ALBUM/SHOW REVIEWS
How to be a “rock star DJ”, featuring Justice at HARDfest
This summer, Toronto is hosting the most EDM-saturated, Skrillex-ified festival circuit it has ever seen. The turnout at HARDToronto Saturday (an extention of L.A.’s HARDfest feat. Justice and M83) was impressive – still in the thousands – considering we had the choice of Osheaga and Deadmau5-headlined Veld festivals on that same night. »
Sound In Motion saves the soul of Toronto electronic dance music
There we were, inside a west-end warehouse at an electronic dance music festival in 2012, and neither a big drop nor a WUB WUB WUB to be heard. The walls indeed throbbed, but with 4/4 beats and that deep soulful vibe I can only imagine was present at the original Warehouse. »
NXNE in review: Best bands, BBQ love-ins, and worst party shutdowns
After a day’s recovery, we bring to you our post-mortem on NXNE, where aside from gang violence fears, venue debacles and news of tragedy there was stellar music to be heard. NXNE retains its rep as Canada’s best music fest, which is quickly becoming more and more like SXSW in scope and profile, but... »
Album Review: Mares of Thrace “The Pilgrimage” is the most evil thing
Tearing out of the gate with all the fury and ferocity of their fire-breathing, flesh-eating namesakes, Calgary doom-noise duo (and newest members of Sonic Unyon Metal) Mares of Thrace have unleashed the follow-up to their critically-acclaimed 2010 debut The Moulting. Titled The Pilgrimage and broken into three acts thematically tied to the biblical story... »
Del Bel’s debut album Oneiric: The stuff dreams are made of
About halfway through Oneiric, I began envisioning the album as the soundtrack to a significantly lower-key prequel to Christopher Nolan’s Inception. My imaginary prequel would begin after Leo DiCaprio and Marion Cotillard wash up on the shores of Limbo and ends when they tear themselves out of the dream (this is all quickly summarized... »
Album Review: Phèdre’s debut LP
Electronic music in Toronto is presently enjoying some serious love (see Trust, Austra, Azari & III etc.). Jumping into the party is Phèdre, a collaboration between April Aliermo and Daniel Lee of Polaris Prize-nominees Hooded Fang, and Airick Woodhead of Doldrums fame. Eschewing the surf rock feel of Hooded Fang’s critically acclaimed release, Tosta... »
Album review: Soft Copy “Games” EP
The last time we heard from Soft Copy, it was with their 2010 full-length Vicious Modernism. The record was a good one, with plenty of anthemic lyrics about life, love and the slow decay of our economic and political systems. Heavy shit, and Soft Copy wrapped these tough-love messages in a swirling mix of... »
“Hollandaze” a grimey thick debut from Odonis Odonis
Odonis Odonis’s Blood Feast. With electro, dubstep and neo new wave taking up a large portion of the current indie landscape, it’s not hard to see that the 80’s resurgence is still where it’s at. But amidst all that synth and electronic drums, it’s refreshing to hear a band reviving pieces of the past so... »
Fuck the Facts’ Die Miserable – a progcore masterpiece
Over the past ten years, Ottawa’s Fuck the Facts have assumed the role of Canada’s grindcore flag bearers without even trying. They grew beyond the crusty adolescence of 2001’s Mullet Fever into the Pitchfork-approved fusion-core of 2008’s Disgorge Mexico, and ears outside this most violent of genres finally perked up. »
Album review: Little Girls, Cults EP
Big changes are in the works for Toronto musician Josh McIntyre’s blog-buzzed project Little Girls. In the past year, he’s released his debut LP Concepts, left Paper Bag Records for Hand Drawn Dracula, made Little Girls into a four-piece band and toured cross-Canada with new labelmates Mausoleum. To cap off a career-changing summer, Sept.... »
The best and worst of NXNE 2011
While we didn’t see as many obscure bands as we’d hoped for (too busy trying to get paid to write), we did stumble upon some noteworthy NXNE events, including near-nakedness, a hipster choir, and garage rock in the basement of a boat. - Marsha Casselman, Richard Trapunski »
Album review: Miracle Fortress – Was I the Wave?
Graham Van Pelt, a.k.a Miracle Fortress, has no problem testing our patience. His latest LP Was I the Wave? showed up relatively unannounced in April, four years after the Montreal experimentalist embraced his hermetic tendencies and seemingly vanish into thin air. It’s no surprise Van Pelt’s voice doesn’t appear until well into the album’s... »
Album review: The Sun Through a Telescope’s doom experiment
One thing Canada’s got going for it is the cold winters and desolate small cites – not unlike Norway – in which its young residents get so bored or isolated they become disturbed (see Mark Twitchell) or simply make disturbing art. »
Album review: Tim Hecker Ravedeath, 1972
The cover of Montreal ambient vet Tim Hecker’s new album is a black and white photograph of a bunch of guys throwing a piano off of a tall building. But it isn’t even a photograph; it’s a photograph of a photograph. »
Anagram open Wavelength fest 2011
Last night kicked off “ELEVEN: The Wavelength 11th Anniversary Festival” at The Boat to celebrate a decade-plus of the most respected Toronto event ever to prop up experimental indie bands. “If it’s all downhill from here, who cares?” said wavelength co-mastermind Doc Pickles after locals garage punks Anagram finished their set. »
Album Review: Young Galaxy Shapeshifting
If you’ve been keeping up with Montreal dream pop trio Young Galaxy over the past few years, the first thing you’ll notice about the new album Shapeshifting is that it doesn’t sound anything like them. The rest of your listen will be devoted to deciding whether or not that’s a good thing. »
Besnard Lakes, Suuns, Valleys trip out @ Lee’s
As Besnard Lakes front man Jace Lasek looked out into the near-capacity crowd at Lee’s Palace Saturday night, he admitted, “It’s always shocking to see so many fucking people.” »
Album review: Braids’ Native Speaker
Braids Native Speaker Out today: Canadians buy here Montreal-based experimental indie rockers Braids are 21-year-olds who don’t just yet make for the greatest interview, but that’s not to say we shouldn’t take their debut Native Speaker seriously. These former Calgarians are in a catch 22 – having to live up to hype garnered partly because of... »
Album review: A Year’s Supply of Rabbit’s Feet by The Guest Bedroom
A Year’s Supply of Rabbit’s Feet (out on Popsick Nov. 19) is Toronto outfit The Guest Bedroom’s fourth release and most dramatic, mature to date. Its 11 organ-punk tracks vary with dissociative dance (Tough Luck, streaming below), hints of psychedelia (Dead Ends), and paining, spooky violins (Pulling Teeth). »
Bison BC, Teethmarks rip through an earbleeding set at Sneaky Dee’s
Only in Toronto. Bison BC’s Sneaky Dee’s gig on Friday night saw a weirdly diverse bill of heavy genres try to make peace with each other: Hardcore, 80s thrash metal, Southern bandana-core, and of course the Vancouver headliner’s version of thick-riff wounded-animal metal. »
Upcoming Shows
Vinyl, tickets
Books: The history of Toronto’s scene
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