thecharlatans.netSad, sad news out of the UK yesterday when it was announced that Jon Brookes, drummer and founding member of The Charlatans, had passed away of brain cancer. The condition first surfaced during a 2010 North American tour that forced the cancellation of a number of dates, but until recently appeared to have been successfully treated, allowing Brookes to continue playing and recording with the band as recently as this Summer, with the band working on new material. Brookes was 44.

It’s not the first tragedy to befall the band – original keyboardist Rob Collins was killed in a car crash in 1996 – but in the almost 25 years of the band’s existence they’ve proven to be amazingly resilient, outlasting pretty much all of their Madchester and Britpop peers while building a really remarkable catalog of albums and singles. If any outfit could find the strength to carry on after such a loss – should they choose to – it’d be The Charlatans.

I feel fortunate to have caught them live at The Kool Haus in early 2002 circa Wonderland, their second-to-last visit (I believe) before a 2006 show at The Phoenix for Simpatico. It wasn’t supposed to be so, but the band were snakebit in their attempts to come back to support 2008’s You Cross My Path and 2010’s Who We Touch; for the former, they scheduled, cancelled, rescheduled, and re-cancelled a date at The Mod Club in Fall of 2009, eventually nixing the tour to allow Brookes to have shoulder surgery and their last attempt in September 2010 – which would have brought them to Lee’s Palace – was scrubbed after Brookes had a seizure in Philadelphia two nights before the show.

I’d been largely nonplussed about the band’s output this century, but those last couple records were genuinely solid and I had been quite excited to see them live again – especially in such small rooms – so those cancellations were extra disappointing. For that last Lee’s show, I’d already gone ahead and done the legwork of linking up their entire videography as I try to do for live reviews, and have actually had all of that HTML saved in a draft post for the past three years in hopes that they’d finally return and I could use it. Whatever happens with the future of the band, that return seems unlikely in the near term so I’ll instead post them as a tribute to Brookes and the band. Rest in peace, sir, and thanks for the music.

Video: The Charlatans – “My Foolish Pride”
Video: The Charlatans – “Love Is Ending”
Video: The Charlatans – “Mis-Takes”
Video: The Charlatans – “The Misbegotten”
Video: The Charlatans – “Oh Vanity”
Video: The Charlatans – “You Cross My Path”
Video: The Charlatans – “You’re So Pretty, We’re So Pretty”
Video: The Charlatans – “NYC (There’s No Need To Stop)”
Video: The Charlatans – “Blackened Blue Eyes”
Video: The Charlatans – “Try Again Today”
Video: The Charlatans – “Up At The Lake”
Video: The Charlatans – “A Man Needs To Be Told”
Video: The Charlatans – “Love Is The Key”
Video: The Charlatans – “Impossible”
Video: The Charlatans – “How High”
Video: The Charlatans – “North Country Boy”
Video: The Charlatans – “One To Another”
Video: The Charlatans – “Just When You’re Thinkin’ Things Over”
Video: The Charlatans – “Just Lookin'”
Video: The Charlatans – “Crashin’ In”
Video: The Charlatans – “Jesus Hairdo”
Video: The Charlatans – “I Never Want an Easy Life If Me and He Were Ever to Get There”
Video: The Charlatans – “Cant Get Out Of Bed”
Video: The Charlatans – “Tremolo Song”
Video: The Charlatans – “Weirdo”
Video: The Charlatans – “Me. In Time”
Video: The Charlatans – “Over Rising”
Video: The Charlatans – “Then”
Video: The Charlatans – “Sproston Green”
Video: The Charlatans – “The Only One I Know”

Travis have let Rolling Stone host the advance stream of their new record Where You Stand, which comes out August 19. Fran Healy talks to Metro, The Daily Mail, The Daily Record, and The Arbroath Herald about the new album, which they bring to The Sound Academy on September 25.

Stream: Travis / Where You Stand

DIY has both an album stream and track-by-track walkthrough of Absolute Zero, the debut album from Dublin’s Little Green Cars. It came out in North America back in the Spring but is only getting a European release next week, if you were wondering why they’re only getting around to it now.

