CONTEST: Win tix to Elvyn's CD Release Show and a copy of their latest CD "The Decline"

CD Review: Elvyn - The Decline

I've been enthusiastically pumping the sounds of Elvyn pretty extensively on this here blog, but it's no secret that I feel that they are one of the most underrated bands on the scene right now. For proof of this fact, all you need to do is give a listen to their latest CD The Decline. Full of hooks and classic sounding melodies, this does not sound like a band that should be struggling for attention, but rather, this sounds like a band with a solid history of quality music behind them that continues to grow more impressive with every release.

The album opens with Those Were The Days, a song that combines the classic guitar sounds of The Replacements with the infectious melodies of Teenage Fanclub. Songs like Lotta Lies and The Big Bay are immaculately produced, giving them an edge wherein every instrument is clearly audible, allowing them to have a fuller sound that enables them to remain memorable and addictive. There's also a nice balance throughout the recording of upbeat power pop numbers, and mellower romantic songs of love and heartbreak. I really enjoy some of those slower ones, such as the captivating Don't Leave, Don't Go, which manages to burrow a spot in my brain every time I hear it, thanks in part to excellent harmonies on the simple, yet effective chorus. The album's undeniable highlight however is The Nature Of Your Game, a classic country song that would not sound out of place amongst The Sadies repertoire, with its shuffling drum beat and captivating harmonica. The whole album is golden pop at its finest, an unapologetic homage to the past, whether it be the jangle pop of the 60's, the college rock of the 80's or the alt-country movement of the 90's, and with the right promotion, it could really be a contender in 2010.

Myspace: Elvyn
Download: Lotta Lies mp3


CONTEST: Elvyn will be celebrating the release of The Decline on Friday March 26th at The Silver Dollar. Opening for them will be  another great band, The Champion Heartache. Thanks to the boys in the band, I've got the following to give away to one happy winner:

1) Two spots on the guest list to the March 26th show at The Silver Dollar
2) A copy of The Decline on CD

To enter, simply send an email to quadb2001 [at] gmail [dot] com with the words "I'm on the decline with Elvyn" in the subject line, and your full name in the body.The winner will be chosen randomly.

Contest is now closed. Congrats to Karen M. and thank you to everyone who entered.

"She's coming after me, she's like a honeybee..."

Quick Blurbs about Friendly Rich, The Hoa-Hoa's & Krupke

Friendly Rich & The Lollipop People - Pictures At An Exhibition

To describe Friendly Rich Presents: Modest Mussgorsky's Pictures At An Exhibition as an eclectic piece of music is an incredible understatement. His personal reworking of the Russian composer's 1874 suite is as bizarre as it gets, sounding a little bit like the unique instrumental pairing of Frank Zappa and Pee Wee Herman. The project is ambitious for sure, but unlike Emerson Lake and Palmer's 1971 attempt at reworking this intense piece of music, Rich manages to draw out the whimsical elements hidden throughout the work, making this a surprisingly fun listen. His arrangement includes a who's who of guest musicians playing instruments as varied as the euphonium, harpsichord, penny whistle, harp and accordion, along with the standard drums, guitars and bass. The CD contains moments of solemnity (Bydlo), carnivalistic intensity (Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks) and beauty (The Great Gate of Kiev), as well as downright strangeness (Cum Mortis in Lingua Mortu) but it all works together in producing an interesting listen that is jarring yet enjoyable.

His live show has been known to include puppetry, cartoons, crank calls and more so if you're looking for something truly eclectic and new, you should attend the CD Release Party at The Tranzac on Saturday November 7th. The Hamilton Trading Company are opening.

Myspace: Friendly Rich
Video: Some bizarre footage of Friendly Rich @ Sneaky Dee's is on youtube.

The Hoa Hoa's - Pop/Drone/Pedals (early review!)

