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December 6th, 2011

New Canadiana :: Jessica Jalbert – Brother Loyola


From the southern warmth of Aaron Levin:
Deep within Canada’s tundradic core lies a lush gully of acoustic majesty. As these warm vibrations pierce the embittered cold, their very migration needs a soundtrack; hymns to carry us while our ancient graves turn barren lives to eternal dust. While the sky turns Paris Green and our eyes drift softly into slumber, Jessica’s hymns persuade; Brother Loyola‘s warmth and gorgeous mellow shall swallow us in a liquid sun of minor-key mourning. The cover says it all: grip.

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Jessica Jalbert – Paris Green

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Jessica Jalbert – Necromancy

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Categoria!! 12" :: alberta :: New Canadiana | 2 Comments »

December 5th, 2011

New Canadiana :: Matthew A. Wilkinson – Namers

  • Matthew A. Wilkinson
  • Namers
  • (Self Released)
  • Grand Prairie, AB
  • ::web/sounds::
From the brittle hands of Jesse Locke:
Surprise grip of the year. Softly diffusing from the northwestern margins of the Swan City (Grand Prairie), Matthew A. Wilkinson has upended Weird Canada HQ with his numinous folk incantations. Wordless murmurs melt into wasted drum circles, twinkling pianos and bent acoustic chant, as this boreal basement ritual summons malevolent deities of wavering gender. Songwriter, filmmaker and maybe even oracle, Wilkinson wields an unruly power. Lend him your ears.

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Matthew A. Wilkinson – Hand Over Hand

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Matthew A. Wilkinson – Like This

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Matthew A. Wilkinson – Yes, My Knees Say

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Categoria!! alberta :: compact disc :: New Canadiana | 3 Comments »

November 9th, 2011

New Canadiana :: LOOM – Epyllion

From the wondrous elipsus of Aaron Levin:
After several iterative imaginations, LOOM’s hypnotic perturbations are wholly realized within Epyllion‘s twilight embrace. Tenuous cinders warm the mesmeric dissonance embedding LOOM’s succession into dactylic grace and splendid nylon minimalism; a transfiguration well worth Epyllion‘s meditative endurance. Existing in a plane beyond idyllic notions of folk, pop, and mellowtude, the album emerges between disparate walls of sinusoidal classification, unveiling the lingering ashes of lysergic ritual. Grip gently.

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LOOM – There is Blood in My Body

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LOOM – Is It Love

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Categoria!! compact disc :: New Canadiana :: ontario | 2 Comments »

March 21st, 2011

New Canadiana :: Foxes in Fiction – Alberto

From the aeolanic praise of Aaron Levin:
There is a new soft embodied by Foxes in Fiction. Warm flourishes of marino-laced lysergia, tiki-tap drum machines, and an easy coastal choral wash Alberto into a definitive mellow, soaking your woes in a bath of popular splendor. Being filed somewhere between Eubank and Hall and Oats, it’s hard to believe such a soundscape survive the cold-hearted streetz™ of Toronto. Grip fast while their satiated waves still wash our shores.

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Foxes in Fiction – School Night

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Foxes in Fiction – Bathurst

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Categoria!! cassette :: New Canadiana :: ontario | 1 Comment »

August 17th, 2010

New Canadiana :: Jom Comyn – Balcony

Jom Comyn
Balcony
(Champion City Records)
Edmonton, AB
::web/sounds::


From the comyn-spiced balconies of James Goddard:
This EP from Edmonton’s Jom Comyn (sometimes Jim Cumming) speaks to the concerns of young adults in the 21st Century – I mean actual young adults, not the browsers of Gordon Korman – unemployment, cigarettes, sloppy romances, late-nights, and (of course) almost condemned balconies. The guitars carry the tunes lethargically; apathetic tones, sketchy feedback, and non-committal fuzz over dusty, stilted drumming. Jom’s vocals shine through the nest like a retired lounge singer; an odd, weathered voice spouting the words of a quarter-life savant. “You don’t know what you are doing until years after it’s through.” On Sunday morning, in a hungover haze, it all sounds like it might be the truth.

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Jom Comyn – New Raincoat

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Jom Comyn – Roomie

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Categoria!! alberta :: compact disc :: New Canadiana | 6 Comments »

July 16th, 2010

Review :: Fuck The Tundra – Grin Diesel

Fuck The Tundra
Grin Diesel
(Bart Records)
Edmonton, AB
::web/sounds::


From the teen steamings of Jesse Locke:
Midway through their final set at the Bart Records showcase for Sled Island 2010, Fuck the Tundra’s hyperactive frontman pushed the crowd back, tucked to his toes and hucked a massive flat ground back flip. That gymnastic feat was impressive enough, yet it was still overshadowed by a pitch-perfect performance of all six songs from their debut cassette, one of this year’s most jaw dropping releases. Throughout Grin Diesel’s succinct 16 minutes, the quartet tears into 31G-style post-hardcore with pulse quickening drum fills, spidery dueling guitars and mathematical change-ups, all peppered with their bizarre sense of humor. Most surprising is the serenely summery yet still mathy instrumental “Eliminator Boat Duel,” an ear-pleasing interlude amidst the chronicles of ridiculous.

