relative values................

New blog post from Patrick Wolf:

Hello my dears

dearest, nearest, queerrest and weirdest.......................

jesus FUCKING christ.......

so today I attend one of my favourite irish cousins weddings, and i grit my teeth through the catholic blessings, cry myself to empathy via the love confessions they both confess and sware to each other. fierk and kitsy, i wish you both the hugest love forever, i had a slight homophpbic attack where after having a gun shaped fist held to my head, and being told someone wanted to kill me..... (seriously, since when was a pair of knee length socks and and a serious you want to kill me then i kill you first attitude became a bit too much to deal with.... i ended up kicking some shit in the head for literally stepping back thirty years in gay and feminist rights. I dont apppreciate some neandrathrall telling me i should be dead for being in a long term relationship with my beautiful husband.... i have to tell you, i have two albums coming out soon.... think, smashing pumpkins, kate bush, im going double, double, trouble, thats why im taking so long, one disk is heartbroken and in deep dispair, one is in deep dark joy dedicated to my new love, my old and forever love, william the conqueror, ok..... i better leave, my irish cousins are begging for a go on the intranet.... i just realised its been an age and a half since i communicated, the album has been in my blood for a year and much more.... the label think it will be a disaster, im sure, as it comes more from the bottom of my heart than even lycanthropy, about my fathers cancer, my solitude, my true love, my irish roots, everything that has touched me to the core in the last year.... ok, im rambling i must go.... i hAVE been told by my relative that i must go............... oh shut me the fuck up.............pw..xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx i love y'alllllll

put all your fears, your fires, your family into the mouth of final fantasy

Nico Muhly, Sam Amidon, Doveman, and Final Fantasy — August 27, 2008 @ The Music Hall, pt. ii

got woken up by birds and bees

Lot’s of Toronto concert news:
Criminal Records will host The Park A.D. on September 12th, Johnny Flynn on October 4th, and The Buttless Chaps on the 10th; as always, these in-stores are all FREE!
Speaking of free, Vice is bringing Crystal Castles to Hart House on September 4th, RSVP at festivalball@viceland.com.

Plants and Animals will play on September 18th and Asobi Seksu on October 21st at The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern.

No Age comes back on November 21st! and The Acorn with Ohbijou on November 27th, both shows at Lee’s Palace.

Lastly, Monotonix, the most entertaining live band in the world, returns to Toronto on October 23rd at Wrong Bar!!!!!!

Now onto a different note (but still music related):
I have discovered many new artists through Last.fm since I joined the site about two and a half years ago; it is quite a prefect online music community for all music lovers out there. I have recently discovered a similar music networking through my Microsoft’s Zune player called Zune Social. Like Last.fm, it is a place where you can share your music tastes and browse what other users are listening to. How it works is it remembers and displays the music you listened to on your Zune, much like how Last.fm scrobbles songs you listened to on your computer. Similarly, users can suggest artists/songs by messaging each other through the Zune dashboard. Along with Last.fm, MySpace, and Muxtape, Zune Social is certainly another great way to find new music. The only downside for me is that Zune is not Mac compatible.

i shot at the poor boy's soul

Nico Muhly, Sam Amidon, Doveman, and Final Fantasy — August 27, 2008 @ The Music Hall, pt. i

Nico Muhly is one of the most brilliant, talented artists in music today; and as I have mentioned before, Sam Amidon's voice is absolutely gorgeous and All Is Well is the best album of 2008!
Read my post on Nico Muhly’s Mothertongue here and Sam Amidon’ All Is Well here.


Nico Muhly brushes Doveman’s hair during "The Only Tune"

inara george and van dyke parks: an invitation

An Invitation is a collaborative project by The Bird and the Bee’s Inara George and Van Dyke Parks, who was a key contributor on SMiLE. The result is a delightfully elegant album full of cheerful, feel good, cinematic-like melodies. I absolutely love the 50s Tin Pan Alley/Broadway style orchestration and Inara George’s vocal is lovely as always. An Invitation is both exquisite and picturesque; it is pretty much the perfect summer/fall record.

