About a month ago a good friend of mine ask me what my Top 10 favorite albums of all time were and I must've rattled off a good 30 albums before I stopped myself and told him that I would have to get back to him. After a month of endless hours devoted to picking out the best of the best I think I've been able to make a top ten list that will echo through the ages of my life. Now, let me just say that these albums might not be universally accepted by the blogging/indie/scene as great albums but to me they hold great meaning and weight to my life thus far. These 10 albums shaped me into the music lover I am today. I would be no where without them.
Please, feel free to comment with your Top 10...or 5..or 3... I'd love to hear what made you...you.
MF Blaz's Top 10 Albums of His Life in No Particular Order.
You're A Women, I'm A Machine - Death From Above 1979
If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle & Sebastian Alexisonfire - Alexisonfire The Tipping Point - The Roots Ok Computer - Radiohead Songs for the Deaf - Queens of the Stoneage Demon Days - Gorillaz Funeral - Arcade Fire Releationship of Command - At The Drive In Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd
Still riding high off their killer '06 debut The Loon the boys from Minneapolis are ready to release their sophomore album Walk It Off. A few days ago they posted the first track on their website and too be honest it sounds like something that could have come off the Loon. I'm not sure what to make of it yet...but as good as The Loon was...I don't like repeats.
This past weekend I met up with Girl 2 from We Are Not Sharing and we exchanged some tunes. One artist that really caught my eye, especially because I have been on sort of a hip hop streak the past week, was Plan B. From his '07 mixtape Paint It Blacker the rapper from the UK takes classic songs and spits over them. Worth a listen.
Mlle Caro, aka Caroline Laher, is the resident DJ at Paris' Rex Club and Requiem45 parties. Franck Garcia is a producer, composer and DJ in Perpignan. Working together as Mlle Caro & Franck Garcia they have created a minimalist techno album titled Pain Disappears. It was released February 11th on Buzzin' Fly Records.
First and foremost, Björk's next single, "Wanderlust", is being released for retail in a variety of formats on April 7. This is all well and good, but we probably wouldn't have taken even half as much notice were it not for the incredible Ratatat remix included therein. There's no need to hype Ratatat at this point, just have a listen and enjoy. Matthew Herbert provides a remix as well, stay tuned for that nugget.
Next. Daft Punk continues to amaze, and only because some may have missed the 10 minute gem on the Alive bonus disc, here it is (well, below). The mix is "Human After All/Together/One More Time (reprise)/Music Sounds Better With You. It's funny that the last quarter, the original track from Stardust (DP's Bangalter, co-written with Alan Braxe and Benjamin Diamond), sounds as fresh now as it did then.
Lastly. Brighton's The Miserable Rich are a very talented upcoming band to watch. We'd be doing them a disservice to pigeonhole their sound as one thing or another, but I was hooked as soon as I heard a lovely acoustic number called "Pisshead." Even better is their sinister take on Hot Chip's "Over and Over," they'll give you laid back.
The list of games that have transcended their pixelated selves is few and far between. Super Mario has become more pop culture than video game, Final Fantasy has spun 13 sequels and 2 movies but one game that every "gamer" will tell you is in their top 5, Mega Man, has remained relatively a gamers game. Mega Man's second adventure into the dark mechanical world of the evil Dr. Wily is a fucking blast. You blast your way through intricately detailed levels to defeat some of the most memorable and villainous villains in gaming history such as the hot aired Air Man or his evil brother the insane and watery Bubble Man.
Apparently bubbles can maim, apparently bubbles can kill.
One of the best parts about the game though (and I do urge you to grab a copy of it if you have an old Nintendo) is the music. Produced by Manami Matsumae, Ogeretsu Kun, and Yoshihiro Sakaguchi their 8-bit musings really have a very 2008 feel. Some tracks, such as the Flash Man stage have a decidedly hip hop feel to it. What I love is how the tracks can (and have, as you will hear) translate in both 2008 hip hop or 2008 rock. Below are two GREAT covers of the Mega Man 2 soundtrack. One is from Johan Agebjorn who remixes the track and the other is from the MiniBosses, a band that exclusively covers video game music.
As some of our faithful readers know I sometimes ramble on about dumb shit. Sometimes it's really dumb shit. But usually it gets capped off with a nice little song or two.
Today I'm gonna do something different.
