Wishful Concert Thinking For The New Year

So.

Last year I scored a disheartening 0 for 10 (almost as bad as the Detroit Lions) on my New Year’s Bands I Really Hope Come to Town Wish List. While I caught one band (Sigur Rós) in Minneapolis, it doesn’t count since it never took place here, such is the inflexible criteria.

Sure I’m slightly discouraged by the lack of love our city gets, but tis the season for optimistic wishes, so I composed another year’s list of concert hopefuls. This year though, I asked my trusted Magic Eight Ball fortune teller what the likelihood of each band coming to town was, and I must warn you its surprisingly sentient answers aren’t very comforting (and are just plain mean at times!)

2009 Winnipeg Concert Wishlist (in no particular order):


1. Vampire Weekend

Magic 8 ball said: Outlook Not So Good

2. Mum

Magic 8 ball said: Concentrate and Ask Again. I did: Better not tell you now.

3. Carl Newman

Magic 8 ball said: As I see it, yes.

4. Parachutes

Magic 8 ball said: Cannot predict now.

5. Goldfrapp

Magic 8 ball said: Here’s a prediction I can make: not happening.

6. Death Cab For Cutie (headlining show)

Magic 8 ball said: They were just there. Don’t push your luck.

7. Radiohead

Magic 8 ball said: Are you fucking kidding me? You live in Winnipeg dude!

8. MGMT

Magic 8 ball said: About as likely as the NHL returning.

9. Flight of the Conchords

Magic 8 ball said: *slaps knees* You SLAY me! Flight of the Conchords playing Winnipeg?!? A ha ha ha…that’s even funnier than the show!

10. Rah Rah

Magic 8 ball said: Now you’re being realistic. All signs point to “maybe”.


Who would you love to see come to town?

Infinite Playlist: Rah Rah - Going Steady

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My Favourite Songs Of The Year

For the second year running, I made a 80-minute long disc of all my favourite songs released over the past 12 months. My goal is to make one at the end of each year and to revisit the cds years later and hear which songs withstand time's grueling tests and which unfortunately don't.

At some point over the past 365, each of the 19 tracks below evoked that wonderfully joyous brain chemical response that we all love about music, the kinda track that requires looping for an hour, maybe even two until we get sick of it, only to revisit a day later and repeat.

Painting Over 2008's Silence

1. Goldfrapp – A & E
2. MGMT – Time To Pretend
3. Foals – Big Big Love (Fig. 2)
4. Parachutes – Your Stories
5. Plants and Animals - À L'Orée Des Bois
6. The Helio Sequence – You Can Come To Me
7. The Killers – Human
8. Vampire Weekend – M79
9. Cut Copy – So Haunted
10. Library Voices – Step Off The Map & Float
11. Flight Of The Conchords – The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)
12. Fleet Foxes – White Winter Hymnal
13. Bon Iver – Blindsided
14. Death Cab For Cutie – No Sunlight
15. M83 – Kim & Jessie
16. She & Him – Sentimental Heart
17. MGMT – Electric Feel
18. Sigur Rós - Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur
19. Goldfrapp – Some People

To clarify: the 19 tracks listed above are in playlist order not in order of preference.

I would, however, like to award some highly coveted Painting Over Silence medals to three songs off the list, tunes I simply couldn't (and really still can't) get enough of:

• GOLD - Goldfrapp's 'A & E'
• SILVER - MGMT's 'Electric Feel'
• BRONZE - MGMT's 'Time To Pretend'

I'm very curious: What were some of your favourite songs over the past 52 weeks?

Infinite Playlist: Painting Over 2008's Silence

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My Five Favourite Shows Of The Year

17 concerts this year! Wow!

Wait a sec. How many does the average person attend? How many does a person who follows music go to?

While I have no data backing this impromptu figure up, I suspect a reasonable estimate for the second question would be around one a month. That would mean my 17 is slightly above average. Slightly above average - that has a nice ring to it! I wouldn't mind having that inscribed on my tombstone.

