Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

New Ceremony

Dry The River at The Garrison in Toronto

Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangTwo points. One, I am rather smitten with Dry The River’s debut album Shallow Bed, out now in the UK and coming out in North America on April 17. Two, I am somewhat suspicious of how smitten I am with said record as history shows that my infatuation with British bands who trade in big, emotive rock can be short-lived, either for overexposure or for having a shelf life that’s shorter than one would hope. As such, I went into seeing them at SXSW something of a skeptic and came out a believer – their performance was one of the most stirring I saw all week by a band not hailing from E Street – and as much as seeing them make their Toronto debut less than a fortnight later might have seemed redundant, it was also not to be missed. After all, if things played out for the band as they certainly seemed like they might, the next time they visited would be in a much bigger room.

I wasn’t the only one with that idea, evidently, as The Garrison was decidedly full before they took the stage. With all respect to Bowerbirds and their fanbase, I suspect the support was as much of a draw on this tour as the headliners if not moreso. Still, the five-piece took the stage humbly and a bit taken aback by the turnout – reasonable, as apparently their show the night before in Montreal had been downgraded to an impromptu coffee shop show after Bowerbirds’ van broke down and the main show had to be cancelled – and opened with “No Rest”, whose soaring chorus couldn’t help but win over everyone and anyone within earshot. The band’s ability to build from quiet to crescendo was a potent weapon, but one they used judiciously – if anything, they played things quieter than on record, emphasizing the folkier aspects of their sound and keeping the big guns in reserve for when they’d be most effective, like the crashing intro to “Bible Belt” and the grand, heart-stopping finale of “Lion’s Den”.

As I mentioned in that SXSW writeup, from a strictly musical point of view, there’s no reason that Dry The River can’t follow the trail laid by the likes of Mumford & Sons to mass success. If anything holds them back, it’s their lack of pre-packaged marketability, Dry The River being decidedly scruffier and less ready for the cover of Non-Threatening Boys than their tweed-clad countrymen. But if that keeps their star from ascending quite so quickly and we early adopters can keep them to ourselves a bit longer, I’m all for that.

Alas, something came up and I couldn’t stick around to see Bowerbirds’ set, but I’m sure they were lovely. Next time.

Panic Manual and Syncopated Sound also have reviews of the show. NPR and Toro have interviews with the band, Clash asks guitarist Matthew Taylor to curate his dream festival lineup and The Alternate Side and Daytrotter have posted sessions with the band.

Photos: Dry The River @ The Garrison – March 27, 2012
MP3: Dry The River – “New Ceremony”
Video: Dry The River – “No Rest”
Video: Dry The River – “Chambers & The Valves”
Video: Dry The River – “Weights & Measures”

Ascendent British soul singer Michael Kiwanuka will make his proper Toronto debut – he played an invite-only thing during CMW – at The Great Hall on June 19, tickets $15 in advance. Rolling Stone has all the North American dates and a chat with the singer while Chart antes up with a video session.

MP3: Michael Kiwanuka – “Tell Me A Tale”

M. Ward is gearing up for the release of his new album A Wasteland Companion next week with a Daytrotter session and New York Times interview; you can also now download the lead single from said record if you like.

MP3: M. Ward – “Primitive Girl”

The Quietus interviews Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker of Low and also get Sparhawk to list off his favourite albums. They’re at Massey Hall in support of Death Cab For Cutie on April 19.

Jana Hunter of Lower Dens talks to Spin about their new record Nootropics, out May 1.

Their tour having wrapped up last night right here in Toronto, A Place To Bury Strangers have announced the June 26 release of their next full-length album Worship, and the first single is now available to download courtesy of Spin. The AV Club and The Phoenix have interviews with guitarist Oliver Ackermann.

MP3: A Place To Bury Strangers – “You Are The One”

The Riverfront Times talks to Roger Miller of Mission Of Burma; their new one Unsound is due out on July 9.

NPR serves up a World Cafe session with tUnE-yArDs, in town at The Phoenix on August 1.

Dum Dum Girls has released a new video from last year’s Only In Dreams.

Video: Dum Dum Girls – “Coming Down”

Interview interviews Kevin Barnes of Of Montreal. The Star-Ledger, LA Weekly, Boise Weekly, and What’s Up also have features.

Aquarium Drunkard grabs an interview with Dean Wareham.

Bryce Dessner of The National talks to You Ain’t No Picasso.

