Hour Community » Spins

Headwaters

Guillaume Moffet — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Headwaters marks the third album for the Winnipeg-based troubadour. Out of the 30 demos that were recorded, the ten that made the final cut are mostly pulsating narratives that hint here and there at other storytellers. I think of John Mellencamp on Can’t Turn Around, Cat Stevens on The Right Side of the Wrong, and others. Produced by Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter), Headwater‘s chronicles are enhanced by Del Barber’s passionate vocabulary, like when he asserts that "everything is never enough" or brilliantly mourns the homeland he abandoned on the closer Soul of the Land That’s Mine. Yes, Del Barber is one more singer-songwriter in the purest tradition of the classic troubadour, and one to look out for – I just know he’s got a real masterpiece in him.

Strangeland

Guillaume Moffet — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

What’s bizarrely soothing here on Keane’s fourth LP, Strangeland, is that they seem to have gone full circle. If they sounded almost prog on their sophomore, then utterly electro-poppy on 2008′s Perfect Symmetry, Keane have seemingly crafted their new LP using the variations of their breakthrough debut, Hopes and Fears, in mind. Yes, the same uncanny, melodic keyboard sounds adored on Everybody’s Changing and This Is the Last Time reign supreme in the sonic palette of Strangeland. Looking back in order to see what’s ahead, perhaps? Not really – Strangeland just offers more of the same perfectly crafted, terribly well-executed adult pop. The only unfortunate moments occur when the band’s pomposity weighs down the album’s best tunes (Sovereign Light Café, Neon River).

Three Little Birds

Guillaume Moffet — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Three Little Birds – three local singer-songwriters: Angela Schleihauf, Erin Saoirse Adair and Amelia Leclair. Together they sing delightfully, fresh as the morning dew, luminous as the brightest day of June – a bit like the Marley classic of the same name. On their Dean Watson co-produced, self-titled debut (he did Andrea Simms-Karp’s Hibernation Nation, amongst others), the ladies perfect their own blend of Manouche-like ditties (Misery) knotted with reggae variations (Oil and Water), country-like storytelling (Uranium Mining) and folk aesthetics (the wonderful We Are an Ocean). The arrangements are astonishingly rich, bursting with Schleihauf’s oboe, Leclair’s cajon and English horn and Adair’s pianorgan and violin, taking unexpected detours, putting to the forefront their magnificent three-part harmonies. Had Marley been alive, he would have approved.

Always

Jean-Thomas Tremblay — Thu, 10 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Always is Xiu Xiu’s ninth album since prolific singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart launched this ever-mutating project in 2002. Despite an unbeatable pace, Stewart’s distressed voice is showing no signs of fatigue. Although possibly Xiu Xiu’s most melodious album to date, Always isn’t exactly an easy listen. Stewart viciously plays with contrasts, with waiflike tracks being sandwiched between songs with a frantic, anxiety-inducing tempo. It would, however, be unfair to insist too much on this LP’s challenging character; it’s an interesting opus, especially in light of the birth of younger bands like Diamond Rings, in whose sound Stewart’s signature is apparent. Always also bears a resemblance to other experimental pop musicians, including Asobi Seksu and, perhaps more surprisingly, Antony Hegarty. Eclectic and temerarious.

Mr. Impossible

Steve Guimond — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

On their sixth long-player, NYC avant-gardists Black Dice – the trio of Eric and Bjorn Copeland and Aaron Warren – further break any ties with their own musical past circa the landmark album Beaches and Canyons, laying to rest their association with what we call traditional rock instruments. Bye-bye guitars and drums, hello electronics. This is not a bad thing though, as we’ve heard on their previous two or three records, with the band’s sonics colliding to form a chaotic landslide into punky glitches, funky power, distorted love cries and experimental audacity.

