Blacking Out The Friction

2009-01-29T09:17:00.002-06:00

MOVING!MOVING!MOVING!MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!MOVING! MOVING!

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2009-01-23T06:44:00.003-06:00

CONCERT ANNOUNCMENTS:

This weekend at 6 Nassau there is a benefit show for the studio opening in this space. The benefit is being headlined by Toronto's $100 (my new obsession, how did they fly under my radar for soooo long!) and will also feature Jennifer Castle, The Pauls and Tamsen & Elliott (of Brides. Tickets are $7 at the door, more info here.

Peter Bjorn & John play the Phoenix on April 24th in support of their not-yet-released album Living Thing. No ticket details as of yet.

Newly signed to Arts & Crafts Bell Orchestre are at the Courthouse on Aprl 24th. Tickets on sale here.

New York's High Places play the Horseshoe on February 9th. Tickets on sale here.

Bloc Party have added a second show at Kool Haus on March 13th. Tickets, $36.50 also include CMW wristband and are on sale here or at Rotate This.

If you do check out Bloc Party and have a CMW wristband, you may want to check out Chart Magazine's stellar CMW line-up at the Horseshoe. If I do end up with a bracelet, this is where I'll be all weekend:

Thurs. March 12
8:30 p.m. Lovely Feathers
9:20 p.m. $100
10:10 p.m Women
11:10 p.m. Gentleman Reg
12:10 a.m. Chad VanGaalen
1:10 a.m. Quest For Fire
2:10 a.m. Delinquints

Fri. March 13
8:30 p.m. Dinosaur Bones
9:20 p.m. Daniel Wesley
10:10 p.m. The Bicycles
11:10 p.m. Human Highway
12:10 a.m. Handsome Furs
1:10 a.m. Hot Panda
2:10 a.m. The Schomberg Fair

Sat. March 14
8:30 p.m. The Hundreds And Thousands
9:20 p.m. Rebekah Higgs
10:10 p.m. Young Galaxy
11:10 p.m. Two Hours Traffic
12:10 a.m. The Golden Dogs
1:10 a.m. Hexes & Ohs
2:10 a.m. Vancougar

Born Ruffians headline a show at Sneaky Dee's on March 24th with Akron/Family supporting. Tickets available now at Rotate This.

Sebastien Tellier brings his Sexuality tour back to Toronto on April 8th at the Mod Club. Tickets here.

Animal Collective have announced a show in Toronto on May 16, 2008 at Sound Academy. Tickets on sale this morning at 10am here.

2009-01-22T22:08:00.000-06:00

THE SOUND OF ARROWS

MAGIC

The Sound of Arrows - M.A.G.I.C. (Mini-video) from The Sound of Arrows on Vimeo.

2009-01-02T07:24:00.007-06:00

CONCERT UPDATE

Just a reminder that Hexes & Ohs have a show in Toronto this weekend, Saturday January 3rd at the Silver Dollar. Tickets are available at Rotate This and Soundscapes for $7. Set times are as follows:

10pm: Our History of Cowboys

10:45pm: Still Life Still

11:40pm: Hexes & Ohs

12:30am: Hut

Wavelength 450's 9th anniversary festival has been fully confirmed. Shows are happening at Sneaky Dee's, Wrong Bar, Music Gallery, Cameron House and the Polish Combatants Hall.

Thursday February 12th: Timber Timbre CD release show featuring Ghost Bees and Dorit Chrysler - The Music Gallery at St. George the Martyr Church - Doors 7pm

After party at the Cameron House featuring sets by The Diableros and Loitering Heroes. Doors at 11pm

Friday February 13th: Slim Twig with Bonjay, Child Bite, The Magic and DJ Benjamin Boles - Wrong Bar - Doors at 9pm

Saturday February 14th: $100 with Brides, Hooded Fang, The Luyas, Element Choir and Djs Greg Ipp & Ian Worang - The Polish Combatants Hall - Doors at 8pm

Sunday February 15th: Foxfire with I Am Robot and Proud, Thank You, Mi Ami and Dj Babylon Telecom - Sneaky Dee's - Doors at 9pm

All shows are $10 or PWYC at the door ONLY.

Friday April 3rd - Andrew Bird - Queen Elizabeth Theatre - Tickets on sale now

2009-01-01T09:17:00.001-06:00

TOP TEN SONGS OF 2008

10.Passion Pit - Sleepyhead

9. Santogold - Creator

8. Vampire Weekend - Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

7. M83 - Couleurs

6. Crystal Castles - Courtship Dating

5. Lil' Wayne - A Milli

4. Hercules & Love Affair - Blind

3. Bon Iver - Skinny Love

2. Cut Copy - Out There On The Ice

1. MGMT - Kids

2008-12-31T09:15:00.003-06:00

BEST CONCERTS OF 2008

This year was a relatively slow year concert-wise for me. Tons of bands came through the city, and somehow I managed to miss a bunch of amazing shows. I missed Hercules & Love Affair at Opera House, Bon Iver at the El Mocambo and My Bloody Valentine at Kool Haus. Regardless, I still caught some good ones. Here is the list of my favourite shows.

5. Girl Talk - Kool Haus

"Another review that slipped through the cracks. This show was a last minute deal, a friend had an extra ticket so I decided to go. Greg Gillis knows how to throw a house party, even if said party is taking place in a 3000+ capacity venue. Feed The Animals is a mash-up masterpiece, and live it's even better. Everything about this night was perfect, the tunes, venue and the crowd."

4. M83/School of Seven Bells - Opera House - Review Here

"One thing that must be noted is the use of pre-recorded vocals in a couple songs. Some think this is uber cheesy, me I think its endearing, he can get away with it because he's french and maybe he doesn't know better. Highlights of the show: Teen Angst, Asterick, Moonchild, Graveyard Girl and set closer Couleurs. To be completely honest, the sole reason of seeing them a second time on this tour was to witness the brilliance of Couleurs live3.

3. Radiohead/Grizzly Bear - Molson Ampitheatre - Review Here

"I have to admit, I'm not the hugest fan of their last two albums (Hail To The Thief and In Rainbows), I like about 3 or 4 tracks off each album. I miss their more electronic stuff (circa Kid A). They opened with 15 Step, one of the songs off IR that I love. Thom did his little jig, it was endearing. Their setlist heavily pulled from the last two albums but they sprinkled in a couple old tracks into the mix such as Climbing Up The Walls, Paranoid Android, Planet Telex (shocking!) and my favourite Talk Show Host."

2. Crystal Castles/Thunderheist - Harbourfront Centre - Chromewaves Review

"Didn't review this show at the time, but in retrospect, I should have. Thunderheist were far better live than I anticipated, I've had their promo EP on my iPod for over a year, love it, but never chose to see them live. Isis is an amazing MC, she totally engaged the crowd (who seemed unfamiliar with the band) and brought an amazing energy to the stage. And she rapped over Lil' Wayne's A Milli, one of my favourite songs of 2008. Crystal Castles created a Jonas Brothers-style mob scene. I was about three rows from the stage and by the time Alice and Ethan began their set, every inch of standing room around the stage was full, there were people standing on the seats, on the floor in between the seats and in the aisles. Being so close it was hard not to get wrapped up in their set, Alice is an insane front woman, she danced and threw herself around the stage like a maniac. Ethan's beats sounded as good as they do on the album, and the addition of a live drummer was a great touch. It felt like seeing something really special and being part of something. They played all the hits including Alice Practice, Courtship Dating and Crimewave. That being said, talking to friends that showed up late (and that were positioned at the back of the ampitheatre) they really didn't like the show. Apparently from the back Alice's vocals were inaudible and the music was all distorted. Thunderheist play a free show at Nathan Phillips Square on Saturday January 31st. Their debut Diplo-produced album is still TBO. Crystal Castles are playing two shows in Brooklyn tonight then off to Australia for a string of dates."

1. Cut Copy/The Presets - Sound Academy - Review here

"Overall I have to say that I'm thrilled that live dance music has progressed to the point where the artists actually "play" live and aren't just stuck behind a bank of electronics. Cut Copy are one of the best live dance bands I've seen in a long time, their set is a perfect balance of guitar friendly dance and full on Daft-Punk style electronic."

2008-12-28T08:02:00.003-06:00

SOMEONE GREAT

Spin Online features Montreal's Winter Gloves and also has their cover of LCD Soundsystem's Someone Great for download. Winter Gloves are playing Singing Lamb's launch party at the Tranzac on January 10th in Toronto. Hexes & Ohs are also on the bill and the show to be an early afternoon show.

I also missed Spin's cover story featuring M.I.A. Read the article here.

Dan Whitford of Cut Copy talks to Exclaim. They also talk to Alex Angelakos of Passion Pit.

Toronto's $100 are playing Wavelength's 200th anniversary show on February 14th at Sneaky Dee's.

Now Magazine lists their favourite Toronto shows of 2008. My list should be up in the next day or so.

Not related to music, The Globe and Mail's Jessica Leeder examines the current economic crisis and how we got to where we are in 2008. Read it here.

The New Yorker profiles Naomi Klien, author of No Logo and The Shock Doctrine.

2008-12-27T17:34:00.001-06:00

BEST ALBUMS OF 2008

2008 has been an interesting and amazing year in music. Below are my favourite albums of the year. And when I say that they are my favourite, they really are. I hate the idea that there is this underlying idea of "hipster cool" in the blogsphere and that a lot of the albums that have received a lot of press only have because they are the cool bands to like. I really believe in the artists/bands below, they released fantastic albums this year. It's just as pretentious to dismiss these bands/artists because of the hype and ignore the fact that they have released great albums.

25. Santogold - S/T and Santogold & Diplo - Top Ranking - Santogold was really hyped in early 2008. She was called "the new M.I.A." more times than I can remember, but the comparison in my opinion is quite lazy. Unlike M.I.A., Santogold makes accessible pop music, music that could be really accessible pop a la Gwen Stefani but due to poor marketing, isn't. Santo's debut self-titled disc is a really consistent, varied record that covers multiple genres. Shove It has a pop-ska meets hip hop feel, Creator has M.I.A's refugee dancehall sound, I'm A Lady could be No Doubt/Gwen alternative rock. And though many styles bleeding into each other, all the tracks fit. Top Ranking, the mixtape created by Santo and Diplo is very similar to what Diplo did with M.I.A.'s Piracy Funds Terrorism Volume 1 mixtape. Instead of the mixtape being rooted in Brazilian favela dance music, Santo and Diplo splice amazing remixes of Santo's tunes with roots, dub and hip hop, a perfect contrast to her tunes. Check the mash up remix of Lights Out (Diplo's Panda Bear Mix) on Top Ranking probably one of my favourite tracks on both albums. Also check the bonus track on Santo's debut, it's a remix of You'll Find A Way by Switch (M.I.A's main producer on Kala).

