Tuesday, May 1st, 2012
My Morning Jacket and Band Of Horses team up for tour, beard-growing competition
Frank YangIt’s been a long time since you could accurately describe My Morning Jacket as a southern rock kind of band – yes they’re southern and they rock, but they’ve long since chased their country/psych/soul-inspired muses into uncharted corners of the musical cosmos and are really rather their own genre entirely now. Similarly, it’s been a long time since you could call Band Of Horses “My Morning Jacket, Jr” as they were often referred – equally affectionately and derisively, I think – on account of Ben Bridwell’s own southern accents, sky-reaching field holler of a voice, and impressive hirsuteness. They’ve not reinvented themselves to quite the same degree but three albums in, they’re very much their own band now and follow in no one’s footsteps.
All that said, there’s plenty of natural synchronicity between the two acts so even though neither will have a new record to push – MMJ’s last release was 2011’s Circuital and BOH’s follow-up to 2010’s Infinite Arms isn’t due out until the Fall at earliest – it’s nice to see that they’re teaming up for a string of Summer dates that will see Band Of Horses set ’em up and My Morning Jacket knock ’em down, all while bringing smiles to the faces of those who dig on big guitar jams, soaring vocals, and luxurious facial hair. Toronto gets the double-bill on August 15 when they play Echo Beach at Ontario Place, tickets $49.50 in advance and going on sale Friday at 10AM – that’ll be just over a year since My Morning Jacket’s last visit in July 2011 and some time since Band Of Horses last headlined here in October 2010 (I wasn’t there but hit their free surprise show at The Horseshoe in May).
This isn’t the first time that My Morning Jacket and Band Of Horses teamed up; they were out on the road for a spell last Fall, and a recording from that tour – with Ben Bridwell guesting with My Morning Jacket at Madison Square Garden in New York – has been released to offer a taste of what this new tour will have to offer.
MP3: My Morning Jacket with Ben Bridwell – “Wondeful (The Way I Feel)” (live at MSG)
MP3: My Morning Jacket – “Holdin’ Onto Black Metal”
MP3: My Morning Jacket – “Circuital”
MP3: Band Of Horses – “Factory”
MP3: Band Of Horses – “No One’s Gonna Love You”
Plenty more concert news from yesterday to get through. Those hoping to see Japandroids destroy a sold-out Horseshoe on June 23 in honour of their new record Celebration Rock should know that it has been moved to Lee’s Palace with that many more tickets available for sale. And speaking of moving, the release date of Celebration Rock has been moved from June 5 to May 29. And the first single is available to download.
MP3: Japandroids – “The House That Heaven Built”
Matador-signed Austin-based young punks The Young have set a date at The Shop Under Parts & Labour for July 4; their new record Dub Egg is out June 12.
MP3: The Young – “Livin’ Free”
If you can’t fit New York-based, every corner of the world-bred Young Magic into your NXNE schedule – they’re at Wrongbar on June 14 – know that they’ll be back much sooner rather than later in support of Melt with a date at The Garrison on July 5 with Boston’s Quilt. Tickets for that will be $12.50 in advance.
MP3: Young Magic – “Night In The Ocean”
MP3: Quilt – “Penobska-Oakwalk”
When Loney Dear brought Hall Music to the Drake Underground last November, it was just Emil Svanängen performing solo and while I was a bit wary of whether he could do it justice on his own, he succeeded in putting on one of my favourite shows of last year to go with one of my favourite albums of last year. I’ve no idea if he’ll be bringing a band with him on July 8 when he plays The Horseshoe – tickets $15 in advance – but you’re damn right I’ll be there to find out. Already one of my most-anticipated shows of the Summer and folks – it’s not a lean Summer for shows.
MP3: Loney Dear – “My Heart”
MP3: Loney Dear – “What Have I Become?”
Lower Dens will be at Lee’s Palace on July 17 in support of their new record Nootropics, out today. To mark the occasion, they’ve released a new video and another new MP3 to download.
MP3: Lower Dens – “Lamb”
Video: Lower Dens – “Propagation”
It took longer than I expected but The Big Pink have finally made a local date in support of this year’s Future This; they and their smoke machines will be at The Hoxton on August 1, tickets $18 in advance.
