Broken Social Scene - "Texico Bitches" (NEW VIDEO & Star Slinger Remix download)

Ever since the release of Broken Social Scene's latest album Forgiveness Rock Record, I've gone back and forth between "Texico Bitches" and "Sweetest Kill" for my favorite track off it. It's been a two horse race throughout, even the powerfully awesome "Meet Me in the Basement" video was unable to help the instrumental track crack my personal top two.

My love of these songs is why, when multiple sources on Twitter were announcing the official music video for one of these tracks, I quickly clicked over to watch the video during today's lunch break.

The aforementioned "Meet Me in the Basement" video was very politically charged - it was specifically targeted at (and released just prior to) the G8 Summit held in their hometown of Toronto. This should have led me to expect that the song that targeted Big Oil* would probably be Not Safe/Suitable For Work. However, I am too big of a BSS fan to have waited an extra four plus hours to see the video. Without a doubt I wasn't going to just sit and read countless mini tweet reviews as a tease. Thankfully I have a video enabled phone and was able to watch it covertly making sure nobody could be able to look over my shoulder.

*The album dropped right around the time of the Gulf Spill. An eerie coincidence that made most of us early listeners first gravitate to the ironically upbeat number.

Truth be told, the video isn't too shocking or controversial. It's not near Yeasayer's video for "Ambling Alp" for example. But I think it's safe to warn you if one of more of the following points can make you uncomfortable:

• Clown makeup
• Clown makeup on non clowns
• Wrestling
• Wrestling between two dudes
• Oil Wrestling (not the KY, the BP, kind)
  
• For lack of a better term, general grabass actions
  

Hopefully, I didn't spoil too much of it:


Broken Social Scene wasn't done with their "Texico Bitches" news of the day - they made available a free Star Slinger remix of the track today and also announced quite a few tour dates, but none of them in Chicago (yet). Considering half of the FRR album was recorded in Chicago, and the fact they made two Chicago stops in 2010, I think it's safe to assume 2010 won't be a BSSless year around these parts.

Broken Social Scene - Texico Bitches (Star Slinger Remix) by Arts & Crafts

Feist - "My Moon My Man" (FREE DOWNLOAD of a live version)

Run over to Amazon to download the a free live version of "My Moon My Man" by Feist!

This woman is best known for her iPod counting ability, but loved by yours truly for her involvement with the inspiration behind why I started this effort: Broken Social Scene.

The version you can download today, for free don't forget, is much more down tempo than the version from the album. An album, The Reminder, that I wish would have a follow up effort already!

I'm unable to mention any version of this song without embedding the music video that has gone through my mind every time I'm in an airport - or on a moving sidewalk for that matter... One of these days, I'm going to coordinate a flash mob to reenact it.

Wolf Parade - CONCERT TICKET GIVEAWAY

I've mentioned Wolf Parade before...
They are coming to Chicago (House of Blues) next week, and Lost in Concert is giving away tickets!
CLICK HERE FOR THE SEE THE HOW TO ENTER THE CONTEST.

Enjoy the video of Wolf Parade performing "This Heart's on Fire"

Broken Social Scene - "Meet Me in the Basement" (album: Forgiveness Rock Record

I just can't help myself.
Here I am posting another Broken Social Scene song.
But, in the spirit of my last posts, I'm embedding the Best Music Video nominee...

It is quite a powerful video, and the song itself is a nice throwback to BSS's non-lyrical roots:

Hollerado - "Americanarama" (album: Record in a Bag)

The CBC Radio 3 Bucky Award nominations were recently announced.

Here is where being an American loving Canada from afar costs me, for I have no clue what these awards are...

But, I'm listening to a bunch of music I didn't before - which makes it very worthwhile. The following track from an Ontario band that I just heard for the first time today. The below was nominated for Best Music Video.

Coincidentally, this band is coming to my favorite venue a week from Friday. They are opening for Free Energy, a band from Philly. You might wonder why I'd mention that non-Canadian fact here, but watch the video and you'll see why its now noteworthy.

Album on Amazon
Myspace.com/hollerado
Hollerado.com

Stars - "Fixed" (Live Version from Late Night)

Amazon has the latest album by Stars, The Five Ghosts, priced at just $3.99!