For the record though, the number 17 doesn’t account for the near-daily summer concerts staged on my apartment’s front lawn by admiringly bad buskers who perform upsettingly awful covers of Radiohead’s ‘Karma Police’. Including these, my concerts attended number would spike to around 70 (they don’t possess enough artistic temerity to play on rainy days. Oh how I now love the sound of the rain.)

Further playing with numbers, I estimate I spent $452.50 Canadian and $42.50 US (Sigur Rós in Minneapolis) on shows this year, two numbers which when combined (and converted) come to slightly more than a month’s rent.

My concert experiences, however, was remarkably varied. Bob Dylan proved spectacularly disappointing; Islands were spectacularly dull; Sigur Rós spectacularly surreal; and Kanye West was spectacularly, well, spectacular.

Anyway, these are my five favourite concerts of 2008:

1. Kanye West w/ Rhianna, N.E.R.D, and Lupe Fiasco
Venue: MTS Centre
Location: Winnipeg
Cost: ~$107
Date: May 26, 2008

I rank Kanye at #1 knowing full well that doing so has the potential to shock and alienate my blog readers. But, of my four blog readers (my magnanimous pal Phil; my poet-uncle who just loves reading anything family members write, even lowly blogs; Lord L-7, head of the Kanye West fan club, Winnipeg chapter; and Shawna, a polite, but rather vocal hip-hop naysayer), I really only risk losing Shawna, so this stays at #1.

Kanye was awesome. Ego matched talent. If he comes back, I will definitely shell out $100 to see him again.

2. Sigur Rós w/ Parachutes
Venue: Orpheum Theatre
Location: Minneapolis
Cost: ~$42.50 US
Date: September 25, 2008

My second time seeing Sigur Rós was not as conscious-altering as the first time, but still an impressive, surreal experience. Parachutes were this year’s winner of the Opening Act I’ve Never Heard Of Who Blew Me Away Cup.

3. Josh Ritter w/ Emm Gryner
Venue: West End Cultural Centre
Location: Winnipeg
Cost: ~$19.75
Date: March 1, 2008

I can’t recall ever seeing someone who loves performing so much. The talented singer-songwriter from Idaho is clearly a passionate and confident musician.

4. Neil Young w/ Death Cab For Cutie & Everest
Venue: MTS Centre
Location: Winnipeg
Cost: ~$107
Date: October 16, 2008

Death Cab exceeded all expectations. Despite standing in front of 10, 000 partisan Neil Youngers, Ben Gibbard & co played like everyone in the audience was there to see them.

And as for Neil Young, well, the sexagenarian appears not to be slowing down with age. Sure he has more wrinkles and thinner hair, but the Winnipeg-raised singer defied his aged by putting on a helluva wicked show.

5. Born Ruffians w/ Plants and Animals, Slim Twig
Venue: The Pyramid
Location: Winnipeg
Cost: ~$15
Date: October 4, 2008

My first exposure to Plants and Animals was overwhelming. I loved them, bought their record and it subsequently made my top ten albums of the year list. Unfortunately, they lost the inaugural Opening Act I’ve Never Heard Of Who Blew Me Away Cup to Parachutes by the slimmest of margins (it was a bloody battle).

Born Ruffians were solid too.

What were some of your favourite/least favourite concerts of the year?

Infinite Playlist: Painting Over 2008's Silence

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Happy Festivus!

Happy Festivus everyone! I hope the feats of strength provided the physical test they should; I hope the aluminum pole shined like the beckon of hope it signifies; and finally, I hope the airing of grievances didn't get too out of hand.



And if you don't celebrate Festivus, well, then Merry Christmas!


Infinite Playlist: The Cure - Trilogy DVD

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My Favourite Albums Of The Year

My top ten albums-of-the-year are:

1. Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend



Should I or shouldn’t I sorta paraphrase Depeche Mode. Ah, fuck it: “When I hear Vampire Weekend, I go out of my head. I just can’t get enough. I just can’t get enough.”

2. Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours



Vertiginous synths and caffeinated beats and contagious songs! Oh my!

3. Fleet Foxes – Fleet Foxes

Of these illustrious ten records, Fleet Foxes’ fantastic debut will probably be the one I revisit most often as the years tick by. For now though, it’s third on my list.

