As the first track faded out, I was haunted by the lyrics: “All around the world, na na na na North America.” Where had I heard this before? A short trip to Google provided me with the answer: the mid-’90s radio hit “Around the World (La La La La La)” by ATC. These devilish Swedes had attempted to curry my favour by stirring up memories of unguiltily grooving out to ’90s dance music. Fiends! Charlatans! Abstract room painters! So, naturally, the first track is a winner in my books. The rest of the album, however, takes a turn down decidedly less emotionally stirring avenues. It’s not terribly offensive; I don’t know if there’s really enough character here to offend anyone. It’s nice to listen to, as it sounds very warm and everything is very reverb-y and it sort of sounds like you’re listening to Swedish (read: more cute and electronic) Coldplay in an echo chamber, with female vocals. Which is nice enough to listen to, but it starts to drag a little bit for want of a little variation in theme. By the time the panflute riff kicked in, I was beginning to get a touch sleepy. Probably an excellent album to lull you to sleep or play in your office if you’re a doctor who’s hip to what the kids are doing. They’re currently on tour with fellow two-letter band the xx. It’s as if there was an acronymic scale of bands, with aa being the worst and zz being the best, with the aforementioned bands in their proper places. Hopefully that’s obtuse enough for you. (Secretly Canadian, www.secretlycanadian.com) David Nowacki
Review: Gonjasufi – A Sufi and a Killer
Much has been made about Sumach Ecks’ voice leading up to the release of his debut disc A Sufi and a Killer. Following his guest performance on Flying Lotus’s Los Angeles in 2008, Ecks quickly made a name for himself with his voice that is as filthy as it is enchanting. In this regard, it’s a pleasant surprise that, with the debut disc for Ecks under the guise Gonjasufi, the singer has developed a sonic palette fitting for the uniqueness of his voice. A Sufi and a Killer is the perfect counterpart to any summer pop record, as Ecks quickly develops a blissed-out beachhouse aesthetic consistent with his fractured vocals, and carries it through to the final notes of the album. While there are a few bumps along the way, the record does well at maintaining a sense of cohesiveness. At no point does a song sound out of place. Considering the wide variety of styles brought into play throughout the disc (from the 1970s B-movie soundtrack feel of “Sheep” to the pounding blues of “Kowboyz&Indians,” recalling the best moments of Jon Spencer), it’s this consistency that proves to be the album’s greatest asset. With A Sufi and a Killer, Gonjasufi has proven to be worth the hype. (Warp, www.warp.net) Jeff Friesen
Review: Galactic – Ya-Ka-May
As Ned Sublette puts it in the liner notes, this is not your grandfather’s New Orleans record. On their sixth studio album, the jazz-funk jam band creates a record that aims to capture the modern and diverse music scene of New Orleans. The band has recruited a variety of artists from the city to contribute to the album. New Orleans is represented by artists in a diversity of genres such as brass (Rebirth Brass Band on “Boe Money”), jazz (John Boutte sings on the blues and funk inspired “Dark Water”) and most prominently, bounce. The inclusion of bounce on the album, from artists such as Cheeky Blakk (“Do It Again”) and Big Freida (“Double It”), will make fans recall Galactic’s previous hip hop inspired album From the Corner to the Block, and make the listener want to get up and dance while playing the album loud. Ya-Ka-May is an album that is very much like the dish that it takes its title from; it contains ingredients that should not work well together, but once it is mixed together and served, it is excellent. This album will blow your mind. (Anti-, www.anti.com) Charles Lefebvre
Review: Sirenia – The 13th Floor
The 13th Floor is everything one should expect from a gothic metal band and more. Every track is both epic and depressive while leaving enough diversity for all to enjoy. There is a choir that performs on every single song that helps to give this album that “big sound” it creates so well. The female vocalist sings beautifully while the male guitarist/songwriter occasionally offers death metal growls. The guitar riffs are heavy and relatively simplistic while the keyboard performs complex melody reminiscent of early power metal. There are a few drum-blasting moments, but for the most part this is an album that induces that slow exaggerated head-bang. The production of the album has a very cleaned-up pop music sound and the lyrics follow the generic vagueness of bands like Linkin Park. This is probably due to the guitarist trying to write as asexually as possible, however it does cause a mainstream feel that may turn away several fans of gothic metal. Despite this, the album is still a heavy symphonic metal album worthy to reside in most collections. If Cradle of Filth had a love child with Evanescence the result might sound something like Sirenia. (Nuclear Blast, www.nuclearblastusa.com) Paul Nordin
