“How you doin’ Bexhill?”

It’s probably the least rock and roll phrase ever. Quite why Vampire Weekend (who later confirm that it is “our first time in town”) are playing Bexhill isn’t immediately apparent. That said, it doesn’t stop them putting on a show to remember, turning the masterpiece of modernist architecture that is the De La Warr Pavilion in to a steamy, writhing mess of excitement.

Vancouver’s Fan Death, who hit the stage first, are in an unenviable position- the youthful crowd is unfamiliar with their work, and eager to see their heroes. Such is the life for the support band on a pop tour. Thankfully their mixture of spiky new wave and string driven disco does get a large proportion of the room dancing. Clad in sequin hotpants and glitter, frontwoman Dandi shimmies, bends and high-kicks her way through the set, a constant ball of energy. Continue Reading

Andrew Vincent is proof positive of the sheer abundance and quality of the music scene in Canada over the last decade, ably demonstrated by The Line OF Best Fit’s very own regular feature Oh! Canada. Little known outside his homeland, Rotten Pear is Vincent’s fifth album and the first after a five year recording hiatus. Bereft of his backing band the Pirates, the album is lent an air of intimacy by being recorded at home in Toronto with producer Jarrett Bartlett.

The album veers between gently plucked acoustic numbers and a reconfiguration of garage rock, replete with primal stand up drumming and scratchy guitar, which is counterpointed with Vincent’s baleful vocals. Occasionally rambling lyrics are wedded to subtle subversions of the construct of ‘rock’ music across the album, culminating in the friction between the subject matter of ‘Going Out Tonight’ and its breezy, soulful execution. Elsewhere the gossamer thin strands of melody that shift and sway during ‘Sleep To Dream’ offer a subtle change of pace, as does the cello and woodwind driven title track. Perhaps the only misstep is the cover of Kate Bush’s ‘Hounds of Love’ which closes the album. The ubiquity of both the original and the Futureheads version mean that while the song itself isn’t ‘untouchable’, subsequent versions will always have to bear comparison. Vincent’s version strikes off on its own tangent. Woozy and somnambulant, the song is stripped down to its core elements. A diverting if not entirely successful version, but Vincent has plenty more arrows in the quiver. Continue Reading

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Welcome once again to Oh! Canada, TLOBF’s one stop shop for the best new music coming out of Canada. We kick off the year with a bumper crop of artists, going from spiky New Wave to minimal folk ballads and taking in heavenly harmonies, parping horn sections, sweeping strings and plenty of fuzzed up guitar along the way. Following up on our review of 2009, we’ve tried to give you a sample of our guest reviewers tips for this year and highlight some of the acts that they felt you needed to hear. Plus we are very pleased to say that when we bumped in to Andrew Vincent at Shhh! Festival earlier this week he gave us an exclusive sneak peak from his upcoming EP, in the form of ‘Ambassador Bridge’.

Our thanks to all the artists for agreeing to take part in Oh! Canada, and for tipping us off on what they like hearing! Please click on the links to find out more about each of the artists involved, and as ever there are a few extra freebies lurking somewhere within.

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[.zip] Oh! Canada Volume 7
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Things have changed in the music world recently. It used to be that if you were a musician with time on your hands you’d go slightly mental between tours, take a bunch of drugs, wind up in a rehab establishment, leave said establishment and tell the press of your “drug hell”. The next step was to reconvene with your band and make an album about your drug hell whilst re-establishing your connections and rediscovering just what made your drug hell so awesome in the first place.

These days if you’re a musician and you’ve got a few hours to spare, heading off into the country to find yourself and record a solo album is the thing to do. It worked for Bon Iver after all, and now it would appear that similar downtime has paid dividends for Wintersleep’s Paul Murphy. Continue Reading

Hot off the Matador Records blog, via P4K, is news that The New Pornographers have readied a new album.

Due for release around the 4th May, it’ll be called Together. It’s their fifth full-length and was produced by the band and Phil Palazzolo, and recorded in Vancouver, Brooklyn, Woodstock, and Catskill, NY.

The album is comprised of 9 A.C. Newman songs and 3 Dan Bejar numbers, and features the full eight-person lineup of Carl, Dan, John Collins, Neko Case, Kurt Dahle, Kathryn Calder, Todd Fancey and Blaine Thurier. Additional musicians include Annie Clark (St. Vincent), Zach Condon (Beirut), Will Sheff (Okkervil River), and the Dap-Kings Horns, among other talents.

Until we have further news on this, you can go to their new website, which features nice new photos of the recording sessions.

It is with great sadness that we report Canadian folk legend Kate McGarrigle passed away at her home in Montreal on Monday. McGarrigle was diagnosed with clear cell sarcoma, a rare form of cancer in 2006. She set up the Kate McGarrigle Fund at McGill University Health Centre in 2008 in order to raise awareness of the disease.

