Eva VermandelAt first, no one even believed it was happening. Apocalyptic Montreal post-rock godheads Godspeed You! Black Emperor, basically inactive since touring behind 2002’s Yanqui u.x.o. ceased and presumed defunct, out of nowhere announced they were reconvening to curate an All Tomorrow’s Parties in the UK in December 2010. And in typically cryptic Godspeed fashion, the accompanying press release mentioned that there would be additional dates in the UK and Europe and “9 American towns” but offered no further details.

Of course, it was that last bit that threw everyone into simultaneous euphoria and panic. Euphoria that those who missed out on their legendary live experiences would possibly get a chance to have their minds expanded/exploded, and panic that their own town might not be one of the lucky nine. Why nine? Did Manhattan and Brooklyn count as one or two? And the whole “America” thing was also alarming – North? United States of? The idea that the band would leave their home and native land out of the loop was unthinkable, but where Godspeed is concerned, nothing could be taken for granted. So a collective sigh was heard when the first set of dates was finally revealed a couple weeks ago, and there were decidedly more than nine municipalities covered and on both sides of the 49th.

Toronto, however, was conspicuously absent from the itinerary despite their routing coming oh-so close, wrapping in Detroit at the end of March. That there wouldn’t be shows here was unthinkable, but the when and the where… showed up last night. Though their shows at the Palais Royale at the start of the decade are nigh mythical (at least to hear it from those who were there, which doesn’t include me), their return will come at the decidedly cozier environs of Lee’s Palace over three nights next Spring – April 22, 23 and 24, the last of those being a dry, all-ages matinee show – you know, for kids! You’d think that would mean that 1500 people would get the chance to see them, but you can expect more than a few three-peat attendees. It might be almost seven months away, but when the $20 advance tickets go on sale this Thursday, hesitate at your peril.

MySpace: Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Chart talks to The Coast about their new album Queen Cities. It’s streamable at their Facebook (each track is embedded on their wall) and the lead track is available to take home for your very own.

MP3: The Coast – “Heartbreak City”
Stream: The Coast / Queen Cities

Soundproof profiles The Acorn.

As expected, here’s another video from Neil Young’s new record Le Noise, due out today. There’s a video interview with both Young and producer Daniel Lanois over at QTV.

Video: Neil Young – “Walk With Me”

Suuns have rolled out a new video from their forthcoming debut Zeroes QC. It’s out October 12.

Video: Suuns – “Up Past The Nursery”

Olenka & The Autumn Lovers have completed their new album and given it the title of And Now We Sing; it will be available for sale on their upcoming Fall tour which includes an October 17 date at The Garrison. Their show there last year was so good, I’m sad I won’t be able to make this one. One of you out there make it for me.

MP3: Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – “Eggshells”

The Chicago Tribune has an interview with and Baeble Music solicits a mix tape from Basia Bulat. She’s at the Phoenix on October 26 opening up for Josh Ritter.

Pitchfork has got another new track from Diamond Rings’ forthcoming debut Special Affections in advance of its October 26 release. He plays a free show at the Parkdale Branch of the Toronto Public Library on October 8 at 8PM and a record release show at The Garrison on October 26.

MP3: Diamond Rings – “Something Else”

Impact 89 has a chat with and NPR a World Cafe session with Dan Mangan, in town at Trinity-St. Paul’s on October 28.

Woodhands are back for a show at Lee’s Palace on November 19, advance tickets $13.50.

MP3: Woodhands – “Dissembler”

The Line Of Best Fit has assembled a thirteenth Oh! Canada download mix of Canadian artists.

And not quite fitting in with the Can-con meme of the rest of the post but time-sensitive, North Carolina’s Lost In The Trees – introduced and endorsed back in June – have announced a last-minute in-store performance at Soundscapes today – as in today – at 5:30PM. I haven’t yet had the privilege of seeing them live but I’m pretty sure it’ll be great. You should totally go.

MP3: Lost In The Trees – “All Alone In An Empty House”

And less good, tonight’s Bettie Serveert show at the Drake has been cancelled due to passport issues. Le boo.