Stream: Little Green Cars / Absolute Zero

The Fly and The Belfast Telegraph interview members of The Vaccines, who are streaming one of the tracks from their just-released Melody Calling EP via NME. They open up for Mumford & Sons at the Molson Amphitheatre on August 26.

Stream: The Vaccines – “Do You Want A Man” (John Hill + Rich Costey Remix)

Premier Guitar sits down with Alex Kapranos and Nick McCarthy of Franz Ferdinand to talk about their new record Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action with particular interest in – wait for it – their guitars, while The Age settles for a broader-interest feature piece. The record is out August 27 and they play The Kool Haus October 24.

Stereogum has premiered the lead video for Summer Camp’s self-titled second album, due out September 9.

Video: Summer Camp – “Fresh”

Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys talks to Rolling Stone about the new single and video from their forthcoming AM, which comes out September 10. They’re at The Kool Haus on September 15.

Video: Arctic Monkeys – “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?”

DIY have premiered the first video from Motto, the forthcoming record from Sky Larkin and Oxford Student also has an interview with the band. The new album is out September 16.

Video: Sky Larkin – “Loom”

Even though you’ve already seen her play it live at an in-store, The AV Club has posted the “proper” version of Charli XCX’s cover of The Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way”, as she learned the song for her contribution to their Undercover series. She also lists her five favourites songs for The Week. Charli XCX plays The Hoxton on September 16.

Peter Hook recounts to The Guardian what he sees when he looks in the mirror, which includes a guy who’s going to play Movement and Power, Corruption & Lies at The Hoxton on September 18; he talks to This Is Nottingham about how the live performance will work. And if you want to see what he looks like when he’s trying to teach you to play “Ceremony”, head over to Slicing Up Eyeballs for the video lesson.

Spin is streaming another new track from Johnny Flynn’s forthcoming Country Mile, due out September 30.

Stream: Johnny Flynn – “After Eliot”

Billboard has a video session and interview with Kate Nash. She plays The Phoenix on November 5.

After threatening to leak it herself, M.I.A. has been given a November 5 release date for her eternally-delayed new record Matangi.

Over at Noisey, Emmy The Great explains how she came to write the soundtrack for the film Austenland.

Editors have released another video from their latest album The Weight Of Your Love; Artrocker also has a quick interview with the band.

Video: Editors – “Formaldehyde”

MTV Iggy interviews Camera Obscura.

Mat Osman of Suede tells The Quietus what he’s been listening to lately.

In conversation with The Daily Star Alex James is simultaneously optimistic and hazy about the future of Blur.

Pitchfork has what I believe is the first extensive post-m b v interview with Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, including outtakes.

In conversation with The Japan Times, Johnny Marr dumps a whole load of cold, harsh reality on those holding out hope for a Smiths reunion.

Frank YangIt might seem like an act of massive hubris for a brand-new band from abroad to book a North American tour with no official release, not even a handful of released songs, and barely a month’s worth of experience performing live, but Sweden’s Kate Boy did just that in rolling into Wrongbar on Sunday night for the third of six dates on this continent. But when each of those three singles and videos have been met with immensely positive response and the right outlets are paying attention, maybe it’s less an act of starry-eyed optimism than a canny first move in a well-orchestrated, long-term marketing strategy.

Though I was intrigued by the aforementioned singles – particular with them on repeat whilst writing this – it took the announcement of Vancouver’s Gold & Youth as support to cement my attendance. Though they were hardly going to be strangers to Toronto stages over this week, opening up the Arts & Crafts Field Trip fest on Saturday and also playing NXNE, the odds of my catching any of those shows was going to slim. And I wanted to see them – their just-released debut Beyond Wilderness being a solid if not life-altering document of ’80s-ish synth-pop that I suspected would come across stronger live than on record. And indeed, it did. Utilizing a conventional band lineup augmented by synths and samples, rather than the other way around, their live show was more energetic and brought their musicianship to the fore, if also laying bare their Cure, New Order, and Depeche Mode influences. Danceable without being dance music, the affirmed themselves as a band with a great if familiar sound, and good to very good songs that should just get better.

