Can't Wait For September

September is easily my favorite month of the year. Not only does it consist of my birthday, it also signifies the beginning of the record industries busiest season. With September comes crap-loads of new releases that seek to hit everyones wish-list come Christmas time. Some of these new releases that I've particularly enjoyed as of late are;

M.I.A. - Kala
Everyones favorite accused terrorist follows up one of best pop records in years (2005's Arular) with another inspired collection of songs. Kala is much darker, subtle and tribal than her previous (which has resulted in some calling this a bit of a disappointment). Unlike Arular, which consisted of one awesome upbeat pop song after the next, the best moments on Kala come at its most softest. She has really slowed things down on this one and the results are quite satisfying.

Okkervil River - The Stage Names
More of a rock record than Black Sheep Boy but still a good companion to the bands last release. The last track which uses the traditional folk tune 'Sloop John B' is particularly enjoyable.

The Lonely Hunters - The Chaste are Chased
This Calgary-via-Winnipeg group has put out a charming and captivating debut record. It reeks of the bands interest in history (ie. 'Napoleon in Moscow'), English folk-tunes, and straight up pop. Keep an eye out for this band in the future.

Some unreleased stuff that I've heard already and can vouch for are;
Beirut - The Flying Club Cup (surprisingly better than last years Gulag record. I've been listening to this one on repeat for days, and still can't get enough of it)
The Weakerthans - The Reunion Tour (I can't the last time I got excited about the Weakerthans, but this new record sounds great)
Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala

I'll be playing all of these on my show today so make sure you tune in.

Summer Holidays

So I haven't had much access to a computer and as a result have not been able to do much writing lately so here's a quick catch up about what I've been up to lately.

I have three music articles on the go right now. I have a larger piece on Built to Spill coming up for UMFM's Airtimes magazine (which is one of the better music papers being published in the peg, so you should check it out if you haven't already). It's going to be on the same model as the time lines that are done in the Exclaim! magazines. I also have two smaller reviews on the go for Earshot. I'm reviewing the new Girl Authority cd (which stinks. Why did I agree to review such crap?), and a new ep from a new band called Oh the Pretty Things, which is pretty decent. So keep your eyes open for those.

On sports news, thumbs up for Araimus Ramirez, the Big 'Z', Ryan Theriot and the rest of the cubbies who continue to knock on the Brewers doorstep. Thumbs WAY up for Klowe who has been the most active and most aggressive manager in all of hockey. Notice how the hockey media still wants to talk about how nobody wants to play in E-ville yet Dick Tarnstrom, Matthieu Garon, Thomas Vanek, Sheldon Sourey, and Dustin Penner have all willingly signed contracts with the team? Thumbs WAY WAY down for Brian Burke who yet again proved himself to be nothing more than the most childish manager in all of professional sports. Why should Klowe have to wait for the BC Hockey Hall of Fame before making a move? Why should he have to call Burke before signing Penner? And why is 4 mil for Penner (who scored 29 goals last season) an overpayment while 4.5 mil for two years of Bertuzzi (who scored 11 points last season) completely reasonable?

Anyways, that's my monthly sports rant. I'm going camping for a while and won't have anything up here until September (when I want to do something on the new Animal Collective, which is great, not amazing by the way). So until next time.