en http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/ Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 60 http://www.audioscrobbler.net/data/webservices http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal The Last.fm journal for astarael. Last.fm journals are a place to talk about all things music. http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/11/10/29rpn3_august_-_october_2008 Mon, 10 Nov 2008 21:32:35 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/11/10/29rpn3_august_-_october_2008 I forgot to update a lot, so here is a list of all the stuff that happened in three months.

SHOWS

August 28 (Kool Haus): Aimee Mann, Squeeze

September 9 (Drake): Rich Aucoin
September 10 (Velvet Underground): The Assistants, Cheap Speakers*
September 20 (Tranzac): Entire Cities*
September 22 (Massey Hall): Parachutes, Sigur Rós
September 23 (Sneaky's): Dickie Haydon, These United States, Entire Cities*
September 27 (Tranzac): TrekZac FestiCon (Woodhands, RAA, Bicycles, Green Go, Klingon Assault Squad, Jason Doell & The Bionic Zombies)
September 28 (Hugh's Room): Jenn Grant, Martin Tielli

October 8 (Massey Hall): Alexi Murdoch, Alanis Morissette
October 17 (Massey Hall): Ten Second Epic, Hedley
October 18 (Massey Hall): One Second 2 Late, Hedley
October 20 (Massey Hall): Ladysmith Black Mambazo
October 29 (Massey Hall): David Byrne
October 31 (Massey Hall): Richie Havens, Buffy Sainte-Marie

I work at Massey Hall, obviously.

ALBUMS

Queen & David Bowie, Under Pressure (45)
Brian Eno & David Byrne, Everything That Happens Will Happen Today]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/08/11/23ziz3_junejuly_08 Mon, 11 Aug 2008 16:24:20 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/08/11/23ziz3_junejuly_08 SHOWS

June 12 @ Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, One Yellow Rabbit 25th Anniversary (OYR Ensemble + guests) including the Rembetika Hipsters and Rheostatics (!!)
June 21 @ Park 96, Parkland Solstice Festival: Lord Beaverbrook Jazz I, Jack Semple, Lindsay Ell, Jim Cuddy, Skavenjah
July 6 @ Tequila, Sloan
July 12 @ Pengrowth Saddledome, Matt Mays & El Torpedo

July 24-27 @ Prince's Island Park (Folk Festival):
A hawk & a hacksaw
Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet
Aimee Mann
Andrew Bird
Basia Bulat
Be Good Tanyas
Bedouin Soundclash
Bill Callahan
Blue Rodeo
Calexico
Carolina Chocolate Drops
The Consonant C
Diana Jones
The Duhks
Düvö
Great Lake Swimmers
Handsome Family
James Blood Ulmer
Joel Fafard
John Wort Hannam
Josh Ritter
Julie Doiron
Maryem Tollar and the Toronto Cairo Collective
Master Musicians of Jajouka
matt masters
The Men They Couldn't Hang
Sam Baker
Sam Parton
Sam Roberts
Sonny Landreth
torngat
Trish Klein
The Weakerthans
Wendy McNeill
Woodpigeon

RECORDS
Sam Roberts, Love At The End Of The World (CD)
Blue Rodeo, Small Miracles (CD)
The Futureheads, This Is Not the World (CD)
George Harrison, Dark Horse (LP)
George Harrison, Somewhere in England (LP)
Sloan, Navy Blues (cassette)

Sloan, Parallel Play (CD)
Sloan, Parallel Play (LP)
Carolina Chocolate Drops, Dona Got a Ramblin' Mind (CD)
Basia Bulat, Oh, My Darling (CD)
Blue Rodeo, Five Days In July (CD)
Neil Young, Comes a Time (LP)
Squeeze, Frank (LP)
Ken Tobias, Dream #2 (LP)]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/06/19/214s0i_last.fm_challenge Thu, 19 Jun 2008 05:09:03 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/06/19/214s0i_last.fm_challenge Starting on Sunday, June 22 (I was going to start on the Monday, but since my time zone is so far off from GMT, Sunday is really the start of a new chart week), for an entire week, I will not listen to any of my top 10 artists.

