Mercury Rev – Australian Interview (Static, 2009)
Touring Australia on the bequest of the all-conquering Coldplay, Mercury Rev stopped into visit Static's Chris Berkley to talk about their latest album Snowflake Midnight and an impressive career that cannot be reigned in by simple film analogies.
R.E.M. – Collapse Into Now
With appearances from Peaches and Patti Smith, R.E.M. show no signs of wear and tear in their fourth decade of making music.
Pony Up – Stay Gold
Give it up, or rather give up your gold, for one of Montreal's premiere exponents of indie-pop Pony Up, and their sophomore album.
Sloan – The Double Cross
The best band to come out of Canada, ever, celebrate their 20th anniversary with The Double Cross. It's a Roman numeral thing, y'dig?
Amanda Blank – I Love You
Welcome to the Blank generation - potty mouthed, vacuous, and promiscuous - with the music to match.
Luke Haines – London – 19 January 2011
This was to be the debut and sole performance of Outsider Music, Luke Haines' most successful solo album to date. An album of some notoriety in that it was individually recorded 50 times and released last September for £75 a throw. An artistic experiment and a gamble of sorts, it was an undeniable success for Haines, the old adage about fools and their money standing true -- all 50 volumes of Outsider Music disappearing quicker than anticipated. With each volume a unique item on its own, buyers have been reticent on sharing and as of yet, no copies have surfaced. So Haines - 1, Rich Fans - 1, Poor Fans - go eat a shit sandwich.
The Dodos – Time to Die
There's a time to be born and, as The Dodos, given their extinct namesake should know, a Time to Die. But man, what a way to go.
Jacob Golden – Interview circa Revenge Songs (2008)
If success was awarded by the amount of struggle and heartbreak an artist had endured, and took into account the innate talent the artist had, Jacob Golden would be multi-platinum and headlining London's Royal
Austra – London – 18 January 2011
There’s been a noticeable shift slash longing backward glance in music trends towards all things 80’s. It seems that the product of that era now want to know everything about where they came from and the music that was made. For synth pop acts like Summer Camp and Twin Shadow, the 80’s are a nostalgia/inspirational goldmine, but with the rise of Zola Jesus, Salem, oOoOO, etc, it was inevitable that Goth music and its mutated electro/dark wave offspring would get discovered by the black clad suburban misfits of today. Enter, Austra from Toronto, Canada.
Various Artists – SCORE! 20 Years of Merge Records: The Covers
A star-studded cast pay tribute on this anniversary compilation, but who invited Times New Viking?
Pastels/Tenniscoats – Two Sunsets
East meets West in a twee wonderland as Glasgow's The Pastels collaborate with Japan's Tenniscoats on Two Sunsets.
Love of Diagrams – Nowhere Forever
Our love for Love of Diagrams knows no bounds especially for the Melbourne noise merchants freshly minted third album.
Owen Pallett – Heartland
From Final Fantasy to something more pallettable Canada's Owen Pallett continues to enthrall with his third album which gets to right to the heart.
Twin Sister – London – 25 November 2010
Latching hold of our ears earlier in the year with their double EP release Colour Your Life/Vampires With Dreaming Kids, Long Island’s Twin Sister had secured a place on our date card long before their they announced their first UK tour. Sneaking across the pond in October, we’d caught the band supporting rising stars, The Morning Benders at the Music Box in Los Angeles (apologies boys, I owe you one live review) and were suitably impressed. Jaded beyond jaded as the years drag on and the revolving floorshow of new bands yawn in our faces with old ideas, it was refreshing to witness a band breathe colour and life into their music.
Sloan – B Sides Win (1992-2008)
In Sloan's case, it was definitely the A Sides that won, but there's some forgotten treats amongst this rarities collection.
Broken Records – Until the Earth Begins to Part
If the news makes you sad, don't watch it, rather listen to Broken Records' dazzling debut.