Thursday 01 January 2009
National anthems
(photo: David Waldman)
Well friends, that was the year that was. 22008 certainly marched to the beat of its own drum. We started the year basking under the glow if In Rainbows, then shook hands with …Death and All His Friends, played endlessly with a buzz in our ears, went back to Forth, caught a glimpse of The Seldom Seen Kid, and answered the proverbial question, “Do You Like Rock Music?“.
Coming in just under the wire at the close of 2008 is the first full-length release from Toronto’s Bruce Peninsula, A Mountain is a Mouth. The band has been making tsunami-sized waves with a little 7″ single, so one can only imagine what will come on the heels of this album through the early half of 2009. The physical release is still just over a month away (February 3 to be exact), but most fine digital retailers have a virtual copy for your listening pleasure right now.
I have mentioned before (and I’ll say it now again) that I am sensing a real paradigm shift in the Canadian music scene from the esoteric, arty flavour of Arcade Fire to a more rustic, gritty, bluesy sound like Bruce Peninsula’s. It’s kind of hard for me to put into words, but when listening to Bruce Peninsula, Ohbijou and The Rural Alberta Advantage (to name a few) it’s almost as if I can smell the earth in their melodies, feel soft, cushion-like moss in the percussion, feel the warm breeze in their rousing choruses, as if the country–the very land of Canada itself–were singing and playing the music. Earth sings, indeed.
MP3: Bruce Peninsula “Steamroller”
Myspace: Bruce Peninsula
Buy: Bruce Peninsula A Mountain is a Mouth
Speaking of great Canadian bands with an earthly vibe, The Acorn have a special treat for all those who head over to their offial site. Seems they were busy on Christmas Eve writing and recording 12 to 30 second long pearls of pop wisdom, and have now made them available to any and all who delight in their fancy.
Happy New Year, everyone! Here’s to a great 2009!
This entry was posted on Thursday, January 1st, 2009 at 10:00 am and is filed under MP3. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