The aspect I'm glad the below clip shows: the band's insistence on throwing flowers to their fans. When I saw them live over two years ago I was wondering how much of an expense that must be over the course of a tour, for they must've tossed out three dozens.

It's becoming painfully clear to me that any woman is instantly made more attractive to me when holding a guitar and singing... Which reminds me of a show this Friday that I still haven't decided if I'm going to or not...

More music from Stars is available at the MySpace (www.myspace.com/stars) and official (www.youarestars.com) websites.

Japandroids - "Younger Us" (FREE DOWNLOAD!)

Go over to Amazon.com and download "Younger Us" by Vancouver's Japandroids for FREE!

For more information:
japandroids.com
www.myspace.com/japandroids
www.facebook.com/japandroids

Broken Social Scene - A better concert review from another

Earlier this month was the second time I've ever driven to another State for a concert. Broken Social Scene in Wisconsin is now on the list that used to just consist of Radiohead in Indiana (2008).

I'm yielding the floor to Dan Oberbruner's review... I'm no good at concert blogging. I'm there in the moment, not to detail it later for others.

However, there was one cool moment I've never seen before at a concert that I want to share:
At the end of the last song BSS played, all walked off the stage except Kevin Drew. It was sincerely awesome that Drew wasn't going to partake in the charade of If you cheer loud enough we'll come back out for an encore. He stood up there alone, publicly catching his breath and wasting no time as soon as his bandmates quickly joined him back on stage.

I've already heard rumors that Broken Social Scene will perform again at Lollapalooza next year after not being there this year. If that happens I think I will have no other choice but to finally attend that horde in Grant Park.

(That picture is from yours truly without zoom on my iPhone - I didn't think I would've gotten that close to the stage!)

Broken Social Scene - "Forced to Love" (MINKA KELLY SEXY VERSION!)

Just as I found an excuse to post about Minka Kelly on LeBlogski, I found a way to get her on this blog as well. Thank you, Esquire Magazine, for many things. For example, using a Broken Social Scene song as the background to this video:

Ladies and Canucks, Minka Kelly is your Esquire Magazine Sexiest Woman Alive!

Land of Talk - "Yuppy Flu" (Album: Some Are Lakes)

When I go to a show, I enjoy it.
It's incomprehensible to me how concert bloggers are able to make note of entire set lists.
All I know, for sure, is that they played nearly all the songs I wanted to hear when I saw them at Lincoln Hall last month: including "Yuppy Flu"

It's too bad this band is not popular enough to have had the chance to perform this song live for a television show because the album version (embedded below) doesn't capture how the drum thumps the song through and leaves the audience hanging on with every note Lizzy plays on the guitar.

In my last post I mentioned the underwhelming set of the opener, but they more than made up for it when they joined Land of Talk for almost half of their set. A band that's normally just three people can really give the audience a fresh take on the songs when they more than double the size of musicians. It's clear they've learned well from when they toured with Broken Social Scene (how I first came to know them).

One odd concert tidbit: Lizzy Powell, just like how Kevin Drew did when I first saw them, made special mention of how appreciative they were that concert goers choose to spend money on them during - to use their terms - "a really sucky economy." I can't wait to spend more money on them the next time they come into town.

John Legend & The Roots - "Wake Up" (ARCADE FIRE COVER)

Suuns - "Arena" (album: Zeroes QC)

I tend to download a lot of free music to lisen to at later times. About every two months I gather all my concert update emails from Jam and download all the free downloads for my "Freebies" playlist. If those songs are good, they make the cut into a more established, more listened to, playlist.

Such is the case with "Arena" by Suuns. However, this process also tends to make me forget what is on my iPod. When Suuns opened for Land of Talk I had told others that I had not heard of the band from Montreal (record label: Secretly Canadian). Then they played this song and I had that funny, "I've heard that before / I think it's in my iPod" feeling.

To be honest, the rest of Suuns' set was... not my cup of tea... However, all 4 Members stuck around and performed with the headliner - Land of Talk - for many songs. So although I may not be the biggest fan of Suuns, I appreciate their contribution to the collaborative spirit that makes me like this genre.

Apologies for not reviewing the Land of Talk show. I need to get to that highly wonderful show as soon as I can find a live clip on YouTube worthy of posting.

