Timothy SaccentiSo how exactly do you, as a band, know when you’ve arrived? Is it when you quit your day job? When your parents accept that you’re not just wasting your life? In the case of Toronto’s Born Ruffians, is it when your debut album Red, Yellow & Blue proves popular enough that you’re able to headline a venue the size of the Opera House, as they are this Saturday night? When you’re the subject of a documentary program by Bruce McDonald following you around SxSW?

No, I think it’s when you can justify having tote bags as merch. How loyal do your fans have to be to want a tote bag? I mean, how many tote bags can an individual need? How much does one person have to tote at any given time? I do not know. It confounds me. But indeed, the Born Ruffians have their very own tote bags for sale and courtesy of Stage Fright Publicity, I’ve got one to give away – along with a remix 12″ of their latest single “Little Garcon” and a t-shirt. If you want, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want the Born Ruffians swag” in the subject line and your full mailing address and t-shirt size (and gender) and get that in to me before midnight, October 31.

Video: Born Ruffians – “Hummingbird”
Video: Born Ruffians – “I Need A Life”
Trailer: The Rawside Of… Born Ruffians
MySpace: Born Ruffians

Frank YangJust to give you how tightly I have my finger on the pulse of what’s hot in music… in all the CMJ coverage that my RSS reader has been barfing up at me, I’ve seen exactly one mention (at Pitchfork) of the band that got me on a plane to New York City – London’s Lucky Soul. All these other buzz bands that everyone’s talking about? Whatever.

The band had two dates scheduled as part of their North American debut, and in the interests of making the most of the opportunity, I hit up both. One was their official CMJ showcase, the other was their own show as presented by the good people at Music Snobbery, and in terms of vibe and setting they couldn’t have been more different. The former came first, and took place in a new live music room underneath Webster Hall called The Studio, and it can generously be described as a dark basement. They were the penultimate act in a showcase dubbed “Bring On The Brits” and featuring a lineup of bands whom I don’t doubt were here from the UK, but apart from Lucky Soul, none of whom I’d ever heard of. I arrived in time to catch one of said bands, a Brighton-based outfit called Passenger who played emotive acoustic-based rock and sounded not unlike The Frames if The Frames weren’t as good at what they do. Certainly nothing offensive but also nothing that had me wishing I’d arrived earlier to catch all their set. And, after all, they were in the way between me and Lucky Soul.

But they left of their own accord – no need for an incident – and right on schedule, Lucky Soul and their wonderful brand of retro soul-pop met North America. And as much as I’d like to say otherwise, it wasn’t the smoothest introduction. For starters, singer Ali Howard’s voice had gone AWOL just a few hours before the show and while she was able to perform, the clear, beautiful vocals of the record were replaced now decidedly raspier and she no longer had the range to hit some of the high notes. Her bandmates did their best to compensate with backing vox and it definitely helped, but when she dropped back, it was very noticeable. She did seem to find some more strength as the short set progressed, but a dodgy mix didn’t help matters much.

On the plus side, the band was obviously determined to not let this setback deter them and did their very best to put on an energized and enjoyable show and I’d say they succeeded, though I can’t honestly say how much of that was fact and how much was my own excitement – having played last year’s The Great Unwanted damn near to death, it was great to finally be able to hear (and see) them live, even if the circumstances weren’t ideal. I left satisfied, though also hoping that between that night and the next, Howard would discover some mystery apothecary in the Lower East Side and her voice would be magically healed.

For though that first night was the “official” show, the second night was the “real” show – a bill featuring them and them alone in the decidedly more upscale and posh surroundings of Joe’s Pub. Surprisingly, though the previous night was a free show and this one ticketed, this one was much better attended, presumably by genuine fans rather than just random CMJ punters. And while most of the observations from the previous night still held, on this occasion there was simply more. More energy, more showmanship, more songs. Howard’s voice, sadly, was still hurting but again it improved as things went on and spared the PA dropouts from the Webster Hall show she was able to make the rasp work in her favour, mostly, giving the songs more of an edge from the sweetness of the recorded versions. The band were just as tight but the positive vibe of the room seemed to give them more pop. They sounded great and they looked great, the boys in suits and Howard in a sleek strapless dress. Between the two nights, I had a marvelous time and was absolutely thrilled to have been able to see them live – and considering how swarmed by fans the band were after the gig, seeking merch and autographs, I was not nearly the only one.