This means that for one full week, I will not listen to Squeeze, Sloan, Joel Plaskett Emergency, The Who, The Beatles, The New Pornographers, Field Music, Paul McCartney & Wings, Traveling Wilburys or The Flashing Lights.

Anyone care to join me?
This should be an interesting time.

Sunday! Let's do it.

----

UPDATE, June 29: The charts are in!

Marshall Crenshaw 37
Great Big Sea 35
Neil Young 23
John Prine 15
Pixies 15
Queen 15
George Harrison 14
Peter Bjorn & John 12
Bob Dylan 12
Amy Millan 12

I am so busy I didn't get to listen as much as normal but it was awesome! I am sure I will be doing that again soon.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/06/06/20h4hq_may_08 Fri, 6 Jun 2008 22:52:26 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/06/06/20h4hq_may_08 SHOWS
May 24 @ Quincy's, Sinistrio, The Bad Plus

RECORDS
Tegan & Sara, This Business Of Art (CD)
Oh Susanna, Sleepy Little Sailor (CD)
John Patitucci, Sketchbook (CD)
Paul McCartney & Wings, London Town (LP)
The Beatles, Revolver (LP)

Slow show times in Calgary, but that will be fixed come July.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/05/21/1zl1c9_it%27s_finally_happened. Wed, 21 May 2008 06:27:05 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/05/21/1zl1c9_it%27s_finally_happened. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, as of this past week the Joel Plaskett Emergency surpassed both Sloan and Squeeze and became my #1 artist. It's been a long time coming, but the six shows in December at the Horseshoe Tavern had a lot to do with it I suspect.

I have also been considering changing my icon, which has not happened since 2004.

WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?!?!?!

This post brought to you by slightly tongue-in-cheek last.fm nerdery.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/05/05/ff4_marchapril_08 Mon, 5 May 2008 01:36:24 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/05/05/ff4_marchapril_08 I totally forgot to do this last month, whaaaat.

March

SHOWS:
March 1 @ Sneaky Dee's, Proof of Ghosts, Tacoma Hellfarm Tragedy, Entire Cities*
March 6 @ Supermarket, The Meligrove Band, Sloan (for the TENTH time)
March 8 @ Soundscapes, Laura Barrett
March 8 @ Criminal Records, The Superfantastics, Julie Doiron, Dog Day
March 12 @ Sneaky Dee's, pants & tie, The I Spies, School of Language
March 14 @ Rancho Relaxo, Sitcom, The Dress Whites, The Cheap Speakers*
March 26 @ Winters JCR, Resonance, Wibi
March 27 @ Tribute Communities Recital Hall, York University Symphony Orchestra
March 28 @ Tribute Communities Recital Hall, York University Gospel Choir
March 31 @ Tribute Communities Recital Hall, York University Concert Choir

THINGIES:
Jason Collett, Here's To Being Here (LP - pink vinyl)
The Mountain Goats, Heretic Pride (LP)
School of Language, Sea From Shore (LP)
Spiral Beach, Ball (CD)
The Be Good Tanyas, Chinatown (CD)

April

SHOWS:
April 10 @ The Boat, Cottonfoot(?), BA Johnston, The Saffron Sect, Brent Randall & His Pinecones
April 11 @ Canadian Corps Hall, Entire Cities* CD RELEASE!!: Nils Edenloff (of The Rural Alberta Advantage), nich worby, Gravity Wave, Laura Barrett, Basement Arms, Casey Mecija (of Ohbijou)
April 27 @ Horseshoe Tavern, The Cheap Speakers*, Entire Cities, Tin Bangs, The Schomberg Fair

THINGIES:
I have completely neglected this list for April, but I didn't buy very much at all, I think.

The Schomberg Fair, Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground (CD)

Also, tomorrow (today, by the last.fm clock) is the anniversary of me resetting my charts. And, conveniently (and without any planning on my part) today I also hit 20,000 tracks. The winner: Sonic Youth with Eric's Trip.

