Sunday, November 28th, 2010
The White Stripes cover David Bowie
Patrick PantanoThe White Stripes’ affection for all things old – from toy cameras to Tesla coils – is well-documented, and that affection obviously extends to their own music. Their first three records The White Stripes, De Stijl and White Blood Cells have been out of print on vinyl in North America since 2005, and for an avowed analogphile as Jack White, that simply cannot stand. So as of this Tuesday, they’re going to be reissued on his own Third Man Records label with all the care and attention that you’d expect.
This live recording predates even their 1999 debut, coming from a 1997 gig at the now-defunct Gold Dollar in their native Detroit. It’s interesting to hear them turn their lean aesthetic to one of David Bowie’s glam-rock anthems, not to mention hearing Jack White perpetuating the falsehood that Meg White was his little sister. But my favourite part of the recording comes before the song even starts, when a woman in the audience comments that White, “sounds like a weirdo”. Lady, you have no idea. Nor do you know how much bragging you’ll be doing that you were at this show, where they were clearly completely unknown, in a decade’s time.
Inactive since 2007, Jack White has recently hinted that he and Meg might get back together to make a new White Stripes record in 2011. As established a couple weeks ago, David Bowie continues to be busy being David Bowie and not making music.
MP3: The White Stripes – “Moonage Daydream”
Video: David Bowie – “Moonage Daydream”
Saturday, November 27th, 2010
Frank YangWho: Night one: Make Your Exit Sandman Viper Command, Charlotte Cornfield; Night two: The Balconies, Clothes Make The Man, Teenage Kicks – plus special guest headliners each night
What: Local management/PR folk Audio Blood continue their tradition of making all their artists wear Santa hats and play Christmas carols* over two nights at a local venue, with everyone getting together onstage for an a capella encore reading of Adam Sandler’s “Hanukkah Song” as the encore**
* this is not true
** this is also probably not true but would be kind of awesome if it was
Why: ‘Cause it’s the holiday season. Duh.
When: December 10 and 11, 2010
Where: The Rivoli in Toronto (19+)
How: Tickets for each night are $10 in advance and two-night passes $15 (available here), but courtesy of Audio Blood I’ve got a prize pack consisting of a a pair of passes for each night, a show poster, and Exclaim t-shirt and assorted swag (they’re co-presenting) and CDs from The Balconies and Make Your Exit. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want an Audio Blood holiday” in the subject line and your full name, mailing address and t-shirt deets in the body. Contest closes at midnight, December 5.
What else: Audio Blood have assembled a mix tape of all the acts performing for you to download and enjoy. Grab the tracks individually or the ZIP below.
MP3: Make Your Exit – “Through The Winter” (BARTEL remix)
MP3: Sandman Viper Command – “Yo Bobcat”
MP3: Charlotte Cornfield – “The Colour”
MP3: The Balconies – “300 Pages”
MP3: Clothes Make The Man – “Cruisin'”
MP3: Teenage Kicks – “Shook Our Bones”
ZIP: Audio Blood Holiday Mix 2010
Saturday, November 27th, 2010
Frank YangWho: Broken Social Scene
What: They’re that band from Toronto. You know the one. You probably know someone who’s been in the band. You may have even been in the band yourself. Very few people in this city are more than three degrees removed from Broken Social Scene.
Why: Ostensibly they’re still touring behind this year’s Forgiveness Rock Record but these two-night hometown stands in December are pretty much a tradition now, whether or not there’s a record to promote. Toronto loves Broken and Broken loves Toronto and as Kevin Drew will probably say about 40 times over the course of their set, it’s all about the love.
When: Friday, December 10, 2010
Where: The Sound Academy in Toronto (all-ages)
Who else: Still to be announced
How: Tickets for the show are $31.50 in advance but courtesy of Canvas Media, I’ve got one prize pack to give away consisting of a pair of passes to the show, a Broken Social Scene t-shirt and a copy of their 2004 odds-and-sods compilation Bee Hives on CD. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want my Social Scene Broken” in the subject line and your full name, mailing address and t-shirt gender/size in the body and have that in to me before midnight, December 5.