24. Sigur Ros - Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust - I had grown a bit tired of Sigur Ros. I had reached my threshold of their grandiose, epic post rock songs due to the fact that their entire creative output sounded relatively the same to me. Then this album literally came out of nowhere and renewed my love and faith in this band. Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust sounds like Sigur Ros having fun, gone is the doom and gloom, post-apocolyptic feeling to their music and in comes an Animal Collective-inspired hodge podge of uplifting, light and fun music. They still do their pretty ballad-like stuff too, and it's as gorgeous as ever. Favourite songs: lead single gobbledigook (which has an amazing video which I believe was directed by Ryan McGinley), við spilum endalaust and inní mér syngur vitleysingur .

23. Sam Sparro - S/T - Sam Sparro's debut, like Santogold's could have been massive in North American with the right marketing department behind him. Sparro looks (fashion-wise) and sounds like a smarter, more creative Lady Gaga (I know most would be surprised that I'm referencing her, but in terms of image/style, she really seems to know what she's doing, even though she's appropriating the modern day hipster club kid image and selling it to middle America). Sparro is a great songwriter and choose all the right producers to put his vision on disc. Check these tracks: Black and Gold, 21st Century Life and Sick. Black and Gold has been nominated in the category of Best Dance Song at the Grammys.

22. Little Wayne - The Carter III - Originally to be released in 2007, The Carter III was delayed multiple times due to many tracks being leaked onto the web prior to its release in the form of multiple mix tapes such as The Carter 3 Mixtape and Tha Drought Is Over Pt. 2. When it was finally released, The Carter III became one of 2008's biggest albums, selling over 1 millions copies in its first week, the first album to do so since 50 Cent's The Massacre (in 2005). I honestly don't know how one person can have such a huge creative output and still be able to release an album as solid and consistent as this. There are way too many great songs on this album to discuss. First single Lollipop, Wayne's auto-tuned ode to fellatio had people singling about dirtiness without even knowing it. A Milli was covered, rapped over and remixed billions of times, and for good reason, its freakin' genius. Other stand out tracks: Got Money (feat. T-Pain), Let The Beat Build, Comfortable (feat. Babyface), Playing with Fire (feat. Betty Wright), 3 Peat and Tie My Hands (feat. Robin Thicke). Lil' Wayne plays the ACC with T-Pain. Gym Class Heroes and others on January 15th. Tickets available here.

21. TV On The Radio - Dear Science - TVOR's most accomplished and commercial-sounding record to date. Dear Science reins in their experimentation to a level more viable for pop structure and in doing so, reveals the brilliance of their songwriting. Halfway Home contains some of the most epic sounding soaring guitars I have heard since the British shoegaze movement. Vocals on Crying are reminiscent of heartbreaking Motown downers (the horns help!) modernized for 2008. I love this band.
20. Hot Chip - Ready For The Floor - Another great album by Hot Chip. It seems like this came out so long ago, early 2008 seems ions ago. I like this album mainly because you can dance to it (Ready For The Floor, Hold On, Bendable Posable, Touch Too Much) but it also has some great slower, R&B-like jams to sing along to (Wrestlers, We're Looking for A Lot Of Love). Live, they are super good. Checked them out at the Phoenix back in the Spring and really enjoyed their show. Total house party feel. Tons of dancing and singing along.

19. The Middle East - The Recordings of the Middle East - Take the best parts of many of my favourite artists and you get this band. Sounding similar to Sigur Ros, Red House Painters, Arcade Fire and Low, their music is fragile and warm, something to curl up in on cold winter nights. The Middle East are from Townsville, Queensland, Australia and currently unsigned. I stumbled across them on a blog from South America. So their music is out there, it's just going to take someone listening to this beautiful album to get them noticed on a global scale.

18. The Presets - Apocalypso - Another great outing for Australia's The Presets. Follows the same format as their debut Beams, Daft Punk inspired electro with a bit of Pet Shop Boys added into the mix. Big sounding, chalk full of sing-a-long choruses, enough bass to keep your booty shaking. Favourite tracks: This Boys In Love, My People, If I Know You and Talk Like That. These guys seem to be finally gaining a larger audience here in Toronto, when they opened for Cut Copy back in September at Sound Academy, the bulk of the audience were seen singing along to their tunes. They are back in Toronto to headline their own show on April 6th at Mod Club.

17. The Teenagers - Reality Check - Here's another great album that flew under the radar this year. I realize that the type of music The Teenagers make (synth-heavy, tongue-in-cheek new wave inspired pop) is a bit passe with the tastemakers, but they do it so well it's impossible for me to ignore. Vocals are sung/spoken in a broken Parisian accent, and the music is super fun and danceable. The band are a pastiche of every hipster cliche, but again, like with M83, i find it irresistible. Favourite tracks: Feeling Better, Streets of Paris, French Kiss and Wheel of Fortune.

16. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular - Another album that has been kicking around in my collection since its late 2007 release date, but that I didn't fully discover until 2008. I still have a hard time believing how popular MGMT got this year and it boggles my mind the "alternative" radio stations (Edge 102.1) have picked up on them. Their the new generation of music listener's Flaming Lips. It's not totally undeserved. Oracular Spectacular contains a large number of great songs including lead single and Billboard hit Time To Pretend, as well as The Youth, Electric Feel and my favourite Kids. The songwriting is fun and clever but not at all consistent as of yet. Let's see what they'll do with their momentum.

15. Hexes & Ohs - Bedroom Madness - I'm a total sucker for boy/girl vocals. Montreal's Hexes & Ohs debut Bedroom Madness seems to have been largely overlooked by Canadian blogs and the music press in general which is a total surprise to me. In the same vein as Postal Service and Hot Chip, the album features great track after track of bedroom dancing fun. Check lead single H-H-High School with its sing-along vocals, group chants and drum machine beats is the perfect tune to get the indie dance party started. Other stand out tracks: Little Bird, Wildlife and Seems So Elementary. Hexes & Ohs have two upcoming Toronto shows, January 3rd at the Silver Dollar and January 10th at The Tranzac.

14. The Dodos - Visiter - It's a travesty that Pitchfork left this album off their Top 50 albums of the year. It's far better than many of the albums that made the cut (Beach House and Crystal Slits I'm looking at you). Visiter is the perfect companion to many of the albums I loved this year. It fits perfectly next to Fleet Foxes, Vampire Weekend, Bon Iver and The Tallest Man on Earth, yet stands on its own two feet as a really consistent, solid album. The Dodos influences are similar to many of the bands mentioned above but I also love that their acoustic guitar driven folk-pop pulls soooo heavily from experimental indie rock such as Animal Collective. The song structures of many songs on Visiter are a bit off and awkward, they are a little more free form and abstract which I love. Highlights for me are Fools, Red and Purple and Walking.

13. Fleet Foxes - S/T - Self described as "baroque harmonic pop jams", these was the year of Fleet Foxes. Just named album of the year by Pitchfork, their self-titled disc is stunning. It sounds like the California sun at dusk and contains beautifully arranged vocal harmonies and 70s-esque guitars. They have often been compared to a modern day Beach Boys but I also hear a bit of Animal Collective in their music. I love pretty much every song on the album but I think my favourites would have to be White Winter Hymnal, Quiet Houses and Ragged Wood. I'm anxiously awaiting seeing Fleet Foxes live.

12. Air France - No Way Down - Another freakin' amazing release from the label Sincerely Yours, owned and operated by Sweden's Tough Alliance. Air France hail from Gothenburg, Sweden and their music has been described as beach foam pop, a term that I feel is 100% accurate. Air France's music sounds like music that you'd hear in a dream, a dream about frolicking on the shore of some secluded beach on a tiny island in the Pacific, drinking coconut milk and soaking up the sun. Pitchfork said that these guys reminded them of The Avalanches and I feel that this comparison is accurate, but I much prefer Air France. Collapsing at your Doorstep has to be one of the greatest songs of the last couple years. I can't wait to hear more from this band.

11. Lightspeed Champion - Falling Off The Lavender Bridge - What honestly attracted me to this album was the album cover. It looks old, but then you see Dev Hynes, in wig and Ronald McDonald-like clothing and you have to chuckle. But Falling Off The Lavender Bridge is nothing to laugh at. Reminiscent of Bright Eyes when they were great, Lightspeed Champion's debut is chalk full of swelling chamber pop tunes about all the emo cliches: romance, break-ups, and insecurity. The lyrical content is sometimes questionable (throwing up on others) but paired with Dev's songwriting it totally works. Stand out tracks: Midnight Surprise, Galaxy of the Lost, Tell Me What It's Worth and Devil Tricks for a Bitch.

10. Bloc Party - Intimacy - I find it really strange that this album got such mixed reviews from the mainstream press. Granted, I would probably call myself a massive Bloc Party fan, I really do feel that Intimacy is a great album. It's not immediate, I didn't love it at first. But over time, I grew to love it as much as their last effort (2007's A Weekend In The City). There are brilliant moments on the album, from the gorgeous Signs to heartbreaking Biko to the ferociousness of Trojan Horse, which could stand on its own two feet next to anything on Silent Alarm. The songwriting is as good as ever, the production can at times feel a little muddy due to the fact that it seems that they were trying to do everything and were not being critical enough to leave stuff out. And there are missteps. Mercury is not the greatest, and their choice for lead single is perplexing. Talons would have made much more sense. Bloc Party are back in Toronto March 14th at Kool Haus. Why the show is so expensive I don't understand and how the hell is Ticketmaster is getting away with over $18 is service charges. It's pretty retarded.

9. Passion Pit - Chunk Of Change - Cambridge, Massachusetts' Passion Pit is the brainchild of lead singer Michael Angelakos. Angelakos wrote and recorded Chunk of Change as a belated Valentine's Day gift for his girlfriend, who loved it and convinced him to release to to family and friends around Emerson College. He put together a band to perform live and Passion Pit was born. Things have happened pretty fast for these guys, they have recently signed to Columbia in the UK for a retarded amount of money. BBC named them one of 15 rising stars of 2009. In terms of their music, think a menage a trois between Postal Service, MGMT and Hot Chip. Upbeat, dancey and fun. They play the Horseshoe on January 24th.