CBC, The Awl, The Toronto Star, and Exclaim all ran features on The Magnetic Fields in advance of last week’s show at The Sound Academy.

The Line Of Best Fit talks to Andrew Bird.

NPR is streaming a recording of a collaboration between The Mountain Goats, Owen Pallett, and vocal group Anonymous 4 at the Ecstatic Music Festival in New York.

By : Frank Yang at 8:27 am

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Monday, April 2nd, 2012

Seamonsters

The Wedding Present, The Jet Age, Toquiwa and Zarigani $ at The Horseshoe in Toronto

TWP Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangSomewhere over the last few weeks Sunday night’s Wedding Present show at The Horseshoe got co-opted as the “closing party” for Canadian Musicfest, an appellation I personally refused to acknowledge. The 21st anniversary show for Seamonsters? Absolutely. The tour in support of their just-released new record Valentina? Certainly. Closing party for a festival that at no point acknowledged the band as part of their programme or acknowledged they were exponentially greater than most everyone else who played? Not so much. But I suppose if you got in for free on account of having a CMW wristband, then you probably weren’t complaining.

And if you got there in time to see the openers, you were probably a little confused. Which is fair. Of the two bands listed as accompanying The Wedding Present on this Spring tour – Washington D.C.’s Jet Age or Tokyo’s Pinky Piglets – it was never clear which was going to be at the Toronto show, which was right at the changeover point of the routing. As it turned out we were getting both but even so, there was some further confusion as Pinky Piglets no longer existed having opted to change their name to the more cryptic Toquiwa and even then, they weren’t the band that took the stage first – that was the drum and bass duo called Zarigani $, who were also Toquiwa’s rhythm section and completely unbilled; I wouldn’t have even known what they were called had it not been for the helpful sign hanging off a keyboard stand. Got all that? No? That’s okay. They played some cartoon version of punk-prog for about 15 minutes – far too short a set to try and bridge the cultural divide and understand it – and then brought out two more members and transformed, Voltron-style, into Toquiwa.

And though no less bizarre to behold, they were at least somewhat easier to get a handle on. The addition of a guitarist and lead singer solidified a kind of punk/rockabilliy aesthetic, though still totally cartoon-like. The quartet looked like they were plucked straight off the playground of the Tokyo chapter of The School Of Rock, though the ease with which singer Asuja pounded back a beer adorably solicited from the audience was a hint that they were a bit older than they looked. In any case, it was energetic, ridiculous, gobs of fun and the band thanked The Wedding Present for taking them out on tour by covering “Kennedy” in their own unique manner.

The Jet Age, on the other hand, were about as opposite a band as you were likely to find, comprised of three guys who appeared to have lived through and learned from the days of ’90s college rock. They were a pretty straight power trio playing pretty straight rock with hints of hardcore in their DNA, each player clearly proficient with their instrument but having a fair bit of trouble sounding like they were actually playing with one another instead of overtop, falling out of time with each other on more than few occasions. Their monitors may have had something to do with it – their timing seemed to improve after some adjustments to their mixes – but that didn’t do anything to address the fact that their songs were, at best, unmemorable.

It sounds a bit perverse, but I actually had to make every effort to avoid seeing The Wedding Present at SXSW. They were playing a number of shows there but only one was a Seamonsters recital – I was actually there right before they went on and fled – so I would have had to catch at least two of them to equal this one and festival burnout notwithstanding, seeing them back in Toronto seemed the most logical thing to do. And kudos to The Wedding Present for being clever enough to keep me coming back; this would be my seventh time seeing David Gedge and company in the past decade or so, most recently in April 2010 doing Bizarro. So you’d think that I could skip one, but not seeing/hearing them play Seamonsters wasn’t even on the table – it’s easily my favourite Wedding Present record, marking the point at which they really evolved beyond being a clever singles band with a distinctive sound to an outfit capable of creating complete albums that were both emotionally and sonically rich.

Which is not to say that just hearing them showcase Valentina wouldn’t have been sufficient draw. Whatever he’s called his project, Gedge has been a remarkably consistent songwriter over the past quarter-century and even with the four-year layoff from El Rey, he’s not lost a step. It doesn’t break new ground – at this point, that’s not something to be expected – but does prove that the failures and foibles of romance will always be fertile ground for someone like Gedge to till and Valentina confirms that his lyrical edge is sharp as ever and musically, well loud guitars really never go out of style.

