This past weekend, I spent some time record shopping in Vancouver, BC. Visiting Vancouver sure beats dealing with the horrors of Seattle traffic. Plus, the exchange rate favors the US Dollar right now.
The latest track by Teen Daze, “Ice on the Windowsil”, is the first track to debut off his forthcoming LP Glacier. It features a surreal spacial sound, as subtle as it is dreamy. Given this, as you can imagine, it is far removed from his early work on Beach Dreams (2010). There is a feeling of solitude the song evokes, one of being at peace with yourself. Read More »Teen Daze: Ice on the Windowsil
It donned on me while listening to “Don’t Blame The Times”, the fifth track on We Found A Lovebird‘s new six-song EP, Let’s Start The War, that this band may in fact be influenced – at least in part – by early Elvis Costello. It was a thought that had not occurred to me previously, for whatever reason, so I asked member Larry Lechner, the band’s vocalist/guitarist about it. What began as a simple question became a full-fledged interview over Facebook messages.
Read More »We Found A Lovebird: A Brief Interview with Larry Lechner 
Obsession comes in many forms, even when targeted so narrowly as to be about music. The latest comes from Vancouver, BC post-punk band Peace, on the verge of releasing their sophomore LP on Suicide Squeeze Records. The album will hit stores in mid October. Read More »Peace: Feature Band
White Blood Cells is a new band out of Vancouver, BC featuring members of Wintermitts, The Ruffled Feathers, occasionally Hot Panda, and many more. The band just released their first single, a song called “Ai! Ai! Ai! Ai!” and it is filled with modern, cheery indie pop. Read More »White Blood Cells: Ai! Ai! Ai! Ai! MP3
Get ready to dub Hardly Art label of the year. They’ve already given us plenty to enjoy, and the second… Read More »Shimmering Stars: I’m Gonna Try (Video)
Oh this chill, lo-fi style of pop never seems to get old. It’s good in the summertime, when days are hot and nothing seems better than to sit in the shade with a cold beer or hide in a dark room with the air conditioning full blast. And it’s good in the winter, when you long for those summer moments while cozily wrapped in warm blankets. Beach Dreams by Teen Daze captures these feelings and puts them to song with an overall fuzzy haze of goodness. Read More »Teen Daze: Beach Dreams [Album Review]
For those of you familiar with Dan Bejar and his work in both Destroyer and The New Pornographers, this song may come as a bit of a shock. It’s damn near electronic! This isn’t the Dan Bejar we know and love… or is it? Leave it to JC/DC to spend a solid year-and-a-half production time reinventing Bejar as an off-beat, near contemporary artist. Bejar has never been one to create normality, but “Chinatown” is about as strange as it gets because it lacks consistency with the man’s prior work. Read More »Destroyer: Chinatown [mp3]
They say, Oh, don’t call this group a supergroup! But I disagree, and there’s a distinct reason why. It’s because each member in The New Pornographers is, well, super. A.C. Newman adds his unique songwriting and vocal styling and he backs it with the phenomenal song-craft and vocals of Neko Case and Dan Bejar (Destroyer). Blaine Thurier is a film producer and lends keyboard expertise to the band, while John Collins, Todd Fancey, Kurt Dahle and Kathryn Calder round the songs out on various instruments, many of whom also lend backup vocals. This entourage of greatness is at it again with Together, their fifth proper full-length. Read More »The New Pornographers: Your Hands (Together) [mp3]
If you’ve been following the doings of Vancouver, BC’s Nicholas Krgovich, you know he’s been a busy fellow. Maintenant by Gigi has garnered substantial hype this year and the band’s debut LP certainly warrants the attention. Krgovich is back under the guise of No Kids, whose last release joined together sounds not typically associated with pop music. Despite recording a 60s do-wop pop record under Gigi and performing under the P:ano moniker since the band’s last release, Come Into My House, No Kids picks up pretty much where they left off in 2008. Judy At The Grove has a similar cool pop meets funky R&B.
Read More »No Kids: Judy At The Grove EP [Album Review]