We got emailed this remix. I have nothing to say 'cept:
Roaming aimlessly through the blog world you may have noticed Arcade Fire remixes popping up more than usual.ArcadeFire.net are providing some vocal tracks for aspiring and established remixers, including BTA favs Team9. "Black Mirror" is a magnificent song in its original form, but when the many instruments are stripped away and Butler's vocals are supplemented with bleeps, blips, and pounding kicks there are interesting results with varying success. Team9's version is (according to Stereogum) what you'd get with Win wailing over a Justice track. Andrew Maury's version has sporadic synthesizers with industrial-tinged percussion. We even have a chilled-out interpretation from Full Source, which has potential but needs more vocal mixing. There are probably a bunch more we haven't heard, so investigate yourself if you like what you hear.
This past week has been extremely busy on the musical front with the apex being Okkervil River's show on Tuesday at the Scala. Needless to say, they blew away all expectations. But that's not what this post is about. This post is about Londoner Jay Jay Pistolet, the second opener on Tuesday night who singlehandedly brought the Scala's rowdy and impatient audience to absolute silence with his first track. Fervent applause followed and the crowd's attention never wavered (even during annoying audio problems). With a sound reminicent of Elvis Perkins and a mature yet fragile voice, this guy is well worth checking out. His first single 'We Are Free' was released in November.
The Magnetic Fields released their eighth album a few weeks ago. I've always enjoyed Stephin Merritt's combination of quirky and bitter lyrics accompanying sweet indie pop tunes, and Distortion toes the line. Unfortunately, it features one of the worst album covers of all time.
Why are Times New Viking so awesome? Maybe because they sound like The Go! Team, Sonic Youth and the Velvet Underground jamming together in your friend's basement. The Columbus, Ohio band's 3rd album Rip It Off was released by Matador on January 22nd and pretty much every song is stellar. Get it here.
Times New Viking is at the Mod Club in Toronto on February 20th with Jeffrey Lewis and Super Furry Animals.
Though my videographer skills aren't finely tuned yet, considering I did sound, video, questioning, and mic work all at once while being gawked at by band management and friends, it ain't too shabby. Greg and Graham of the band gladly answered my questions and dropped their thoughts on the new album Elephant Shell, Fraggle Rock, Barack Obama, and Ghostface Killah. Enjoy.
After a year and a half of being absolutely bombarded by mash ups one would think that I would start to grow weary of them. Fortunately this is not the case. This morning my good friend Chris a.k.a Ludachris a.k.a the BEAST sent me a killer mash up. M83 vs Aphex Twin vs. Khia.
I'm not a big fan of the lyrics; "My Neck / My Back / Lick my pussy and my Crack" but the sound has great flow and the M83 + Aphex beat is pure chillz.
While it took me a while to clue-in about the late 2007 Wintersleep release Welcome to the Night Sky, I can now say that it is one of my favourite albums released in 07. Better late then never, right?
The 5 piece out of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia has put together a real beauty here. This is the kind of album you can listen to from start to finish without thinking about skipping a track. Whether taking the train home for a much needed rest, or sitting down for a dinner with a great friend, you will find this album to be a spectacular addition to any setting in need of a warm musical complement.
The first single from Welcome to the Night Sky is a catchy tune called"Weighty Ghost", which features vocalist Paul Murphy's questions about death (reminiscent of Jesse Lacey in Brand New's"Jesus Christ"). The album is bookended by its strongest songs; the second track"Archaeologist" and the closer, "Miasmal Smoke & The Yellow Bellied Freaks"are true standouts. Both songs feature brilliant instrumental introductions that get your heart pumping, and then gracefully develop into poetic and vivid stories.
Wintersleepdefinitely deserve the newfound attention they are receiving. Welcome to the Night Sky is yet another reminder that good music from Maritime Canada doesn’t need to feature a fiddle and lyrics about getting pub-crunk.Well done me’ boys. Well done.
Ok, so the band known as Yeasayer has been around the blog circuit for a while, and they deserve it.
No really, they do. If Vampire Weekend was the first real band of "Web 2.0" then Yeasayer are definitely setting themselves up to be next in line, just as Fall Out Boy and Cold War Kids were children of Myspace and social networking sites. Yeasayer's phenomenal debut album, All Hour Cymbals, was dropped on Oct 23rd of last year but really started to pick up steam on the last legs of 2007. The band describes themselves as "Middle Eastern-psych-snap-gospel" which is a safe bet whilst describing their sound. The album is a mix of desert folk and psychedelic vibes all put together with a mix of indie rock.
