Photo by Frank Yang

Though celebrating its fifth anniversary this year and surely the longest running program of Harbourfront Centre’s World Routes Summer festival series, I’d never been to any of the Beats, Breaks & Culture shows before. Not the biggest fan of beats or breaks, and the jury is still out on this whole “culture” thing. But as I mentioned a couple weeks back, Ladytron’s latest Velocifero has been in very heavy rotation lately and with them playing a free show on Friday night as part of the aforementioned festival, there was simply no way I was missing it (and if my Facebook friends’ status’ were any indication, no one else was missing it either).

Ladytron’s tourmates throughout their North American itinerary had been Datarock and they’d originally been slated to play this date as well, but at some point they were removed and French outfit Poni Hoax added. This was disappointing as I’d seen Datarock before and if nothing else, they’re fun to watch. Poni Hoax, on the other hand, really wasn’t. By dressing up synth-rock with Euro-lounge accouterments, the five piece might have aspired to the likes of Roxy Music, but came off more like Dead Or Alive. A large part of the problem was frontman Nicolas Ker, who looked about ten years older than his bandmates and with a decidedly unsettling, creepy uncle vibe. Perhaps a superficial reason to dismiss a band, but they didn’t do anything musically interesting enough to distract me from it. The most memorable facet of their set was the drummer, who despite being barely functional in English, enthusiastically handled all of the band’s between-song banter. Entertaining and incomprehensible.

Watching they set up the stage for Ladytron, it occurred to me that for all the times I’d been to shows at the Habourfront Centre mainstage, it was always for local or Canadian acts who came without especially elaborate stage setups. The difference between those shows and this one became clear when the roadies pulled the covers off the massive banks of lights across the back of the stage – Ladytron came equipped with visuals, oh yes. Now I’d been led to believe by others who’d seen them live before that they were almost Kraftwerk-ian in their stoic stage presence, which is to say I wasn’t expecting them to move any more than was absolutely necessary to play their instruments and sing. Thankfully, this was not the case. While frontwomen Helen Marnie and Mira Aroyo didn’t stray far from their massive banks of synths, they did step up to the mics when it was their respective turns to take vocals as well as dance, or at least sway and skip. Bandmates Reuben Wu and Daniel Hunt sensibly stayed well in the back along with the touring drummer and second guitarist – no one was there to look at them, after all. There weren’t any extravagant antics, but they were hardly the robotic presence I’d half-expected. After all, robots don’t lead two thousand people in clap-alongs (okay, you could probably program one to do so but it wouldn’t be the same).

But even if they did have the charisma of automatons, the show would have rocked. First, the venue was obscenely packed with frantic fans who would have easily made up the net energy and second, Ladytron sounded fantastic. Obviously I’m a guitar guy at heart, but I can fully appreciate being hit in the face with a big fat analog square wave, especially when it’s riding songs as unrelentingly propulsive and hooky as these. The benefits of volume became clear to me earlier in the week when I listened to Velocifero on the stereo turned up loud, and they were even more obvious in a live setting with a pretty much perfect mix. Almost half the set drew from the latest album, guaranteeing that I’d at least recognize a lot of the songs, and the rest is definitely forcing me into a reappraisal of their entire catalog – I already have The Witching Hour on order, though as it turns out they were selling it at the show. Alas.

Photos: Ladytron, Poni Hoax @ Harbourfront Centre – July 4, 2008
MP3: Ladytron – “Black Cat”
MP3: Ladytron – “Destroy Everything You Touch”
Video: Ladytron – “Ghosts”
Video: Ladytron – “Destroy Everything You Touch”
Video: Ladytron – “Sugar”
Video: Ladytron – “Evil”
Video: Ladytron – “Blue Jeans”
Video: Ladytron – “Seventeen”
Video: Ladytron – “Play Girl”
Video: Poni Hoax – “Antibodies”
Video: Poni Hoax – “Budapest”
MySpace: Ladytron

BeatRoute talks to Andrew Bird.

Spin has an interview – and fashion spread – with She & Him. Matt and Zooey will be at the Opera House and looking dapper (well her, anyway) on July 23.

