Canada | Heartbreaking Bravery

May 14, 2014

5 to See at NXNE 2014: Vol. 4

It’s literally impossible to stress just how varied and stacked the lineup for NXNE is this year. Toronto’s going to be overflowing with bands, bands’ friends, and fans of bands in just over a month (moreso than usual). To help make the process of picking out who to prioritize on any of the potential “to see” lists floating around out there, Heartbreaking Bravery is presenting the 5 to See series. Virtually all of the announced bands have been listened to (provided their music was available to listen to online) and things as trivial as genre preference were thrown out the window in order to accommodate as wide of an audience as possible. While the selections for features do still boil down to subjective taste, it’s a broader field than would usual be featured here and, as such, it should be a little easier to take something away from it. All that said, let’s get onto the picks for this series’ fourth installment.

1. Guerilla Toss

What to Know: It shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that Guerilla Toss are most likely the most insane band at NXNE this year. They’re usually the most insane band on any given bill that they’re on and that alone should make them worth seeing. Putting them over the top is the fact that they’re one of the fiercest art-punk bands currently going and are quickly gaining themselves an enviable reputation based on word-of-mouth from their live shows alone. All of that should make them very hard to miss.

What to Watch:

–

2. Maica Mia

What to Know: There are certain artists who have one trait that immediately sticks out. For some it’s their instrumental prowess, for others it’s composition, for Maica Mia it’s a voice, Maica Armata’s, to be precise- and what a voice it is. There hasn’t been much in the way of music in this realm, operating at this level since Cat Power’s You Are Free, which was a record worth holding onto for eternity. Maica Mia’s music’s as haunted as it is haunting, acting as an open invitation before pulling listeners in under its subtly menacing spell. Something genuinely special’s happening here and it’d take a fool to miss it.

What to Watch:

–

3. Low

What to Know: Are Low considered an institution yet? If not, they should be. Often hailed as the act that pioneered (and subsequently perfected) slowcore, the band’s been active for over two decades and have a handful of classics to their name. There isn’t much to be said about them that hasn’t already been said in tones as hushed and sacred as the bands music feels, so just watch the attached video as a pleasant reminder of what this band’s capable of.

What to Watch:

–

4. Bailiff

What to Know: One of the only Chicago bands making the trek over to NXNE, Bailiff will make sure that city’s represented well. Offering up a blend of left-field pop and cinematic crescendos that are often downright vicious, their set will be a highlight for anyone lucky enough to catch them. For further proof of this, watch the video below. If the last half doesn’t manage to convince anyone that watches it to make sure they’re keeping an eye on their set time(s), then nothing will.

What to Watch:

–

5. Typhoon

What to Know: Why Typhoon aren’t one of the biggest names in music right now remains a strange mystery. They’ve perfected an incredibly intelligent blend of several styles that are currently at the forefront of popular taste, write genuinely great songs, and are an extraordinary live act. Yet, for whatever reason, they’re still at “best-kept-secret” status. One look at the provided video will likely dissuade anyone from making the mistake of overlooking them.

What to Watch:

1 Comment

May 6, 2014

5 to See at NXNE 2014: Vol. 2

The 5 to See series continues from where it left off since Vol. 1. Now that the cases to see METZ, Swearin’, PS I Love You, Greys, and Perfect Pussy have been made, it’s time to lean in to Volume 2. A brief description of the featured band will be provided and accompanied by a video. All of this will lead up to the festival itself, which will be celebrating its 20th anniversary in style. Keep tabs on all of this and make the necessary adjustments when faced with schedule conflicts. Now that the exposition’s out of the way, let’s get to the bands.

1. Mac DeMarco

What to Know: Mac DeMarco’s Salad Days is his best work to date and his live shows continuing to earn raves. He’s a living archetype: the slacker sleazeball personified. It’s part of what makes him and his music so effortlessly endearing. Take the normal manic pace of a festival into account and DeMarco’s set may easily be the most enjoyable bit of escapism that NXNE has to offer.

What to Watch:

–

2. Pet Sun

What to Know: At this point, there isn’t much to know about Pet Sun other than that the Hamilton-based band has released an incredibly promising demo and that decent live footage of the band is hard to come by. That said, as lo-fi as recent clips of the band have been, they’ve indicated that the band’s capitalizing on their early promise- possibly exceeding it- and that it’s pretty clear they put on one hell of a live show.