8. Girl Talk - Feed The Animals - Top five reasons why Girl Talk is the mash up king of kings: 01. Jay-z's Roc Boys (And The Winner Is) vs. Radiohead's Paranoid Android 02. Yo Majesty's Club Action vs. Stardust's Music Sounds Better With You 03. M.I.A.'s Boyz vs. The Cranberries Dreams 04. Blackstreet feat. Dr. Dre's No Diggity vs. Kanye West feat. Dwele's Flashing Lights 05. Metalicca's One vs. Lil' Mama's Lip Gloss.

7. M83 - Saturdays = Youth - It's hard to believe that this is M83's 5th studio release. Anthony Gonzalez leans towards the early 90s dance scene with this album, but still manages incorporate elements of shoegaze in a way that still sounds fresh. There are things that I have to ignore here, overabundance of talking girl vocals (as in Graveyard Girl), the 80's female over-singing.....but I can ignore it due to the adorable "French-ness" of the album and the idea that maybe he doesn't see these a cheesy. Saturdays = Youth made me excited about this band again, I grew tired of hearing the same sound with each album, but here, Gonzalez found the perfect balance of dance and guitar music. Couleurs is nothing less than incredible. Same goes for Kim & Jessie and Skin of the Night. I love M83 again.

6. The Tallest Man On Earth - Shallow Grave - Another amazing voice. The Tallest Man on Earth is Kristian Matsson who hails from Dalarna, Sweden and comes as a fully formed Dylanesque singer/songwriter. He sounds like he's swallowed a hive full of bees and looks like he's sold all his worldly possessions for an acoustic guitar. I don't understand how someone like this can exist, a fully formed icon peddling a classic blues/folk album of songs that sound like they have been sung for centuries. Shallow Grave sounds like it could have been released 40 years ago but still manages to sound new and relevant. Stand out tracks: Where Do My Bluebirds Fly, Pistol Dreams, Into The Stream and Honey Won't You Let Me In.

5. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago - This is another album that has been floating around since 2007 but didn't gain steam until this year. How anyone can question the genius of Justin Vernon i don't know. This man has one of the strongest voices I have heard in a long time, it's a voice that is arresting and haunting, fragile yet incredibly strong. But it's not all about the voice, Justin's songwriting is brilliant. Striped down and simple, its the perfect compliment to his heartbreaking lyrics (and that voice!!!) Evidence of his genius, watch this video of Bon Iver on Jools Holland performing Skinny Love. I still get shivers. The band are just releasing a new EP titled Blood Bank, and will be touring Australia in the new year. Let's hope their road continues to Toronto again in the new future.
4. Vampire Weekend - S/T - Here's an example of a band that got steamrolled by pre-album hype. I first heard Vampire Weekend about a year ago when their demo leaked on the internet. From the get go, their clever mix of African rhythms, reinterpretation of Paul Simon's Graceland and love of all things Ivy League became an instant underground hit. By the time they released their debut on XL the backlash had already begun. This album is close to perfect in my opinion, each song could be a single and the band have created something that sounds familiar yet does not reference anything current in music. Songs such as Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa and Oxford Comma were perfect pop songs for summer 2008, light, fun and easy to singalong to. They gained a large audience quickly, played SNL and toured a good part of the world. Touring brought them to Toronto in late July on a soggy, rainy day to play Roger's Picnic. Their music would have been perfect for a sunny, summer day festival, but they were still able to engage the audience and play a great set. I'm really excited to see what they do next, their new song White Sky which has been played live is the bastard child of VW and Animal Collective. Really looking forward to new material from these guys.

3. Hercules & Love Affair - S/T - This album was bound to be a favourite of mine right from first listen. It's the involvment of Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons that sold me. His vocals on lead single Blind fit so perfectly with Hercules & Love Affair's music. The album was billed at DFA's first new disco release, and as much as old disco isn't really my bag, I really grew to love it. Although the album is electronic-based, it feels very organic and warm, and this is due to the use of real instruments (acoustic guitar appears in track Time Will). It's also really refreshing to hear non-distorted bass and dirty sounding beats (as heard on pretty much every electronic record this year). The album just sounds really clean and classic. Stand out tracks include Hercules Theme, You Belong, Raise Me Up and Blind. One of my biggest concert regrets this year is missing their debut Toronto show at Opera House. Hoping they'll be back in the near future.

2. Crystal Castles - S/T - I don't understand why Toronto hates Crystal Castles. Yes, singer Alice Glass and beat maker Ethan Kath come off as total douchebags in interviews (when they bother showing up). But their debut is so good that I can look past their somewhat childish behaviour. All the good tunes from their EPs are here, recorded (or maybe not, maybe its just nice to hear them in a decent MP3 bitrate quality) as well as a ton of new tracks that are even better than their earlier work (Vanished, Untrust Us, Magic Spells and Knights). Kath has a knack for creating such irresistable songs that pull influences from varied electronic sub-genres. Untrust Us reminds me of 90s freestyle (in a good way!), Alice Practice is reminiscent of the early 2000 electroclash and Good Time is the kid sister of The Knife. CC's live show is a different story, more a spectacle similar to a natural disaster than a concert. Maybe they are going for the "I don't give a shit" punk rock show feel, but the live show needs work. Alice's mic needs to be turned up and she needs to concentrate more on singing than throwing herself around the stage. When you have similar sounding artists like The Presets or Cut Copy touring and putting on amazing live shows, you'd think CC would put a bit more effort into their show. For now, definetely a band to appreciate recorded.

1. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours - This band came out of nowhere for me, I had heard their name prior to the release of this album, but didn't pay much attention. For some reason I always thought they were some terrible math rock band. Then I heard Feel The Love, lead track from the disc and I was instantly hooked. In my mind, In Ghost Colours encompasses everything about 2008, the 80's references showed up everywhere, in music (like here with their nods to New Order), fashion and film. Dan Whitford and the band were able to capture the best elements (lyrics, use of swelling synths) of the New Romantic movement and merry it with Daft Punk inspired electronic music. Songs on the album dabble in many different genres, Feel The Love is the perfect poppy summer song, Far Away and So Haunted are classic new wave, big beat floor fillers and Unforgettable Season is classic white noise shoegaze. Live, their show cannot be matched for its sheer energy and sexiness. The band will be back in Toronto in March at Circa.

2008-12-21T08:14:00.001-06:00

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

Introducing HEARTSREVOLUTION

I first heard HEARTSREVOLUTION's debut EP Switchblade back in the late summer but somehow it got lost on my iPod and I rediscovered it a few weeks ago. Their story is this: boyfriend/girlfriend buy a used UPS cube truck, convert it into a mobile store to sell ice cream and toys out of and start a band. You cannot talk about these guys without referencing Crystal Castles, both band share a love of scrappy/screaming female vocals and beats/electronics that sound like your Atari throwing up (but in a good way). The two bands have even appeared on a split 6" together (CYOA/XxxxcZx ME) on glow in the band vinyl. Unlike CC, they also bring a profound love of indie rock to the table. Vocalist Lo can sound sweet like sugar Amy Milan of Stars at times, and lyrically, they remind me of CSS.

They have just released a video for their latest single C.Y.O.A. (Choose Your Own Adventure), it's pretty great. Sundrak has a few remixes available here, I epecially love the LA Riots remix of Switchblade.

2008-12-14T12:29:00.000-06:00

BON IVER

Skinny Love

Live On Letterman

December 11, 2008

2008-12-13T11:28:00.003-06:00

BOO!!!!

2008-12-12T21:13:00.002-06:00

BLOC PARTY

One Month Off

Bloc Party are currently touring the west coast of the US. Let's hope they bring the Intimacy tour back to Toronto in the new year.

2008-12-09T18:53:00.003-06:00

BON IVER

Daytrotter Session

Download Bon Iver's live session for Daytrotter here for free. I think he's probably better live than recorded, this set of songs is heartbreakingly beautiful. I need to see him live. He currently has some US dates scheduled with Tallest Man On Earth, and then will head to Australia in the new year for a string of shows.

2008-12-08T20:02:00.001-06:00

LADY SOVEREIGN

I Got You Dancing

Download Sov's new single here.

It's pretty wicked.

2008-12-06T17:59:00.002-06:00

PASSION PIT

Sleepyhead

Passion Pit play The Horseshoe on Saturday January 24, 2009. Tickets, $10 on sale here. Paper Route and Cale Parks support.

2008-12-05T05:51:00.003-06:00

CONCERT ANNOUNCEMENTS

On sale today (December 5th) at 4pm, Lil' Wayne featuring T-Pain, Gym Class Heroes and Keyshia Cole at the Air Canada Centre on January 15, 2009. Let's see if Weezy can actually get across the border this time. Tickets here. On a side note, he's just been nominated for 8 Grammys for Tha Carter III.

The Presets return to Toronto to headline a show at The Mod Club on April 6, 2009. Tickets, $18, available right now.

NYC's The Virgins are headlining their first Toronto show at the El Mocambo. Tickets, $12.50 on sale this morning (December 5th) at 10am here.

2008-12-01T20:13:00.007-06:00

CONCERT ANNOUNCEMENT

Antony and the Johnsons have confirmed a show at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto on Tuesday February 17, 2009. Tickets, $35.00 (ouch!) are on sale Thursday December 4, 2008 here. I saw Antony last time he was in Toronto at St. Paul Trinity, the show was incredible, this one is not to be missed. Read my review of the show here.

Antony and The Johnsons

Another World

via stillepost

2008-11-30T11:57:00.002-06:00

THE BRIGHTON PORT AUTHORITY

Seattle Featuring Emmy The Great

2008-11-30T11:53:00.003-06:00

CUT COPY

Sands Of Time

New(ish) Cut Copy track which appears as a b-side on their single for Far Away. Listen to it HERE. Awesomeness.

2008-11-28T18:48:00.005-06:00

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

See This Movie

Not only is this film stunningly beautiful but it features a new track by M.I.A.

The film centers around two brothers, one bad, one good. The good one gains a spot as a contestant on India's version of How Wants To Be A Millionaire, in which he wins the grand prize and is then accused of cheating. Through defending himself and revealing how he new the answers to each question, a heart-breaking tale of the triumph of the human spirit, love and loss unfolds. Directed by Danny Boyle, this film captures a side of Mumbai that the majority of people in the west didn't know existed. Very reminiscent of the slums seen in City Of God.

