Thursday fans, take heed: the entire new album, A City By The Light Divided, comes out next week in stores, but if you hit up the band's myspace, the entire album is there for your undivided(what!) listening pleasure. How sweet is that to kick-start your weekend??
I'm still peeved that Rickly got sick and they had to bail on the Canadian Taste of Chaos dates. Including here. With me watching. And waiting. And waiting.
I'll never see Thursday live.
The Smashing Pumpkins, long rumoured to be reuniting in whole or in part, are officially coming back; frontman Billy Corgan, following a failed solo album, and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin are on board, with or without the other two members, both of whom have rather strained relations with Corgan. The band will record their first album since 2000 this summer. Montreal native Melissa Auf der Maur has said she'd be willing to re-join on bass if her services are required. I read all this not five minutes after noodling out 'Bullet With Butterfly Wings' on my acoustic guitar. Weeeeeeeird.
Hatebreed have a new guitarist, that being former Ringworm/Integrity/Terror slinger Frank Novinec; as well, the second Core Across Canada tour has been put off til this August, so hold your hardcore horses, aight? Aight. [hxc]
Big favourites here in Ottawa, both live and on my little radio show, As I Lay Dying have a big ol' reissue coming: The Long March: The First Recordings, due out May 16th, will comprise all of the band's early material on Pluto Records, as well as a new recording and the original 2002 EP. Go get that.
A band that's broken free from the ensnaring clutches of the Christian Contemporary Music scene is about to break loose in a big way; The Elms are busting out of Indiana with a new album, Chess Hotel, in two weeks, and touring with the likes of Cracker this summer. Awesome! I'm pumped for these guys. [CMcentral]
If you're one of the many who downloaded the new Underoath record(officially released June 20th), check this out: the recordings you have aren't what'll be the final album. Those with discerning ears will already have realized this, but the band has said the following(paraphrased): "the songs were taken without our permission, most of the song titles are incorrect, they're all unmixed or mastered, missing guitar and keyboard parts, and several minutes of some songs aren't included." So don't get all up in arms, since you don't have the real deal yet, but a song the band themselves put online is over here.
No Ottawa stop for this year's Sounds of the Undeground tour(surprise), but The Chariot and As I Lay Dying are both playing along with the likes of Evergreen Terrace(select dates), In Flames, Terror, Killswitch Engage and many more, so here's the dates. I'll probably go to Montreal again.
JULY
08 CLEVELAND, OH PLAIN DEALER PAVILLION
09 CHICAGO, IL 1ST MIDWEST BANK AMP. PARKING LOT
11 TORONTO, ON MOLSON AMPHITHEATRE
12 MONTREAL, QC METROPOLIS
13 POUGHKEEPSIE, NY MID HUDSON CIVIC CENTER
14 MANSFIELD, MA TWEETER CENTER PARKING LOT
15 SAYREVILLE, NJ STARLAND BALLROOM OUTSIDE
16 CAMDEN, NJ TWEETER WATERFRONT
17 WASHINGTON DC MERRYWEATHER PAVILLION
19 ORLANDO, FL TINKER FIELD
21 HOUSTON, TX VERIZON WIRELESS THEATRE
22 CORPUS CHRISTI, TX CONCRETE ST. AMPHITHEATRE
23 SAN ANTONIO, TX VERIZON WIRELESS AMP. PARKING LOT
26 MESA, AZ MESA AMPHITHEATRE
27 LAS VEGAS, NV HOUSE OF BLUES
28 SAN DIEGO, CA Venue TBA
29 MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA SHORELINE AMP. PARKING LOT
31 DENVER, CO UNIVERSAL LENDING PAVILION
AUGUST
02 SAUGET, IL POP'S OUTSIDE
03 STERLING HEIGHTS, MI FREEDOM HILL AMPHITHEA
04 MILWAUKEE, WI EAGLES BALLROOM
05 MINNEAPOLIS, MN ROY WILKINS AUDITORIUM
06 WINNIPEG, MB CONVENTION CENTRE
07 SASKATOON, SK CREDIT UNION CENTER
08 EDMONTON, AB NORTHLANDS AGRICOM
10 VANCOUVER, BC THE PNE FORUM
12 LOS ANGELES, CA GIBSON UNIVERSAL AMPHITHEATRE
Subject to change. Obviously.
