amazon.comSo Blur threw a bucket of cold water on those of us who’d been following along with their triumphant 2009 reunion shows at home, hoping against hope that rumours from earlier this Summer that they were considering extending the love-in across the Atlantic if not this year then next would be true. The Guardian quotes bassist Alex James as telling the BBC that despite the rapturous response to the shows, the band had no plans of “doing anything else whatsoever”. Cold water, indeed.

And so it seems a bit ironic that they’re releasing a new compilation in Midlife: A Beginner’s Guide To Blur, out next week, in that if someone is to just now discover Blur – where can they take that? Certainly not to a show. Perhaps they can take it to the previous Blur compilation, 2000’s The Best Of Blur. Though a decade separates the two, there’s been only one studio album in that span – the Graham Coxon-less Think Tank – which makes the necessity of a second best-of questionable.

“But!”, the pedant might shout out, “this isn’t a best-of!” – and to be fair, Midlife does not claim to be so, but instead an introduction to the band. And in that sense, it actually succeeds quite well. Whereas the “best of” epithet mandated that the 2000 compilation boast the band’s chart-toppers and poppier material, which it did nicely – buying it persuaded me to catch up on all the studio albums while keeping the comp for quick hits and the live bonus disc – being a “beginner’s guide” allows Midlife to shed some of the ear candy for more difficult but perhaps more rewarding deep cuts, emphasizing the band’s artier side and also acknowledging the existence of Think Tank. If this were someone’s first introduction to the band, they would come away with the impression that they were an eclectic art-rock band with the ability to make big-league hooks rather than a radio-ready pop band with a weird streak. Neither of these is wrong, which is one of the things that makes Blur so interesting, with both comps taking different perspectives on the band.

And not that you need both, but if you did, there wouldn’t be that much overlap. Ten songs appear on both, but Midlife boasts 25 across two discs and in all honesty, “Blue Jeans”, “Chemical World” and “Popscene” are more welcome than “On Your Own”, “There’s No Other Way” or “Country House” are missed. If they’d only found a way to include “To The End” and “End Of A Century”, Midlife would be hands-down the one to have if you had room for only one jewel case in your CD collection (humour me and pretend you still have a CD collection), though the Best Of artwork is still far and away tops. But really, the thing to do is go out and buy their entire catalog. Except Think Tank. You probably don’t need that.

To the contest part of this post, courtesy of EMI Records, I have three copies of the Midlife compilation to give away, so if you want, leave a comment below stating which single Blur song you would use to introduce and indoctrinate a newcomer to the band and why. Be sure to include your email address so I get in touch with the winner. This contest will close at midnight, August 1, and is open to residents of North America. You in the UK, you got the live shows – you don’t get the comp. Those of us here have to make do with the recordings of the gigs, like this one that closed out Glastonbury. Le sigh.

MP3: Blur – “The Universal” (live at Glastonbury 2009)

MySpaceWhen I ran a Decemberists-themed contest back in April, I had to confess that though a fan of the band, I’d not yet heard their latest album The Hazards Of Love because, well, I hadn’t. This didn’t seem unreasonable, though, as the record was only a month old at that point. Well it’s now mid-July and, well, I still haven’t heard it. And while I hardly feel like I should be ashamed of this, it is still a bit embarrassing – especially since I’m now running another contest for the band and have absolutely no insights or opinions to offer on their latest work. Oh well. You don’t care what I think; you’re here for the free stuff.

And the free stuff is this. The band has just kicked off a North American tour which, I believe, will see them play the entire new record in its entirety – it is a rock opera, after all – with some fan favourites tacked on at the end of the set or the encore. And that tour will be at the Kool Haus in Toronto on August 3. And courtesy of Against The Grain, I’ve got three pairs of passes to give away for the show. If you want to go, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see The Decemberists” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest will close at midnight, July 26.

There’s interviews with the band at Seattlest, The Georgia Straight and Oregon Live while Magnet does the overrated/underrated thing with their oeuvre.