CONCERT NEWS: Broken Social Scene tickets available!

Would anybody in the Universe like to buy my two tickets to see Broken Social Scene in Milwaukee? I'll give you the Mountie Rock discount of $60 for the pair, which is below face value.

I want to sell these because, after I had purchased these tickets, their Riviera Theatre show the night before was announced. This is a band that I would love to see two times in two days, but not when one of those days involves about 3 hours in a car round trip.

By the way, I don't think Yo Gabba Gabba will be joining them either night.

LIGHTS - ARTIST TO WATCH

I fell in love today, again.
While scanning the upcoming shows at Lincoln Hall, I saw the following:

A half hour later, especially after seeing her YouTube channel and other things like her Facebook and wiki-page, I'm convinced LIGHTS is on the verge of a mammoth breakout. I'm not sure if it'll be in what's left of 2010, but if I were to make a 2011 artists to watch list, she'd be at the top. (She's made me start a list in my mind, starting with her)

I think she'll breakout because:

• She's unquestionably extremely attractive. Her above picture caught my eye and I wanted to learn more. Sadly, but truthfully, that's very key in our world.
• She's working very hard and more smartly with the mediums available to her. It's a must today for artists to become as skillful with social networks as they are with musical instruments. It is not a wonder that her recent acoustic tour was a near insta-sell out with the communication she employs.
• She's talented. In no way is she just a pretty face saying what others are writing for her.
• She's diverse. Don't be tricked by some of her more bubblegum poppy hits. Especially displayed with the acoustic EP and supporting tour, her range is only beginning to be experienced by others. I expect this continued growth will reach out to more people and lead to her packing larger and larger venues.
• She's dedicated. It's tough for me to make a snap judgment on this characteristic, seeing as I just found out about her today. But c'mon: who legally changes their name to Lights if they don't intend to be a force of performance for a lifetime?
• Did I mention she was attractive? With also just the right amount of youth, edge and sexiness?
• She likes Bjork and wants to work with her one day. (Okay, that's more a reason for just me to like her more, not so much a point that she'll breakout soon.)

Who's going to join me on the first Friday in November to see LIGHTS?

Just watch this clip she posted in the a month ago. She will convince you much better than I will.

The New Pornographers - "Crash Years" (album: Together)

It's pretty blasphemous that I've waited this long to post a song by The New Pornographers. By many people's standards, Mountie Rock might have started with them. No question that they inhibit the collaborative spirit of the sound. This band's makeup is very similar to my all time fave Broken Social Scene. For example, along with it's "supergroup" structure they also have their own female breakout star: BSS has Feist - TNP has it's own in Neko Case (Although Ms. Case is not Canadian in her own right, we just won't think about that for the purposes of this blog).

The latest album, Together, was released this past May. It's on sale at Amazon for just under $6. Also, and perhaps more importantly, they are coming to my neck of the woods shortly.

Tickets are still available for their Thursday October 14th show at the Riviera. As far as this genre goes, the $30+ ticket may seem steep, but this show also includes the stellar opening act of Tokyo Police Club, a band you will no doubt here more about right here very soon.

Admittedly, I really missed the boat with The New Pornographers. Thankfully there's still time to catch up and join their growing (in both numbers and in dedication) fan base.

Arcade Fire - "We Used To Wait" (Interactive Music Video)

Holy crap.
Have you heard about the new Arcade Fire "interactive music video?"

No?
Great. It hasn't been spoiled for you yet.

Go to this site: http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/
Now.
NOW!

(follow the instructions - close all your other windows, and if you use Google Chrome, all the better)

Wolf Parade - "Little Golden Age" (album: Expo 86)

A couple months ago one of my Mountie Rock "followers" pointed me in the direction of Wolf Parade (www.myspace.com/wolfparade). However, I was only able to recently acquire their latest album.

I hope you enjoy a small taste, or morsel, of Montreal music as you look ahead to Labour Day ("u" intended).

Land of Talk - "Quarry Hymns" (album: Cloak and Cipher)

At about the 4:30 mark of this video, a kid wanders along wearing a Montreal Canadians T-Shirt! (A nice hockey touch for this Mountie Rock track)

Land of Talk's second album, Cloak and Cipher, is now on sale (for under $6 on Amazon). In an even better bargain, they are coming back to Chicago on September 21 (for under $15 at Lincoln Hall).

