Threat Shark Summer – Playlist PAYDAY

Technically this is playlist #29, but considering the circumstance, I had to amp things up a bit. Hence we have Playlist PAYDAY. Boom.

First off, huge thanks to Mr. Kergs for covering for me last week. I was wrapping up my last week in Toronto and between packing things up and tying up loose ends, I was doing my best to see a few sites last minute. This marks the third new location that I have published a Threat Shark Summer playlist from. Previously, I had fired things up from New College on the U of T campus. A quick move down the street brought me to Whitney Hall on U of T campus. Right now, I’m pitstopping in Calgary at my parents’ place before heading on to Castlegar for a wedding and finally Kamloops for the start of (what will hopefully be) my last year of school.

For this week, Brendan and I decided we wanted to wrap things up with a recap of our favourite tunes of the summer.

For you, I have 48 tracks compiled from my previous playlists as well as two brand-spanking new tunes that have yet to appear this summer. Hope you enjoy!

Musicschmuzick

1. Make A New Dance Up by Hey Ocean! – May 22
2. Lose It by Austra – May 22
3. My 5 by Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party – May 22
4. Out on the Shield by Said the Whale – May 22
5. Darling, Darling, Darling by Corey Isenor – May 29
6. Grab Me By the Lapel by The North Lakes – May 29
7. How Darwinian by Dan Mangan – May 29
8. No Common Ground by Gabrielle Papillon – May 29
9. The Sheriff by The Strumbellas – June 5
10. Hondo by Beta Frontiers ft. Becky Ninkovic – June 5
11. Ciao Monday by Emm Gryner – June 5
12. If I Get Old by Elliott Brood – June 5
13. In Came the Flood by Wintersleep – June 12
14. Bloodlines by Arkells – June 12
15. Echoists by Young Liars – June 12
16. Oceans by Topanga – June 12
17. Fisticuffs & Affidavits by Parlovr – June 19
18. Come On Out by The Elwins – June 19
19. Hallways by Islands – June 19
20. Americanarama by Hollerado – June 19
21. Pool Hoppin’ by Octoberman – June 26
22. Two Feet Stand Up by Cookie Duster – June 26
23. Ropes That Way by Dirty Ghosts – June 26
24. One Shot by Bend Sinister – June 26
25. Last Parade by Matthew Good – July 10
26. Who Do We Care For? by Sebastien Granger and the Mountains – July 10
27. What Are You Waiting For? by Hexes and Ohs – July 10
28. Arms Tonight by Mother Mother – July 10
29. Chameleon/Comedian by Kathleen Edwards – July 17
30. Queen of Hearts by F*cked Up – July 17
31. Vowels = Space and Time by Grimes – July 17
32. Hoshi Neko by Yamantaka // Sonic Titan – July 17
33. Chit Chat by Hannah Georgas – July 24
34. All My Friends by Lindi Ortega – July 24
35. Life on Earth by Dala – July 24
36. Quelque Part by Caracol – July 24
37. Florentine by Cinderpop – July 31
38. Edmonton By The Rural Alberta Advantage – July 31
39. I Don’t Know by The Sheepdogs – July 31
40. Scar That Never Heals by Jeremy Fisher – July 31
41. I’m Just Me by Diamond Rings – August 7
42. What Do You Wanna Do? by Louise Burns – August 7
43. When I Write My Master’s Thesis by John K. Samson – August 7
44. Favourite Kisses by Henri Faberge and the Adorables – August 7
45. Ontario by Will Currie and the Country French – August 14
46. Hallelujah Halifax! by Audio/Rocketry – August 14
47. West Simcoe County by Dinner Belles – August 14
48. I Drove the Coquihalla by Chixdiggit! – August 14
49. Waikiki by Belle Plaine – August 28
50. The Discocalypse by Tupper Ware Remix Party – August 28

Kergin will hit you with another phatty playlist on Thursday. After that, we hope to be hearing you listening to us on the airwaves back in Kamloops on X 92.5FM!

Cheers to the few remaining days of summer! Make the most of ’em!

