraint from the very first second of their opening track, “Ride the Apocalypse.” I was blown back from my speakers and lay, stunned, in a crumpled mess on the floor, not quite sure of what just happened. Yes, as their press release proudly proclaims, this Burlington, ON-based group “plays, lives and breathes hardcore.” As the album makes clear, however, this is not just promotional hyperbole either. Baptism of Fire is, as the name suggests, a searing collection of quick odes to anger and disillusionment. It’s very reminiscent of hardcore’s nineties heyday, recalling the sounds of bands like Unbroken, Chokehold and maybe even a bit of Slayer. And while it may be hard to distinguish songs like “Born to Die” from “Nightmare Begins”, the band is consistent if nothing else. This is the soundtrack to the end of the world.

www.tothelions.ca

- James Sandham

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Tokyo Police Club
“Smith”
Paper Bag Records

Some things need not the ambiguity of gray, but can be stated in full clarity as black or white. Smith is just that—clearly great. Ambitiously creative, catchy, infectious, refreshing, unique… I am a believer in the Tokyo Police Club and this four-track release, alongside three videos is a bible sure to convert the most skeptical being.

Although it is a short EP, it highlights the range of their sound. The first song, “Box”, is a fast-paced adventure analogous as the Strokes, with the electric guitar emitting liquid variable notes behind unpredictable vocal melodies and a resonating drumbeat. And while that song exhibited vocals delivered with aggressive confidence, “A lesson in Crime” contrasts with vulnerable, almost trembling vocals. It’s a slow, simplistic, more emotional track that shows the variability in their art. 

“Be Good (RAC Remix)” is so awesome that my heart is still beating in love. With a drum machine, the song propels you into wicked electric energy. This hyper song is so damn intriguing—with chimes, handclaps, organ keys, tambourines and voices changing to electric streams—that it would take a hundred plays to habituate to the novelty.

Whoever mixed this is a delicious God.

The three videos featured in Smith include “Nature of the Experiment”, “Cheer it On”, and “Citizens of Tomorrow”.  They are thought provoking, ironical, entertaining and only add to the marvel of the music. “Cheer it On” features a man-made world fit with plastic figurines, buildings and roads that initially portrays suburban peacefulness, and later transforms into utter chaos: Animals are unleashed and attacking people, and there is nakedness, vandalism and riots. But best of all, the figurines take control of the (real) human that made their world. Love it. And lyrics from “Citizens of Tomorrow” describe the future of 2009 where bassist and vocalist, Dave Monks sings, “I have a microchip implanted in my heart, so if I try to escape the robots will blow me apart”. Goooo Newmarket!

www.tokyopoliceclub.com

www.myspace.com/tokyopoliceclub

*cAthy

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You Will Land With A Thud
The Tom Fun Orchestra
Company House Records

The Tom Fun Orchestra is a nine-piece Nova Scotian band that mixes bluegrass, Celtic and traditional East Coast influences on their debut album You Will Land With A Thud. Despite press coverage touting the band’s “new East Coast sound,” there’s not much newness going on here. That being said, if East Coast sound is your bag, these guys are rocking it well and trying to do it theatrically too. The band’s a definite handful for the ear with lead singer Ian MacDougall's intense, unwavering Great Big Sea-gruff voice, this one’s not an easy listen. There is a brief soft moment at the end of the album, but generally, every soft moment gets summarily wiped out by the overwhelming band size and sound. Tom Fun would likely be a romping good time to catch in a pub full of people, drinking pints and dancing their faces off on their native Cape Breton Island—if they could find a stage big enough to fit them, of course. 

http://tomfun.ca/

- Aurora Prelevic

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Torngat
You Could Be
Alien8 Recordings

The third release from Montreal trio Torngat, You Could Be is a meandering, dream-like collection of instrumental songs.  Like vaguely recalled scraps of memory, the tracks drift, swell and fall through your consciousness as they gradually unfold. There’s an anachronistic, surreal feel to the album, perhaps due to its reliance on the French horn, the primary instrument on each track beyond the basics of drums and keyboard, and is provided courtesy of Pietro Amato, already well-known for his work with Bell Orchestre and Arcade Fire. Semi-experimental, the album has an almost cinematic feel at times, comparable to the work of Yann Tiersen. It’s the kind of music meant to accompany something epic, and is refreshing in its distance from mainstream contemporary music. It’s poetic. And it’s very beautiful in a modest, understated kind of way.

www.torngat.ca

- James Sandham

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Tracey Thorn
Out Of The Woods
Virgin Records / EMI Group

Tracey Thorn is back, people. After not singing a note for five years and raising three children with professional and life partner, Ben Watt, the vocalist of Everything But The Girl has rehashed her sexy melodic voice and come back with a strong, solid solo album. Out Of The Woods highlights Thorn’s timeless voice and versatile talent to sing just about any kind of song – electronic, folk or a classic Brit ballad – she can sing it. The album is a mixed concoction of electronic beats, deep house and flutey sounds that leave you drunk with musical desire.