Death Trap PhotographyIf it’s mid-June and my lanyard collection has grown by one, it can only mean one thing – NXNE is again upon us. And that means this is yet another weekend I won’t get to indulge my fondest fantasy – to sit around and do nothing – and that it’s time for another dog’s breakfast of a festival preview post. It’s a little bit of my own schedule, a bit of what my schedule might be if not for what my schedule actually is, a bit of what’s piqued my curiosity and a bit of what I know will be worth seeing. Some of the more obvious big names are omitted – I am assuming everyone’s aware of the super-stacked, old school punk free shows at the Yonge-Dundas Square – so hopefully there’ll be something that people attending the festival might feel compelled to check out and people who aren’t going to be at the festival might also investigate.

Note that I didn’t include Wednesday or Sunday, which despite now feeling more like proper days of the festival rather than prologue and epilogue, still don’t offer enough choice to require choosing. If you’re going out either of those days, you know where you’re going. And previewing Wednesday on Thursday would just be silly. So for the next three nights, here’s some thoughts.

Thursday, June 17 2010

Old World Vulture (Rancho Relaxo @ 8PM) – I recommended seeing these rising local purveyors of surging instrumental post-rock back during Canadian Musicfest, and having heard their just-released self-titled debut EP, that endorsement goes double.
MP3: Old World Vulture – “Benny”

Free Energy (The Horseshoe @ 10PM) – A lot of the talking points around these Philly boys concern the fact that their debut Stuck On Nothing was produced by LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy, but what really matters is that it’s ’70s-styled arena-sized power pop with hooks to spare. They also play earlier in the evening at Yonge-Dundas Square at 6PM. The Line Of Best Fit has an interview and NPR is streaming a live show.
MP3: Free Energy – “Hope Child”

Zeus (The Rivoli @ 10PM) – also all about the vintage-tint power pop, these local boys have steadily grown their following and their debut Say Us has them playing much larger rooms than the Rivoli – this could be your last chance to see them in such cozy environs.
MP3: Zeus – “Marching Through Your Head”

Olenka & The Autumn Lovers (The Gladstone @ 10PM) – one of the acts I most sad to be missing, this London Ontario, Balkan-inflected folk-pop band thoroughly impressed when I saw them in November. I take solace in the fact that with their new album recorded, that more shows will be coming in the near future.
MP3: Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – “Eggshells”

CALLmeKAT (NOW Lounge @ 11PM) – Spare and delicate electro-pop from Denmark courtesy of Katerine Ottoson, whom you can apparently just call Kat. Check out her NPR Tiny Desk Concert and video session for CALLmeKAT as well as this interview at Interview. She also plays Czehoski on Friday at 11PM.
MP3: CALLmeKAT – “Flower In The Night”

Warpaint (The Horseshoe @ 11PM) – one of my must-sees for the fest, I saw this LA quartet at SxSW and was intrigued, but quality time with the hypnotic dream-pop of their debut EP Exquisite Corpse has sealed the deal. Their debut full-length is due in the Fall.
MP3: Warpaint – “Elephants”

Sleepy Vikings (The Boat @ 12AM) – proof that randomly clicking on NXNE MySpace links can be fruitful (though it’s still mostly frustrating). This band, who is trekking up here all the way from Tampa, Florida, seems to be made up of all kind of stuff I like – jangly guitars that sometimes get noisy, sweet vocals and hooks a-plenty. Plus they’re playing when I had nothing else pencilled in – if that’s not fate, I don’t know what is.
MP3: Sleepy Vikings – “Calm”

Anaïs Mitchell (Czehoski @ 1AM) – Her latest album Hadestown is a folk-opera that translates the story of Orpheus and Eurydice to a modern setting and it’s actually kind of great. Very curious to see how she’ll render it live, though I’m not expecting Justin Vernon to show up to reprise his parts.
MP3: Anais Mitchell – “Flowers (Eurydice’s Song)”

Friday, June 18 2010

Christopher Smith (Bread & Circus @ 8PM) – His name might be eminently forgettable but his pure, clear voice and wistful songwriting make a lasting impression. His debut album The Beckon Call came out in May.
MP3: Christopher Smith – “Gently, Gently”

