Everyone knows that I love the shoegaze and also have a deep appreciation for power pop, and I expect I’m not the only one. So it’s little surprise that I’ve fallen head over heels for Waiting For The Time To Be Right, the second album from Rhode Island’s The Brother Kite.

As much as I appreciate the aforementioned styles, I can get more than a little frustrated with current practitioners as they’re frequently too faithful and respectful of the classics of the genre and seem perfectly happy to rehash that what’s gone before. But by filling the sonic cathedrals of shoegazing with the teenage symphonies to God of pop classicism, The Brother Kite have made a record that rises far, far above those respective pigeonholes. Imagine the sound of looking across a verdant English countryside into a blazing California sunset. Epic in scale and bolstered by waves of organ and chiming guitars, Patrick Boutwell’s vocals soar on wings of reverb and harmony but maintain a raspy edge that gives the record a distinct sense of plaintiveness and yearning.

Rare is the album that is as deep as it is hooky, but Waiting For The Time To Be Right simply really is and with every listen, I love it more and more. It’s a bit tragic that I only got this record at the very end of last year because it would have gotten some year-end accolades for certain. But as it is, it gets my highest recommendation – you don’t necessarily have to like shoegaze or power pop, just great music.

They’re currently on tour around the midwest – definitely see them if you get the opportunity, you will have my eternal envy.

MP3: The Brother Kite – “I’m Not The Only One”
MySpace: The Brother Kite

Chart talks to the boys from Wheat about their return from the brink of extinction and the crafting of their new record Everyday I Said A Prayer For Kathy And Made A One Inch Square, due out March 6. And if you (like me) ordered the That’s Exactly What I Wanted…Exactly That mini-album expecting it to arrive around the December 15 release date, note that it was delayed due to a manufacturing issue but will hopefully be arriving soon. Really soon.

Identity Theory asks questions of Anna-Lynne Williams of Trespassers William. Williams has also been working on some solo material under the name of Lotte and hopes to have a record released sometime this Spring.

Billboard talks to Explosions In The Sky about Friday Night Lights and new album All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone, out February 20. They’re at the Opera House on March 24.

Bright Eyes will preview material from their new album Cassadaga at the Opera House on February 27 well before the record’s April 10 release date. Pitchfork has full tour dates and an update on all things Oberst.

The new album from The National is due out in May of this year. Happy birthday to me!

Good news – Last Light, the new album from Matt Pond PA is due out this Spring. Bad news – guitarist Brian Pearl has left the band, giving up music in favour of a lifestyle where you can actually make some money or something. Wuss.

For The Records points out that The Pipettes have been added to the list of bands performing at Canadian Music Week, though specific dates and venues are still forthcoming. And since they’re on this continent in early March, I’d hazard that a SxSW appearance is also in the offing. There’s some other interesting stuff appearing in the CMW list but I’ll refrain from getting too into it until the actual schedule is released.

The Post-Intelligencer finds out why My Morning Jacket loves Seattle.

The Guardian talks to James Mercer while declaring The Shins one of ten bands it expects to break out big in 2007. They also declare the sun to be hot and water to be wet. Billboard rounds up the band’s promotional activities over the next little while, including the first leg of their US tour.

Drowned In Sound has also assembled a two–part feature on new faces to look out for in 2007.

The AV Club pays tribute to my favourite Elvis Costello album, King Of America.

So after having had two attempts in the past week foiled by sell-outs, I was third time’s the charm on Saturday evening and finally got to see Pan’s Labyrinth. Why on earth one of the best reviewed films in recent memory would only be playing on one screen in the whole city is beyond me, but there you go.

The latest film from Guillermo del Toro is a decidedly dark fantasy set in 1944 Spain, during the Spanish Civil War. A young girl and her mother travel to live with her new stepfather, a captain in the Spanish army at battle with insurgents in the countryside. Once there, she discovers that she is the incarnation of a fairy tale princess who must fulfill three tasks to reclaim her immortal birthright. Not based on any specific fairy tale, the film draws on numerous age-old conventions to craft its mythology. Somewhat surprisingly, far less of the film is set in the fantasy world than the real one. You would think that Ofelia, the young heroine, would be using the myths as an escape mechanism from the violence and cruelty that is her reality, but they’re almost as dark and dangerous.