I was eagerly anticipating this album. To the extent that I kept periodically hitting refresh on that Amazon page late last night - waiting for the MP3 download to be available for purchase. Thankfully I was able to get it downloaded, and transferred over to my iPod in time for the new workday.

After listening to this new album first thing this morning, and listening to their first effort (Some Are Lakes) for the countless time in the afternoon, I came home and bought tickets to see them next month.

I have no clue how popular this band is. Who knows if the smallish Lincoln Hall will sell out or not? They were here last in December - playing either the Bottom Lounge or Empty Bottle. I chose a different route that evening. It's not relavent to Mountie Rock what that other choice was, but needless to say I'll be gladly attempting to right a wrong on September 21 when I see them again.

One last question: Would anybody care to join me?

Dragonette - "Our Summer" (CONCERT REVIEW)

I was wrong.
In my last post, I mentioned that my first "Mountie Rock" concert review will be in October.
The statement was already in jeopardy once I saw the upcoming Land of Talk concert at Lincoln Hall (only $12!).

Blog foreshadowing: Land of Talk's new album comes out later this month, so expect a review and concert plea shortly.

Land of Talk is a band that I've mentioned here before, a band who's discovery was a pleasant surprise when they were scheduled as an opening act for someone else.

Such is the case with Dragonette. Someone who I learned, after the fact, is from Canada. Although her style is much more Dance (or Pop) than Rock - I still want to share a song that brought the house down last Friday night.

The house was Metro. The reason why I was there was to see Cut Copy: an act from a genre I call "Great Barrier Beats." For many reasons I won't be starting a blog based on that type of music.

Dragonette made a quick fan of me. She had boundless energy and got the crowd, that I will admit was willing to dance crazy to elevator music at that point, exactly where we wanted to go. Near the end of her set she sung the song "Our Summer" that sent the entire set into another strata of funness that was sustained until her fistpumping self left the stage. The time the song was performed (pushing Midnight Chicago time) and date (first weekend in August) couldn't have been better suited for the track.

Broken Social Scene - "Texico Bitches" (album: Forgiveness Rock Record)

Pretty soon I'm going to have my first concert review of this "Mountie Rock" blog.
It couldn't be more appropriate - for it's my favorite band of the faux-genre.
Actually, I'm considering seeing Broken Social Scene two consecutive nights.
Tickets already in hand for Milwaukee, I'm considering buying tickets for the previous night in Chicago.

Arcade Fire - "Ready to Start" (album: The Suburbs)

My favorite track of the new Arcade Fire album.
An album that you can hear in its entirety, for free, on NPR right now.

STEAMING NEWS! Arcade Fire - "The Suburbs" (album: The Suburbs)

UPDATE / REPOST: The entire new Arcade Fire album is streaming on NPR.
Also, I guess with that out - YouTube videos are back online.
You've probably already forgotten about the first time I tried to post about this band - so here it is again (with hopefully a YouTube video that's hasn't been pulled)

There's more to Canada than just Ontario.
It's time to mention a band from Montreal.

A friend I know from Canada had a really funny point about Quebec once. To paraphrase: "In America, there's a section of the county that acts really differently, and some are ashamed - like 'The South.' But in Canada, we all think Quebec is cool." Some Americans wouldn't mind if "The South" seceded from the Union, but I got the feeling (from this Canuck friend) that all of Canada would be heartbroken without their cool cousin of Quebec.

Arcade Fire is one of the more established bands in the Mountie Rock genre. They have a knack for making 'anthem-esque' songs that sound better the more people in the audience join in. Even in a car full of just 3 people, conversations are halted to join in their epic choruses. This was most famously the case with their song used for the Where the Wild Things Are movie trailer: "Wake Up"

According to their official website (ww.arcadefire.com) their 3rd album is due out in August, but is available to pre-order now. Preorder purchases get two singles for immediate download - including the below title track. I think it's safe to assume this gang will be hitting the road soon after August to support this new album, and it's even safer to assume you'll need to buy tickets the day they go on sale.

The Most Serene Republic - "Present of Future End" (album: Population)

Thank God for the iTunes Genius playlist generator.
This song has thankfully reentered my ear drums since I recently created a playlist spawning for one of my favorite all time Mountie Rock songs ("Pacific Theme" by Broken Social Scene).