-T

Threat Shark Summer – Playlist #19

I love getting awesome numbers. 19 is great for a number of reasons, primarily because it was worn by both Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman.

I have hockey on the brain.

We’re almost at 20 playlists and I thought it would be good to give you a taste of my taste in music. Up to this point, my selections have been largely influenced by various resources and areas within the Canadian indie scene. As happens naturally when you immerse yourself in music the way I do, you eventually get attached to some of the new things that make their way through your airwaves. This time around, I’m going to give you a listen of some of my favorite Canadian indie acts featuring female vocals.

When I took to writing this summer blog with Kergin, I was learning (albeit just earlier than you) about a lot of the bands that I was subsequently informing you about. Now some of them have made it into a regular rotation of my own.

It’s nice when that sort of thing happens.

MUSIC IS NICE TOO!

1. The Choke by AUSTRA – this act is quickly becoming one of my favorite Canadian indie groups. Upon initially discovering them when they were scheduled to play a show in Kamloops earlier this year, I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt. I found them to be somewhat airy and a echoey; a little bit too out there for my liking. But as I listened more and more to their work, I fell more and more in love. Disappointingly, AUSTRA was stranded on their bus in the middle of the Coquihalla Highway on the night they were supposed to play Kamloops, and so I never got the privilege of seeing them. One day.
2. Change by Hey Ocean! – I would say it probably happened in the past six months or so, but I have recently discovered this inexplicable fascination with female vocalists. If I think way back, I’m pretty sure it started around the time I broke up with my girlfriend. Perhaps the lack of a consistent female presence in my life pushed me to fill the void with the sound of a beautiful female voice? Only god knows. Either way, Hey Ocean! is one of my new favorites. Like Mother Mother? Then check out Hey Ocean! Change is a recent addition to their CBC Music library, only having 33 plays as I write this.
3. Revenge by Emm Gryner – Chances are you have never heard of Emm Gryner. And that is a real shame because she has released a whopping 13 albums! Recording since the early 1990s, Gryner calls St. Mary’s, Ont., home and runs her own record label, Dead Daisy Records, which is she also signed on to.
4. Quelque Part by Caracol – I first discovered Caracol when her record arrived at my student newspaper office earlier this year. I decided to give it a listen and pen a review for the paper. Why not? I’m glad I did. Caracol is pretty fantastic. In a somewhat unrelated note, I was published for the first time in French this week. Interestingly enough, I am now published in more languages than I speak, which I think is a pretty cool accomplishment. It’s too bad I’m not much of a worldly citizen and only speak English though… Anyways, Caracol is French and I thought that fit nicely for many reason.
5. Towers by Amy Millan – Millan actually reminds me a lot of Caracol. A folky blues sound that soothes the ears and leaves the listener at peace. Totally chill.
6. Run by Kathleen Edwards – featured on my last edition of Threat Shark due to her nomination for the Polaris Music Award, I feel like nothing else needs to be said about Kathleen Edwards. She is just all-around amazing.
7. Enemies by Hannah Georgas – here is a new artist that I have yet to feature on Threat Shark. Hannah Georgas is from Toronto, but based out of Vancouver. Best of both worlds, I guess? She is a Juno Award nominee and this song, in particular, really hits home with me. Don’t worry audience, you aren’t my enemy. Someone else is. Well, even that is a stretch because I don’t like to keep “enemies” so to speak.
8. All My Friends by Lindi Ortega – a great blend of poppy alternative country, Lindsi Ortega hails from Toronto. She claims to be a cowgirl, not something typical of most Toronto girls, but being from Calgary, I guess I can give her a break. It certainly doesn’t hurt that she has a phenomenal voice.
9. Open Book by Steph Macpherson – this Victoria native found the second thing that leaves me helpless – an awesome piano track. Brendan Kergin, here is a little Victoria folk singer-songwriter for ya!
10. Life on Earth by Dala – winners of the 2010 Canadian Folk Music Award for Vocal Group of the Year, Dala has also been nominated for a Juno Award. Toronto is home to the female duo that names The Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Bob Dylan among their greatest influences.

