I loves Me Some Dreampop

I'm just gonna go right out and say it:
Dream pop rules. There's pretty much no denying it.
So here's the best dream pop band you've never heard of:
Art of Fighting

How nobody knows about these Aussie's is one of life's great mysteries. (Here's where lots of other people would put down lame life mysteries to accompany it... Maybe even pull out the "Why isn't the whole plane made of the Black Box?" business. But then nobody would ever read past "...whole plane" since they realize if they go further they'll die of stupid. So I'll just leave it as is.)

I'm really not sure how many bands I could call dream pop though. AoF and A Northern Chorus are the only two that consistently come to mind. I know there's others out there, and I know I know them, but I can never think of any others.

Anyways. Art of Fighting's first album, Wires, is much better than they're second, Second Storey. But I'm gonna post a song from the latter:

Art of Fighting - Find You Lost

New Belle and Sebastian

Well.. not the news it used to be, sadly... but here's good news! This one's not overproduced to crap! More of a Boy With The Arab Strap era feel to it. Which is a good thing.

Belle and Sebastian - Another Sunny Day

It's from The Life Pursuit. Which is coming out at some point in the future. Not the near future though. February. And by then I'll be mentally preparing for the new Radiohead.
Oh Radiohead. How I miss you.

File Under: How is this just a B-Side?

So... Antony and the Johnsons. Probably one of the top 5 albums of the year. The guys just got an amazing voice. Amazing in a different way. Not American Idol amazing. Although that would be hilarious. (Not that I think American Idol contestants are amazing, but you know what I'm trying to say. Hopefully.)
But what's the only thing better than one Antony singing? 4 tracks of Antony! All in harmony.
I give you Paddy's Gone, from the You Are My Sister single.

Antony and the Johnsons - Paddy's Gone

Once again... How is this just a B-Side?

Only 30 more Sleeps

So.. anyone look at the day today? That's right. It's Novemeber 25th. Which means it's almost Christmas. One month, to be exact.

In honor of this, I have an early present for you.
Did you know that Sufjan has put out not 1, not 2.. but 3 Christmas albums! That's right. Just don't tell Boyz II Men. They might plan a reunion. Hey. Remember that episode of Fresh Prince where Boyz II Men sang Silent Night on Christmas Eve? Because Will grew up with them in Philly? I'm secretly holding out for Sufjan to show up on some sitcom. Although Arrested Development is the only one worthy of him, and I just don't see that happening. Sadly...

So here it is:
Sufjan Stevens - Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance!

And yeah... I am trying to update everyday. So check back. Tell your friends. Buy records.

A Better Day

Confession time. It took me a long time, and a show to get used to the new Broken Social Scene. Minus a few tracks (notably Windsurfing Nation and Swimmers. Probably because I'm not Emily Haines' biggest fan), I pretty much love it. One of the main things that bugged me was the production (which, apparently, is a pretty en vogue thing to bug you about the album). But I got used to it.

The point of all that preamble, you ask? Ibi Dreams of Pavement is freaking fantastic. But, if you're still on the overproduction bandwagon, here's an acoustic version of it:

Broken Social Scene - Ibi Dreams of Pavement (A Better Day) Live @ KCRW

Aside: Morning Becomes Eclectic freaking rules. Seryusly.

Also, since the year end is coming, and lists seem to be in style these days, I'm working on my top 25. Or maybe 30. Or something. Probably will be up sometime in the beginning of November. Keep those RSS Feeds open!

Oh yeah... I'm using a different server (YouSendIt) for the files now. No more Rapidshare like the first batch. These should be a lot easier/convenient to download. But there's a max of 25. So if it's reached it's max, leave a comment and I'll try and fix it or something.

Moving Pictures...

Was blessed enough to see a great performance by Great Lake Swimmers last night. Just a small, low-key show. No backing band, just frontman Tony Dekker and an acoustic guitar. The highlight?

Moving Pictures, Silent Films

Just a great song.
And Edmonton's local scene continues to own all with Field + Stream providing a great opening set.

So yeah... there you go. Enjoy the track. And if you're reading this from Calgary, he'll be playing there twice on Friday! That's right, twice. Once with Field + Stream. So go.

Check here for more info on those show (the night show's at Mount Royal's Liberty Lounge if you're too lazy to click through).

5 Songs You Should Listen To Now

Yes. They're back. But now better than ever, since you can actually download them. (On that note, if you've got server space to lend so I can direct link instead of using Rapidshare, let me know):

So here's the launch party (they'll get linked as I upload):

Sigur Ros - Glossoli
It's a launch party. I needed to start big.

Sufjan Stevens - The Avalanche
Illinois B-Side that is now being released on the vinyl pressing.

Faunts - Will You Tell Me Then?
Finally getting released. So they're invited to the party.

Wilderness - Marginal Over
Face the facts!

Broken Social Scene - It's All Gonna Break
Best song off of the Self-titled, which is getting exponentially better with every listen.

Enjoy.
5 Albums you should listen to now! to come soon.

And, as always, if you like what you hear, support the artist. Shows. Albums. T-Shirts. Stuff like that.

Makeover!

So.... this site has changed. In that I've deleted all my posts.


The goal here is to become an mp3 blog. Which I like.

But for now... patience people... Patience