Pitchfork.tv is streaming the whole of the Guyville Redux documentary that ships as a bonus DVD with the deluxe edition of Liz Phair’s Exile In Guyville.

And on the non-tv side, Pitchfork marks SubPop’s 20th anniversary with a conversation with label founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman.

Photo by Ben Corrigan

My first couple times through The Duke Spirit’s second album Neptune, way back in March, my impressions were that it was a remarkably unremarkable record. Certainly passable straight ahead rock, but nothing especially distinctive. A revisit some months later… and still not much to speak of.

When I saw them live a few years back I was impressed by their energy onstage, but don’t think any of their songs stuck with me and again, that’s the case. Neptune‘s garage/blues-rock is proficiently played with some interesting production flourishes and all delivered with the requisite amount of energy to make you believe the band is fully invested, but nothing jumps out as being exceptional. They display some decent melodic instincts on the piano-led “My Sunken Treasure” but don’t indulge it often enough, preferring to lean on the tried and true (or should that be “tired”?) rawk. If I had actually expected anything of this record, I’d probably be disappointed but as it is, I’m mostly just indifferent.

But hey, if you like them don’t let me harsh on your buzz. Courtesy of Filter, I’ve got three prize packs consisting of a Duke Spirit t-shirt, a copy of Neptune on CD, an instrumental-only mix of Neptune on CD (for DIY karaoke?) and a copy of Neptune on LP, autographed by the band. If you want, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I’ve got the Duke Spirit” in the subject line and your full name, mailing address and t-shirt size in the body. Hopefully the prize fulfillment elves will be able to provide a properly-fitting garment. Contest closes in one week, July 12, and is open to whomever, wherever.

The Duke Spirit talk to Spinner and GigWise and are setting out on an American tour in a couple weeks.

MP3: The Duke Spirit – “Lassoo”
Video: The Duke Spirit – “Lassoo”
Video: The Duke Spirit – “The Step & The Walk”
MySpace: The Duke Spirit

Photo via We Are Soldiers We Have Guns

I’d never heard of Spanish site Buffet Libre before, but they’ve made a hell of a first impression with their enormous, 58-song ’80s covers and remixes compilation entitled Rewind, all available to download for free (and legal). The majority of artists are unknown to me but range from around the world and there are some familiar names in the mix – Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin throwing some massive synths at XTC, Electric Soft Parade tackling Pet Shop Boys and We Are Soldiers We Have Guns paying tribute to The Go-Go’s. I can’t imagine I’ll ever get through everything in this collection, but it’ll (hopefully) be fun to try.

MP3: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – “Another Satellite”
MP3: Electric Soft Parade – “Jealousy”
MP3: We Are Soldiers We Have Guns – “Our Lips Are Sealed”

That last act is the current project of Sweden’s Malin Dahlberg, also of Douglas Heart, and her debut album Get Up, Get Out is out July 28. I’m losing hope for a new Douglas Heart record any time soon – I’m not sure when the two rough mixes on their MySpace went up but I’m betting it wasn’t recently – so this record will have to do. It’s interesting how much less introverted Dahlberg sounds outside the context of Douglas Heart’s dreamy aesthetic. It’s still certainly bedroom wallflower pop, but sunnier somehow.

MP3: We Are Soldiers, We Have Guns – “November”
MP3: We Are Soldiers, We Have Guns – “Songs That No One Will Hear”
MP3: We Are Soldiers, We Have Guns – “Damn Those TV Shows, Damn Them Straight To Hell”
MP3: We Are Soldiers, We Have Guns – “Tourists In Our Hometown”
Video: We Are Soldiers We Have Guns – “The Line Is A Dot To You”
Stream: We Are Soldiers, We Have Guns / Get Up, Get Out
MySpace: We Are Soldiers We Have Guns

Drowned In Sound talks to Sarah Assbring of El Perro Del Mar.

