1) Shook Ones - Unquotable A.M.H. - This band can do no wrong. This is their 3rd full-length and has an entirely different approach then their first two prior releases. This band continues to impress with me with heartfelt music, an ever changing sound and songs that don't have chorus'.
2) Orphan Choir - Orphan Choir - Straight out of Windsor Ont I have been waiting for this bands full-length for about a year now. After finally finding a home for it they released it and it's even better than I expected.
3) Converge - Axe to Fall - For a band that I could never get into before this record turned me onto their entire catalog. That in itself is pretty impressive, no?
4) Every Time I Die - New Junk Asthetic - This band never gets old. After I thought they jumped the shark with Gutter Phenomenon they came back with two great records, this being one of them. Awesome art-work and they make Pete Wentz sound cool.
5) The Flatliners - Cynics 7" - This band needed to come out with something and i'm glad they waited. This 7" is just a tease for their full-length that will be a top contender in my 2010 list.
6) Paramore - Brand New Eyes - Hate me if you will. This record is disgustingly catchy and I am proud to call this band one of my favourites. They never disappoint.
7) Dead to Me - African Elephants - After suffering through the loss of their singer they came back with a wicked upbeat and impressively catchy record.
8) Polar Bear Club - A great follow up to their previous release. This band continues to impress me with every record they grow more and more into their own sound.
9) Cursive - Mama, I'm Swollen - After losing their Cello player the full band backing just made this band even more incredible.
10) Chuck Ragan - Gold Country - Do I really have to say anything?
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Cursed.
So Cursed is a band that broke up back in 2008. While they were on a European tour promoting their recently released record III they got robbed in the hostel they were staying at overnight. As I understand it, the robbery, was the final "bullet in the head" for the band, so they called it quits at the end of the tour and a paypal account was set up to help them get home to Toronto, Ontario.
They were a huge part of Southern Ontario "hardcore" and were well liked all over the world with releases in Europe, American and Japan. In the short 7 years they were a band they released 3 full-lengths and 3 seven inches while touring constantly. They were signed to Deathwish, Jake Bannon of Converge's record label (and if you haven't listened to Axe to Fall, get on that already.)
And then out of the blue yesterday Chris posted on the b9board that a new Cursed 7" - The Last Sessions, was released. It was recorded off of the floor near the end of their time as a band and is limited to 1000 copies. In the same post, he said "There may be some LP reissue action this year too." Which to me, and many other record collectors hopefully means II will finally be repressed, and myself and those collectors will finally have closure to a great band that will always be remembered.
Also, check out these videos of the last few days they were a band. Pretty awesome and gives you a great insight into what these songs were about, it definitely gave me a new perspective on living in Toronto and the condos that are slowly surrounding our city.
love,
bt.
They were a huge part of Southern Ontario "hardcore" and were well liked all over the world with releases in Europe, American and Japan. In the short 7 years they were a band they released 3 full-lengths and 3 seven inches while touring constantly. They were signed to Deathwish, Jake Bannon of Converge's record label (and if you haven't listened to Axe to Fall, get on that already.)
And then out of the blue yesterday Chris posted on the b9board that a new Cursed 7" - The Last Sessions, was released. It was recorded off of the floor near the end of their time as a band and is limited to 1000 copies. In the same post, he said "There may be some LP reissue action this year too." Which to me, and many other record collectors hopefully means II will finally be repressed, and myself and those collectors will finally have closure to a great band that will always be remembered.
Also, check out these videos of the last few days they were a band. Pretty awesome and gives you a great insight into what these songs were about, it definitely gave me a new perspective on living in Toronto and the condos that are slowly surrounding our city.
love,
bt.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
New Junk Asthetic
So as I had posted awhile ago (sorry), I was waiting for my Every Time I Die vinyl in the mail, and I finally got it. The artwork is beautifully done by Jordan Buckley and his website has more and more drawings every time I go back to the site.
This is a reason for collecting vinyl in itself. The artwork is huge, it's a gatefold and it came together so nicely. I now have all of their records, all done incredibly well. However, as I said, this is some of the best album artwork i've seen in a very long time.