Little Broken Hearts

Guillaume Moffet — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Since her charming fourth LP, our poor little Norah Jones has had her heart broken. This happens to the best of us – it occurred to me quite recently, putting me in the perfect mindset to make the most of this nice little album. This new Danger Mouse-produced LP sees her on perilous grounds compared to her back catalogue, with layers of reverbs trafficking her voice (like on the wonderful Travelin’ On), deep rhythmic grooves that instantly recalls Mouse’s own project Broken Bells (Say Goodbye, Happy Pills). Sometimes the energy is lacking, as on the six-plus-minute closer All a Dream – depicting the usual post-breakup stoicism, perhaps? – but Little Broken Hearts sets Jones apart from her Blue Note contemporaries, linking her to indie goddesses à la Feist, which is a welcome reinvention. Goodbye S-Norah – we welcome you with open arms, Miss Bitter Jones.

Corinna Rose

Kevin Laforest — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Corinna Rose, a.k.a. Corey Gulkin, is a sweet-voiced, banjo-playing young woman from Toronto, now living in Montreal, who released this four-track EP last summer and is now touring in support of it, as well as to admittedly capitalize on the fact that one of her earlier songs, Green Mountain State, is featured in Sarah Polley’s upcoming film Take This Waltz. Surrounded by Nicolas Godmaire (guitar), Leah Dolgoy (autoharp), Alex Leblanc (bass) and Matthew Daher (drums), the singer-songwriter crafts little folk-pop gems that remind somewhat of the work of Krista Muir. Nothing we haven’t heard before, but a pleasant listen nevertheless.

Eight and a Half

Guillaume Moffet — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

You miss Broken Social Scene and your life stopped when The Stills called it quits? Comprised of The Stills’ Dave Hamelin and Liam O’Neil and BSS’s drummer Justin Peroff, Eight and a Half propose a chill, yet sophisticated take on 80s-soaked electro indie pop. Immersed in Cold War melancholia reminiscent of the Pet Shop Boys at their dreamiest (The Turn Around), Eight and a Half‘s best moments appear to be their strangest: Walked Into Diazepene mesmerizes, with its sonic landscapes consisting of bleeps, twirls and four-to-the-floor rhythms, conjuring up wha, Radiohead might have sounded like if Thom Yorke hadn’t suddenly become allergic to pop song structures. In the end, Eight and a Half prove to be unquestionably alluring, and if they stick around long enough, they’ve built a nice foundation on which to create something even more high-flying the next time around.

Heavy Ride

Kristof G. — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

You guys knew we had a stoner metal scene in Montreal, right? In addition to NOLA-infused bands like Downtrodden or the blackened sludge of Dopethrone, there is also Buffalo Theory MTL, born from the ashes of deathcore-ish metal band Ghoulunatics (bassist Gary Lyons, guitarist Pat Gordon, drummer Brian Craig). Around 2009, the trio recruited Yannick Pilon (Arseniq33) for extra guitar power and found its voice in Anton Parr, whose sung growls recall Phil Anselmo’s snarl. Heavy Ride is the band’s first album, following their 2010 five-song demo. Their sound is heavy indeed, along the Black Sabbath lines, with mighty solos, lots of groovy riffs and thunderous rhythms. A great soundtrack for your next sunny car ride.

Lives In Between EP

Cormac Rea — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Now with their third release, Ottawa-based, Sault St. Marie-founded Kalle Mattson drop the folk-inflected Lives In Between EP. A step away from their previous indie rock focus, Lives In Between makes pleasant work out of the folk-indie collision, with more than a hint of pop sensibilities. Merry songs like Sun Is Gone show the new range that a lineup change has brought to the band via brass sections and harmonizing chorus lines. Lead single Someday pays lyrical homage to Mattson’s Northern Ontario roots, while The Shore and Water Falls certainly betrays lead singer Kalle Wainio’s affinity with Wilco’s sonic experimentalism. On final track Miles In Between, it’s all soaring violins and more uplifting lyrical content. While this buoyant tone and direction may peeve those with a taste for hard and dark rock, Lives In Between is a step ahead for Kalle Mattson – a band unafraid to let their musical whims guide them.