KnubS/T(independent)This is not an easy listen, but those who commit will hear some of the best improvisational jazz in the province. Led by St.FX grads John McLaggan (sax) and Owen Stewart-Robertson (guitar), Knub combines traditional jazz arrangements with modern improv to create some inspired works. “Teenage Burnout” features a hypnotic bassline and superb chasing melodies. […]
Chuck Teed
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Michael Jackson
Published November 27, 2003. Michael Jackson Number Ones (Epic) It’s a terrible shame that Michael Jackson the pop phenomenon is being overshadowed by Michael Jackson the confirmed weirdo/alleged pervert, because he wrote some brilliant music. Number Ones is pure, un-adulterated joy, with nearly every track sounding as vital and catchy today as they did upon […]
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Contrived
Published December 08, 2005. Contrived Dead Air Verbatim (Dependent) Contrived has always been pretty handy with the monster riff, but the band never had a recording that captured its intense energy until now. Dead Air Verbatim showcases the quartet at its most creative musically and sonically, with ferocious performances and a batch of songs as […]
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Matthew Barber
Matthew BarberThe Story of Your Life (Warner)Matthew Barber knows how to write a pleasant pop song, but it appears he’s at his best when the sound is darker or the mood’s more melancholy. The Story of Your Life, the follow-up to his debut Means & Ends, starts out fine with “A Little Love,” but the […]
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Hatebreed
Published November 20, 2003. Hatebreed The Rise of Brutality (Universal) It’s hard to hate Hatebreed. Sure, the music is an overdone hybrid of old-school metal and punk. The violently empowering lyrics are ridiculous and juvenile. But if you can get past Rise of Brutality’s not-so-original sound and childish chants, there are some decent songs to […]
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Dane Cook
Dane CookRetaliationComedy CentralDane Cook is single-handedly revitalizing stand-up comedy. The Massachusetts-born, California-based comedian is burning up the Billboard charts with the two-disc Retaliation, which debuted at number four (the highest comedy chart position since Steve Martin’s 1978 classic Wild and Crazy Guy) and has been certified gold. Cultivating his massive audience through constant touring and […]
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Dane Cook
Published December 08, 2005. Dane Cook Retaliation (Comedy Central) Set in front of a rowdy, appreciative audience, Dane Cook’s double disc is the Frampton Comes Alive of comedy albums. Cook’s young, everyman style of performance is infectious, and the laughs he generates with his sophomoric storytelling and observational humour are huge. The end result is […]
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Brent Randall and his Pinecones
Brent Randall and his PineconesQuite Precisely(Just Friends)Best known as Mark Bragg’s bass player, Brent Randall steps out in a major way. An ambitious and skillfully written effort, Quite Precisely is driven by Randall’s knack for melody and tasteful piano-playing. “Television and Treasure” conjures the spirit of Mott the Hoople while “In Horsedrawn Delight” marches and […]
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Joel Plaskett Emergency
Published November 06, 2003. Joel Plaskett Emergency Truthfully Truthfully (Maple) If the intro to “Written All Over Me” doesn’t convince everyone that Joel Plaskett is a rock god, there is no justice in the world. The cleanly picked, lively riff that slowly morphs into a fuzzed-out orgasm of rawk is one of the best openers […]
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Bill Hicks
Bill HicksSalvation(Rykodisc)Fans of the late Bill Hicks will probably know most of the material on this double disc verbatim, but Salvation reveals the legendary comedian/ philosopher at his most meditative and relaxed. Recorded in Oxford, England, a week after George Bush Sr. lost the 1992 American election —this may perhaps account for the comedian’s pleasant […]
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Fantomas
Published December 08, 2005. Fantomas Suspended Animation (Ipecac) Fans of musical acrobatics will not be disappointed in Fantomas’ latest disc. A 30-track assault of cartoon soundtracks, odd melodic passages, rhythmic bursts of noise and math-metal insanity, Suspended Animation is another wonderfully weird addition to the band’s dissonant discography. Bonus points for the stellar calendar case?easily […]
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Fantomas
FantomasDelirivm Cordia(Ipecac)Fantomas’s 74-minute opus is not so much a song as it is a sonic story. Delerivm Cordia tells the instrumental tale of an operation gone horribly wrong, complete with spectacular musical breaks and creepy ambient noises. It contains the musical narrative elements that made Amenaza al Mundo a success, yet is as easy to […]