]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/03/09/ff3_february_08 Sun, 9 Mar 2008 13:15:04 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/03/09/ff3_february_08 Shows (* = played):

February 1 @ Rosch Recital Hall (SUNY Fredonia), Sharon Isbin
February 6 @ Cameron House, Great Lenin's Ghost, The Cheap Speakers*
February 29 @ Rancho Relaxo, nich worby, Barons & Lengthy, Basement Arms*

I swear I'm missing some. Maybe that was it.

Albums:
Apparently, nothing.
Great month.]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/02/06/ff2_january_08 Wed, 6 Feb 2008 15:41:48 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/02/06/ff2_january_08 Showz (stars = the ones I played)

January 11 @ Rancho Relaxo, The Cheap Speakers*, Qr5
January 17 @ Velvet Elvis (Oshawa), Weird Weather, The Burning Hell, Entire Cities*
January 18 @ The Studio, The People Of Canada, Timber Timbre, Weird Weather, Entire Cities, The Burning Hell
January 19 @ Scythe House, The Schomberg Fair, Lisa Bozikovic, Entire Cities*
January 24 @ Tribute Communities Recital Hall, Michael Marcuzzi Ensemble
January 26 @ Tribute Communities Recital Hall, York University Chamber Choir, Ottawa Bach Choir

Albumz

The Beatles, Live at the BBC (CD)
The Who, Sell Out (LP)
The Who, Who Are You (LP picture disc)
Harvey Danger, "Cream & Bastards Rise" (45 single)
Thrush Hermit, Clayton Park (CD)
The Burning Hell, Happy Birthday (CD)]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/01/14/ff1_december_round-up Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:16:48 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2008/01/14/ff1_december_round-up Shows:

DECEMBER 9 @ SMILING BUDDHA, The Hoa Hoas, Saffron Sect, City Field
DECEMBER 10 @ HORSESHOE, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Tara S'Appart of Elevator)
DECEMBER 11 @ HORSESHOE, Major Grange, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Gordie Johnson of Big Sugar, Grady)
DECEMBER 12 @ THE BOAT, Cheap Speakers*
DECEMBER 12 @ HORSESHOE, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Andrew Scott of Sloan, Gordie Johnson)
DECEMBER 13 @ HORSESHOE, Peter Elkas, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Gordon Downie of The Tragically Hip, Sarah Harmer, Gordie Johnson)
DECEMBER 14 @ HORSESHOE, Two Hours Traffic, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Ian McGettigan of Thrush Hermit, Mr Chill)
DECEMBER 15 @ SONIC BOOM, Fucked Up
DECEMBER 15 @ HORSESHOE, Two Hours Traffic, Joel Plaskett Emergency (with Mr Chill)

Albums:

Traveling Wilburys, Volume 1, Volume 3 (CD)
Thurston Moore, Trees Outside The Academy (CD)]]> http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2007/12/26/ff0_top_albums_of_2007 Wed, 26 Dec 2007 08:46:14 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/astarael/journal/2007/12/26/ff0_top_albums_of_2007 10. Amy Winehouse, Back to Black
Island. March 13 (USA)

(This might be fudging a little, since Back to Black was released in the UK in late 2006, but didn’t make it across the pond until this year. I hope you’ll forgive me.) This album surprised me; all the hype, the screaming fangirls, and Winehouse’s tabloid fodder did not an interested Ruhee make, but when I finally listened, it was nothing like I expected. Instead of trashy dance-pop R&B, Winehouse has crafted a vintage soul album with serious throwbacks to Motown, tied together with one remarkable set of pipes. Whether or not this album is your cup of tea, there is no denying the girl can sing. Some of the songs are a little take-or-leave, but “Rehab” … oh man. A catchier single there never was. This album is a bit of a guilty pleasure sometimes, but it is a good one.

