Radio Influences

I've kind of always been fascinated with radio. Ever since I was a kid, I always enjoyed being able to scan the dial and have instant access to the many voices, genres of music, news, and interesting programming. Probably the first station I was attracted to was CFRB 1010. That may seem odd for a youngster, but my reason isn't what you might expect. Aside from sometimes finding the news interesting and mysterious to my young ears, because my father would always have it on in the car in the mornings when he would drive me to school, I was exposed to the voices and opinions that went along with the news and weather. It fascinated me, I was especially captured by the traffic reports because I thought it was pretty cool how they guy in the chopper could radio to the station and give his update. I always liked the interplay between the different personalities, and always tried to imitate the segments when I would "play radio" with my tape recorder.

Once I started exploring the radio dial myself, I loved all the unfettered access to new music. I mainly hung around at Edge 102 (as it was called back then) because my older brother was into rock and, at the time, I felt a need to be just like him. I actually loved the Humble & Fred show, even though my age prevented me from totally understanding all the raunchy jokes. Rock and roll was still new to my young ears, and the alternative music gave me an adrenaline rush (something I would become addicted to). As a few more years passed I found myself exploring more of the general popular music. Stations like MIX 99.9 & KISS 92.5 started to appeal to me because of the amount of different styles of music I could be easily exposed to at any given time of day. The Mad Dog & Billie show was what I woke up to my entire 7th grade year.

I also liked exploring the radio dial to find what kind of interesting programs were being played. An early favourite, "Theatre Of The Mind", which was broadcast Sunday evenings on CHUM FM, educated me on the incredibly well produced early dramatic radio shows of the 1930s & '40s. Alan Cross wowed me with his rock music knowledge as me and my brother would make sure to tune in for "The Ongoing History Of New Music", a show I would probably still listen to if it hadn't been discontinued. Around the time I started high school, me and a friend of mine had taken to staying up late on sleep-overs, listening to the Jim Richards show on CFRB and calling in when he would open the phone lines to comments. To be honest, we would usually take some oddball stance on the topic and try our best to keep a straight face as we messed with the host, almost always making sure to record our antics to tape so we could listen later and laugh.

These early memories of the radio definitely shaped my appreciation for the medium, and my choice to finally step up and enrol in the Humber Radio program. I've always thought radio has a massive potential to reach people and make a connection to their hearts & minds. I love the fact that someone can tune in at any time of the day, and always be greeted with music, a familiar voice, or the day's most recent events; nobody ever has to really be alone with a radio close-by. Since I've spent countless hours ingesting the many formats radio has to offer, I feel like it would be both an honor and a privilege to contribute to the collective voice.

ALBUM REVIEW: Bon Iver- For Emma, Forever Ago (2008)

There are always those certain albums or songs that make an instant impact, at a specific time in your life, and for a specific reason. When I was first introduced to Bon Iver's distillation of new folk and ruminative indie beauty, I had just made my first move to a place on my own. I was embarking on a new journey of discovery, and I was confused as hell about where my life was going and why I couldn't shake a certain heartbreak that seemed to be lasting forever. The song was "Skinny Love", and it made me ache in ways I didn't realize could feel so damn good.

For Emma, Forever Ago is the debut album from Justin Vernon, the soul contributor to the Bon Iver sound on this record. Much has been said in reference to the legend of how this album was created, but I think it bears restating, simply because the lore is so much a part of what the end product sounds and feels like. As the story goes, Vernon had recently gone through a series of changes in his life, namely; losing his long-term band, and losing the one he loved. So what did he decide to do? Well he decided to move to a log cabin deep in the woods of Wisconsin, setting up a makeshift studio and settling there alone for the long winter. Apparently the isolation was what helped Vernon create such a distinctive and unhurried sound, and the songs came together in pieces that were then put together with Vernon adding layers of sounds until he came upon the desired outcome.

