First up, a band that bring backs my cherished salad days of Much-Music-watching: By Divine Right. Yup, they’re still active. Yup, they’ll be here soon: July 7th @ The Albert.
Fun fact: Feist used to be in the band.
Fun fact #2: So did Brendan Canning of BSS.
Saskatchewan’s finest indie-dance-rock pairing, We Were Lovers, hit the Lo Pub on June 11th.
California-based punk rockers Strung Out return to town on September 5th for a date at the Pyramid. Opening acts are Rufio and Mute.
West Coast indie-rockers Said The Whale graduate from opening (Plants & Animals in April) to headlining in just a few months: see them at the Park Theatre on July 31st.
UK street rockers The Business rock the Albert on August 19th, aided by Tailgunner.
And lastly, Winnipeg’s own Les Jupes open for An Horse, June 15th at the Park Theatre.
Brooklyn-via-Ohio’s the National sure have the scene-setting, album-opening track down pat. The urgency of “Secret Making” (Alligator) and the stately elegance of “Fake Empire” (Boxer) prepped eager ears for the brooding sounds to come.
High Violet’s lead track “Terrible Love” earns a place next to its regal predecessors. As always, frontman Matt Berninger singular baritone is at the foreground, but it’s the calm-before-the-storm, distorted guitars, courtesy of brothers Aaron and Bryce Dessner, that escalate the tension to an almost unbearable degree. And it’s a testament to this band’s remarkable talent that the better tracks always, always keep coming. “Sorrow” is jittery mid-tempo fare; “Lemonworld” is moody post-punk; while the epic and upbeat fist-pumper “Bloodbuzz Ohio”is this album’s “Apartment Story”.
Five albums in and the National have unquestionably perfected their sinister, late-night, moody aesthetic.
Avi Buffalo are a very young quartet from Long Beach, Cali whose way with the song easily belies their age. Their eponymous debut, released on venerated label Sub Pop Records, is just bristling with bright and quirky, thoughtful and well-executed, indie-pop.
The brain behind the op is Avigdor Zahner-Isenberg, a recent high school grad well on his way to turning 19. Rounded out by keyboardist/vocalist Rebecca Coleman and drummer Sheridan Riley (both under 20), plus old man bassist Arin Fazio (21), these fresh-faced kids, much like their contemporaries the xx, shirk the songwriting expectations and preconceptions yoked to their tender years.
Whereas the xx excel in whispered and carefully checked pillow-talk, Avi Buffalo act their age, sounding uncertain of their future, yet content enough with their fun, sexed-up present, as on the delightfully barmy confessional “Summer Cum”.
If, by chance, you’re heading to Toronto for NXNE next month, make a point of checking these precocious younglings out. I know I will.
-Mykael Sopher
Rating: 3.25/4.0 Web: www.avibuffalomusic.com Choice Cuts: “What’s In It For?”, “One Last” R.I.Y.D. The Shins, The Morning Benders, The xx…if they were summery and lively Label: Sub Pop
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Ascending Montreal indie-rock trio Nightwood are rolling through town not once, but twice next month. Their record: Carta Marina. Available: now.
First, they’ll perform a free, in-store set at Music Trader on June 9th @ 8 p.m. (sharp!), dazzle audiences out West for awhile, then return to Peg City for a gig at the friendly neighbourhood Lo Pub on June 19th w/ Winnipeg’s own Sit Down Tracy.
Comprised of Amber Goodwyn (guitars/vocals), Jeremy MacCuish (drums), and Erin Ross (guitars/vocals), Nightwood dabble in moody, raw, and inescapably contagious rock with some aggressive punk thrown in for good measure. If you’re looking for more of those angry, melodic riot grrrl sounds of the late, great, and influential Seattle quartert Sleater-Kinney, Nightwood just might be the band for you.
Also, the band generously sent along two vinyl copies of Carta Marina (12") for giveaway exclusively to readers of Painting over Silence. If you’re interested, shoot me off an email (at the side) by Thursday, June 3rd @ noon with the subject line “Nightwood Record Giveaway” and your name in the email’s body. I’ll randomly draw the winners and contact the lucky pair sometime that same afternoon.
I recently corned the trio and asked them 11 interest/personality-revealing questions. Some of the wide-ranging topics mentioned: Bjork Videos, Europe’s “The Final Countdown”, sleep-inducing qualities of Lord of the Rings, and the power of flight vs. invisibility.
Here’s everything the very fun trio had to say:
1. Where are you right now?
Amber: At this very moment, I'm sitting on my back porch BBQing with my partner, watching cranes above us on their way to the Montreal river front. They're very solemn flyers, they seem to flap very seriously and don't swoop around or anything. I just got back from a wee vacation in the UK, so I'm a bit jet lagged which makes the whole setting all the more lovely somehow.
Erin: I just finished having a BBQ in the backyard with my partner and his sibs, having ignored the cranes flying above us on their way to the Montreal river front. I'm now getting ready for an overnight shift at the diner.
Jeremy: A Cafe on Papineau and Mt Royal, stressing out about The Game.
Let’s talk music…
2. What are some albums that completely changed your life?
Amber: I'd have to say that PJ Harvey's Rid of Me had a pretty big impact. I was already listening to Patti Smith and some others artists with raw and direct playing and performing styles, but she really slew me. My first encounter with her was watching the music video for "To Bring You My Love" on MuchMusic as a young teen. The image she projected was very powerful and dark and resonated with me for a while until eventually I sought her work out in a mall music shop (this was before myspace and that kind of thing- folks my age used to record our favorite songs off of the radio onto tape cassettes!). When I first listened to her records in a store, I found that they sounded ugly and not that interesting, but later I returned and bought Rid of Me because I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more for me there, buried in her songs. And of course there was, and much that I would later draw inspiration from.
