Reviews

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 […]

Kim MitchellAin’t Life Amazing(Alert/Koch)He may not be particularly cool or extraordinary, but one thing is for sure—Kim Mitchell has been a staple of Canadian rock radio for nearly 30 years. His brand of cheesy, over-produced rock has earned him a soft spot with tracks such as “Patio Lanterns,” “Go For a Soda” and “I Am […]

Beastie BoysThe Mix-Up(EMI)The Beastie Boys demonstrated their live instrumental chops on now-classic albums such as 1994’s Ill Communication. Thirteen years later the trio goes all instrumental on The Mix-Up. And do they ever mix it up. They come out of the gate with a STAX-soul-like track, “B For My Name,” and move quickly into spy […]

Kanye WestGraduationRoc-A-FellaThere is no one who loves Kanye West more than Kanye West. But the Louis Vuitton Don is one of the few artists who can actually back the boasting; here, he enlists an all-star supporting cast—-Chris Martin, T-Pain, Mos Def and Lil’ Wayne—who add to the proceedings, rather than taking away the spotlight. From […]

Iron and WineThe Shepherd’s DogSubpopFans might not initially like Sam Beam’s full band arrangements on The Shepherd’s Dog, but the sound’s been emerging since the Woman King EP and Calexico collaboration revealed layers to Beam’s songwriting beyond his earliest stripped folk simplicity. Except for “White Tooth Man,” with cues from Tusk-era Fleetwood Mac, and “Peace […]

Cuff the DukeSidelines of the CityHardwood RecordsAre the fellas in Cuff the Duke heartthrobs yet? They should be, based on the sound of Sidelines of the City alone. These are sensitive songs, and not in that pejorative sense, either. “Remember the Good Times” pays homage to a lost friend: “still can’t believe that you passed […]

PJ HarveyWhite ChalkIsland/UniversalWhite Chalk is a dark, sparse record that brings a whole new sound to Harvey’s catalogue. Without any distortion and featuring PJ’s vocals in a higher register, the disc is truly beautiful and haunting. White Chalk is the mature acoustic answer to her breakthrough alt-classic Rid of Me. Trevor McLarencategories: Best of the […]

SlowcoasterFuture RadioindieSlowcoaster may hail from Cape Breton, however it’s the west coast influence that adds the sizzle to Future Radio. This album contains more hooks than a tackle box. Fire up tracks “Eurotrash” or “Distance & Time” to see why these Cape Breton lads are indeed the future of radio.Trevor Savorycategories: Best of the year […]

Dog DayThank You (Out of touch)When Burdocks frontman Seth Smith created Hi Firey, a side project to serve as an outlet for his folkier tunes, he likely didn’t expect the endeavour to turn out like this. Now, combining half of the scrappy Burdocks with half of the street punks The Hold, Dog Day has evolved […]

The NovaksThe NovaksSonicThe Novaks have ditched their personas and delivered an honest and notable rock ‘n’ roll debut. These Newfoundlanders originally dragged their tunes around Atlantic Canada under the alias Persona, but they’ve shed their indie skins and have proved they can rock out with the best of the The (insert one-syllable band name here)s. […]

Nashville PussyGet Some!SpitfireThough they perfected their sleazy hard-pounding sound on High as Hell, Get Some proves Nashville Pussy has grown, somewhat, as a band. Which means they have moved from the juvenile antics of a 13-year-old to a 14-year-old. They no longer just sound like Mötorhead mixed with Lynyrd Skynyrd — they’ve slowed it down […]

Controller.ControllerX-AmountsPaper BagIt’s unfortunate that you can’t bottle singer Nirmala Basnayake’s energy, but Toronto’s Controller.Controller’s first full-length is filled with all the icy riffs and murderous intent that make the dance-punk band’s shows memorable. Comparisons to Debbie Harry or Siouxsie Sioux are unavoidable, but here’s betting that Patti Smith has hit Basnayake’s turntable a few times. […]