I don't remember how I stumbled upon buying this album a few years ago. It was probably a random shot-in-the-dark after seeing that they were on the Arts & Crafts label and had a few good tracks on their MySpace page.

So here's a song by a group I've never seen live and just learned (as I was finding the links to embed for this post) have a "new album" that's more than a year old.

By the way, I'd apologize for the lack of posting - but who wants to hear about blog fatigue anyways? Not to mention, I'm within an inch of deleting this blog altogether.

Apostle of Hustle - "National Anthem of Nowhere" (album: National Anthem of Nowhere"

Apostle of Hustle is the project of Andrew Whiteman.
He is one of the core members (guitarist) of Broken Social Scene.

Technically, I've seen him live (as a part of BSS)... But I was supposed to see him at last year's Metronome Celebration. But, as the sob story goes, it started raining that afternoon and my friend backed out no longer wanting to go. Like all of these guys, the level of regret was pretty low seeing as how they all constantly tour.

• This album on Amazon, for just under $9
• Official Website (www.apostleofhustle.com)
  
• Official MySpace (www.myspace.com/apostleofhustle)
  

Crystal Castles - "Celestica" (album: II)

Pardon me for the lack of recent posting.
I've been busying living (rather, working).
Regardless, I've also been debating with which band I wanted to post next. Truth is, today's submission is quite a stretch to be considered for "Rock."

But nonetheless, Crystal Castles is in fact "indie" and they are most certainly Canadian (Ontario to be more precise). More importantly, this is my blog - and I want to share the below song.

Crystal Castles' self titled debut (notice their new album has a title of "II") was okay at best. It's a little too epileptic clubby for yours truly but I dug their song "Courtship Dating" and is still in heavy iPod rotation. Although, I have been known to overrate anything involving that word choice, since I personally have a stong affinity for that word.

Last night, while watching the Lost festivities, There was an incredibly short teaser commercial for Crystal Castles (It only aired twice, during the JKL Aloha to Lost special). The commerical worked, for me at least, and I ran over to both their official website (www.crystalcastles.com) and Myspace (www.myspace.com/crystalcastles). As soon as I saw that this duo was Canadian I was dead set on the decision on the topic of my first post in over a week.

The below track has been on near repeat ever since. (In my true fashion of trying to run songs into the ground). Bonus note, this duo will be in Chicago on August 13th playing the Congress Theater. It's very unlikely I will attend, I usually don't even bother asking if anybody music this dancey trippy poppy. This album is priced at just under $8 on Amazon.

Land of Talk - "It's Okay" (album: Some Are Lakes)

October 9, 2008 was a a huge night for me and my love affair with Mountie Rock. It was the first time I saw the band I mentioned in my last post, Broken Social Scene, for the first time live in concert.

The opening band that evening was Land of Talk. A band that actually had a song profiled not too shortly prior on the consistently wonderful NPR's All Songs Considered. This is yet another Canadian band with a woman up front. Lizzy Powell is a treasure.

It's an awesomely great experience to have a band put on a performance that makes you download their album the moment you get home. That's what happened with Land of Talk. Their album, Some are Lakes, was a really nice discovery for yours truly.

By the way, I'm really happy for the few people that have chosen to "follow" me thus far. Seriously, it's making this new effort real easy. So by now you know how I like to end these posts. The following are links to Land of Talk's official MySpace page (www.myspace.com/landoftalk) and website (www.landoftalk.com).

Broken Social Scene - "Sentimental X's" (album: Forgiveness Rock Record)

This won't be last time I post a song by Broken Social Scene. They are, by a very large margin, my favorite band in my Mountie Rock genre. I look forward to seeing them live in Milwaukee Sunday October 3, 2010. It's a long story why I'm not seeing them in Chicago in July.

Rumor has it, the below song was intially written to be an instrumental track. But I think even post rock lovers Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning couldn't resist the opportunity to have a song feature the Mountie Rock Female All-Star team of Emily Haines (of Metric), Amy Millan (of Stars) and Leslie Feist (of, well... Broken Social Scene before she got Apple'd and graduated to a solo career).

