CHAD VANGAALEN @ THE TRANZAC

Chad VanGaalen's show at the Tranzac (Main Hall) on May 29, 2007 is now on-sale online through Ticket Scene. Follow the link to purchase tickets. Montreal's Jade McNeils supports.

WHITE STRIPES PRE-SALE

The White Stripes are currently running a pre-sale for their upcoming North American tour. Tickets are on-sale now for the Toronto date at the Molson Ampitheatre, I just pulled two GA floors for the show. It's not cheap ($44.75 US a ticket), but if you want good seats, get them through the pre-sale now. God knows when it goes on sale through ticketmaster, only crap will be available.

I WANT THIS NIGHT INSIDE OF ME


Maybe my pleading paid off. Patrick Wolf has apparently confirmed a headlining show in Toronto on May 11, 2007 at El Mocombo. Tickets, $15, are at the door only on the night of the show. Doors at 7pm, show at 8pm, no support announced as of yet. I'm really hoping this happens, I've been waiting for a couple years to see him live.

Apparently this:

Plastic LittlePlastic Little w. special guest Thunderheist & DJ Dougie Boom

is happening at the venue the same day, but doors are at 10pm, meaning that an early show is possible. Maybe I'll make it a double show, I've been jonesing to see Thunderheist for a while.

ICKY THUMP OR ICKY CRAP? YOU DECIDE!!!

Head over to ProductShopNYC and download a radio rip of The White Stipes new tune Icky Thump now. Let me know what you think. My opinion, it's alright, nothing fantastic, didn't knock my socks off. But alright.

The track will be available legally tonight at midnight via iTunes.

THE WHITE STRIPES ANNOUNCE EXTENIVE CANADIAN TOUR

The White Stripes have announced a very very extensive Canadian tour starting mid June (with a few U.S. dates peppered into the mix). The tour is in support of the forthcoming Icky Thump, due out June 19th. The dates in Canada are as follows:

June 24 Burnaby, British Columbia - Deer Lake Park

June 25 Whitehorse, Yukon - Yukon Arts Centre

June 26 Yellowknife, Northwest Territories - Shorty Brown Multiplex Arena

June 27 Iqaluit, Nunavut - Arctic Winter Games Arena

June 29 Calgary, Alberta - Pengrowth Saddledome

June 30 Edmonton, Alberta - Shaw Convention Center

July 01 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - TCU Place

July 02 Winnipeg, Manitoba - MTS Centre

July 03 Thunder Bay, Ontario - Community Auditorium

July 05 Toronto, Ontario - Molson Amphitheatre

July 06 Montreal, Quebec - Bell Centre

July 07 London, Ontario - John Labatt Centre

July 08 Ottawa, Ontario - LeBreton Flats Park (Ottawa Bluesfest)

July 10 Moncton, New Brunswick - Moncton Coliseum Arena

July 11 Charlottetown, Price Edward Island - Charlottetown Civic Centre

July 13 Halifax, Nova Scotia - Cunard Centre

July 14 Glace Bay, Nova Scotia - Savoy Theatre

July 16 St. John's, Newfoundland - Mile One Center

source

Other Concert News:

June 1, 2007 - Jill Barber - Mod Club tickets

June 1, 2007 - The Pipettes - Lee's Palace (no ticket info as of yet)

June 8, 2007 - Junior Boys w Born Ruffians/We're Marching On - Mod Club

June 12, 2007 - Kings Of Leon - Kool Haus tickets

June 21, 2007 - Shiny Toy Guns w Stars of Track and Field/The Hourly Radio - Mod Club tickets

TOKYO POLICE CLUB - NATURE OF THE EXPERIMENT (LIVE ON LETTERMAN)



Tokyo Police Club play the Virgin Music Fesitval Day Two on September 9, 2007.

BJORK - EARTH INTRUDERS (LIVE)
Live on Saturday Night Live
April 21, 2007



BJORK - WANDERLUST (LIVE)
Live on Saturday Night Live
April 21, 2007

BJORK - EARTH INTRUDERS



Bjork headlines day one of the Virgin Music Festival on the Toronto Island on September 8, 2007. Tickets are on sale now.

BOMBS FOR SHOW IN TELEFOTO

I've been a fan of Portland, Oregon's Stars Of Track And Field since being turned onto their debut EP You Came Here For The Sunset Last Year by Central Village. I also couldn't resist checking them out due to their Belle and Sebastian referencing name. Their blend of bedroom electronics and lovelorn indie pop is reminiscent of all the best aspects of a bunch of my favourite bands, their lyrical content reminds me of Photo Album era Death Cab, vocals sound like Thom Yorke circa The Bends and the laptop bleeps and beats recall DNTEL or Lali Puna. The band released their debut Centuries Before Love And War (available domestically on Wind Up Records) in January and it's simply incredible.