I suggest seeing this in theatre as I don't think the small screen will do the film justice. Boyle adopts Bollywood for the North American masses and does so with his use of vibrant colour, Bollywood-esque storyline and even inserts a great dance scene into the closing credits. Highly recommended.

2008-11-27T19:05:00.001-06:00

TV On The Radio

Dancing Choose

TV On The Radio are about to embark on an Australian tour. Let's hope a North American tour in the works.

2008-11-27T18:22:00.006-06:00

M83/School of Seven Bells

The Opera House

November 20, 2008

Why is it that every time I go to the Opera House for a concert, I'm sick? It's becoming a bit of a hex. Arrived at the venue at 9pm just in time to catch School Of Seven Bells. There has been quite a lot of press about them as of late, their debut album Alpinisms was recently released and it's alright. I don't love it, I find it a bit repetitive in a sense that many of the tracks sound very similar. Plus, not really loving the vocals. But I can't discount how great the song Half Asleep is. Their live show was similar in my opinion to their album, each song bled into the other and kinda felt like one long song. Maybe it was because I was sick and my attention span was affected by the cold meds. Maybe I just hated the lead singer's bangs. Not sure which one.

I saw M83 last time they came through the city at Mod Club. I was lazy and didn't write up a review. But it would have been similar to this one, both shows (well the first one really) were much better than I anticipated. I have been a passive fan of the band since their (or his...) debut was released but became obsessed after hearing Saturdays = Youth. Not only did I fall in love with the disgustingly fashionable cover of the record, but lead single Couleurs became one of may unofficial theme songs of the summer. It's the perfect blend of soaring guitars and early 90s dance. Anthony Gonzalez and his touring band played a great mix of material pulled from the new album as well as the fantastic Before The Dawn Heals Us.

One thing that must be noted is the use of pre-recorded vocals in a couple songs. Some think this is uber cheesy, me I think its endearing, he can get away with it because he's french and maybe he doesn't know better. Highlights of the show: Teen Angst, Asterick, Moonchild, Graveyard Girl and set closer Couleurs. To be completely honest, the sole reason of seeing them a second time on this tour was to witness the brilliance of Couleurs live. Watch the live clip from their show in May in San Fran below. It's pretty great and has a New Order feel to it. Overall, a great show, even if I was in a bit of a sinus infection haze.

Photo via Flickr by Pixagen.

2008-11-06T18:18:00.007-06:00

IT'S THE DARKEST SIDE OF MY HEART THAT DIES

Introducing The Middle East

I stumbled onto The Middle East about a month ago. Their album The Recordings Of The Middle East got lost in the shuffle and I only really started listening to it about a week ago. I'm deeply obsessed. You know how you need to discover some bands at a specific time of the year, this album is perfect for the fall, for mornings where the sun is fighting through the clouds, for late afternoons when the sun falls faster and earlier than before....you need this album for these times.

There is little to no information about this band on the internet. I know that they are from Townsville , Queensland, Australia. The band is comprised of two brothers, Joe and Jord Ireland, Bree Tranter, Javed Steritt, Rohin Jones, Mark Myers and Tim Barwise. The play shows in and around AUD, and may or may not have broken up and reformed recently.

The Middle East have been described as a post rock band by a couple blogs, but I find them to be much more epic than that. I hear so many different influences in their music, Pig Food is reminescent of a more ambient Sigur Ros, but I also hear traces of Galaxie 500, Low, The Arcade Fire and Red House Painters. Their music teeters in being frail and desolate to epic and grandiose.

Check their myspace (link above) to sample their tunes. Below you'll find a tour diary that the band made. The live footage looks incredible.

The Middle East tour part1

2008-11-03T17:02:00.003-06:00

WHAT I'VE BEEN LISTENING TO THIS MONTH 1.0

Starting a new reoccurring post that I'd like to post every couple of weeks. Here is what I've been listening to obsessively for the last month or so:

Empire of the Sun - Walking On A Dream

Empire of the Sun is a side-project to the Australian band The Sleepy Jackson and features band member Luke Steele as well as Nick Littlemore of the band Pnau. They are a bit synth-poppy mixed with 80s dance-pop. Lead single Walking On A Dream is a gorgeous piece of bedroom dancing fun. Apparently the band is quite popular in Australia, the album debuted on the Aussie charts at number 8.

For fans of: Cut Copy, Scissor Sisters, Sam Sparro

Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains - S/T

Two years (or was it 3) since the demise of DFA1979, Sebastien Grainger has finally put out his debut album with The Mountains (via Saddle Creek). It was well worth the wait, the album is the marriage of 70s classic rock and modern garage. Good stuff. Stand out tracks: I Hate My Friends, Love Is Not A Contest

For Fans of: Black Mountain, early Bloc Party minus the dance undertones.

Hexes & Ohs - Bedroom Madness

I instantly fell in love with this album. Hexes & Ohs debut Bedroom Madness marries all my favourite artists together into a pop smorgasbord that makes me want to dance around my apartment in my underwear. So upbeat and fun. The album has a tongue in cheek 80s feel but brings in many elements of standard indie rock.

For Fans of: Postal Service, Mates of State

Vivian Girls - S/T

Everyone's favourite new girl group. Their getting a ton of ink right now, showed up on Pitchfork's Best New Music, played at least 5 CMJ showcases last month and just made their Toronto debut last week with Fucked Up and Final Fantasy (Update: Thanks to Chuck for pointing out that VG's set opening for Fucked Up wasn't their Toronto debut and that they have played Toronto a couple times this year). Vivian Girl's album reminds me of Eric'c Trip, if Rick wasn't in the band and Julie brought in a couple of her girlfriends. Raw, loud and melodic, tons of fuzzy distortion and perfect 60s girl group harmonizing. Love them so much. Favourite tracks: All The Time, I Believe In Nothing, Tell The World.

2008-10-29T20:20:00.000-05:00

BLOC PARTY

THIS MODERN LOVE

Bloc Party, 'This Modern Love' - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

2008-10-27T07:49:00.002-05:00

FRITZ HELDER AND THE PHANTOMS
LAGERFELD LADY

Check their new video here. The band are throwing a video release party tonight, October 27th at Strangelove on College Street.

2008-10-16T18:18:00.002-05:00

ROBYN
CORBRASTYLE

Check out Robyn's new video for Cobrastyle. It's pretty wicked.

2008-09-21T10:25:00.007-05:00

CUT COPY/THE PRESETS/KORDAN

SEPTEMBER 19, 2008
SOUND ACADEMY

I have to admit, I've been super tardy with my posts. But better late than never, and I'm going to push myself to update much more frequently.

I have serious reservations in attending this show due to the fact that it was at Sound Academy, formerly The Docks which was probably the worst venue in the city for shows (poor sight lines, terrible sound). We arrived at the venue just after 8pm, the venue was completely empty, which was perfect because we were able to get a spot right against the barricade. First thing I noticed was how amazing the music the venue was playing between sets. We got some Stone Roses, Bloc Party, all good hipster fun.

Up first was Kordan, a band I had never heard of nor knew anything about. They hail from Brooklyn (surprise surprise) and aren't really a band, but the one man project of Arthur Eisele. For his live show Arthur brought along a slew of musicians from two other bands unknown to me Savoir Adore and French Horn Rebellion. Kordan have that familiar 80s Interpol post punk guitar sound mixed with good synths, a sound that I have grown really tired of. But I loved their set. A lot. As much as their sound is super familiar, it still sounded fresh and interesting. Arthur's songwriting is excellent.

The Presets were next on the bill and were the sole reason I chose to see Cut Copy again. I've been waiting to see them live since the release of their incredible sophomore album Apocalypso (which has been on heavy rotation on my iPod all summer). The band consists of two members Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes, one played synths/samplers and sung, the other played live drums (a great addition to their tunes in a live setting). They won over the audience right away, and played a equal mix of songs from both releases. Highlights for me were Girl And The Sea, This Boy's In Love, Are You The One? and My People.

Cut Copy began their set at 10:45pm, later than anticipated. And from their first song I realized that I made the right decision seeing them again. They started their set with Nobody Lost, Nobody Found which the audience sang along too and danced like crazy. People were really into them, I was kind of thrown back at how insane the audience went (not that I don't love them, but I was surprised at how passionate people where). From there they went back and forth between albums, playing a high energy set of their 80s driven electro pop. So Haunted was spellbinding, the shoegaze guitar feedback was intense and beautiful. And encore closer Hearts On Fire was freakin' incredible. The New Order reference I made in my last review of theirs still rings true, lead singer Dan Whitford is a dead ringer for Bernard Summer, but is a much better front man. Their set list was as follows:

Nobody Lost, Nobody Found

Far Away

Time Stands Still

So Haunted

Unforgettable Season

Strangers In The Wind

Zap Zap

That Was Just A Dream

Saturdays

Feel The Love

Out There On The Ice

Lights and Music

Future

Hearts On Fire

Overall I have to say that I'm thrilled that live dance music has progressed to the point where the artists actually "play" live and aren't just stuck behind a bank of electronics. Cut Copy are one of the best live dance bands I've seen in a long time, their set is a perfect balance of guitar friendly dance and full on Daft-Punk style electronic. I really really suggest seeing them live if you love their recorded material, you will not be disappointed.

2008-09-13T15:27:00.000-05:00

BLOC PARTY

TALONS

2008-09-08T09:27:00.003-05:00

NOEL GETS LEVELED DURING MORNING GLORY

at Virgin Festival

2008-09-04T19:07:00.002-05:00

LYKKE LI

BREAKING IT UP

Live On Conan

Lykke Li plays Mod Club October 24th, tickets $15 available here. Friendly Fires support.

2008-08-31T18:14:00.004-05:00

CRYSTAL CASTLES vs. HEALTH

CRIMEWAVE

Crystal Castles - Crimewave (Crystal Castles VS. Health) | Music Videos | SPIKE.com

Crystal Castles play Vice Magazine's TIFF Festival Ball Thursday September 4th. CC are back in Toronto to headline Randomland @ Circa October 24th.

2008-08-28T17:30:00.002-05:00

MY BLOODY VALENTINE
TO HERE KNOWS WHEN
(Live at Fuji Rock Festival)

My Bloody Valentine play Ricoh Coliseum on September 25th. Tickets are available here and here.