Just as it wouldn’t have surprised me if Wrongbar had been empty for Kate Boy’s Canadian debut, it also didn’t surprise me that there was a very respectable-sized crowd by the time the foursome took the stage, uniform of black t-shirts and baseball caps intact. I was surprised, though, that much of the audience seemed not to be the curious out to be convinced, but genuine fans wanting to have their belief confirmed – looks like three songs can really go a long way. Thankfully, the band had more than that in their repertoire, and their 40-minute set was tightly choreographed and impressively crafted – what was that about having only played their first-ever gig in May? The three singles were spaced out so as to be able to keep the momentum up, and basically performed live as extended remixes to effectively balance familiarity and freshness. The rest of the material adhered to the same formula of big heavy beats and even bigger choruses, so if you liked one you were pretty much going to like them all.

While her bandmates kept their Scandinavian cool whilst manning their synths, drums, and bass with laser focus, frontwoman Kate Akhurst was all smiles and arm-waving dance moves, clearly less concerned with maintaining their icy aesthetic than having and giving a good time. And it’s a pretty safe bet that for everyone in attendance, a good time was had. There’s probably not ever going to be a narrative around Kate Boy that casts them as the scrappy, DIY upstarts. There’s something very calculated about their career trajectory so far, and even though they’re currently signed to Los Angeles indie IAMSOUND for their singles, five will get you six that like label alumnus Florence & The Machine, Charli XCX, and Little Boots, their debut will be on a major. Not that that matters, really – all that does is they’ve got the look, they’ve got the sound, and they’ve got the show. Everything is going according to plan.

Exclaim also has a review of the show while Idolator and Chicago Now have posted interviews with the band. MSN gets to know Louise Burns as both a member of Gold & Youth and solo artist, whose second album The Midnight Mass comes out July 9.

Photos: Kate Boy, Gold & Youth @ Wrongbar – June 9, 2013
MP3: Kate Boy – “Northern Lights”
Video: Kate Boy – “The Way We Are”
Video: Kate Boy – “In Your Eyes”
Video: Kate Boy – “Northern Lights”
Video: Gold & Youth – “Jewel”
Video: Gold & Youth – “Time To Kill”

Exclaim has an advance stream of Beady Eye album BE, though since the album is now out as of this week – in the UK, at least – it’s not so advance. The Independent has an interview with Liam Gallagher where he sounds off on this and that.

Stream: Beady Eye / BE

Drowned In Sound talks to CHVRCHES, in town tomorrow night – June 12 – for a show at The Hoxton.

Sigur Rós have turned to their live show projections for the video to the title track and to CBC Music to host an advance stream of their new album Kveikur, coming June 18. The stream is probably geoblocked to Canada, but rest of the world can be sure that their territories will be attended to shortly. Update: Try Amazon.

Video: Sigur Rós – “Kveikur”
Stream: Sigur Rós / Kveikur

Rolling Stone and Refinery 29 have feature pieces on Empire Of The Sun and their new album Ice On The Dune, out June 18 and available to stream now at Rolling Stone. Yahoo, meanwhile, gets a look behind the scenes at the band’s visual presentation.

Stream: Empire Of The Sun / Ice On The Dune

Also out next week – at least domestically in North America – and doing the advance stream thing now is More Light, the new record from Primal Scream. That’s up at NPR.

Stream: Primal Scream / More Light

Editors are streaming a new b-side from the first single for their forthcoming The Weight Of Your Love. The new album is out July 1.

Stream: Editors – “The Sting”

TOY and Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan have teamed up for a cover of Iranian artist Amir Rassaei. It’s out on July 1 as a 7″ single. More details at Pitchfork.

Stream: TOY with Natasha Khan – “The Bride”

The Line Of Best Fit gets to know Camera Obscura. They play the Toronto Urban Roots Fest at Garrison Common on July 4.

Icona Pop discuss the inspiration behind their hit, “I Don’t Care”, with MTV. They play Garrison Common on August 3 as part of The Grove Fest.

Beatroute, Scout Magazine, and Vita.mn have interviews with José González of Junip.

The National Post and Canada.com have interviews with The xx, who premiered a new video from Coexist last week via Noisey.

Video: The xx – “Fiction”

Metro interviews Bloc Party, who tell Canada.com that following this Summer’s touring commitments, they’re going back on indefinite hiatus.