Review: Child Abuse – Cut and Run
After touring for three years with bands like the Locust and Pig Destroyer, Child Abuse has once again dropped an album that can only be described as bizarre. A not-so-subtle blend of math-rock, death metal and free jazz, the New York trio’s second album Cut and Run is a new direction both for metal and for electronic music. Though a metal band without guitars may seem like a pizza without cheese, these guys pull it off without a hitch. Heavily distorted synth takes the lead while the bass and drums thrum out a palsied foundation for the almost Dadaist vocals. This album is far from conventional metal and makes Mayhem seem like Buddy Holly in comparison. Fans of Fantômas and the Locust rejoice! Everybody else, run and hide! (Lovepump United, www.lpurecords.com) D. C. S. Murray
Review: Tom Keenan – Romantic Fitness
Actor/artist/drunkard Tom Keenan’s long-awaited solo debut is a dose of stark poetic folk-rock that tells tales of punch-ups at weddings and glue huffing criminal rampages. Similar to a folky version of the Eels, Keenan’s wonderfully dark lyrics complement the seemingly uplifting, light-hearted folk ballads. Standout tracks include: “Please Don’t Think Less of Me,” which deals with an assumed dead body and features agreat-sounding organ section. Also: “I don’t Want to Lie Down,” a song about starting a drunken brawl at a wedding with the father of the bride. Easily best track on the album is the country twang foot-stomper “River St.,” which features a catchy chorus you can’t help but fall in love with. Much like his brother Patrick Keenan, Tom has one heck of back up band including the D-Rangers’ Jaxon Haldane, Twilight Hotel’s Dave Quanbury, the Waking Eyes’ Matt Peters and Jicah’s Jeff Bruce. (Independent, www.myspace.com/tommydouglaskeenan) Kent Davies
Review: Boats – Cannonballs, Cannonballs
The sophomore album from one of Winnipeg’s most fully-realized bands plays through like a Saturday-morning cartoon jamboree, with Mat Klachefsky’s high-pitched singing, fast-paced songs, and sing-alongs around every other corner. Most of Klachefsky’s lyrics either seem like they’re about growing up (“Haircuts for Everybody,” “Summercamp vs. the Fake Moustache Tree”) or they seem like they’re coming from a naively young point of view (“Sunrise on the Muffin District,” “Movie Scores; We Hummed”), even though they’re way too absurd for even a kid to think of. But whether you’ve got an inner-child to appeal to or not, most songs chug along to the shuffle of a keyboard’s preset drum pattern or some oddly propulsive drum beat, making them intrinsically happy. And Klachefsky and co. have come in and made them catchy, one thing that they do quite well. If you’re ever in need of a sugar high, this album would definitely do you just as well. (Majestic Triumph, www.yeahboats.com) Taylor Burgess
Review: Meshuggah – Alive DVD/CD
Meshuggah play a style of music unlike any other. Their complexity is not due to them performing well; rather it has to do with the unusual time signatures used in their songs. Don’t expect to ever hear something in 4/4 at 120 BPM in one of their songs (unless it’s in an odd number of bars). What you should expect is to hear the guitars, bass, and even the drums playing in three completely different time signatures and only syncing up every 12 bars. It might even hurt your head to listen to but it’s all mathematically correct. With that in mind, try to imagine the difficulty in performing such a feat live. Sounds hard, but Meshuggah has been doing it for years and they have archived some recent tour dates on a new live DVD. The performances were recorded in Tokyo, New York, Toronto, and Montreal. As cool as it is to have Canada represented in over half of the songs, it may have been a better choice to use only the Tokyo footage. The stage in Tokyo was the largest, and best of all they had a camera on a track in front of the barricades moving back and forth, catching everything onstage up-close. Even if the other cities had better audio recordings, the visual appeal of the Tokyo footage would have made up for it. The only visual advantage of the smaller venues is that the stage was better lit because the lights were not spread as wide apart. Between each song was backstage footage and brief interviews, some relating to performing a show, some related to songwriting. It is a relatively enjoyable DVD about a very unique band. If you have never heard Meshuggah before, you probably should, not because you might like them but rather they’re a good point of reference. (Nuclear Blast, www.nuclearblastusa.com) Paul Nordin
Review: brokeNCYDE – I’m Not a Fan, But the Kids Like It!