Though almost a third of the spots for this year’s Virgin Festival remain unannounced, they’ve made some progress in filling out what’s going on the weekend of September 6 and 7 by announcing the DJs for the Bacardi B-Live tent. Not being a dance/electronic music guy, most of the names meant nothing to me, but the big one certainly did. were announced this week with a bunch of names I don’t know and one that I do – Moby. My arch-nemesis – my great white whale, if you will – will be spinning on day two. There will be a reckoning. Oh yes. But first, hopefully there’ll be some more performers announced sooner rather than later.

Also happening on Toronto Islands this Summer is Wakestock, running July 24 to 27. There’s usually a passel of bands of the punk rock variety along for the ride and this this year they’ll also have the likes of Metric and We Are Scientists to soundtrack all the extreme sporting.

JAM, NOW and OnMilwaukee.com talk to Alejandro Escovedo about his new record Real Animal. He’s in town Monday and in addition to his show at the Mod Club that evening, he’s doing an acoustic in-store and signing at the HMV in Yorkville at 12:30 PM. And congratulations to Neil who won the passes to the evening performance.

Mogwai have offered up the first taste of their next album The Hawk Is Howling, out September 23. They’re at the Kool Haus on September 24.

MP3: Mogwai – “The Sun Smells Too Loud”

JAM chats with Adele.

Spin reveals what the cover of The Verve’s forthcoming Forth – due August 19 – will look like. Well, I suppose we should be thankful there’s not a rainbow.

Pitchfork finds out what Rose Elinor Dougall – aka Rosay – is up to as an ex-Pipette.

Jane Vain & The Dark Matter will be back in town at month’s end with two shows at the Horseshoe – one on July 26 with The Coast and a free one that following Tuesday, July 29.

Forest City Lovers have been keeping a tour diary for Exclaim! as they traipse across the continent on tour. Follow along at home! Vue Weekly also chats with singer-songwriter Kat Burns.

Joey Burns of Calexico discusses the back to basics creative process behind Carried To Dust with Beatroute while John Covertino talks to Metro Times. We’ll hear the fruits of their labours this Sunday night when they play the Mod Club. Also on the bill are Woodpigeon, who talk to eye about the state of the arts in their native Calgary. Congratulations to Joe who won the passes to the show.

Nashville Scene talks to The Black Angels. WOXY is also sharing a studio session with the band.

Black Mountain will be returning to town on September 27 with Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter in tow – that show will be at the Opera House.

Grizzly Bear update Billboard on the status of their next album. They’re at the Molson Amphitheatre with Radiohead on August 15.

Matablog points to a number of recent Shearwater radio sessions to stream.

Photo by Frank Yang

While I’m the last person to look a gift stat holiday in the mouth, I don’t think I’m such a fan of those that drop in the middle of the week. Having Canada Day fall on a Tuesday this year not only eliminated the conventional long weekend (it would have cost me a vacation day to get the four days off), but made Wednesday feel like Monday when it should have been Sunday since Tuesday felt a lot like Saturday. And it’s to this topsy-turvy week that I attribute the relatively light turnout to the annual Canada Day festivities at Harbourfront Centre.

I’d like to think that it wasn’t the quality of the acts on the bill that kept people away – though relatively new to me, Martha Wainwright is a fairly big name both nationally and abroad and her just-released sophomore effort I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too is getting its share of glowing accolades and as anyone who’s been visiting here for at least the past year, I think the undercard, Ms Basia Bulat, is as good as a basket of kittens. In other words, there was serious talent on display, and for free.

None of this is to say there wasn’t a very healthy crowd Tuesday night – there definitely was when Bulat took the stage to an almost comically botched introduction (every name that could possibly be mispronounced was, and Oh My Darling has not been shortlisted for the Polaris Prize… yet). Though she’d performed earlier in the day in Ottawa, Basia showed no sign of tiredness from the jet-setting, leading her band through an effervescent set of material old and new. While this certainly wasn’t the largest crowd she’d played in front of – if nothing else, that day’s Parliament Hill show surely had a larger head count – it was probably the largest crowd I’d seen her play in front of and, consequently, the loudest applause I’ve heard her get, and deservedly so. A basket of kittens, I’m telling you.

