jim james & m. ward @ sxsw

Jim James & M. Ward at St. David's Church - March 15, 2008.

download the whole show:
m. ward & jim james (zip)

red yellow & blue by born ruffians

The battle for the best music scene in Canada hasn't been completely fair so far. Montreal has all the big names - Arcade Fire, Islands (The Unicorns), The Dears, Wolf Parade (and their side projects Sunset Rubdown and Handsome Furs), The Besnard Lakes, and, of course, Leonard Cohen. But Toronto has gained some ground with the recent release of the full-length debut from Born Ruffians, Red Yellow & Blue, released March 4, 2008 on Warp Records.

This three-piece rock group creates an expansive sound with the standard guitar-bass-drums setup. Some tracks sound like a bar fight while others sound like a skip to the market, and even others sound like a collapsed lung struggling inside a dancing rib cage (in a good way). According to the Ruffians themselves, they use "plenty of 'hootin and hollerin' to create a sound [they] call: the best we could come up with!" And it's no wonder their album's namesake comes from a set of primary colors, Red Yellow & Blue - three hues of expression that can be used to paint any picture.

Watch their powers combine in their first video for "Hummingbird":


Samples:
born ruffians - barnacle goose (mp3)
born ruffians - badonkadonkey (mp3)
born ruffians - hedonistic me (mp3)

SO, I'll gladly add Born Ruffians to Toronto's "indie cred list" alongside Broken Social Scene, The Constantines, and the birthplace of Mr. Neil Young.

the perks of being a wallflower 2.0

Much thanks to Scott for the title and content of this post.

The lost art of the mixtape may not be lost after all. It has just evolved to become almost unrecognizable from its original plastic cassette form. And while some may have nostalgic sentiment for the hard work that went into the creation of a great mixtape, the new site Muxtape is still worth a look. An embrace of Web 2.0 technology, albeit a hesitant one, lends itself to an embrace of this kind of evolution.

The idea is fantastic - my initial response being, "Why didn't I think of that?!" It's a site that allows its users to create a cyber-mixtape. Create an account, upload songs, put them in order, and send out the URL. Mixes for everyone!

Now, the idea may be fantastic, but the site still has several issues. First of all, you can only make one mix per account, and each mix can only have 12 songs. Also, there is no way to search for a particular mix, or a mix with a particular band or song on it. All you get is a homepage with 100 random user names that change with each refresh. I would have to know your exact URL to view your mix.

Despite these issues, Muxtape is exciting for me - exciting enough that I made my own. I call it Getting Through to the Man.

nothing is okay by the everybodyfields

A sad song isn't easy to deliver. It can be painful for the listener, but most of all, it can wrench the heart of the singer. The Johnson City (but recently moved to Knoxville!), Tenn, duo of Sam Quinn and Jill Andrews, better known as the everybodyfields, deliver tunes that summon a raw emotion from the deep hills of Appalachia.

On the group's latest record, Nothing Is Okay, the heart isn't just worn on the sleeve - it's worn pumping away in an elevated fist. Their aching harmonies hit the canvas of their delicate sound-scape and tell their story.

The story is of a record that was almost compromised by personal issues between Quinn and Andrews. The two ended a dating relationship just before the release of their debut album in 2004. These issues resurfaced during the making of Nothing Is Okay - the songs were nothing short of painstaking to record.

In an interview with Paste Magazine this summer, Quinn said, "We recorded it three times. Every time we'd go through it, there'd be so much other shit going around, [I'd think], 'Whatever, I just don't even want to listen to this stuff. I don't know if we want to make this. You're out, you're out, I'm not so sure I'm in either.'"

But the two used the process to communicate with each other, and they still have the playful sense to quote Bottle Rocket in a Paste interview.

Quinn and Andrews take the stage tomorrow night at the Bijou Theater here in Knoxville to continue their support of Nothing Is Okay, which was released August 21, 2007 on Ramseur Records. Their sound is fuller than on their previous efforts as they have enlisted the talents of Josh Oliver on electric guitar and keys, and Knoxville's own instrumental Polymath, Tom Pryor on pedal steel.

WARNING: When seeing the everybodyfields live, it is very possible to crush on Jill Andrews - even if you're a girl. It is also possible to have a man-crush on Sam Quinn. Especially when he sound-checks with Neil Young's "Tell My Why."

download the lead track from Nothing Is Okay:
the everybodyfields - aeroplane (mp3)




Jill's interpretations of "nothing is okay":
1. everything is bad
2. when you have nothing, well, that's okay, too

bon iver - the wolves (act I and II)

In anticipation of his show here in Knoxville at the Pilot Light this Sunday, here is the first video from Bon Iver's debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago. As with the story behind the making of this beautiful record, the story behind this video is quite emotional and fascinating:

"This is by any description, a project that almost never happened. Rushing to get to Wisconsin for fresh snows and still frozen air, Director Matt Amato arrived in Eau Claire, hometown of Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, in late January. In the midst of warming up after a long journey and excitedly telling Justin about all the projects he had on the horizon, Matt received a phone call. One of his best friends had suddenly and tragically passed away. All logic and reason were thrown out. Nobody knew what to do. Matt didn't know whether to stay or go, or how he would even manage to get back to the airport in his state of shock. Justin just tried to stay calm. Between a flurry of phone calls and attempting to contact some of Matt's family to accompany him home, night fell. Almost by default, Matt remained in Eau Claire in the company of his newest acquaintance. Something about it was safe, and that was enough. The next morning, Matt read the lyrics to "The Wolves" and felt as if those were the exact words he needed to hear from his departed friend. That pretty much sealed it. Matt would stay and work, even as the thought of making a video became the last thing on their minds. They built a bonfire and just let it burn all day and into the night, and Matt filmed. The weight of the circumstances propelled the collaboration to a place these sort of projects don't often go. The cathartic spirit of Bon Iver's music had found its kindred spirit in imagery. Enjoy."

Cathartic is right. The images of this video melt together very well with the fuzzy whispers and deserted harmonies of the track. And the droning cymbal crashes of its egression literally spark the cinder.

loveless by japancakes

Back in 1989, Kevin Shields took My Bloody Valentine on a journey through 2 years, 19 recording studios and a rumored £250,000 that almost sent their label into bankruptcy. At the end of the journey, they had Loveless - one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the 1990s.

Since the release of Loveless in 1991, My Bloody Valentine have been largely inactive until very recently, going their separate ways to collaborate with other artists. During these years, however, Loveless has continued to receive praise for its influence over other artists of their generation. Artists like The Cure, The Smashing Pumpkins, Nine Inch Nails, Phish, Guided by Voices and Radiohead have all claimed Loveless as a great influence and inspiration.

Last year, however, the album received the highest form of praise - imitation. Athens, Ga. instrumentalists Japancakes have covered the album in its entirety, replacing distortion with clarity, vocals with pedal steel and cello, ambient organ with rumbling piano, and shoegazing with shoegazing. The result is beautiful.

Japancakes' version of Loveless was released on November 13, 2007, quickly succeeding the release of their October 9 release, Giving Machines. Both albums were released by Darla Records.

My Bloody Valentine have also been busy recently, announcing a tour and an album release for 2008.

Japancakes - Only Shallow (mp3)