Also, if you have the time (or make time make sure to watch The Inaugural Ride Of The Easy Tigers In Denim, on Jordan's website. It kinda gave a new life to the meaning of a roadtrip, and maybe even a little inside into the music they make. Hopefully i'll do an American road trip one day.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Mocking Bird Wish Me Luck
A wonderful EP from a new local band. It's also out on a 7" get it while it's still "hot". It sounds like Attack in Black and Hot Water Music to me, but you be the judge and let me know.
Kyle Krische rules too and plays in Wayfarer (check most recent blog)
Making love to your ears (Goodbye Debris)
Love you forever and always,
bt.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Records, Screen Printing, New Albums.
I am back on Canadian soil. I never made an end to my blog posts when I was on tour.. but the rest of it was fun and I miss it, however it's job time and unfortunately there are not as many jobs available as there are numbers on the clock. (see what I did there? hire me.)
This posts main focus is on all of the amazing new music that has come out in the last few weeks.. all of which has been getting more than heavy rotation on my itunes and ipod, I hope soon that can transform into my record player.
First things first, Windsor Ontario's finest Orphan Choir finally found a home for their full-length self titled record and it does not disappoint in the least. I've been listening to this bands rough demos from splits for too long. The songs they re-recorded have a new breath of life and the rest of the songs are just pure genius. They played a few shows with friend of mine Kyle Krische. He plays in two bands called Wayfarer and Mockingbird Wish Me Luck, both of which have recently dropped some records so go check out there myspace and if you like what you hear buy their album, or 7"and start that collection.
The ever great Every time I Die had some drama before the release of their new record New Junk Asthetic dropped when their drummer left after their set at Scene fest in St. Catherines (saw it, yes!) Needles to say, this record does not disappoint. The album artwork (which is my favorite out of their catalogue) was done by the guitarist Jordan Buckley. You can check out the rest of his work here. This should come in the mail soon and when it does i'll take some photos of the artwork and colors.
My littlest guilty pleasure dropped a new record today, too. Paramore released Brand New Eyes and it is even more catchy and embarrassing then the last record. Judge me as you will, this is great musicianship and song-writing. I had a dream that Hayley Williams and I were hanging out in residence and her room was shaped like a vampires coffin.. she's so hard.
Polar Bear Club also released Chasing Hamburg earlier this month. I know people have been saying it's not their best and all that jazz but it's still a really good album. They went a different direction but who cares, I think they set out to do what they wanted to do and they did it well.
My beloved teenage self also got stoked when the Moneen record dropped. However, I still can't get into it I am not sure why, maybe it's just because I am holding onto Are We Really Happy.. too much. Anyway, give it a listen and let me know what you think. The title of the record is The World We Want To Leave Behind, at least they stuck with the long titles.
Hova released the Blueprint 3 and has been getting alot of slack for it. I think it's great, it's not Blueprint 2 or the Black Album, but it's still a decent album. He is on tour now and will be playing Toronto on Halloween. Last week he was on the Oprah show and they talked about the use of the "n" word and their different stances on the slang term. Needless to say, it's pretty interesting.
Oh, here are some of the records I got when I was in the UK.
The Arteries - Blood, Sweat and Beers 10" (the sleeve was made with rice paper.. fucking awesome.)
A Wilhelm Scream - Diver 7" and Career Suicide 12"
Hot Water Music - Finding the Rythms 12" and bonus 7" ?
And finally got my print from an artist, Horsebites who does work for Dead to Me, New Mexican Disaster Squad, The Flatliners, A Wilhelm Scream, Strike Anywhere and stuff for the Fest 8.
Long post, hope you enjoyed and I hope to do more.
bt.
This posts main focus is on all of the amazing new music that has come out in the last few weeks.. all of which has been getting more than heavy rotation on my itunes and ipod, I hope soon that can transform into my record player.
First things first, Windsor Ontario's finest Orphan Choir finally found a home for their full-length self titled record and it does not disappoint in the least. I've been listening to this bands rough demos from splits for too long. The songs they re-recorded have a new breath of life and the rest of the songs are just pure genius. They played a few shows with friend of mine Kyle Krische. He plays in two bands called Wayfarer and Mockingbird Wish Me Luck, both of which have recently dropped some records so go check out there myspace and if you like what you hear buy their album, or 7"and start that collection.
