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MUSIC
Morning Madness:: unreleased Thrush Hermit & Steve Poltz videos
Submitted by Herohill on 03.12.10 at 8:20am.
The countdown is officially on folk. Next week The Hermit reunion shows will hit Halifax and the mix of nostalgia, rock, and lines shaved into people's head will reach critical mass.
To help get everyone excited, Joel sent over a great video of one of the unreleased gems on the Box Set - out Mar...
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Bacon Life Support Unit interview and exclusive images from their forthcoming video
Submitted by Halifax Collect on 03.12.10 at 8:05am.
BACON LIFE SUPPORT UNIT has always intrigued me. Even though I was never an avid fan, they had my attention every step of the way. You could say I lurked them from afar, anxious that if I didn't, I'd miss out on something.
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Swing an EP in my jeep:: Dark Mean and Dave Norris & Local Ivan
Submitted by Herohill on 03.11.10 at 8:34am.
A few EPs have been occupying my time lately and there are only so many hours in the day in which I can write about music. Rather than offering up a few lines to each in truncated posts spread out over the week, I decided to go all Uncle L and deliver and ep of (free) EPs.
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Testing my WordPress Space Upgrade with my Own Song MP3 for Free Download
Submitted by Digital Citizen on 03.11.10 at 8:28am.
I just got a WordPress space upgrade, which means I can also upload file types I was not able to before, like MP3s.
Well, it turns out I have recorded one song so I have an MP3 to which I have copyrights to share.
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Contest:: Win tix to see Jon McKiel @ The Seahorse
Submitted by Herohill on 03.10.10 at 8:16am.
A few months ago I was asked by the National Post to contribute to their "put your stock in a musician" series. With all the incredible talent across this country and hidden away from the masses here on the East Coast, the options were high, but I settled on Halifax's Jon McKiel.
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Contest:: Win (5) copies of The Burning Hell This Charmed Life
Submitted by Herohill on 03.9.10 at 8:56am.
UPDATE - all 5 copies are now gone. Thanks for entering.
It's not surprising that an artist making the long, lonely trek up North would search his inner soul for inspiration. The thing is, when it comes to The Burning Hell's front man Mathias Kom, I'm not sure he's ever held anything back from h...
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The ECMA acceptance speech I wish I had given
Submitted by Halifax Politics on 03.9.10 at 7:08am.
Quite to my surprise, Halifax Pop Explosion won the East Coast Music Award for Event of the year… Completely unprepared I stumbled through an awful speech, my worst ever I suspect.
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Quick Hitters:: Eli & Papillon
Submitted by Herohill on 03.8.10 at 8:30am.
When I went up to M for Montreal this year, I was shocked by how much Francophone talent the festival delivered. Obviously, the talent exists, but on a casual listen it's so easy to dismiss the French speaking acts in our country by assuming that the language barrier makes it impossible to make a...
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Quick Hitters:: Madeline adams/Your Heart Breaks/Karl Blau Tour EP
Submitted by Herohill on 03.5.10 at 8:39am.
These days we don't visit the sample from musical reservoir South of the Border much. Too many bands, not enough posts kind of thing I guess. That being said, there are still a few artists that without fail, get instant attention from the hill. One of those artists is Karl Blau.
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Robert Gordon - Flying Saucer Rock 'n' Roll!
Submitted by Above and Beyond on 03.5.10 at 6:48am.
Here's a little something for my good friends Greg Bishop and Nick Redfern:
Tibetan music?
I don't think so! If the aliens are here, they're rockin' and rollin'!!
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Ben Caplan & The Casual Smokers
Submitted by Herohill on 03.4.10 at 8:36am.
I'm an unapologetic Tom Waits fanatic. Everything about the man - from his music, to his persona, and even his eye for photos - just strikes a chord with me, so much that hearing anyone with a gruff voice described as Waits-y or some hybrid thereof (the ole whiskey worn or gargling glass voice) t...
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Plants & Animals:: Tom Cruz
Submitted by Herohill on 03.3.10 at 8:32am.
The thing I've always loved about Plants & Animals is how they constantly push the limits of both fanatical and critical assumption. The band not only acknowledges, but willingly accepts the challenge of forcing people look past their varied mix of influences and think about their records as sing...
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Reviews:: Moonshine Ramblers
Submitted by Herohill on 03.2.10 at 8:51am.
