Music, The Coast Halifax

Bones brigade

Adria Young — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

CROSSS believes in ghosts, and so will you, once you hear their first LP Obsidian Spectre by Adria Young "I'm on the fence about ghosts. People say they see them, but they could just be lying," says CROSSS' Andy March.…

Pop simplicity

Lindsay Raining Bird — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

The Everywheres play the kind of songs that have people buzzing about a psych-pop revival. by Lindsay Raining Bird It's sort of the holy grail of new bands---Samuel T. Hill's songs were making the rounds online when Jessi Frick of San Francisco's Father/Daughter Records came a-calling. "She asked if it would be cool if she put it out and I said 'Definitely,'" says Hill, all matter of fact.…

King of karaoke

Stephanie Johns — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Laurie The Guy has hosted 5,000 shows since 1991, proving himself to be the hardest-working man in the karaoke business. We reveal Laurie Goulden—the self-proclaimed “social moron”—and Laurie The Guy, consummate entertainer. by Stephanie Johns and Allison Saunders There's an indescribable hum of excitement over the room of karaoke regulars just before the show begins. Like sprinters waiting for the start gun to fire, singers anxiously flip through songbooks—though they already know what they'll perform—watch a stack of request slips grow at the front of the room, ask for the lights to be dimmed because, come on people, ambience, flip through the book again and sip on whatever form of poison will fuel the evening.…

1313 Music Festival’s improvisation station

Jeff Lawton — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Dance and music get back to their improv roots in an exciting weekend festival that urges audience participation. by Jeff Lawton No set plans for the long weekend? Maybe you should improvise and head down to the second 1313 Music Festival, a four-day event that celebrates improvisation within music and dance.…

This Sound Will Save You’s emotional rescue

Adria Young — Thu, 16 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

The electro-pop trio go with their collective gut on their debut album Let the Light Lead You by Adria Young Halifax's hard-working electro-pop three-piece, This Sound Will Save You, releases its debut album, Let the Light Lead You, at the Carleton on Monday. With multi-instrumentalist Matt Fudge, vocalist/UK-transplant Chloe Jones and Nico Orengo on drums, the album shows off the emotive depth and wealth of feeling that infuses the band.…

David Myles’ two minds

Stephanie Johns — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

A new double album, In the Nighttime, brings the best of Myles’ two worlds together. by Stephanie Johns Juno-winning musician David Myles has the unique ability to shift between soft-seaters and stadiums, playing to relax retirees or amp up 20-somethings, depending. "I just did 25 shows in rural Saskatchewan in community centres with my trio.…

Phoenix

Jeff Lawton — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Bankrupt! (Universal) by Jeff Lawton From its early disco singles to its last two records of killer guitar pop, Phoenix seemed to be on a continuous, upward trajectory. With Bankrupt, however, the band has taken a big step back.…

Poirier’s eclectic circus

Tiina Johns — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Montreal DJ Poirier blends the best of the best to get you moving on the dance floor. by Tiina Johns Did you know that you love dancehall, soca and afropop music? Montreal-based DJ and producer Poirier is going to prove that you do, even if you may not know it yet.…

The Caretakers

Doug Taylor — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Love, War & Propaganda (Quorum) by Doug Taylor A visionary warning about the escalating military economy from President Eisenhower came at the end of his second term. The old general sounds pretty wise now.…

Pamela Morgan

Doug Taylor — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Play On (Headway) by Doug Taylor This is a re-emergence for Morgan as a songwriter. It’s the first album of mostly originals by the former Figgy Duff lead singer in a decade.…

Vital Remains’ devil’s path

Stephanie Johns — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

The 24-year death metal veterans tear through Halifax Thursday. Come get schooled. by Stephanie Johns Vital Remains is having a bit of the hair of the dog. Calling on the road from Toronto, guitarist Tony Lazaro is washing down some eggs and hot sauce with a Heineken.…

Splash dance

Lindsay Raining Bird — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Samm Splash’s Alicia Keys-inspired smooth vocals and emotional delivery are going to have you putting her on infinite repeat. by Lindsay Raining Bird Building on a youth of musicals, choir solos and sheer passion, by 18 years old Samm "Splash" Reid was a hype girl, singing with Shevy Price while she rapped. "I had to have my mom with me," she says, laughing.…

Sloan

Adria Young — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Hardcore 7” Package (Sloanmusic) by Adria Young The last band standing from the early ’90s Halifax-Moncton scene, Sloan has always been into punk, more prominent in the Pentland/Murphy catalogues than Ferguson/Scott. Written in ’88, “Jenny,” about Murphy’s ex/jale’s Jennifer Pierce, nails power hardcore.…