Yeasayer is playing this weekend in Toronto with MGMT (which we contested some tickets away for) at the El Mocambo.
This Remix Sunday also includes an exclusive BTA track brought to us by DJ Legit. This Toronto born, now Montreal based DJ has been unleashing beats and remixes for years, and is now set to release his first remix album. This is a great, and somewhat humorous beat over an old classic. Notorious B.I.G - Juicy (DJ Legit Remix)
'Ride Into The Sun', one of the Velvet Underground's "lost tracks", was ultimately released on the compilation album Another View. Originally recorded in September 1969, this instrumental version waited 17 years to be officially released. An alternate mix with vocals also exists, and Lou Reed eventually recorded a new version for his 1972 debut solo album. The Velvet Underground - Ride Into The Sun
That's right, RATATAT's excellent second hip-hop remix album is now available from the boys' website for free. Self-released and previously only distributed at live shows (for $5), the album has recently been made available online in its entirety as a free download. The 14 tracks include mixes of vocals from artistis such as Notorious B.I.G., Kanye West, The Game, Ludacris, Memphis Bleek, T.I., Young Buck, Juvenile and Jay-Z with beats from a leaked instrumental album and other material. Grab the album here and read more about it here.
Check out some of the original instrumental tracks sans lyrics:
Oh yeah, and according to Wikipedia, "it has been rumored that they will be signed by Star Trak as the understudies of the Neptunes." WTF Wikipedia? How do you know this shiz?
The Boondocks, a late-night cartoon on Adult Swim, is probably one of the most politically charged and effortlessly hilarious television shows out right now. The plot follows two brothers who moved from the Chi to the suburbs and their struggle trying to find peace in the 'burb life. Huey, the shows main protagonist and narrator, is a young revolutionary fighting for the struggles of the African-American community. The very first scene of the series shows Huey at a high-brow upper-class function. He grabs the microphone from the hired band's singer and proclaims, "Excuse me. Everyone, I have a brief announcement to make. Jesus was black, Ronald Reagan was the devil, and the government is lying about 9-11. Thank you for your time and goodnight. " The all-white crowd then goes into a frenzy: throwing chairs, starting fires and fighting with themselves. Huey then wakes up. It really sets the tone for the rest of the show. Huey's younger brother Riley is an aspiring rap star and gangster who hangs out with two older white gangsters (played by Samuel L. Jackson and Charlie Murphy) who, in one episode, try (and fail) to kidnap Oprah. The reason? They think that by kidnapping Oprah they will be able to tell all the middle-class white women to do their bidding. The show gets absolutely ridiculous at times but stays fresh and hilarious with every plot twist.
Anyways, the soundtrack to the show is absolutely crazy and the underground mix tape master Dub Floyd threw together a great little mix that features Asheru (who also does the show's theme song) hosting through a phenomenal line up of slam poets and killer MC's. All the tracks feature some great wordmanship and every MC has almost impeccable flow on every track.
Off "Hip Hop Doctrine: The Official Boondocks Mixtape" Panthers - Dead Prez, Common, Last Poets Politricks - Akir The Format - AZ feat. Rakim *** The Hustle - Black Lincolns
Cheers, MF Blaz
bonus, heres a little video of a great fight scene between Huey and Riley.
I recently grabbed a copy of last year's V Live, a live performance by French electronic master Vitalic recorded at Ancienne Belgique, Brussels on October 27th 2006. His 2005 album OK Cowboy was chock full of epic tracks including the classic 'La Rock 01' and my personal favourite 'Trahison'. Unfortunately, 'Trahison' was not included in the live session captured for V Live, but I did notice it soundtracking an advert for a Toshiba laptop to great effect on British TV the other day.
Been on a bit of an instrumental kick in the last couple days, makes for a good soundtrack to Gonzo, the oral biography of Hunter S. Thompson that's been consuming a fair bit of my time this week (highly hilarious and highly recommended). San Marcos, Texas-based band This Will Destroy You drop their self-titled debut full length tomorrow and its Explosions in the Sky-style grandeur is effective as both a reading aid and soundtrack to a walk through a snowy downtown. I've yet to hear it accompany more heart-racing activities like drunken bumper cars, mongoose/cobra fighting, or Australian sky-diving*, but it would probably do the trick in any of the above.
This Will Destroy You - Threads
*more from BTA soon on what music would suit this form of amusement.
Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha was one of my favourite 2007 albums, so I was naturally pleased to discover that our fine feathered friend has recently made an EP of rarities (odds and ends, really) available on his European tour. The EP's 8 songs include early/alternate versions of tracks from last year's album, compilation contributions, a live cut, a new track and a Bob Dylan cover. Get your hands on a copy if you can.
In typical information age fashion, the new album from Stephen Malkmus (formerly of Pavement and the Silver Jews) and The Jicks slated for release on March 4th is now available online (illegally, of course) through all the usual suspects.
Although I've only given it a few listens, I like it already. Standout tracks include 'Hopscotch Willie' and 'Baltimore'. Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks - Baltimore
So I was going through the BTA email account, trying to make my way through:
MAKE YOUR PENIS LARGER! YES YOU, BRIDGINGTHEATLANTIC, MAKE ITBIGGER!!
Hypothetically speaking, if BTA did have a penis, I'm sure that it would not need enhancement. I'm not trying to brag, but it's true. And now you might be asking, "Yo bridgingtheatlantic, what the fuck does spam and penis' have to do with The OaKs?". Well, not a thing...but the email after that was from Frantic, a promotion company based out of New York. Turns out they're pushing a band called the OaKs hailing from the Orlando, Florida. The story goes that the lead singer lived in Afghanistan post 9/11. Apparently he sold everything he had, a-la Into the Wild, and joined a humanitarian mission.
From the Press Release:
Costello [Ryan Costello, Vocals] lived there for two years, working in the Central Afghan Mountains with returned refugees, teaching them creative agricultural techniques and becoming fluent in their native language, Farsi. Late at night, while the dust storms blocked out the stars and rattled the windows, he would sit and work out impressions of what he had seen and heard that day on his acoustic guitar. Costello also documented his time in Afghanistan with a series of moving portraits which can be viewed at ryancostello.com.
When he was there he met a man named Masood. The two developed a close relationship and Ryan was there to bear witness to Masood's father's death.
From the Press Release:
Three years later, as Costello sat around in his living room in Florida one summer strumming on his classical guitar, he began working on a song that would weave in the story of Masood with another Masood who was killed in late 2001, Ahmad Shaw Masood. An Afghan mythic hero who rose up mighty armies to fight first the Russians and then later the Taliban, Masood from an early age carried himself as a warrior and a walking message to his people never to let themselves be ruled from without. Called “The Lion of Panshir”, Masood gave hope to his people in a hopeless time. As a composite of one personal friendship and one mythic story, Masood came to be one of the centerpieces of The OaKs’ new album Songs For Waiting.
Their sophomore release, Songs for Waiting, will be available on March 4th but you can stream the whole album from here.
My initial thoughts, void of research: a band that calls themselves Working For a Nuclear Free City is either a) young and idealistic to the point of naivety, b) the result of weening a child on nothing but Bono, or c) politically inclined folk who honestly but mistakenly believe their music can help forward and/or highlight this cause. After listening to some material, it's clear that thankfully none of my preconceptions apply.. yet any of them could be correct, I guess. How any post-rock instrumental act can broadcast a political stance without singing a lyric is anybody's guess, but for their sake it's great that the music doesn't suck. What an endorsement, but seriously they are worth checking out, particularly bonus track "Asleep at the Wheel" from 2007's Businessmen & Ghosts. The song has enough force out of the gates, but really gathers its steam as additional guitar and string layers are packed on. The Manchester outfit hits the Hoxton Square Bar in London on Feb. 13.
In the middle of 2007, a year that saw the release of many great albums, I stumbled upon a band called Frog Eyes. Now, I wasn't exactly throwing myself around to find out about them, their name didn't seem to do it for me. But I did get a chance to listen to a few of their tracks off of their SEVENTH release Tears of the Valedictorian and what they lacked in a band name they made up in musical talent. I'm not saying the album or the band is the greatest thing since sliced bread, but I am saying that they are definitely worth checking out if your out of music on a boring afternoon.
The video for their first single, Idle Songs, presents to us a vision of the world from the eyes of frogs. Wait...no I doesn't. Actually I have no fucking clue what the video is supposed to be about. Drunken, bearded hobos walk around spliced with pictures of paintings and my favorite; a horse with a dart (cigarette) in it's mouth. What the fuck? I feel like I'm tripping on acid.
Any fan of Justice's "Phantom" has to listen to the track "Tenebre" by Italian prog-rock band Goblin. More than just an inspiration, "Phantom" is basically a remixed version of this cut from the sountrack of Dario Argento's violent 1982 film of the same name.