MP3: The Big Pink – “Stay Gold”
MP3: The Big Pink – “Give It Up”
Last week’s Jesus & Mary Chain rumours are now fact. The Reid brothers will be at The Phoenix on August 3 and the $59.50 tickets go on sale Thursday at 10AM. Of course it’s not cheap – you think they’re doing this for love?
Video: The Jesus & Mary Chain – “Just Like Honey”
Technically, Steve Earle has been through town already in support of last year’s I’ll Never Get Out Of This World Alive, but that was at the Molson Amphitheatre opening for Blue Rodeo. August 14 sees him coming back with The Dukes for his own show at Massey Hall; tickets are $49.50 and go on sale Friday at 10AM.
Video: Steve Earle – “Waitin’ On The Sky”
The Swedish sisters of First Aid Kit will ride the success of their sophomore effort The Lion’s Roar through a Fall North American tour that brings them back to town for a September 26 show at The Danforth Music Hall. Which they prefer you now just call The Music Hall but I do what I want.
Video: First Aid Kit – “Emmylou”
Monday, April 30th, 2012
Review of We Are Serenades’ Criminal Heaven and giveaway
Carl von ArbinIf you require an introduction to We Are Serenades – which you probably do – then let it be known that they are the collaborative project of Swedes Adam Olenius, whom you may know as frontman of of Shout Out Louds, and Markus Krunegard, who led an outfit called Laakso. If the latter doesn’t mean that much to you, that’s reasonable as I don’t think they made it overseas at all, and really, Shout Out Louds is really the only reference point you really need for We Are Serenades’ (who were called just “Serenades” until earlier this year) debut Criminal Heaven.
Olenius and Krunegard make a point of singing together across most of the tracks, but Olenius’ faintly Robert Smith-y delivery largely defines the vocals and guest vocals from fellow Shout-er Out Loud Bebban Stenborg, most notably on “Daydreaming”, only serve to make proceedings that much more familiar for fans of the outfit. Musically, it’s more of a stylistic hodge-podge with nods to the electro-, orch-, acoustic-, and power- varietals of pop music but the pastiche largely works in favour of the greater whole. As it’s culled from across a few years of writing and recording sessions during the downtime from their main gigs, it was probably a better idea to simply pull together the strongest selections rather than craft a more cohesive statement. Yeah, it may listen more like a compilation than am album but it’s a good listen and will scratch that certain itch until the next Shout Out Louds record comes along.
We Are Serenades are bringing Criminal Heaven to North America for a Spring tour and will be at The Garrison in Toronto on Monday, May 14. Tickets are $10 in advance but courtesy of Embrace, 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 Serenades” in the subject line and your full name in the body and have that in to me before midnight, May 9.
MP3: We Are Serenades – “Birds”
MP3: We Are Serenades – “Oceans”
Video: We Are Serenades – “Birds”
Video: We Are Serenades – “Oceans”
Video: We Are Serenades – “Come Home”
Stream: We Are Serenades / Criminal Heaven
Reunions/hiatus-ends are usually trumpeted with press releases/press conferences so that the whole world knows, but I had no idea The Cardigans were back in action until seeing this interview with Nina Persson at The Guardian. It’s just some Scandinavian (and one Russian and two Japanese) festivals where they’ll be performing all of 1998’s Gran Turismo with no promises of further activity when it’s all done, but the idea of The Cardigans as an active concern, even in limited capacity, makes me happy.
The Quietus talks to Ane Brun; her record It All Starts With One is out tomorrow and she’s in town at The Great Hall on May 10.
A second taste of Sigur Rós’ forthcoming Valtari is available as a streamed BBC radio rip; the album is out May 29 and they play Echo Beach on August 1.
Stream: Sigur Rós – “Varúð”
The Guardian and Irish Times are doing their bit to get people excited about the new Richard Hawley record Standing At The Sky’s Edge, with The Guardian augmenting their feature interview with a stream of the album. It’s out May 7.
Stream: Richard Hawley / Standing At The Sky’s Edge
The Line Of Best Fit offers a precis of an interview with Kevin Shields in the pages of the latest Mojo wherein he offers more concrete information on the alleged new My Bloody Valentine album and EP which could be out before the end of the year. The Loveless, Isn’t Anything, and EP’s 1988-1991 remasters are out May 7.
DIY chats with The Cribs about their new record In The Belly Of The Brazen Bull, out May 15.
Maxïmo Park are streaming the new single from their forthcoming The National Health, out June 11.