Freshman guitars and Econoline vans

Rana Encol — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Aidan Knight’s character-driven songs play with audio alchemy at The Carleton. by Rana Encol Aidan Knight's father, an avid guitar collector, bought him his first guitar—a gorgeous 1958 Guild M-65 Freshman, manufactured in Hoboken, New Jersey—when Knight was still a teenager. It remains his favourite guitar.…

Fairly grounded folk

Lindsay Raining Bird — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk stay grounded with high-energy folk-pop. by Lindsay Raining Bird "I love Halifax," says Lauren Mann. "I grew up near Vancouver, so Halifax, as soon as we got there, it feels like Vancouver but with an east coast vibe, this cool architecture.…

Phosphorescent

Jeff Lawton — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Muchacho (Dead Oceans) by Jeff Lawton Phosphorescent, AKA Matthew Houck, has been releasing solid records of sun-soaked country-rock and ethereal folk hymns for the past ten years. With Muchacho, Houck touches on all of his greatest strengths---riffs, harmonies, sing-alongs, dirges---and the end result is his first front-to-back great album.…

Let them Howl

Jessica Jay — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Howl’s three mini-operas featuring soprano Janice Jackson does Allen Ginsberg proud. by Jessica Jay Take in an interactive opera experience and check out Howl at the Dalhousie Art Gallery. Howl is definitely unlike any opera you've experienced before, with three 20-minute mini-operas all loosely based on the Allen Ginsberg poem of the same name.…

Shotgun Jimmie

Doug Taylor — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Everything Everything (You’ve Changed) by Doug Taylor Sackville, NB’s favourite adopted son travelled to Brandon, Manitoba to record these 16 tracks, average length two minutes 25 seconds, which entertain an admirable variety of notions. Some of the shorter tunes feel like demos that will likely be expanded upon later.…

AA Wallace’s new nostalgia

Rana Encol — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

AA Wallace’s latest album, (disambiguation), finds his usual mix of influences and inspirations filtered through an icy cool dance party. by Rana Encol After spending a day at work in front of the computer, AA Wallace comes home to his bedroom studio in the north end and, surrounded by a medley of machines, starts to play. Like any good armchair voyager into the deep space of the internet, Wallace realizes the escapist pastoral dream of weary office workers and urban hippies is mostly pleasant fiction. Truth be told, he misses his computer when he's camping or fishing—after all, the electronic music community, fueled by internet forums and media sharing sites like Soundcloud, is something not easily accessed offline.…

Low

Doug Taylor — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

The Invisible Way (Sub Pop) by Doug Taylor The veteran trio from Minnesota enlisted Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy to produce this new album of understated intensity. Where Low’s favored tempo is languid, a little uptick like “So Blue” maintains the glow over Steve Garrington’s staccato piano.…

Young ones

Kaitie Unwin — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

LaserSquid Music puts on its second annual electronic dance festival, We’re All Young Now 2013, as part of National Youth Arts Week by Kaitie Unwin It's not every day you see hundreds of people dancing their hearts out to crazy electronic dance music in the middle of the afternoon. But on Sunday May 5, that's exactly what will be happening at the Alderney Landing Theatre in Dartmouth.…

Colin Stetson

Doug Taylor — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light (Constellation) by Doug Taylor What fun to have music to play for guests, guaranteed to evoke the response “What the hell is that?” followed by “shit!” or “It’s amazing!” Actually, New History Warfare Vol. 3 is at least as jolting as Vol.…

She bop

Jessica Jay — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Venus Envy celebrates 15 years in Halifax with a bang-up party. by Jessica Jay Venus Envy, Halifax's favourite sex positive shop, is celebrating 15 years of business. To celebrate, on May 3, Venus Envy is throwing a party worthy of Bacchus himself.…

Get your Goatwhore

Michaela Cavanagh — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:00:00 -0300

Road warriors Goatwhore bring blacked bayou swagger and 18 years of metal experience to Michael’s this Saturday by Michaela Cavanagh "People like to put things in categories," says Ben Falgoust. "We call it extreme metal, but there are so many different variations.…

Wintersleep is coming

Rana Encol — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:00:00 -0300

The Marquee is reopening this weekend and it all starts with a Wintersleep bang on Friday. by Rana Encol Wintersleep drummer Loel Campbell was barely of age when he started going to (sneaking into) rock shows at the Marquee Club on Gottingen. He remembers Yarmouth rock giants Burnt Black playing a New Year's Eve show where he met future Wintersleep bandmates Paul Murphy, Tim D'Eon, and by extension, the energy and brains behind Dependent Music---the little label that curated raw east coast acts like Contrived and Holy Fuck.…