And by the way, 'tenebre' is Italian for darkness.
Any day that involves last-minute, spontaneous chats with Swedish indie-popsters is a good day by all accounts. So the fact that my afternoon included a brief hang out with the boys affectionately known as Peter, Bjorn & John made waking up this morning a great decision.
PB&J are in Toronto tonight playing a soldout show at the Phoenix, their second in less than a calendar year. After this tour, it's back to the studio to begin recording on the follow-up to 2006's gigantic hit (critically and commercially) Writer's Block.
We talked a bit about the new album, the success of the Swedish music scene, and why the band seems to enjoy coming to Canada.
BTA: 2007 was a successful year for many Swedish artists internationally Jens Lekman, Jose Gonzalez, the Sounds, etc.) and 2006 was pretty solid, too. What exactly is happening over there that's causing the international eyes to turn toward Sweden?
PBJ:The music scene in Sweden isn’t any stronger than it was, but I guess when one band starts to get attention, it helps out all the other bands around them.And also the internet obviously has a lot to do with that.
BTA: What about the Swedish artists who aren't getting enough recognition outside of their homeland? Any bands you think deserve more attention?
PBJ: There’s a band called the Bear Quartet that have been around forever that we've always liked. They've released fourteen albums now, over like fifteen years. Also, there’s a bunch of side projects from them as well.
BTA: So you're doing a few shows here and then down to Mexico and LA for a couple more. What's next for PB&J? Any details on album plans?
PBJ: We're going to head back home and start working on a new album. We're going to take our time on it, though. We definitely won't be working every day. But we hope to have it finished by the end of summer.
BTA:Writer's Block was officially released in 2006 to a lot of critical success, and then still managed to find its way on a bunch of "best of" lists for 2007. Has the longevity of the album surprised you?
PBJ: It’s great that it just keeps growing. But it wasn’t released in proper physical form in a lot of countries, like Canada and the US until February. And there are still some countries, like Brazil, who still haven’t released it but want to. So who knows how long it will go.
What’s funny is that we won a Swedish Grammy for it in 2006, and then were nominated for more in 2007 with the same album. We asked the girl at the record label in Sweden how that’s even possible, and she said it has something to do with it being re-released with a second disc.
BTA: Your website mentions Canada as one of your favourite countries to play. What is it about Canada that has left such a favourable impression?
PBJ: We haven’t been here a lot, but when we have played, the crowds have always been big and really great. We’ve only been to Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal and this (tonight at Phoenix in Toronto) will be maybe our tenth show. But we’ve always really enjoyed ourselves. I think our countries share a lot in common in terms of taste.So we feel pretty at home here.
Attention Dominion Shoppers - Chocolate Milk is $0.99 today and until supplies last.
In other news, probably the premiere music festival in North America, Indio, CA's annual Coachella Music & Arts Festival tossed forth its lineup today for all to admire and begin to dream of summer.
This year the now three-day festival falling on the last weekend of April has made some interesting choices that have resulted in some bad buzz already.
I must admit it is quite unnerving to read that every aunt's favourite surfer boy Jack Johnson is the headliner on the first night of the festival. And, certainly some of the other headlining names seem a bit disappointing, not necessarily because of what names are present but rather for those which are noticeably absent. Despite the speculation that they may kick off their much-anticipated summer touring at the festival, Radiohead is probably the biggest name absent. Also missing are others who I personally had my fingers crossed for such as Tokyo Police Club, Of Montreal, or the Decemberists, who had to cancel their fall tour due to band illness. Instead, reunions from bands like Portishead, Love and Rockets, the Verve and Kraftwerk have been substituted yet fail to fill the void.
But it is in the finer print of the lineup where Coachella 2008 shapes up to be promising. The festival brings together a diverse blend of 2007's most mentioned in MIA, Justice, the National, Diplo, and others while managing quite impressively to anticipate what's next. Santogold, MGMT, Vampire Weekend, the Teenagers, and New Young Pony Club bring the next generation along with a slew of other artists whose buzz is already in the boiling process. (For readers in the Toronto area, enter to win a pair of tickets to the February MGMT show here.)
From a home base perspective, my fellow Canadians have to be happy with a solid showing including A&C-ites Stars (but no Feist), as well as Tegan & Sara, Chromeo, Holy Fuck, Metric and certainly others.