Kergin will be back with our DOUBLE DECADE post on Thursday! I know that doesn’t make sense and is entirely inaccurate, but I like it.

-T

Threat Shark Summer – Playlist #17

Little known fact and totally unrelated to Threat Shark – the sweater #17 was the most frequently donned number in the NHL this past season. Don’t ask me why I know this. I chalk it up to the fact I work at a hockey magazine.

Earlier today, the 2012 Polaris Music Prize  shortlist was announced.

For those of you who don’t know, the Polaris Music Prize is meant to recognize and promote albums on the basis of artistic integrity, with no regard for genre, professional affiliation, or sales figures. A group of music journalists, broadcasters and bloggers comprise the panel of judges who vote on this list.

We here at Threat Shark wouldn’t be able to safely call ourselves Canadian indie music enthusiasts if we ignored this announcement. In honour of today’s list, this edition of Threat Shark Summer will feature all Polaris Muisc Prize nominees… except for one that I chose to leave out.

Drake.

You all already know Drake. He would probably say he knows you too. But he would be lying through his teeth.

I replaced Drake with an artist that I think should have been nominated for a Polaris.

POLARIS! -http://music.cbc.ca/#/profile/manovrboard/playlist/Threat-Shark-Summer—July-17-2012

1. Sharks by Cadence Weapon – Edmonton, Alta. (Upper Class Recordings)
2. Heavy Hands by Cold Specks – Etobicoke, Ont. (Arts & Crafts)
3. Chameleon/Comedian by Kathleen Edwards – Ottawa, Ont. (MapleMusic Recordings)
4. Cicadas and Gulls by Feist – Toronto, Ont. (Arts & Crafts)
5. Queen of Hearts by Fucked Up – Toronto, Ont. (Matador Records)
6. Vowels = Space and Time by Grimes – Montreal, Que. (Arbutus Recordings)
7. Damage by Handsome Furs – Montreal, Que. (Sub Pop Records)
8. Younger Us by Japandroids – Vancouver, B.C. (Polyvinyl)
9. Hoshi Neko by Yamantaka // Sonic Titan – Toronto, Ont./ Montreal, Que. (Yamantaka // Sonic Titan Research Laboratories)
10. A Link Between Urban Ties and Rural Relations by audio/rocketry – Edmonton, Alta. (Independent)*

* = NOT nominated for Polaris Music Prize

I apologize for the current lack of links to artist pages. Currently where I sit, I am working within limited means. I will add artist pages and full links ASAP.

Hopefully you enjoy this list comprised of fantastic Canadian musicians as much as I did.

Kergin will rock your socks on Thursday.

Peace, fleece and chicken grease.

-T

Threat Shark Summer – Playlist #14

So, the first couple of days in Fort McMurray have gone by and I’m all set up, kinda. But enough of my personal life blathering, this ain’t that kind of blog today.

I’m sorry I used ain’t, that’s not normally my style.

This week I have a theme again, of a sort. The Polaris Prize is widely considered one of the top music awards in Canada, especially for the independent and critically acclaimed artists across the country. The prize is similar to the Mercury out of Britain, with a huge hipster caché, but ismore based on Ireland’s Choice Music Prize.

The prize started in 2006 and annually awarded $20,000 (Canadian dollars, folks) until it bounced up to $30,000 last year. The money comes from a variety of industry organizations and companies and corporations.

I’ve discussed it in the past, and featured winners on the radio show or blog before, mostly Final Fantasy/Owen Pallett. Other past winners were:

2007 – Patrick Watson for Close to Paradise
2008 – Caribou for Andorra
2009 – Fucked Up for The Chemistry for Common People
2010 – Kwarka for Le Chemins de verre
2011 – Arcade Fire for The Suburbs

The prize works through three stages with jurors whittling down the competition. Recently (June 14th) the long list was announced. From that a short list is announced later this summer. The final announcement comes on a gala night with performances from those on the short list.

So from that long list I decided to highlight a few artists who I’ve enjoyed or found interesting. A quick note, not all the songs on this list are from albums nominated for the Polaris. Sometimes I just preffered their earlier work, so that’s what you get.