A few months ago I gave my friend in Toronto a couple of passes to see The Avetts play at the Horseshoe. She was knew to the band, but more than willing to risk a night of letdowns to see a band I had showered with compliments for years. When I asked her what she thought, her response was very fi...
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Reviews:: Greg MacPherson Mr. Invitation
Submitted by Herohill on 03.1.10 at 8:29am.
For artists like Octoberman, travel tales are often introspective and hushed. The free time and solitude that makes up a denizen's day often dictates the end result of their art. Winnipeg native Greg MacPherson goes the other route.
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Muck is working on new material. In the meantime...
Submitted by Halifax Collect on 03.1.10 at 8:03am.
I've written about MUCK on a couple of occasions, most recently was the 2009 year review thing you can find in the nether regions of this page.
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Mike Bochoff - Horror Culture
Submitted by Herohill on 02.26.10 at 8:47am.
Think about every guy you've ever seen strumming the chords to High and Dry and singing the falsettos with eye closed tight in some dorm room hoping to pick up a naive freshman looking for a sensitive artist. Now, think about every former pop punker that heard Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio (or may...
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Matt Dillon's Soul Patch:: The New Pornographers - Your Hands (Together)
Submitted by Herohill on 02.25.10 at 8:40am.
Oh, we're feeling good about ourselves today, aren't we Canada? We were a nation of nervous-nellies after getting our collective asses turned into a hat by the US on Sunday night, but in light of our 7-3 ass-hatting of the Russians last night, we're all feeling better about ourselves - to say the...
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At the show: Toronto, OT, Feb. 22th '10
Submitted by Halifax Collect on 02.25.10 at 8:10am.
When I entered Wrong Bar, I learned that Windsor's (Ontario) Orphan Choir were close to finishing their set. Which was unfortunate because I really liked what I heard. The band ended up being the tightest performers that night.
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CALE PARKS - To Swift Mars
Submitted by Halifax Collect on 02.24.10 at 8:42am.
CALE PARKS has got his hooks in me. He is playful and inventive and switches from uplifting to gloomy with ease, and somehow his electronic-meets-indiepop mix feels effortless and easy.
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Contest:: Win 2 tix to Rich Aucoin @ The Seahorse
Submitted by Herohill on 02.24.10 at 8:45am.
The title kind of says it all folks. Rich Aucoin is setting to turn The Seahorse into a dance heavy, cinematic, synth factory on Friday night and we have a guest list spot (+1) to help you and your tightest of tight slacks wearing compadre get down.
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Reviews:: Steve Poltz - Dreamhouse
Submitted by Herohill on 02.23.10 at 9:16am.
It's a bit surprising that we haven't beat you over the head with Steve Poltz coverage here on herohill. Considering the Halifax born, San Diego resident has been writing music for years and how easy it is to sink in to his mix of charm, humour and simple, but amazingly catchy melodies, you'd thi...
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Best-of '10:: The Getrudes & PS I Love You - Sailor
Submitted by Herohill on 02.22.10 at 8:31am.
It's hard to ignore the power of friendship. Whether it's that extra boost of confidence to try something new or knowing you have support when things go wrong, it's crucial for growth. For Kingston's The Gertrudes, friendship has stepped them out of the church setting they recorded parts of their...
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Reviews:: Zeus Say Us
Submitted by Herohill on 02.19.10 at 8:34am.
It's hard not to push Zeus into the stratosphere after an out-of-nowhere EP that offered a brief glimpse at the heights they can reach. The retro-fueled quartet from Toronto has been working hard to find their sound; whether as part of successful and highly underrated bands
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Dog is Blue:: It Happens in Florida
Submitted by Herohill on 02.18.10 at 8:54am.
Love; as far as pop songs go, pining over the perfect partner is glorified no matter how heartbreaking the end results actually are. For The Burning Hell's Mathias Kom, It Happens in Florida - a track from his terrific debut LP - shows that the shine of love has long been tarnished.
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The Besnard Lakes - Albatross
Submitted by Herohill on 02.17.10 at 9:05am.
The power and polish of this 4-minute song are hidden under atmospheric distortion and sunshine kissed harmonies. Instead of relaxation and lazy days, Montreal's The Besnard Lakes use the warmth as inspiration.
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Google fail, & RIAA once again misses the point.
Submitted by Halifax Politics on 02.17.10 at 8:31am.
