The New Spin’s goal is to expose the great underground musicians of today. But given that 35% of everything The New Spin plays must be Canadian, I have discovered many great Canadian bands from among the piles of crap that’s out there. So here is a list in the order that I discovered them (kind of), the cream-of-the-crop Canadian bands making waves on The New Spin for 2009, some of which I have already written reviews for (they have links included.)

Of course, to listen to any of these artists, you can always tune in to the show every Thursday night on 93.5 CHMR-FM, online here, 9-11 Newftime, 7:30-9:30 EST, 4:30 Pacific. You should be able to find most of them on CBC Radio 3. I have added a few keywords to describe each artist in case you only like certain genres. SL means “sounds like.”

Tonight I will do a special show playing these artists, so tune in and hear the best of the best in Canadian music.

Hear a playlist of most of these artists here.

Timber Timbre (truly unusual folksongs, like Patrick Watson, this guy’s in a class all his own.)

Bruce Peninsula (dark choir/chamber folk, oh yes.)

Geoff Berner (Klezmer punk, what more needs to be said)

The Hylozoists (all instrumental like post-rock, but wow.)

Headache24 (SL Pixies)

Japandroids (SL Fugazi)

Olenka and the Autumn Lovers (if you like Dead Can Dance, etc.)

Weather Station (folk on the laptop loveliness)

Rae Spoon (how many transgendered folksingers do you know who sound like women but are actually men and who trade in their guitars for computers? not many, I’m sure.)

Patrick Watson (one of the best of the year, avant-garde/progressive indie folk)

The Torrent (dark 80’s inspired electro)

Pat Lepoidevin (amazing folk guitarist with an oh-so-sweet Scottish touch)

Eleazer Vs John (like Junior Boys?)

Tiga (play this at any club and watch them feet move)

Rural Alberta Advantage (dark, folky, I like them better than Elliot Brood)

Lovely Feathers (indie rock)

Hidden Cameras (80’s, New Order-ish, I love their new album)

Dan Mangan (folk, songwriter)

Wooden Sky (dark folk, reminds me of 16 Horsepower a bit)

Kids on TV Remixed V.1 from Blocks Recording Club (beats!)

Cousins (I can’t get play “Growling” enough)

Spiral Beach (kick-ass garage rock/punk)

Acres and Acres (lo-fi folksongs with St. John’s guest Amelia Curran)

Brock Geiger (banjo heavy folk songs)

Reverie Sound Revue (SL Stereolab)

Dark Mean (a little EP, but let’s see what they do in the future)

The Got to Get Got (fun fun in the sun indie rock)

Ambisonic (avant-garde-ish)

Jordan Klassen (love this guy from Calgary, oh my. SL Sufjan Stevens, David Pajo)

Gypsophilia (my interview with them is on my site here)

The Diableros (they have a new album, but haven’t heard it yet!)

The Danks (you love da danks if you love da strokes)

Flotilla (harp-based folk stuff from Montreal. SL Sunday All Over the World if you know who the hell that is)

Extra Happy Ghost (I only like one of the songs on this EP, but it’s so incredible I have to mention it. That would be “mash up: neither being nor nothingness”)

Vincat (Vincat!)

Rival Boys (alt-country, but their EP has grown on me)

Jesse Matheson (this guy’s songs are hilarious and oh so fun)

Octoberman (SL Calexico)

hellothisisalex (unusual chill-out chipcore or chipcore chill-out, whichever sounds better)

The Sales Department (electronic)

The Mountains and The Trees (from St. John’s, they’re making waves!)

Errand Boy (he moved away from St. John’s, too too bad, but keep an eye out for this dude)

Islands (not really underground, but whatever)

Language Arts (whoah, spoken word/hip-hop folk, cool…)

Fritz Helder (not really my favorite, but he has a very original electronic style that’s hard not to notice and that you may love, who knows)

Gregory Pepper and His Problems (problems? on his eclectic album With Trumpets Flaring I don’t see any problems, this guy’s uber-talented)

Makita Hack (straight up bluegrass, but awesome bluegrass at that)

Miss Quincy and The Ramblers (less exciting than Makita, but if you’re a bluegrass fan, why not?)