Video: The Decemberists – “Hazards Of Love 2” (live at SxSW)
MySpace: The Decemberists

Brittany GrayTo call the Wheat story a long and winding one would be more than a little bit of understatement. I’ve made following the band something of a spectator sport over the years so when word came out that they band – whom you could never take for granted still existed let alone were working – had a new album coming out, a follow-up to 2007’s tentative and uneven but wholly welcome Everyday I Said A Prayer For Kathy And Made A One Inch Square, I reached for the popcorn.

I got a taste of the new material at SxSW in March at a performance that you couldn’t call flawless – the complexities of trying to recreate the new material live with just a trio were evident and the new stuff didn’t immediately file itself in the “win” column – but did nicely showcase the band’s joie de vivre at simply making music. The actual new record, White Ink Black Ink, out next Tuesday, maintains that sense of joy but delivers the material much more confidently – unsurprisingly, this is a band more comfortable in the studio than on the stage. Ink follows the template laid down by Kathy, with the same sort of restless creativity and messy enthusiasm but whereas the ADD left Kathy feeling somewhat distracted, Ink comes across as a more fully realized and crafted record – still meandering but with more purpose and even when it doesn’t know where it’s going, it gets there with more vim and vigor.

So on its own merits, Ink is an enjoyable bit of art-pop but for a long-time fan such as myself, it’s impossible to consider it without wondering how it compares to their early highwater marks, Medeiros and Hope & Adams. And the simple fact is, objectively or subjectively, it doesn’t because it can’t. Wheat have left that the hazy, slow motion aesthetic of their salad days far behind, and even if that period did yield superior songs – I think that’s fair to say – it’s obvious they’re very much occupied and enthused about working in the now, and Ink is evidence that the new direction might yet yield gems as rich as their earlier period. Asking them to go back would be like asking the beautiful wallflower who finally got the courage to step out on the dance floor, as awkward as their moves might be, to return to the shadows. It’s not going to happen, and probably shouldn’t anyways.

Express Night Out gets a track-by-track guide to the album from Scott Levesque and Brendan Harney. There’s also an EPK video to watch, if you are so inclined.

And because I happened to get two copies of the album for review purposes – three if you count an early CD-R, four if you count the digital version – I will happily give one away to a reader. If you’d like it, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want the Wheat” in the subject line and your full mailing address in the body and get that in to me before midnight, July 24. Contest open to whomever.

MP3: Wheat – “Changes Is”
MP3: Wheat – “H.O.T.T.”
MP3: Wheat – “El Sincero”
MySpace: Wheat

Penguin Books has an interview with Joe Pernice about his forthcoming novel It Feels So Good When I Stop, out August 6, and you can now read an excerpt from it. Pernice will be at the Dakota Tavern on September 24 to play some songs from the soundtrack and read from the book – tickets are $18.50 and go on sale tomorrow.

Daytrotter welcomes Blitzen Trapper back for their third? fourth? millionth? session. They’ve also released a new video from last year’s Furr and have chats with Decider and The Daily Iowan.

Video: Blitzen Trapper – “Black River Killer”

JAM and Pitchfork talk to The National’s Bryan Devendorf and Bryce Dessner, respectively, while Decider looks at how Matt Berninger draws on Charles Bukowski for inspiration. And Pitchfork is streaming the band’s contribution to a forthcoming tribute album to Ciao My Shining Star, a tribute album to Mark Mulcahy coming out September 29. I will freely admit I have no idea who Mark Mucahy or Miracle Legion are/were, but they’ve got some heavyweight fans.

The Line Of Best Fit interviews St Vincent. She is at the Horseshoe on August 8.

Baltimore City Paper spends some time with hometown kids Wye Oak, whose rather lovely second album The Knot is out next Tuesday, July 21. The band also compiled a mix tape for Magnet.

The AV Club talks to Mark Olson of The Jayhawks.

The Riverfront Times talks to Son Volt’s Jay Farrar and gets the scoop on a forthcoming Jack Kerouac-themed collaboration between he and Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard.