4. M83 – Saturday = Youth

Anthony Gonzalez = electronic alchemist.

5. Plants and Animals – Parc Avenue

Not a single miss on this Polaris-nominated album. Makes me question whether Caribou was the right choice for this year’s award.

6. Goldfrapp – Seventh Tree

I remember playing “A & E” in a continuous loop for like an hour and wishing for my intense infatuation to last forever. It died down after awhile, but I still love it. Also, the lovely “Some People” melts my insides.

7. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago

I’m always a sucker for these lo-fi, achingly gorgeous, highly personal albums.

8. El Guincho – Alegranza!

Energetic guys from Spain who channel some of Animal Collective’s spirit (the multi-part harmonies and playful arrangements) but give it a Western European spin. Worth of that exclamation mark (if only I knew what Alegranza meant…or for that matter El Guincho).

9. The Helio Sequence – Keep Your Eyes Ahead

I gravitated toward this record because I liked the band’s name. Turned out to be kismet.

10. Rah Rah – Going Steady

There must be creative germs in Regina’s drinking water! Like Library Voices, this is a provincial neighbour you need to be familiar with right NOW!

And a few EPs I absolutely loved:

1. Parachutes - Parachutes

Parachutes opened for Sigur Rós in Minneapolis back in September. I was enchanted throughout by their not-exactly-dissimilar-to-Sigur-Rós sound, and am eagerly awaiting their full length debut. The YouTube video below (of YouTube quality) would probably break my heart…if Goldfrapp hadn’t already melted it (veiled Flight of the Conchords reference for ya).



2. Library Voices – Hunting Voices

Some self-plagiarism: There must be creative germs in Regina’s drinking water! Like Rah Rah, this is a provincial neighbour you need to be familiar with right NOW!


Still to come this week: my favourite songs and favourite shows of the year.

Infinite Playlist: Painting Over 2008's Silence - My Favourite Songs Of The Year

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The Best Albums Of 2008 - As Voted By Painting Over Silence Blog Readers

First of all, thanks to everyone who sent in lists and/or comments about said record. I had a lot of fun compiling the results and even discovered some wicked new sounds. Also, a lot of people didn't leave comments (it was optional after all) so the glowing adoration for some entries is less explained than others.

Second, this list was entirely voted upon by blog readers, so it does not include my personal top ten (which will be published tomorrow...stay tuned!).

Third, despite not receiving a single first-place vote, Fleet Foxes dominated the competition. If you haven't heard them yet, check out the video below for "White Winter Hymnal" - it's glorious!

Fourth, ties were unavoidable. Made me seriously consider adding my top ten into the mix.

Now without further delay....

1. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes



"What a brilliant debut. ALMOST my favourite record of the year." - Sarah

"Beautiful music that for some reason makes me picture country landscapes covered in powdery snow." - Phil

"Like if Bon Iver were a bunch of guys." - DW

"I just love this one." - TR

2. M83 - Saturdays = Youth



"'Kim and Jessie' - song of the year." - Ben
(Mykael's note: see and hear above)

"I can't get enough of it..." - Nick

3. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

"Like if Fleet Foxes were one guy." - DW

"Justin Vernon's brilliant debut album, crafted alone in the woods of Wisconsin. Haunting, beautiful." - Nick

"A rather late addition to my list, but a new favourite based on the fact that I can't resist mopey - but not EMO - guys that can rock (but just a little)." - TR

"Just beautiful." - Sarah

4. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

"With only 34 minutes runtime, Vampire Weekend's debut album is short and very sweet. All hits, no misses with this one. I can't wait to see what their next album will sound like and I'm sure I'm not the only one." - Phil

"The soundtrack of my summer!" - Sarah

5. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours

"I've been listening to In Ghost Colours in my car for many months now and it hasn't left my changer sicne the day I put it in. I've probably listened to it more times than any of the other albums on this list combined, and I'm not sick of it! A true sign of an excellent album." - Phil

6. Constantines - Kensington Heights

"Winner, gritty band of the year." - Ben

6. Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs

"Unlike most, I'm a big fan of the first four drony minutes of 'I Will Possess Your Heart'" - Ben

