Articles posted in December 2010
Tight Solid recently broke up, but that didn’t stop the Vancouver band from releasing its first (and final) album last month via
Bandcamp. It’s free, so you have no excuse not to download it.
My favourite thing about the album is the guitar tone, which is downright searing. That’s perfectly exemplified by “The ’70s in Quebec,” which is a blitz of distorted guitars and hollering vocals that’s over in under a minute.
I recently reviewed the album for
BeatRoute, although the review doesn’t seem to be online. Pick up the December issue (the one with
Boogie Monster on the cover) and it’s in there.
MP3: “The ’70s in Quebec”
Posted in Tracks Tagged Tight Solid
No Gold has been kicking around the Vancouver scene for a few years, and the band is finally getting ready to release its debut album. Here’s the first single, “Rainforts,” which places densely layered West African-sounding guitars leads atop a strutting, funkified backbeat. There are only three members in the band, so lord knows how they’ll be able to replicate this live.
It’s a helluva guitar jam. Stay tuned for the LP, which is due out on February 22 via
Unfamiliar.
MP3: “Rainforts”
Posted in Tracks Tagged No Gold
A few days ago,
No Kids/
Gigi leader
Nick Krgovich dropped a free holiday EP under the pseudonym Chris Mastheim. (Don’t get the pun? Say it out loud.) The EP is called
Chris Mastheim Is Here. Go to
Exclaim! for my brief article about the release.
Even though I’m a day late for Christmas, I’m still going to post his cover of “Christmastime Is Here” (the classic from
A Charlie Brown Christmas). The synth backing is based on the
Twin Peaks theme song, which is easily my favourite TV show theme of all time. A little bird tells me that Gus Franklin from
Architecture in Helsinki helped out with the
Twin Peaks part, but that’s unconfirmed.
MP3: “Christmastime Is Here”
For the fourth consecutive year,
Said the Whale has released a Christmas EP. It’s only got two songs (one of which is barely a minute long), so it’s really more a single. But it’s free, so who’s complaining? I interviewed singer Tyler Bancroft about the new EP for a brief piece in the
Georgia Straight.
You can pick up both tracks for free over at the band’s
official site. My favourite of the two is the silky “Brightest on My Street,” which you can download below. With its falsetto harmonies and swirling organ, this is halfway between
Bon Iver and modern R&B.
MP3: “Brightest on My Street”
Woah. It’s only three days until Christmas and I still haven’t posted any holiday tunes. Here’s a song to make up for that. It comes from
Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox, who released the track “Artificial Snow” under his
Atlas Sound moniker.
The song comes in five different versions, all of which can be downloaded
here. Below, you can check out my favourite, “Artificial Snow (Notown Version).” The other versions are cool, but this one sounds like the way it was meant to be heard (fittingly, it’s track one on the five-song collection).
Hopefully this one doesn’t get taken down by
Sony. Don’t know what I’m talking about?
Exclaim! has the answers.
MP3: “Artificial Snow (Notown Version)”
The weekend before last, I went to watch
Grant Lawrence’s book launch in Sechelt, BC (long story). The evening featured a stripped-down acoustic performance from
Tailor Island, led by former
Octoberman contributor Peter Doig.
On recordings, Tailor Island also features
Jeremy Fisher and both members of
Fine Mist. The band just released its self-titled debut album, which is available as a free download over at
Bandcamp.
If you want a sample from the collection, you can download the “The Town” below (which is one of the two songs he played at the book launch). It’s a nostalgic folk tune that suddenly morphs into a rocker in the final minute
MP3: “The Town”
Free Energy is a band of shaggy haired bros whose music combines soaring powerpop with boogie-fied glam and first-pumping cheese metal. Here the eponymous track “Free Energy,” which is an uplifting pop song that’s filled with some lovingly absurd arena rock tropes: cowbell, fret tapping and “whoa-oh” vocals. It’s totally dumb but really fun.
Free Energy recently toured with fellow powerpop bros
Hollerado. Go to
Exclaim! to read my review of the two bands’ Vancouver performance.
MP3: “Free Energy”
Posted in Tracks Tagged Free Energy
Toro y Moi (aka Chaz Bundick) has already tried his hand at
chillwave and
garage rock. On his latest song, he’s entered funkier, more dance-y territory. The track is called “Still Sound,” and it’s made up of bouncing basslines, breathy falsettos and glittering synths. It’s got all the elements of a winning pop song: a tight groove, a verse that sets the mood for a infectious chorus. But there’s also an extended instrumental bridge that takes up almost half the song, as an electric piano noodles aimlessly while Bundick sighs wordlessly.
I wrote about Toro y Moi’s upcoming album,
Underneath the Pine, for
Exclaim! (
twice). Let’s hope the rest of the disc lives up the standard of this first single.
MP3: “Still Sound”
Posted in Tracks Tagged Toro y Moi
“The Mermaid Parade” by
Phosphorescent just might be the most heartbreaking song I’ve heard all year. A tear-in-my-beer country waltz, it describes a divorce in excruciating detail, as frontman Matthew Houck sings about a long-distance marriage that failed. There’s no blame or anger, only regret. He’s not even bitter when reveals, “I know all about your new man,” as he quickly admits, “I found a new friend too.”
As for the musical accompaniment, it’s wistful with just the faintest hint of tension, and there are fucking dual guitar solos going on at the same time as the vocals.
Back in the summer, Phosphorescent lost of its gear (oh no!) and then recovered it all (yay!). Head to
Exclaim! to read my stories about the whole saga.
MP3: “The Mermaid Parade”