FFWD has an interview with Bruce Peninsula, who’ve just scheduled a date at the Horseshoe for October 1.

Neko Case discusses her songwriting process with The Kansas City Star.

The Dodos aren’t waiting for their new album Time To Die to leak well before its September 15 release date – they’re streaming the whole thing right now on timetodie.net and Pitchfork has an MP3 available to download. They will be at Lee’s Palace on October 17.

MP3: The Dodos – “Fables”
Stream: The Dodos / Time To Die

Daniel Johnston is hitting the road this Fall, including an October 17 date at the Mod Club – tickets $27.

Our Noise is the forthcoming book documenting the first 20 years of Merge Records, and in advance of its September 15 publication date, it has received a swanky website. Tangentially, Pitchfork is streaming the a-side to Superchunk’s recent limited edition 7″ single.

Autumn de WildeHaving followed John Vanderslice’s career from a respectful distance for many years now – spending a lot of time with some records, completely overlooking others – I would have said that while I’d always expect his records to be enjoyable, coupling solid songwriting with subtly idiosyncratic production, I would never expect to be floored by anything he put out. He’s just been so content batting for average that there’s no reason to think he’d suddenly open up the stance and swing for the fences.

And you wouldn’t call his latest album Romanian Names a home run, but it does stand apart from the rest of his discography to count as a solid double, maybe even a ground-rule. And it’s hard to tell, at first, what sets this one apart because the ingredients are much the same as the previous records. The melodies are still just too twisty to count as immediate, but remain deeply memorable, the production full of aural treats that might just as easily go unnoticed but reward attentive listeners and Vanderslice’s voice and words as plaintive and moving as ever. So what’s different? Well there’s a certain sonic and emotional richness to the proceedings that’s not necessarily new, but is simpler, clearer and more striking. But best I can tell is all of the above have combined for some magical ratio or emotionally resonant frequency that the ‘Slice hadn’t quite managed before and has resulted in a record that’s as good an example as any as to why he’s so highly regarded and puzzlingly underappreciated.

Vanderslice just wrapped an extensive round of touring, but will gear up for a small handful of Canadian dates and courtesy of Against The Grain, I’ve got three pairs of passes to give away to his Friday night (July 10) show at the Horseshoe with Cotton Jones. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want the ‘Slice” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, July 8 – that’s tomorrow night.

American Songwriter has a feature piece and Decider an interview with John Vanderslice, while Blurt reviews and compares two of his shows. NPR declared “Too Much Time” their song of the day for yesterday.

MP3: John Vanderslice – “Too Much Time”
MP3: John Vanderslice – “Fetal Horses”
Video: John Vanderslice – “Forest Knolls”
Video: John Vanderslice – “Too Much Time”
MySpace: John Vanderslice

I don’t know if the above baseball metaphor was appropriate for John Vanderslice – does the ‘Slice like the baseball? – but it would have been perfect for the September 13 bill at the Horseshoe. That night you’ll have The Minus 5, The Baseball Project and The Steve Wynn IV – which as I understand will essentially be Scott McCaughey, Peter Buck, Steve Wynn and Linda Pitmon playing material from all three above catalogs and basically just having more fun than Junior Felix’s inside-the-park grand slam against the Red Sox back in ’89 – and that, my friends, was fun. If you were a Jays fan. Tickets for that one are $13.50 in advance.

The Seattle Times talks to Death Cab For Cutie’s Nick Harmer.

Under The Radar interviews Justin Rice of Bishop Allen.

San Francisco’s Sleepy Sun are at the Drake Underground on September 21, tickets $10. Their debut album is Embrace and they released a Daytrotter session back in May.

The Washington Post talks to Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy.

The Toronto date for Joe Pernice’s concert/bookreading tour has been set for September 15 at the Dakota Tavern. Not to say that it’s an inappropriate venue by any means, but I like how they selected the room closest to Joe’s west end digs. The new record It Feels So Good When I Stop is out August 4 but available to pre-order now with attendant bonus goodies.

