James Blake @ The Mod Club tonight

If you're out riding with James Blake, you should expect some Three 6 Mafia on the playlist.

One For The Weekend: The Esquires

Here's the rippin' instro "Rave" from the 1964 Capitol debut of Ottawa's finest, The Esquires.

The Rizdales toast Ray Price @ Hugh's Room tonight

The Rizdales will be performing everyone's Ray Price faves from their great new tribute disc Blue Ain't The Word.

LINKS
site http://www.rizdales.com/
London Free Press: Price is right for Rizdales

Happy Birthday Sally Timms!

Celebrating the birthday of Sally Timms with her fab rendition of The Sad Milkman by The Handsome Family.

Allah-Las vs The Frantics

Allah-Las have been covering The Frantics' No Werewolf on their current tour which hits the Horseshoe tonight.

Happy Birthday Robert Scott!

Robert played bass and sang backing vocals on this ace 1985 Flying Nun single by The Weeds.

Run The Jewels: Killer Mike & EL-P @ Danforth Music Hall, tonight

Watch Killer Mike address a St. Louis audience 90 minutes after the Grand Jury verdict in Ferguson.

Killer Mike discusses Michael Brown shooting in August on CNN
LINKS
Run The Jewels site
Noisey: The Morning After – An interview with Killer Mike
Washington Post: Bob McCulloch's pathetic prosecution

Remembering Nick Drake on the 40th Anniversary of his passing

Here's the entire Songs Of Nick Drake tribute concert filmed in Toronto back in November, 2012. 

The Pop Group @ Lee's Palace, March 14

Hear Nick Cave discuss how The Pop Group changed his life followed by a 1978 Peel Session.

The Pop Group on tour:

03/10/2015 Los Angeles CA – Echoplex

03/11/2015 San Francisco CA – Great American Music Hall

03/12/2015 Seattle WA – Neumos Crystal Ball Reading Room

03/13/2015 Chicago IL - venue TBA

03/14/2015 Toronto ON – Lee’s Palace

03/16/2015 Brooklyn NY – Rough Trade

03/17/2015 New York NY – Bowery Ballroom

Negative Approach @ Hard Luck Bar, Sunday

Watch what happened when John Brannon and crew hit Hard Luck Bar two years ago.

Patti Smith chats with David Lynch

Patti and David discuss severed ears, Bobby Vinton, ugly beauty and the ghost of Jerry Garcia.

Thee Oh Sees @ Danforth Music Hall, Sunday

Watch Thee Oh Sees' entire show at L.A.'s Echoplex from May 29, 2014.

Set list
0:00 I Come From The Mountain
4:57 Tunnel Time
8:57 Encrypted Bounce (a queer sound)
13:21 The Dream
20:44 Toe Cutter/Thumb buster
24:30
29:10 Carrion Crawler
34:18 Lupine Dominus
41:18 Transparent World
46:46 Tidal Wave
51:30 Dead Energy
57:56 Web

Vieux Farka Touré & Idan Raichel light up Koerner Hall, Friday

The Malian guitarist and Israeli keyboardist recently issued their second studio collabo, The Paris Session.

Nucleus meets Leon Thomas at Montreux '70

The previously unreleased live pairing of Nucleus and Leon Thomas is out now on Gearbox.

Gearbox recently announced the first official release of the Montreux Jazz Festival concert featuring trumpeter Ian Carr’s pioneering Nucleus performing with US vocalist Leon Thomas on a set of Thomas’ repertoire recorded in June 1970. According to Carr, the collaboration with Thomas is a combination of the “rock thing...with the roots of the music.” Check out the track "Echoes" below featuring an oboe solo from Karl Jenkins. The analog mastered double vinyl version of Nucleus with Leon Thomas: Live 1970 (with MP3 download) is available from Gearbox Records.

Track Listing: The Creator Has a Master Plan; Echoes; Damn ‘Nam (Ain’t Going to Viet Nam); One; Chains of Love; The Journey

Personnel: Leon Thomas - vocals, Ian Carr - trumpet & flugelhorn, Karl Jenkins - oboe & piano, Brian Smith - soprano & tenor sax, flute Chris Spedding - guitar, Jeff Clyne - bass, John Marshall - drums.

Dream Police @ Smiling Buddha, Wednesday

The Dream Police (aka Nick Chiericozzi and Mark Perro of The Men) will be joined by Honey in Toronto.