Unlike the Bizarro show where they had no new record to push and were thus able to preface the main event with a random selection of material drawn from throughout their career, this night’s first act leaned heavily on Valentina but the back catalog sprinkles – particularly “Quick Before It Melts” from the Cinerama years and Take Fountain closer “Perfect Blue” – were unexpected but tasty. That’s an upside of a band with a signature sound – with nothing ever sounding out of place in the set, you never know what they’ll pull out of their hats.

Well with the Seamonsters set, I suppose you knew exactly what they were going to do, and even though this was far from the same band that recorded that record – all the non-Gedge members were long gone and even this 2012 lineup was different from the one here last time, longtime bassist Terry de Castro having retired at the end of 2010 – they still attacked the material with the intensity you might expect from those who originally crafted it. I’d heard many of the songs included in sets before – and they were usually highlights – but played end to end they were able to recreate that crucial dimension of its flow, with all the churn, drone and lurch of the recording. It didn’t reproduce the gut-punch I felt when I heard it the first time, but it recalled it and that’s really all you could ask for. And while the band stuck to their tradition of not playing encores, that they played two more songs after the final note of “Octopussy” died out – not the bonus tracks from the US edition, that’d have been too much to hope – felt just as good.

And so what’s next? It’s still a few years before the 20th anniversary of Watusi; maybe the band will have gotten the right back and the album back in print by then? Be kind of an odd anniversary show otherwise. Or maybe a return to Cinerama! I’d be there. And possibly the only one.

BlogTO also has a review of the show and The Japan Times talks to Toquiwa about how they ended up touring with The Wedding Present.

Having taken an extended break following 2009’s disappointing Quicken The Heart, Maximo Park return on June 11 with album number four, The National Health. The title track is available to stream and initial impressions are that the time off has done them a world of good. Hope that’s the case.

Stream: Maximo Park – “The National Health”

DIY talks to The Futureheads about their new a capella record Rant, out this week, from which they’ve just released a video and there’s another “no instruments, please” video performance over at Digital Spy.

Video: The Futureheads – “The Old Dun Cow”

The Herald has a feature interview with Gerard Love, while The Guardian is streaming the whole of Electric Cables, the Teenage Fanclub songwriter’s gorgeous x1000 solo debut as Lightships, out this week.

Stream: Lightships / Electric Cables

The Fly check in with Hot Chip as they prepare for the June 12 release of In Our Heads and subsequent live date at The Sound Academy on July 15.

The Line Of Best Fit gets to know Fanfarlo.

Stereogum talks to Jason Pierce of Spiritualized about their new album Sweet Heart Sweet Light, out April 17. They play The Phoenix on May 5.

NPR talks to Noel Gallagher.

Clash interviews Graham Coxon.

The AV Club offers a Gateway To Geekery for Britpop, suggesting entry points for the works of Suede, Blur, and Pulp amongst others. I can offer a more concise guide: all of them. You’re welcome.

The Tallest Man On Earth has announced a new album entitled There’s No Leaving Now, due out June 12. Exclaim has details as well as some – not all – North American tour dates.

Niki & The Dove have released a new video from their forthcoming debut Instinct, out May 14 in Europe; a North American release date has not yet been confirmed.

Video: Niki & The Dove – “Tomorrow”

The Boston Globe and NOW talk to First Aid Kit while NPR puts them behind a Tiny Desk and makes them play a show. They do the same though from a regular old stage on April 4 at The Great Hall.

Daytrotter has posted a session with The Raveonettes.

MusicOmh chats with Pip Browne of Ladyhawke, whose new album Anxiety is out May 25.

By : Frank Yang at 8:34 am

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Sunday, April 1st, 2012

"Time For Heroes"

Graham Coxon covers The Libertines

Graham Coxon Image via Amazon AmazonI don’t think that Pete Doherty and I have very much in common – my drug habit is very much under control, thank you for asking – but it would seem that our list of musical idols shares some overlap. After all, if I were to itemize my guitar heroes 1-2, they’d probably be Bernard Butler of Suede and Graham Coxon of Blur, the former of whom produced The Libertines’ very first single “What A Waster” and the latter of whom was enlisted to play guitar on his 2009 solo album Grace/Wasteleands. So should it ever come to pass that we were locked in a room together, I suppose we could talk about that.

Coxon’s relationship with Doherty, at least musically, goes back further than that though, as he turned up to play “Time For Heroes” live with Doherty as early as 2004 and covered said tune in a visit to BBC’s Live Lounge in Fall of that year. It was released commercially as a 7″ b-side to “I Can’t Look At Your Skin”, one of his own solo singles circa 2006’s Love Travels at Illegal Speeds, his sixth solo record.

