Hottest Bands in Canada, 2009 edition

    photo credit: Joe Fuda

As Matthew of I(Heart)Music has done over the past four years, he's again polled a selection of Canadian music writers, journalists and bloggers for their top ten hottest Canadian bands / artists of the year. I've always been happy to participate and this year's not any different. In some ways, I'm behind the curve on some of the new artists that made the top 32 - bands like The Balconies, The Wooden Sky and Bruce Peninsula who I've only had cursory listens of but am intrigued but have yet to check out live. Past favourites of mine like Ohbijou and Great Lake Swimmers didn't make it to my top 10, and not because they were not 'hot', but rather because personally I didn't end up spending much time with them, either listening to their new releases or going to see them live. My top 10 list was a very subjective one, although scrutinized with a little objectivity - in the end what made my top 10 were those bands / artists who had some sort of activity in 2009 (whether it be touring, releasing music etc...) and who musically had an impact on me. Check out the list below with the commentary for each I submitted (numbers in brackets indicate the artists' ranking in the final top 32):

01. (1) Rural Alberta Advantage (Toronto, Ontario)

They played New York City, SXSW, Toronto and all points in between. They signed to Saddle Creek. I saw them live at for the first time earlier this year during Canadian Musicfest, saw them perform a rapturous hometown CD release show at the Horseshoe Tavern, and then ended the summer seeing them at this year's Virgin Festival[who were immensely better than most of the acts that played the larger stages that day]. I was generally behind the curve latching on to them but better late than never.

MySpace: Rural Alberta Advantage

02. The Hidden Cameras (Toronto, Ontario)

Led by Mississauga-homeboy Joel Gibb, Toronto's The Hidden Cameras returned quietly with their newest album "Origin: Orphan". I had the pleasure of catching their special intimate CD release show at Goodhandy's in Toronto which only emphasized that it's one of my favourite Canadian albums this year. One will still find pleasure in the band's gay-friendly sunny pop tunes but to the provide some balance there's some darker songs and more ambitious instrumental arrangements. Maturity never sounded so good.

MySpace: The Hidden Cameras

03. (9) Metric (Toronto, Ontario)

Fuck the haters. Their most recent album "Fantasies" is a good album. Metric were always rock stars even when they were indie but bottom line they were and still are credible. "Gimme Sympathy" was one of the best singles of the year and there's something so profound about the lyric "who'd you want to be, The Beatles or The Rolling Stones". And when Ms. Haines returned to perform an acoustic version of this song at Broken Social Scene's homecoming show at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto back in July, it was heaven.

MySpace: Metric

04. (22) Gentleman Reg (Toronto, Ontario)

Reg Vermue aka Gentleman Reg played a shit load of live shows this year, and will continue to do so until the end of the year, in support of his most recent release "Jet Black". The more I listen to the samples on his MySpace, the more I wonder why I haven't yet picked up the album. Delicious, edgy pop music.

MySpace: Gentleman Reg

05. (27) Olenka and The Autumn Lovers (London, Ontario)

This London, Ontario outfit seems to be winning new fans incrementally with each live show. I continue to brag about being one of only a few people who caught their live set at C'est What during North By NorthEast back in 2008 but it seems people are now catching on to the band's charming hybrid of rootsy, acoustic, gypsy-folk. Festival-heavy participation this year for the band including NXNE, their own hometown LOLA festival, Pop Montreal and Halifax Pop Explosion as well as the self-release of their debut full-length has made it a successful and busy year for them.

MySpace: Olenka and The Autumn Lovers

06. Junior Boys (Hamilton, Ontario)

The Hamilton duo released their newest album "Begone Dull Care" continuing in the vein of past releases with another album of organic and electronic elements that intersect with the duo's solid songwriting aspect. Any year the boys release an album, they'll be hot.

MySpace: Junior Boys

07. (32) Still Life Still (East York, Ontario)

Signing to Arts & Crafts this year with the release of their debut album "Girls Come Too", Toronto's Still Life Still combine the youthful exhuberance of peers like Tokyo Police Club but with a scruffy pop sensibility that's more in line with their label brethren Broken Social Scene. BSS jr. perhaps, but there's a tune or two from Still Life Still that'd sound terrific on your next playlist[ok the old-schooler in me really wants to say mixtape, but hey who I am kidding?].