6. Sigur Rós - með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust

"While not my favourite Sigur Rós album, there is a certain comfort to their music and their presence in my musical repertoire." - TR

9. The Verve - Forth

"Poor Coldplay tries so hard while this sounds effortless." - DW

"They have come a long way since 'Bittersweet Symphony'." - TR

9. Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles

"Voltaic!" - Whitney

"How can you not be hooked after the first few video-game-esque bars of its opening track 'Untrust Us'?" - Nick

**************

Honourable Mentions (in alphabetical order)

Beck - Modern Guilt
Damien Jurado - Caught In The Trees
Flight Of The Conchords - Flight Of The Conchords
Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree
Hold Steady - Stay Positive
Kathleen Edwards - Asking For Flowers
MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
Tallest Man On Earth - Shallow Grave
Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer

Last word: While I'm not publishing individual lists, please feel free to publish your personal list under the comments!

Hope to hear from everyone (and more) again next year!

Infinite Playlist: Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours

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The JP Hoe Holiday Show - Live At The Park Theatre

So I got a free, last-minute invite to tonight's sold out JP Hoe Holiday show at the Park Theatre, and it sure was a lot of fun. Crazy Christmas costumes were worn; cookies were given away; oh, and music was played.

The talented singer-songwriter was joined on stage by Fred Penner (who read a holiday story to the crowd) and by local rockers Quinzy. A few members of the WSO were along for the ride as well.

But the star of the show was definitely the man himself. It was my first time hearing the JP's rock-tinged folk music, and live it proved to be soul-stirring and charming. JP himself was a confident, funny, and clearly passionate performer, and if I had cash, I would've picked up his disc. Next time for sure.

Blog Poll Results tomorrow!

Infinite Playlist: Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree

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The Reminder

Heya Folks!

Quick reminder: you've got until late Saturday night to submit your Top 10 Albums-Of-The-Year list to me.

Full details are here.

Thank you very much to all those who've sent theirs in so far!

Infinite Playlist: The Bangles - Greatest Hits

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Jingle Bell Rock feat. Metric, Tokyo Police Club et al. - Live At The Burton Cummings Theatre

Jingle Bell Rock was a mix bag of an affair.

After braving the oppressive deep freeze that is Winnipeg at the moment, I arrived at The Burt right at seven (the official start) intending to catch ex-DFA1979 Sebastien Grainger and his new band The Mountains. My friend and I grabbed 10th row seats (floor was rush seating), and sat down just in time to see the last seconds of Grainger's set. WTF? we wondered. Confused, we triple-checked our tickets and they, of course, read 7:00 p.m.

An informative bartender clarified: the show had been bumped up an hour earlier than originally scheduled. We had no idea! The website said 7 and our tickets read 7, so we showed up at 7. Plus, we missed DJ Mike Relm’s set. 2/5 acts down before we even got there!


Still shivering (it was cold inside the Burt) and kinda pissed off, I tried cheering up once The Dears (above photo), all seven of them, took the stage. The septet played a healthy mixture of new and old to a thawing-out, unresponsive crowd. The sound was crisp and I liked some of what I heard yet the band seemed just as frozen as the audience (I wore my jacket all the way until the end of TPC) so this further added to the evening’s overall dismal feeling.



The first half of Tokyo Police Club’s set was uninspired, and I was bet-the-farm certain the whole Jingle Bell Rock soiree would amount to a colossal disappointment. About halfway, though, the band must have melted because the second half of their set was fluid and terrific. Just like that, this young indie-rock quintet morphed into a mobile, cohesive unit and frontman David Monks, with his slightly-distorted vocals and feverish guitar playing, proved he is more than capable of dazzling big crowds (by now the venue was almost full).


Now I have to warn you before you read on: I am not a fan of Metric. I was there to see Grainger, The Dears, and TPC. I have tried several times to get into Metric’s sassy neo-disco pop stylings, but always glaze over when I hear their stuff.

However, I was deeply curious about their live act, having read and heard first-hand reports of its electric awesomeness. I was really hoping to be won over. Unfortunately though, Metric and I just didn’t click. Sure Emily Haines is a formidable front-woman who oozes confidence and sensuality with each song (does she always wear such short dresses? Zounds!), but there’s something about this collective that I’m musically indifferent to. I’m not exactly sure what it is - I suppose I find their music just not, umm, fun.