Woody Johnson (this guy’s a whiz on the acoustic blues front. so is Trevor Caswell, for that matter.)

Let’s Go to War (funky, electronic stuff, probably worth mentioning. SL Groove Armada)

We are Wolves (easily one of the best Canadian albums of the year, wow…)

Peace (who is this dude??? dark 80s-like stuff. SL early P.I.L. or Wilderness if you know them)

Minto (don’t know the album too well, but it’s produced by Steve Albini. yes, Steve Albini!)

The Fugitives (find me, find me! oh god, I’m drooling over them banjo licks.)

Digits (this guy emailed me and showed me his music. I cannot stop playing “Endgame”)

Jon and Roy (from BC, “Another Noon” is one of the best songs of the year.)

Vivian Houle (WTF???)

Rep by Pop (one of my favorite Canadian albums of the year, Cell Phone Camera, just wrote the review.)

Devil Eyes (very raucous, loud, but in a good, trashy-garage-rock-kind-of-way)

Sex with Strangers (I just love “We Want the Fire”)

Richard Laviolette and The Oil Spills (good folky stuff)

You Say Party We Say Die (yep, this is a good album, very punchy and lively)

The Racoon Wedding (like if Arcade Fire came from a bluegrass angle with some brass thrown in for good measure)

Okay, that’s it, I hope that’s enough to keep you busy for awhile, assuming you read this. I’ll post another list of the best underground artists from the rest of the world later. If you’re a new spinner, you already know them. If you need more, here is my list of top ten most under-rated records of 2008.

in sound,

Dashiell Brown

www.thenewspin.ca

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Jesse Matheson’s new album Pleasure Pounds is not only a delight, but Matheson wants to “get you alone” and “make you moan.” Based on the picture on the back of his album, he’ll achieve that by serenading you on his guitar with his Lou Reed-esque growl as he feeds you angel cake by candlelight. Pleasure Pounds is as fun as it sounds and any fan of Velvet Underground and Pavement will dig what Vancouver’s Matheson is going for here.

The first half packs a bigger punch followed by a 2nd mellower half, but it’s all good, and as you listen to his unique songwriting, it will become clear that Matheson is a great new Canadian artist you will want to keep tabs on. “She Does it in Graveyards” and “Orgy in Portland” are the highlights for me, and the backing vocals by various sirens like Misty Bath and Jill Propp among others make this all the more enjoyable, not to mention the varied folkin’ countrified instrumentation including an accordion, trumpet, and electric dulcimer.

Don’t let this guy escape your attention. Hear more at his myspace and on The New Spin this Thursday.

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Now that I’m back from vacation, I’ll be on the air tonight, bringing you all new editions of The Folkin’ Freak Show and Other Frequencies.

The Folkin’ Freak Show, 9 PM

Possible list of artists: White Magic, Castlemusic, Dory Previn, Burning Hell, T. Bone Burnett, Jenn Grant, Litterbug, and Weather Station, to name a few.

Other Frequencies, 10 PM

Local turntablist DJ TJ will be my special guest. Who knows what’ll happen!

Streaming online tonight on 93.5 CHMR-FM, 9-11 PM, 7:30 Eastern, 4:30 Pacific

in sound,

dashiell brown

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Fresh on the scene out of St. John’s, Newfoundland, Matthew Hornell has only been playing guitar since high-school, but his songs aim right for your gut, riding on pure emotion. His well-crafted folk songs draw you in, you’ll be singing along, feeling at home as in front of the campfire with good food and friends. Sounding timeless, yet fresh and bold, played live, his songs are executed with whip-crack precision. And when backed up by Tiffany Hancock’s beautiful and exquisite vocals, the duets become absolute magic. “Goodbye for Now” is purely enchanting, and “Khaki Dodgers” is an immediate hit. You’ll be singing it for days. Matthew Hornell and The Diamond Minds seems to have struck gold, and we should be so lucky they want to share it with us.

–Dashiell Brown, The New Spin and The Folkin’ Freak Show

Local St. John’s folk act Matthew Hornell of Matthew Hornell and the Diamond Minds, and special guest Tiffany Hancock, performed in the studio and played several great numbers on The New Spin. Listen to the podcast here.