Upcoming tour dates

EAST
Nov 19 - Toronto, ON - Smiling Buddha
Nov 20 - Montreal, QB - Casa del Popolo
Nov 21 - Providence, RI - tbd
Nov 22 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Pool$

WEST
Dec 3 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress
Dec 4 - Phoenix, AZ
Dec 5 - Los Angeles, CA - Jewels Catch One
Dec 6 - San Francisco, CA - Brick & Mortar
Dec 7 - Oakland, CA - Leo's%
Dec 8 - Sacramento, CA - Witch Room
Dec 9 - Reno, NV - Holland Project
Dec 10 - Portland, OR - Holocene
Dec 11 - Vancouver, BC - The Fox Cabaret
Dec 12 - Seattle, WA - Black Lodge
Dec 13 - Olympia, WA - Old School Pizzeria#


!w/ Drose
$ w/ Remnants, Ivy
% w/ Cold Beat, CCR Headcleaner
#w/ Broken Water
All EAST dates w/ Honey
All WEST dates w/ Mercury Living

Happy Birthday Don Cherry!

Remembering the great jazz trumpeter/composer with a rare Italian performance clip. 

La Maison Fille Du Soleil by François Tusques & Don Cherry 

Cross-pollinating the wants lists of art/jazz/print and architecture enthusiasts this seldom seen 7" single is regarded as the rarest “lost” recording by American jazz trumpeter and global communal music missionary Don Cherry as he collaborates with French piano improv genius François Tusques.

A missing link in the pre-formative years of improvised jazz this mythical private pressing unites two of the key exponents of both American and French free jazz – two entirely independent musical art forms which by 1964 had yet to publicly entwine at the hands of bands like Art Ensemble Of Chicago, Sunny Murray, the Actuel magazine/label and Pan-African jazz festivals in the late 60s.

This intimate recording was made to accompany an exhibition by pioneering Swiss/French architect Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris (better known as Le Corbusier) held in Tusques own home town of Nantes. Recorded in one sitting while the globe-trotting Don Cherry stopped off in France this record also marks the beginning of a musical journey which lead to releases in Germany, Italy and Sweden featuring collaborations with the likes of Komeda (Poland), Okay Temiz (Turkey), Joachim Kühn (Germany), the legendary Krzysztof Penderecki and directors Alexandro Jodorowsky and Jerzy Skolimowski. Here these compositions are lead by François Tusques adopting the Chinese whisper sound carrier techniques deployed in his music for the film Viol Du Vampire by Jean Rollin while sonically evoking other cinematic works by Komeda, Mal Waldron and Bernt Rosengren.

Housed in a two fold wrap-around sleeve identical to the original article this pocket document of a cross-continental jazz milestone also features a miscredited appearance by bass player Bernard “Beb” Guérin (BYG/Futura) and lays the foundations for Tusques’ imminent free jazz and le nouveau jazz LPs.

Hookworms unleash "The Hum"

The Hookworms will make their Toronto debut at the Silver Dollar on April 12th. Tickets on sale here.

Raging Leeds mugs known as Hookworms – who clawed their way out of the Hyde Park student ghetto which produced Broken Arm, Spectral, Eagulls, Mazes, etc – have just issued the follow-up to their promising Pearl Mystic debut.

I'm delighted to report that Hookworms' latest opus The Hum is even better but that doesn't seem to make any difference at all to their parents who still insist on the members identifying themselves by initials only. After the whole Kaiser Chiefs thing, it's understandable why anyone from Leeds with kids in bands would be concerned about what the neighbours might think.

So have a look at MB, JW, MJ, SS and JN knock out the boffo new jam "On Leaving" at the locally popular hangout Brudenell Social Club below. After which, check out the audio clip of The Hum's opening scorcher "The Impasse" which reveals a fondness for the jacked up assaults of Suicide or perhaps Spacemen 3. Either way, Hookworms should now be able to freely visit Sheffield and Manchester without fear of being called West Yorkshire's answer to Lungfish.

NOTE: The limited edition Deluxe Edition version of The Hum was just issued on 180gm transparent vinyl and comes packaged with a bonus 7" single with two extra tracks and MP3 download.




LINKS
site http://parasiticnematode.blogspot.ca/
label Weird World
Northern Transmissions: Interview with MB

Gene Clark's Birthday Show @ The Dakota Tavern, tonight

Remembering the great Gene Clark on his day with a couple of timeless tunes before tonight's tribute.

A Gift from Tony Joe White

Here's a clip of Tony Joe White performing "The Gift" in Austin during SXSW 2104.           Photo by Anne Goetz

Handsome Family scores with True Detective theme

With the money earned from licensing Far From Any Road, Brett Sparks was able to buy a new pair of pants.

Danko Jones spreads Fire Music in February

 Check out the new track Gonna Be A Fight Tonight with footage from Motörhead's Motörboat Cruise.

Midweek Mixdown: Andy Votel

You can download Andy Votel's Suxo Plexo Muxo mix right here.  Check the track selection below.