MySpace: Still Life Still

08. Hooded Fang (Toronto, Ontario)

This young Toronto outfit makes me smile with their boy-girl vocal-sung indie pop. They only have a five-song EP under their belt(released in early 2009), but 5 songs is better than none right? The band seems content playing around Toronto for now, but do check them out if they hit a town near you. Trust me - their song "Land of Giants" - the definition of pop gem.

MySpace: Hooded Fang

09. The Diableros (Toronto, Ontario)

They've been pretty quiet lately but they're slowly easing back into playing live and the band step up to professional-quality recording with the release of a new EP entitled "Old Story, Fresh Road" to tide things over until the next album. I still remember how insanely good their debut album, 2005's "You Can't Break the Strings in Our Olympic Hearts" was, and how their 2007 album "Aren't Ready for the Country", if not as intoxicating as the debut, was still quite good. The new EP's "Heavy Hands" stands as one of my favourite tracks of the year.

MySpace: The Diableros

10. Tokyo Police Club (Newmarket, Ontario)

TPC spent the year touring, playing dates at All Points West Festival(in New Jersey), the Canadian National Exhibition in TOronto, Hillside Festival in Guelph and even a l'il free summer show in my hometown of Mississauage, and they will continue to play live into November. God love 'em. Late on the wagon as I was, I finally got down to listening to their debut full-length, 2008's "Elephant Shell" and haven't looked back since.

MySpace: Tokyo Police Club

The Hidden Cameras @ Goodhandy's (September 29, 2009)

update [Oct 4/09, 11:19 pm]: Review now posted below.



It was Goodhandy's, a little hidden grotto (at least to me) at the intersection of Church and Richmond Sts. in Toronto which was the site for The Hidden Cameras' special record release show for their new album "Origin:Orphan". Tickets for the show were given away with a limited number of their new album sold through local record shows Rotate This, Soundscapes and Criminal Records or online through Arts & Crafts. With the album selling for $13.99 at Rotate This, a free ticket to the show was a nice bonus. Even if I'd already picked up the album, purchasing the album again just to get the concert ticket would have been more than worth it (and then of course, I could have given the CD away to a friend, sell it to a used CD shop or perhaps just leave it on someone's doorstep). Whether it was a sly method for Arts & Crafts and or the band to pad album sales as someone at Stille Post hypothesized or if it was just a nice promotional gimmick, in the end it was the fans that won.

With no prior knowledge of Goodhandy's, it was immediate that I realized it was a club that catered to the gay community - of course there was much evidence, although the ads in the men's washroom with guys with their cocks hanging out definitely gave an impression that this wasn't Lee's Palace or Horseshoe Tavern. Ultimately, it was not too surprising a choice of a venue I guess given the band playing that night. Actually, it's a nice little venue with a good stage and a standing area balcony that overlooked the main floor. Indie rock shows are apparently not their forte but perhaps in the future, in between the dance and sex show nights, they'll branch out to indie rock.

As a record release party would dictate, the Cameras' Joel Gibb declared they wouldn't be playing any old songs and the band played their new album "Origin:Orphan" in its entirety. Prior to the show, I'd only heard first single 'In The NA' which I thought was a good uptempo addition to their ouvre but hearing the rest of the album for the first time I realized how consistently good it was. Musically they still maintain a balance between a melancholy folkiness and their sunnier pop side although there seems to be a bit of a darker streak that runs through the album. With a track like the more ambitious 'Walk On' it utilized a commanding horn section(for the show playing from the second floor balcony overlooking over the audience. Also for lead off track 'Ratify The New' the band came onto the stage dressed in black hoods, like part of a secret society, with the song beginning ominously with a lengthy keyboard drone before building to a cacophonous climax.

But the Cameras still possess their sunnier side as lead single 'In The NA' illustrated. The Cameras even performed a more groove-oriented dance number for which Joel encourage the audience to dance to(and with the upper balcony eventually revealing a band of gold-sheeted ghosts dancing vigorously along), presumably trying to get us out of our shell as we'd been generally quiet between songs. Joel stuck to his word, at least for the main set, that they'd only play songs off the new album but of course they came back for an encore. The encore turned out to be one song which Joel said that the last time they'd performed it was when they played the Metro Theatre (which if you go by the band's show history was back in 2001). Overall, the main set thoroughly illustrated in my opinion how good the new album is. Perhaps it's time for them to reclaim their title as Toronto's best current band.

