March 2009 Archives

Club rap, with its leg-humping sexuality and boorish booty beats, seems fairly passé at this point. But the electro-fueled Toronto duo Thunderheist manage to pump life into the exhausted subgenre. On their debut, Isis sings and rhymes with equal verve, transforming from disco diva ("Nothing 2 Step 2") to coke-snorting hussy ("Freddie") to seductive jailbait ("Sweet 16"). Yeah, Thunderheist is all about the quick dance-floor fix, but Isis imbues her characters with quick-witted wickedness, and producer Graham Zilla churns out Spartan synth tracks that have an undeniably funky buzz. www.spin.com

The album was recorded in a variety of locations in and around the Thousand Islands, including Singer Castle near Hammond, New York, the Brockville Arts Centre in Brockville, Ontario and St. Brendans Church in Rockport, Ontario. It is named for the Lost Channel, a spot in the Thousand Islands where a reconnaissance boat from a British warship went missing in 1760.

DD/MM/YYYY make it their mission to defy classification. Always evolving sonically and riding an experimental edge wherever possible, this Toronto quintet's math-rock drums, noisy synths and punk-inspired vocals make them sound like they're perpetually caught in a violent tornado of awesomeness; beneath every mess are cool hooks calling out to the attentive listener. Infinity Skull Cube's clean-sounding post-punk guitars and propulsive beat bring to mind British rockers Foals, although DD/MM/YYYY take more artistic chances and favour weirder sounds and structures.

Stick with Black Square right to the end, because second-to-last track I'm Still In The Wall features beautiful indie-rockish vocals, while closer Digital Haircut has a firestorm of mind-blowing guitar work about halfway through. - NOW Magazine

Breaking through the dirt and shooting upward into our atmosphere is a new variety of exotic Bonnie `Prince' Billy plant. Stronger. Stinkier. It blooms in low light and cold but thrives in the sun as well, showing enticing spots and eating small creatures as they wander into its jaws. They had it coming, they were weak and you're next! Beware. Though Beware shares spit with its immediate predecessor, Lie Down in the Light, its reach is longer, its arches more grandiose. Where fiddle and steel contribute their rustic timbre alongside guitars and voices, a thickening thud of low tone rolls beneath, giving the record a bottom that's fun to watch bounce in new clothes.

With the economy tanking, homes being lost, and folks switching to survival mode, America may need Neko Case's back-to-nature fantasias more than ever. On 2006's gothic classic Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, she belted out soaring country rock, Southern gospel, and power-pop hymns about lions, sparrows, and two-legged creatures living outside civilization. Middle Cyclone carries case's unique vision one step further: here, she truly embraces the beast within. Whether she's imagining herself as a killer whale or translating a magpie's song, the message is clear. "I'm an animal," she growls, "and you're an animal, too." spin.com

After the proggy overindulgence of their previous two albums, these Texans gracefully balance the dynamic alt rock of 2002's Source Tags & Codes with their more recent multimovement epics. "Halcyon Days" combines lilting, cathedral-size vocals, colossal guitars, and an organ coda without sounding bloated; the poppy surge of "Fields of Coal" has Conrad Keely musing about a fatal prophecy between rousing sailor chants; and the double-vocal punisher "Ascending" (featuring Brooklyn zanies Dragons of Zynth) and slow-burning ballad "Luna Park" showcase Trail of Dead at their unvarnished, poignantly roaring best.-spin.com