Neutral Uke Hotel (The Painted Lady @ 9PM) – Pretty much what the name implies – the songs of Neutral Milk Hotel re-interpreted on ukulele. I suspect it’s actually better than/less gimmicky than it sounds, not least of all because Shawn Fogel, who is behind this project, is also behind Golden Bloom and they’re great.
MP3: Neutral Uke Hotel – “King Of Carrot Flowers Pt 1”

The Happy Hollows (Lee’s Palace @ 10PM) – Slightly off-kilter but always smiling indie rock from Los Angeles. It sounds like the kind of loudness and brashness I’d need to make it through the night. Their debut Spells was released back in January.
MP3: The Happy Hollows – “Faces”

Best Coast (The Garrison @ 11PM) – One of the buzz bands of the fest, they’ve got the garage-sounding hook-heavy pop sounds of Summer that the kids like and will release their debut album Crazy For You on July 27. In addition to this show, they’re playing the Great Hall on Thursday night at 11PM and Wrongbar on Saturday at 2AM and if that’s not enough, their just-announced Fall tour brings them back to town for a September 25 show at Lee’s Palace.
MP3: Best Coast – “When I’m With You”

Rah Rah (Bread & Circus @ 12AM) – This Saskatchewan collective released their new record Breaking Hearts a couple weeks ago, and while the big boisterous band thing is getting a bit played out, it’s hard not to dig it when it’s done this well. They’ll also plan an in-store at Sunrise Records on Saturday at 5PM and at the El Mocambo on Sunday night.
Video: Rah Rah – “My Guarantee”

Rich Aucoin (The El Mocambo @ 12AM) – Rumour has it this Haligonian popsmith’s show here at the end of January made the blind able to see technicolours and the lame able to dance. Excessively high expectations? Maybe, but that’s what big pop ambitions like Aucoin’s will get you.
MP3: Rich Aucoin – “10,342 Cuts For The US”

Evening Hymns (The Dakota Tavern @ 12AM) – Spirit Guides was one of my favourites of 2009 and while I haven’t revisited it lately, the wooden-walled environs of the Dakota would be the perfect place to get reacquainted. NOW has an interview.
MP3: Evening Hymns – “Broken Rifle”

PS I Love You (Lee’s Palace @ 1AM) – I meant to catch this Kingston duo at Canadian Musicfest in March, but didn’t, and with their self-titled debut EP ready to drop on July 13 I better take them in before they blow up because what they do is exactly what the kids like. At the moment, at least. NOW has a feature piece.
MP3: PS I Love You – “Facelove”

Gramercy Riffs (Bread & Circus @ 1AM) – Polished and punchy co-ed jangle-pop from Newfoundland – nothing especially groundbreaking but tuneful in a way that will always be welcome. They also play an acoustic set in Trinity-Bellwoods earlier in the day – exact time to be determined. Ask around.
MP3: Gramercy Riffs – “Call Me”

Murder Ford Monument (The Silver Dollar @ 3AM) – These Montrealers still sound a bit rough around the edges and wet behind the ears, but they’ve got the right combination of moodiness and drama to make the right impression. A shame that their late-night evocativeness has been taken too literally as far as their set time goes… maybe next time.

Saturday, June 19 2010

Valleys (The Drake Underground @ 8PM) – Atmospheric yet jagged folk-pop from Montreal that wanders into the dark parts of the woods that you were told never to go into – I’m going to miss this set but they’re already on my “see them the next time they’re here” list. Their debut album is Sometimes Water Kills People.
MP3: Valleys – “Silent Woods”

Savoir Adore (Sneaky Dee’s @ 10PM) – Despite the rustic overtones of the title of their debut In The Wooded Forest, this Brooklyn co-ed duo’s synth-pop feels entirely made for the city; specifically going out and dancing.
MP3: Savoir Adore – “Bodies”

The Grates (Wrongbar @ 10PM) – This Aussie power pop trio led by the hyperactive Patience Hodgson are as close to a sure thing for a good time as you’re going to find anywhere. When I saw them at SxSW 2009 they had a rhythmic gymnastics demonstration in the middle of their set. For example.
MP3: The Grates – “Burn Bridges”

The Hoof & The Heel (The Drake Underground @ 10PM) – This Montreal pop outfit’s name is familiar enough that I’m sure someone has told me that I need to hear them at some point in the not-too distant past. And now that I have, well that list that I added Valleys to a few entries above? It just got one longer. Something tells me I’m going to regret not being at this showcase.
Video: The Hoof & The Heel – “Fireworks”