After appearing as a guest artist on other people’s music, it seems as if Thorn’s album is a reflection of her life’s work. Not quite a greatest hits since everything is newly written material but maybe it’s more of a testament to her well-rounded artistic abilities. “Grand Canyon” taps into deep minimal house to remind listeners why we feel in love with EBTG in the first place. While “Raise The Roof” channels some old school hip hop and funk to remind fans why we fell in love with Thorn’s voice in the first place.

The opening track “Here It Comes Again” sounds soothing and instrumental, tricking listeners into thinking motherhood has softened Thorn into a lullaby-singing musician. But then the second track “A-Z” turns up the hotness and produces a synthesized, slow, subtle song of youthful awakening. The gentle luring groove of the music coaxes the listener to give into Thorn’s voice and “pack your cigarettes / your life is waiting for you / love is waiting for you.” The 1980s synth driven first single “It’s All True” picks up the pace and kind of makes you think Yaz will turn up around the corner. But who cares? Thorn and electronic producer Ewan Pearson can pull it off – not just in a good way but effortlessly. It’s true, most of the album is the tried-and-true musical style we know of Thorn – that of an electronic, dance reputation – but she’s included off-kilter tracks such as a cover of New York disco-cellist Arthur Russell’s “Get Around To It” and the piano-heavy “Hands Up To The Ceiling” to showcase the range and depth of her musical flair. For the classic EBTG fan, this is a good pick. For any new listeners, I’d borrow a friend’s copy first if you’re not sure about Thorn’s lack of risk-taking.

www.myspace.com/traceythorn

www.traceythorn.com

www.ebtg.com

-Antoinette Mercurio

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Track a Tiger
Woke Up Early The Day I Died
Future Appletree

Am I ever "Glad To Be Scattered." Thank you for including lyrics in your liner notes, as I am among the worst of people who like to sing along but often with the wrong words. Country aficionados would appreciate the hurtin' lyrics. "Happy" is happy on the facade, as we all have after having a lover's spat and we're not entirely happy with the outcome but they are still there lying next to us in the dark. "Flood" peps up the music and hand clapping once more. Along with the usual fare, Woke Up also has banjo, cello, a documentary guy talking about polar bears, with one male on vocals and a rotating line-up of female vocalists. Lead by Jim Vallet from his Chicago apartment, Track A Tiger took shape over two years. Bringing different talents on the record, female vocalist Alisa Jo Monnier, besides Vallet, is the only original cast member in the touring band, where she also lends a hand (or two) on keys. Easy to listen to, Woke Up will get you in a calm state in no time.

www.myspace.com/trackatiger
www.futureappletree.com

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Track a Tiger
We Moved Like Ghosts
Deep Elm Records

Sometimes poppy, sometimes mellow, and always very melodic, We Moved Like Ghosts can evoke several different emotions.  Overall, it is a very peaceful record.  It does not demand much of the listener except that they sit back and enjoy.  It is not simple mind you.  There are enough sounds on each track to entertain subsequent listens, and it is this musicianship that makes the album.  The strings add more than just obvious harmony, the keyboards are reminiscent of Jay Bennett era Wilco, and the ambient background sounds add a dense layer that would work just as well without the other instruments.  The vocal duties are shared by Jim Vallet and Kristina Castaneda.  In a style similar to Yo La Tengo the two harmonize together extremely well, be it on one of the more upbeat songs or the low-fi stuff.  When singing solo Jim Vallet has a bit of a country feel that is reminiscent of Ryan Adams, which provides a nice change of pace once and while.  The whole affair is over after about half an hour, and will probably warrant future listens on those medium days when you aren’t quite sure what mood you’re in.  It won’t make you feel great, and it won’t make you feel terrible.  It’s a nice lukewarm album that will just make you feel good.  From time to time that’s kind of nice.

www.trackatiger.com

Daniel Demois

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Troy Von Balthazar
Troy Von Balthazar
Le Tribu