Tracklist: 
from Pan Kleks - Andrzej Korzynski - (Polton Poland)
from Anna - Gainsbourg/Columbier (INA France)
from Belladonna Of Sadness - Masahiko (Finders Keepers)
from Chi - Goblin (Cinevox IT)
from Phantasm - Myrow Seagrave (Verese Sarabande)
from Sitting Target - Stanley Myers (FK)
from Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders - Lubos Fiser (FK)
from La Salamander - Patrick Moraz (Evasion Ch)
from Morgiana - Lubos Fiser (FK)
from Nightmares Come At Night (The B-Music Of Soledad Miranda) - Bruno Nicolai (FK)

Happy Birthday Dave Alvin!

Celebrating Dave's birthday with a nicely shot clip of the Alvin brothers at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Fest.

Lonnie Holley opens for Dan Lanois @ Danforth Music Hall, Sunday

Improvisational soul sender Lonnie Holley makes his long overdue Toronto debut this weekend. Don't miss it!

LINKS
site http://www.lonnieholley.com/
label http://www.dust-digital.com/lonnie-record/
NY Times Lonnie Holley, The Insider's Outsider

Dan Lanois remixes Tinariwen in a Caddy

If you ever wondered what Dan Lanois likes to do when visiting Toronto, check the video below.

On the heels of remixing The Antlers’ song “Doppelgänger,” Daniel Lanois has reimagined the track "Adounia Ti Chidjret” by Grammy-winning desert blues band Tinariwen, capturing the collaborative spirit of Anti-Thesis, the Brooklyn concert event featuring all three artists on Monday.

Anti-Thesis follows Lanois' return to Toronto for a multi-media show at the Danforth Music Hall on Sunday in which Lanois and crew will provide live musical accompaniment to short films provided by Atom Egoyan, Mary Harron and others. Birmingham improvisational sound sculptor deluxe Lonnie Holley kicks off the evening in spellbinding fashion at 8 pm sharp.

Along with Lanois' Tinariwen collabo is a guerilla video (see below) of Lanois remixing the Tinariwen track live as he rides through the streets of Toronto in a 1972 Fleetwood Brougham; nobody said deep sonics couldn’t be fun.

“Anti-Thesis” is a celebration of “body music,” a sound more visceral than Lanois’ classic ambient experiments with Brian Eno, but with a similar bent towards the hypnotic and immersive, stretched out into structures that proclaim texture and rhythm over hooks and pop structure.  From Can to Ornette Coleman, this is music that often fails to cut through traditional media channels because the expansive nature doesn’t lend itself to our quick click culture, but music that lives on in secret societies until it becomes the defining sound of the decades that follow.

These three artists couldn’t be more different in terms of industry tropes like “genre,” but within this context of “body music,” they are bonded. Take Lanois’ remixes of The Antlers, and now, Tinariwen:  on The Antlers remix, he takes an already ruminative tune into an even more spiritual/ambient mode, while for the Tinariwen remix, he uses his sonic skills to amp up the patented rhythmic throb of the track, creating something that evokes both the past and future. Have a listen.

Don't miss Doug Paisley @ The Horseshoe tonight

Hear Doug's duet with Bonnie 'Prince' Billy below.  He'll be joined by Jenny Whiteley & Jerry Leger this evening.

Pssst, Liam Hayes has a new recording out...

Korp Sole Roller, the latest work from Plush's Liam Hayes, is out now. New album Slurrup due in January.

LINKS
Plush site
Korp Sole Roller itunes
Uncut Magazine Liam Hayes: An Enigma Returns

Whaddya mean you don't know Fumaça Preta

When boutique record shop owners are allowed to cut their own albums, you get stuff like Fumaça Preta.

Steve Wynn vs. Lou Reed

Hear Steve and Lou tackle Blind Lemon Jefferson's See That My Grave is Kept Clean.

Candido records house classic 15 years early

Candido, joining Jane Bunnett at the Jazz Bistro this weekend, cut Thousand Finger Man in 1969.

Midweek Mixdown: Les Sins

The new Les Sins album "Michael" from Chaz Bundick (Toro y Moi) is out now. Les Sins hit the Hoxton Nov. 21.

Les Sins on Tour
11/12 Fortune Sound Club Vancouver, BC
11/13 1015 Folsom San Francisco, CA
11/15 Q Nightclub Seattle, WA
11/20 Verboten Brooklyn, NY
11/21 Hoxton Toronto, ON
11/22 Le Belmont Montreal, QC
12/03 U Street Music Hall Washington, DC
12/04 Bardot Miami Miami, FL
12/05 Smart Bar Chicago, IL
12/06 Vulcan Gas Company Austin, TX

Alex Pangman launches her New Orleans album "New" at Hugh's Room Monday

Alex Pangman felt right at home in the Crescent City with the hard swingin' Cottonmouth Kings.

Although the vivacious Alex Pangman will always be known as Canada's Sweetheart of Swing, the spirited Toronto jazz stylist has consistently resisted the temptation to retrace her steps.