Right As Wrong
Don't Let It Get You
Night Happens
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visit Inara George's MySpace here
buy An Invitation here

women: women

Calgary, Alberta’s Women is one of those bands that reminds me of so many bands in my record collection. Every time I listen their self-titled debut, I try to pinpoint what a certain song sounds like to me. So far, a handful of bands/styles come into mind when listening to Women: a No Age style of noise pop in "Lawncare"; Deerhunter like psychedelic melodies in "Upstairs"; "Woodbine" has similar experimental/drone sound as Atlas Sound; "January 8th" has Liars style noise rhythms; and finally, there is a 60s pop rock vibe in "Black Rice" and "Group Transport Hall". Despite these similarities (keep in mind that they are just harmless, personal comparisons), Women is in fact quite original and to be able to pull off all these elements but still maintain such a cohesive and solid album is rather mind-blowing.

Cameras [wicked-cool song]
Group Transport Hall
January 8th
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visit Women's MySpace here
buy Women here

mercy arms: mercy arms

Once in a while, a straightforward rock album comes along and impresses the hell out of me. Mercy Arms’ self-titled debut is one of those albums. With their drone/noisy guitar rhythms and dream-pop melodies, Mercy Arms generates over 43 minutes of heroic and triumphant sensations. If you are dying to hear a solid indie rock album, look no further than Mercy Arms.

Down Here, So Long
Half Right [wicked-cool song]
Shine A Light [wicked-cool song]
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visit Mercy Arm’s MySpace here
buy Mercy Arms on iTunes here

this goes out to all the accidents out there

This year's orientation concert at University of Toronto looks amazing: Cadence Weapon, Basia Bulat, and Tokyo Police Club! The show takes place at the Back Campus on September 5.

As always, you can download Basia Bulat's out-of-print EP here.

more atlas sound!

Bradford Cox posted more new songs, download them here.

river so clear and mean

Bradford Cox has posted Virtual 7" No. 4 on his blog, go download it here!

in five years time, you might just prove me wrong

OMFG, Noah and the Whale is doing a FREE show at The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto on September 23rd!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The band embarks on their first North America tour this September:
Sep 16 Union Pool, Brooklyn, NY
Sep 18 Sidewalk Cafe (FREE SHOW), New York, NY
Sep 19 Mercury Lounge , New York, NY
Sep 20 Toad (FREE SHOW), Boston, MA
Sep 22 The Saint (FREE SHOW), Montreal, Que
Sep 23, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Horseshoe Tavern (FREE SHOW), Toronto, ONT
Sep 25, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - TBA, Chicago, IL
Sep 26, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Empty Bottle, Chicago, IL
Sep 29, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Chop Suey (FREE SHOW), Seattle, WA
Sep 30, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Doug Fir (FREE SHOW), Portland, OR
Oct 2, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Pop Scene at 330 Ritch, San Francisco, CA
Oct 4, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Detour Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Oct 6, 2008 8:00 PM 08:00 PM - Spaceland (FREE SHOW), Los Angeles, CA

Shape Of My Heart [super-wicked-cool song]
5 Years Time [super-wicked-cool song]
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visit Noah And The Whale’s MySpace here
buy Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down here

nico muhly: mothertongue

Mothertongue, Nico Muhly’s second full-length, features three fascinating pieces that are broken into multiple movements. The first movement in the opening/titled piece is a string of broken Meredith Monk-like voices uttering random numbers over minimal instrumentation. This vocal style continues through the second movement. As the voices create this illusion of pedestrians exchanging dialogues in a busy street, there is a sense of lost that carries through to the third movement. The final movement is painted by thundering distorted noises and xylophone raindrops while frantic and uneasy emotions continue through the recurring voices whispering random numbers.

Although it is accompany by the beautiful and cheerful sounding harpsichord in the first two movements, "Wonders" is mostly overcast by the sad horn theme and gloomy vocals. Overall, the second piece has a Scott Walker’s The Drift feel as it projects a very dark and rather crappy atmosphere.

