So, when Bon Iver released the lead single from his mostly great new album (Bon Iver, Bon Iver) a short time ago, it raised eyebrows in this fair city because of its title: Calgary. What could it mean? Was this prince of falsetto trying to tell us something?

At the urging of a fellow music afficionado, I had settled on the conclusion that no he probably was not. As he pointed out, there is a Calgary in Scotland and there is also a Perth (another song on the album, which is full of tracks named after places).

Anyways, long story short Justin Vernon (a.k.a. Bon Iver, more or less) was on CBC's Q with Jian Ghomeshi yesterday and the great Moxy Fruvosian closed out the interview by asking the question that was on all our minds: what the dilly, JV? You can catch … Read More

So, what did I get up to on Thursday? Well, I managed to stick to my plan for the most part, although I didn't make it to the Legion for Dinosaur Feathers + Crocodiles because I was too busy being blown away by AU at the Bamboo. This was a tip from Peter, but we agreed that it was a big, impressive surprise for both of us. Main man Luke Wyland took to the stage with his drummer (possibly Dana Valatka, if Wikipedia is to be trusted) and wore a huge grin throughout as he enthusiastically shredded through an opening number.

Update: A helpful YouTube commenter with a conspicuously similar family name confirms that yes, it is indeed Dana Valatka. And what a beast he is! Incidentally, I ran into Dana later in the festival (at Man Man, I think... it's all a bit … Read More

Wuh-wuh-wuh word up my friends! I survived Wednesday, did you? As I was milling around outside the Central United Church, I overheard someone talking about how Sled Island has this uncanny ability to make Wednesdays feel like Fridays... how true, how true. Seems like the only real question is how bad is everyone's collective festival hangover going to be on Monday?

But now is not the time for dwelling on that. Now is the time... to make party! Here's what I have charted for tonight. There is no way it will actually work, but a boy can dream:

9:00 : Lee Ranaldo at Central United

Like Peter said, this is a no brainer. Much to my chagrin, I've never seen Sonic Youth live. I was at a Coachella once where they were playing, but their set was horrendously … Read More

Earlier this afternoon, I handed in my PhD dissertation and my examination period has officially begun. Fortunately, my defense isn't until July 13th, which means I am free as a bird for Sled Island this weekend!

So, the 2011 iteration of the fest is upon us. Peter, Mark, and I are going to be tweeting and blogging throughout. Find me at @pmjboyle; they should be kicking around there as well! In the mean time, let's take a very quick look at some of the bands on my must-see list:

Cheeseburger

Fri 12 AM : Legion upstairs
Sat 12 AM : Verns
Sun 6 PM : Republik

I've been kicking myself since I missed these guys last year. Their album is a blast and I am thinking their live show is going to be epic. Plus, it's at the Legion late on Friday night--how can that be a bad … Read More

Hello there music fans!

I thought I would dedicate this installment to highlighting some of the excellent live shows that are coming up over the next few months. January-February is always a bit of a slow season in Calgary, but things are starting to whir again as the snow starts to melt. 

Of course, the two biggest announcements in the past few days were that Sled Island 2011 is a go (YES!) and that the Pixies are coming through town to perform Doolittle in its entirety at the Jube (YES!) but here are a few outings that might whet your appetite for live music in the mean time:

1. Plants & Animals with Yukon Blonde
February 24, Republik

These bands are both excellent to see live. Plants & Animals draw from a pretty decent repertoire, although … Read More

A few weeks ago (OK, like... 2 months ago) I said I was going to start posting here more regularly. I come across lots of interesting bits and bites of music and pop culture lore on a weekly basis and I have this forum for sharing, so why not?

Anyways, lots of stuff came up between now and then, but I figured better late than never. So here goes: five things that are currently on my mind:

1. Portishead is prepping a new record

This is outstanding news. Last time Portishead announced they were releasing a new album, it was after a 10 year hiatus and it probably came as a bit of a surprise to fans and critics alike. How often does that happen and, more importantly, when it does, how often does the band actually pull it off? Well, 3 was a fantastic record that … Read More

Hey there, readership. It has been a WHILE!

At some point in the near future, I'm going to start putting together weekly posts to summarize the music and film-related scrapings that I scavenge from various and sundry sources during my day-to-day. This is part of my grand scheme to remain credible in your eyes.

In the mean time, here's a brief suggestion:

Stop complaining about the weather and go see Thee Oh Sees tonight!

I will be there and you should be there too! They are playing at the Republik. Doors open at 8:30 and it costs $16 plus whatever service charge the ticket people think you'll stomach (I am expecting to pay about $20). I suspect that there will be plenty of tickets at the door, seeing as it is cold as balls right now and it's a … Read More

Part 2 in my 2-part interview series for Folk Fest this year focuses on local songstress Samantha Savage Smith. Yesterday, I pondered why this promising young talent was such a revelation for me and my fellow folk music afficionados; when we spoke, I asked her the very same question and the answer is fairly straightforward: she's just getting started!

As she mentions in the interview, she has finished recording an album with local legend Lorrie Matheson, so keep an ear out for that over the next few months as it will be an absolute gem.

Just like the Timber Timbre interview, I am planning on transcribing this, but for now, raw audio!

Enjoy!

As promised, I hit the Folk Fest again yesterday to enjoy some amazing tunes and conduct a couple of interviews. The first was with Taylor Kirk of Timber Timbre, who dispelled myths about the origin of the band's name, explained why he wore a dark hood on stage during the band's solo set yesterday, and discussed the pros and cons of playing workshops.

I will transcribe this later so I can edit the Wikipedia page to correct the band name myth, but until then, here is the raw feed:

Enjoy!

Update: Here is the transcript of the interview

 … Read More

Since the Folk Fest folks were kind enough to let me into their festival this weekend, I figured I would offer a brief synopsis of the wonderful time I had on the island yesterday.

My day started off with the swell Insider Trading workshop, featuring Sunparlour Players, Timber Timbre, St. Vincent, and Library Voices. This was a great example of how workshops can bring out the best in people in very different ways. Sunparlour Players, who kicked things off with their most jam-worthy song. I have no idea what it was called, but it had about three chords total and it inspired play-alongs across the board. St. Vincent took a sharp left turn to play a gorgeous cover of Nico's cover of Jackson Browne's These Days  … Read More