I really like how Broken Social Scene specifically mentioned everybody, and the part they played, for each track in the album booklet for Forgiveness Rock Record. For example, here is the dissection of "Sentimental X's:"

Emily Haines - vocals
Amy Millan - vocals
Leslie Feist - vocals
Justin Peroff - drums
Charles Spearin - bass, trumpet
Andrew Whiteman - guitar
Sam Goldberg - electric sitar, electric guitar
Ohad Benchetrit - electric guitar
Kevin Drew - bass synth
Brendan Canning - keys
Evan Cranley - trombone
Leon Kingstone - tenor saxophone
Bryden Baird - trumpet

You can download the first track of their new album for free trough their MySpace Page (www.myspace.com/brokensocialscene) or Official Webiste (www.brokensocialscene.ca).

Feist - "1234" (album: The Reminder)

The below video clip remains, in my humble opinion, the best version of Feist's most famous song. Of all the videos I've posted so far in this Mountie Rock blog effort - it's the one I hope you most take the time to watch.

Some people don't like it when small musical acts get exposure, blow up, avail themselves to a larger audience. I am not one of those people. Truth be told, The Reminder, was one of the best front to back albums I've heard in the last five years. It's so much more than the almost corny "1234" to include somber tracks like "So Sorry" and the song that will never make me walk through an airport the same way ever again - "My Moon My Man." The one thing I will say in detraction of Feist's popularity: it made me, for the first time ever, pay above face value to see a concert. I look forward to seeing her perform again and accept the face that it will probably be in a larger venue.

Leslie Feist earned her Mountie Rock credentials from her heavy involvement with, you guessed it, Broken Social Scene... And together with the last two women I've mentioned here (Amy Millan and Emily Haines) appears on Forgiveness Rock Record. In fact, all together on the same song, which I will feature in my next post.

Feist it up on Myspace (www.myspace.com/feist) and beyond (www.listentofeist.com).

Metric - "Sick Muse" (album: Fantasies)

One of the reasons why I like Mountie Rock is due in large part to the women of the genre. We may not have gender equality in this world yet, but I think it exists in the Independent Music coming out of Canada. Shortly after I my last post, in which I called out Amy Millan of Stars, I knew I would have to write about Emily Haines next. Emily Haines is the frontwoman for Metric.

This is a band I want to see live... someday. Sadly, I have a prior obligation on May 20. If you are looking for a show to see that Thursday night, the Vic Theatre amazingly still has tickets available. I'm relatively confident that this Torontinian (yes, I just made up that word) group will come back to Chicago sometime in the next year and a half. Like a true staple of Mountie Rock, this gang lives on the road: They are announced to play some upcoming Lilith Fair shows and will be opening for Muse later this year.

I'm going to keep this lady leaf string running with my next post as well. My next post will be the woman Steve Jobs helped explode into the mainstream.

This latest album is available over at Amazon for a very good price of $5.99, however bigger fans of this group than myself will insist you start with their earlier recordings. Go ahead and click over to either Metric's MySpace page (www.myspace.com/metricband) or official webiste (www.ilovemetric.com) for more.

Stars - "Fixed" (album: The Five Ghosts)

I have seen Stars live.
They are coming back to my neck of the woods in June, but I waited too long and didn't buy myself a ticket before the show sold out. (Kind of upsetting given the fact I told a friend in Nashville about the Chicago show and she bought her ticket well ahead of me - maybe I should have taken my own advice.) Nonetheless, these guys are Mountie Rock certified - the band formed in Toronto and are intermingled with the band that made me create the "Mountie Rock" genre label: Broken Social Scene.

What made me hesitate on buying the concert ticket? Well, the band announced that their new tour would be a front to back playing of their upcoming album: The Five Ghosts. The two or three song encore would be pre-voted on by local fans. This new album drops June 22. The concert I wanted to see is June 9. If you have Stars in your top 5 bands (like my Nashville friend), it's an easy decision. Yours truly needed to hear more of the album.

The only song I've heard so far off the new album is "Fixed." It's probably important to mention that my Nashville friend has not seen them live - which further established her desire to see the upcoming show stronger than mine.

More music from them is available at the MySpace (www.myspace.com/stars) and official (www.youarestars.com) websites. Spoiler alert: this won't be the last time you see a Stars song posted here on Mountie Rock... I'm looking in your direction lead female vocal Amy Millan!