The ever great Every time I Die had some drama before the release of their new record New Junk Asthetic dropped when their drummer left after their set at Scene fest in St. Catherines (saw it, yes!) Needles to say, this record does not disappoint. The album artwork (which is my favorite out of their catalogue) was done by the guitarist Jordan Buckley. You can check out the rest of his work here. This should come in the mail soon and when it does i'll take some photos of the artwork and colors.
My littlest guilty pleasure dropped a new record today, too. Paramore released Brand New Eyes and it is even more catchy and embarrassing then the last record. Judge me as you will, this is great musicianship and song-writing. I had a dream that Hayley Williams and I were hanging out in residence and her room was shaped like a vampires coffin.. she's so hard.
Polar Bear Club also released Chasing Hamburg earlier this month. I know people have been saying it's not their best and all that jazz but it's still a really good album. They went a different direction but who cares, I think they set out to do what they wanted to do and they did it well.
My beloved teenage self also got stoked when the Moneen record dropped. However, I still can't get into it I am not sure why, maybe it's just because I am holding onto Are We Really Happy.. too much. Anyway, give it a listen and let me know what you think. The title of the record is The World We Want To Leave Behind, at least they stuck with the long titles.
Hova released the Blueprint 3 and has been getting alot of slack for it. I think it's great, it's not Blueprint 2 or the Black Album, but it's still a decent album. He is on tour now and will be playing Toronto on Halloween. Last week he was on the Oprah show and they talked about the use of the "n" word and their different stances on the slang term. Needless to say, it's pretty interesting.
Oh, here are some of the records I got when I was in the UK.
The Arteries - Blood, Sweat and Beers 10" (the sleeve was made with rice paper.. fucking awesome.)
A Wilhelm Scream - Diver 7" and Career Suicide 12"
Hot Water Music - Finding the Rythms 12" and bonus 7" ?
And finally got my print from an artist, Horsebites who does work for Dead to Me, New Mexican Disaster Squad, The Flatliners, A Wilhelm Scream, Strike Anywhere and stuff for the Fest 8.
Long post, hope you enjoyed and I hope to do more.
bt.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Luxemberg and Belgium!
Hello from Belgium (waffles).
So the last two nights have been pretty fun. Yesterday we played a festival in Luxemberg, a town that is pretty close to france but very tiny. It was an all day festival and tons of bands played. The Aggrolites headlined and another band, Versus You played before The Flats that really blew my mind away. So please check them out. After the show we headed to the nicest hostel I have ever seen.. I mistook it for a hotel until I learned it was a hostel. We had our own personal balcony, bathroom, SUPER comfortable beds and a little cubby that would hold anything and everything you had. OH! Scott also got choked by a girl.
Tonight we are in Belgium and it's pretty rad. We are in Ostend, a tiny town that has a harbor some pretty awesome shops and a really great fan-base for The Flatliners. I had a doner (kebab) for breakfast at an esso station and got the biggest toblerone bar i've ever seen for 5 euros. Oh, if you have me on facebook you also know that some asshole bought the two Hot Water Music records I wanted right before me. Tomorrow we have to leave at 5am to catch a ferry over to the United Kingdom and then it's bye, bye, Europe for who knows how long(for me atleast.)
So next time you talk to me i'll be in the UK.. pounds, tea, reminiscence of The Clash and lots of other stuff.
see you in 11 days,
bt.
So the last two nights have been pretty fun. Yesterday we played a festival in Luxemberg, a town that is pretty close to france but very tiny. It was an all day festival and tons of bands played. The Aggrolites headlined and another band, Versus You played before The Flats that really blew my mind away. So please check them out. After the show we headed to the nicest hostel I have ever seen.. I mistook it for a hotel until I learned it was a hostel. We had our own personal balcony, bathroom, SUPER comfortable beds and a little cubby that would hold anything and everything you had. OH! Scott also got choked by a girl.