They have been through Toronto twice since the release of their album (for a showcase during CMW and then again supporting The Broken West when they also recorded a live set at XM and did a set for Amp'd Mobile. And their back again on May 1st to tape a show for Rave HD TV at the Berkeley Church.

Courtesy of Wind Up Records, I have a pair of tickets to see Stars Of Track And Field live at the Berkeley Church. To win tickets, send an email to danielokorn@gmail.com with the subject line "I Want To See Stars Of Track and Field". Contest closes April 28. 2007. Winner will be selected randomly. For a second chance to win, follow this link to their website where the band is also running a contest to win tickets to the taping.

Soulwax/2ManyDjs
Opera House
April 20, 2007

Nothing really to review here. The show was a mess, Soulwax bailed at the last minute, leaving AD/D (the promoters) high and dry. We arrived at 11pm, waited for half an hour outside the Opera House. Security was a nightmare as usual, there was a line around the block and they thought it would be a good idea to try to move the line so they could set up a smoking section. We waited and waited to get in, only to find out that the hold up was due to the fact that the door was sorting out the VIP's (which was supposedly in excess of 250 people) and letting them in instead of people that bought advance tickets. I felt like I was waiting to get into some crappy entertainment district club.
Once inside, it was great to see the hold up at the door happened for no reason, the venue was more than half empty. We found a good place on the balcony to hang out, had a couple drinks and proceeded to wait for Soulwax to begin their set. The did come out, and almost start their set, but then left the stage in a hurry. This is where things got strange. The opening Dj came back on and spun for another hour or so. Finally some really drunk girl appeared on stage (this was at 1am) to say that Soulwax were not going to play but that 2manydjs would begin their set in five minutes. An hour later I asked a security guard if there was anyone else going on, and she said that the band left, that the promoters were no where to be found and that the show was basically over. WTF!! Leaving the venue there was a girl with a clipboard taking people's email addresses and offering them a discount on the ticket price to the next AA/D show. Not good enough, all I want is my $20 back. No refunds were being issued at the venue.

Got home at 3am, left a flaming post on Stillepost. Check it here. Apparently, AD/D are trying to reschedule the show or something. If you were there last night and paid to get in, check the post to get info on how to get in contact with AD/D.

CSS - OFF THE HOOK



CSS play Lee's Palace on June 4, 2007 with Datarock. Tickets are on sale now at Rotate This and Ticketmaster.

YEAH I KNOW!! - Andy

This is the greatest entertainment news story EVER!! Matt Lucas and David Williams have inked a deal with HBO to bring my favourite British comedy Little Britain to America! Oh joy!!! Now we'll get more episodes featuring my favourite characters: Ann, Vicky Pollard and Lou and Andy!!

Read more about it here.

JUST STUFF

Lots of stuff to note:

- Patrick Wolf is slated to open for Amy Winehouse at the Mod Club on May 12 and 13. I'm praying that a Toronto promoter tries to fan dangle a solo headlining show out of Patrick.

Ps. If ANYONE has a line on a couple tickets for either Winehouse gig, I would FOREVER be indebted to you and could potentially trade my first born for the tix. Need to see Winehouse and Wolf together. I may also be willing to look at some sort of trade for AF tickets. Please Please Please let me get what I want....this time.

- Tokyo Police Club will be on Letterman tomorrow night. Way to go boys! Check your local listings for airing times. Check out their new video for Cheer It On below. The guys are also playing an Edge 102 Next Big Thing show at the Drake on April 22, 2007. You can only get tickets through the Edge, so head over there to enter.



- My favourite indie songstress Feist was profiled in my favourite magazine The New Yorker (in the current issue). The article is pretty amazing, author Sasha Frere-Jones does a great job dissecting her sound (and I think he was sitting behind me at the show back in March). Not to mention she looks radiant in the picture that accompanies the piece. Feist plays Massey Hall on May 25th and 26th, Great Lake Swimmers support (tickets here).

- Voxtrot's show at Sneaky Dee's is on sale now through Rotate, Soundscapes and Ticketweb. Get them now, it's gonna be a sell out and a sweaty mess of a show.

- Brooklyn Vegan has an amazing article with Bjork. Check it here. She talks about Antony. I heart Antony.

- Some shows:

05/01/2007 - Stars Of Track and Field - Berkeley Church (more to come on this in a couple days)
05/23/2007 - The Faint - Opera House - Tickets on-sale now
06/04/2007 - The Clientele w Beach House - El Mocombo - tickets on sale now
07/08/2007 - Shout Out Out Out as part of Harbourfront's Beats and Breaks festival
07/12/2007 - Cat Power - Phoenix Concert Theatre

That's it for now. Oh except, I'm finally getting the redesign that blacking out the friction deserves. I'll eventually be moving off blogger onto my own site! Yeah!