2008-08-27T17:22:00.003-05:00

RANDOM STUFF:

- Went to The Ex last night with the gang, super fun as usual. Just nice to spend the night out, enjoying the fall-like weather and taking in the sights/sounds. Took a bunch of pictures with my iPhone, they turned out amazing. Check this one:

- Red Bull are throwing a small tour this fall titles "The Big Bang" (like their Toronto festival Red Bull Academy last fall) featuring Chromeo, Calvin Harris, Jamie Lidell, Dirty South and Trouble Andrew. Dates are as follows:

October 9th - Muzik, Toronto, Ontario
October 10th - L'Olympia, Montreal, Quebec
October 12th - Commodore, Vancouver, British Columbia

- Digitalism play The Social on September 10th
- Plants and Animals are at the Horseshoe September 18th tix
- Dark Meat play the Drake on September 25th.
- Miss Kittin and the Hacker play Randomland at Circa on September 26th
- The Virgins are opening for Black Kids at The Mod Club on October 5th
- Crystal Castles play Randomland at Circa on October 24th
- Soulwax are back in Toronto (after their headlining set at AD/D's Sunnyside festival) on October 25th at The Opera House
- The Acorn and Ohbijou are at Lee's Palace on November 27th tix

- Listen to a new track titled Dancing Choose here from TV On The Radio's forthcoming album Dear Science, which is due out September 23rd.
- T.O Blog has done a "The Best Roti in Toronto", read their picks here. I suggest Bacchus, its my favourite.

2008-08-26T05:34:00.002-05:00

MORNING STUFF:

- Pitchfork reviews Bloc Party's Intimacy. I whole-heartedly do not agree.

- Stereogum has a link to T.I's new single Swagger Like Us, which samples M.I.A's Paper Planes

- For The Records has the scoop on all the Toronto-area Frosh week concerts (and how to crash them), Tokyo Police Club/Cadence Weapon/Basia Bulat headline U of T's on September 5th between 4:30pm and 7:30pm on the back campus, Stars headline Yorkfest September 16th/17th, and Bloc Party are rumoured to be headlining Ryerson's frosh party on the island (unlikely).

2008-08-25T19:06:00.004-05:00

WANT TO SEE CRYSTAL CASTLES FOR FREE??

Apparently Crystal Castles are playing a free show for Vice Magazine for their annual TIFF Festival Ball on Thursday September 4th at Hart House. RSVP to festivalball@viceland.com to be put on the list. Oh, and show up early to get in.

Showtimes/support TBA.

UPDATE: Via Stillepost:

Crystal Castles
iNiDEaMIND
I Am Robot and Proud

Doors at 8pm/19+

Also rumored that The Juan McLean are also playing the main room.

2008-08-16T11:56:00.006-05:00

RADIOHEAD w GRIZZLY BEAR
Molson Ampitheatre
Friday August 15, 2008

Oh rain, why have you made an appearance at every outdoor show I have attended this summer? First you turned Rogers Picnic into a huge mud pit, putting a damper on shiny, summery sets by Chromeo and Vampire Weekend. And then last night, you reeked havoc on the masses of people vying for the perfect spot on the lawn (err...another mud pit) at the Ampitheatre for Radiohead's stop in Toronto in support of In Rainbows. But you did create breathtaking rainbows which hovered over the venue, trying to get a glimpse of the Oxford 5.

Arrived at the venue at the height of the downpour, but was lucky because we had really good seats in the 200's, meaning no rain for us. Caught the tail end of Grizzly Bear's set, they played Knife, but their sound was a bit lost in the large, cavernous venue. They looked soo small on the stage. The change over between bands went really quick and at 8:45pm the house lights went down and Radiohead began their set.

I have to admit, I'm not the hugest fan of their last two albums (Hail To The Thief and In Rainbows), I like about 3 or 4 tracks off each album. I miss their more electronic stuff (circa Kid A). They opened with 15 Step, one of the songs off IR that I love. Thom did his little jig, it was endearing. Their setlist heavily pulled from the last two albums but they sprinkled in a couple old tracks into the mix such as Climbing Up The Walls, Paranoid Android, Planet Telex (shocking!) and my favourite Talk Show Host. Setlist was as follows:

15 Step
Reckoner
Optimistic
There There
Morning Bell
All I Need
Pyramid Song
Arpeggi
The Gloaming
A Wolf At The Door
Faust Arp
No Surprises
Jigsaw Falling Into Place
Idioteque
Climbing Up The Walls
Nude
Bodysnatcher
---
Like Spinning Plates
Videotape
Airbag
Talk Show Host
Street Spirit
---
House Of Cards
Planet Telex
Everything In Its Right Place

As mentioned by pretty much every blogger/reviewer that has seen the band on this tour, Radiohead's light show was incredible, there were multiple LED tubes hanging from the rafters that pulsed to the music and created an atmospheric coloured hue over the band. Behind the band was a huge bank of television screens that broadcast up close images of the band playing. Overall, a great show, I honestly don't think the band will ever top their performance at Molson Park back on the Amnesiac tour, but still a great night.

Update: Frank over at Chromewaves was in the photo pit, check out his pictures here. Amazing.

2008-08-12T19:28:00.002-05:00

BOWERBIRDS
In Our Talons

Mark turned me onto Bowerbirds over a year ago, and I'm still in love with this album.
The video is pretty amazing too.

2008-08-04T17:14:00.002-05:00

THE PRESETS
TALK LIKE THAT

The Presets support Cut Copy at Sound Academy on Friday September 19th. Tickets on sale here.

2008-07-30T18:28:00.001-05:00

VAMPIRE WEEKEND
Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

2008-07-29T18:56:00.002-05:00

M83
Kim & Jessie

M83 play the Opera House on November 20, 2008, Brooklyn's School of Seven Bells support.

2008-07-07T18:30:00.001-05:00

BLOC PARTY
Mercury

Bloc Party play Day 1 of Virgin Festival on Saturday September 6th.

2008-07-01T18:40:00.001-05:00

BLACKING OUT THE FRICTION
MUXTAPE # 2
JUNE 2008

Listen To It Here.

2008-07-01T18:12:00.002-05:00

NOTEWORTHY LINKS

Stereogum has video of Death Cab For Cutie's Ben Gibbard covering Stars Your Ex-Lover Is Dead. Check it here.

Girl Talk has confirmed a North American tour in support of his new album Feed The Animals. Buy (or download for $0.00) the album here. He hits Toronto on November 12th, full dates here.

Lykke Li plays Mod Club on October 24th. Tickets on sale here.

Chromewaves has news with regards to Mates of State. They have confirmed a show in Toronto at Lee's Palace on August 4th.

2008-06-30T05:27:00.002-05:00

VAMPIRE WEEKEND
Oxford Comma

Vampire Weekend play Rogers Picnic on July 20th. Tickets are on sale here.

2008-06-08T19:31:00.002-05:00

LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION
Galaxy of the Lost
June 6, 2008
Live on Conan

\

Lightspeed Champion play Lee's Palace on June 11, 2008. Tickets available here.

2008-05-29T20:13:00.002-05:00

SIGUR ROS
Gobbledigook

Follow the link to watch Sigur Ros' new video for their new track Gobbledigook. The song is a huge departure from their atmospheric, epic soundscapes. It reminds me of Animal Collective, I really like it. (link NSFW, contains nudity). Download the song here for free.

2008-05-11T08:05:00.003-05:00

BLACKING OUT THE FRICTION
MUXTAPE # 1
MAY 2008

Listen to it here.
Download it here.

(Thanks Janice for the link).

2008-05-10T19:34:00.000-05:00

YELLE
A Cause Des Garcons

2008-05-10T12:33:00.003-05:00

CUT COPY w BLACK KIDS
May 9, 2008
Phoenix Concert Theatre

As mentioned earlier in the month, I've been ridiculously obsessed with Cut Copy for the last month. Their latest disc In Ghost Colours is by far my favourite album of 2008 thus far, and their debut Bright Like Neon Love is an instant classic in my books. Needless to say, I was really excited for the show last night.

Fern and I got to the venue just before 11pm, missed The Mobius Band's entire set (which I regret after listening to their tunes on their myspace) and had to battle the massive crowd to get to the back of the venue to make our way to our usual spot on the balcony. The venue was packed, busier than I have seen it in a long time. And from the moment Black Kids began their set, it seemed that the crowd was more there to be seen than to pay attention to the show. Had a really difficult time hearing the band, the audience chatter was loud and the music needed a good volume boost. Like most, I've only heard and know 4 songs from Black Kids' EP Wizards of Ahhhs. The 4 songs were the definite standouts in their set, partially because I knew them and also because I could barely hear and comprehend the new stuff. With regards to their new material: what I do remember is that the 50's Motown girl group backing vocals are still present, and lead singer/guitarist Reggie Youngblood's guitar work is amazing. But people needed to shut up and listen.

Cut Copy's set was spellbinding. They played an equal mix of tunes from both releases and stuck to the move dance-able stuff. The first thing that noticed was how much the band sounds like New Order live. Lead singer Dan Whitford is a mesmerizing front man, he has the rockstar swagger and schoolboy charm to captivate the audience's attention. They played Lights and Music, Out There On the Ice, Unforgettable Season (amazing shoegaze guitars!) and my favourites Time Stands Still and Futures. Only downside: the mix for their entire set was a bit off, their drums weren't loud enough and their overall sound was a bit muffled, not as crisp as Hot Chip a couple weeks ago. These guys deserve to be huge, their super tight live and have the tunes to back up the hype. Check them out next time they come through town.

2008-04-30T05:33:00.002-05:00

M83
Graveyard Girl

M83 play Mod Club on May 30th. Tickets are available here.

2008-04-29T18:59:00.002-05:00

CRYSTAL CASTLES
Courtship Dating

Crystal Castles are currently touring the UK. Please come home.

2008-04-28T05:36:00.002-05:00

THE MARY ONETTES
Lost (Live on TV4 UK)

I have a soft spot in my heart for 80s bands such as Joy Division, The Cure, Depeche Mode and New Order. Sad lyrics make me happy. I stumbled upon The Mary Onettes via Under The Radar, a Swedish band that sound like the love child of Joy Divison's Ian Curtis and The Cure's Robert Smith (if two men could have a love child). Moody, dark and spectacular. Oh, and even their album art looks Joy Divison-esque. They are embarking on a North American tour, but no Canadian dates have been announced.

2008-04-26T19:18:00.001-05:00

VAMPIRE WEEKEND
A-Punk

2008-04-20T18:01:00.005-05:00

BRIGHT LIKE NEON LOVE

Melbourne's Cut Copy are my new favourite band. I realize that I make this statement a lot, but for the last week I've been obsessively listening to their latest album In Ghost Colours. IGC is the perfect marriage of bloghouse (yep, I'm using the term) and indie rock, this is the most danceable, positive, light and fun albums I've heard in a long time. It was co-produced by DFA mastermind Tim Goldsworthy who brings a touch of NYC new wave electro to the album. You need to hear this album now, it's going to be the soundtrack of summer 2008. Read Pitchfork's review here.

