Sunday, March 1, 2009

Essay season makes for irregular blog posts.

dd/mm/yyyy were on MTV! It was strange to see them sandwiched between commentary on The Hills, however it was also very cool that a band like dd/mm/yyyy could find themselves performing on national television (MTV Canada that is). Their new record Black Square just might be the most 'normal' thing this band has ever released. The songs generally follow pretty basic ideas of song structure, with relatively consistent tempos and time signatures. The jagged schizophrenia of the band is still there, however it just seems a little more palatable this time around. The best thing about this record is that they stripped it down to 35 minutes and just 12 tracks, as opposed to Are They Masks? and The Blue Screen of Death, both of which have 20+ tracks and come close to the hour mark. The band are in the middle of another massive tour right now, a mode they seem to constantly be in. They are certainly one of the harder working bands in Toronto in their consistent break out of the Southern Ontario bubble. I've tried to bring them here a few times, but schedules never lined up. Hopefully someone can make that happen in the near future. Thumbs up for the new record!

Black Square comes out on March 17 through We Are Busy Bodies.

Who is going to Leonard Cohen? I played Chelsea Hotel No. 2 as Andrea and I lamented the $70 shitty seats we couldn't justify paying for. I know I will regret not going.

Playlists:

Sunday, (*The First of March, The Holiday*), 2009

Artist - Album - Song
The Blankket – Pegatively Nositive – Independence is no Solution
Ponytail – Ice Cream Spiritual – G Shock
Abe Vigoda – Reviver – Wild Heart
The Memories Attack – Memories Attack – Collapso
The Memories Attack – Memories Attack – Peaks and Valleys
Shotgun & Jaybird – Trying to Get Somewhere – Writing on Our Arms
Pavement – Brighten the Corners – Shady Lane / J Vs. S
Sloan – 4 Nights at the Palais Royale 1999 – The Good In Everyone (Live)
Shearing Pinx – Ultra Snake – Smarts
Nu Sensae – 12” – Peter Tripp
Nu Sensae – 12” – Graceland
Jerkward – All Your Ears Can Hear Compilation – Flesh and Bones
Nels Cline – Coward – Epiphyllum
Asobi Seksu – Hush – Glacially
Yo La Tengo – Dark Was the Night – Gentle Hour
Leonard Cohen – The Best of – Chelsea Hotel No. 2
Dd/mm/yyyy – Black Squares – They
Dd/mm/yyyy – Black Squares – Sirius
Japanther – Skuffed Up My Huffy – Um Like Your Smile Is Totally Ruling Me

Sunday, February 22, 2009:

Artist - Album - Song
Abe Vigoda - Reviver - Don't Lie
Abe Vigoda - Reviver - House
dd/mm/yyyy - Black Square - Bronze Age
dd/mm/yyyy - Black Square - Bronze Age
Jon Rae Fletcher - Oh, Maria - Maria
Bach Cottage - The Homestead - Grocery Bills
Ok Vancouver Ok - I Get So Drunk About Songs About Love - When You Get Home
Almonds, Cohen - Travel a Fair Distance - Two Friends, Old Friends
Shearing Pinx - Ultra Snake - Called the Wrong Name
Nu Sensae - 12" - The Witch
Apollo Ghosts - Hastings Sunrise - Dobermans
Apollo Ghosts - Hastings Sunrise - Land of the Morning Calm
The New Pornographers - Dark Was the Night Compilation - Hey, Snow White
Dirty Projectors & David Byrne - Dark Was the Night Compilation - Knotty Pine
Deerhunter - Weird Era, Cont. - Operation
Emeralds - Solar Bridge - Magic
Blank Dogs - On Two Sides - Blaring Speeches
Charles Spearin - The Happiness Project - Mr. Gowrie ****

**** Marks Requests