His eighth solo record A+E is out this week; DIY talks to him about the record and The Telegraph finds out about his fashion sense. Pete Doherty is, against all odds, still alive and not in jail and though The Libertines reunion hasn’t done much since 2010, with both Doherty and Carl Barat turning their attention to less lucrative solo pursuits, they technically remain an ongoing concern with both occasionally promising/threatening to do something again in the near future.

MP3: Graham Coxon – “Time For Heroes”
Video: The Libertines – “Time For Heroes”
Video: Pete Doherty with Graham Coxon – “Time For Heroes” (live 2004)

By : Frank Yang at 10:09 am

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Saturday, March 31st, 2012

SXSW 2012 Night Four A/V

Michael Kiwanuka Photo By Frank Yang Frank YangA moment of silence for the final SXSW 2012 writeup. Okay, now go read.

Michael Kiwanuka
– English soul singer awarded the lofty title of “Sound of 2012” by the BBC timed the release of his debut album Home Again just right – it came out the day the festival began. Kiwanuka is featured in pieces at The Toronto Star, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Evening Herald, Billboard, and The Independent.

Photos: Michael Kiwanuka @ Stubb’s – March 17, 2012
MP3: Michael Kiwanuka – “Tell Me A Tale”
Video: Michael Kiwanuka – “I’m Getting Ready”
Video: Michael Kiwanuka – “Home Again”

Clock Opera
– Everything you need is at Wednesday’s AV post, plus DIY has premiered the crowdsourced “Clock Operation” multimix assembled from sound clips submitted from dans.

Photos: Clock Opera @ Latitude 30 – March 17, 2012
MP3: Clock Opera – “Clock Operation” multimix

Django Django
– Odd and experimental yet immediate Scottish electro-pop band who’ve just released their self-titled debut. The Edinburgh Journal, The Toronto Star, Musicfeeds, and American Songwriter have features.

Photos: Django Django @ Latitude 30 – March 17, 2012
MP3: Django Django – “Default”
Video: Django Django – “Default”
Video: Django Django – “Waveforms”
Stream: Django Django / Django Django

D/R/U/G/S
– Pseudonym of British DJ and producer Callum Wright, who also does the live electronic thing.

Photos: D/R/U/G/S/ @ Latitude 30 – March 17, 2012

Slow Club
– Sheffield duo who specialize in infectious and enthusiastic pop that traded in some of its folky tendencies for soul on their second album Paradise. Daytrotter just posted a session with the band.

Photos: Slow Club @ Latitude 30 – March 17, 2012
MP3: Slow Club – “Two Cousins”
Video: Slow Club – “The Dog”
Video: Slow Club – “If We’re Still Alive”
Video: Slow Club – “Where I’m Waking”
Video: Slow Club – “Two Cousins”
Video: Slow Club – “It Doesn’t Have To Be Beautiful”
Video: Slow Club – “Trophy Room”
Video: Slow Club – “Giving Up On Love”
Video: Slow Club – “Come On Youth”

And So I Watch You From Afar
– Belfast outfit who’re really good at hyper-aggressive, almost-metallic, yet still somehow melodic math/post-rock. Their second album Gangs was released last year.

Photos: And So I Watch You From Afar @ Friends – March 17, 2012
MP3: And So I Watch You From Afar – “The Voiceless”
Video: And So I Watch You From Afar – “Set Guitars To Kill”
Video: And So I Watch You From Afar – “A Little Solidarity Goes A Long Way”

By : Frank Yang at 12:57 pm

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Saturday, March 31st, 2012

CONTEST – Memoryhouse @ The El Mocambo – April 13, 2012

Photo By Derek O'Donnell Derek O’DonnellWho: Memoryhouse
What: Toronto dreampop duo putting people to sleep (in the good way) with their debut album The Slideshow Effect.
Why: They’ve been touring the record through America since its release at the end of February and are now bringing it in for an adopted hometown record release show.
When: Friday, April 13, 2012 (Facebook)
Where: The El Mocambo in Toronto (19+)
Who else: Paradise Animals and Volcano Playground will support.
How: Tickets for the show are $13 in advance but courtesy of Embrace and Gold Soundz, 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 live in a Memoryhouse” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, April 9.
What else: The band recently stopped in at The AV Club for an Undercover session wherein they covered The Police.