The spelling above is not me showing signs of inevitable mental decline. This review isn’t as fair as it should be because I have heard brokeNCYDE before. They had a single that was so awful that people posted it on each others’ Facebook walls, trying to best each other by seeing who can make it closest to the end. So, I have actually heard them. This leaves me with the shittiest of aftertastes, something that gargling with Drano can’t even fix. BrokeNCYDE appear to be four douchebags who try too hard to be hip (to be square). Left to right, they’re sitting in the back of a yellow van drinking the following: unidentifiable microbrew, Patron (which is expensive as hell up in Canada, but fairly cheap in the States. You ain’t foolin’!), MGD, and a can of Crunk. I shit you not, a can of Crunk. And speaking of Crunk, mix unhealthy amounts of that with the “one guy singing, one guy screaming” thing that Alexisonfire does, add a high school notebook full of verbal diarhea, and throw it naked into a shower in a male prison. You got the idea yet? Here, try this shit: “I love it when you tease me! / You make it seem so easy! / You make my PP hard!/ You make my PP hard!” (“Sex Toys!!!”) No? How ’bout: “Kickin’ it baby, get crunk get crazy / All fucked up, make me wanna punch babies.” (“40 oz.!!!”) The exclamation marks are all there, the only thing you’re missing is that the letter “N” is always rendered backwards. Hardcore. After you can’t handle reading along to this white-boy raprock by douche-drizzles that have neither ever heard rap or rock, you’ll close the liner book. One of these twats dressed up his senile granpappy like the “Pretty Fly for a White Guy” guy, complete with oversized red plastic goblet Bedazzled® with the word “PIMP.” Goes to show that douchebaggery don’t age well; it just wrinkles and smells like VapoRub and gauze. But this review doesn’t do the thing justice. I recommend that EVERYONE who happens across this turd put on gloves and examine and marvel at how a piece of shit like this made it into the world. (The boys in “quality control” should be fed to bears.) Tell your children and your parents that such tripe exists. Steady your hand and take a cell phone camera pic as valid proof. But for the love of music, never, EVER push play. (Break Silence Recordings, www.breaksilencerecordings.com) Patrick Michalishyn
Review: Gypsophilia – Sa-Ba-Da-Ow!
I will fully admit that the name of the band was the reason I chose to review this CD. After doing some research, here is what I can tell you about Gypsophilia. They are a seven-piece band from Nova Scotia whose sound is a mix of gypsy jazz and traditional Jewish folk music, with a little bit of classical and indie thrown into the mix. They have been a fixture at jazz festivals across Canada, including the Winnipeg Jazz Festival, since their debut album was released in 2007. I was a little disappointed when I first played the CD; I found the first track to be too slow-paced for my liking, but I cleared that hurdle, I found myself enjoying the rest of the album’s more upbeat sound. Tracks like the aptly titled “Jewish Dance Party!” will make you want to clap your hands and find the nearest person or chair to dance with, while other tracks like “A Oha” let you sit back and admire the sounds that these musicians create. The best jazz albums should give you a taste of what the band is capable of live, since jazz is always best when it is improvised live. If you are looking for a unique jazz record, Sa-Ba-Da-Ow! should satisfy your cravings until the band returns to the jazz festival in your city. (Independent, www.gypsophilia.org) Charles Lefebvre