The album is in fact, stunning in it's beauty and it's simplicity. There's a rustic and low-fi edge to the recordings that seems grafted directly from his intentional isolation, heartbreak, and man-alone-in-the-woods experiences. This is not a record that could have been recorded in a large studio, on a rushed schedule, or in a calculated attempt to cash in on any indie-folk trend. This album sounds heartbreakingly honest, and is delivered with so much passionate vigor that it seems Vernon has literally left his guts on the floor, which, in turn, makes For Emma, Forever Ago one of the most moving and delicately gorgeous records you're likely to hear in your lifetime. And that's not an overstatement.

For Emma, Forever Ago is perfect for those days when you feel the need to just disappear from the world. Somehow, encased within the 9 delicate tracks, is a subtle taste of the isolated environment they were recorded in, wrapped in a warm blanket of falsetto croons and plucked guitars. If you've ever spent the day laying in bed, staring out the window just to watch the snow gently fall to the ground, then you almost already know what this album sounds like. The record is the perfect companion to a day of wonder and contemplation, for the times when heartbreak seems all to close, for the moments when life's troubles seem too heavy to bare on your own. Vernon's Bon Iver moniker allowed him to infuse the music with a certain mysterious characteristic that makes it's vulnerability universal, even in the most personal moments.

With a relatively short playing time, it's more than likely this is an album you'll want to put on repeat. Every single song has multiple layers of resonant feeling, and each track will find a way to burrow into your head and your heart. Trying to pinpoint exactly what it is that makes this album special is to miss the point. What makes this record special is your own unique relationship to it, once it's been ingested. There's not only heartbreak and sadness, but also hope and redemption at the heart of For Emma, Forever Ago. Approach it with your guard down and it will surely win you over.

Re:Stacks (Track 9)

ALBUM REVIEW: Miracle Fortress- Was I The Wave? (2011)

There has been a trend as of late in the indie music community. Suddenly, the glacial-electro sounds of the 80s are coming back in style. Some artists are adept at combining the dated sound with new creative vigor, to come up with something compelling. Other artists are aurally fixated on re-creating something that the past has already bettered. Thankfully, Miracle Fortress is in the former camp, and the album Was I The Wave? not only surpasses the influences at it's core, but adds a healthy dose of artistic experimentation to bring us one of the best indie-pop releases in the last 5 years.

Graham Van Pelt is the mastermind behind the Miracle Fortress sound, handling all the instrumental, vocal, and production duties himself. That fact alone makes this record quite an accomplishment, but what cements the album's impact is it's attention to minute detail as well as it's economy. In only 10 tracks, Van Pelt is able to flex his indie-electronica muscle within the brevity of these fantastically realized songs. Not only is he able to hit upon brooding introspective ruminations, but he also makes sure to not skimp on the shining glittering pop-bliss moments you might not expect. It's his ability to use Miracle Fortress as a vehicle to convey his true love for the genre that makes Was I The Wave? such a compellingly honest listen. You might try to fight off the hooks and sparkling production at first, but the record is just too damn good to brush off. After only a couple plays, the songs really sink into your skin; whether you like it or not.

There's a reverb soaked iciness that pervades much of the record, which makes it initially a slightly challenging record to warm up to. Mainly because the distant-sounding vocals and up-front synths create an atmosphere of cold disconnection that I think is entirely intentional. But it's not long before the record shows bright and sparkly signs of thaw. After the compellingly insistent "Tracers" leaves you mysteriously intrigued with it's punchy beat, wobbling bassline, and haunting melody, there's a short instrumental interlude before "Spectre" comes along. The 5th track on Was I The Wave? connects the dots between haunting mysterious darkness and shimmering melodic tension. "Spectre" starts off with a misleading intro that drops into a beautiful verse that has the ability to literally melt your heart. As the sequencing of the album comes into play, it seems the first few tracks exist to build the icy atmosphere, only to intentionally melt it with this stunning and uplifting track.