Both nights had similar setlists, though the Joe’s Pub one was obviously longer. In addition to covering most all of The Great Unwanted, they played more new material than I’d expected – it sounded less overtly throwback-y with a touch more country-soul, but still wonderfully hooky and quite strong. The debut was not a fluke. As I understand it, a second album is still a ways off but this bodes well for whenever it comes. Which raises that ever-present rhetorical question – why aren’t these guys, if not huge, then at least more talked about? Most everyone whom I’ve made to listen to it has fallen in love with them and it’s not as though it’s difficult music or would be at all tough to market. But these… these are questions that there’s no rational answer for and dost make one’s head hurt. So I’ll simply say that their two shows made the trip totally worthwhile and this had better not be the last time I get to see them perform.

Music Snobbery has a review of his own show. He thinks it went alright. And the band has blogged their eventful sojourn to the new world – terrific reading.

Photos: Lucky Soul, Passenger @ The Studio at Webster Hall, New York City – October 23, 2008
Photos: Lucky Soul @ Joe’s Pub, New York City – October 24, 2008
MP3: Lucky Soul – “The Great Unwanted”
Video: Lucky Soul – “Lips Are Unhappy”
Video: Lucky Soul – “My Brittle Heart”
Video: Lucky Soul – “Add Your Light To Mine, Baby”
MySpace: Lucky Soul
MySpace: Passenger

Pitchfork talks to Gwenno about the differences between The Pipettes mark one and two (more ’80s, less ’60s) and the precognitive powers of her hair colour.

Frightened Rabbit are offering up an MP3 from their new live album Liver! Lung! FR!.

MP3: Frightened Rabbit – “Old Old Fashioned” (live)

Making an appearance on said record is Twilight Sad frontman James Graham, and to mark the start of that band’s Fall European tour with Mogwai, they’re releasing a limited-edition album collecting live tracks, unreleased goodies and covers… of course, the only place to get it right now is their Fall European tour with Mogwai, but surely there’ll be other avenues and when I know, I’ll let you know. More details on the release at Pitchfork.

This Is Fake DIY, Wales Online and MusicOhm talk to Los Campesinos! about their new record We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, out November 11.

Kele Okereke of Bloc Party doles out sex advice at The Guardian, NME reports that the band is considering ditching the physical CD single. Intimacy is out today and streaming at Spinner.

Stream: Bloc Party / Intimacy

Minnesota Public Radio serves up a session with The Rumble Strips, in town at the El Mocambo tomorrow night.

O’DeathIf you were under the impression that Appalachian folk music was all about banjos and fiddles and hoe-downs… well, that’s not unreasonable. But if you thought that this recipe precluded the possibility of all-out rock… well get thee to the El Mocambo on November 4.

That’s the night that local self-proclaimed purveyors of “death country”, Elliott Brood, bring their tour in support of new album Mountain Meadows through town and with them, they’re bringing an outfit who could very well make them look and sound reserved, New York’s O’Death. They’re releasing their new record Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin tomorrow and to call it ragged or rollicking doesn’t really do it justice. Though there are points where the band pauses to take a breath, most of it is a non-stop moonshine-powered bender that doesn’t intend to leave anything standing.

Courtesy of Sneak Attack, I’ve got a pair of passes to give away to next Tuesday’s show at the ElMo so if you want, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see O’Death in the subject line and your full name in the body and get that to me before midnight, October 30.

You can currently stream the whole record at Spinner and there’s an interview with the band at Drowned In Sound.