I've made no bones of the fact that dreamy psych-sters The Hoa Hoa's are one of the most underrated acts in the city, if not THE most underrated. I was going to sit on their P/D/P CD until it was officially released on December 1st but, like it's predecessor, it's one of those albums that you want everyone to listen to as soon as possible. Admittedly it doesn't deviate all that far from their debut in the sense that is still boasts a psychedelic fusion of shoegaze and 60's garage aesthetics, but I would say that the playing is a little bit tighter this time around, and the sounds are just a tad more varied. As the CD sweeps into the headphones, opening with a subtle guitar part, quickly accompanied by the steady shaker and a droney bassline, the percussion comes in with that unmistakenly thumpy early 90's Manchester beat, and The Hoa Hoa's once again blast off into the stratosphere with Postcards, which is a killer opening track. That momentum remains constant throughout the course of the album. There are moments of multi-layered shoegaze (Hey Joe, Wasting Time, Vinyl Ritchie), summer of love by way of Anton Newcombe cuts (Velocity (Downtown), Feels So Good Inside) and stunning occasions of mesmerizing beauty (Waves). The best song on the album to me is one that they've been apparently showcasing on the live stage for awhile now, called Grew Up On The Seeds, which is a tribute to the Sky Saxon led 60's garage band. It's notable to mention that the late Sky Saxon even joined them on stage for a live rendition of that song at this year's SXSW festival before his untimely passing on June 25th.

The underground psych-rock movement is noteworthy for many reasons, but the timeless nature of the quality music consistently put out by The Hoa Hoa's is certainly a major ingredient in this trippy sonic stew. The band will be celebrating the release of P/D/P on Optical Sounds at The Silver Dollar on December 4th. If you just can't wait till then, make sure you make it out to Rancho Relaxo tonight (Nov 6th) as they'll be sharing the stage with a whole slew of great psychedelic acts including Montreal's Postcards, Easy Targets and Volcano.

Myspace: The Hoa Hoa's
Video: New Years Eve Ball 2009 on youtube

Krupke - Slap Bracelet Release Party (November 13th)

Most of modern music these days can be lazily summed up into two basic categories: those that wholeheartedly pay homage to the past (which is what most bands do) and those that look forward to the future by creating something new. Now I realize that this statement is faulty in more ways than I care to articulate right now, but it seems to me that local band Krupke is at least putting forth a noble attempt at working towards the latter.

So far they've only put together a handful of songs (which can all be heard on their myspace page) but trying to lump these songs into a specific genre is not an easy task. The reason that I've chosen to promote them here so early on in their career is because their music is a perfect choice for those that like to be challenged when it comes to what is being fed to their musical palate. For example, their song Dirt and Culture starts out sounding like it's going to develop into a bit of a progressive jazz number, until the off-kilter vocal yelp kicks in, turning into a piece of music that is all over the place. The real surprise though is in the second half of the song where an actual melody starts to peek through and suddenly the very song that was initially impossible to follow is now actually stuck in my head. Weird. Waltz is a mellow number that is folksy yet slightly carnival-like in the sense that it tricks you into thinking that it's a relatively simple song until you really pay attention to its varied complexities. They also have a song called My Dearest Fergie, I'm So Sorry I Haven't Called But The Pony That You Always Wanted Died Today. Yah. With that song the band manages to cram an entire art rock tragi-comedy punk opera into a nifty little three and a half minute package which is exactly as daunting and delicious as you would imagine it to be.

Krupke is a band that demands a listener's full attention and admittedly, this may be a hard sell within the ADD driven world in which we live. Still, I think that if you're willing to put forth the effort, the payoff is worth it, and will continue to be even moreso as the band continues to solidify their sound. They don't yet have a CD to release, but they have released a limited edition personlized slap bracelet that they will be celebrating the release of on November 13th at Bread & Circus. Everyone who attends the show gets one. Opening for them are a few more of the city's finest, namely The Lovely Killbots, Ex~Po and B'mo Crazy.

