Based on how much I enjoyed their Enemies EP, rereleased by Polyvinyl this Spring, the debut full-length from Champaign, Illinois’ Headlights’ was very high on my anticipated releases list.

The band has taken advantage of the long player to stretch out a bit and prove they’re more than a pop-shoegaze act, not that there’s anything wrong with that. There’s still atmosphere and fuzz but it’s tightly controlled and the overall mix is quite clean, with the keyboards and vocals turned way up – which is how it should be. Tristan Wraight and Erin Fein’s boy-girl vocals are delicious, with Wraight’s rougher tones complimenting Fein’s wide-eyed chirpiness perfectly.

That dichotomy also defines the trio’s songcraft pretty well, blending wistful moodiness with buoyant hookiness. But the balance definitely leans toward the peppy side of equation – if you didn’t listen to the lyrics, it’s a perfect Summer soundtrack. And even if you do, it only shifts things into maybe a late September vibe and personally, I’ve always been more of an Autumn anyway.

The band is touring like mad to promote the disc but have no Toronto dates scheduled this time out – the closest they’re coming is Buffalo on the 27th of October. Maybe next time, though it’ll have to wait till after their European tour in early 2007. Wow, good on ’em. In the meantime, check out some audio below and note that Spin has another album track available to download.

MP3: Headlights – “Put Us Back Together Right”
MP3: Headlights – “TV”
MySpace: Headlights

Aversion is streaming the whole of Eric Bachmann’s To The Races, also due out next Tuesday. He’s at the Horseshoe September 16.

And just announced – Birdmonster, Catfish Haven and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin will be at the Horseshoe on September 11. It’s like a music blog come to life! All have new releases coming out this Fall – Birdmonster’s No Midnight is out August 29, Catfish Haven’s debut full-length Tell Me is out September 12 and SSLYBY’s Broom is being reissued by Polyvinyl on October 22.

MP3: Birdmonster – “‘Cause You Can”
MP3: Catfish Haven – “Crazy For Leaving”
MP3: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – “House Fire”

The Yo La Tengo Beat Your Ass Season Pass. For $13.99 from Insound, I’d call that a deal. And while you’re at it, throw your support behind their petition to make ketchup the official condiment of the USA. Via Pitchfork.

CBC declares the guitar solo passe.

np – Shearwater / Palo Santo

To Hidden Cameras fans, the release of their new album has been a long time in coming. The public initially got a peek at three of the songs on Awoo in June of last year when they were released in demo form on the “Learning The Lie” 7″ and many of the songs were unveiled last November as part of “In The Boneyard”, their collaborative performance with the Toronto Dance Theatre. Hell, they had even announced the album title over a year ago.

But next Tuesday, AWOO will be made available to the world – or Canada, at least, via Outside Music. It won’t be out in the US till September 19, courtesy of Arts & Crafts. I’ve generally found that one Hidden Cameras record sounds an awful lot like the last, give or take some refinements in arrangement or production value, but when you’re such an utterly unique-sounding band, there’s no shame in that. Joel Gibb’s lyrics have become less titillating – a cursory look through the lyrics reveals no mention of watersports or enemas or anything of the like though other bodily fluids are still very much in play – but they’re also much stronger and evocative while the musical backing remains alternately effervescently jubilant and dreamily solemn.

But the main reason this album sounds so familiar to me isn’t because it’s a rehash of Missisauga Goddam, but because the songs had been so ingrained into my skull from seeing “In The Boneyard” last year. Granted, I got a refresher when seeing them at SxSW in March but even then, I was struck by how strongly the tunes had persisted in my memory. This is remarkable because “In The Boneyard” was such a visual experience that I wouldn’t have expected the aural component to have made as indelible an impression as it did. Even now, when listening to the record, my little mental cinema can replay the accompanying dance numbers quite clearly and it’s still a joy to watch. In my head. Man, it’d have been awesome if one of those shows had been videotaped and was included as a bonus DVD…

The Hidden Cameras machine is pulling out all the stops to celebrate the release of the new record. Next Tuesday they’ll be performing on MTV Live for MTV Canada – yes, we apparently have an MTV in Canda – and tickets for the show are free. Go here for more info. And again with the free, the Cameras will headline the Saturday night of the Indie Unlimited festival at Harbourfront next weekend. That’ll be followed by some fairly extensive touring across Ontario including another Toronto show as part of the Virgin Festival on September 9 – a show that is decidedly NOT free.