Golden Bloom (Czehoski @ 11PM) – Shawn Fogel of Neutral Uke Hotel’s main gig is splendid power pop reminiscent of golden age, Bennett-powered Wilco. I got to their last album Fan The Flames too late to see them at NXNE last year. Hope to not repeat that mistake this year.
MP3: Golden Bloom – “Doomsday Devices”

Jane Vain (The Drake Underground @ 11PM) – Apparenyly Jamie Fooks has dropped “The Dark Matter” from her band name, but as long as she’s still making smoke-filled pop noir, then it doesn’t really matter what she calls herself. As long as she puts out a new record soon.
MP3: Jane Vain & The Dark Matter – “C’mon Baby Say Bang Bang”

The Craft Economy (Neutral Lounge @ 11PM) – It’s been a few years since I saw The Craft Economy but there’s no reason to think they’re not still keeping the flame of fun and dancey New Wave synth-pop burning bright. All their recordings are available for free via torrent on their website.
Video: The Craft Economy – “The Crash, The Wagons, The Dying Horses”

Avi Buffalo (Lee’s Palace @ 12AM) – The absurdly young and absurdly talented crew from Southern California will give Toronto plenty of chances to discover them and their self-titled debut, which is definitely worth discovering. In addition to this full-band gig, songwriter Avigdor Zahner-Isenberg will play a solo set at the Great Hall on Friday at 9PM and they’ll be back on August 3 supporting Blitzen Trapper at the Opera House.
MP3: Avi Buffalo – “Remember Last Time”

The Gin Riots (The El Mocambo @ 1AM) – And since it wouldn’t be a music festival for me without at least a little Brit-rock in the equation, these Londoners owe more than a little to The Libertines and Arctic Monkeys, but when you’re coming from this school it’s less about originality and more about attitude and these guys have enough of that to be worth a look.
MP3: The Gin Riots – “In The Bedroom”

Some other NXNE lists and guides are available from JAM, who have a list of acts to see, Chart has list of strange acts and another of best bets, Paste tries to make their American readers wish they were in Canada, Spinner, who itemize other things to do in Toronto beyond live music and NOW a general guide to how to do the festival. Spinner also talks to festival organizers about the event’s 16-year history.

Zunior is offering a free downloadable sampler of the artists playing the NXEW showcase at the Gladstone tonight.

And while I deliberately left out most of the acts playing Yonge-Dundas Square this weekend, they’re obviously getting a lot of the media attention. Case(s) in point: Spinner, CTV and NOW catch up with John Doe and Exene Cervenka of X, whose Thursday night show at Yonge-Dundas Square will mark the LA punk legends’ first show in Toronto in some 20 years.

NOW talks to Jay Ferguson of Sloan, who are headlining the Friday night programme at Yonge-Dundas Square.

The National Post and NOW Q&A The Raveonettes, who are the penultimate act at Yonge-Dundas on Saturday.

Hellbound talks to the legendary Mike Watt about handling bass duties in the even more legendary Iggy & The Stooges, who are headlining Yonge-Dundas Square on Saturday night, while NOW scores an interview with Iggy himself.

The Phenomenal Handclap Band, who are playing Yonge-Dundas on Sunday at 7PM, will play an in-store at Criminal Records that afternoon at 4PM.

And oh my god that took much longer to write up than I was expecting. And now I’m pretty much too tired to do any of the festival.

Leigh RightonFor a band that’s so good at doing things quietly, Calgary’s Woodpigeon certainly has a thing for volume. Their debut Songbook was originally released in 2006 in Canada and Japan, then reissued in Europe in 2008 to great critical acclaim. Their next release Treasury Library Canada wasn’t even intended to be a proper follow-up – just a collection of outtakes and leftovers from Songbook intended for sale as a limited run direct from the band. Thankfully, it became clear very quickly that it was too good a collection to not be made available to all – an opinion backed up by its eventual Polaris Prize longlisting – and it was reissued in early 2009, itself with another complete album appended as a bonus in Houndstooth Europa.