There is a furor, yes, a raging furor, on the internet right now over Blogger’s deletion of some music/mp3 blogs from their service.
For those of you who don’t know, an mp3 blog posts a review of an album AND a song or two as mp3.
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Quick Hitters:: Boats Cannonballs, Cannonballs!
Submitted by Herohill on 02.16.10 at 7:56am.
It's been a while since we checked in on the quirky synth poppers from Winnipeg. Boats! made an appearance on our Manitoba Mixtape and Mat's awesomely named debut (Intercontinental Champ) was a pleasant discovery to say the least.
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Independence is no solution
Submitted by I wanna listen to this on 02.16.10 at 7:51am.
Last thursday, Owen Pallett performed in Halifax, at - his now usual haunt - St. Matthew's Cathedral in Halifax.
He performed this song (not recorded on site) and I have had it stuck in my head ever since.
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Reviews:: Corey Isenor Frost
Submitted by Herohill on 02.15.10 at 8:31am.
Back in the winter of 2008, I humbled up and finally made mention of a young NB artist named Corey Isenor. His debut record - Young Squire - was a solid collection of indie folk that felt like the work of an artist with a solid back catalog and years of gigging under his belt instead of a fresh f...
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Hello Viet Nam — the Best Song About Viet Nam Ever
Submitted by Digital Citizen blog on 02.15.10 at 8:15am.
Happy Asian New Year, everyone!
At the Vietnamese Association of Nova Scotia celebrations, one of their leaders and a friend, Lien, told me about this amazing song called Hello Viet Nam. It is sung by Pham Quynh Anh, with Pham being her last name and Quynh Anh being her first.
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Contest:: Win limited edtion RAA vinyl from Paperbag
Submitted by Herohill on 02.12.10 at 8:50am.
I'm not sure I remember any Canadian indie band that grinded it out to achieve the success The RAA is now reaping. They spent a year touring the country, playing shows as a relative unknown, before catching a huge break when they were named the eMusic band of the month.
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Odds N' Sodds:: Postdata and Construction & Destruction
Submitted by Herohill on 02.11.10 at 8:16am.
It's a slow day here on the hill. Last night we were treated to two stellar sets; one from Basia Bulat and one from Owen Pallett and as a result, the review I had slated for today will be up tomorrow.
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Quick Hitters:: Babe Rainbow Shaved EP
Submitted by Herohill on 02.10.10 at 8:35am.
Did you know that the Olympics are about to start and the world spotlight will be shining on Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler for the next three weeks? Obviously if you own a TV, read a newspaper or have a computer, you've been inundated with coverage over the last few weeks and it's only going t...
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Reviews:: Matthew Barber True Believer
Submitted by Herohill on 02.9.10 at 8:20am.
It's not surprising that Matthew Barber's upcoming release - True Believer - is flying under the radar of most of the sites I read and most of the music loving public in general. Barber is easy to classify - essentially he's a rock solid song writer that could charm you with just an acoustic or a...
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Reviews:: Aidan Knight Versicolour
Submitted by Herohill on 02.8.10 at 8:26am.
It's very fitting that BC's Aidan Knight is traveling the West Coast in the luxurious comfort of Dan Mangan's van. That comparison isn't based on a similarity of sound, more that both BC boys have that something... whether it's the ability to turn the simplest of chords into something meaningful,...
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Best local releases:: Bad Vibrations Bad Vibrations EP
Submitted by Herohill on 02.5.10 at 8:23am.
We've already beat you into submission when it comes to Saturday's scorching Seahorse sets (alliteration, you know you love it). Toronto's The Balconies are blogging their way across the Maritimes and partnering with some stellar local talent to make sure you get rocked.
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Gonna Hit the Highway…or the Airlines…but airlines doesn’t have the same effect..
Submitted by Kim Wempe blog on 02.4.10 at 9:20am.
I thought January was good and now here is February, full on ahead. I’ve been recording all of January, then I had In the Dead of Winter Festival, and I got my first licensing deal with a televison series on Showcase called “Crash & Burn” in which “Oh Heart” was featured!
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Matt Dillon's Soul Patch:: Old Man Luedecke Rear Guard
Submitted by Herohill on 02.4.10 at 8:29am.
Honestly, I'm not sure if too many people equate Chris "Old Man" Luedecke and the idea of a traditional "single", but around these parts the Old Man is as much a Nova Scotian treasure as Schooner Beer and Peggy's Cove, so any new song gets us excited.