The Dirty Projectors show cancelled last month on account of that unfortunate car accident has been rescheduled for July 22, presumable again at Lee’s Palace – tickets will only be available at Rotate This and Soundscapes starting Thursday. Pitchfork has an interview with Dave Longstreth, the dirtiest projector of them all.

The Skinny and The Quietus talk to Kevin Barnes of Of Montreal, though the latter only about Woody Allen.

You can download Ume’s recent session at WOXY, including a couple of new songs.

You Ain’t No Picasso asks Andy Stack of Wye Oak about his first time. At stuff. Their new album The Knot is out July 21.

Oklahoman psych-poppers – no, not those ones – Starlight Mints will release a new album in Change Remains on July 21 and hit the road to support, including an August 9 date at the Horseshoe – tickets $9.

MP3: Starlight Mints – “Zoomba”

NPR talks to Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance of Merge Records on the occasion of the label’s 20th anniversary.

The Skinny profiles The Horrors, who have a date at Lee’s Palace on October 14.

The Singing Lamb talks to Mica Levy of Micachu & The Shapes in advance of their July 14 show at the El Mocambo.

Daytrotter is sharing the goods from a session with Los Campesinos.

The Advocate interviews Patrick Wolf, whose recent Daytrotter session is now up and available for grabby hands.

The New York Times hangs out in New York City with Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan. Shopping ensues.

Elvis Costello plays a World Cafe session for NPR. He’s at Massey Hall on August 28.

Art Brut are finally touring their latest album Art Brut Vs Satan through Toronto, having scheduled a date at Lee’s Palace for August 12, tickets $17.50. Yes, they’re kind of ridiculous as a band but they’re undeniably fun. You can download a track from the new record over at RCRDLBL and this is the first video from the album.

Video: Art Brut – “Alcoholics Unanimous”

Three more new videos out of the the UK – the first single from The Twilight Sad’s sophomore album Forget The Night Ahead, due out September 22, Bloc Party’s new non-album single “One More Chance”, out August 10, and the latest from Franz Ferdinand’s Tonight.

Video: The Twilight Sad – “I Became A Prostitute”
Video: Bloc Party – “One More Chance”
Video: Franz Ferdinand – “Can’t Stop Feeling”

While one might feel compelled to salute The Stone Roses from jumping on the reunion bandwagon – John Squire tells BBC he’s had calls from relatives for reunion gig tickets – it seems it’s only because they intend to cash in on nostalgia fever via their 20th anniversary reissues. NME has details on the three tiers of reissues that will be coming on August 11. The remastering job from John Leckie is a real draw, but the rest of the bonus goods are probably not worth your while.

As those of us in Toronto sit and wait not quite as patiently as we one did for news of our – or Ontario’s – Virgin Festival, it’s hard not to look longingly up the 401 to the rather excellent party happening in Montreal the weekend of August 1 and 2 at Parc Jean-Drapeau – Osheaga. Having both come into being in the same year – 2006 – and even taking place the same weekend (and swapping many acts) in 2007, the two festivals have always had a friendly competition very much in the spirit of all Montreal-Toronto rivalries, punters endlessly comparing lineups and experiences.

This year, however, the edge has to go to Osheaga by simple virtue of the fact that it officially exists. The fact that this year’s lineup is pretty stacked, featuring Coldplay, Beastie Boys, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Elbow, Lykke Li, The Decemberists, Arctic Monkeys, Eagles Of Death Metal and craploads more, is just gravy. This isn’t to say that V couldn’t come up with something comparable, but it’d have to be pretty left-field. Either way… we shall see.

But if you’re sold on Osheaga – and it’s not like you have to choose, they’re almost a month apart – then maybe this giveaway is for you. Courtesy of the festival, I’ve got a pair of weekend passes to give away to one lucky winner. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to Go-sheaga” in the subject line (yes I used that in last year’s contest but I like it) and your name and full mailing address in the body and get that in to me before midnight, July 14.

MySpace: Osheaga