MP3: Broken Social Scene – “World Sick”
Video: Broken Social Scene – “Meet Me In The Basement”
Thursday, November 25th, 2010
Review of Manic Street Preachers’ Postcards From A Young Man
Dean ChalkeyMost bands with longevity – if they’re lucky – have a career arc that starts with a good to great debut and trends upwards towards a critical and hopefully commercial peak – simultaneously, if fortune wills it – before entering a decline that’s hopefully gradual enough so as to not really be noticed at the time. Cap it off with a late-career bounce and/or best-of comp and maybe quit while you’re still ahead, overall. Until the reunion, anyways.
Manic Street Preachers threw that out the window before even their first album, declaring their intention to sell 20 million copies of their debut and then break up at the height of their powers. And while this didn’t happen, their narrative did end up considerably twistier than most – release successful debut, endure mandatory difficult second record, rebound with critically acclaimed effort, lose chief songwriter to mysterious circumstances, regroup for their biggest commercial and critical success, release follow-ups of diminishing quality before respectively levelling out and then surprise everyone by deliberately trying to recreate the spirit of album three using lyrics left behind by the departed songwriter and have the results, rather than exploitative, be phenomenal.
This is where the Manics found themselves with last year’s Journal For Plague Lovers, a deliberate revisit to The Holy Bible built around the words of their lost member Richey Edwards. And just as that record deliberately paralleled their third record, its follow-up Postcards From A Young Man looks to album four, the massive in every sense Everything Must Go as a reference. The dry, Albini production values of Journal are traded in for grandiose anthems laden with strings and choirs that offer no apologies for reaching for the stars. It’s a reminder that as good as the Manics were at being emphatically, viciously angry, they were arguably better at being starry-eyed romantics, and it’s that side of them that is on display with this effort. But unlike Everything, which for its widescreen staging was still downcast in tone, what with dealing with Edwards’ disappearance, Postcards casts far fewer shadows. Granted, this also gives it less emotional heft, but it’s far from empty calories. There’s still plenty of dense lyricism, huge choruses, fiery guitar solos, a guest spot/croak from Ian McCulloch and an affirmation that while the Manics took a mid-career breather, they’re once again at the top of their game.
Even though the release of Journal and accompanying tour were supposed to mark the Manics’ return to the North American marketplace, Postcards has yet to receive a domestic release. Until that happens, any hope that the further Stateside shows the band promised last year will materialize remain just wishful thinking. Or maybe they’ll wait for the next record – for all the hubbub surrounding the “last attempt at mass communication” rhetoric that accompanied Postcards and whether it meant it would be the Manics’ final record, according to this interview with Nicky Wire at NME, the band are already writing their next record, have given it a working title of 70 Songs Of Hatred And Failure and are calling it an exercise in “pure indulgence”. So it’s a revisit to Know Your Enemy, then? Bring it on.
Note that the below MP3 does not appear on Postcards, but is a period-correct and was given away in conjunction with the promotion of Postcards.
MP3: Manic Street Preachers – “I’m Leaving You For Solitude”
Video: Manic Street Preachers – “Some Kind Of Nothingness”
Video: Manic Street Preachers – “(It’s Not War) It’s Just The End Of Love”
Digging A Hole, The Bangkok Post and CNNgo check in with Tim Burgess of The Charlatans.
The long wait for a new record from PJ Harvey is almost over – NME reports that Polly Jean’s next record Let England Shake will be out on February 14.
Trip-hop survivors Morcheeba, with original vocalist Sky Edwards back in the fold, will be touring North America next year in support of their latest Blood Like Lemonade and will be at The Phoenix on February 20. Tickets $32.50 in advance.
Video: Morcheeba – “Blood Like Lemonade”
VBS has a video interview with Emmy The Great and producer Gareth Jones, who is working with her on album number two. It’s targeted for a February 2011 release.
Laura Marling has released a video for her Neil Young cover, taken from her recent 7″ release.
Video: Laura Marling – “The Needle & The Damage Done”
NME reports that Noah & The Whale have given their third album a name – Last Night On Earth – and that it’ll be out in March of next year. Presumably before they roll into town for a show at the Mod Club on March 24, tickets $17.50 in advance.