That balance and continuity is what makes Was I The Wave? such a consistently enjoyable album. Just as Van Pelt seems to be showing signs of disconnect, the album takes a turn for the bright and melodic. Just as the hooky sparkle might seem to be reaching generic pop territory, Van Pelt introduces tight instrumental flair, or changes the direction with an instrumental dirge or a song with a darker vibe. The album continuously jumps back and forth between mysterious and emotionally-direct, both sides of the record being presented with genuinely skillful songcraft and an abundance of modern flair to offset the obviously 80s-inspired aesthetic.

By the time the 10th track "Until" rolls around, with it's minimalistic guitar arpeggios not bolstered by vocals or other instruments, it becomes clear that Miracle Fortress has created a masterpiece of mood and atmosphere. Based on the simplicity and brevity of that track, you will be compelled to start the album over again just to re-live the majestic sweep and impeccable songs, and upon second listen the genius of the album is only ever more apparent.

Rarely does an album with this much in common with the new-wave invasion not only surpass it's influences, but also manage to avoid becoming some kind of nostalgia-trip throwback curiosity. Miracle Fortress is the real deal, and Was I The Wave? is every bit as engaging and compelling as anything creeping out of the Canadian underground this year. Or any other.

Miscalculations (Track 8)

ALBUM REVIEW: Broken Social Scene- You Forgot It In People (2002)

Many bands have a hard enough time staying relevant and on top of their game, even with only 3 or 4 or 5 members. The fact that Broken Social Scene is a Canadian musician collective that can sometimes swell up to over 13 members in the studio and on stage, makes it all the more incredible that an album like You Forgot It In People is not only accomplished and enjoyable, but also completely stunning from start to finish. No filler.

In case you're not yet caught up on Broken Social Scene, the band itself includes members from a litany of Canadian bands. Leslie Feist, Emily Haines, Brendan Canning, Kevin Drew, Amy Millan, and the list goes on. Members of Metric, Stars, Arcade Fire, Apostle of Hustle, and occasional guest appearances from any number of local artists are common both on record and on tour. As you may have inferred, their sound is big and the many different voices and ideas coalesce into an eclectic mix of indie rock goodness that has not been better represented on record than on their 2002 offering, You Forgot It In People.

Where to start then? This has been a record that has stayed with me since my early highschool days, and for good reason. Not only is the music evolved and ever-changing, pulsing with a creative disjointedness that is actually quite welcome in this context, but the songs are really all winners. Somehow, with all the disparate ideas fighting for disc space, there is balance found in these 13 wonderfully sequenced tracks. Each and every song does stand on it's own, but when put together in this particular order, it's incredibly easy to put this album on and get lost in it's entirety. Broken Social Scene manage not only to create songs that are catchy and bold, but also songs that dig deep. The music may be grand in presentation, but immediate and heartfelt in practice. Nothing here will alienate anyone who's ever wished for the marriage of great musicianship and great songwriting.

The album includes some completely instrumental tracks, and even those hit hard and hit deep. The music itself isn't anything you haven't heard before, but the presentation of it is completely unique. There's just something about hearing the sound these collective artists make together that completely takes you away-- it's almost like being in on something nobody else knows. You'll smile and pump your fist when Fesit and Kevin Drew belt out inter-weaving vocal lines during "Almost Crimes". You'll sit back and remember how painful it is to watch the one you loved turn into someone you hardly recognize, as Emily Haines pines an otherworldy vocal during the beautifully subdued "Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl". You'll want to join up and fight the cause as "Cause=Time" jams forth with an insistent drum beat and a rousing vocal performance from Brendan Canning, as the guitar chords seem to glide back and forth in unison with the bouncing bassline. You'll lull yourself to sleep with the cryptic but gorgeous "I'm Still Your Fag", which pairs a hushed vocal line from Drew with a beautiful plucked guitar line. And there's so many other great tracks surrounding them.