NME talks to the director of the new video from Billy Bragg’s Tooth & Nail; NPR also has a Mountain Stage video session with the singer-songwriter.

Video: Billy Bragg – “Handyman’s Blues”

DIY has a feature interview with Laura Marling.

The Guardian welcomes Suede to their studios for a video session.

The Joy Formidable have released a live video of them performing an acoustic cover of Echo & The Bunnymen’s “The Killing Moon”.

Video: The Joy Formidable – “The Killing Moon” (live)

Clash invites Frightened Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchison to take a swing at some of the songs currently on the UK charts.

Lisa DevineAll’s been quiet from camp Ladytron since they finished up touring in support of 2011’s Gravity The Seducer, but frontwoman Helen Marnie hasn’t been idle. Working under her surname, Marnie took to crowdfunding site Pledgemusic last Fall to finance a solo record. Unsurprisingly, it was fully funded within days – even without anyone taking the top reward of one Marnie’s own car, a 1998 Mini Cooper, at five thousand quid – and since then, fans have waited patiently while she decamped to Reykjavik to record the album.

While the record, entitled Crystal World, just missed its release date of this past weekend – mastering of the album pushed things back slightly – it should be out very shortly and the window to pledge and get a copy is closing soon. Last week, Under The Radar premiered the first song and video from it; it and another sample of a new song confirms that whatever name she operates under or whomever she plays with, Marnie make sleek, seductive electro-pop.

Stream: Marnie – “Hearts On Fire” (excerpt)
Video: Marnie – “The Hunter”

Keyboardist Carey Lander discusses Camera Obscura’s new album Desire Lines with The Skinny. It’s out as of tomorrow and they play the first night of the Toronto Urban Roots Fest at Garrison Common on July 4.

Swedish up-and-comer Elliphant, who opens up for Twin Shadow at The Phoenix on June 7, has made another new song available to stream.

Stream: Elliphant – “Music Is Life”

The Quietus talks to Beady Eye about their new record BE, out in the UK on June 10.

Gold Panda is streaming his new album Half Of Where You Live in full at NPR ahead of its June 11 release, and has also put out a new video from it via Nowness. He plays Lee’s Palace on October 8.

Video: Gold Panda – “My Father In Hong Kong, 1961”
Stream: Gold Panda / Half Of Where You Live

The Line Of Best Fit has an interview with Still Corners, who open up for CHVRCHES at The Hoxton on June 12, and should have a NXNE date to announce shortly thereafter.

Icona Pop are streaming their newest single. They’re here playing the Grove Fest at Garrison Commons on August 3.

Stream: Icona Pop – “Girlfriend”

Spin takes the news that Elvis Costello and The Roots have given their collaborative album a title – Wise Up Ghost – and a release date – September 17 – and wonders if copies haven’t already been circulating since April. Though probably not.

The Horrors tell NME that they’re just about done recording the follow-up to 2011’s Skying. Nothing is on the schedule but a late 2013 release seems reasonable.

James Dean Bradfield of Manic Street Preachers confirms to NME that the band have two new records in the can, one primarily acoustic and another that sounds “European”.

Suede have released a vandalism-infused video for the new single from Bloodsports, which is also leading a new EP that comes with two new proper b-sides.

Video: Suede – “Hit Me”

MTV Iggy has an interview with Icelandic composer Ólafur Arnalds.

Thom Yorke and Flea discuss their preparations for the upcoming Atoms For Peace tour with Billboard, rehearsals for which have produced an in-studio video of Thom going through some deep cuts that aren’t even his own.

Video: Atoms For Peace – “Rabbit In Your Headlights”

Jem GouldingSince their first single was released in June 2012, London post-punk foursome Savages have steadily become one of the most-talked about new bands in the UK on the backs of their ferocious live performances, the experience of which they sought to capture on the live I Am Here EP released last Fall. Now, as they come off a series of much-talked about shows at SXSW and prepare to make a similar impression with a couple of shows at Canadian Musicfest, they’ve announced details of their debut album.

Entitled Silence Yourself, it will be released worldwide on the band’s own Pop Noire label and indie giant Matador Records, coming out on May 6 in territories where new records come out on Mondays and May 7 for those who do the Tuesday release thing. Full details on the release are available at Exclaim and a first track from the album is available to stream below. NOW has an interview with the band, who play The Horseshoe on March 22 and Lee’s Palace on March 23.