Tonight we are in Belgium and it's pretty rad. We are in Ostend, a tiny town that has a harbor some pretty awesome shops and a really great fan-base for The Flatliners. I had a doner (kebab) for breakfast at an esso station and got the biggest toblerone bar i've ever seen for 5 euros. Oh, if you have me on facebook you also know that some asshole bought the two Hot Water Music records I wanted right before me. Tomorrow we have to leave at 5am to catch a ferry over to the United Kingdom and then it's bye, bye, Europe for who knows how long(for me atleast.)
So next time you talk to me i'll be in the UK.. pounds, tea, reminiscence of The Clash and lots of other stuff.
see you in 11 days,
bt.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Ljubljana
Alright so.. Czech Republic (Prague)was pretty awesome. We walked around the city and it was really great. Lots of old buildings and everything. The money was confusing as I said before but it was still pretty neat. When we walked around town we chilled by a fountain for awhile in front of a museum, looked at Absinthe (which I later smelled and could never re-describe what I smelt that night) and then headed to the show where the guys played with The Mad Caddies and A Wilhelm Scream. It was a really, really fun show and we ended up partying in the club (which was in kind of an outdoor mall but underground [there was also an upside down horse with a guy riding on him that the promoter told us was mocking the other town squares statue that was of a horse upright with a man riding it]). When we left for the van to get into to our hostel we had a -little- run in with Czech security, that was fun. Anyway, we got off with a hitch and headed back into Austria.
Austria we met up with our friend Alex who tour manages for a band called Astpai. He had put on the show and a few familiar faces came out which was great. We ate all vegan food and I tried schnitzel for the first time. This band opened for the guys called Soey, and were really, really awesome. Again we ended up partying pretty late and then went to bed around 5am to get up for 9am for our 7(?) hour drive to Hungary where the guys played this big, festival.
We met up with the Wilhelm guys again and after the show we all went to a Jager bar that was set up outside this field and danced our lives away. We drove to our really, really, nice hotel where we ended up staying for only a few more hours before we had to drive to Ljubljana which was, by far, the best night and show of the tour.
Every year Ljubljana puts on an arts festival and pays for all of the bands guarantees. So when we got there we had a really great dinner and loaded into the venue we were playing. Then we all got taxi's to go watch A Wilhelm Scream at an outdoor show. Then cabbed back to play our show which was the after party for the Wilhelm Show. It was amazing. There were so many kids there and it was so fun. There was also some Canadians who made it out and gave the guys the flag they had been carrying. Scott ended up wearing it as a cape by the end of the set. Again, we partied until at least 5:00am at this punk bar and then Chris, Ed and I walked to the hostel and ended up going to bed at about 6.
We drove for about 10 hours today and are now resting in Germany. We have another show tomorrow and then 13 days until i'm home.
until next time,
bt.
Austria we met up with our friend Alex who tour manages for a band called Astpai. He had put on the show and a few familiar faces came out which was great. We ate all vegan food and I tried schnitzel for the first time. This band opened for the guys called Soey, and were really, really awesome. Again we ended up partying pretty late and then went to bed around 5am to get up for 9am for our 7(?) hour drive to Hungary where the guys played this big, festival.
We met up with the Wilhelm guys again and after the show we all went to a Jager bar that was set up outside this field and danced our lives away. We drove to our really, really, nice hotel where we ended up staying for only a few more hours before we had to drive to Ljubljana which was, by far, the best night and show of the tour.
Every year Ljubljana puts on an arts festival and pays for all of the bands guarantees. So when we got there we had a really great dinner and loaded into the venue we were playing. Then we all got taxi's to go watch A Wilhelm Scream at an outdoor show. Then cabbed back to play our show which was the after party for the Wilhelm Show. It was amazing. There were so many kids there and it was so fun. There was also some Canadians who made it out and gave the guys the flag they had been carrying. Scott ended up wearing it as a cape by the end of the set. Again, we partied until at least 5:00am at this punk bar and then Chris, Ed and I walked to the hostel and ended up going to bed at about 6.
We drove for about 10 hours today and are now resting in Germany. We have another show tomorrow and then 13 days until i'm home.
until next time,
bt.
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