Josh RitterThe Animal Years (V2)You may remember Josh Ritter as the man who nearly usurped Sarah Harmer at her own damn show at the Cohn in September of 2004, with his soaring voice and songs that played like short stories. The record he was touring then was the underrated folk-pop gem Hello Starling. The record […]
Tara Thorne
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Holly McNarland
Holly McNarlandChin Up Buttercup(Universal)The Winnipeg native finally returns after another interminable wait—five years each between her breakthrough Stuff and the spottily powerful Home is Where My Feet Are. She’s been divorced and had a second child in the latter time, so she comes back with plenty of material. A single producer, Jeff Dawson, helps in […]
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Howie Beck
Howie BeckHowie Beck (True North)“Don’t be afraid if you’re all fucked up,” advises Howie Beck a third of the way through his lovely new record, his first in five years. The Toronto songwriter is a melancholy sensitive boy with a voice that’s just short of breathy, perfect accompaniment for the shimmering cymbals, horns and la-la […]
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Inside Man
Inside ManDirected by: Spike Lee(Universal)Following up the abysmal, insulting She Hate Me with a mainstream crime thriller is an odd move for noted provocateur Spike Lee, but it works. Inside Man unfolds partially in real time, as a mysterious, brilliant criminal—Clive Owen—executes “the perfect bank robbery” with an ever-changing team while Denzel Washington’s NYC detective […]
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Ben Lee
Ben LeeRipeNew WestThe more spiritually enlightened Ben Lee becomes, the more bite his music seems to lose. But damn if it isn’t catchy! The songs have moved away from Awake is the New Sleep’s “the world is awesome” tactic and into “love is awesome” on Ripe. There’s also a sweet homage to Lee’s hero on […]
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Alanis Morissette
Alanis MorissetteJagged Little Pill Acoustic(Warner)One of the most important albums of the ’90s gets a re-working for its 10th anniversary. This is for fans, who will be happy to hear that Morissette’s voice has never sounded better. On the original, her nasal snarl was often buried under slick production. Here she stretches notes longer — […]
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Various
VariousMaybe This Christmas Too (Nettwerk)The first installment included Ben Folds, Bright Eyes, Jimmy Eat World and Phantom Planet. This one’s got Coldplay tourmates Eisley (“The Winter Song”), Rufus Wainwright (“Spotlight on Christmas”), Rilo Kiley (“XMas Cake”), Dave Matthews Band’s lovely “Christmas Song” and the Flaming Lips’ take on “White Christmas.” There’s stupid stuff (Guster’s “Donde […]
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Bright Eyes
Published December 08, 2005. Bright Eyes I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning (Saddle Creek) The precocious, lisping boy wonder Conor Oberst?he can pretend “Bright Eyes” is a band of people, but please?makes good on his promise with this rousing country-rock record. (Companion electronica album Digital Ash in a Digital Urn is for patient fans only.) A […]
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Bright Eyes
Bright EyesLua”/“Take it Easy (Love Nothing)(Saddle Creek/Outside) On January 25, 2005, Bright Eyes will release two full-length albums. I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning will showcase the familiar side of the band, the one that’s rooted in acoustic guitars and heartbreak. Digital Ash in a Digital Urn will reveal a new side to the project, one […]
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C.R.A.Z.Y.
C.R.A.Z.Y.Directed by: Jean-Marc Vallée (TVA)The 10-time Genie-winning Quebec sensation C.R.A.Z.Y.—you could practically hear the uproar from here when it didn’t get an Oscar nomination for best foreign film—gets a DVD release on April 4. The sharp surrealist dramedy stars Marc-André Grondin as Zach, a sexually confused teen growing up the middle of five boys in […]
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Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
Glen Hansard and Marketa IrglovaOnce OST(Summit)This is how dope the songs from the terrific film Once are: they’re number one in soundtracks at iTunes, besting even Hannah Montana and High School Musical. Though some of the tracks are available rock-like on The Cost, the latest from Hansard’s band The Frames, and in delicate piano form […]
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Brian Borcherdt
Brian BorcherdtThe Remains of(Dependent)Yarmouth native Borcherdt’s terrific 2002 Moth EP was but a glimpse of what his first proper solo full-length offers. The epic “1000x” is the best representation of the experimental Borcherdt’s ability to pull a song all over the place and still keep you locked in place for every second. Switching off between […]