Despite her illness, McGarrigle continued to create artwork and music. Her final performance saw her play The Royal Albert Hall in London, alongside her children Martha and Rufus Wainwright. The concert raised $55,000 for Kate’s Charity.

A statement from sister Anna on the McGarrigles website simply states: “She departed in a haze of song and love surrounded by family and good friends. She is irreplaceable and we are broken-hearted.”

Kate’s newest song, Perosophina, Live at The Albert Hall (via mcgarrigles.com)

The McGarrigle Sisters: A Life In Folk (a loving and comical tribute to the sisters music starring Rufus and Martha as Kate and Anna) (link via www.Mcgarrigles.com)

[Kate McGarrigle Image via Dfrancois at en.wikipedia via a Creative Commons License]

Thee Silver Mount Zion Orchestra have confirmed a full UK tour for March, hot on the heals of their eagerly anticipated new album Kollaps Tradixionales.

March
16 BRISTOL, Fleece
17 BIRMINGHAM, Asylum
18 DUBLIN, The Button Factory
19 GLASGOW, School Of Art
21 MANCHESTER, Academy 3
22 LEEDS, TJ’s Woodhouse Social Club
23 LONDON, Electric Ballroom
24 NOTTINGHAM, Rescue Rooms
25 SHEFFIELD, Corporation
26 OXFORD, The Regal
27 BRIGHTON, St George Church

Don’t forget you can stream/download a track from the band’s newly launched blog.

There are several moments during Heartland, Owen Pallett’s superb new record, where the songs reach a level so intensely personal and revealing that it almost feels uncomfortably invasive, as if we’re unavoidably listening in through paper thin walls on Pallett tentatively starting a relationship that eventually dissolves into tears and anguish. But the intimate portrayal that reveals itself over the course of the album is so gripping and compelling that you can’t really focus on anything else, becoming a nameless participant in the affair just by witnessing its dissolution. And if all that sounds like too much of a soap opera for you, nonetheless give Heartland a chance, for this wonderful album is far more operatic than soapy, and the arrangements are all quite lush and gorgeous, soaring effortlessly along with Pallett’s dulcet vocals. The Meta-narrative is just a part of the story that unfolds on the album, with Pallett’s lively compositions coming to vibrant life with the help of (amongst others) the Czech Philharmonic, Nico Muhly and the subtle drumming of Arcade Fire’s Jeremy Gara. It all adds up to a riveting, engaging album that surprises as much as it soothes, keeping you listening with rapt attention while allowing your thoughts to roam free along with the cadence of the music. Continue Reading

End of the Road Festival have announced their latest crop of bands for their 5th festival today. Although no headliners have been announced to join Wilco, The Unthanks, Django Django, The Felice Brothers, Megafaun and Dengue Fever have all been popular choices if our Twitter feed is to be believed. There’s also a strong Canadian presence, and Oh! Canada is particularly pleased to see Black Mountain, Timber Timbre and Elliot Brood joining The Wilderness of Manitoba on the bill.

Todays full announcement:

The Antlers
Black Mountain
Cate Le Bon
Daredevil Christopher Wright
Deer Tick
Dengue Fever
Django Django
Don’t Move
Elliott Brood
Felice Brothers
Forest Fire
Frank Fairfield
Jessica Lea Mayfield
Joe Pug
Jonny Kearney & Lucy Farrell
Ladyhawk
Megafaun
Mountain Man
Nurses
Papercuts
The Ruby Suns
Snowman
Timber Timbre
The Unthanks

To celebrate the return of Black Mountain to these shores, those good folk at Jagjaguwar have provided two tracks for you to download:
MP3> Druganaut
MP3> Tyrants
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Andrew Vincent has a special place in the hearts of Oh! Canada – indeed, it was with his track “Canadian Dream” that the very first Oh! Canada compilation started last year. By the end of the year the song saw Andrew nominated for a CBC Bucky award for “Most Canadian Song”, while his album graced many end of year lists in his native land. Indeed, he even featured in Oh! Canada’s own end of year lineup with a name check from The Acorn’s Rolf Klausener. With his album Rotten Pear coming out in the UK on the 25th January, and a UK tour including a performance at the TLOBF sponsored Shhh Festival, we thought it was about time we introduced you properly to the great man. Continue Reading

It may seem that Spencer Krug never gets tired. The man behind Wolf Parade and Sunset Rubdown announced late last year that he was to release yet another record, this time under the name Moonface. As if to prove he does actually sleep during his breaks from making music, the website for his new project features a selection of Krug’s rather lucid dreams, which form the source material for the music on the EP. The dreams are wild and varied, and include a rather vivid incident involving Neil Young using a bottle of red wine to disinfect a table. It’s probably best that you read the rest.

