Danny ClinchWho: My Morning Jacket
What: Hirsute gentlemen from the south given to epically-scaled, reverb-enhanced rock with sometimes more than a touch of soul and funk
Why: Album number six, Circuital, was released at the end of May and happily for most, it shifts the above formula to more reverb, less funk. And of course they’re touring.
When: Monday, July 11, 2011
Where: The Kool Haus in Toronto (all-ages)
Who else: Openers are still TBA
How: Tickets for the show are $42 in advance but courtesy of LiveNation, I’ve got three pairs of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to wear My Morning Jacket” in the subject line and your full name in the body; contest closes at midnight, July 7.
What else: The Georgia Straight and Santa Barbara Independent have features on the band.

MP3: My Morning Jacket – “Circuital”

Frank YangWho: Real Estate
What: New Jersey-based dreamy/jangle-poppers who’ve leveraged the charms of their 2009 self-titled debut into a deal with the revered Domino Records.
Why: Album number two is just about done but not due out until October, so between now and then they’ll be out playing some shows and cleaning the keyword spam off their Facebook wall.
When: Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Where: The Garrison in Toronto (19+)
Who else: Dent May – and his ukulele – provide support both musical and moral for much of the tour.
How: Tickets for the show are $18.50 in advance but courtesy of Collective Concerts, I’ve got two pairs of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see some Real Estate” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, July 14.

MP3: Real Estate – “Beach Comber”
MP3: Real Estate – “Green River”

New ScotlandJoel Plaskett is something akin to a national treasure to those who place great value on things like classically-styled, distinctly Canadian-flavoured pop-rock songwriting and Plaskett has hardly been shy about keeping his creative riches to himself. Over a seventeen-year career, reaching back to the first Thrush Hermit EP and through his work fronting The Emergency and under his own name solo, he’s released at least eight proper albums and more EPs, the most recent of which – Three – was a triple-disc set.

And yet for all of the material that he’s released officially, countless more has remained in the vaults – at least until now. Plaskett has just released EMERGENCYs, false alarms, shipwrecks, castaways, fragile creatures, special features, demons and demonstrations, compilation of demos, outtakes and whatnot culled from his post-Thrush Hermit works – those cupboards were cleared last year – that does a good job of reinforcing just how consistent a talent Plaskett is; though the material contained within spans a decade, it all hangs together very nicely and feels far from a collection of cast-offs.

The compilation is available either digitally or in an LP/CD combo package, with the wax providing a home to a dozen tracks and the compact disc containing all those and another eight, and courtesy of Pigeon Row, I’ve got two of these LP/CD sets to give away. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want the Joel Plaskett” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body. Contest is open to residents of Canada and will close at midnight, July 1.

Exclaim talks to Plaskett about looking back and what comes next.

MP3: Joel Plaskett – “When I Go”
Stream: Joel Plaskett / EMERGENCYs, false alarms, shipwrecks, castaways, fragile creatures, special features, demons and demonstrations

Frank YangWho: Sianspheric and Ringo Deathstarr
What: One is a long-running (with some breaks) psych/space rock veterans from Hamilton; the other an up-and-coming trio of MBV devotees from Austin
Why: Because you’re tired of being able to hear? Sianspheric are a decade on from their last album The Sound of the Colour of the Sun but their rare live shows are alway worth getting mobilized for. And Ringo Deathstarr, besides rocking a great name, have a solidly-received debut in Colour Trip that amps up the pop aspects of the shoegaze scene without compromising any of the sonic impact.
When: Thursday, June 30, 2011
Where: The Garrison in Toronto (19+)
How: Tickets are $10 in advance but courtesy of Sonic Unyon, I’ve got two pairs of passes to the show to give away and as a bonus, a copy of Colour Trip on CD for each winner. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see Sianspheric” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, June 27.
What else: The Georgia Straight and Soundspike have Ringo Deathstarr features.

MP3: Sianspheric – “All This Happened”
MP3: Ringo Deathstarr – “Imagine Hearts”

Frank YangIt’s just about Summer (officially) and Summers are made for lounging around on large patches of grass, perhaps with some music to keep you company. Perhaps some live music. At a festival. There’s no shortage of events at which to get your festival on across Canada – Exclaim does a fine job every year of rounding up what’s what from coast to coast – but if you need a little extra incentive to make a decision as to where to plant your ass in the coming months, maybe I can help.

Courtesy of Rock Paper Scissors, I’ve got a variety of passes to give away for a few festivals around the country, which will be of varying interest depending on where you reside and what you’re into. They shake down as follows, instructions to enter noted within each writeup.

What: Vancouver Island MusicFest
Where: Courtenay, British Columbia
When: July 8 to July 10, 2011
Who: Alison Krauss & Union Station, David Crosby, Randy Newman and more
What: One pair of weekend passes to give away.
How: Email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to go to the Vancouver Island MusicFest” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body before midnight, June 30.

What: Dawson City Music Festival
Where: Dawson City, Yukon Territory
When: July 15 to 17, 2011
Who: Yukon Blonde, Shout Out Out Out Out, Rich Aucoin and more
What: One pair of weekend passes to give away.
How: Email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to go to the Dawson City Music Festival” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body before midnight, June 30.

What: Calgary Folk Music Festival
Where: Prince’s Island Park, Calgary, Alberta
When: July 21 to July 24, 2011
Who: Blue Rodeo, Yo La Tengo, Coeur de pirate and more
What: One pair of weekend passes to give away.
How: Email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to go to the Calgary Folk Fest” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body before midnight, July 7.

What: Hillside Festival
Where: Guelph Lake, Guelph, Ontario
When: July 22 to July 24, 2011
Who: Shad, Karkwa, Dan Mangan and more
What: Two pairs of single-day passes for each day of the festival
How: Email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to go to Hillside” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body before midnight, July 7. Please note in the body which of the three days you would prefer to go to, and you can list multiple dates but unless there’s not enough entries to allott passes to all different people, which I don’t expect, then winning one pair eliminates you from contention for the rest. Don’t worry, it makes sense in my head.