FOLLOW THIS NORTH STAR TO THE MUSIC!

1. Yukon Blonde  – Choices from the album Fire//Water EP
   Ok, so this is one of those songs not from the Polaris nominated album, but rather from the also recent ep they released, and we played some of it on Threat Shark. I just like it better, the mellow, Bon Iver-esque sound mixed with some great lyrics. Really, the vocals are the perfect finishing touch for me. Most of there other stuff is much like their fellow Kellownians, Bend Sinister, but the mellow works for this guy.
2. Joel Plaskett – Lightning Bolt from the album Scrappy Happiness
   This is on the Polaris nominated album, which came together in a really interesting way. While I wont go into all the details, the band recorded (Joel Plaskett Emergency) a song each week for 10 weeks and released that song later that week or day to the CBC and on iTunes. Lightening Bolt was the last track released but is the opening track on Scrappy Happiness (which is a lyric in Lightening Bolt, meta!). I’m a big fan of the indie/bluesy sound to this one, and as always I’m a fan of a song with a slow burn in it, starting sparsely and building to something more in the end. Joel Plaskett has been around for awhile and a bit, hailing from Nova Scotia’s scene.
3. Kathleen Edwards – Chameleon/Comedian from the album Voyageur
   A woman who’s been around the biz a bit as well, she’s bound to get some awards soon. I’m not sure what it is about this song, though, again, I’m citing vocals as something I’m a fan of, and the jangly guitar. Ottawa should be proud of this singer/songwriter.
4. The Barr Brothers – Old Mythologies from the album The Barr Brothers
   I wasn’t sure who all I was going to put on this list, so I was going through the long list, listening to the tracks and bands. Many I hadn’t heard before, and these guys are probably my favourite find of all. Just great for a rainy day, droplets splashing against a window. It reminds me slightly of Great Big Sea’s lighter work, but with better harmonies (and two of the guys are actually brothers). While these Montrealers are relatively new, they’ve already attracted a lot of attention.
5. Great Lake Swimmers – Easy Come Easy Go from the album New Wild Everywhere
   An indie outfit I’ve been hearing about for a few years now, I’ve never really gotten into them. It’s pretty easy listening stuff, but nothing that has really stood out to me. They were even nommed for the 2009 Polaris and have received recognition from the Junos as well. The folksy, upbeat material is solid though, so if that’s what you’re into, go for it guys. I do have to say, I do appreciate a band with a piano and violin in there, especially in the rootsy way they got goin’ on.
6. Japandroids – The House That Heaven Built from the album Celebration Rock
   Possibly the biggest buzz band recently, it’s no great surprise this Vancouver duo is on the long list. The punky up beat rock they got goin on has got a great gritty edge to it and seems really positive. It’s the music I’d suggest to any small town kid arriving in a big city, getting off the bus at night. You can take on the city kid, just jam this track on, look up at those glass, steel and concrete behemoths and put some rubber on those sidewalks.
7. Handsome Furs – What About Us from the album Sound Kapital
   Another duo, this time from Montreal. However, after releasing this album they’ve decided to break up. Boo. The electro-pop just couldn’t sustain them I guess. Definitely the urban-artsy music you’d expect from pretentious big city hipsters, it’s here for a reason folks.
8. Fucked Up – The Other Shoe from the album David Comes to Life
   Past winners often make strong competitors. While this Toronto based band is often classified as hardcore punk, there is a lot more going on here. The screaming of Damian Abraham is visceral and violent, but the band provides a different style then most other hardcore acts. The combination has created one of the most critically acclaimed groups in Canada. They’re also a super interesting group, so if you enjoy this music at all, go read more about them. Even if you don’t like the music at first, learn a bot about them before making a final judgement.
9. YAMANTAKA // SONIC TITAN – Hoshi Neko from the album YT//ST
   Another interesting band, these guys are relatively new, but I think they’ve found an interesting direction with metal, Japanese culture and big epic songs. Moving from Montreal to Toronto, they’re still maybe finding their niche, and for this unique band I hope they find it. There is definitely room for new sounds in Canada.
10. A Tribe Called Red – Electric Pow Wow Drum
    And for the final track, I’m calling on perhaps the most unique band I’ve heard lately. Mixing the old and the new, these guys are trying to take their traditional first nation songs and create a music integrating that into an urban, 21st century sound. A trio of DJs, the music is a great combination of the two genres which can be considered ground-breaking in some ways. Personally, I haven’t heard much traditional North American First Nations music entering pop culture, so this may be the first step of a new trend.