Myspace: Krupke
Video: Krupke performing for minilogues on youtube

Slakah The Beatchild @ Revival

If you've ever frequented this site, then you know that I'm not overly picky when it comes to indie rock. Sure, there are artists that I like better than others, and mediocrity runs rampant at times, but I can usually find something good in most of the bands I cover around the city. When it comes to soul, R&B and hip hop however, I'm a totally different creature altogether. I don't cover this genre all that often here, but it's not because I don't like it. It's because my tastes are very specific when it comes to da funk. Stevie's Innervisions, Dusty's In Memphis and the mighty mighty Marvin's What's Going On are a few of my favourite albums of all time, but when it comes to the modern day, it really does take a lot to garner my attention. Artists like Oh No, Madlib and Shad K have restored my faith in hip hop, and I do enjoy doses of Raphael Saadiq and Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings as well, but most of my soulful exposure comes from what the kids are listening to these days and I hate to sound like a crusty old curmudgeon, but I just don't get most of it.

This is why an artist like Slakah The Beatchild is so refreshing to me. His new release is entitled Soul Movement Vol. 1, and the title is very appropriate since that is exactly what it is: a movement. The album flows seamlessly from track to track, meaning that it's most enjoyable when played as a whole. Although there are hooky songs and several catchy moments, the album is mostly about establishing a vibe, and it's the instrumental snippets and segues of beats and atmospheres that are interspersed between the songs that make it such a successful musical journey. Slaks continued to keep the vibe front and center when he brought his CD release party to Revival last week.

Like the album, Slakah enlisted the help of some of his friends for the show, including the beautiful voices of Ayah, Melanie Durrant and Divine Brown, as well as the soulful stylings of Ray Robinson and the charismatic rap of Tona, and Slakah's Art Of Fresh counterpart D.O. (Sadly, there was no Shad K. as I was anticipating, but it's all good, although his rhymes on the song Now A Daze is definitely one of the album's highlights.) Slakah is an excellent performer, exuding a sweet balance between humility and confident showmanship. After a hilarious intro by comedian Jay Martin, Slakah took to the stage wearing shades and looking like a star. Some of the highlights were his slightly slowed down take on Enjoy Ya Self which is a chilled out number with a retro 70's vibe. The Answer is a song that I only mildly enjoy on the album, but this duet with Melanie Durrant works exceptionally well on the live stage as Durrant proves that her amazing pipes are not simply a result of studio wizardry. He asked the audience to clear some space on the floor during his rabid performance of B-Boy Beef, where a member of the Ground Illusionz crew busted out some stellar breakdance moves. Crate Love (By Your Side) was another solid performance featuring Ray Robinson (dang that voice is smooth) and Divine Brown, whose vocals were beyond impressive, particularly during the breakdown at the song's coda. Divine also performed her hit single Sunglasses, which was also produced by Slakah, whom she declared as "Canada's best kept secret." That performance was probably the audience highlight of the evening. My personal highlights were the moments when D.O. joined Slakah onstage. Their performance of the Art of Fresh's Out This World was electric, and that D.O. is one charismatic and hilarious performer who I found impossible to keep my eyes off of.

Although it was clear that the audience was pumped for an encore, they were relatively reserved when it came to showing it. I suppose this is why Esthero took it upon herself to jump up to the mic and blast us all for our lack of appreciation. Harsh yes, but entertaining nonetheless. The crew came back out and did a couple more songs, ending with What's This Feeling, stripped down with Slakah playing the acoustic guitar. Mesmerizing.

There's a lot to be said for broadening one's horizons. Much like when I took a chance on seeing God Made Me Funky last year, it was hard not to leave the show in a celebratory mood. Regardless of genre, music is always good when it's presented with honesty and accompanied by sheer talent and a desire to explore. Using that criteria, Slakah The Beatchild is as good as it gets.

Memoirs of Anesha also has a review of the show here.

Photos: My shots of Slakah The Beatchild @ Revival are on flickr.
Myspace: Slakah The Beatchild
Video: Enjoy Ya Self on youtube
Video: What's This Feeling on youtube
Video: Out This World on youtube