Ultimately, the lineup is diverse and promising but seems to be lacking in too many clinchers with many people. But with that much young talent on the verge this festival is likely to be a grower rather than a shower.
Here's a summer-inspired 2008 Coachella preview grab bag to help you fend off the rest of the winter months. Download here.
Vampire Weekend - Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa The Teenagers - Homecoming M.I.A. - Jimmy MGMT - Kids Battles - Ddiamondd Black Lips - O Katrina! Tegan & Sara - Nineteen
In my zeal to share new musical discoveries, I often forget that my friends across the pond aren't exposed to the (sometimes excellent) bands that we in the UK seem to be all too aware of. The Maccabees are one such example. The Brighton-based group's debut album Colour It In has been out for ages (April? May?) and when I saw these guys at Reading in August the crowd was insane.
50hertz sounds like what would happen if Think About Life teamed up with some dudes on ADATAT records. in other words, an 8-bit dance party. sewingmachine is highly, highly recommended.
Ignore the poster above. Vampire Weekend is actually busy in London town; at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen tomorrow night and Push on Saturday. The first show is sold out but I think tickets are still available for the second gig. With the new album to be released worldwide January 28/29, I bet they'll have even more songs up their striped sleeves than when I saw them at the Borderline a few months ago.
According to Hoxton Bar and Kitchen's website:
Fresh off their UK tour with the Shins, their debut album going out in January released on XL Recordings, the best thing out of New York since ... (insert favourite NY band here), hype being raised EVERYwhere! How could you miss this?
Vampire Weekend bring you their unique slice of folk-indie-punk chopped up with some African influenced guitar rhythm and spiky vocals. The songs run round your head for hours until you're learnt every instrumental and vocal part. Frankly, you should buy a ticket right now.
Lightning struck about 100 yards away from me the other day here in OZ...After my eardrums stopped ringing, I took it as a sign to post more from my side of the world. So I thought I'd mention The Wombats. The Liverpool band's 'Moving to New York' was re-released on January 14th, but it's been the track "Kill the Director" thats been getting a lot of play on Aussie radio. I really enjoy the original, but have currently been digging the CSS remix. The band is about to embark on what looks like a fairly rigorous touring schedule in the next few days, and will be arriving in Sydney in March so I will make my best attempt to be in attendance and see how these guys roll live. For now enjoy the track and see if you can make it to the one of many European dates.
We've been following the Toronto duo, Crystal Castles, for quite some time now and we are so close to their first full length it was time for them to release a video. Now, I'm not to sure if I agree with two of the fundamental things that a video needs to succeed.
First, the song: I don't think Air Wars was the wisest choice for their first video. If the point of a video is to capture a new audience into listening to your music then I thought that Crimewaves would have been the best choice. But I'm not Crystal Castles nor do I know them.
Second, the concept: I just don't understand this one. They walk around with ice cream cones substituted for heads? What is that? Are they trying to copy Daft Punk's Da Funk? Probably not, but the dog head concept is way cooler than the ice cream head.
All n' all it doesn't really matter as everyone from BTA is totally stoked for their debut.
[Video]Air Wars - Crystal Castles
Don't want to give you my real fake name because my head is about to explode and this post probably makes very little sense; Mystery Man
There's shit show in the air today around the streets of downtown Toronto. A certain brand of shit show which is reserved strictly for the parties brought by Hollywood, CA's most hipsterest DJ/party monster Steve Aoki.
Tonight, Aoki brings his asian-sweat dance party to the recently-opened Tattoo Rock Parlour, along with Ed Banger supercutie Uffie. The pair, who have built incredible buzz despite having yet to release any records, are a prime example of the "attitude-over-talent" approach which has hit a chord with today's party-goers worldwide. Neither are producing any content indicative of overt musical prowess, in my opinion, but none of this really seems to matter to the legions of walking/talking American Apparel ads who have been shitting themselves over this party, put on by the Queen of the Toronto party scene, Anna Von Frances of Pink Mafia.
With about three-zillion kids RSVPed on effbook, It's likely I'll be the only human being not at Tattoo tonight. Not that I deny it will be a fantastic party, because it certainly will be. I guess I just don't care that much. That, and my one-piece bright purple unitard is in the wash.