"The Only Tune" consists of three fantastic movements that blend Muhly’s minimalist style with tradition folk music. Revolving around the theme of a girl who murders her sister in the river, Muhly uses beautiful melodies and Sam Amidon’s delicately gorgeous voice to contrast the horrifyingly violent lyrics. The complexity of Mothertongue is undesirable; it is multi-dimensional, genre bending, and beyond brilliant.

Mothertongue: IV. Monster [super-wicked-cool song]
Wonders II. The Devil Appeared in the Shape of a Man [wicked-cool song]
The Only Tune: I. The Two Sisters [super-wicked-cool song]
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Visit Nico Muhly’s MySpace here
Buy Mothertongue here

woodpigeon: treasury library canada

Currently, the majority of my favourite folk-rock acts are from Canada: Plants and Animals, Great Lake Swimmers, and The Acorn; and I can add one more to that list: Calgary’s Woodpigeon. The common denominator between Woodpigeon’s new album, Treasury Library Canada, and the bands mentioned above is the vocalists’ gorgeous voices and their sweet and passionate lyrics. "7th Fret Over Andres": "If I were a diplomat, I could live wherever I put my hat and I’ll build an island just for you and the total population: two..." Treasury Library Canada is also filled with playful instrumentation and fascinating textures; I especially love when a crescendo of polyphonic textures collapse over Mark Hamilton’s soft voice. Treasury Library Canada is such a rich and in depth album that should stay on your playlist for a long time.

Piano Pieces for Adult Beginners
7th Fret Over Andres [wicked-cool song]
Anna, Girl in the Clocktower
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visit Woodpigeon's MySpace here
buy Treasury Library Canada here

smile upon us: smile upon us

Smile Down Upon Us’ self-titled debut is the result of Phelan Sheppard (electronica duo Keiron Michael Phelan and David John Sheppard from London, England) exchanging ideas and songs with Tokyo vocalist moomLooo through the internet for 14 months. The final product is very experimental sounding; I can’t really think of anything that might sound similar... maybe something by Shugo Tokumaru because of the playful qualities in the music, and "Rayla No Lullaby" sort of reminds me of Bat For Lashes... otherwise, it is indeed quite an unique sounding album. I absolutely love how Smile Down Upon Us feels very free and vibrant; about half of the album is in Japanese, but that should not stop anyone from hearing moomLooo’s mesmerizingly tranquil voice!

Rayla No Lullaby [wicked-cool song]
Ken Ken Pah
A Vessel In The Fragrance [wicked-cool song]
***all files expire in 7 days or until bandwidth reaches its limit

visit Smile Upon Us MySpace here
buy Smile Upon Us here

patiently, patiently

Pitchfork has released fall Deerhunter dates! Microcastle comes out on October 28th, you can per-order it from Insound.

10-31 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
11-01 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel
11-02 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
11-03 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
11-04 Washington, DC - Black Cat
11-05 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
11-06 Princeton, NJ - Terrace F. Club
11-07 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
11-08 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
11-10 Boston, MA - Paradise
11-11 Montreal, Quebec - Theatre Plaza
11-12 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
11-13 Pontiac, MI - Crofoot Ballroom
11-14 Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop
11-15 Chicago, IL - Metro
11-16 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
11-17 Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock Social Club
11-20 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard's on Richards
11-21 Seattle, WA - Neumos
11-22 Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
11-24 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
11-25 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
11-28 San Diego, CA - Casbah
11-29 Phoenix, AZ - Modified Arts
12-01 Dallas, TX - Palladium Loft
12-02 Austin, TX - Emo's Alternative Lounge Outside
12-03 Houston, TX - Warehouse Live
12-04 Baton Rouge, LA - Spanish Moon
12-05 New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks
12-06 Birmingham, AL - Bottletree

jaguar love: take me to the sea

Jaguar Love is the result of two breakups: The Blood Brothers (Johnny Whitney and Cody Votolato) and Pretty Girls Make Graves (Jay Clark). Fans of the two will immediately notice Jaguar Love’s similarities to the former band by just hearing a couple of tracks off Take Me To The Sea. While The Blood Brothers was faster, rougher, harder, and more experimental with their style, Jaguar Love is more polished, catchier, and the band incorporates electronic/dance elements in their full-length debut. I prefer Jaguar Love’s sound at the moment, but I am sure if Take Me To The Sea came out five years ago... the same time as Burn, Piano Island, Burn, it might be a different story.