Cut Copy are about to embark on a North American tour with Black Kids. Their Toronto show was completely sold out, but its been moved to the Phoenix, tickets are available here.

2008-04-19T08:00:00.001-05:00

THE GOSSIP
Standing in the Way of Control
Live on Letterman
04/16/08

2008-04-17T08:52:00.002-05:00

HOT CHIP
April 16, 2008
Phoenix Concert Theatre

Last night's Hot Chip show was their first visit back to Toronto since the release of their latest disc Made In The Dark. I was a bit apprehensive, the album isn't as upbeat and fun as their last two efforts, and I was worried that the show would be a let down. I was very, very wrong.

They began their set at 10:15pm with Out At The Pictures from Made In The Dark. It sounded decent, no live drums, all programmed and drum machines. They then transitioned into Boys From School from The Warning, which was much more dense and full sounding live. Their set consisted of an equal mix of old/new material, including Over & Over (full audience sing along), Ready For The Floor, Bendable Poseable, Shake A Fist and a great version of Made In The Dark. I have to say that they are probably the best electronic act I have seen live, they transform their heavily bedroom studio-esque tunes to beat beat floor fillers. Who knew that their live show would be better than their recorded material? I sure as hell didn't. Oh, and the guys in the band really seem like they love what they do, especially the gent who plays bass and keyboards, last night in he shuffled around the stage like a true showman decked out in wicked white jeans. He was amazing. Check these guys out next time they roll through the city, they won't disappoint.

Photo Credit: Antoniele via Flickr.

2008-04-14T20:28:00.001-05:00

Lightspeed Champion
Tell Me What It's Worth

Lightspeed Champion's show on June 11th at Lee's Palace is now on sale here. Tickets are $11.50.

2008-04-14T20:02:00.002-05:00

WOLF PARADE
Call It A Ritual

Stereogum premiered a new Wolf Parade song today. Listen to it here. Tentatively titled "Kissing the Beehive", their new album is out June 17th on Subpop.

2008-04-12T11:20:00.002-05:00

TOKYO POLICE CLUB
Tessellate

Tokyo Police Club's debut Elephant Shell is out on April 22nd on Saddle Creek. They play a two-night stint at the Opera House on May 2rd and 3rd, Smoosh and Winter Gloves support.

2008-04-08T18:51:00.002-05:00

ROBYN feat. THE KNIFE
Who's That Girl

Robyn plays the Phoenix on May 5th. Tickets are on sale now via ticketmaster.

2008-04-07T17:34:00.001-05:00

MIDNIGHT SURPRISE
A couple quick show updates.

Fresh from the Junos, five trophy winner Feist has announced a new set of Canadian dates including a stop in Toronto on November 3rd at the Theatre Bowl at Air Canada Centre. Pre-sale tickets on sale tomorrow at noon here, regular on sale is Saturday 4/12 at 10am.

Lightspeed Champion have confirmed a full-band show at Lee's Palace on June 11th. Ticket details to follow.

Radiohead's Toronto gig on August 15th at the Ampitheatre is now confirmed, Grizzly Bear supports and tickets are on sale Saturday.

2008-04-04T05:53:00.003-05:00

MADONNA FEAT. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
4 Minutes

2008-04-03T18:57:00.001-05:00

PORTISHEAD
Machine Gun

Portishead release the long, long.....long awaited album Third on April 29th.

2008-04-02T18:47:00.001-05:00

MIRACLE FORTRESS
Have You Seen Your Dreams

Miracle Fortress play a double bill with Born Ruffians at Lee's Palace on April 26th. Tickets, $10, are on sale here.

Via Just Keep Bloggin'.

2008-04-02T05:54:00.003-05:00

ACCELERATE

R.E.M's latest studio album Accelerate is out this week (yesterday), its been on my iPod for a couple weeks and I haven't gotten around to listening to it. For the reviews I've read here and here, it sounds promising, a return to form for the band. You can listen to the entire album via Facebook's application iLike, and watch their Le Blogotheque Take Away Show here. Tickets for their North American tour including their Toronto stop are available via a presale starting this morning at 10am (via BrooklynVegan). Regular on-sale occurs April 5th at 10am via LiveNation.

2008-04-01T06:07:00.000-05:00

LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION
Galaxy Of The Lost

2008-03-31T19:34:00.002-05:00

BJORK
Wanderlust

Check out Bjork's new video via Stereogum. Directed by the same collective that did Grizzly Bear's Knife (watch it below).

2008-03-31T19:05:00.004-05:00

I WILL POSSESS YOUR HEART

Death Cab For Cutie have confirmed their first Toronto date in support of the forthcoming album Narrow Stairs. They will play Olympic Island on June 7th. No word on support, who's putting it on (maybe it will be a mini-festival like the Broken Social Scene show two summers ago) or ticket details (unless you pay $30 to join their fan club). Date via BrooklynVegan. Narrow Stairs is released domestically on May 13th, the iTunes version will contain a bonus demo track of "No Sunlight" and two videos (short and long) for first single "I Will Possess Your Heart". UPDATE: Frank over at Chromewaves has confirmed that this show will indeed be a mini-festival, support will be Rogue Wave, Stars and Young Galaxy. Tickets are on sale April 3rd, $49.50 plus ferry.

2008-03-31T06:14:00.000-05:00

HIGHWAY OF ENDLESS DREAMS

Anthony Gonzalez aka M83's new album Saturdays = Youth has made its way onto the interweb a couple weeks prior to its release (April 15th via Mute), and after a few listens I'm completely hooked. I've been a casual fan of Gonzalez' albums, never dug very deep into them, probably out of sheer laziness. It's lush, warm and full sounding, and references mid-90's electronic music at times (see lead single Couleurs). It may isolate his die-hard fans (there is some cheesy vocals that will grate their nerves), but in actuality its a huge leap forward, the perfect marriage of shoegaze and 90s dance. The album was co-produced by Ken Thomas (who has worked with Sigur Ros, Suede) and Ewan Pearson (The Rapture and Ladytron).

M83 are heading out on a full band short North American tour. His band will include Gonzalez on vocals, guitars and keyboards, Loic Maurin on drums, Pierre-Marie Maulini on bass and guitar and featured album vocalist Morgan Kibby (of LA-based band The Romanovs) on vocals and keyboards. Dates are as follows:

Tue 5/20 - Los Angeles - Echoplex
Wed 5/21 - San Francisco - Great American Music Hall
Fri 5/23 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
Sat 5/24 - Vancouver - Richards on Richards
Sun 5/25 - Seattle - Neumos
Wed 5/28 - Minneapolis - Triple Rock Club
Thu 5/29 - Chicago - Empty Bottle
Fri 5/30 - Toronto - The Mod Club
Sat 5/31 - Montreal - Cabaret Music Hall
Mon 6/2 - Cambridge, MA Middle East Downstairs
Tue 6/3 - Brooklyn - Music Hall of Williamsburg
Wed 6/4 - NYC - Bowery Ballroom
Fri 6/6 - Philadelphia - First Unitarian Church
Sat 6/7 - Washington, DC Black Cat

2008-03-30T18:38:00.003-05:00

A COUPLE MORE THAT I MISSED EARLIER

The reunited Swervedriver play Lee's Palace on June 13th, which apparently will be part of NXNE (via Chromewaves).

The Toronto edition of Virgin Festival slated for September 6th and 7th on the Toronto Island has confirmed the first set of bands. Confirmed for day one are Foo Fighters, Bloc Party, Spiritualized, The Constantines, and Wintersleep. Day two brings the following acts to the island: Oasis, Paul Weller, Stereophonics and The Weakerthans and Pigeon Dectectives. Tickets went on sale yesterday via Ticketmaster, one day tickets are $87 and a two day pass is $159. I don't think I'll be attending this year (unless I get free tickets), the additional line up will need to be really good for me to purchase a ticket.

Radiohead have been confirmed to play Molson Ampitheatre on August 15th. The second leg of their North American tour will be announced tomorrow, with tickets going on sale on April 12th. Underworld are set to open for this leg of the tour (first leg Liars will open, European leg sees Bat For Lashes in tow).

2008-03-30T09:17:00.003-05:00

CONCERT ROUND UP

The spring concert season is really shaping up. Tons of great shows have been confirmed since my last post, so let's round them up.

The Dodos, who's album Visiter has been on constant rotation on my iPod in the last couple weeks play the El Mocambo on April 9th. Tickets, $8, on sale at Rotate, read Pitchfork's album review here.

Thunderheist are at Lee's on April 11th. Tickets available now at Rotate. This show is being billed as their last Toronto show for the next while, so if you want to see them, check them out now.

Diplo plays Wrongbar on April 19th. Tickets are $ 15 (tickets for all these shows are available at Rotate). Dan Bejar's Destroyer are at Lee's Palace the same night.

Peter Moren (of Peter, Bjorn and John) in support of his first solo album The Last Tycoon plays Mod Club on April 24th. The Last Tycoon is out April 8th on Quarterstick Records.

Kate Nash, who I want to love because Foundations is such an amazing song, but cannot because I can't get into the entire album is at the Phoenix on April 28th.

Eric Warner's 2008 edition of Over The Top Festival is now on sale. Highlights that interest me: Kevin Barnes (Of Montreal) solo at Mod Club on May 4th, High Places at Ukula on May 3rd, Woodhands at Sneaky Dee's on May 1st and Rock Central Plaza at St. Stephen's on May 1st. Eric has also programmed a film festival for this year's edition, check out the festival site for more information.

The Teenagers show originally scheduled for May 1st at Anti has been moved to Lee's Palace. Apparently Anti were denied their liquor license and will not be opening (the old Spin Gallery).

Tokyo Police Club's two night stand at the Opera House on May 3rd and 4th are on sale (night one is sold out).

Robyn (the new Annie, but not as euro-cheese and not new since her album actually came out a couple years back and is only now getting a North American release) plays The Phoenix on May 5th.

M83 are at the Opera House on May 30th. Their (or is it only one guy now???) new album Saturdays = Youth has leaked and I really love it. So good.

MIA is back in Toronto at Sound Academy (WORST.IDEA.EVER!!!) with Holy Fuck on June 2nd. Tickets are $35 (what?). Let's hope that this time the volumes are kept to an acceptable level, her last show at Kool Haus was a nightmare.