MP3: O’Death – “Lowtide”
Stream: O’Death / Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin
MySpace: O’Death

Frank YangNormally I try to cover stuff chronologically, but in summing up my time in New York City this past weekend, I’m going to jump around a little bit for the sake of grouping things together. And so I’ll start off at the end of Thursday night in the basement of a little club called Lit in the East Village.

Providence’s The Brother Kite would be well within their rights to ask me to stop coming to their gigs. In each of the three times I’ve now seen them play, their set was… marred by circumstances beyond anyone’s control. The first, last year at my Pop Montreal showcase, was a bit of a mess on too many levels to get into. The second at this year’s SxSW was significantly better but with singer Patrick Boutwell dealing with a cold, they still weren’t in top form. And this past Thursday night, at their CMJ showcase, their supposed headlining slot at the showcase for their label Clairecords appeared at real risk of being cut down to nothing because of every preceding act running long. It’s not my fault, I swear.

They were eventually given a truncated but still decent-length set with which they showcased both new material from the can’t-come-soon-enough follow-up to Waiting For The Time To Be Right alongside highlights from that utter gem of a record (one-liner for those who haven’t heard it – Ride crossed with The Beach Boys, but better). The new stuff sounded good – similar enough to the old in the ways that matter but also exploring enough new ground to not be a retread – but I still loved hearing the Time songs the most. And considering they were playing once again in less than optimal conditions – they hardly got any soundcheck despite having a decidedly complex equipment setup – they once again delivered a superb performance. I can’t imagine how good they’d sound if they were playing under optimal conditions. Though this is a band that gives new meaning to the phrase “flying under the radar”, it’s certainly not for lack of ability – their songwriting and performance both live and on record are sublime.

The band have been documenting the recording of the new record over at their MySpace blog.

Photos: The Brother Kite @ Lit, New York City – October 23, 2008
MP3: The Brother Kite – “Get On, Me”
MP3: The Brother Kite – “I’m Not The Only One”
Video: The Brother Kite – “I’m Not The Only One”
MySpace: The Brother Kite

Yuki Chikudate of Asobi Seksu tells The Georgia Straight she doesn’t buy into the idea of an ongoing shoegaze revival. Their new album Hush will surely do nothing to propagate that idea when it’s released in February.

The Montreal Gazette, JAM and BlogTO converse with Murray Lightburn of The Dears. While over at This Is Fake DIY, the band’s other/better half Natalia Yanchak ponders the meaning(lessness) of labels.

R.E.M. have a new video.

Video: R.E.M. – “Until The Day Is Done”

Sweden’s Love Is All, on the cusp of releasing A Hundred Things Keep Me Up at Night on November 11, have padded out their tour dates and will now be hitting the Horseshoe on December 11, tickets $11.50.

MP3: Love Is All – “Wishing Well”
Video: Love Is All – “Wishing Well”

Frank YangSo how was your weekend? Good? Do anything interesting? Oh yeah, do tell. These are some of the things I did this weekend.

Walked a lot. Saw two of my favourite new acts from the UK twice each. Visited Matador Records HQ. Ate at Shake Shack. Got my money’s worth from my 7-day MTA pass though I was only there for three days. Was in New Jersey (briefly, twice). Walked even more. Learned by standing outside the NYSE that the collapse of the global economy isn’t a spectator sport. Went to Times Square, decided I don’t like Times Square. Stayed in a hilariously tiny but totally vibey (and cheap!) hotel. Went to both Adorama and B&H yet bought nothing. Hung out a lot in Greenwich Village, East Village and Lower East Side. Napped. Walked even more. Discovered that New York City clubs – at least most of the ones I went to – have the absolute worst lighting in existence. And I’ve been to some badly lit clubs. Caught up some old friends, met some new people. And basically had a great time just taking in New York City. Or at least a few new corners of it.

Anyways, I’m now back to real life – the bus from the airport to downtown has wifi! How modern! – and will be writing up the shows I saw over the next few days. But in the meantime, you can see my photos from the weekend over at my Flickr.