Stream: Maxïmo Park – “Hips And Lips”
NPR is streaming a World Cafe session with Michael Kiwanuka. He plays The Great Hall on June 19.
The New York Times talks to Dev Hynes about the new, first-person shooter Blood Orange video for “Champagne Coast” from Coastal Grooves.
Video: Blood Orange – “Champagne Coast”
DIY talks to Gerard Love of Lightships.
Magnet Q&As The Twilight Sad as the Scots prepare to take the editorial reins of the magazine’s website this week and fill it with all kinds of doom, gloom, and comic books.
eMusic explores the discography of XTC.
Sunday, April 29th, 2012
The Twilight Singers cover My Bloody Valentine
WikipediaIf the accompanying image this post looks familiar, it may be because I went to this record – The Twilight Singers’ 2004 covers album She Loves You – as recently as last October for a selection. And why not? As I mentioned in that writeup, Greg Dulli is a master of the cover version and any excuse he gives me to listen to or share one of them, I’ll probably take it. And getting The Afghan Whigs back together – as he did this year for live dates both festival and not – counts. So why not post a Whigs-era track, which I’ve got more than a few of? Because he didn’t cover My Bloody Valentine with them, turning the one of the band’s poppiest songs into a loungey piano number (but with guitars – no heresy here) with a Bette Midler coda (really), and the long-awaited MBV reissues – they were announced back in early 2008 to coincide with their own reunion dates – are finally coming out. No really, they are.
Slicing Up Eyeballs has got actual photos of the remastered Loveless and Isn’t Anything reissues as well as the new double-disc EPs 1988-1991 compilation CD sets and after being teased by non-working advances a few times, I finally heard them this weekend. They’re real, people. And they’re out May 7. With so much productivity, maybe the Pitchfork interview where Kevin Shields said a new album was almost done has some truth to it? Of course, just because it’s been recorded doesn’t mean it’ll come out. These releases had been recorded for over twenty years, after all. Bassist Deb Googe clearly isn’t waiting on further MBV activities to fill her calendar; she’s followed Shields’ footsteps and joined Primal Scream.
The Twilight Singers, who released Dynamite Steps just last year, are on the shelf while The Afghan Whigs collect their due over a decade after calling it quits. That they’ve begun announcing North American dates (well, New York) makes me hopeful that more are coming. They’ve been kind of the unofficial soundtrack of my 2012.
MP3: The Twilight Singers – “When You Sleep”
Stream: My Bloody Valentine – “When You Sleep”
Saturday, April 28th, 2012
Frank YangWho: Ron Sexsmith
What: Perennially acclaimed yet underappreciated singer-songwriter who got a little less underappreciated after making the Polaris Prize shortlist last year
Why: The album that got Sexsmith on the aforementioned shortlist – 2011’s Long Player Late Bloomer – continues to gather accolades (he was up for two Juno Awards for it) and justify another hometown date.
When: Thursday, May 17, 2012
Where: The Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto (all-ages)
Who else: Fellow veteran Toronto singer-songwriter Kyp Harness supports
How: Tickets for the show are $29.50 in advance but courtesy of Collective Concerts, I’ve got one pair of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to see Ron Sexsmith” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, May 13.
Video: Ron Sexsmith – “Late Bloomer” (live)
Saturday, April 28th, 2012
Frank YangWho: La Sera
What: (Relatively) shinier but just as poppy side-project from Vivian Girls bassist Katy Goodman.
Why: She’s touring in support of her second album Sees The Light, which was just released in March.
When: Sunday, May 13, 2012
Where: The Shop Under Parts & Labour (19+)
Who else: Not sure yet, to be honest.
How: Tickets for the show are $10.50 in advance but courtesy of Embrace, 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 La Sera” in the subject line and your full name in the body and have that to me before midnight, May 9.
What else: Fuse, Clash, and Toro have interviews with Goodman.
MP3: La Sera – “Please Be My Third Eye”
MP3: La Sera – “Never Come Around”
MP3: La Sera – “Break My Heart”
MP3: La Sera – “Devil’s Hearts Grow Gold”
Video: La Sera – “Real Boy/Drive On”
Video: La Sera – “Please Be My Third Eye”
Video: La Sera – “Never Come Around”
Video: La Sera – “Devil’s Hearts Grow Cold”
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