That's it for now.

2008-03-16T07:42:00.001-05:00

BLACK IS THE NEW PRESIDENT, BIATCH

Watch Tracy Morgan's rebuttal to Tina Fey's Bitch Is The New Black on SNL last night.

2008-03-15T08:00:00.006-05:00

CRYSTAL CASTLES HEART SKINS?

I'm a massive fan of a British show called Skins, a show about a bunch of high school friends, their relationships and the trials and tribulations of teen life. It's reminiscent of The O.C., but much racier, think Larry Clark's Kids meets the O.C., and to be honest, I'm always surprised how far they push the limits concerning content (teenage sex and gratuitous nudity, language etc.).

To my surprise, while watching episode three of season two, Crystal Castles make an appearance in a scene set in a club. Someone off camera announces "Up next Crystal Castles" and there appears Alice Glass and Ethan Kath to the sound of their career-making synth heavy mess Alice Practice. It kind of weirded me out a first, kind of like when The Flaming Lips played the Peach Pit After Dark on 90210 in the 90s. But the tune worked within the scope of the plot, and it didn't seem cheesy at all. Watch the clip below.

Skins airs on E4 in the UK on Mondays at 10pm. It can be downloaded from a variety of torrent sites, or if you can a region-free DVD player, you can purchase season one on DVD here.

Crystal Castles play Circa on March 28th. Tickets on sale now at Rotate.

2008-03-13T19:03:00.000-05:00

MISSING IN ACTION

I've been missing in action for the last week or so.....let's catch up then. I've obsessed with Santogold right now. She's from Brooklyn, is a seasoned "pop" writer (she just penned tunes for Ashlee Simpson's new album) and is releasing her debut this spring. Check the video for L.E.S. Artistes below, it's pretty wicked. Also check her myspace and listen to Creator, it reminds me of an American version of M.I.A. (they share the same producers, Diplo and Switch). Can't wait to hear her full length.

2008-02-18T14:06:00.002-06:00

HOT CHIP - READY FOR THE FLOOR

Just stumbled upon the official video for this song and it's incredible. As mentioned previously, Hot Chip play the Phoenix on April 16th.

2008-02-16T18:55:00.002-06:00

PATRICK WOLF - HOUNDS OF LOVE (KATE BUSH COVER)

VS.

THE FUTUREHEADS - HOUNDS OF LOVE (KATE BUSH COVER)

2008-02-16T07:34:00.004-06:00

CONCERT UPDATES:

According to Frank at Chromewaves, Adele (yes, the new Amy Winehouse) plays the Rivoli backroom on March 26th. Tickets are on sale this morning via Ticketmaster.

Digitalism play Anti on March 19th. Tickets available via ticketweb here.

Mr. Colin Meloy (of the Decemberists) brings his solo tour in support of his new album Colin Meloy Sings Live to the Phoenix on April 19th. Tickets on sale now here. Laura Gibson supports.

Born Ruffians and Miracle Fortress are at The Opera House on April 26th, tickets on sale at Rotate for $10. Born Ruffian's new album Red, Yellow, Blue will be released by Warp on March 4th.

Black Kids support Cut Copy for a gig at Lee's Palace on May 9th. Tickets are $17.00 and no word on an on sale date as of yet. Speaking of Black Kids, they are currently on tour with Sons & Daughters in the UK, and then will embark on supporting tour with Kate Nash, who does a lovely cover of Black Kids' I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend To Dance With You. Watch...err...listen below.

Kayne West, Rihanna, NERD and Lupe Fiasco play the Molson Ampitheatre on May 21st.

Australia's The Presets play Anti on May 31st. Tickets, $16.50 on sale now at Rotate.

2008-02-11T05:01:00.000-06:00

FEIST - 1,2,3,4
LIVE AT THE 2008 GRAMMYS

2008-02-11T04:58:00.000-06:00

AMY WINEHOUSE - YOU KNOW I'M NO GOOD/REHAB
LIVE AT THE 2008 GRAMMYS

Amy picked up 5 Grammys last night for record of the year, song of the year (Rehab), new artist, pop vocal album, and female pop vocal performance.

2008-02-09T17:32:00.000-06:00

BLACK KIDS - I'M NOT GONNA TEACH YOUR BOYFRIEND TO DANCE WITH YOU
LIVE ON MTV2

2008-02-09T17:27:00.000-06:00

HOT CHIP - READY FOR THE FLOOR
LIVE ON JIMMY KIMMEL

Hot Chip play the Phoenix in Toronto on April 16th.

2008-02-09T07:17:00.000-06:00

STUFF:

Ben Rayner pens piece about Feist's amazing year and the Grammys tomorrow night. The Globe and Mail also has an article about Feist this morning. Another Feisty good read can be found on Toronto Life's site and dates back to the two weeks leading up to the release of The Reminder. Check out this link to watch Feist perform three songs on Later with Jools Holland.

There was also a good interview with Vampire Weekend in the Star this morning but it's missing online. Vampire Weekend's show on February 11th at the Horseshoe is sold out.

Now Magazine has a great cover story on Cat Power. Chan and company are at Kool Haus tonight. Tickets available here.

2008-02-08T16:02:00.000-06:00

DESTROY EVERYTHING YOU TOUCH

Looks like Ladytron and Datarock will be playing the Harbourfront Centre for one of their free music festivals on July 4th (via Pitchfork). That's super exciting. In related news, the band (Ladytron that is) will release their new album, Velocifero on June 3rd.

Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige are at Air Canada Centre on April 2nd.

The Kills pay The Opera House on May 6th.

MSTRKRFT are at Guverment on March 20th.

Fritz Helder and the Phantoms open for Dragonette at the Mod Club on April 3rd. Tickets available at Rotate.

2008-02-06T05:01:00.000-06:00

CONGRATS ALL AROUND

Congrats to Feist for picking up 5 Juno nominations yesterday as well as winning the Shortlist Music Award. Leslie has also announced a Spring world tour. Dates via Brooklyn Vegan.

Feb 4 - Palace Theatre Cleveland, Ohio
Feb 23 - St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Adelaide, South Australia
Feb 24 - St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Melbourne, Victoria
Feb 26 - Prince Bandroom Melbourne, Victoria
Feb 27 - Perth Internal Arts Festival Perth, Western Australia
Feb 29 - The Metro Sydney, New South Wales
Mar 1 - St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Brisbane, Queensland
Mar 2 - St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Sydney, New South Wales
Apr 10 Detroit, MI Fillmore Detroit
Apr 11 Bloomington, IN Indiana University
Apr 12 St. Louis, MO The Pageant
Apr 14 Tulsa, OK Cain's Ballroom
Apr 15 Austin, TX Stubb's: Outdoors
Apr 16 Dallas, TX The Palladium Ballroom
Apr 18 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle
Apr 19 Nashville, TN Vanderbilt University Alumni Lawn
Apr 20 Asheville, NC Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
Apr 22 Athens, OH Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium
Apr 23 Cleveland, OH Palace Theatre
Apr 25 Northampton, MA Smith College
Apr 26 Charlottesville, VA Charlottesville Pavilion
Apr 27 Philadelphia, PA Academy of Music
Apr 29 New York, NY Hammerstein Ballroom
Apr 30 New York, NY Hammerstein Ballroom
May 13 - Sony Centre for the Performing Arts Toronto
May 20 - Queens Hall Edinburgh, Scotland
May 21 - Royal Albert Hall London, London and South East
May 22 - Palace Theater Manchester
May 24 - Paradiso Amsterdam
May 25 - Aero Lille
May 27 - Magazzini Generale Milan
May 27 - Piper Rome
Jun 1 - Jahrhunderthalle Frankfurt, Hessen
Jun 3 - Grand Rex Paris
Jun 4 - Grand Rex Paris
Jun 5 - Transbordeur Lyon
Jun 7 - Apolo Barcelona
Jun 8 - Sala Heineken Madrid

Let's hope a second Toronto date gets added duing her short break between Toronto and Scotland.

Arcade Fire are also nominated for three Junos. See the full list here.

2008-02-03T07:46:00.000-06:00

THE COOL KIDS - BLACK MAGS

The Cool Kids played Wrongbar back in January. What's with Chicago lately? First Kid Sister (oh and Kayne), now Cool Kids. Speaking of Kid Sister, she also just played Wrongbar. Read BlogT.O.'s review here. She's just signed her first record deal with Downtown Records (via Pitchfork).

2008-01-29T19:31:00.001-06:00

THE TEENAGERS - HOMECOMING

2008-01-29T19:02:00.000-06:00

RANDOM THINGS

R.E.M. (one of my favs from high school) have announced a North American tour in support of their forthcoming album Accelerate. The tour kicks off May 23rd in Vancouver and includes a Toronto stop at the Molson Amphitheatre on June 8th. The National and Modest Mouse support on all dates. Ticket details to follow.

Chromeo have confirmed a gig at the Opera House in Toronto on March 22nd. Doors at 10pm, show at 12:30am. Tickets on sale now here.

Hayden's new album In Field & Town was number 5 on last week's Socan music chart. The Globe and Mail's Robert Everett-Green spoke to Hayden about the new album, read the article here. Hayden plays The Music Hall February 19th, Basia Bulat supports. The show is sold-out.

I'm obsessed with The Teenagers. Check out their myspace here. They were in town this past Sunday night at the Social. Why is it when Brits say C**t, it doesn't sound dirty. Their full-length is available digitally now, CD version is out in March.

Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys and Lightspeed Champion cover The Strokes at White Heat in London. It's pretty rad. via Stereogum.

I'm also very fond of Hercules and Love Affair. Their new single Blind features Antony of Antony of the Johnsons. Check the video below.

2008-01-26T20:30:00.000-06:00

FEIST - I FEEL IT ALL

Feist plays The Sony Centre (aka. Hummingbird Centre) on May 13, 2008. If anyone has two tickets they are willing to part with, please let me know.

In other Arts & Crafts related news, both Feist and Stars are both finalists (of only 10 other bands) for the Shortlist Music Prize. Read about it here.

2008-01-25T05:02:00.000-06:00

ARCADE FIRE - BLACK MIRRIOR

Watch the new video here.

Let's hope for another Fire tour this spring.

2008-01-21T18:55:00.001-06:00

IT'S LINK TIME!

Stereogum has a couple great live videos featuring Vampire Weekend, who are in town for a show at the Horseshoe on February 11th.