But, looking around at the enchanted, hip-swaying crowd clearly enjoying themselves on this absurdly cold night, I was definitely in the minority.

Infinite Playlist: MGMT - Oracular Spectacular

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Let's Make A Cake

Martin Sexton will be at the Burt on April 15th.

Jeremy Fisher at the Park Theatre on February 2nd.

Luke Doucet and the White Falcon also play there, but on March 10th.

The Fugitives will rock the party there on February 26th.

And finally, good ol' Bryan Adams is playing an all-acoustic show on February 13th at the Pantages. I think the first compact disc I ever owned (it was a gift) was one of his, which is frankly hilarious. I've come a long way.

Jingle Bell Rock tonight! Tune in tomorrow for Ansel-Adams-worthy pictures, insightful comments and maybe even some rhetorical questions.

Infinite Playlist: Silence

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Night Windows

Couple things to note:

Presale password for The Weakerthans' April 17th show at the Burton Cummings Theatre is tundra.

That 1 Guy is at the Pyramid on February 25th.

Secondhand Serenade is at the Garrick on January 25th.

Kerri Woelke opens for Mr. Pine on January 2nd at Aqua Books.

Also, just a quick reminder: you've got about a week and a half left to email me your top 10 albums of the year list. If this is the first time you've read about this, click here for full details or scroll down a bit.

I've received several so far and they look awesome (thanks to everyone).

Infinite Playlist: Rah Rah - Going Steady

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If There Is A God, I Know He Likes To Rock

Winnipeg's greatest indie export The Weakerthans are hitting 21 cities across the nation during its 2009 Rolling Tundra Revue Tour, making a hometown pit stop at the Burton Cummings Theatre on April 17. The peripatetic lads will be joined throughout the tour by The Constantines plus a couple more TBA acts. Tix Monday.

Also, The Dude's least-favourite band The Eagles are soaring through town, landing at the MTS Centre on March 13th. According to ticketmaster, ticket prices range from $96 to an extraordinary $239 (happy budget-adjusting!), but as a small consolation, this is being heralded as a "no-fee event" meaning you won't be charged "convenience" fees.

Greg Crowe & The Scarlet Union play the Pyramid on December 18th.

The Waking Eyes are there on December 20th.

Mr. Pine's January 2nd cd release now has a venue: Aqua Books.

Infinite Playlist: Silence

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11 Questions With Greg MacPherson

If you haven't had the pleasure of hearing local singer-songwriter Greg MacPherson's intelligent, at times politically-driven music nor catching his electrifying shows round town, then, well, you're really missing out on one of our city's prodigial talents. At the moment, Greg is busy penning tunes for his much-anticipated follow-up to 05's Night Flares; however, he took some time out of his busy schedule to answer 11 of my interest-revealing and (at times) daft questions.

By taking part, Greg revealed he hasn't seen The Dark Knight (but has seen The Transporter 3), doesn't watch tv, and is currently reading a Doysteovsky novel that isn't Crime and Punishment!

Thanks to Greg for doing this. [If you're unfamilair, he's the spirited musician on my blog banner, far left].

1. Where are you right now?

I'm in Winnipeg at my place, spending a few hours this afternoon learning a song I was asked to cover for a friend's book launch this Wednesday evening. (Mykael's note: I haven't had the chance to publish this until just now, so this book launch already happened).

2. Where is the best venue in Winnipeg to play a show?

That depends on the size and kind of show you want to put on I suppose. I often play the West End Cultural Centre because it has a good sound system, a reasonable capacity and I like the people there. Of the smaller venues I think that the Royal Albert has the most soul; it's dirty, loud and a little dangerous sometimes, good conditions for rock and roll.

3. Who is the best Winnipeg-based band (other than your own, of course)?

Pip Skid. He's not a band but he's certainly one of the most exciting artists in the city... he's uncompromising, intelligent, funny, thoughtful and unpredictable.