I say “almost” because as menacing as creatures such as the Pale Man are, the greatest cruelties in the film are still those done by man. Ofelia’s stepfather, the Fascist Captain, is as cold and violent as they come though not entirely indiscriminately so (given his position and POV) – a testament to del Toro’s direction and Sergi Lopez’s execution. Ivana Baquero is also impressive as the young girl determined to escape her fate (or claim her destiny, as the case may be).

A fair bit has been made about the violence in the film, and while it’s definitely violent – this is not a film for children, not even close – I don’t really see the “gore” that some have commented on. If anything, the violence is exceedingly dispassionate. To me, gore implies excess or sensationalism and there’s none of that in Pan’s Labyrinth. Even the fantasy scenes are rather subdued, all things considered, though that’s not meant to take away from the imaginativeness and attention to detail that does appear.

I don’t know that Pan’s Labyrinth is the best film of 2006, as all the accolades being heaped upon it might imply, but it is a powerful one if more than a little depressing. But it’s undoubtedly one worth seeing and certainly deserving of more than one screen in all of Toronto.

USA Today has a piece with del Toro explaining the inspirations behind some of the fantastical elements of the film while The Boston Globe and The San Jose Mercury Nes get some insight on the making of the film.

Trailer: Pan’s Labyrinth
MySpace: Pan’s Labyrinth

AOL’s new 3×3 feature thingee has launched with live video features on TV On The Radio (watch) and The Hold Steady (watch). TVOTR are at the Kool Haus on March 4 and The Hold Steady are also the subject of an audio interview at NPR.

Concert news! To start, Toronto vibraphone fetishists The Hylozoists have been tapped to open up for the solo M Ward at the Mod Club on January 27.

Bloc Party will tour behind their new record A Weekend in the City, out February 6, will be at the Kool Haus on March 25. Full tour dates at Pitchfork, where they also note that frontman Kele Okereke has apparently come out in this interview with The Guardian.

The Ponys, fresh off releasing their first album for Matador – Turn The Lights Out is out March 20 – will be teaming up with Atlanta’s Black Lips for a tour that stops at Lee’s Palace on March 29.

Not entirely sure what the difference between Elvis Perkins and Elvis Perkins In Dearland is, but the latter is at the Mod Club on April 9 – tickets $12.50, on sale Friday. Inside Bay Area talks to this singer-songwriter who looks set to have a big 2007 with the release of his debut Ash Wednesday on February 20.

And an announcement for a Ted Leo & The Pharmacists show at the Mod Club on May 2 briefly appeared online today, but has since disappeared. Hopefully that’s just crossing t’s and dotting i’s because it’s been far too long since I’ve seen Ted live. His new record Living With The Living is out March 20.

I want a cat. Anyone have any thoughts/opinions/experiences with the various adoption agencies around town? The Humane Society, Toronto Cat Rescue, Abbey Cats, etc?

I need to go see a show somewhere besides the Drake. Thursday night was my third straight show there in the past 10 nights and while venues with padded benches are always a welcome destination, I could use a change of scenery. On this night, the draw was a sort of “best of the 519” bill with London, Ontario’s Basia Bulat headlining things, accompanied by Guelphies Barzin and Habitat.

Habitat are a co-ed duo including John O’Reagan from The D’Urbervilles, Sylvie Smith and a bunch of cheap and cheerful keyboards. Utilizing the sounds and rhythms pre-programmed in some far east electronics factory, they simultaneously embrace and transcend the inherent cheesiness of the sounds and turn out charming and heartfelt synth-pop that sounds not unlike a lower-budget Postal Service if Jen Wood was a full-time member of the band. A really pleasant discovery.