The American tour kicks off in mid-November and carries on into December, which sadly means that there probably won’t be a new Toronto Dance Theatre collaboration this year. Also targeted to the US market though sure to be available here as well is a limited edition 7″ single for “Death Of A Tune” which will be available through Arts & Crafts on September 5. And CokeMachineGlow has a combination interview/review of the new album. Meaning they interview Joel Gibb and review AWOO. You can’t interview an album.

Video: The Hidden Cameras – “Awoo” (MOV)
MySpace: The Hidden Cameras

Tiny Mix Tapes talks to Oakley Hall, in town on September 11 opening for M Ward. I’ve heard the release of Ward’s Post-War has been pushed back a week to August 29 but haven’t been able to confirm that officially. But if you’re looking for it next week and can’t find it, then maybe that’s why. But the first, wonderfully animated video for the album is definitely out.

Video: M Ward – “Chinese Translation”

news.com.au tallks to Howling Bells about the long, slow climb to success. You can hear their recent radio session for XFM here.

Neko Case advises The New York Times on what’s hip in pop culture.

A couple show announcements for the Phoenix – Kasabian are there on September 27, $23.50, and Regina Spektor on October 10, $18.50. And Pretty Girls Make Graves will be in town November 4 at a venue to be determined (via For The Records).

Ira Kaplan explains the title of Yo La Tengo’s new album to Pitchfork. He blames James. The Mercury News also has an interview. I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass is out September 12 and they’re at the Phoenix October 2.

And finally, Pitchfork also reports that Interpol have gotten on the major label roller coaster and signed to Capitol. You may recall that Coolfer reported that the ‘Pol had signed to Interscope back in March, and those rumours turned out to be false. This one smells true, though. Tiny Mix Tapes expresses appropriate indie snob disgust. The rest of you, get in line.

np – Richard Buckner / Meadow

In 2004, The Mountain Goats released We Shall All Be Healed and one song – “Mole” – simply stopped me in my tracks. Lyrically, it was like John Darnielle was looking out of my own eyes at that specifc point in my life. It was more than a little eerie but also immensely comforting, somehow. I’ve never been one to really try and take solace in pop music, it’s just not my style, but it really did make me feel reassured in a way I couldn’t really explain. And still can’t today, even though the circumstances that created that emotional opening in me are long past and healed. It still gives me chills to hear it.

And now, two and a half years later, John Darnielle has somehow done it again. The album is Get Lonely!, due out next week, and the song is “Woke Up New”. I swear, this man is somehow plugged into the collective unconcious of humanity, or maybe just mine. And the fact that he’s somehow written these songs well in advance of my life catching up with them has some truly sinister implications – you can bet I’ll be confronting him about playing puppet master for my life when the Mountain Goats are at Lee’s Palace on September 19. Or maybe I’ll ask him to start writing happy songs. But seriously, though Darnielle doesn’t actually have any words in his vocabulary that you and I don’t, give or take, in his hands they’re somehow so much more than just words. Instead, they become little emotional land mines, innocuous and unnoticed until you’re right on top of them and then they become either lethal or liberating, depending on how attached you are to your current state of being.

Most of the record is in keeping with the sombre lyrical tone and austere musical arrangements of “Woke Up New” – there’s nothing as frantic or cathartic as “Dance Music” or “This Year” from The Sunset Tree. In fact, it’s the quietest record he’s put out on 4AD though he hasn’t returned to the boombox fidelity of his earlier recordings – even in its starkness, it still sounds quite rich and lovely in its way. The accompanying press release is probably quite correct in calling it the quiet aftermath of The Sunset Tree though it doesn’t really feel like a companion piece. Its emotional heft feels far more universal than its predecessor. It could be an album for break ups or an album for mourning though I suspect those pretty much amount to the same thing. I don’t know. I had been calling this record my album of the year but it’s probably more correct to say that it’s the album of my year.