Richard Thompson lists off his favourite covers of his own songs for Spinner and otherwise chats with The Los Angeles Times and The Kansas City Star
Mogwai are offering a free download of “Pano Rano”, the first single from their forthcoming Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will. The album is out February 15 and they play The Phoenix on April 26.
Exclaim reports on the super-fancy and then some 20th anniversary edition of Primal Scream’s Screamadelica, due out on March 7 of next year. For those who want to be free to do what they want to do, who want to be free to ride, and want to be free to ride their machines without being hassled by The Man, and who want to get loaded, and who want to have a good time. And that’s what they’re gonna do. They’re gonna have a good time. They’re gonna have a party!
The Arts Desk and The Quietus converse with Jim Reid of The Jesus And Mary Chain.
State welcomes ex-pat Gemma Hayes back to Ireland; she’s due for a new album sometime in 2011.
Wednesday, November 24th, 2010
Destroyer heads to the beach, Chinatown
MergeJust a short one today as I’m still recovering from a) replacing all the carpet in my apartment with hardwood (well, laminate) in a single day and b) trying to clean up the enormous mess generated by a). Exhausting stuff, that.
So I’ll let Dan Bejar take it away. Now a couple years removed from Trouble In Dreams and with Pornographer duties largely done with for a while, Dan is getting Destroyer back into gear. Following up last year’s epic-length “Bay Of Pigs” 12″, Bejar released a second limited edition 12″ for the song “Archer On The Beach” earlier this month, but if you haven’t already got your copy secured, then you’re out of luck – all 1000 copies are spoken for. But you can stream the song, and its spoken-word b-side “Grief Point”, courtesy of Merge.
There’s still plenty of time to reserve a copy of the new Destroyer LP Kaputt, though – it’s not out for another two months, on January 25. The first MP3 is now up and while it’s not a cover of the Luna song (how great would that be?), it’s a pretty sweet if chilled out tune that incorporates some of the electronic and atmospheric touches of the aforementioned 12″ releases and some wonderfully questionable saxophone. I’ve been in the mood for a new Destroyer record for a while now – looking forward to hearing the rest of this.
MP3: Destroyer – “Chinatown”
Stream: Destroyer – “Archer On The Beach”/”Grief Point”
Montreal represents on March 5 when Lee’s Palace welcomes 2008 Polaris Prize shortlisters Plants & Animals and 2010 Polaris Prize winners Karkwa. Tickets for the show are $15 in advance.
MP3: Plants & Animals – “Tom Cruz”
MP3: Karkwa – “Dors Dans Mon Sang”
Exclaim has details on a Nick Drake tribute/benefit concert taking place at Trinity-St. Paul’s in Toronto on November 28.
BBC talks to Mark Hamilton of Woodpigeon on the topic of concert taping. Mark has been posting various sundry MP3s to the Woodpigeon site all Fall, including this live solo one from Montreal’s CJLO.
MP3: Woodpigeon – “…And as the Ship Went Down, You’d Never Looked Finer (Live on CJLO)”
S. Carey, in town at the Horseshoe on December 19, is featured in a Daytrotter session.
School Of Seven Bells have released a new video from Disconnect From Desire and have been tapped to open up for Interpol on their North American tour next year – including the February 15 stop at the Sound Academy in Toronto.
Video: School Of Seven Bells – “I L U”
Also with a new video is Sufjan Stevens, who’s taken the song title to heart with regards to the clip’s art direction. Tribute will be paid to a simpler Sufjan by means of a tribute album to his Seven Swans record featuring Bonnie Prince Billy and a number of Asthmatic Kitty artists. Seven Swans Reimagined will be out on March 22.
Video: Sufjan Stevens – “Too Much”
The Radio Dept.’s Martin Carlberg discusses the band’s modest career ambitions with Spinner. Their singles and b-sides compilation Passive Aggressive is out on January 25 and they make their Toronto debut at Lee’s Palace on February 7.
M83 mastermind Anthony Gonzalez talks to Pitchfork about his plans for his next record.
Nick Cave tells Spinner that a new Nick Cave record should be out next year – just as soon as he writes it. In the meantime, Grinderman remains on the front burner – The AV Club talks to Warren Ellis about making Grinderman 2.
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