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Reviews:: Ian La Rue & the Condor A History of Layers
Submitted by Herohill on 02.3.10 at 8:39am.
When people think of Winnipeg, thoughts undoubtedly drift to the Golden Boy, Louis Riel's home and frigid winters. Thanks to talented song writers like John K. Samson, we all have vivid mental images of a city most have never even stopped in; the music we love has made their stories our stories.
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The Great Canadian Mixtape:: NL Preview - The Once
Submitted by Herohill on 02.2.10 at 8:30am.
I know it has been forever - the Canadian Mixtape project has been on the shelf longer than Gran's favorite preserves - but we getting the band(s) back together and compiling the Newfoundland edish of the Great Canadian Mixtape project.
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Reviews:: Woodhands Remorsecapade
Submitted by Herohill on 02.1.10 at 8:19am.
When it comes to electronic beats, keytar licks and spasmatic drumming I'm kind of like the Philadelphia Eagles of blogging; even in when the situation deems otherwise, I tend to pass. I'm not really trying to get amped up for the clubs and freaking the funk to the early light these days, so it's...
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Exclusive:: Little Girls covers Beach House
Submitted by Herohill on 01.29.10 at 8:17am.
It's no surprise that the latest LP from Sub Poppers, Beach House has been hoisted on a pedestal by the online music community. Teen Dream is a record with almost no flaws;
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Your Moment of Peaceful Zen to End Your Week
Submitted by Blevkog on 01.29.10 at 6:44am.
Unless you’re aspiring guitarists, of course, in which case you’re probably thinking, “I’ve got to start practicing more…
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Quick Hitters:: Archie Cooper If I Had Train Fare
Submitted by Herohill on 01.28.10 at 8:30am.
I'll be honest. Today's post is a little half assed; not on the part of the artist; this effort was meticulously constructed, but the writer. Last night we both were out watching The Wooden Sky and Paper Beat Scissors set the bar extremely high for the rest of the acts at IDOW, and my brain is mo...
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Matt Dillon's Soul Patch:: Caribou Odessa
Submitted by Herohill on 01.27.10 at 9:11am.
Without a doubt, the one show Shane and I will joke about from now until we are moments away from being buried in the dirt is the night we saw Caribou - at the time, Dan was still operating under the name Manitoba - play at the Horseshoe.
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Reviews:: Basia Bulat Heart of My Own
Submitted by Herohill on 01.26.10 at 8:03am.
When Basia Bulat stumbled onto the scene a few years back, you couldn't help but fall in love her. Oh My Darling was the type of record you felt lucky to hear and instantly, Basia became one of the artists you wanted to do well.
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Eric Clapton Solos on a Phone
Submitted by Music Before The Money on 01.26.10 at 6:04am.
On January 20, T-Mobile USA and Eric Clapton teamed up to promote a cell phone and it is now appearing in commercials around the T-Mobile’s world.
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IDOW:: John K. Samson
Submitted by Herohill on 01.25.10 at 8:26am.
With the annual IDOW festival kicking off this weekend, it's about time we got a more in depth look at the lineup. We already offered up our thoughts on the lineup in general - seeing names like Justin Rutledge, Bahamas, The Wooden Sky, CR Avery, Jim Bryson and local talent like Jon Mckiel
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Reviews:: The Geese Small Boat EP
Submitted by Herohill on 01.22.10 at 8:25am.
All too often in this age of indie collectives, you get bombarded with songs steeped in layers so thick the melody and intricacies are lost, along with any spontaneity. The desire for epic sounds leads overproduction and a polish that takes away the heart of the songs or a muddled combination tha...
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Quick Hitters:: More Sleepless Nights!
Submitted by Herohill on 01.21.10 at 8:35am.
Hopefully you caught my post from October about the Sleepless Nights and their plan to give away 3 EPs in a nine month span, but even if you didn't, there's no need to despair, I can get you up to speed rather quickly.
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RIP Kate McGarrigle
Submitted by Waye Mason's blog on 01.21.10 at 6:49am.
Kate and Anna played HPX in 2005 or 06. It was the day after the CBC strike had ended, and it was really hard to get the word out to the Kate and Anna audience without CBC. I had been told by other, older promoters that Kate and Anna were really hard to work with, with one memorable show in parti...