Athens Exchange and Erasing Coulds have interviews with John Darnielle while The Sydney Morning Herald talks to Rian Johnson, who directed the elegant little video for “Woke Up New”. The MP3 is also up for grabs below and NPR is streaming another track from Get Lonely!.

And a question – I only have the Goats’ 4AD releases. If I wanted to begin exploring the earlier stuff, where should I begin? The back catalog is rather intimidating.

MP3: The Mountain Goats – “Woke Up New”
Video: The Mountain Goats – “Woke Up New”

Thematically tangentially – I saw Me And You And Everyone We Know this weekend based on some very positive reviews and you know what? I didn’t like it. Maybe I need to declare a moratorium on navel-gazing indie flicks about relationships where every line of dialogue is meant to be dripping with profundity, but on the whole I found it almost unbearably precious. There were some really funny bits and some really poignant bits but mostly I found it trying far too hard and largely missing its target. So yeah. There you go.

Trailer: Me And You And Everyone We Know

So you’ll note this week’s MP3 of the week was inspired by a Shoegaze Covers Show happening next Wednesday (August 23) at the Tranzac (no longer The Boat as originally planned) and which I will be playing DJ for the first (and possibly last) time. Disc jockeying isn’t something I’ve ever had any real inclination to get into, but I’m making an exception this time because a) Greg asked nicely and b) I have no obligation to get anyone to dance. If everyone in attendance just stares uncomfortably at their feet the whole night, I will consider it a triumph. But yeah, the lineup of bands is quite solid, the poster is styling and it should be a good time. Tickets are $8 in advance at Rotate and Soundscapes or $10 at the door. Do come out and request something that I will refuse to play.

I already reported on their October 16 show at the Mod Club, but Mojave 3 have officially announced large chunks of their Fall North American tour – check out their MySpace to see if they’ll be playing a town near you. Note the 10-day gap between Santa Monica and Chicago. I have to imagine there’ll be some hot midwest action going down in that span, so if you live around there keep checking back.

A torrent of Broken Social Scene’s much-lauded Lollapalooza set has surfaced on Dime A Dozen. Not the best audio quality, but considering the circumstances – audience recording in an outdoor festival amongst 70,000 other people – it’s not bad.

and if you haven’t noticed the banner over to the right there, I am running a contest right now to give away passes to the Virgin Festival on the Toronto Islands in September. Big contest. Big prizes. You should enter. The odds in my contests are usually a lot better than you might think… Just ask Thierry.

np – The Wedding Present / Search For Paradise

Jim Noir / Tower Of Love (Barsuk) Jim Noir may hail from Manchester, England but there’s some serious Athens, Georgia informing his latest record Tower Of Love, though considering most of the Elephant 6 drew from the great British psychedelic bands of the 60s and 70s, the turnabout is fair play. Noir cops mainly from the dreamy, pastoral end of the pool though, crafting an exceedingly laid back and mellow record, which like many UK debuts is actually a compilation of three early EPs. But despite its piecemeal origins, it sounds quite cohesive and consistent if a bit cutesy over the long haul. An ideal soundtrack to running through a meadow in slow-motion. MP3: Jim Noir – “Key Of C” Video: Jim Noir – “Eanie Meany” (ASX) eCard: Jim Noir MySpace: Jim Noir

Blood Meridian / Kick Up The Dust (Outside) There is a cowboy on the cover of Blood Meridian’s Kick Up The Dust. He is not lost. He is not there by accident. For this record contains cowboy music. Okay, it’s not exactly the second coming of Hank Williams or even Gram Parsons – it sounds too determinedly contemporary to draw those parallels – but the new album from the Vancouver five-piece does have a distinctive western flavour, and I’m talking spiritually and not geographically (though they are from the west). Matthew Camirand (also bassist in Vancouver’s Black Mountain) sings in a sort of hybrid rasp-drawl and pretty much the whole record moves at a determined mosey, looking for a spitoon. Video: Blood Meridian – “Kick Up The Dust” (YouTube) MySpace: Blood Meridian