Pangman's latest studio recording New – which she's showcasing Monday at Hugh's Room prior to the album's official release by Justin Time on Tuesday – delivers on the title's promise with a repertoire refreshing  selection of cool cookers cut in the historic Algiers section of New Orleans accompanied by the hard swinging members of the New Orleans Cottonmouth Kings.

"Without completely abandoning the style I've developed," explains Pangman, who continues to perform with her Alley Cats albeit bolstered by the Cottonmouth Kings' violinist Matt Rhody and bass saxophonist Tom Saunders  for the big reveal Monday night, "I wanted to try something different. For me, that meant working in a new studio, in a new town and singing songs I'd never done before with a whole new group of musicians. It's all about New.  "I'd been to New Orleans a number of times over the years and I just loved what heard, especially from the Cottonmouth Kings who are one of the most cohesive unit in town working in a 30s style."

Everything flows together so effortlessly on the New album, you'd think that Pangman had been singing with these characters for years. In fact, the 10 songs they recorded with Canadian ex-pat engineer Andrew "Goat" Gilchrist (Neville Brothers, Maceo Parker) in a converted 1930s wood-frame church called The Living Room is a document of their first musical encounter.

"It was all very exciting. I didn't know them, they didn't know me – it was a bit like going on a first date with the added element of knowing everything was being recorded.  "We had a rehearsal the day before starting to record where we ran through the tunes and discussed the various parts. It all came together very organically over two days with usually just three takes for each song. Of course, if someone hit on a cool riff or had an amazing exchange, we'd try another take or two with that new part added. I'm very pleased with the results – it has a nice sparkle."

Considering how busy they were during those two days recording as an ensemble, the New album sounds remarkably relaxed and spacious. While Pangman steers clear of the tired tropes and corny

Slim Twig's cult classic reissued by DFA

Slim Twig rocks the Silver Dollar on Friday, January 23.

Self-produced by Toronto's own Slim Twig in the fall of 2010, A Hound at the Hem is a suite of songs inspired thematically by Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita and musically by Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire de Melody Nelson. Upon completing AHATH, our man Slim found some difficulty getting his record label Paper Bag to release his epic psych-pop masterwork.

Admittedly, Twig's concept album sounded nothing like anything by Paper Bag's other artists. If you think back to what was being done at the time by bands on their roster – Tokyo Police Club, Rock Plaza Central, Winter Gloves, Cities In Dust, Rural Alberta Advantage, Woodhands, The Acorn, etc. – that's not really such a bad thing.

In any case, Twig went back to the studio and recorded a more conventional set of pop songs which Paper Bag happily put out as Sof' Sike in 2012. But rather than let what he considered to be his best work to date go unheard,  Twig issued AHATH in a limited edition of 300 copies on his own Calico Corp imprint via Pleasence Records in November of that year prefaced by the following explanation on his blog site:

"Two years ago I started work on a narrative album with my friend Louis Percival. We stayed on Toronto Island for a month arranging and recording. I spent a further year revising and overdubbing, mixing and re-mixing, conspiring the narrative in my own head. The result is A Hound at the Hem. The work of this album actually precedes Sof' Sike, and will now finally see release next month as a co-release between Calico Corp. & Pleasence Records.

"I consider this work - which fashions itself as the hard psych flipside to Sof' Sike - as my finest (and certainly densest) musical achievement to date. It features work from the very finest in the Toronto scene - (in the world truly, in my not so humble opinion) - including Louis Percival, Carl Didur, Tim Westberg, Meg Remy, Colin Fisher, & Tilman Lewis. It also features wonderful string arrangements by Owen Pallett, performed by the St. Kitts string quartet. I have a range of very intense memories from the work of this album, and truly the completion of it has changed me as a creative being.

"The album owes a sizable cosmic debt to Lolita, and to Histoire de Melody Nelson (Jean-Claude Vannier's visionary arrangements in particular)."

That miniscule initial pressing of 300 copies vanished soon after hitting the street and was well on the way to becoming one of those prized Canuck private-press curios which collectors speak about in hushed tones. But then some hipster doofus in a Neu t-shirt caught wind of the whole sad AHATH saga, loved the album and ruined everything for vinyl speculators sitting on sealed originals by announcing a deluxe reissue on New York's DFA Records.

You'd think that picking up Calico Corp's brilliant Zacht Automaat 2LP retrospective would make more sense for the trend-conscious DFA but hey, who am I to question the judgment of James "Speedking" Murphy.  DFA have manufactured 600 more copies of A Hound at the Hem in a fancy gatefold sleeve with no extra tracks, 100 of which are on pink wax and available here. Check out Meg Remy's video for the track Maintain The Charade below.

Supersuckers rock the Horseshoe Sunday

Preview the Supersuckers'Get The Hell album following the acoustic version of "Empty."