Erin: Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream once rocked my walkman on repeat till the batteries would die and the tape would turn so slowly that the music would be octaves lower than the recording. That album changed me. I decided after seeing them live that I would start playing guitar.
Jeremy:A Day With Art Blakey convinced me that playing drums was the thing for me.
3. What was the most memorable show you’ve played so far?
Amber: Nothing too fancy for me- a show at the Montreal venue L'Escogriffe last summer was lots of fun! The stage is sort of non-existent and so lots of our good friends were circled around very close to us which is always kind of special and makes me feel like they're part of the show in an even more active way.
Jeremy: The Esco show was great, and we always seem to do well in Toronto. I'm particularly proud of some shows that are sparsely attended, but we play our hearts out and win over the few people in the room. Recent shows in Kingston and London come to mind.
4. Of the albums you own, which has the best cover art?
Amber: Outside of our own? Ha. For today I'll choose Kate Bush's The Dreaming. It makes me think of Maya Deren's films.
Jeremy: John Lennon's Rock 'n Roll gives me some pretty severe nostalgia for a time I never lived through.
5. What is your favourite music video?
Amber: I think Spike Jonze's video for Bjork's "Triumph of a Heart" was really fun. There's a human-sized cat in it!
Erin: Bjork's videos are all so incredible. "Wanderlust" is probably my favourite. There's also a giant cat in it. Well, it sort of looks like a cat. And I love Michel Gondry's videos as well.
6. Who is one producer, alive or dead, you’d just love to work with?
Jeremy: Dave Fridmann! Soft Bulletin, The Woods... such great drum sounds of all varieties.
And some hodgepodge…
7. What TV shows are you currently following?
Erin:Mad Men, True Blood, So You Think You Can Dance
Amber:L O S T
Jeremy:The Corner
8. What was the last great book you’ve read?
Jeremy:The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy
Erin:The Tender Bar by J. R. Moehringer
Amber:The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film by Michael Ondaatje. I admit that I am re-reading Lord of the Rings but casually, most nights before I fall asleep.
9. PC or Mac?
Amber: Mac, baby.
10. What is your current ringtone?
Amber: Have never owned a cell phone.
Erin: Have never bought a ringtone. I just have the old standard ring. But my favourite ringtone that I heard someone have was "Final Countdown".
11. And finally, would you rather have the ability to fly or to turn invisible?
Amber: I think that flying would be harder to explain to people but it seems like it may be more fun than invisibility powers. However, being invisible might open up an array of interesting career opportunities that would help finance the band and stuff. Hmm. Invisibility.
Erin: I think having the ability to fly would turn you into a sideshow. I would prefer invisibility, but I would have to have control over when it happens, lest I turn into Dr. Jekyll.
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Legendary psychedelic rockers the Flaming Lips play the Burton Cummings Theatre on September 21st w/ extra special guest Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti. Presale starts in two days with public sales getting underway Friday.
See you there!
Also, Toronto-via-Somalia hip-hop star K’Naan is at the Burton Cummings Theatre on September 29. I’m not normally one to extol interviews, but K’naan’s recent conversation with Jim & Greg on Sound Opinions was one of the best interviews/live performances I’ve heard in years.
Seattle indie-rock export Minus the Bear are making their way across The Great White North next month, armed with their new record, Omni. And what’s any high-kilometre trek through Canada without stopping in at the Gateway to the West for a show at the Albert on June 30th?
Over at the West End, a pretty pretty pretty prettygood concept for a show: the first annual 100 Mile Musical Diet challenge. Taking place on June 10th, the event features local bands covering other Winnipeg bands' entire records. This inaugural year, it’s pop-rock darlings Paper Moon taking on Red Fisher’s War Wagon while local hip-hop troupe Magnum K.I. try their hand at The Weakerthans’ Reconstruction Site. No word yet if only local beer will be served.
On the same night, the West End is also introducing it’s much welcomed bike valet program. Basically the awesome volunteers @ the WECC will lock up your bike downstairs, hand you a ticket, and retrieve it at your beck and call. Be sure to tip your valet!
Exploding hip-hop star Drake performs at the Centennial Concert Hall on July 21st.
Hailing from the land of the Habs (who are, yet again, facing elimination tonight), indie-rockers Nightwood drop by Freud’s Diner and Bathhouse the Lo Pub on June 19th, promoting their new record, Carta Marina.
And finally, erstwhile 11 Questions participants Bend Sinister rock the Pyramid on June 7th w/ Imaginary Cities, Sit Down Tracy.
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Forgiveness Rock Record is just destined to spark heated debates over its standout track. And likely already has. Throughout it, the massive, outrageously talented Toronto-based collective set the indie-rock bar high – the songs are diverse, cleverly constructed, and flat-out exciting, rivaling anything Broken Social Scene have served up in the past.
Coming in at just under seven minutes, nebulous and epic album starter “World Sick” will surely garner some favourite track votes, while the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot-worthy “Texico Bitches” might score a few noms. Expect mischievous, horn-driven “Art House Director” to be fiercely defended and to go up against “Meet Me in the Basement”, an urgent, explosive instrumental that might get the nod for outstanding indie-instrumental of 2010.
With stellar releases already this month from indie heavyweights The New Pornographers, The National, LCD Soundsystem, and now Broken Social Scene, May 2010 is surely spoiling us.
No complaints here.
-Mykael Sopher
Rating: 4.0/4.0 Web:http://www.brokensocialscene.ca/ Choice Cuts: Too many to name. R.I.Y.D. Stars, Metric, Indie Supergroups Label: Arts & Crafts