Listing Ship / Time To Dream (True Classical) Also hailing from the west coast, though the American bit they call Los Angeles, is Listing Ship. This record is loaded top to bottom with sunshiney sweet chamber folk and serene, sing-songy harmonies courtesy of Heather Lockie and Lyman Chaffee (and occasionally Shawn Lockie). Relying almost completely on acoustic string instruments they craft a sound that’s so organic, it’s… like something really organic. Even a few quirky production touches (like the chugging electric rhythm guitar on “Crooked Teeth” making way for a violin solo) and a consistent, underlying lyrical eccentricity can’t take away from the overall vibe of late afternoon sunshine streaming in through a castle turret window. Not even the murder ballads. MP3: Listing Ship – “Ichabod Crane” MP3: Listing Ship – “Chinese Song” MySpace: Listing Ship

np – Okkervil River / Down The River Of Golden Dreams

I like the idea of power pop – say yes to hooks, harmonies, melodicism and concise, sharp songwriting – but find myself frequently let down by stuff that’s put forward to me as power pop. Too often it’s like swallowing sugar packets – might taste good at first and give you a quick buzz, but ends up leaving you feeling unsatisfied and maybe a little queasy. No, creating pop music that really leaves an impression, that manages to offer more than a transient endorphin rush and offer something of substance, is a much more mysterious, almost alchemical process that few are privy to. John Roderick is one of those lucky few.

The Long Winters’ new album Putting The Days To Bed has been a bit of a revelation for me. I’ve liked what little I’ve heard from them before and almost bought a copy of their first album When I Pretend To Fall after seeing them open for Death Cab three years ago, but didn’t (I may have been poor at the time), but I think I expected to be let down in the long term as pop bands who make good first impressions often do. But having had some time to spend with the new record, I have to say it gets better and more complex with each successive listen while never losing any of its initial charm. A large part of this is Roderick’s lyrics which are grafted to perfect melodies and are wise and knowing but never smug. As it ebbs and tides from gentler numbers like the country-flecked “Clouds”, to the uptempo rock of “Rich Wife”, it’s amazing how solid an album this is – diverse yet consistent and clocking in at a tidy 37 minutes. Kids, this is how it’s done.

The Long Winters are on tour this Fall to support and will be at Lee’s Palace in Toronto October 4. Roderick recently gave Indie Interviews an exclusive, song-by-song lyrical breakdown of the album and talked to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer about lightening up on the new album. Daytrotter has an extensive interview and so does StarWars.com. They talk about Star Wars. Duh. And while this fansite hasn’t been updated in a while, it’s still a great band resource.

MP3: The Long Winters – “Pushover”
Video: The Long Winters – “Fire Island, AK” (YouTube)
MySpace: The Long Winters

A whole pile more concert announcements courtesy of rootmeansquare: Memphis, aka Torq Campbell from Stars’ other band, will be at Lee’s Palace on September 28, tickets $12. Their second album, A Little Place In The Wilderness, is out on Tuesday. Sunset Rubdown are at Lee’s Palace October 7 ($13), and Califone at the Horseshoe November 5 ($12). And freshly added to my calendar, TV On The Radio have booked a date at the Opera House for October 12, tickets $17.50. BrooklynVegan has full tour dates. Their second album Return To Cookie Mountain is out September 12 and you can stream the first single, “Wolf Like Me”, below.

Stream: TV On The Radio – “Wolf Like Me” (ASX)

Portastatic’s Mac McCaughan talks to Billboard about his/their new album Be Still Please, out October 10. Unlike the orchestral Who Loves The Sun soundtrack released earlier this year, Still is classic ‘Chunk-y indie rock goodness. And speaking of Superchunk, McCaughan mentions that they’re working on material for a new album. Mothballs be damned, Superchunk lives!

Billboard also reports that Steve Earle has signed on with New West Records after being with Artemis Records since 2000’s Transcendental Blues. His new album is due out in the first half of ’07.

The Sleepy Jackson’s Luke Steele stopped in for a session of AOL’s Interface. Audio ensued.

Chart converses with The Futureheads.

No fewer than three people sent me this YouTube link yesterday. Someone trying to tell me something?

np – Eric Bachmann / To The Races