Depatterning – Framgent 1
Depatterning – Fragment 2
Depatterning – Fragment 3

Shooting Guns – Black Hand

Shooting Guns – Cheater’s Justice

Feral Children – Free Fantasy
Feral Children – This Is Where The Sun Is Now

Feral Children – Reverb

Feral Children – Ancient Videotape

Shooting Guns – Harmonic Steppenwolf
Shooting Guns – Dopestrings

Aunty Panty – Mal Au Coeur
Aunty Panty – Cunt

Auld Beak – G.B.H.
Auld Beak – Cat Song

From the kraazy Saskatoon lovertude of Christopher Bateman:
Ever wondered what a Prince or Babyface-inspired boy from the Canadian prairies looks and sounds like? By 1995, New Jack Swing was on its way out of radio favor and Saskatoon is about as far from a stronghold of hip hop informed R&B that you can get, but for better or for worse, that never stopped Indianapolis-born T. Lyles from putting out a collection of New Jack swangers in the heart of Joni-town. It is not exactly clear how Lyles is connected to Saskatoon, but it was there that he created his 12-bar New Jack rub-down of an album. For the most part, the disc is more weird than bangin’, but it stands as a curious peek into an outsider prairie new jack inductee. Also: check the T-fade.
T. Lyles – Kraazy
T. Lyles – Friends

From the compiled danglings of Jesse Locke:
The Comp of Hope starts off with a serious wallop: the 1-2-3 whirligig of Vancouver’s Damages, Nova Scotia’s Minivan Halen (snagging the prize for Best New Band Name) and Toronto’s Place Hands, three groups with distinct yet equally imposing approaches to the post- / proto- / avant- / eff-it-let’s-just-get-rowdy hardcore continuum. Bart Records founder Kevin Stebner seems to favour the tuff gnarl stuff, with seven of the comp’s 10 acts setting their phasers to beatdown. From the spazzy attack of Abbotsford’s GSTS! to the rastafried “turbo jamz” of Edmonton’s Slates, Missisauga’s Whiskey Priest and unfuckwithable label faves Gift Eaters closing it off, this cassette could provide the perfect aggro soundtrack for any hesher’s backyard mini-ramp sesh. The softer side of weird Canadiana is also represented with the Strokes-meet-a-blown-out-Casio addictiveness of Swwords (the former project of this very site’s founder), Montreal’s math-pop dangereux duo Special Noise and a live jam from the inimitable dd/mm/yyyy. Another top-notch tape release from Bart, with awesome foldout liner art (front & back) from Calgary’s Heather Kai Smith.
[Levin's Note: This has the most links of any review on Weird Canada. Which means you get to virtually travel across Canada, all thanks to Bart Records. Benjoy!]
Special Noise – Fitness
Minivan Halen – Epic
SLATES – blooloend
swwords – The Hit

Saskatoon is Canada’s secret cultural hot-spot. The last time I was in Saskatoon I yelled at Herbie Hancock from afar, found one of the rarest Canadian psych records for $3 (Christmas on Paragon), made-out with a Lesbian, and stumbled upon picture sleeves from one of Canada’s best garage 7″s (The Witness Inc. – Not You Girl). My fondness with Saskatoon continued when I met Feral Children and seems to grow with each Weird Canada submission from the city. Thus, it comes with no surprise that I stumble upon another creative genius conjuring soundscapes in their Saskatoon basement. Poler Bear’s ambient canvasses are captivating in every way they shouldn’t be; fluxes of multi-instrumental blankets forming pop structures and catchy wisps too slow and wavering for radio pop but too structured to bear the avant-garde moniker. Most of the songs are built around narratives from Canada’s landscape: water, people, television, and birds; all playing a role in shaping Poler Bear’s soundtrack. It’s mellow and soothing and time seems to slip away every time I listen. Hopefully my next trip to Saskatoon will feature more artifacts of Canada’s underground, including Poler Bear.
Poler Bear – Parachute
Poler Bear – Ships Don’t Soar With Stone Sails