Aoki's debut album, Pillowface and His Airplane Chronicles, which at times treads the line between remixing and straight-up thiefing the music of others (check out the 1:53 of untouched Refused sample which kicks off album snippet #1 on his myspace page), is out January 22nd on Thrive/Dim Mak. Apart from the questionable Refused usage, however, the album does boast some pretty interesting remixes (most of which aren't his own) and features a whole whack of guest vocalists, including Peaches, Hot Hot Heat's Steve Bay, and Todd Fink of the Faint on his remix of Goose's Bring it On.
The Tough Alliance were responsible for one of my favourite releases of 2007, A New Chance. Not included on that album was the excellent single 'Taken Too Young', released back in August. The track is actually a remix; the original is by Taken By Trees, the project of fellow Swede Victoria Bergsman (formerly of the Concretes). The original is great, and TTA's remix is possibly even better.
The Mars Volta are one of the first bands that I absolutely fell in love with upon first listen. I remember I was sitting on a plane on my way back from Italy and my friend handed me their then-recently-released De-Loused In The Comatorium. By the end of Intertiatic E.S.P, all I wanted to do was run up and down the aisles screaming, "NOW I'M LOST. NOW I'M LOST."
Classic moment. De-Loused is definitely one of my favorite concept albums of all-time and even though their second full-length, Frances the Mute, does not reach such a standard, it is a brilliant prog-rock album that will rock throughout the ages.
Amputechture? I don't want to talk about Amputechture.
Now the former members of At the Drive-In are set to release their forth full-length album entitled The Bedlam in Goliath and it definitely has been set up as their return to a more instrument based spacey sound, and not just "we did lots of acid and thought the ambient noise on the moons of Jupiter were fucking rad" sound. The first track released, Wax Simulacra, cuts out all the fluff that surrounded much of the Volta's previous albums and hits right to the point with great effect. The music is as hard-hitting as it was on De-loused and Cedric's lyrics and vocals keep the same ethereal sound scape that they are known for.
The album is set to be released on Jan 29th and they have put up a website with a puzzle that supposedly gives away details about the background concept for the album.
Ok, the title is totally lame; but really "constant" or "consistent" are the words that best describe The Constantines, the boys from Guelph, ON. Releasing three great albums and three great EPs in the span of four great years it was safe to assume that after the demise of Three Gut Records they would press on and press on they did. They even landed a spot on one of Canada's premiere indie labels, Arts & Crafts, who will be releasing their latest sometime in April. The untimely demise of Three Gut happened right smack dab in the middle of the recording sessions for their forth album and from the sounds of things it has helped the band grow and progress.
They will be releasing their first 7' EVER, Hard Feelings, next week on Tuesday but it will also be available as a digital download at those popular digital download websites.
Today is an exciting day in BTA land. It marks the first-ever contest that we've hosted, and I personally can't think of a pair of bands that I'd rather be sharing this monumental occasion with than MGMT and Yeasayer.
Thanks to our friends at Red Ink, we've got a pair of tickets for their February 9th show at the El Mocambo in Toronto, as well as a copy of MGMT's debut album, Oracular Spectacular, due out January 22nd in Canada.
This news comes on the same day that MGMT is making their major television debut, performing on David Letterman tonight, January 8th. Tune in and check it out.
So, to enter this inaugural BTA contest, email us with "MGMT/Yeasayer tickets!" in the subject line, and answer the following question: which song did MGMT perform on Letterman? Also include your full name and contact info. We'll be drawing a winner from successful entries on Friday, February 1st.
Acting on a tip from a friend, I checked out Juno a few nights ago and was suitably impressed. Not only is it a clever and engaging film, but I was especially taken with the excellent folksy/twee soundtrack. Belle & Sebastian, The Kinks, Sonic Youth, The Velvet Underground, Cat Power, and Buddy Holly are among the artists featured, and Kimya Dawson contributes a handful of sweet gems to provide consistency. A few cuts are available below, but I highly recommend picking up the entire album.