I saw Barzin in this very room almost a month ago opening for Jenn Grant. Unlike that show, this time he did play some material from My Life In Rooms (at least that I recognized) and seemed to be a bit jauntier and countrier – more Dylan than Kozelek. But that’s a fine distinction and more than anything, Barzin’s set remained slow, delicate and pretty.

I spent the better part of the weekend trying to figure out exactly how to do Bulat’s music justice with words. Using the most straightforward descriptors – jazz-inflected, orchestral folk pop with a dash of northern soul – make it sound more conventional than I’d like so instead, I’ll try this. Basia Bulat sounds like springtime smiling. Her music is rich yet breezy, with a melodic enthusiasm that’s nothing short of delightful. Obviously enthused by the solid turnout, Bulat was charming, self-effacing and otherwise radiant, previewing material from her forthcoming debut album Oh, My Darling, due out on Rough Trade in March in the UK and domestically on a label to be determined, hopefully thenabouts as well.

And though Bulat’s pen and voice are undeniably talented in their own right, full credit must be given to her band who are obviously far more than a collection of backing players. Besides having the chops and versatility to conceive and execute the musical arrangements that buoy and bolster the songs, the familial bonds between them (both literal and figurative – Bulat’s brother Bobby is her drummer) created a real warm and supportive vibe onstage that naturally spilled into the audience. Considering that this was likely her last Toronto show for a little while – at least until the album is out and she begins getting many well-deserved plaudits – it felt a bit like both a send-off and a coming-out party. Big things are coming.

Said The Gramophone has a couple songs for download and there’s more streaming on her MySpace. Check it out and get Oh, My Darling when it comes out.

Photos: Basia Bulat, Barzin, Habitat @ The Drake Underground – January 4, 2007
MP3: Habitat – “Snow Song”
MP3: Habitat – “Next Year”
MP3: Barzin – “Leaving Time”
MP3: Barzin – “Lets Go Driving”
Video: Barzin – “Leaving Time” (YouTube)
MySpace: Basia Bulat
MySpace: Barzin

Emily Haines tells The Boston Herald it’s a wonderful time to be a Canuck. Okay, their word – not hers. She also talks to Newsday, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The National Post as her Winter tour gets underway. Also note that NPR will be broadcasting her show in DC live this Wednesday night, starting at 9:30PM.

rbally offers up a healthy dose of live Feist. When IS that new album coming out?

Arcade Fire will release Neon Bible on March 6. Harp has more info and operators are standing by.

Bit of an odd double bill rolls into the Phoenix on March 5 – Ben Kweller and Gomez. Yeah.

The BBC, The Independent, The Toronto Star, The Age and The Mirror all wish David Bowie a happy 60th birthday today. As do I.

np – The Shins / Wincing The Night Away

More like “Let’s get out of this venue”. The Camera Obscura/Essex Green show on January 31 has been moved from the ideally-sized Lee’s Palace to the grumble-inducing Opera House. I’m obviously not very thrilled with this news, but I remain confident/hopeful that the combined pop goodness of both acts will defeat the general crumminess of the new venue.

But on to other things – namely, my wondering why The Essex Green doesn’t get more respect? And that includes from me. Their latest album, last year’s The Cannibal Sea, is a rather splendid piece of folk-rock, blending a pastoral, laid back-ness with some urban pop smarts all seen through a soft-focus 60s filter. Chris Ziter and Sasha Bell’s boy-girl vocals are supremely smooth and elegant together – in fact, that’s a fair description for the album as a whole. If there’s any complaint to be filed, it’s that they’re a bit too polite – maybe if they were a bit more in your face, more people would pay attention – but I rather like them just the way they are. But Canadians appreciate politeness, dontchaknow. Looking forward to seeing them, even if it is at the Opera House.

MP3: The Essex Green – “Don’t Know Why (You Stay)”
MySpace: The Essex Green

As for the headliners, they’ve just released the third single from Let’s Get Out Of This Country, the Motown-eriffic “If Looks Could Kill”. The CD version of the single comes with two new b-sides while the 7″ has a cover of The Paris Sisters’ “I Love How You Love Me”. There’s also a shiny new video!