Klaxons - Golden Skans

Girl Talk

April 13, 2007

Soundlab

Buffalo, NY

Buffalo can be a pretty shady place at night, especially the downtown core, where Soundlab is situated. The first thing we noticed while being dropped off my our hotel's shuttle bus (our glorified private driver for the entire night, we were driven to the liquor store, grocery store and a sub par Greek restaurant before being dropped off at the bar for the show) was that the streets of downtown Buffalo are absolutely deserted. Not a soul was seen walking around, and it was pretty eerie, like something out of 28 Days Later.

Soundlab is a great small venue, very long and narrow. We arrived at 11pm, and had just missed Ninja High School, who we all wanted to see. Next up was a pretty terrible Dj...his name escapes me right now, but it was bad. Beefalo people seemed into though. Greg Gillis aka Girl Talk started his set at about ten to midnight and from the get go, he had the entire crowd eating out of his hands. People tend to slag off his sets, he doesn't Dj...no turntables, no mixer...just a couple laptops and a mouse, but I challenge anyone to keep the energy and excitement up for almost two hours like he did Friday night. His mash ups were incredible, the transitions flawless, and the crowd went nuts the entire time. People were out to have a good time, the bar's drinks were disgustingly cheap ($3 Red Stripes!) which made for a pretty hammered crowd. Simply amazing.

UPDATE>>>Here is a short 45 second video clip I took from Friday's show.

BJORK - WE ARE THE EARTH INTRUDERS

So I got my first cease and desist notice from Blogger today in regards to this post. I find it ironic that there was supposedly a "complaint" by Bjork's manager (see comments below) concerning the You Tube link that I posted to a video taken of her new album cover with her new single "Earth Intruders" playing in the background. I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH POSTING THE VIDEO ON YOU TUBE, NOR DO I KNOW WHO DID. Why go after a lonely blogger when instead they could have gone directly to the source of the problem, the You Tube video and the You Tube user that posted the video...makes no sense to me.

Regardless, the video was removed by You Tube sometime today, and I have removed the embedded link. But really, realistically, what is the threat here? It's a really shitty quality video, with crappy sound! Is someone really going to make an MP3 out of it and distribute it, I don't think so (and to boot, the song is widely available ALL over the Internet, from crappy 128kps to FLAC lossless!). If anything, the video is brilliant marketing for Earth Intruders (I actually originally thought it was an official leak by her label), it lets people sample the tune before downloading it from iTunes (why would someone want to pay for a song they haven't heard, it's not like Bjork gets radio-play in North America, by no fault of her own, but the corporate big wigs that have absolutely no taste).

So there's my rant. I wonder if Bjork even knows that her "people" are harassing fans about this. I wonder if she even cares that people have heard the track in this manner. She seems to be the type of person that values art over commerce, and I really can't see her caring that people are watching a video to hear her new song. It's just plain silly.

-Daniel Josef.

TONIGHT MAKE ME UNSTOPPABLE

Bloc Party w Sebastian Grainger/Albert Hammond Jr.
March 25, 2007
(not so)Kool Haus

This show marks the third time I've seen Bloc Party, but first for A Weekend In The City, which has turned out to be my favourite album by these kids, as much as I love Silent Alarm, I find AWITC much more cohesive and mature than its predessor. Arrived at the venue at 9pm, midway through Sebastian's (aka the other half of DFA1979) set. It was...noisy. But good. I need to hear more of his solo stuff before I can form an opinion. Albert Hammond Jr.'s (aka the big-haired Stroke) set was surprisingly good, the tunes were poppy, summery and fun. His voice does come off a bit Julian-esque, but I really enjoyed his set. That being said, I wouldn't pay to see him headline a show.

BP went on at 10:50pm, late for a Sunday night show, but no one in attendance seemed to care. The room went bonkers from the opening note, as said before, Kele is probably my favourite frontman, he's incredibly captivating and charming. And the rythmn section is pretty rad too. Only complaint is that the mix was a little muddy for the first half of their set, it was really bass heavy, but it may have something to do with where I was standing the the cavernous venue. A plea to promoters in the city, stop using this venue for rock shows, it sounds like utter shit, and security are a bunch of twats. Setlist was a perfect blend of new and old, although Blue Light was sadly missed from the set. Oh, and Mr. Kevin Drew (aka who I have seen at the last 400 shows I've been to) came out during So Here We Are and sang back up. It was great.

Set List:

Song For Clay
Positive Tension
Hunting For Witches
Waiting For The 7:18
Banquet
Sunday
This Modern Love
Little Thoughts
The Prayer
Uniform
So Here We Are
Like Eating Glass

Encore:
I Still Remember
SRXT
She's Hearing Voices
Helicopter

Overall, a good show, not as good as the Opera House gig a couple years back OR their set on the island last year, but still good.

Check out explosive laughter's Flikr photo set from the show here.
Read Chart Magazine's review here.
Read Janice's review here.
Mike at fortherecords has a bunch of video links to their performances at MTV in Toronto here.
Read Now's review here.