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Fuck The Tundra – Gintro

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Fuck The Tundra – Eliminator Boat Duel

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Categoria!! alberta :: cassette :: New Canadiana | 2 Comments »

June 18th, 2010

Review :: Blue Hawaii – Blooming Summer

Blue Hawaii
Blooming Summer
(Arbutus Records)
Montreal, QC
::web/sounds::


From the summery low-life of Aaron Levin:
Arbutus Records is at the centre of a monstrous pop vortex. Sean Nicholas Savage, Silly Kissers, Braids, Pop Winds, Grimes, and now Montreal’s Blue Hawaii showcase the breadth of avant-pop nuances circulating in their sphere of electromagnetic influence. Every burnout needs a soundtrack to escape the sun; a reason to ride the swashes of summery circuitry and gluey harmonies that crest upon Blooming Summer‘s self-referential manifesto. With Blooming Summer they will reach a chromatic zenith and swim in a stew of summer evenings and midnight exotica. So can you. GRIP.

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Blue Hawaii – Blue Gowns

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Blue Hawaii – Dream Electrixra

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Categoria!! cassette :: New Canadiana :: quebec | 2 Comments »

April 6th, 2010

Review :: Frederick Squire – Friday March 12

Frederick Squire
Friday March 12
(Self Released)
Sackville, NB
::web/sounds::


From the tantramaratic marshes of James Goddard:
There is a special bite to the wind that blows off the Tantramar. Fred Squire’s songs are modeled after that marsh wind. They wake you up. Expertly positioned, every layer arranged like a plate in a drying rack. The voice, guitar, drums, piano; one after another. Fred wants you to watch him build these songs. He draws your attention to the process, to the pedals and the microphones, the tape and the instruments; it’s an attention to recording. He’s showing you how to make something sound ecclesiastical, reverential, like the wind. While at the same time never allowing one to losing sight of the fact that underneath all that is a man with a guitar and a voice like a paragon.

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Frederick Squire – You Sing High We Will Sing Low

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Frederick Squire – Theme From a Northern Movie

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Categoria!! compact disc :: new brunswick :: New Canadiana | 3 Comments »

December 22nd, 2009

Review :: Cousins – Out on Town

Cousins - Out on Town Cousins
Out on Town
(Youth Club Records)
Halifax, NS
::web/sounds::


From the sensitive-thug stylings of Jesse Locke:
Before we get into the sweet and unassuming goodness of Cousins’ slacker rock sing-a-longs, let me tell you a little bit about their ride. Rolling in style from their native Nova Scotia, the Haligonians hit the highway this fall in a magic school bus equipped with bunk beds and fueled by vegetable oil. A radical alternative to be sure, but as it turned out their max road speeds were barely enough to bring them up hills, resulting in several late arrivals at out-of-town tour stops. That’s a fitting analogy for the songwriting style of Cousin’s Aaron Mangle as well, tangling up twangy Bill Callahan-inspired rambles with a classic Doug Martsch-style falsetto, while drifting through it all with an unhurried pace. In his review of York Redoubt’s s/t LP, Aaron “canonical” Levin wrote about Halifax’s “advanced level of pop wizardry,” and there’s a similar charm to these 10 tunes.
[Levin's Note: Cousins are definitely a Level ∞ Pop-Wizard.]

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Cousins – Anxious

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Cousins – Write Me A Song

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Categoria!! compact disc :: New Canadiana :: nova scotia | 4 Comments »

October 13th, 2009

Review :: Friendo – Cold Toads

Friendo - Cold Toads Friendo
Cold Toads
(Self Released)
Calgary, AB
::web/sounds::


From the stalagmite-riddled collection of Paul K Lawton:
Tough going for any band that automatically assumes the rank of “supergroup”, especially when only one member of said band is in group of international renown (band in question: Women, who currently hold rank of “biggest band in Calgary”, though they would all be pretty embarrassed if you brought that up in polite conversation). For those paying attention to the (at times) white-hot Calgary music scene, the other two members of Friendo hail from noted groups Puberty (on hiatus until further notice) and Beija Flor. Like the best groups that achieve rank of “super”, Friendo retain the elements that make all respective groups compelling in the first place – the swirling, lo-fidelity soundscapes of Women (though, like Women, this is a warm and crisp lo-fidelity), the angular-yet-soft abrasion of Puberty and the gentleness and sense of melody of Beija Flor. Cold Toads could very easily be a lost K-Records release, the recording of these songs giving them a timeless-yet-dated feel, where you can’t help but feel like you’ve already fallen in love with these songs and they are coming back into your life at the exact right time. A stunning debut if there ever was one.
[Levin's Note: I'd like to give a big f***-you to Paul Lawton for reviewing this cassette before me. This is really blowing me away; "swirling, lo-fidelity" to say the least. And a perfect album for the cassette format. This may replace Sans AIDS as my favorite 90s mellow-jam of the year. Maybe.]

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Friendo – Liner

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Friendo – Callers

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Friendo – Counter Time

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Categoria!! alberta :: cassette :: New Canadiana | 9 Comments »

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