Stream: Savages – “She Will”

Spin talks to Brett Anderson while The Quietus ponders the difficulty of being a Suede fan in the United States on this, the occasion of this week’s release of Bloodsports. I suppose we’re a little better off in Canada, where we don’t have to call them The London Suede, not that that’s provided enough incentive to tour over here or anything. But anyways, as a little release-week gift, the band have made a live recording from their intimate show at Camden Barfly earlier this month available to download.

MP3: Suede – “Filmstar” (live)

British buzz band Peace is streaming their debut album In Love at NME ahead of its UK release next week. They’re in town for NXNE on June 15.

MP3: Peace – “California Daze”
Stream: Peace / In Love

Depeche Mode have gone with iTunes to advance stream their new album Delta Machine, out next week. They’re at the Molson Amphitheatre on September 1.

Stream: Depeche Mode / Delta Machine

The 405 are streaming one of the tracks from Frightened Rabbit’s forthcoming Backyard Skulls EP, an alternate version of Pedestrian Verse track “Holy”, while City Pages serves up an interview. The EP is out March 31, which is the same day they’re in town at The Phoenix.

Stream: Frightened Rabbit – “Holy” (alternate version)

Pitchfork has official details on the North American release of Jessie Ware’s Devotion, which in addition to different artwork from the UK edition, will have two bonus tracks and be out April 16. Which is 11 days after her April 6 show at The Opera House. So buy a t-shirt, I guess.

The Joy Formidable have a new video from Wolf’s Law, shot from the point-of-view of Ritzy’s guitar headstock. They play The Phoenix on April 12.

Video: The Joy Formidable – “Little Blimp”

It Hugs Back return with their third album Recommended Record on April 29; they talk to The Quietus about it and have a track from it available to stream.

Stream: It Hugs Back – “Sometimes”

DIY has a feature piece on Daughter; their debut If You Leave is out in the UK this week but not in North America until April 30. They’re at The Great Hall on May 7.

Noah & The Whale have released the first video from their new record Heart Of Nowhere, due out May 3.

Video: Noah & The Whale – “There Will Come A Time”

Billy Bragg lists off some of his favourite albums for The Quietus, offers interviews to The Line Of Best Fit, Exclaim, Consequence ORolling Stone, and Canadian Press, and plays a World Cafe session for NPR. He’s in town at the Danforth Music Hall on May 3.

Palma Violets tell DIY that playing a show in Toronto is their definition of having it made. OK, then. They’re back at the high point of their career on May 3 when they play Lee’s Palace.

The Guardian talks to Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream about their forthcoming album More Light, due May 6.

Little Boots is streaming a new song from her forthcoming album Nocturnes, out May 7. Rolling Stone gets a video tour of Victoria Hesketh’s studio.

Stream: Little Boots – “Broken Record”

Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis talks to The Daily Star about their ascension to the status of festival headliners, at least in the UK. Here in North America, they’re still playing rooms like The Kool Haus, where they’ll be on May 11.

Billboard talks to Polly Scattergood about her second album Arrows, which is set for a June 14 release.

Glasvegas have released a first video from their new record Later…When The TV Turns To Static, due out this Summer.

Video: Glasvegas – “I’d Rather Be Dead (Than Be With You)”

Interview, The Village Voice, and The Toronto Star talk to CHVRCHES, whose debut album drops in September.

Tom Cowan of The Horrors tells NME to expect a new album this September.

Another Magazine talks to Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys, while NME gets some details on their forthcoming album from drummer Matt Helder; it’s due out this year sometime.

A Music Blog, Yea, The Telegraph, and The Guardian talk to Kate Nash about music, favourite things, and fashion, respectively.

Django Django have released a new video from last year’s self-titled debut.

Video: Django Django – “WOR”

Clash chats with Dev Hynes about how he came to work with Solange.

DIY has a video session with Veronica Falls.

Norman WongIncreasingly, Friday posts are for clearing off the decks of whatever hasn’t gone out earlier in the week, but that doesn’t mean the content isn’t quality – this ain’t no fire sale, son. But it also doesn’t mean I’m not giving some stuff away. Because I am.