As stated above, I’m a newcomer to Martha Wainwright having missed out on her self-titled debut and only hearing her for the first time with the new album. My net impression is a positive one, though not without caveats. One the plus side, she does have a marvelous voice and a sharp songwriting pen. In the cons column, she does have a tendency to over-sing where some restraint might serve better and the eclecticism of musical styles on offer can sound as unfocused as they do bold. But the shining moments – which generally happen to be the bigger pop numbers and a terrific Eurythmics cover – more than compensate for the weaker ones.

And in the pro column, you can add an undeniable live charisma and a penchant for amusing if perhaps family-inappropriate banter (which I won’t repeat here). Though she claimed to have jet lag, having just played at Glastonbury the preceding weekend, she didn’t seem at all off her game. If anything, her voice is more powerful live than on record, though the aforementioned flaws in her material were also more amplified – the middle section of the set where her band left her to play solo allowed her to indulge her most diva-like qualities. I’m sure it’s impressive to some, but vocal acrobatics have never done as much for me as a restrained but emotive delivery. But like the record, the positives of the show outweighed the negatives and she sealed the deal with an encore of a French operatic piece that I couldn’t possibly identify, but was dazzled by nonetheless.

With the release of her new record, much ink has been given to Martha Wainwright. The Mirror talked to the Glastonbury veteran about her tips for surviving the fest, Canadian Press discusses her famous family, The Independent inquires about being sexy (I’d call her more striking than sexy though you can’t argue with the legs on display on her latest album cover), Get Reading catches up with her on tour, Black Book and ClickMusic go for general Q&As while CD Times and The National Post offer longer features.

Photos: Martha Wainwright, Basia Bulat @ Harbourfront Centre – July 1, 2008
MP3: Martha Wainwright – “Bloody Mother Fuckin Asshole”
MP3: Basia Bulat – “In The Night”
MP3: Basia Bulat – “Snakes & Ladders”
Video: Martha Wainwright – “When The Day Is Short”
Video: Basia Bulat – “In The Night”
MySpace: Martha Wainwright
MySpace: Basia Bulat

I was a touch surprised to see a familiar face on stage in Wainwright’s band – Thomas Bartlett, aka Doveman. Bartlett has just released a new album available for download free on his website – a cover of the entire soundtrack to the Kevin Bacon star-maker, Footloose. But before you chalk this up as an indulgence in ’80s irony, check out the very real and touching dedication for the collection (also on the site). It’s all there, rendered in Doveman’s distinctive rasp and slow-motion keyboards, from the Kenny Loggins theme song through the rather over the top “Holding Out For A Hero” by Bonnie Tyler to the for-the-ages duet between Heart’s Ann Wilson and Loverboy’s Mike Reno. Oh man. I’m actually very familiar with the soundtrack as it was part of my brother’s cassette collection when I was a kid and for good or for ill, was probably very formative in my musical development and it’s a little unsettling just how well I still know the songs. Doveman will be on tour with Nico Muhly in August and be in town at the Danforth Music Hall on August 27 along with Final Fantasy.

MP3: Doveman – “Footloose”
ZIP: Doveman / Footloose

Eddie Vedder, sans Pearl Jam, will be playing two nights at Massey Hall on August 12 and 13.

Bob Dylan is coming… to Hamilton. He’s at Copp’s Coliseum on August 20.

A Place To Bury Strangers are at Lee’s Palace on September 19 with Sian Alice Group.

NOW, eye and The Montreal Gazette question members of Ladytron – very much excited for tomorrow night’s free show at Harbourfront Centre. That’s three visits to Harbourfront in a week, surely some kind of record for me.

Pitchfork has details on Of Montreal’s next album Skeletal Lamping, due out October 7.

And the hits just keep on coming at Aquarium Drunkard – next up, an interview with Will Johnson of Centro-Matic.

The Guardian decides that the best career move that bands can make these days is to break up.

MTV picks their top albums of the year so far.

Photo by Frank Yang

Analogy of the day – Mogwai albums, and by extension their live shows, are like visiting the ocean. Technically, if you’ve been once (heard one), you’ve gotten the gist of it. Endless vistas, rolling waves, the majesty of nature (quiet quiet LOUD LOUD, darkly foreboding, mostly instrumental post-rock soundtrack to the end times).