Which brings us to the impending release of their next album Die Stadt Muzikanten. Weighing in at 16 tracks and filled with orchestral pop finery, it’s no slight musical statement but again, Woodpigeon are all about value and North American and Japanese editions will come with Balladeer / To All The Guys I’ve Loved Before, described as an EP but at a dozen tracks and over 47 minutes, is pretty much another proper album recorded with Howard Bilerman, Steve Albini and Husky Hoskulds. And this round-up doesn’t even include all the one-offs, covers and whatnot that are regularly given away on their website. Sufficed to say, if you’re a Woodpigeon fan, you are never short of material to listen to.

Hearing said material live, however, is less easy – at least if you live in Ontario. Though the band has staged extensive tours throughout Europe, where they remain a much bigger draw than their home and native land, they rarely seem to make it out this way. Since 2007 they’ve only visited Toronto twice, opening for Calexico in July 2007 and an appearance at this Summer NxNE 2009. They’re looking to rectify that somewhat this Winter and have booked a fairly extensive tour through southern Ontario and Quebec, locally stopping at the Drake Underground on February 11.

Die Stadt Muzikanten is out on January 12 in Canada and Japan, March 1 in Europe and March 9 in the US, with Treasury Library Canada being made available domestically in the US for the first time as of that date as well. A sample track from Die Stadt is available below along with a holiday tune for the, well, holidays. Woodpigeon’s Mark Hamilton gave Ragged Words a list of his albums of the decade.

MP3: Woodpigeon – “Empty-Hall Sing-Along”
MP3: Woodpigeon – “xoxmas”

NYCTaper is sharing a recording of Final Fantasy’s recent show in New York, chock full of material from Heartland. Said album is out January 12 and the show that night at the Mod Club is sold right out. Way to dither.

Southern Souls has a video session with Olenka & The Autumn Lovers.

Spinner gets a rundown from Diamond Rings’ John O’Regan about how the Sony takedown kerfuffle last week shook out.

Stereogum talks to Born Ruffians about how the drummer situation that resulted in founding member Steve Hamelin giving up the throne for a spell this year was resolved, just in time to record sophomore album Say It, out early next year.

Joel Plaskett discusses the Thrush Hermit reunion with Spinner. That hits Lee’s Palace for two nights in March, the 26 and 27.

aux.tv recorded a video interview with The Rural Alberta Advantage at their instore last month at Soundscapes; The Portland Mercury also has a chat.

Toro y Moi and The Ruby Suns have a date at the Drake Underground on March 30. The former’s Causers Of This and the latter have a new one entitled Fight Softly and due out March 10.

MP3: Toro y Moi – “Blessa”
MP3: The Ruby Suns – “Tane Mahuta”

Swedes ahoy! Pitchfork reports that Taken By Trees will join Anna Ternheim as support for El Perro Del Mar on their upcoming North American tour, which stops in at the Mod Club on February 21. The Skinny talks to Victoria Bergsman.

MP3: Taken By Trees – “My Boys”
MP3: Taken By Trees – “Watch The Waves”
Video: Taken By Trees – “My Boys”

Denmark’s Efterklang have a date at the El Mocambo on March 6 as part of a North American tour in support of Magic Chairs, out February 22.

MP3: Efterklang – “Modern Drift”

The National Post talks to Bo Madsen of Mew.

Bettie Serveert will return with a new album in Pharmacy Of Love on March 23. There’s already a video for the first single.

Video: Bettie Serveert – “Deny All”

Filter solicits a list of Lightspeed Champion’s ten favourite things of 2009. Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You – which has good odds of being one of my favourite things of 2010 – is out February 16.

Fanfarlo plays a Tiny Desk Concert for NPR.

Frank YangThe Bellwoods crew is certainly setting a high standard when it comes to set dressings. Thanks to them, I’ve now attended shows in the heart of a volcano, an exploding library in the sky and as of this past Friday night, a heavily wooded lumberjack camp. In reality, it was the Tranzac and the occasion was the record release party for Evening Hymns’ new album Spirit Guides; a grand and gauzey statement of gospel-inflected folk-rock which is quite highly-regarded around these parts.