TVB’s self-titled release plays like a musical trip into Von Balthazar’s inner musings. Quirky, quiet, troubled, at times inane, the music TVB presents takes time to compute. In fact, I’m still trying to figure it out. At times discordant, at times softly beautiful, the album is, overall, a bit of an enigma. Original in almost every aspect, I suppose it could perhaps be compared to Moufette or, less favourably, to a really stoned kid screwing around with his electric guitar and a feedback peddle. I’m still trying to decide whether to label TVB an inspired artist or a self-infatuated elitist revelling in his own individualism. Indeed, it is difficult to discern what exactly Von Balthazar hopes to express through his particular brand of rhythmic noise and apparently free form poetry. Not a particularly complicated sound, his eerie guitar strumming and barely stammered lyrics can be both grating and provocative. But perhaps his own words are the best with which to explain his style of music, these particular ones taken from his online blog: “In paris I lost myself completely. I wasn’t there. it was my ghost singing through me. In Spain I felt their eyes and I was lubricated! then the last 3 days with Dionysos, all those people so warm, so kind with their human hearts beating in wildly. All I ask is to be completely covered in music.” If you found this profound or intriguing, you might like TVB. If you thought it was pretentious crap, give this album a pan.

www.troyvonbalthazar.net

-James Sandham

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The Truly Me Club
Popstar on the Lam
Sonic Boom Records

Jason Parker, multi-instrumentalist and The Truly Me Club brainchild, is nothing short of curious. His debut effort, Popstars on the Lam, is a perfect soundtrack for morning after coffee sips and jaded walks through busy cities long after closing time. Swimming in a sea of mediocre singer/songwriters, TTMC keeps afloat long enough to gain the listener’s trust. All tracks on the album blend together to create a full sound of organ driven, orchestral pop (Brings to mind a stripped-down Sufjan Stevens album). But what drives the curiosity about Parker’s music is his lyrical content and song titles. Songs like “When the Cops Use Their Guns” – a graphical look at a bullets journey or “Cal-ifor-Ni-Ay” – a chance at break dancing fame. TTMC will likely become a staple of any singer/songwriter collection, so you might as well buy the album now, before radio is plagued with cheap remixes.     

www.trulymeclub.com

–         Andrew Seale

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Twelve Thousand Armies
The Mirth These Days
McRisen Records

These are Twelve Thousand Armies I would be okay going into battle against. They’re more likely to pick a perfect daisy and give me a shy peck on the cheek than ever come at me in any way other than the daisy centre coloured album implies. Sparse keys and sometimes harmonizing vocals greet listeners on this sleepy album. The mirth these days is only found in the hearts of daisies as most of Twelve Thousand Armies' songs titles are dour. “Sugar Magnolia” brings some hope along with its peppy beginning and its “I’m on my way home” end. “We Buy Broken Gold’ has sad and lovely harmonies that break my tension and release me to sad days.

www.twelvethousandarmies.com

www.mcrisen.com

-Heather Rayment

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Two Hours Traffic
Little Jabs
Bumstead

When it comes to music that is defined as ‘powerful pop’ the inevitable comparisons to pioneers, Big Star, are bound to follow.  Two Hours Traffic also like to give credit to their other big influence, The Cars.  If those references are too old for you, they at times sound similar to Winnipeg’s, Weakerthans.  The dual guitar harmonies combine with straightforward vocals and a forceful rhythm section that keep the songs upbeat and poppy.  The groups’ Maritime roots shine through often, giving many of the songs a bit of an easy folk feeling.  Lyrically the songs are often simple, but simplicity is not necessarily a weakness. The words are sung with urgency and conviction, meaning that while the lyrics may not always be of great complexity, they are true to lead vocalist Liam Corcoran. 

Friend Joel Plaskett has returned to produce this album, and that should give an indication of what kind of feel it has.  Little Jabs is very tight, and there are only a few frills that may seem out of place.  There is occasional chatter and spoken dialogue that doesn’t really suit my fancy, but is obviously all in the name of fun.  The album is ideal for the summer, and will help get fans of power pop in a great mood at the start of their day.  Little Jabs is indeed an ideal album for maintaining your sanity while in the middle of a pre-work traffic jam.

www.twohourstraffic.com

-Daniel Demois

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Dark and ambient, Two Ton Boa’s second release and debut LP is an emotional if somewhat incoherent voyage through singer, bassist, and composer Shelly Fraser’s frayed psyche. Her adept and, at times, theatrical vocals are carried on this album by a building storm of rumbling, thundering double bass lines, complimented by the instrumental work of Dan Rieser on percussion, Brian Spearhawk on bass and baritone guitar, and Scott Speckington on piano and synth. With a sound somewhere between the Dresden Dolls and Tool, TTB have ignored the limitations of conventional genres and crafted a sound all to themselves, characterized by dynamic vocals, moody double bass lines, and a generally ominous ambiance. But maybe such sinister, disturbed sounds should be expected – after all, Fraser says, “people in the orchestra always make jokes about the oboe players being neurotic,” and Fraser is a classically trained oboe player. It’s a background that seems to have served her well, as this disc amply demonstrates.

www.twotonboa.com

-James Sandham
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