Also check out The Moldy Peaches performing "Anyone Else But You" on the View today.

Crystal Castles have announced their joint tour with Health. CC will play a "secret" not so secret show on February 21st at Wrongbar (tickets now on sale here) and will hit Circa on March 28.

The Breeders Toronto show during Canadian Music Week is on sale now here.

Hot Chip are playing the Phoenix April 16th, tickets on sale here.

Coachella's 2008 line-up announced today at a press conference. Looking really amazing, DCFC, Portishead, Roger Waters performing Dark Side of the Moon, the re-united Verve, Spritualized, M.I.A., Justice, Vampire Weekend. See entire list here.

Justice are back March 19th at Sound Academy aka. The Docks. Tickets here.

2008-01-01T14:29:00.001-06:00

TOP 13 ALBUMS OF 2008

It's been a long break, I've taken some time off from shows and stuff. But I couldn't end 2007 without listing Blacking Out The Friction's 13 favourite albums of 2007. Here they are.

13. Feist - The Reminder - Let the Feist backlash begin for people who care how popular their cherished indie artists get. All they should remember is how fucking amazing a songwriter she is. The Reminder is a more mature album than Let It Die, and it shows how talented she is as a musician and songwriter. She deserves all the attention she's getting including the Grammy nods and TV appearances on US daytime news programs. It's her time to shine. So forget about how many times you've seen the iPod advert and keep in mind that she's not one to forget where she came from (evidence can be seen in the fact that she's brought members of tons of great bands such as Grizzly Bear, BSS, The National to appear with her on television). The only drawback...not being able to procure decent tickets to her show. Congratulations to Feist for an amazing year and well wishes for what's to come.

12. Fritz Helder and the Phantoms - Greatest Hits - It's great to finally hear this band recorded, they have been kicking it around Toronto for at least the last three years, gigging and converting hoards of hipsters into fans. The album does not disappoint, the songs are great and make me want to dance. It doesn't capture their live set, but that's typical of a band like this that has such an amazing live show. Stand out tracks: Making A Scene, Fritzmania, and Sex Robot. You must check them out live if you have the chance.

11. Radiohead - In Rainbows - Everyone knows the story of this album, released via the internet to their fans on a pay-what-you-want basis. Was a huge hit. Is being released domestically this week in CD format. I've been a huge fan of this band since The Bends, and this album is somewhat a return to form for them. I didn't like their last album (Hail to the Thief), but this one has legs to stand on. I'm still not totally familiar with the entire album, but I love the bulk of it and can't wait to see them perform it live this spring.

10. Bloc Party - A Weekend in the City - Another album that ends up low on my list only because it was released early in the year. I didn't like this album at first, I found it hard to connect to, it wasn't as obvious as their debut. But after a few listens, it pulled me in. Kele is a great front man, it's nice to see someone who clearly loves and enjoys what they do. He's a great role model for the young ones. There are tons of songs on this album I love: England, Hunting For Witches, Waiting for the 7:18 and I Still Remember. Caught them at Kool Haus back in the winter and even though the venue has terrible acoustics, the show was incredible.

9. The Chromatics - Night Drive - Where did this band come from because as far as I remember they use to be much more guitar-driven and difficult to listen to. No more. This album is an electro dream. Highly post-punk influenced, dark, robotic and cold. Evokes a picture of dancing in a minimally decorated, dank club in NYC in the 80s. The title track as well as their incredible cover of Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill are brilliant. I now heart Italians Do It Better hardcore.

8. Miracle Fortress - Five Roses - Another fantastic band from Montreal (is it the water??). This year saw the return of The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds as an inspirational album to borrow from sonically and musically. Both Miracle Fortress, Panda Bear and Caribou used this influential album as a jumping off point in creating stunning albums this year. Five Roses reminds me of driving in the country with the windows down and the hot wind blowing in my face. It's the perfect summertime album. Oh, and Miracle Fortress were totally robbed at the Polaris Awards this year. They should have won hands down.

7. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible - This album ends up low on my list only because of its early in the calendar year release date, it's not a reflection on how much I adore it, its just that it kind of gets forgotten. Neon Bible is nothing short of biblical, it is the perfect follow up to Funeral and anyone that cannot see this is purely daft. Every song is pretty great, from the monumental Intervention to slow burners like Ocean of Noise to full on rave-ups like the re-recorded version of No Cars Go, this album is nothing short of perfect. I've been saying it all along, this band is destined to fill stadiums very soon, their last set of Toronto shows sold out in three minutes and tickets were turning over on Ebay and Craigslist for a retarded amount of money. I'm really interest to see how Win and crew follow up this album.

6. Beirut - The Flying Cup Club - Zach Condon tops himself and blows every other 22 year old musician out of the water with the release of The Flying Cup Club. Drawing inspiration from 1920s France (instead of Gypsy music) Condon and his band of merry makers built an irresistible album that had constant play on my iPod for a solid couple months. I especially love The Penalty, Cliquot (which features Owen Pallett who also assisted with string arrangement on the album) and Nantes. Check them out live if you get the chance, simply amazing.

5. The Tough Alliance - A New Chance - I discovered this EP really late in the year via Pitchfork. I don't know how I survived the year without it. TTA write incredible electro-pop songs, think New Order and 80's retro electro-pop modernized. Something Special is such an amazing song, as are Miami and First Class Riot. I don't know much about the band other than their Swedish and have gotten a lot of press for their disheveled live shows. Can't wait to catch them live and see what they do next.

4. Patrick Wolf - The Magic Position - The Magic Position is very different from Wolf's earlier work, but in a good way. With this album, he adopts pop sensibilities, top 40's flare and a flamboyant new look to bring fun back to music. This album is incredibly fun, poppy and a bit over the top. Finally got to see him live while he was in town supporting Amy Winehouse and it was one of the best shows I attended this year. He has transformed himself into a Bowie-like front man who can put on a show to rival any other act touring today. Check out Bluebells, Overture, and Accident and Emergency.

3. The National - Boxer - My first exposure to this band was a couple years ago with the release of Alligator (their last studio album). They ended up on a bunch of year end lists, I tried to get into it, but wasn't overly convinced. Boxer is a completely different story. After a couple listens, I knew this album was destined to be one of my favourites of the year, hell, it may even end up sticking around long term. It sounds familiar and new at the same time, the lyrics aren't extremely thought provoking or deep but work perfectly. Songs like Brainy, Slow Song and Mistaken for Strangers draw you in, I think its Matt Berninger's vocals that really attract me. Biggest show regret of 2007, missing The National at the Phoenix. I had tickets but came down with a wicked flu the day of and had to sell them. Here's to hoping they come through the city once more in support of Boxer.

2. Handsome Furs - Plague Park - How is it that an incredible band like Wolf Parade can spawn sooo many great side-projects (first Sunset Rubdown, now HF)? Dan Boeckner and his wife Alexei Perry built an album around Dan's rustic voice, guitar and a drum machine. The album sometimes reminds me of a younger, more aggressive Beck, which is a weird comparison. But I love it, especially What We Had, Dead+Rural and Handsome Furs Hate This City. An amazing tie-over until the new Wolf Parade album drops in 2008.

1. M.I.A. - Kala - As stated back in 2005 when I listed Arular as one of my favourite albums of the year, M.I.A. is one of the most relevant, important artists recording today. She represents those without voices and carries herself as a smart, strong, independent woman. Kala is more cohesive than her last effort, and there are more stand-out tracks, from the incredible opener Bamboo Banger to tracks buried at the end like World Town and the fuck you to the industry song Paper Planes. Kala will always make me remember the summer of 2007, and her bonkers set at Virgin Festival in September.

2007-12-28T19:53:00.001-06:00

ANTICIPATIONS FOR 2008

Things Blacking Out The Friction is looking forward to in 2008 (yes, like every music nerd, I love creating lists).

*Radiohead's upcoming North American tour in the Spring/early Summer - A chance to see In Rainbows material played live (again) but actually know the tunes!

* Antony and the Johnson's to release new album titled The Crying Light in the Spring - Finally the follow up to I Am A Bird Now is coming!

*Crystal Castles to release debut album on February 19, 2008 on Last Gang Records - Official recordings of all their hits!

* The proper release of Vampire Weekend's debut - We've all gotten to love their leaked demo Blue CD-R and their debut is apparently the same set of songs, but with better production. Fancy.

* Montreal's Thunderheist to record? - Let's hope they have an album in the works.

2007-12-28T19:01:00.000-06:00

TOP 13 SONGS OF 2007

Blacking Out The Frictions favourite tracks of 2007. Get your dancing shoes on.

13. (Tie) Don't Stop The Music by Rihanna/Sensual Seduction by Snoop Dogg
12. Fancy Footwork by Chromeo
11. Pro Nails by Kid Sister
10. Dead+Rural by Handsome Furs
9. Pogo by Digitalism
8. First Class Riot by The Tough Alliance
7. Making A Scene by Fritz Helder and the Phantoms
6. In The City by Chromatics
5. I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend to Dance With You by Black Kids
4. Crimewave by Crystal Castles
3. The Magic Position by Patrick Wolf
2. Paper Planes by M.I.A.
1. Someone Great by LCD Soundsystem

2007-12-28T07:45:00.000-06:00

TOP 5 SHOWS OF 2007

5. Final Fantasy @ The Tranzac, Toronto, Ontario
4. M.I.A @ Virgin Festival, Toronto, Ontario
3. Patrick Wolf @ The El Macombo, Toronto, Ontario
2. Feist @ The Music Gallery, Toronto, Ontario
1. Arcade Fire @ The Ukrainian Federation, Montreal, Quebec

2007-12-06T05:50:00.000-06:00

BJORK - DECLARE INDEPENDENCE

Directed by the brilliant Michel Gondry.

2007-11-24T09:56:00.000-06:00

M.I.A. - JIMMY

2007-11-10T09:56:00.000-06:00

RADIOHEAD - CEREMONY (NEW ORDER COVER)

Radiohead melted a million indie kids hearts last night with an amazing webcast from their studio in Oxford. They played a bunch of their own tracks, covered New Order, The Smiths, Bjork (the night before) and dj'ed a ton of great stuff.

Check Pitchfork's live blog feed here. They have YouTube links for the highlights.

2007-11-03T12:41:00.000-05:00

SHARON JONES & THE DAP KINGS - 100 DAYS & 100 NIGHTS

2007-11-02T05:48:00.000-05:00

PANDA BEAR - COMFY IN NAUTICA

Finally a video from one of my favourite albums of the year!