Support for the night came from The Harbour Coats, who on most occasions are a miniature Canadian super-group of sorts with members of Constantines, Snailhouse and Evening Hymns principal Jonas Bonnetta but on this night, due to logistical issues, were just frontman Bry Webb and an acoustic guitar and his own And if the oft-repeated reference point for Constantines is a heavier Springsteen, then Harbour Coats is a nod to the Boss’ more stripped-down side. Decked out head to toe in blue Christmas lights, Webb turned in a short set of tunes rich with images of the Canadian north and proving that he was as compelling and charismatic a songwriter a performer outside the Cons as he was with them.

At one point in the set, Jonas Bonnetta mentioned that this was pretty much his first-ever headlining show and for the occasion, he did it up right. Enlisting many/most of the contributors who played on Spirit Guides, Evening Hymns ranged from Bonnetta solo to a stage-filling 10-piece band including members of The Wooden Sky, Ohbijou, The Magic and The D’Urbervilles as well as a couple of his own siblings. And though all the parts were in place to recreate the expansive beauty of Spirit Guides – the stage even looked the part of the record’s rustic aesthetic – it would prove to more a question of chemistry than mathematics.

Though the show began strongly and remained so as the band’s numbers ebbed and flowed, at one point leaving Bonnetta to perform solo for a few numbers from his first record Farewell To Harmony, to my ears they weren’t quite managing to capture the ineffable specialness of the recorded work. And there’s no shame in that – to catch lightning in a bottle once and commit it to tape is a feat, to be able to do it again and on demand is asking a lot. But as the show progressed, it became evident that things were starting to coalesce and by the time the band’s numbers swelled for what was clearly the climax of the show, for which they’d wisely saved the record’s biggest moments, they were sounding like something much greater than the sum of its parts, in the same way that Spirit Guides is much more than the sum of its influences and reference points. As if cued by the bold organ of “Tumultuous Sea”, the show found a new level and through the encore and its gloriously jubilant readings of “Broken Rifle” and “Mtn. Song”, all crashing chords, thundering percussion and choral vocals, it was finally everything it could have been.

With so many of the record’s performers involved with other bands, it’s a bit difficult to envision how they could take this record on the road and do it the same sort of justice they did on this evening. This is not to say it can’t be just as effective and affecting with a different configuration, and I’m sure that however they end up taking it on tour, even if it’s just Bonnetta solo, it will be its own kind of special but I’m pretty pleased to have been able to witness it with the original cast, so to speak.

Soundproof and The Vancouver Sun have interviews with Bonnetta and London Burgeoning Metropolis, another review of the show.

Photos: Evening Hymns, The Harbour Coats @ The Tranzac – December 4, 2009
MP3: Evening Hymns – “Dead Deer”
MP3: Evening Hymns – “Broken Rifle”
MP3: Evening Hymns – “Cedars”
MySpace: Evening Hymns

NXEW is offering a free seasonal download from Olenka & The Autumn Lovers.

Great Lake Swimmers have posted up a set of live videos entitled The Legion Session. They play Trinity-St. Paul’s on February 6.

Thrasher’s Wheat is hosting a stream of the new Neil Young live record Dreamin’ Man, featuring live performances of all of Harvest Moon, out tomorrow.

Stream: Neil Young / Dreamin’ Man Live ’92

In addition to playing the Constantines’ 10th anniversary shows at Lee’s Palace on December 12, Oneida will play an in-store across the street at Sonic Boom at 4PM with what they’re calling an “improvised set”.

MP3: Oneida – “I Will Haunt You”
MP3: Oneida – “Saturday”
MP3: Oneida – “What’s Up Jackal”

American Songwriter talks to Canadian landed immigrant songwriter Joe Pernice.

Country-rockabilly-bluegrass-punk-whatever trio Those Darlins will bring their debut self-titled album to the Horsesehoe on February 9.

MP3: Those Darlins – “Red Light Love”

Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes talks to Pitchfork about how and where things are going with album number two.

Swear I’m Not Paul interviews Patterson Hood of Drive-By Truckers and learns they’ll be releasing two new albums in 2010 – a rocker called The Big To Do, presumably out first around February, and a “R&B Murder Ballad album” entitled Go Go Boots due out later in the year. There’s also features at Charleston City Paper and Charleston Daily Mail (I think the band might have just played in Charleston).

Band Of Horses’ Ben Bridwell talks hometowns with Spinner. They’re currently in Los Angeles working on their third record.