For more great folk music, be sure to check out my new show, The Folkin’ Freak Show. Tuesdays, 9-10 PM, streaming online at 93.5 CHMR-FM.

(Photo taken by Jon Janes)

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 My latest review: Transgendered Canadian alt-country/folk with an electronic twist!

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After reading the current issue of Exclaim, these are the things I learned and want to share:

1. First off, I’m listening to Toronto’s Bruce Peninsula on myspace, and I’m blown away. This band fucking rules. The guy’s voice, Mat Cully? and stylings remind me of M. Ward’s stuff like in their cool song, “2nd 4th World War.” What kind of cool title is that? Slick. Their harmonizing style rings of Arcade Fire but then is crossed with a Tom Waits/Fred Eaglesmith/Nick Cave/16 Horsepower-now-Wooden Hand spiritual campfire feel, but as Whibbs says in the article, “don’t go pigeonholing them as having a throwback sound,” and he’s right. They don’t. This is completely new in the same way that Animal Collective is new. If David Cronenberg did a remake of O Brother Where Art Thou, I’d pick these guys to do the soundtrack. In other words, this is dark Americana interpreted by Canadians. Cool stuff, and I plan on playing it on The New Spin. Canada’s gettin’ way too cool for it’s own good, eh? Here’s another link to their CBC3 stuff.

2. Jenn Grant has a new album, and since my interview with her, we still don’t have it at the station. Hopefully, Six Shooter will send it over someday?

3. Timber Timbre’s new album is mos def some wicked. Again, obviously Taylor Kirk is digging his inspiration from the past in the roots genre, but he is taking a new spin on it. The quote that really stuck out for me, though, is when he says, “It’s kind of gross to me that I’d finish a recording and be responsible for every single sound.” Ha, welcome to my world, dude. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing in my cold-ass basement with my latest album, Circuit Tree.  ”I’m a loner, I’m a sorry entertainer.” (Two points if you know who sings that.) Point is, I’m in my 30’s and I’m broke. So I just make music in my cold-ass basement and do everything myself. Costs a lot less. Apparently, this is the way Chad VanGaalen mostly works too, though I don’t know if his basement is cold or not. Most basements are.

4. I was really impressed with Antony’s debut album I am a Bird Now. I love the track “For Today I am a Boy.” I feel like a boy all the time, if you must know. Probably why I get into so much trouble. I’m a fucking punk ass bitch, i tell you. I’m not into his new stuff, though, i don’t know, too slow? I like slow music, but this new stuff he’s doing just isn’t doing it for me. But I was excited to learn that he actually wrote five of the songs on the Hercules and Love Affair album, and that shit is great. I hope he does another one with ol’ Hercules. Anyway, cool stuff to learn about, Butoh.

What is Butoh? Barclay tells us that it was “informed by the writings of Jean Genet, expressionism, and apocalyptic imagery from post-Hiroshima Japan.” Cool. This reminds me of the little feature on The Animatrix where we learn that Japan is the only country in the world that have truly lived the apocalypse (not to mention living to tell about it.) And it comes out in a lot of their art, the end of the world. So, Antony has studied Butoh and he uses it in his art on stage and in his performances. So, I now have to re-assess my opinions about Antony. I mean, Butoh, dudes. How cool is that? Let this be a pleasant reminder that though we get our music as easily as picking up a piece of trash at the park, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t really take the time and study that piece of garbage. In that garbage is an entire world. Don’t be so quick to throw it away…unless of course you’ve been eyeing that other piece of garbage sitting right next to it. Yep, you better pick that one up too. 

Speaking of garbage, I don’t see why people are going ga ga over lady ga ga. Yuck, she doesn’t make me ga, she makes me gag.

That’s enough for now. Thanks Exclaim! for the education.