Those of you with a more exhibitionist bent may want to contribute your own dreams on the sites dream forum. You can leave your dreams, and download the 20 minute Dreamland EP: Marimba and Shit Drums from his website Moonface.ca now in return for a donation. The physical release is due in shops on 25th January via JagJaguwar

The personality crisis continues for Montreal collective The Besnard Lakes. Following up from their Polaris listed The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse, the band unleash The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night through Jagjaguwar on March 8th. The album was recorded by frontman Jace Lasek at his own Breakglass studio’s using a vintage 1968 mixing console that was used to record elements of Led Zepplin’s Physical Graffiti.

If the band’s website is to be believed the album is a “twisting chronicle of spies, double agents, novelists and aspiring rock gods turned violent.” Blimey.

Head over to the Jagjaguwar website here to download the lead single from the album “Albatross” now. The track will be released as a 12″ single on 8th February.

The band have also announced a European tour, heading this way at the end of March.

3/24/10 Brighton, UK, Freebutt
3/25/10 Liverpool, UK, Academy
3/26/10 Bristol, UK Arnoifini (w/ Tunng)
3/27/10 Leeds, UK Brundell Social Club
3/28/10 Glasgow, UK Stereo
3/29/10 Manchester, UK The Dulcimer
3/30/10 Birmingham, UK Hare and Hounds
3/31/10 London, UK Cargo
4/1/10 Brussells, BE Bonatique
4/2/10 Amsterdam, NL Paradiso
4/3/10 Utrecht, NL Ekko
4/19/10 Paris, FR Le Point Emphmere

If you’re on O2 you can get Priority Tickets to see The Besnard Lakes at O2 venues next March. Tickets on sale now. Terms apply.

To bring 2009 to a close, Oh! Canada has conducted a survey to discover some favourites, uncover a few hidden gems and give some tips as to what 2010 might have in store for the Canadian music scene. Some answers were short and sweet, some long and drawn out. Some struggled to name just one act, while others tipped themselves for success. So without further ado….here is the Oh! Canada survey for 2009. Continue Reading

By now the dust should have just about settled on the TLOBF Christmas party, and no doubt many of you reading this will have a whole plethora of events coming up in the next few days. Add this to the “seasonal” weather (read: it’s bloomin’ cold) and it all it begins to seem a lot like…..well, you know, that time of year.

Oh! Canada has been working with a whole host of Canadian acts to bring you 25 (see what we did there?) tracks to celebrate the winter and the upcoming festive season. The Wilderness of Manitoba found the time to slip into the studio and record their take on “Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel” exclusively for us. Jason Zumpano evokes the spirit of Vince Guaraldi with his solo piano piece, while The Acorn, Jason Collett, Cinderpop, Zumpano (the band, not the solo artist) and The Pointed Sticks bring the power pop to the party. Ohbijou and Paper Moon take on some seasonal classics, Evening Hymns sing in Norwegian and elsewhere there is plenty of winter wistfulness to chill the bones and warm the coldest of hearts! And so without further a do we bring you: Ho! Ho! Ho! Canada.

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[.zip] Ho! Ho! Ho! Canada
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By now you are no doubt aware of an internet phenomenon that is trying to push for Rage Against The Machine’s “Killing In The Name” to Christmas Number One. The ‘merry pranksters’ have chosen a song whose chorus “Fuck You I Won’t Do What You Tell Me”, is supposed to be a message to Simon Cowell and his X factor, who, supposedly have ruined the tradition of the Christmas charts (was Blobby really the first X Factor winner?). Of course, the irony is that their plan relies on people doing EXACTLY what they are told to do. Brilliant. And Cowell no doubt has shares in Sony, who own his label Syco Records. He will be laughing all the way to the bank with not just one but two wheelbarrows full of cash. Plus a song about members of the police force also being members of the Klu Klux Klan. Not exactly Christmasy is it?

Thank heavens then for Fucked Up. The band have recorded an all-star cover of “Do They Know It’s Christmas” using some of the money they picked up for winning this years Polaris Prize. Frontman Damian Abraham, a.k.a. “Pink Eyes”, says “it’s hard to find a balance between the song being a fun, playful holiday classic and the reason we’re putting it out, to benefit organizations dealing with a deadly, serious issue.” Since 1980, there have been 520 known cases of missing or murdered Aboriginal women across Canada and many believe the true number to be significantly higher. If compared to the rest of the population their death and disappearance rate would be equivalent to over 18,000 Canadian women and girls missing or murdered. Approximately 50% of the murders and disappearances have occurred during or since 2000.

The three groups that will benefit are:
Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (Montreal)
DTES Power Of Women Group (Vancouver) and
Sisters in Spirit (Ottawa)

Joining Fucked Up are Yo La Tengo, GZA, Ezra Koenig (Vampire Weekend), Bob Mould (Husker Du), Tegan & Sara, Andrew W.K., Kyp Malone (TV on the Radio), David Cross (comedian) and Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene).

You can buy “Do They Know It’s Christmas” at most digital record stores now. We suggest you do.