The band are currently on tour in Canada and the U.s. from now till December. They play the James St. North Arts Crawl in Hamilton, Ontario on October 9 and end this tour leg on December 5 back in Toronto at The Opera House.

Photos: The Hidden Cameras @ Goodhandy's in Toronto (September 29, 2009)
MySpace: The Hidden Cameras
Video: The Hidden Cameras - "In The NA" (music video)
Video: The Hidden Cameras - "He Falls To Me" (live)

Awoo

concert: The Hidden Cameras @ Pride (Toronto, Ontario) - June 28, 2008

"the hidden cameras played a goth show with a choir of golden ghosts! it was great. think people were surprised by the screaming and ghoulishness, nice and refreshing to see the new stuff. plus a german punk song?!@#$ wtf? so fun."

via Dead Cops @ Stille Post







More photos over at Flickr.

MySpace: The Hidden Cameras

Cure The Post Holiday Blues

I'm back to work today with post-holiday depression almost setting in but I hope to stave off with some good musical things to look forward to(not that I'll be partaking in all of these, but hopefully at least a few of them):

Via Stillepost, Mongrels and The Brown Hornets will be at the Bovine to bring the rock this January 11. I can't speak for The Brown Hornets who I haven't heard yet, but I can vouch for Mongrels who I saw live last year in March opening for The Zoobombs at The Comfort Zone and to quote myself, they "...played a devasting set of rock riffage..." with Janis Joplin-esque vocals.

There's a few shows coming up this week that I'd only found out about - Aesop Rock will be at Sound Academy(formerly The Docks) on January 11 while De La Soul hit the same venue on January 18 - tickets for both shows $20.00.

Playing their first Toronto show in a long while(at least from what I recall), Magneta Lane will be at the Rivoli for an early show on January 16, playing new songs from their upcoming album "Gambling with God".

Republic of Safety are at Sneaky Dee's on January 26 for a "Border Closing Show" according to their MySpace - I'm assuming this is their hometown farewell show. It's a shame I only ever caught them once live(back in 2005 at the El Mo which I believe was one of their first live shows).

In addition to their already announced free show at Nathan Phillips Square on February 2(as part of WinterCity Festival), The Weakerthans will also be at Sonic Boom Records in Toronto the day prior on February 1(6:30 pm) for a free instore performance.[via It's Not The Band I Hate...]

North American tour dates are still forthcoming for February according to their MySpace, but newest Last Gang recording artists Crystal Castles, with Los Angeleans Health and Stab City are so far confirmed for a show in Hamilton, ON at The Casbah on February 22, tickets $10. [via Stille Post] I know I'm sort of a late-comer, but I'm addicted to their song "Crimewave".

Jose Gonzalez has introduced a whole bunch more of North American tour dates and will coming back to Toronto for a show at the Phoenix on March 15 - a portion of the tour(starting on Feb 29) will be in "eco-friendly" according to Pitchfork.

There's a few unconfirmed events that I came across: Dave Bookman's "3 n' Out" column in the Jan 3/08 column of Eye Weekly(the print version) mentions that the rumour is that The Constantines will celebrate their record release for their forthcoming still-to-be-titled new album with a shows on April 22 and 23. Also the Lee's Palace website indicates that Glasgow, Scotland's Sons and Daughters will be hitting the venue sometime in the near future[my guess would sometime after February but before they travel to Austin for SXSW in March]. The band's new album "This Gift" will released in North America on January 29 through Domino Records. Update: Thanks to Chromewaves for the S & D tour date info - they'll be at Lee's Palace on March 26 - info confirmed at their US booking company Ground Control Touring. Whoopee! (So, I was a little off with my estimate.)

In non-concert news, Billboard has details on the upcoming new Destroyer album "Trouble in Dreams" to be released March 19 through Merge and Torontoist has an interview with The Hidden Cameras' Mississauga-hatin' frontman Joel Gibb.

The Diableros have launched their new website and in the spirit of giving have graciously provided an mp3 of an acoustic version of their song "Broken Barns". Thanks guys! They'll be heading to SXSW in March but hopefully they'll squeeze in a hometown date or two. I finally got around to picking up their most recent album "Aren't Ready For The Country" but if you haven't yet, you can stream it here.