Winnipeg natives-turned-American rock band Starfield have a new record coming next month called Beauty In The Broken; the pre-release sits about six inches from my right elbow at present, and the band have something called the My Generation EP with two new songs over at iTunes. There's also a re-worked version of the band's 2003 breakthrough hit 'Filled With Your Glory'.
Aight, this is cool, from the band's website: 533 days after the record was originally supposed to be released, Mars Ill's third album Pro*Pain will finally be out, writes DJ Dust. The new version features guest appearances from Cappadonna(Wu-Tang Clan) and Prince Po of Organized Konfusion. Order the album now from the website and you'll also get the No Fame limited-edition disc. Oh man. I'm excited.
Essential Listening for today, April 26th(almost May already!) is Massachusetts' own No Trigger. Half-Movielife, half-Strike Anywhere, all awesome. Check 'em out.
Some news from the ol' inbox:
The homey squadron at Illect Recordings have sent word that two dudes from the infamous LA Symphony crew have an album coming out. Uno Mas and Cookbook have some of their new stuff from While They Slept up over here.
Texas rock and roll band Knockout Kings have a new album called The Kid's Got Heart coming out May 30th via Dollhouse Recordings Inc., and a new tune called 'True Blue' can be heard over here. The band is also playing the Decapolis Stage at Cornerstone Festival four nights in a row. That's serious business, is what that is.
Blood & Ink Records have a slew of new records coming out in the near future; The Gentleman Homicide, Burden of a Day, With Blood Comes Cleansing and Since Remembered are all releasing new albums within the next four months or so. Pro-lif-ic.
A special edition of The Everglow, last year's breakout album from Mae that saw them playing Warped as well as touring with Yellowcard and others, is in stores now. The album features three bonus songs and a DVD with all the usual trappings. Awesome band.
Speaking of awesome bands, Underoath's long-awaited fifth studio album Define The Great Line is out June 20th; check out their purevolume page for a preview of the metallic fury to come. Adam D. produced this new record, so it'll be heavy.
And speaking of producers, someone who could have produced the new Underoath is Aaron Sprinkle, Tooth & Nail's in-house guy, and his new band Fair have their debut arriving shortly, entitled The Best Worst-Case Scenario. It'll be in our hands in a little over a month. purevolume.com/fair(I'm too lazy to do the HTML tagging).
Radio show tonight on CHRI here in Ottawa; expect a healthy mix of punk and metal and everything in between. If you wanna listen elsewhere, hit up CHRI.ca, and email me at mike@chri.ca with requests, flames, love, whatever. We're out.
A few notes.
If you're at all into hardcore and/or metal, or that perverse hybrid known as 'metalcore'(part metal, part hardcore - see? SEE?), check out Stick To Your Guns, one of the most brutal bands I've heard in a long while. Rumour has it they're doing a Canadian run of shows this summer; stay tuned. Hit up their myspace for songs and a big breakdown-fest of a video.
punkottawa, whose ad up there is the only banner we've ever hosted in our history, turns five this month, and the fifth anniversary bash goes down Monday, April 24th at Babylon, headlined by locals The Fully Down along with their current tourmates Bayside, A Wilhelm Scream and others. It's Bayside's tour, but the Down will no doubt headline in this, their hometown. C'mon out.
The stack of CDs on our desk to review is huge, and we have a brand-new Thrice feature coming down the pipe - we're clearly not going out on a limb with a specific timeline, but it's a-comin'.
I know, I know I know I know I know I KNOW I know I know.
Things are slow here sometimes, and we're being pressured(I see you, Pliggot) to update, and quite frankly, we miss updating, but work before pleasure and all that jazz.
We're coming. Don't sleep.