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Errand Boy, Laptop Wizardy, and the End of America as We Know It

When I first heard about Errand Boy (a friend of mine became a fan of Errand Boy on Facebook), I had some idea of what to expect because I found him on Facebook and Myspace, listened to his tracks, which then led to my utter intrigue about this fellow from St. John’s who clearly marches to his own drummer, unlike so many of the jaded, apathetic youth that you’ll find lurking here in St. John’s, shrouded in black, moody apparel bemoaning their beliefs in lost freedoms and the entrapment that is downtown St. John’s, but after his incredible show last night, with about twenty of the aforementioned, jaded individuals standing around and staring at the vintage films that were meandering on by, I was simply blown away and left speechless as I, too, just stupidly stared at the images passing before me, so exquisitely accompanied by the rare duo that is Errand Boy.

Born and Raised in St. John’s, Newfoundland, with a brief stint over in Toronto taking a course in audio engineering, Bryan Melanson is one of the small handful of laptop musicians taking sprout downtown, though Errand Boy is the only live laptop act I’ve seen, which is a bit of a misnomer because I never actually saw the laptop. Bryan, with his shaggy hair and plaid shirt, was standing quietly in the corner, alternating between electric guitar and then drums, as Mike Myatt was also playing guitar on the opposite side, but I’ll tell you, a lot more sounds were deliciously pouring out of the speakers (at ridiculous levels, I might add–not the fault of Errand Boy, either) and all sorts of bands I love sprung to my mind: The Microphones/Mt. Eerie, Valley of the Giants, Do Make Say Think, Godspeed You Black Emperor, or any of the other Canadian post-rock outfits out there on the Constellation record label–and then–Mogwai. I told the sound guy there’s no reason the volume has to be as high as it was, but he ignored me, though he did answer my question about where the other sounds were coming from: they were plugged into an audio/midi interface that acted as a trigger, which then fed into the laptop and back out to the speakers (so I understand, at least.) 

As if this wasn’t enough, and I still looked around me, wondering what the hell these kids must be thinking of this unprecedented scene unraveling so smoothly before them like a snake slinking out of satin sheets, Errand Boy also had this huge white sheet suspended behind them, displaying arhived footage from the creative commons: there’s a neon sign advertising “Miss America of 1939″ and there’s a weathered film showing open fields and crops, biplanes, there’s one with a city transit system colored in sepia tones, there’s the Cyclone at Coney Island (where Woody Guthrie lived on Mermaid Avenue), there’s a black and white film from the 30’s of slickly-dressed folks out for a whirl on the big-band dance floor, and as you’re watching all these films, the Mogwai-meets-Microphones wall of sound is slamming your ears like a beautiful wave of sonic splendor, and I’m like, what the hell is this, this is incredible and no one’s here to see it!

Ah well, maybe you’ll take notice and try to catch them next time. You’re missing out if you don’t: big time. Errand Boy is the band in St. John’s you need to watch. 

Errand Boy’s myspace

Hi-leeHi-lo.mp3

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Spiral Beach is a thrash/pop/dance-punk/rock outfit out of Toronto and they have a sick new EP called Bonus. Their EP has been getting lots of rotation on The New Spin, especially the track “Made of Stone,” which begins with one of the most wicked guitar riffs ever to trigger a track. They share the same “high kicks” energy as another New Spin-featured band, The Stolen Minks.

Apparently they do shows that include all sorts of carnivalesque jungle-gym escapades complete with bright balloons, kaleidoscopic vid screens, and all-ages playgrounds with ropes and tire swings.  Sounds some wicked. You can listen to their last album, Ball, on their website.

 

Here’s the video for “Made of Stone.”

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Two years ago, The Diableros (from Toronto) came out with their fantastic debut album, You Can’t Break the Strings in our Olympic Hearts, and NOW Magazine called it one of the best of the year. Now they have a new album, Aren’t Ready for the Country, though maybe not as strong as their first, which demonstrates they still have some tricks up their sleeve. Apparently they formed their band in order to do a tribute to Jesus & Mary Chain. Their sound is like a cross between The Walkmen and Interpol, where singer Pete Carmichael takes the time to explore each song and give attention to it. These are not fast, tight pop songs, but rather loose and soulful; they are in clearly no rush to go anywhere. Listen to “Turning Backwards” to get an idea of what I mean (Track 5 on the player. Click Listen on the link for Aren’t Ready for the Country.)  Also listen to Nothing Down in Hogtown.

 

And a reminder, Tune into The New Spin tonight!

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