New single from The Weakerthans

The Weakerthans are an indie rock band from Canada, who have garnered quite a name for themselves with their mix of punk, rock, folk, country and sonnets, though hopefully not all at the same time. I was introduced to these guys through their new single, 'Night Windows', which will appear on their next release - Reunion Tour. It's an amazing track which combines folk and rock music under beautiful harmonies. It will possibly be the nicest thing you hear all day.

The Weakerthans - 'Night Windows'

Album Review: The Kissaway Trail - Self-Titled

The Kissaway Trail are a new band from Odense, Denmark, with an awful name, though their music is much better than their English. Their self-titled debut is essentially an indie-rock affair over eleven tracks, filled with catchy melodies, and crosses the spectrum of instrumentation, with large string arrangements on some tracks, and banjos and mandolins on others. The album standout is undoubtedly the single “Smother + Evil = Hurt”, which, with its lush orchestral instrumentation backing a rock sound, brings to mind that other epic-sounding band The Polyphonic Spree. Except while the latter has thirty members, and The Kissaway Trail have five. The fact that such a young band can have such a big sound is a testament to their ability. With that said, the album does, at times, dip into a repetitive state, but all in all it’s a strong debut effort. If you loved the latest album from The Arcade Fire, then you should find something to love in The Kissaway Trail.

The Kissaway Trail is out now through Etch 'n' Sketch / Inertia

Album Review: New Buffalo - Somewhere, Anywhere

On ‘Somewhere, Anywhere’, New Buffalo (a.k.a. Sally Seltmann) has decided to go back to the basics. While her debut album ‘The Last Beautiful Day’ was full of samples and electronic beats, the majority of the tracks were, this time, written on Seltmann’s antique Thurmer piano. As a result, Seltmann’s new album is a stripped-back listen, which feels incredibly intimate, as many of the tracks being nothing more than vocals and piano.

The fact that the songs are often so bare in their instrumentation highlights the brilliant song-writing that is present here; while in many albums, subtleties can easily be lost behind over-production and samples, this isn’t a problem for New Buffalo. On album highlights such as ‘City And Sea’ and ‘Versay’, it almost sounds as if you’re listening to a live performance right inside her studio.

Seltmann, a multi-instrumentalist, has said that she found it more of a challenge to focus solely on composing on the one instrument. If this is what she produces when she limits herself to focusing on one small area of her ability, then I really hope she does more of the same for her next effort.

Somewhere, Anywhere is out now through Remote Control

Album Review: The National - Boxer

They say that record labels will only listen to 30 seconds of a band before they decide whether a band has what it takes. If that’s really the case, then I’m honestly surprised this five-piece from New York ever managed to get signed at all, let alone release four albums. I can tell you this much from the outset: The National are not a band that will grab you immediately. They are the epitome of those bands that are ‘a grower’. Their previous album, the critically-acclaimed ‘Alligator’, is a key example of this: initially dismissed as ‘nothing special’ by reviewers upon its release, by the end of 2005 it was raved about.

‘Boxer’ starts off strong with their first single ‘Fake Empire’, and never relents in its intensity, even if it’s a quiet, slow-burning sort of intensity. Throughout, Matt Berninger’s gin-soaked vocals (which many instantly compare to Nick Cave) create a mood of a man who often drinks alone, but is never judged for it – he’s probably celebrated, if anything. The album’s introspective nature is something that makes The National so special: while there are hundreds of bands out there yelling and screaming for your attention these days, the National are content to just keep playing until you discover them.

Boxer is out now through Remote Control / Inertia

Picking Up Where We Left Off

...kind of.

Given the last post here was in May, I've resolved to start posting again, and more frequently, starting the the backlog of reviews that I've yet to post.

Sorry (again) about the delay.

Warm & Scratchy

The guys over at Adult Swim have been making a habit lately of giving free music packs just for the hell of it, and they're showing no signs of stopping. While the previous Chrome Children and Definite Swim compilations were hip-hop themed, their new offer is strictly an indie-rock affair, with tracks from The Rapture, Les Savy Fav and Broken Social Scene.

Check out and download the whole tracklist here.

Best of SXSW: Beat The Devil

The first things you'll notice on listening to Beat the Devil's 'Shine in Exile' are the vocals, (inadequately describable as a sort of 'languid croon'), and the fact that there are no guitars - just a harmonium (with some bass & drums). Both of these are supplied by lead singer Shilpa Ray. Forced to play harmonium and sing since she was 8, Ray was raised in a strict Hindu household, where Western music was forbidden. As a result, the band's music sounds as if Ray, upon discovering Western music for herself, decided to incorporate as much as possible into her own work. There are echoes of jazz, blues, folk, and rock all within the one track, and it's unlike anything else I've heard recently.

Beat the Devil currently have a self-titled EP, available from their site here.

Beat the Devil - Shine In Exile
Beat the Devil - Plea Bargain

Best of SXSW: The Kissaway Trail

The Kissaway Trail come from Odense, Denmark: this fact excuses them from what is a terrible name for a band. Their music, on the other hand, is much more appreciable. The Kissaway Trail are five young kids who write big, swirling rock songs; lead single 'Smother + Evil = Hurt' evokes the majesty of The Polyphonic Spree, without sounding derivative. Like the 'Spree, and many other new acts, standard instrumentation doesn't cut it anymore. For extra texture, The Kissaway Trail use a lot of strings, banjo and mandolins in their tracks, and it is exceedingly effective: first time I listened to their single, I was blown away. Grab it below.

The Kissaway Trail: Smother + Evil = Hurt

Their self-titled debut release is out now on Etch 'n' Sketch.

Best of SXSW 2007

Every year around March, the centre of the music world seems to be in Austin, Texas, where the south by southwest music conference is held. It's a week packed full of bands who could be 'the next big thing'. Finally, two months after the event, I've managed to compile somewhat of a 'best of' the conference, and while the general consensus was that this year's installment was a little mediocre, there were still some standouts.

I'll be trying to put up a new artist profile each day. Here goes...

Note: While there were many amazing bands playing there (such as The Polyphonic Spree), I'm only going to be mentioning bands who also supplied a sample track for download.

Our Love To Admire

It seems the new thing is for album art to leak, and so, in keeping with current trends, here is what will be gracing the cover of the new album from Interpol, 'Our Love To Admire'. While the black, white and red colour scheme that adorned their previous two albums is nowhere to be seen, it's been replaced by something that's just as uplifting:


'Our Love To Admire' will be out on Remote Control soon.