Cat Power tells The Courier-Mail that she’s working on a new record and the one that was reportedly done and ready to go, entitled The Sun, has been shelved.

Frank YangLast Thursday night was spent at The Garrison, the newly–opened west-end venue that’ll be home to the final year of Wavelength as well as a plethora of other local music happenings. A fine example of this was this evening’s bill, featuring bands with long names from near, far and sorta-near-but-not-that-close: The Wilderness Of Manitoba, Slow Down Molasses and Olenka & The Autumn Lovers.

Slow Down Molasses represented the “far”, hailing from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and were up first. I’d spent some time with their debut I’m An Old Believer in advance of the show and while the seven-piece outfit obviously has no shortage of ideas, largely revolving around a heartbreaking, widescreen country-rock epic I can definitely get behind, but I didn’t find Believer to be as focused or immersive a listening experience as it’d have probably needed to be to really wow me. Live, however, they make it work a lot better – all the many pieces come together nicely and the punchier delivery makes up for some of the thinner/wispier production choices and sometimes hesitant delivery on record. And bonus points for not only thinking to use a typewriter as a musical instrument but for making it work.

The Wilderness Of Manitoba got some face time here last week and were certainly a big part of the draw for this show. Though still a relatively new act, the word of mouth around them and the harmony-laden folk songs of their debut mini-album Hymns Of Love And Spirits has been spreading quickly so there was a pretty good size crowd assembled for their performance. And, indeed, the harmonies were pretty impressive – not divine, as the more hyperbolic might want to believe, but certainly rich and well-arranged. They brought more to the table than just their voices, though, and tastefully filled out their sound with cello, singing bowls and ukulele in addition to the more traditional guitar, bass and drums. As with the preceding band, I found the live Wilderness Of Manitoba more engaging than the recorded one, mostly thanks to the additional sonic weight of the live instrumentation – whereas Hymns seems to float above, on stage they sounded decidedly more anchored and some of the new material would certainly seem to demand that extra oomph. I know the EP just came out but I look forward to hearing what they do next.

I know I’d been intending to see London, Ontario’s Olenka & The Autumn Lovers for a long time – at least a year, and certainly they’re on my schedule every time CMW or NXNE rolls around – but it just hasn’t happened until now. So I won’t dwell on time and opportunities lost and just be thankful that finally, I am enlightened to their myriad charms. Calling them a folk band is accurate but insufficient; however trying to get more specific can be tricky. Their musical roots are Olenka Krakus’, which is to say the Old World/Eastern European/Balkan traditions which have been well-plied by the likes of Beirut and DeVotchKa in recent years, but rather than destinations as they are for those acts, for the Autumn Lovers they’re more of a starting point and they go wherever Krakus’ rich voice and vivid songwriting would go – brassy country twang one moment, mysterious Gallic chanteuse the next and all points in between. All of that was on display on Thursday night, as Krakus led her band through a spirited set which showed off their musicality and versatility and the sort of tightness that a couple weeks on the road tends to provide. I can’t provide much more specifics than that on account of not really knowing their material at the time but I’ve been rectifying that, having already put their recent Papillonette EP on heavy rotation and can say that what the cover of “Dancing In The Dark”, with which they closed the encore, lacked in polish, it more than made up for in enthusiasm and manpower. Joyous stuff, and be assured I won’t be missing them again.

Olenka’s just-wrapped eastern Canadian tour yielded features in BlogTO, JAM and The Chronicle Herald while BlogTO also talked to Slow Down, Molasses in advance of their show.

Photos: Olenka & The Autumn Lovers, The Wilderness Of Manitoba, Slow Down Molasses @ The Garrison – October 29, 2009
MP3: Olenka & The Autumn Lovers – “Eggshells”
MP3: The Wilderness Of Manitoba – “Bluebirds”
MP3: Slow Down, Molasses – “I’m An Old Believer”
MySpace: Olenka & The Autumn Lovers
MySpace: Slow Down Molasses

And this segues nicely into the second half of this post as Olenka & The Autumn Lovers placed an impressive 27th in the 2009 edition of I Heart Music’s “Hottest Bands In Canada” poll, the results of which were announced at the end of last week and which was topped by The Rural Alberta Advantage – which, really, was the only possible sensible outcome. As always, it’s a far from comprehensive survey of Canadian online music writer/blogger types, but does give a decent impression of who’s being talked about… by Canadian online music writer/blogger types. Eight of my ten picks made the final list, and as in past years, my picks were a melange of subjective opinion and objective fact, served with a healthy dose of rushing to get it in before the deadline. My full ballot with pithy blurbage is below.

