Douglas Coupland Souvenir of Canada (2002), Souvenir of Canada 2 (2004) & Souvenir of Canada [the movie] (2006)

SOUNDTRACK: TINDERSTICKS-The Hungry Saw (2008).
It was the releases of this Tindersticks disc (their first in 5 years) on the venerable Constellation Records (in North America) that inspired my trip through their back catalog. I was completely surprised to see them released on Constellation, as the band doesn’t exactly fit with the label’s stereotypical style (although, [...]

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Ian Frazier–”Fanshawe” (New Yorker, November 2, 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: KATHLEEN EDWARDS-Asking for Flowers (2008).
I first heard of Kathleen Edwards because of her duet with John Doe on “The Golden State.”  I thought her voice was great and I wanted to hear more.  I picked this album because it was her newest.
My first impression was mild.  I thought initially, great, I’ve gotten yet another [...]

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Douglas Coupland–City of Glass (2000 & Revised Edition 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: DANKO JONES-Never Too Loud (2008).
Danko Jones is a hard and fast rock band, with a one track mind and a straightforward sound.  They deal in excessive cliches (album titles include: Sleep is the Enemy, We Sweat Blood, Never Too Loud, etc) and play mostly short songs.  And despite all that apparent negativity, I enjoy [...]

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Lee Henderson–”Long Live Annie B.” (The Walrus, October, 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: THE TREWS-House of Ill Fame (2003).

After listening to the new Trews disc, I popped in their first disc.  Mostly because I thought their first one sounded rawer.  And it does.
House of Ill Fame has the same rock feel as the new one does, but it also feels a lot more garagey.  It rocks harder, [...]

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David Foster Wallace–”Crash of ‘69″ (Between C & D, Winter, 1989)

SOUNDTRACK: THE TREWS-No Time for Later (2008).

I was surprised by this disc.  The cover is mildly shocking, but more just tasteless (and one that I won’t leave lying around), but it’s mostly shocking because it is so inappropriate for the music contained within.  The music is such basic rock and roll–the kind that I didn’t [...]

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Zsuzsi Gartner-”Summer of the Flesh Eater” (The Walrus, September 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: NEKO CASE-Middle Cyclone (2009).
I first learned of Neko Case through The New Pornographers.  Their song “Letter from an Occupant” blew me away.  But when I’d investigated her solo work, I learned she was more of a country singer than anything else.  Reviewers said that Middle Cyclone broke from that mold a little into more [...]

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Jimmy Gownley–Amelia Rules: The First Three Trade Paperbacks (2006)

SOUNDTRACK: FEIST-Let It Die (2004).
I’ve recently discovered Feist through Broken Social Scene.  I know that she is huge (and “1,2,3,4″ is a really great song that we used for our son’s 4th birthday video), but it took me a while to catch on.
This first album (technically her second, but her first was released only on [...]

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Periodical: The Walrus

I found out about The Walrus while watching an interview with Noah Richler on Book Television (back when I had Canadian satellite).  During the interview, they mentioned that the first issue of this cool new magazine, The Walrus, had just come out.  I was very intrigued; amazingly, the local Barnes & Noble had a copy! [...]

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Marisa Silver–”Temporary” (New Yorker, September 28, 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: CLUES-Clues (2009).
This is another of my favorite recent Constellation Records CDs.  Clues remind me of Mercury Rev, if they had remained a more indie/underpolished band instead of their more recent orchestrated pop.  The lead singer sounds a but like Jonathan Donahue (and sometimes Wayne Coyne from the Flaming Lips) and the band in general [...]

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David Foster Wallace–short uncollected pieces (with titles): “Other Math” (1987); “The Empty Plenum: David Markson’s ‘Wittgenstein’s Mistress’” (1990); “Rabbit Resurrected” (1992); “The Nature of the Fun” (1998); “F/X Porn” (1998); “Peoria (4)” (2002); “Peoria (9) ‘Whispering Pines’” (2002); “Deciderization 2007″ (2007)

SOUNDTRACK: LAND OF KUSH-Against the Day (2008).
Land of Kush is a huge orchestra created by Sam Shalibi.  Shalibi is a maniac of independent releases, creating everything from orchestral pieces to solo records all with his unique blend of middle eastern tinged music (featuring his oud playing).
This album is inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s Against the Day, [...]

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