09. Spiral Beach, Ball
Sparks. October 16

I’ve been waffling back and forth on this band for a while. I saw them open for Sloan twice near the beginning of this year; one of the shows was really excellent and the other left me fairly ambivalent. Their first album, self-titled, was good in places and a little grating in others, and I expected the same from Ball when it was released this fall. However, it was definitely not so. This record is full of spacey dance-rock numbers, all short and flashy, and much tighter than the last album. “Made of Stone” sounds a thousand times better than it did live, months before this record hit the shelves, and “Kind of Beast” and “We Saw Ghosts” are particularly enjoyable. Spiral Beach has their own distinctive sound (love it or hate it), and they’re becoming more comfortable with it here. At this rate, their third album will be a real treat.

08. The Acorn, Glory Hope Mountain
Paper Bag. October 1

This is another album I’m glad I managed to hear before the year was out, or my list of “belated top albums of the year” would have been remarkably long. The Acorn are a band that are certainly well rooted in folk and country, but who put a remarkably fresh spin on the whole package. Glory Hope Mountain is very similar to Cuff the Duke, but in a less rock, more laid-back sort of way; particular favourites are “Oh Napoleon” and “Low Gravity,” the former quiet and sweeping, the latter energetic and danceable. This is a band who know what they want and how to go about creating it, and the end result is equal parts hoedown and slow dance.

07. Cuff the Duke, Sidelines of the City
Hardwood. October 23

Speaking of Cuff the Duke (I didn’t do that on purpose, I promise!) … the third full-length album from Ontario country-rock favourites is just what we were hoping for. The album is very cohesive and the songwriting strong, although sometimes the lyrics feel a little contrived, namely “Long Road”. Standout tracks include “Failure to Some” (a track I had no idea was 7 minutes long until I looked at it in my iTunes just now!), which features a now-classic Cuff the Duke build-up ending; “If I Live or if I Die,” which has shades of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s “Shuffle Your Feet”; and the closing track, “Confessions from a Parkdale Basement”. There are numerous references to suburbs where members of the band grew up (such as in “Rossland Square”) and to Toronto itself, which makes the entire album feel rooted somewhere, like it belongs somewhere. I’m not sure if I would say it’s their best album, but it is a solid one that I’ll be listening to for a while.

06. Rufus Wainwright, Release The Stars
Geffen. May 15

I hadn’t heard a single track off this album until I saw Rufus perform a large handful of them live in July. Wearing lederhosen. If ever there was a way to sell a Rufus album, that was it. Wainwright’s newest effort is a complex, beautifully-executed piece of work, much of it about traveling, different cities, and being discontent with staying in one place. That theme lends a whole lot of interest to the record, since it does much the same thing musically; it never stays in one place very long, preferring to veer around and tell stories in different ways, although never going too far from Wainwright’s familiar lilting style. Particular favourites: “Going to a Town” (especially the cheeky I’m so tired of you, America), “Sanssouci,” and the title track. This album makes me want to just hop on an airplane and tour the world with not much except a change of clothes, a camera and some music for the road.

05. Two Hours Traffic, Little Jabs
Bumstead. July 24

A messy-haired, power pop foursome from the East Coast … no, there were no new Sloan records this year; instead, Joel Plaskett protégés Two Hours Traffic’s brand new full length, full of smiles and singalongs. There are no skipable tracks on this album, although their style is streamlined enough that they all bleed together a little. The band is extremely tight, live and on record, and their joyful brand of pop-rock is pretty infectious. Little Jabs is full of standout tracks, including the single “Stuck For The Summer”, “Nighthawks”, and “Jezebel,” although if the list went on long enough it would include the whole record. Sometimes the lyrics get a little too cutesy, but overall, this is an excellent album from a band I’m sure we will be hearing from often in the new year.

04. Nathan, Key Principles
Nettwerk. March 20

Nathan are such darlings. This album is cute and folky and full of really well written songs that get stuck in your head, all the time, with a delicious amount of banjo (courtesy Shelley Marshall). One thing they are sure not to do, though, is get too stuck in the folk mentality; there is plenty of pop here, with horns and handclaps everywhere you turn, and it balances everything out perfectly. Songs like “The Wind” and “Terrible Way To See Omaha” conjure up images of the sweeping prairie, while “Daffodils” is one of those that would make little toddlers bop around in the living room. Key Principles is sunny and warm on first listen, but its solid songwriting and excellent vocals (Keri Latimer, with Marshall) make it complex enough to not get tossed by the wayside. It’s an album that feels like home, down to the hand-stitched album art; listening to it is akin to curling up with hot chocolate in your favourite blanket and watching the clouds go by.