Bats Over The Pacific Ocean [wicked-cool song]
Humans Evolves Into Skycrapers
My Organ Sounds Like
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visit Jaguar Love's MySpace here
Take Me To The Sea comes out on August 19th, you can pre-order it here

thee silver mt. zion memorial orchestra & tra-la-la band: 13 blues for thirteen moons

13 Blues For Thirteen Moons begins with a soothing instrumental drone intro that is split into 12 very short untitled tracks before springing into the intensive politically driven "1,000,000 Died To Make This Sound". Efrim Menuck brings a protest/demonstration impression to all four songs through his anguish chanting-like vocals. The forceful and catastrophic sound provides a backdrop of hardship and disagreement while the loud and melodic finishes suggest a triumphant end by overcoming adversities. Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band’s latest is one heck of an album to digest, it is rather abstract and sometime pretentious; but once you absorb it fully, it can actually be quite brilliant!

1,000,000 Died To Make This Sound [wicked-cool song]
***all files expire in 7 days or until bandwidth reaches its limit

visit Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band's official site here
buy 13 Blues For Thirteen Moons here

loxsly: flashlighs ep

Loxsly captures the seriousness and emotional aspect of I Was a Cub Scout and the catchy rhythm and melodies of Spoon. The band’s latest, Flashlights EP, features four sensational indie pop tracks that will definitely leave you hungry for more... it is easily one of the best EPs of 2008!

Chopper [wicked-cool song]
Virgin Isles [wicked-cool song]
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visit Loxsly's MySpace here
buy Flashlights EP here

cover song of the moment

"A Forest" is being covered by Bat For Lashes for Perfect As Cats: A Tribute to The Cure, out on October 28th. Check out the cover below.

Bat For Lashes: A Forest (The Cure cover) [wicked-cool song]
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the wave pictures: instant coffee baby

Initially, I got hooked into The Wave Pictures’ Instant Coffee Baby by the bands' laid back 50s rock n roll sound, awesome guitar solos, and the ever so enjoyable handclaps; however, it did not take long for me to realise that the best part about the album is its amusing and captivating lyrics. Let me give you a little sample:

I Love You Like A Madman
"If I made it through Christmas without smoking till your parents went to bed, if you made it through too without sticking your nail scissors in my neck, I'll buy you bras instead of pickled eggs, chocolate instead of chutney, good red wine instead of bad red wine, next time I remember your birthday."

We Come Alive
"You didn’t know that I’ve been writing letters to other girls, in shaky shaky hand writing; we spoon like 50s housewives buzzing like a hive, the room is spinning faster than a 45."
"Well, you were an octopus and I was an orangutan and everybody in there saw the way that we carried on but everyone who knows me knows that I made up all these stories."

Avocado Baby
"You called me over though I drive you crazy, my eyes are still as strong as the avocado baby, though my hands start shaking in the second I waken I am soft and still and lazy and my tongue is on the run and it’s only just begun, did you ever see a good joke turn so sour?"

Just Like A Drummer
"The Sun came in like a pack of orange spaniels through the window over the ledge under the curtain on their bellies creeping and bending."

Lyrics like the ones above are all over Instant Coffee Baby; they are sometimes very random, mostly uplifting and highly entertaining... and that is exactly why I highly recommend this album!

I Love You Like A Madman [wicked-cool song]
Avocado Baby [wicked-cool song]
Strange Fruit Or David [wicked-cool song]
***all files expire in 7 days or until bandwidth reaches its limit

visit The Wave Pictures MySpace here
buy here Instant Coffee Baby here