1. The Rural Alberta Advantage – To hear them or see them is to love them, and while buzz had been growing steadily since last Fall, it was a storybook SxSW this past Spring that made them arguably one of the hottest Canadian exports of the year and it’s a tale that shows no signs of ending anytime soon.

MP3: The Rural Alberta Advantage – “Don’t Haunt This Place”

2. Fucked Up – Winning the Polaris Prize should pretty much guarantee you a top-5 spot in this poll, and by doing so, Fucked Up have taken hardcore just a little bit further into the mainstream and are as unlikely and appropriate ambassadors for Canadian music as you’ll find.

MP3: Fucked Up – “No Epiphany”

3. Metric – The tale of the tape doesn’t lie – they scored their second Polaris nomination for “Fantasies”, sold tens of thousands of records and are selling out large theatres across the country. they may be hated by many but are loved by even more.

Video: Metric – “Sick Muse”

4. Ohbijou – They released a glittering jewel of a sophomore effort in “Beacons”, toured relentlessly across Canada, the United States and Europe and with their Bellwoods house, now a thing of myth, essentially acted as a fulcrum for a new wave of bands coming out of Toronto. And somehow managed to raise almost $20,000 for the food bank at the same time.

MP3: Ohbijou – “Black Ice”

5. Woodpigeon – Calgary’s best-kept secret has started getting the sort of accolades at home that they’ve been earning abroad and turned a limited run record of non-album tracks into a Polaris long-listed record. Just imagine what they’ll do when they release Die Stadt Muzikanten in January, an album that’s actually meant to be an album.

MP3: Woodpigeon – “Love In The Time Of Hopscotch”

6. Final Fantasy – Getting ranked for a record that’s not out yet and a hot year that’s not actually occurred yet is a bit like winning the Nobel Peace Prize without having actually brokered any peace, but the anticipation for Owen Pallet’s first record in almost four years is substantial enough to warrant it.

MP3: Final Fantasy – “Ultimatum”

7. Chad Van Gaalen – I will personally probably never take a seat on this particular bandwagon, but there’s no denying that the cult of Chad continues to grow with every record he puts out. And if this were a poll of Canada’s oddest musicians, he’d be number one with a bullet.

MP3: Chad Van Gaalen – “City Of Electric Light”

8. The Wooden Sky – Long-time fixtures of the Toronto scene, their new record “If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone” feels like a game-changer for the band in every sense. They’ve made records, they’ve toured their asses off and now, people are talking. A lot.

MP3: The Wooden Sky – “Bit Part”

9. Dan Mangan – while I still think that declaring him “artist of the year”, as Verge XM did, is a bit premature, there’s no question that “Nice, Nice, Very Nice” is a watershed record for the Vancouver artist and one that could and should elevate him to the ranks of the finest new songwriters in the country.

MP3: Dan Mangan – “Road Regrets”

10. The Balconies – “Hottest in Canada” is probably an overstatement as they’re still hardly known outside of Ottawa and Toronto, but this power trio have got the songs and the style to ensure that by the time this poll runs next year, they’ll have made a much bigger name for themselves. Consider this a pre-emptive move.

MP3: The Balconies – “300 Pages”

And a couple related notes – The Rural Alberta Advantage will play an in-store at Soundscapes on November 17 at 7PM as a warm-up to their big show at Lee’s Palace on the 20th. Oh, and they’re playing the Olympics, too.

The Torture Garden has an interview with Final Fantasy’s Owen Pallett. Heartland is out January 12.

Dan Mangan has released a new video for “Robots” from Nice, Nice, Very Nice. Brace yourself for adorableness.

Video: Dan Mangan – “Robots”

The Line Of Best Fit has posted a sixth “Oh! Canada” downloadable mixtape, chock full of the best new Canadiana as judged by the British.