03. The New Pornographers, Challengers
Matador. August 21

You might remember a review of this I did earlier, which ended up fairly lukewarm. And it’s true, Challengers is the most mellow and cohesive of all of the Pornographers’ albums, but the more I listened to it throughout the rest of the year, the more I grew to love it. My favourite tracks still remain the first two (”My Rights Versus Yours”, which was the first single, I believe, and “All The Old Showstoppers”), but there’s a lot of hidden goodness after that. “Adventures In Solitude” is extremely sparse and perfect, and “Entering White Cecilia” is quirky and fun. Challengers is nothing like Mass Romantic’s craziness, where it seems they tried to fit in as much as possible; here, they have grown up a little and focused on one direction. That’s not to say it’s not a classic New Pornos album, because it is. There’s still the weird Dan Bejar material, the singalongs, and the remarkable amount of melodica-fueled riffs; they’ve just learned to channel it a little more, and out of that comes a commendably mature but totally enjoyable record. There’s not much they’ve done that I don’t like, and that trend still continues.

02. Joel Plaskett Emergency, Ashtray Rock
Songs for the Gang. April 17

This is listed as #2, but for all intents and purposes, the top two albums of this year are a tie. And so, the first top album of 2007: Ashtray Rock, the Joel Plaskett Emergency’s third effort (Plaskett’s fifth as a solo artist post-Hermit). It would be impossible to say everything about this album in a paragraph, but my two cents would include praising the excellent transitions between songs - it makes you want to always listen to the whole thing, top to bottom, which is quite a feat - and the repetition of ideas throughout (I like the instrumentals, for example). And lately, I’d have to argue that one of the best moments of the record is in fact “The Instrumental,” complete with the letter, and the roller coaster it takes you through in just three minutes - a concise summary of the entire story of Ashtray Rock with almost no words at all.
Plaskett’s crafting of a ‘concept album’ has worked wonderfully here, and by the end of Ashtray you become completely attached to the characters whose stories he tells. I loved the record from the get-go, but the more I listen to it, the more I become attached - even, yes, to “Fashionable People”, which I think is a hilarious and quirky addition to the otherwise more streamlined album. Plaskett is never afraid to do something a little silly when he feels like it, and dammit, he will; and from falsetto to “Face of the Earth,” the end result is one of his most enjoyable albums yet.

01. Field Music, Tones Of Town
Memphis. January 22

That’s right. An album released just barely three weeks into the new year is topping my list. Unheard of, in the short term memory world of music blogging and downloaders, but not impossible … and this year, the honour goes to a band hailing from Sunderland, England, on their sophomore release that really sounds like nothing else I’ve ever run into. Certainly comparisons can be drawn to The Futureheads (unsurprising, as they have shared members) - think that sound, but brighter, cleaner, and as tight and quirky as can be. Field Music are, underneath, really prog-rockers, but not in the sense of Rush or Pink Floyd; they do rip off Yes a lot, though, and their sound is particularly poppy. Tones of Town is an incredibly well-crafted record that flows together in a particularly satisfying way. “Give It Lose It Take It”, the opening track, features an excellent use of open strings; “Working to Work,” the first track that I heard from the album, is maddeningly catchy (I’m serious; I think it’s been stuck in my head since April).
My favourite track, though, is the final one, “She Can Do What She Wants”. Meter changes, possibilities for air-drumming, and an excellent opportunity to sing along in earnest English falsetto. There’s not much better. Tones of Town is, as far as I’m concerned, the best record to come out of 2007 (or tied for it, anyway), and one that will stand up for a long time to come. It’s tight, it’s layered, it’s hard to pin down completely; Field Music, if they come back from their projected hiatus, is going to have a hell of a time following this act.]]>