What to Watch:

–

3. Speedy Ortiz

What to Know: Whether they liked it or not, the band was positioned at the forefront of a 90’s revival on the backs of 2013’s incredible Major Arcana. Since then, they’ve been anything but quiet, capitalizing on opportunities to create new music and demonstrate a knack for trustworthy politics. Oh, it also helps that somewhere along the way they became a tenacious live band. Expect their set to be as much of a force as they’ve proven themselves to be.

What to Watch:

–

4. Beliefs

What to Know: Beliefs, like Vol. 1 features METZ, will have the advantage of playing to a hometown crowd. Coincidentally, the band also put out an incendiary split 7″ with Greys (another Vol. 1 feature). Their sound lands between the most industry-conscious no-wave of the 80’s and the most incandescent shoegaze of the 90’s. Put all of that together and it’s very clear things are going their way- which always makes for good sets. Don’t miss theirs.

What to Watch:

–

5. Swans

What to Know: What hasn’t been said already? There’s a very real possibility that Swans are the darkest and most nightmarish band going right now. Micahel Gira & co. have been mining utterly intense levels of dread for so long that it’s difficult to imagine any one of their members exposed to sunlight. Their past two records, The Seer and To Be Kind, may just be their two finest. Nothing at NXNE will come to being even remotely close to this ominous (has anyone ever created music this terrifyingly apocalyptic before?)- and it’s very possible that nothing will come close to being this oddly beautiful as well. Swans’ music forces the listener into self-examinations, self-actualization, and total transcendence. Make sure to be wherever they are when they play. This is just about guaranteed to be the most bruising, massive set of the entire festival.

What to Watch:

1 Comment

May 5, 2014

5 to See at NXNE 2014: Vol. 1

We’re a little over a month away from NXNE, the Canadian equivalent of SXSW, which means it’s time to start prioritizing which bands at the fest to see. Over the course of the next handful of weeks, we’ll cover a decent fraction of the bands that have been announced (approximately 400 as of this posting) in anticipation for the festival. NXNE itself is celebrating its 20th anniversary and has pulled out several stops to make this one particularly memorable. The lineup for this year’s absolutely stacked, which means that this’ll be the first entry in an ongoing series. Kicking things off are five acts that helped define Heartbreaking Bravery’s identity. Get to know them.

1. METZ

What to Know: Seeing METZ dismantle a library with their sonic assault in Champaign-Urbana last year was a life highlight. Both the band and the crowd were all wearing clothes that were at the very least a shade or two darker than when they came in, looking haggard, spent, and ecstatic. To see them play a festival of this magnitude on their home turf is almost guaranteed to be something special.

What to Watch:

–

2. Swearin’

What to Know: Between What A Dump, Swearin’, and Surfing Strange (the first record to ever be reviewed here), they’ve got one of the most impressive early discographies out there. They’re a band with a fiercely intimidating pedigree, composed of members (or ex-members/touring members) of: Bad Banana, P.S. Eliot, Great Thunder, Waxahatchee, Big Soda, and Radiator Hospital. Easily one of the most exciting bands playing shows right now and an absolute must-see.

What to Watch:

–

3. PS I Love You

What to Know: PS I Love You is an inventive guitar and drums duo that revels in aggressive distortion, piercing feedback, shaky vocals, and general explosiveness. Between their first two full-lengths, Meet Me at the Muster Station and Death Dreams, they’ve garnered quite a bit more critical acclaim than the film they share a name with. They deserve it; their music’s intelligent and catchy as hell.

What to Watch:

–

4. Greys

What to know: Like METZ, Greys will be playing on their home turf but METZ is already a well-established brand, Grey’s are at the start of that trajectory. They’ve been making all of the right moves and appearing in all of the right places lately, building heavy anticipation for their upcoming record. This is very much a band on the rise and they’re capitalizing on that momentum. Don’t be surprised if they wind up playing the best set of the festival.

What to Watch:

5. Perfect Pussy

What to Know: As has been said before, no band has been covered more on this site than Perfect Pussy. They’re one of the most exciting bands on the planet, both on record and in the live setting. Say Yes to Love is one of the best records, if not the best record to have been released so far this year. Led by the endlessly fascinating Meredith Graves, they’re worthy of something approaching devotion. This is not a band that takes things lightly; they lay everything on the line during their ferocious sets- and at an average of roughly 20 minutes, they’re perfectly suited to showcase slots. If, when the schedule is finally announced, they wind up as part of a conflicting time bracket, just go ahead and cross everyone else’s name off. This is the band to see.