4. What is your favourite Radiohead record?

I don't like Radiohead enough to know that. They're way more Beatles than Rolling Stones and I'm firmly in the Rolling Stones camp myself.

5. Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert?

I don't watch TV, I think it's a waste of time.

6. Where is your favourite local place to eat?

Monticchio.

7. What was the last great concert you saw?

Birdapres at Lo Pub last night.

8. Is The Dark Knight Best Picture worthy?

Somehow I haven't seen it yet... I hear from reliable sources that it's better than Transporter 3, which I have seen and can vouch for.

9. What are your top three all-time favourite records?

That's pretty hard to answer... I think Silkworm's Developer, The For Carnation's Self-Titled record, and the Clash's Sandinista are pretty high up there though.

10. What book(s) are you currently reading?

Dostoevsky's The Insulted and Injured

11. And finally…who's your favourite New Kid on the Block (Donnie, Danny, Joey, Jordan, or Jonathan)?

That's not even worth thinking about.

Infinite Playlist: The Dismemberment Plan - Emergency & I

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Out Of Cape Cod Tonight

I've been a bit neglectful with my show announcements these past few days (sorry, busy schooling), so you're probably aware of most of these already. Here's a quick recap anyways:

The Lytics are at the Pyramid on December 17th.

Sick City rock the Garrick on December 21st.

Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling is at the Burt on May 23rd.

Agent Orange play the Albert on March 1st.

Speaking of the Albert, their New Year's Eve lineup features The Geek Street Band, Big Trouble in Little China, and American Flamewhip.

Speaking of New Year's Eve, those looking to stop, collaborate and take in the new year with Vanilla Ice can do so at Blush Ultraclub. I wonder if he still plays 'Ice, Ice, Baby'...man, if I still owned To The Extreme and had a tape player, I'd be blasting that right now.

Speaking of early 90s music nostalgia, Boys II Men are the Burt on February 21st.

Infinite Playlist: Vampire Weekend - S/T

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Painting Over Silence Presents....The Best Records Of 2008 Blog Readers Poll

For audiophiles, cinema buffs, and possibly even book lovers, December often marks the laboured and joyful construction of year-end best-of lists. These ubiquitous lists usually adopt a Top 10 format with #1 being, naturally, the best of that art form over the past 365.

As an avid music blogger constructing these best-of lists is, without a doubt, the musical highlight of my year. In a week or so, I’ll dive head first through my music collection, taking note of each and every record I posses that has been released this year, a glint of manic glee in my eyes. Then, the intense listening and whittling will begin, eventually culminating into an easy-to-read, I hope, Top 10 list.

This year, I invite you to take part in all the zany fun that comes with list-making. Here’s how it’ll work:

Email me, by December 21, a list of your favourite records released between January 1, 2008 and, uh, December 21st, 2008, I guess. I will compile all the results and, on December 22nd, publish the Top 10 Albums of the Year…as voted by Painting Over Silence blog readers.

A few things:

1. I realize not everyone will have ten favourite records released in 2008. That’s okay. The minimum criteria is one and the maximum is ten. So, if Vampire Weekend’s summery good-time-of-a-pop-record is the only album you really liked this year, email me.

2. Order matters…to an extent. The top album on your list gets three points; the second best two; 3-10 are awarded one point. If you only liked one album this year, it gets three points.

3. Feel free to write something about that album, but please keep it short - a sentence or two. For example, say you loved MGMT’s Oracular Spectacular. Your comment about it could be succinct “Incandescent!” or longer “I played this album in an eternal loop for nine weeks…and I’m still not sick of it”. Write-ups are optional. If you want to just submit a list, that’s cool with me.

4. If you do write a comment about an album AND that album makes the final top 10 cut, I’ll be posting all comments about that record. However, out of respect to privacy, I’ll just write your first name. If you don’t want that, then PLMK and I’ll write “Anonymous”.

5. Please do not send attachments. Simply paste your list and the optional comments in the body of an email.

6. My email is on the right side, under “About Me”.

Happy list constructin’ !

***
The Liptonians rock the Lo Pub this Friday, the 5th.



Infinite Playlist: Kings of Convenience - Quiet Is The New Loud

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