Some pieces of writing I've cooked up for 'zines and publications other than this here: inreview.net(scroll about halfway down the page til you see my name, Mike Postma, bolded), and this No Innocent Victim thing for cmusicweb.com.
Two interviews we'll have coming up in the next couple weeks or so: Floodgate Records founder and president Tim Taber - who also fronted The Prayer Chain back in the day - as well as Thrice lyricist/vocalist Dustin Kensrue. Thrice and about a billion other bands are here in Ottawa next Friday, April 14th; call 599-FANS out at Scotiabank Place for details and ducats.
A couple of signings of note: "supergroup" Birds of Prey(featuring Dave Witte of Burnt By The Sun and Municipal Waste, among others) have signed with Relapse Records; the full-length Weight of the Wound will be out in July. As well, Equal Vision Records has hooked up with Betrayed, who did their fourteen-song debut with Converge's Kurt Ballou. [scenepointblank]
I just spilled coffee EVERYWHERE on my desk. Paper, tape record, bank statements, pack of gum, CDs - EVERYTHING almost drowned. Just thought the visual would amuse you. Add in audio of me swearing viciously, and you have the complete picture.
Former Relapsers Mastodon are almost done Blood Mountain, their major-label debut(it'll be out on Warner). Guests? Oh, tons: two members of The Mars Volta, Scott Kelly of Neurosis and more. Some song titles include 'Hunters of the Sky', 'Bladecatcher', 'Hand of Stone' and the like. How metal is that?
Like The Lawrence Arms? Gonna go see them in May when they're in Ottawa opening up for Alkaline Trio? Then go listen to another acoustic solo song from TLA frontman Chris McCaughan, right over here.
Another band swinging through Ottawa soon is seminal emo band/former hardcore kids Brandtson(April 30th at Babylon with The Rocket Summer and Transition, and they have a new album coming out soon called Hello, Control. Three new songs have been put up on their purevolume page. Go listen. Down with the mainstream!!
I don't know why I put that last part in. Move along.
Hey kids. Kingston Falls, hailing from the great Hoosier State(that would be Indiana), have a brand-new album coming out next Tuesday, April 11th. It's called The Crescendo of Sirens, and two songs from said record are over here. Sounds a lot like Haste The Day, if that's your thing. It sure is mine!! Two thumbs WAY up!!
Thrice, Deftones and more are here in Ottawa a week from tomorrow night, April 14th, for the Taste of Chaos tour. Starts at five, you'll be in your warm beds by maybe midnight or one or two. C'mon out. Call 599-FANS for tickets.
The new Refused DVD, Refused Are F***ing Dead, will be released April 25th through Burning Heart/Epitaph Records. Guitarist Kristofer Sheen directed this, hailed to be a masterpiece documenting the be-all and end-all of one of the most-revered punk/hardcore bands of all time. Refused, to recap, broke up in 1998 shortly after The Shape Of Punk To Come, widely agreed to be the most important hardcore record, period. They coulda been a contenduh!! [noisetheory]
It has been forever since we last bestowed on you the latest in rock and rap and roll and alt and "Christian" and what have you - thanks for sticking around. #s all around.
...that's 'pounds', for those who didn't get it.
The Toronto Blue Jays kick off 2006 tonight at home in the Rogers Centre in Toronto; my brother Dan will be there, first-based side in the 100 level. Brown shirt. Scope him out!
Hillsong: United, the Australia-based troupe who've pretty much reinvented youth-worship music for Christian kids, are in Toronto Saturday night, April 8th. It's sold out, completely to the walls, but it leads into my segue: the band have a new album called United We Stand, in stores today. I just picked up my girlfriend's copy. She doesn't know that yet.
Comeback Kid and Pigeon John were both in Ottawa last week. PJ's new record drops in a month or so, and the new material he showcased opening for Blackalicious was the bomb nasty. CBK, for their part, haven't missed a beat with the departure of founding vocalist Scott Wade; guitarist Andrew Neufeld has shifted over, while Minnesota boy Jon Locke is filling in on guitar for now.
Prince has a new album out. It's called 3121. No one cares, least of all me.
More later. I swear it.