What to Watch:

2 Comments

April 21, 2014

PUP – Lionheart (Music Video)

One of the first few pieces this place conjured up was a glowing review for PUP, which had only been released in Canada at the time of posting. As the US release date for the record approached, more people started taking notice of the band. Rave reviews for the live show spilled in from the various corners of the wider-reaching music community and anticipation for the record shot up in accordance. Now, PUP is a great record, which has been covered but the music video the band crafted for “Reservoir” was in a different stratosphere of greatness. That music video was one of the best of the past several years so when the band announced a follow-up effort, this time for “Lionheart”, the expectations were off the charts. Fortunately, for everyone, the band delivered.

The premise of “Lionheart” is incredibly basic but it manages to exist in a similar realm to its predecessor thanks to the flawless execution. Once again, the band has tapped into the DIY ethos, only this time they’ve moved it from the stage to the afterparty. It’s a single shot emphasizing the action that takes place in the kind of basement most punks would be proud to call home. From taping bottles of some unidentifiable liquid to whoever’s crashing on the couch right through to the guy eating pizza in a Green Bay Packers beanie, this is the kind of scene that should be familiar to anyone who’s showed up early or stayed late at any house show. All of the details feel lived-in and authentic giving the whole thing a loose classic vibe. All of this, of course, is propelled by the actual song itself which elevates it into something resembling nostalgia. Simply put: it’s another great video from a band that’s worth knowing about. Honesty and humility are difficult things to play up in the format but the band pulls it off with ease, keeping their track record just about perfect.

Watch “Lionheart” below and then live it this summer. Support local music. Support great music. Play this video.

2 Comments

Video | November 3, 2013

PUP – PUP (Album Review)

PUP cover art

Toronto punk upstarts PUP have been building buzz steadily over the past year and they finally seem set to explode with the release of their self-titled debut. Prior to being PUP, the band had been playing out and releasing music under the name Topanga, so named after the character in Boy Meets World. After Disney acquired the rights to that particular show and planned a revamp, the band put the name to rest and became PUP. The re-branding seems to have ignited a fire in them that’s shown no signs of coming close to being put out.

After receiving coverage from nearly every major independent-music publication, continuing to make all the right connections, and releasing the year’s best music video, PUP has finally arrived (albeit currently only in their native Canada). PUP, like METZ before it, continues a trend in fiercely aggressive Canadian noise-punk imports. Unlike METZ, however, the band reigns things in every now and again throughout the record’s ten tracks, displaying enviable songwriting prowess and an unexpected vulnerability. That vulnerability is part of what makes tracks like “Yukon” so memorable; they’re distinguishable moments that add up to a substantial whole.

PUP‘s staunch refusal to present a collection of tracks that bleed into each other is admirable and helps the band stand out from many of their counterparts. This refusal allows them to put an emphasis on their lyricism, which is another one of the band’s more unique traits. Even with all the standard “Oh-oh-oh” sections peppered throughout PUP, the band manages to deliver memorable couplets like “and when my eyes were closed/you left me miserable… in the morning” before the explosive chorus on “Cul-de-sac” and the almost threatening “I guess you live and you learn/I guess you’ll get what you deserve” on “Reservoir”, as well as entire songs of memorable and intelligent lines (“Dark Days” is particularly strong).

While PUP is undoubtedly formidable when the band’s gang mentality is on full display, it’s at its best when it flies off the rails and is spearheaded by a single personality. “Reservoir”, the lead-off single and album highlight, is the strongest example of this. There’s a ferocious and manic energy driving that song throughout its verse sections that make the brief group vocals on the explosive chorus even more resonant and effective. PUP’s untapped a rare kind of magic with that formula and they utilize it smartly throughout the record, accelerating and easing off at will to create a frenzied and somewhat chaotic pace that suits PUP perfectly.

“Factories” brings the record to an effective close, providing a sense of completion while also being energetic enough to leave listeners anxiously waiting for more. PUP is one hell of a first entry in what looks to be a promising career. Despite not currently being available in the US, you can stream the whole thing over at the band’s bandcamp. For those looking for a briefer introduction to the band and their aesthetic, the video for “Reservoir” is posted below and, as hinted at earlier, it’s fucking incredible. Keep an eye out for a US release sometime soon and make sure to check out the band when they swing through Chicago on 11/25 to play the Empty Bottle with Heartbreaking Bravery favorites Audacity and Hunters.

7 Comments

Tag: Canada

Video | November 3, 2013