The Trews Head North With The American Badass

Hard-rocking Canadians The Trews have just kicked off a foot-stomping tour of Canada with fellow rocker (and Bourbon conniesseuer) Kid Rock.

The band recently released their fourth full-length album, Hope & Ruin on Bumstead Records, and now will be melting faces throughout the Great White North.

The group is rapidly drawing attention for their subtle balance between catchy pop and gruff hard rock. Besides a Canadian conquest, the group will also be tearing up (sonically) New York, playing a batch of shows near the end of June.

Listen to their song “One by One” right here…

and to check out the Trews live, head North (or NE) right about…

June 22 – Syracuse, NY – Wescott Theatre

June 23 – Rochester, NY – Water Street Music Hall

June 24 – Watertown, NY – Watertown Fairgrounds w/ The Tragically Hip

June 25 – Bobcaygeon, ON – Bobcaygeon w/The Tragically Hip and Sam Roberts

June 28 – New York, NY – Mercury Lounge

July 1 – Darthmouth, ND – Alderney Landing

July 6 – Buffalo, NY – Art Park

July 8 – Sarnia, ON – Bayfest @ Centennial Park

Learn Why Everyone Loves Sloan

Sloan’s 10^th album in 20 years The Double Cross came out on May 10th via Yep Roc Records but you still need some convincing before you get it? Well, everyday for 10 days, Sloan is releasing videos where their friends and admirers talk about all they love about Sloan: their favorite Sloan song, album, lyric and anything else they associate with the band.

Appearing in these videos are famous Canadians from all backgrounds, from Damian Abraham of Fucked Up to Stephan Brogen of Degrassi (no kidding). The first video, which you can view at the end of this post, shows Jason Schwartzman, Kevin Drew of Broken Social Scene, Dave Foley, the actor from The Kids in the Hall and Newsradio, and Sebastian Grainger of Death from Above 1979 remembering the first time they heard the band’s music.

Watch “When I first heard Sloan” below, and check back that same page to see the rest of the videos!

Braids Announce North American Tour With Toro Y Moi

Braids, whose album Native Speaker is out now on Kanine Records, are the latest sensation from Canada and they have just embarked on a tour across the continent with Toro Y Moi. Along their trek, they’ll be stopping by their hometown Montreal, New York City and will wrap up with concerts alongside Of Montreal. Check below for a date near you!

And if you want to explore their a bit first, the band just premiered a remix of their song “Lemonade” by  Landon Spears. Listen to “Lemonade (Lemonparty Bliss Out – Landon Spears Remix)” below:

Here are their upcoming tour dates:

04-05 – Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle (with Toro Y Moi)
04-06 – Bloomington, IN – The Bishop (with Toro Y Moi)
04-07 – Toronto, ON – Wrongbar (with Toro Y Moi)
04-08 – Montreal, QB – La Sala Rossa (with Toro Y Moi)
04-09 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall (with Toro Y Moi)
04-10 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall Of Williamsburg (with Toro Y Moi)
04-11 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom (with Toro Y Moi)
04-12 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church (with Toro Y Moi)
04-13 – Baltimore, MD – Talking Head (with Toro Y Moi)
04-14 – Washington, DC – Rock And Roll Hotel (with Toro Y Moi)
04-15 – Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506 (with Toro Y Moi)
05-02 – Montreal, QB – Metropolis (with Of Montreal)
05-03 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix Concert Theatre (with Of Montreal)

BRAIDS Make Lemonade

It takes a lot for four best friends from Alberta, Canada to convince each other to skip college and move across the country to Montreal. At only eighteen, the music geniuses BRAIDS  released a  self recorded/self produced album known as Native Speaker.

With its single “Lemonade” now debuted on Stereogum, new fans can’t wait for the LP’s release on January 18^th. The critics can’t wait either, as Filter magazine described the album as “an amalgam of feminine assertion and unabashed lust.”

Illustrated as brilliant in detail and  luminous structure, none of the songs on Native Speaker ever come in under four minutes and most average about six. Such pattern has not bored listeners, but only seemed to sugarcoat the already radiant sound. Leading up to the release, the band will be playing the following shows. Catch them in your city!

***Tour Dates***

11/17 – M For Montreal  With We Are Wolves  Montreal, QC
11/18 – Cabaret Du Mile End WIth Land Of Talk   Montreal, QC
11/30 – Knitting Factory With The Radio Dept.  Brooklyn, NY
12/1 – Bowery Ballroom With The Radio Dept. New York, NY

Liars Head to Canada-And No, We’re Not Lying!

The American trio, Liars, might not need another visa stamp in their passports, but that’s not gonna stop them from going over to Canada with a new digital EP in tow.

It will be the first trip to Canada in three years for the dance-punk outfit and will even include a performance at Pop Montreal.
Their new EP Live At Shepherd’s Bush Empire will be exclusively released via iTunes on September 28th (hey thats today!). The EP will be the first new music that the band will release since their 2009 album Sisterworld. And coming in October, the band will release a new single Proud Evolution as its own single with six accompanying tracks.
Lve at Shepherds Bush Empire will be released on today, followed by Proud Evolution on October 19th.

Tour Dates:
9/29/10 – Lee’s Palace – Toronto, ON
9/30/10 – Le National – Pop Montreal (Headline)
10/1/10 – Ritual – Ottawa, ON
10/2/10 – This Aint Hollywood – Hamilton, ON
10/3/10 ¬– Roosevelt Park – Detroit, MI

Parlovr Preview ‘Heaven/Hell’ on Stereogum!

Canadian power trio Parlovr have been exploding onto the scene with their infectious indie pop since their self titled debut was released in 2008 on Dine Alone Records. Since then the boys have been working on their upcoming EP Heaven/Hell/Big/Love which will be released October 19th.

The idea for the EP was based around a song “Hell,Heaven” which the trio were playing continually at live shows. Heaven/Hell/Big/Love was created as 4 or 5 pieces that weren’t directly tied together in a specific theme and were just written without any rehearsal before studio time. The result is an EP split with “Hell,Heaven” which is based on “thoughts of a childhood spent in the middle east” and “Big Love” which is about a “girlfriend who has the ‘look of a man.” Along with the two title tracks are “Where is the Sun” and “Tehching Hsieh” which both add surrealism and romantic dreaminess to the EP.

You can preview “Hell,Heaven”  on Stereogum HERE and be sure to catch Parlovr at Pop Montreal October 2nd at Cabaret Just Pour Rire. The band will also soon be announcing US tour dates for this fall.