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Matt Dillon's Soul Patch:: Apollo Ghosts Land of the Morning Calm
Submitted by Herohill on 01.20.10 at 8:21am.
I always hate it when I hear about a terrific band from Canada from a blog running south of the border. Not like we can know about every band in Canada, but we should be surfacing the best talent for you.
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Quick Hitters:: The Pinecones Sage
Submitted by Herohill on 01.19.10 at 8:35am.
A few years ago, I fell in love with the Newman/McCartney-esque pop that Hali's Brent Randall and his trusty Pinecones put out. We Were Strangers... was an ear pleasing slice of orchestral pop, bursting at the seams with tons of studio musicians chiming in on any and every instrument you can thin...
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Reviews:: Owen Pallett Heartland
Submitted by Herohill on 01.18.10 at 8:17am.
It seems almost impossible for the critics to separate what people think of Owen Pallett the man from the music he creates. His story, his views; when it comes to a critical eye (or maybe, more accurately, a compelling way to craft), his inner nerd is as crucial to describing his music as M.I.A.'...
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Kev Corbett's In Good Company
Submitted by Belletristic Impressions on 01.18.10 at 8:13am.
"My tunes are my way of processing," says Kev Corbett. "I write audio songs. I work out the world by talking in my head. Music is my first language."
As a natural storyteller, Corbett brings listeners on quite the journey with his narrative-driven songs.
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Friday Showstravaganza:: Afrika Bambaataa!
Submitted by Herohill on 01.15.10 at 8:38am.
Now that the holiday break is well and truly in the rear-view mirror, I thought I'd get the Showstravaganza posts back up and smoking, mainly because there are some really great shows on deck here in the coming weeks.
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IDOW:: The Abramson Singers
Submitted by Herohill on 01.14.10 at 8:15am.
One of the great and sadly underrated festivals here in Halifax is the ice cold In the Dead of Winter Festival that tries valiantly to warm our January nights. This year, the organizers went above and beyond and signed up a bunch of terrific artists that everyone knows (Ani, John. K Samson, Jim B...
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Quick Hitters:: Fanshaw Dark Eyes
Submitted by Herohill on 01.13.10 at 8:28am.
A few years ago when Nic and I were still living in Vancouver, I ran a little Sunday Morning feature that profiled a local band with little to no fan base. One of the most pleasant discoveries was Fanshaw, the moniker for Olivia Fetherstonhaugh.
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Reviews:: Woodpigeon Die Stadt Muzikanten
Submitted by Herohill on 01.12.10 at 8:36am.
When it comes to defining Woodpigeon's sound, force feeding genre lists into the mix is a pointless exercise. The beauty of Mark Hamilton's compositions are the subtle shifts he and the band execute, transforming their orchestral pop goodies into folk, rock, country effortlessly.
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All You Need is Hal Bruce
Submitted by Kim Kinrade on 02.13.09 at 11:51am.
The tribute band industry began with Elvis impersonators in the 1970’s. When Elvis died the numbers blossomed. The Beatles were next and, today, Australian Pink Floyd is one of the biggest tribute shows on stage. So where does one guy get the brass ones to take on a tribute to the most famous ban...
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HPX 3: Holy Frig
Submitted by AineCaitriona on 10.24.08 at 11:47am.
Halifax loves a good dance party. Last night at the Marquee was a beautiful cross-section of the local music scene, with everyone from headbangers to indie kids to dirty hippies showing up to check out Toronto experirockers Holy Fuck. While downstairs in Hell’s Kitchen local bands The Beginners a...
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HPX 2: Rock Out Or Die
Submitted by AineCaitriona on 10.23.08 at 10:31am.
Oh. My. God.
Anyone who needed proof that rock n’ roll is alive and kicking (kicking you hard in the teeth, that is) got it last night at Gus’ Pub, at a show that is unlikely to be topped for the rest of Halifax Pop Explosion 2008.
A line-up including local scene darlings VKNGS and come-f...
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MELODY MAKERS
In this space: Music news, interviews with local artists, album and concert reviews ... and whatever else comes along.
Contributor Kim Kinrade is a musician, novelist and blogger based in Dartmouth.
Go to Blog.
Jungle Beat
Jungle Beat covers the bar scene in downtown Halifax. This column is written by Jon Careless, Infomonkey's Wildlife Correspondent. He writes about everything from nightclub atmospheres to local musicians, as well as delivering reviews of shows taking place aro...
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