Caribu - "Odessa" (album: Swim)

Friends and I were playing video games last night while listening to NPR's All Songs Considered Podcast. To be exact - we were listening to this episode, which featured the song "Odessa" by Caribu.

Just moments earlier, one of my friends was attempting to convince me that I needed to start a "Mountie Rock" blog. I was putting up medium opposition. It was not the first time this particular friend had made the suggestion. But minutes later I heard the below, YouTube official music video embedded, song.

The timing was perfect. Not to mention these guys have a near perfect band name for my "Mountie Rock" genre. The man behind this music is Daniel Snaith, who's previous music effort was called Manitoba (Canadian, eh?). You can hear more of their music on their MySpace page (www.myspace.com/cariboumanitoba) or their official website (www.caribou.fm).

"Odessa" is the first track off the album Swim. (Available on Amazon mp3 download for $6.99)

Welcome to MountieRock.Blogspot.com

Do you want to know more about Canadian Independent Rock Music?
A genre I lovingly call "Mountie Rock."
Allow me to make a few suggestions.
Follow the musical path I am about to lay out, if you so choose.

If you are a man, I suggest you start listening to this album first:
"You Forgot It In People" by Broken Social Scene"


If you are a lady, I suggest you start here instead:
"The Reminder" by Feist


After sampling these, ask yourself if you like the faster paced beats-
-or the slower paced grooves.

If you're a dude, and want to move stop here next:
"Folkloric Feel" by Apostle of Hustle


If you've got matching pairs of X chromosomes, and you don't stop 'til you get enough:
"Some Are Lakes" by Land of Talk


Now on the flip side, if you're a fella' and want to lay back with the brim o'your cap over your eyes:
"Population" by The Most Serene Republic


Similarly, if you are the fairer sex looking for introspection in music:
"In Our Bedroom After The War" by Stars


At this time let me disclose that I enjoy all above mentioned music.
By some accounts, there may not be much of a difference in the above voyages.
And, I surely did not come to all these acts in such a logical manner.
I may be depriving you of the fun of traversing the Northern Ally's landscape looking for cool note imports.

If you're still with me, and have enticed your Canadian appetite (not talking about venison here), it's time to take a seriously close look at Broken Social Scene.

Listen to the recently released "Forgiveness Rock Record" by Broken Social Scene:


Feel free to play this performance in the background when I give a brief history of Broken Social Scene:


Broken Social Scene, at it's core, is Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning.

Kevin Drew:


Brendan Canning:


When they tour, which is often, they have somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 to 11 musicians:


The whole group was bascially a "side project." It is comprised of solo acts who are either between tours/albums or quite possibly bored/broke. All the above mentioned bands have shared a stage with Broken Social Scene. The "side project" became the Main Attraction.

However, although I believe the group is more than the sum of their interchanging parts - it does have one large glowing success story in Leslie Feist. Feist is the breakout star and no longer tours as a part of Broken Social Scene (however, you can't take her voice off some of my favorite B.S.S. tracks).

Leading me to the next step in this path to Mountie Rock fandom. The two "Broken Social Scene Presents:" albums:

Kevin Drew's "Spirit If..."


Brendan Canning's "Something For All of Us"


These two efforts from the Broken Social Scene machine are a reversing of the tide. These two founding mounties invested all of themselves into B.S.S... They have no other vessel to spin off their own solo efforts. Some of the more, for lack of a better term, "Fundamentalist" lovers of Independent Canadian Music see these efforts as an inferior attempt to capitalize on the successful bandwagon of B.S.S.

I strongly disagree. Not only do I enjoy both of these albums, but Drew and Canning deserve to have their own name on the marquee after helping along such a long line of acts for us to enjoy.

To listen to this much music is asking too much. I have no delusions of grandeur that someone will read this, dive in head first and end up calling me in a few months asking if I'm going to see New Buffalo in concert.

Basically, I kinda fell into this deep, deep well of sonic talent.
For me, it started in the most random of places.


A NetFlix rental of Half Nelson, in which I heard a song in the background of this scene:

That song is "Shampoo Suicide" by Broken Social Scene... It remains my favorite song in the "Mountie Rock" genre.