Ok folks, thats it for me for now. Hopefully next week I’ll be better set up and have this ready for you a little earlier in the day. Also, if your looking for other new music, definitely check out the full list of Polaris nominated bands and past work that was noticed by the award.

 Ta,

Kergin

Threat Shark Summer – Playlist #1

Well folks, it has been quite some time since Brendan or myself took the time to update this good ol’ blog.

But, I am happy to inform you that we are back…with a vengeance.

It is the summer and Mr. Kergin and myself are both conveniently located outside of the Kamloops area. I am in Toronto and Brendan is back in the glorious Victoria. Unfortunately, this means no Threat Shark over the airwaves of 92.5FM in Kamloops during the summer of 2012.

Considering how much Kergin and I love music, but more importantly, considering how much we love YOU, we decided we would throw together twice-weekly playlists featuring 10 great Canadian indie tracks for you to check out.

From here on, every Tuesday and every Thursday we will feature a new playlist. I will take care of things on Tuesdays, while Mr. Kergin will handle the duties on Thursdays.

Each playlist will be available for your listening pleasures online at CBCmusic.ca.

We hope that this gives you the opportunity to hear some songs you haven’t heard, encounter some bands you haven’t encountered and enjoy the treasures that are hidden within the Canadian music scene.

Without further ado, I give you Playlist #1. <— CLICK ME for MUSIC!

1. Are You Gonna Waste My Time by Zeus – Hailing from Toronto, Ont., Zeus is a four-piece indie rock band whose latest album, Busting Visions, was hot on the CFBX airwaves earlier this spring.
2. When I Write My Master’s Thesis by John K. Samson – Samson, lead singer of The Weakerthans, takes his talents solo with his Jan., 2012 release, Provincial.
3. Child of the Valley by The Wooden Sky – Another Toronto indie band, The Wooden Sky’s newest album Every Child A Daughter, Every Moon A Sun is available for streaming on CBC Music.
4. Obedear by Purity Ring – Self-categorized as a hybrid of space pop and R&B, Purity Ring’s unique electronic sound is intriguing. Their upcoming album, Shrines, is set for release in July 2012.
5. Lose It by AUSTRA – The second so-called space pop band to appear on today’s list, AUSTRA calls Toronto home. Lose It is featured on their May 2011 release, Feel It Break.
6. Make A New Dance Up by Hey Ocean! – Now we head to the west coast for some indie pop courtesy of Hey Ocean! The Vancouver trio has taken the Canadian indie scene by storm, quickly making a name of themself.
7. Surprising Me by Will Currie and the Country French – Coming from Waterloo, Ont, Will Currie and the Country French are winners of a CBC Radio 3 Award for Best Collaboration thanks to the song Push Pins, which they recorded with Canadian rock heroes Sloan.
8. Out on the Shield by Said the Whale – Back to the west coast we go. Said the Whale is a Juno Award-winning band and this catchy track can be found on the 2009 album Islands Disappear.
9. Sidecar by Kathleen Edwards – This pop singer song-writer from Ottawa has a habit of charming me with her smooth sound. Her newest album Voyageur has been getting positive reviews and Sidecar, featured on the album, gets two thumbs up from me.
10. My 5 by Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party – When I saw this band roll up on my CBC Music player, my first thought was, “well, this should be interesting.” I was pleasantly surprised. Fun and upbeat, this Vancouver space pop group has upcoming shows in Vancouver on June 7 and Toronto on June 13.

Hopefully you enjoyed my playlist for May 22, 2012. Come back on Thursday for 10 more great tunes courtesy of Brendan! – Taylor Rocca