MP3: Camera Obscura – “If Looks Could Kill”
Video: Camera Obscura – “If Looks Could Kill” (YouTube)

Also schedule-shifting – the Rob Dickonson show that had been scheduled for February 7th at Lee’s Palace has been moved up to Monday, February 5th. Purchased tickets will be honoured and if you just can’t bear to miss an episode of Heroes or 24 and need a refund, those are available at point of purchase. And speaking of Rob, he’s made a new MP3 available on his website, which he describes thusly: “I recorded ‘Hush Little Baby’ in the spring [don’t ask] and listened to it again tonight ….it sounded OK so thought I’d share it”. …but Rob, I want to ask!

MP3: Rob Dickinson – “Hush Little Baby”

Congoese kalimba orchestra Konono No 1 will be at the Phoenix on May 1, tickets $20 in advance.

Poster boys for blog-hype/backlash Cold War Kids are at the Mod Club on April 4. I saw them at Lollapalooza and my verdict then? “Nothing astonishing, but alright.” File under: blog indifference. Full tour dates at You Ain’t No Picasso.

Zoilus directs us to “the only article about Joanna Newsom’s Ys you ever need to read,” over at Arthur.

I Heart Music has got Amy Millan’s radio session for KCRW from last month MP3-ed and available to download.

And “Black Mirror”, the first single from the new Arcade Fire album Neon Bible (no, “Intervention” wasn’t it) is now streaming off their website – go to Win’s scrapbook and make with the clicky. Final album release and touring info (including T.O.) should be coming in the next few weeks.

I got a copy of El Perro Del Mar’s self-titled album on the same day as the Frida Hyvonen record I talked about on Wednesday, and while I listened to them both, I admit I got a little confused as to which one I was listening to at the time. Which unconventional Swedish singer-songwriter is this again?

Well as it happens, just a couple days after it was announced that Hyvonen was coming to town on March 8, it comes out that El Perro Del Mar will also be in town at the same venue – The Mod Club – just three days earlier, on March 5 (via For The Records). It seems some paths are destined to run closely parallel, at least from my point of view. Tickets for her show are $15 and are on sale now.

El Perro Del Mar is the project of Sarah Assbring and is, quite possibly, the saddest record I’ve heard in ages. The inspiration and production hearkens back to an era before retro, all the way back to timeless (aka the 50s), but Assbring’s take on it is less going down the five and dime for a soda and more standing desolate in the rain, poodle skirt soaked and shapeless. On the more upbeat numbers like “God Knows (You Gotta Give To Get)”, there’s not a hint of a smile in Assbring’s delivery and on the sadder songs, well damn. Her voice is strong and her vibrato sounds like it’s on the edge of tears, but thankfully the end result isn’t maudlin or overwrought – it feels quite genuine and the duality of the inherently sunny music with Assbring’s mournfulness gives El Perro Del Mar a strange, emotionally rich and resonant friction. It will be interesting to see how it translates in a live environment.

Washington Square News talks to El Perro Del Mar about what it is to be Swedish and the inspiration for her stage name, which means “dog of the sea” in Spanish.

MP3: El Perro Del Mar – “God Knows (You Gotta Give To Get)”
Video: El Perro Del Mar – “God Knows (You Gotta Give To Get)” (YouTube)
MySpace: El Perro Del Mar

Check it – new Charlotte Hatherley video, via Stereogum. She talks a bit about the inspiration behind the vid here. Her new album The Deep Blue is out in March and the EP for the single in question, “Behave”, is available on eMusic.

Video: Charlotte Hatherley – “Behave” (YouTube)

Men’s Vogue talks to the ever-stylish Dean Wareham & Britta Phillips about new album Back Numbers, which they will be touring in March to support.

The Sydney Morning Herald discusses cuisine and songwriting with John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats. Via Largehearted Boy.