01) "All I Want Is You" – Barry Louis Polisar 02) "Rollercoaster" – Juno Film Version - Kimya Dawson 03) "A Well Respected Man" – The Kinks 04) "Dearest" – Buddy Holly 05) "Up The Spout" – Mateo Messina 06) "Tire Swing" – Kimya Dawson 07) "Piazza, New York Catcher" – Belle & Sebastian 08) "Loose Lips" – Kimya Dawson 09) "Superstar" – Sonic Youth 10) "Sleep" – Instrumental - Kimya Dawson 11) "Expectations" – Belle & Sebastian 12) "All The Young Dudes" – Mott The Hoople 13) "So Nice So Smart" – Kimya Dawson 14) "Sea of Love" – Cat Power 15) "Tree Hugger" – Kimya Dawson and Antsy Pants 16) "I'm Sticking With You" – Velvet Underground 17) "Anyone Else but You" – The Moldy Peaches 18) "Vampire" – Antsy Pants 19) "Anyone Else But You" – Ellen Page and Michael Cera
Vice will be distributing The Raveonettes long-awaited album Lust Lust Lust on Feb. 19th in North America. Early press has suggested a bit of deviation from the aesthetic found on Pretty in Black, saying that the instrumentation strays farther from 50's and 60's rock and roll into more fuzzed out 80's territory. This progression has been greatly exaggerated, however, and though songs like "You Want the Candy" are certainly louder than what the band's put out, tracks like "Dead Sound" or more common and sound similar to what we're used to from the band. Check the tour in a town near you or take the family on a road trip to Hoboken, New Jersey, what the heck!
January 19 New York, NY @ Terminal 5 (with Blonde Redhead) February 29 San Diego, CA @ The Casbah March 1 Pomona, CA @ Glasshouse 2 Costa Mesa, CA @ Detroit Bar 4 Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theater 5 San Francisco, CA @ The Independant 7 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge 8 Vancouver, BC @ The Plaza Niteclub 9 Seattle, WA @ Neumos 12 Austin, TX @ SXSW 13 Austin, TX @ SXSW 14 Austin, TX @ SXSW 15 Austin, TX @ SXSW 16 Austin, TX @ SXSW 17 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry 18 Chicago, IL @ Double Door 19 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick 21 Toronto, ON @ Opera House 22 Montreal, QC @ Les Saint 23 Hoboken, NJ @ Maxwells 24 Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club 27 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brendas 28 Baltimore, MD @ The Ottobar 29 Washington, DC @ Black Cat
So not only did they release a full and unreal album on the net for however much you wanted to pay for it but now radiohead has also released a 60 minute DVD quality video of them preforming all the songs off In Rainbows. The video, Scotch Mist, shows the band in the studio rawking the instruments. Let me tell you, it's great to see Johnny helming a guitar again and not some random 1950's synth or Thom belting out the lyrics to Bodysnatchers while hammering away at his 6 string. Anyways, it goes without saying that the video is worth every second of watching or even just let it play in the background as it sounds great as a live set.
When it comes to year-end, it seems like everyone has to weigh in on what their favourite music of the past twelve months. In bloggerland, this is especially true. At BTA, we're no different except that there are multiple opinions that get expressed.
This is the third full mix posted by us, both MFBlaz and a.m.p.m. have beaten me to the punch (which isnt hard to do considering we're nearly a full week into 2008). But not to be outdone, here is a mix of what I consider to be the finest music of this past year.
Since I'm notoriously poor in the technical department, the mix isn't mixed per say, but that doesn't mean that thought wasn't put into the order of the songs.
Download the entire mix right here, or click below for individual tracks.
A lot of the above have wound up on many people's best of's (at least the artist/album, if not the song). But if i could personally recommend one of the lesser-knowns, I'd like to point you, the BTA faithful, toward Toronto indie folk/country wonders the Wooden Sky. Their 07 release When Lost at Sea is definitely a contender for my favourite Canadian album of the year. I've been meaning to post fully on these guys, which I still intend to do - so keep your eyes (and ears) out.
For nostalgia purposes, my 2003 mix is available here.
I don't really have time to get into the details for this post but I recently (as of 10 minutes ago) got my hands on the first track off of Crystal Castles highly anticipated self titled debut set to be released for mass consumption in March. The Toronto natives first track off their new album album is a great indication of what we have to look forward to.
If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle & Sebastian
Alexisonfire - Alexisonfire
The Tipping Point - The Roots
Ok Computer - Radiohead
Songs for the Deaf - Queens of the Stoneage
Demon Days - Gorillaz
Funeral - Arcade Fire
Releationship of Command - At The Drive In
Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd
If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle & Sebastian
Alexisonfire - Alexisonfire
The Tipping Point - The Roots
Ok Computer - Radiohead
Songs for the Deaf - Queens of the Stoneage
Demon Days - Gorillaz
Funeral - Arcade Fire
Releationship of Command - At The Drive In
Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd
Ok, so the band known as 
My initial thoughts, void of research: a band that calls themselves 
In the middle of 2007, a year that saw the release of many great albums, I stumbled upon a band called 
