Jenny Berkel’s Here on a Wire was recently reviewed by Nereida Fernandes for Exclaim! Fernandes praises Berkel’s accomplished and engaging songwriting, adding that her distinct voice is “undeniably warm, earthy and inviting.”

“If this is what a mini-tour de force looks like for Jenny Berkel, we can only imagine what time, sweat and talent will bring out of her in the future.”

Read the full review here: http://exclaim.ca/Reviews/FolkAndCountry/jenny_berkel-here_on_wire

Thanks to Julijana Capone for reviewing the latest Long Distance Runners album, Tracks, on Uptown. Capone gave the album 3½ stars and claimed that it could “break the foursome out of the Maritimes.”

“Bathed in Kinks influences heard in the jangly beats and subtle twang throughout, especially on Sally Ann, LDR’s strongest attribute is its sunny harmonies”

Read the full review here: http://www.uptownmag.com/music/cd-reviews/Tracks-150842855.html

Apollo Ghosts was featured in the Vancouver Sun talking about the band’s growing popularity, the recording process and the shock of landing on the Polaris Prize long list. Singer/guitarist Adrian Teacher also discussed the band’s new album, Landmark, calling it “bright-sounding” but with a side to it that’s “darker, spookier, sadder and more depressing.” Read the full article here: http://www.vancouversun.com/Apollo+Ghosts+find+haunt/6587565/story.html

Alex Hudson recently profiled Apollo Ghosts for BeatRoute, discussing the band’s transitional past year and praising the new material from their album, Landmark. “Landmark is every bit as thrilling as the Apollo Ghosts’ past releases, and there’s no question that their choice to record the album themselves was a good one.” Read the full article here: http://www.beatroute.ca/view_article.php?sectionID=19&articleID=5415

We just announced the line-up for SappyFest 7: Everybody Knows This is Nowhere. Headliners include Fucked Up, Michael Hurley, Timber Timbre, The Music Tapes, and Cold Specks. Check out the full list here: http://ymlp.com/z2d65B

Thanks to Beach Sloth for the great review on Cousins’ The Palm at the End of the Mind. “Everything on ‘The Palm at the End of the Mind’ is immediately enjoyable. This isn’t a grower, this is instantly enjoyable. Multiple listens do nothing but confirm that fact.” Check out the full review here: http://beachsloth.blogspot.ca/2012/04/cousins-palm-at-end-of-mind-83.html

Aux TV named Dan Griffin’s cover of Wolf Parade’s “Yulia” their Track of the Week. Check out the feature here: http://www.aux.tv/2012/04/track-of-the-week-yulia-wolf-parade-cover-by-dan-griffin/. Dan’s touring throughout Ontario this May. Dates are as follows:

May 22 – Guelph, ON – eBar
May 23 – Hamilton, ON – Casbah
May 24 – London, ON – APK
May 26 – Kingston, ON – Mansion
May 29 – Waterloo, ON – Starlight

The good folks over at Exclaim.ca have arranged for you to be able to stream Apollo Ghosts’ amazing new album, Landmark. Check it out here: http://exclaim.ca/MusicVideo/ClickHear/apollo_ghosts-landmark_album_stream

From the outside looking in, you can’t help but wonder if Apollo Ghosts front man Adrian Teacher believes stagnancy is failure. In just over three years he’s delivered three stellar LPs, a slew of EPs and 7″s, collaborations and even a solo LP based on poetry from Karl Blau, all while holding down a full time job.

Remarkably, each of these recordings is distinct and isn’t connected by anything outside of inspiration. A quick listen to the band’s catalog offers the listener moments of DIY punk, indie rock and fragmented rough edge pop. More impressively, considering the considerable output, Adrian hasn’t recorded a bad note. Along with his friends and band mates Amanda Panda, Jay Oliver, and Jarrett K., Apollo Ghosts have quietly become one of Canada’s best bands.

The latest release, Landmark, is Apollo Ghosts most complete release to date and the most successful culmination of the band’s varied influences. Long time fans are rewarded with familiar jump off points (“Day of Glory” – a song that first made an appearance on the EP that accompanied Teacher’s short story book – is one of the LP highlights, “Violet Margaret” could have easily been written during the Hastings Sunrise sessions and sequences nicely into the Mount Benson worthy pace changer “So Much Better When You’re Gone”), but Landmark is not a rehash of sound, it’s a reinvention.

The band consciously left rough edges in tact, opting for grit and distortion instead of polish. The hooks are still there (“Newcastle” might be the most addictive song they’ve ever recorded, which admittedly, is like trying to pick a favorite goal from Messi or douchiest moment from Chad Kroeger), but the lo-fidelity and tight recording quarters gives the quick hitting songs a vitality that is new to the band’s recorded output. Those lucky enough to see the band live know that energy is always there on stage, and much like another Canadian band receiving the type of attention AG deserves, the new material aligns nicely with the daily grind instead of ideal conditions.

The band’s sonic adventure is fully explored in the LPs final three songs. The swirling conclusion to “I Followed the Rules and I Got Everything”, the chug of “Guitar Brother”, and emotional group vocals on “Will You Forget Me” wouldn’t have fit on any previous recording, but ultimately define this LP.

Hastings Sunrise and Mount Benson were personal affairs; Teacher offered up tales of youth, medical scares and being away from home but Landmark is a much fresher look into Teacher’s world. The songs (15!) are still about the search for home and growing up, but the most refreshing moments are when Adrian writes about what he and his friends are doing now and the joy of being a weekend band. In an era when you can’t go ten minutes without a musician complaining about having to work a job to pay the bills and asking for handouts, Teacher writes proudly of the rewards of being a full time employee and creating music on his downtime.

It’s incredibly hard for me to be objective when it comes to Apollo Ghosts. They are my favorite band in each and every way. Being a blogger allows me the freedom of hyperbole, but from a critical point of view the Vancouver four-piece earns that lofty distinction each and every day.

The band’s live show is one of the best, non Charles Bradley experiences on the planet and one I never tire of watching. Every release sounds fresh, exposes new influences and delivers on ever increasing expectations. Adrian’s lyrics are personal, powerful and encapsulate youth without ever drifting into rose-colored nostalgia. Landmark, for most bands would be just that. For Apollo Ghosts, it’s just another step in an unstoppable escalation towards greatness.

There’s a wonderful casualness to Baby Eagle’s music. On the former Constantines member’s new album, Bone Soldiers (You’ve Changed), he and his four-member Proud Mothers played the rollicking tunes loosely and recorded them quickly. But don’t think for a second that Steve Lambke is tossing them off.

“We did it fast, live in the studio, but beforehand I worked really hard on the lyrics and arranging the songs,” says the Guelph native from his home in Sackville, New Brunswick. “Ian [Kehoe] and I demoed almost all of the them, and I played them for a year or so.

“At the same time, when it comes down to playing and making music, I think spontaneity or looseness or that living quality – which includes mistakes sometimes – is kind of what I want to hear. That’s how I think rock music should sound.”

Lambke, who runs You’ve Changed Records with Daniel Romano, sings in a light, raspy wheeze largely free of distinct melodies and choruses. Often his rambling vocals trade off with swaths of distorted guitar riffs. The band, in fact, includes three guitarists – Lambke, Will Kidman and Spencer Burton – yet things stick much closer to Velvet Underground mellowness than to Lynyrd Skynyrd nuttiness.

“They’re all fucking great songwriters, so nobody’s looking to just fill up the space,” Lambke enthuses. “Three people with loud guitars not really playing very much – that’s an awesome sound. And then there are moments when everybody fucking goes for it. It’s a really fun way to play.” …read full story here