Earlier this week, Toronto electro-operatic sensation Austra announced details of their second album, to be entitled Olympia and due out June 18. And because they believe in deeds, not words, they also made the first single from the new record available to stream. And if you want to hear more new material – or are now in the mood to hear some Feel It Break material – you’ll probably want to be at The Danforth Music Hall next Saturday night, March 23, for their late-add Canadian Musicfest performance.

Though a limited number of festival wristbands and passes will be admitted, lineups and attendant stresses can be eliminated with advance tickets. Those are going for $24 in advance, but courtesy of Embrace, I’ve got four pairs of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests@chromewaves.net with “I want to see Austra” in the subject line and your full name in the body and have that me by midnight, March 20.

Stream: Austra – “Home”

The Line Of Best Fit talks to Alan Sparhawk of Low, who are in town at The Great Hall on Saturday night and release their new record The Invisible Way on Tuesday.

Brett Anderson of Suede chats with DIY. Their new record Bloodsports is out on March 18.

Brightest Young Things has an interview with Philip Ekstrom of The Mary Onettes about their new album Hit The Waves, due out next Tuesday, March 19. Ekstrom also proves game for mini Swede-pop summits, with The Line Of Best Fit having Sambassadeur’s Joachim Läckberg interview Ekstrom and vice-versa – Sambassadeur’s new record is due out later this year – and Q gets his label boss – Johan Angergård of Labrador – to ask him some questions.

Southern Souls has a video session with July Talk, taking part in Canandian Musicfest at Lee’s Palace on March 21.

The National Post has a feature interview with Nick Cave; he leads The Bad Seeds into Massey Hall on March 23.

The Strokes have rolled out the first video from their forthcoming Comedown Machine, out March 26.

Video: The Strokes – “All The Time”

The first video from The House Of Love’s forthcoming She Paints Words In Red – the one that went up last month and was almost immediately pulled – is back up, hopefully for good. The album is out April 1.

Video: The House Of Love – “A Baby Got Back On Its Feet”

In addition to announcing a local tour that includes a free show at the Parkdale Library on April 27, Dusted have made an unreleased track available to download and another rarity available to stream.

MP3: Dusted – “No Trouble”
Stream: Dusted – “In Yr Skull”

Exclaim and MTV Hive have interviews with Rachel Zeffira, coming to town as part of a two-date North American tour on May 2 at The Drake Underground.

MTV Hive talks to Airick Wooded of Doldrums. He’ll be at The Horseshoe on May 11.

I don’t know that a musical from the pens of Stephen King and John Mellencamp is something that I’d necessarily want to know existed, let alone hear, but that the Ghost Brothers of Darkland County soundtrack features performances from the likes of Neko Case and Elvis Costello, I can’t not pay a little attention. The album is out June 4 and a couple tracks are available to stream now. Neko Case is in town at the Toronto Urban Roots Fest at Garrison Commons on July 7.

Stream: Neko Case – “That’s Who I Am”
Stream: Elvis Costello – “That’s Me”

The 405 meets Ra Ra Riot, coming back to town on June 8 for Field Trip at Garrison Commons.

Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo compiles a list of his favourite albums for The Quietus. They’ll be at Garrison Commons for TURF on July 7.

The Von Pip Musical Express brings the good news that Nicole Atkins has just about completed her third album, entitled Slow Phaser, and while specific release details are still forthcoming, a first track from it is available to stream.

Stream: Nicole Atkins – “Red Ropes”

The AV Club is running a series of video session musical tributes to various states, and have kicked off in Texas – of course – with Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam offering an unreleased Texas-themed song in the first one and Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg covering Roy Orbison in another.

Also in interesting covers: Joanna Newsom tackling a Sandy Denny song in a performance for a Los Angeles clothing designer; watch the video at Spin and get a little background on the session at Style.com.

Exclaim talks to Mark Perro of The Men.

If you hadn’t heard, School Of Seven Bells guitarist Benjamin Curtis was recently diagnosed with T-cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma. While treatable, they have set up a website through which they are soliciting support and donations to help cover the costs. Help out if you can.

Robyn Hitchcock discusses his new album Love From London with Spinner.