But to take a “been there, done that” attitude is to miss the point – no matter how many times you stand at the coast, you never cease to be stunned by the immense and inspiring beauty of it all (or at least you shouldn’t if you have any kind of soul) and no matter how many times you’ve faced the combined amplified and visceral glory of the Scottish quintet, your pants will still flap and your teeth will still hurt and you will still love it. Or at least you should. Old material, new material, whatever – it’s about the kick in the head.

Closing out a strenuous two-date Canadian tour on Monday night at the Phoenix, the band appeared to be in good spirits. The set list was more about the new, previewing material from their forthcoming The Hawk Is Howling album (out September 23) though their back catalog was visited enough to satiate if not satisfy the faithful – no “Mogwai Fear Satan” or “My Father My King”, though I was a little relieved by that. I don’t think I could have handled the sustained assault. The new material sounded, well, it sounded like Mogwai and continued in the same path they’ve tread over the last couple albums – not as thunderous as the first couple records but not as gentle or “pop” as my personal favourite, Rock Action. The relative softening and expansion of their sound is most evident in the fact that Barry Burns now acts almost as a full-time keyboardist now, only taking third guitar duties for the older material.

Another consequence of their sonic evolution is the band’s former lock on the “loudest in the world” title (unofficial, of course). The first couple times I saw Mogwai live, people were collapsing from the onslaught (or maybe from the booze and drugs, I dunno, but attributing it to the volume is better myth-making) whereas this time, people were standing right up front without earplugs and not even flinching. Not me, but others less attached to their sense of hearing. But even turned down a bit, it was still hellaciously loud at points – a scorched earth “Like Herod” was a pointed response to anyone who might have thought the boys were getting a bit soft in their middle age but my favourite moments were the Rock Action selections – hearing “Secret Pint” and “2 Rights Make 1 Wrong” brought a smile to my face. The sound at the Phoenix was marvelous and the band sounded fantastic – because even though the ocean is still the ocean is always the ocean, sometimes it’s just that much more amazing.

Openers were local trio I Can Put My Arm Back On You Can’t whose name you may recognize as a reference to this and who traded in loud, fast, post-punk/hardcore with screamy/gutteral vocals and would have appealed to Mogwai fans who wished that band were louder, faster and with screamy/gutteral vocals. It’s a style of music that I’m familiar enough with to know I’m not a fan, but also able to recognize and respect proficiency which these guys had.

Mogwai will be back in town on September 24 for a show at the Kool Haus. Fansite Bright Light has the set list for the show and a couple fan reviews.

Photos: Mogwai, I Can Put My Arm Back On You Can’t @ The Phoenix – June 30, 2008
MP3: Mogwai – “The Sun Smells Too Loud”
MP3: Mogwai – “Yes! I Am A Long Way From Home”
MP3: Mogwai – “Tracy”
MP3: Mogwai – “Dial: Revenge”
MP3: Mogwai – “Hunted By A Freak”
MP3: Mogwai – “Folk Death 95”
MP3: Mogwai – “7:25”
Video: Mogwai – “Travel Is Dangerous”
Video: Mogwai – “Friend Of The Night”
Video: Mogwai – “Hunted By A Freak”
Video: Mogwai – “Dial: Revenge”
MySpace: Mogwai

Reveille and Express talk to Scott Hutchinson of Frightened Rabbit, another band of Scots who know a thing or two about making a racket.

Paste talks to Built To Spill about their upcoming Perfect From Now On tour, which will include a show at All Tomorrow’s Parties in New York State in September alongside Mogwai.

The AV Club puts Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Ed O’Brien in the hot seat. O’Brien also goes on The Daily Record about going green, Glastonbury and the amount of love lost between the band and EMI (very very little). They’re at the Molson Amphitheatre on August 15.

Wayne Coyne talks to Paste about the allegedly now-complete Flaming Lips film, Christmas On Mars. I’ll believe it when I see the terrible, terrible reviews.

USA Today interviews Portishead’s Adrian Utley.

The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn chats with Metro about their new jam Stay Positive, out in a couple weeks on July 15.