The hardest thing to do is to put this album into words. There's no way to really explain what it's like to hear it and connect. It may not be on the first listen, or even your fourth, but in giving this album a bit of time to sink in, you won't be disappointed. In fact, you're apt to wonder what you ever did without it, if simply because there's a song to suit any mood or feeling you may encounter somewhere within these 13 tracks. Just have a listen, and let yourself go. Instant fan for life, I promise.

Stars and Sons (Track 3)

03 Stars and Sons by timpozzi

ALBUM REVIEW: Elliott- False Cathedrals (2000)

Elliott, how I miss you dearly.

Every time I listen to their debut album False Cathedrals, I’m reminded of how absent subtlety and majesty are in modern music. The waves of sound crash and fall and envelope me, like a warm blanket on a windy day. The vocals float on these waves, flowing in and out of coherence, but always bolstered by angular and muscular guitar theatrics.

And this music is nothing if not cinematic. Each song is presented like a tapestry of emotion, stories that are painted in the nooks and crannies of the explosive choruses and hauntingly beautiful verse passages. The drums are always driving, moving, changing, keeping the tension at a level that can drop off and suddenly snap back into high-gear. This is music made with passion and with vision. False Cathedrals remains untouched by the cookie-cutter imitation process, being that it was released in the small period of time while expressive indie rock music was gaining momentum, but hadn’t become the newest bandwagon (pun intended) to jump on. Where others seem contrived and lack the sincerity and conviction to be pushing genre boundaries, Elliott fearlessly chart new territory without having to show off or pretentiously alienate fans. The music is deceptively simple on the surface; built on a familiar canvas of arpeggios and loud/soft dynamic shifts, but it’s so much more than that. Elliot realize the importance of being more than the sum of it’s parts, and infuse that ideology into every crevice of False Cathedrals; an album that is so rich with raw sentiment and impassioned playing that it’s easy to get lost in it’s dissonance. It’s the kind of record that deserves to be called majestic.

The only trouble with an album being as consistent and inspiringly innovative as False Cathedrals is that a band with this kind of sensibility can’t last forever. Music as moving and completely engrossing as this cannot be pumped out over and over again. Eventually, it needs to stand as a reflection of honesty and integrity; to be left in the past as a guide for those who will pick up the torch and continue the legacy of creating music for creativity’s sake. Elliott may have broken up, but they left us with an album that is as engrossing and heart-wrenching as your favourite cinematic masterpiece. And it stands up just as well to repeated spins.

Calvary Song (Track 5)

05 Calvary Song by timpozzi

ALBUM REVIEW: Interpol- Antics (2004)

Interpol is such an interesting, mysterious band. I was first introduced to them by a good friend while I was still wrapped up in punk and emo back in high school. Interpol's music seemed too subdued, too basic, too unemotional for it to make any kind of impact at the time. But, for some unknown reason, they lingered in my head like a post-it note that said "come back later". And I'm very glad that I did.

After the underground success story Turn On The Bright Lights provided a post-punk revivalist wet-dream from the budding New York indie scene back in 2002, fans were waiting for another installment of dark, brooding, beautiful music from a band that couldn't shake constant comparisons to Joy Division. Although the comparison is fair at times, Interpol's music does not share the outright obliqueness and bleak worldview of the Ian Curtis-fronted outfit. Interpol responded in 2004 with the release of Antics. The fans were understandably divided.

Antics isn't the kind of record that instantly catches you. Although the record is a generally hooky and straight-forward post-punk affair, the melodies aren't as ubiquitous as they seem on the surface. Sure, there are sing-along choruses and insistent bass-lines, gorgeous soundscapes and darkly sexual undertones, but this version of Interpol doesn't have the same underground-chic aesthetic that so captured fans on Turn On The Bright Lights. It's mainly a difference in production.Where that record was littered with musical interludes, angular song structures, and sometimes seemed sort of cut-and paste; Antics sounded more straight-forward. Less concerned with projecting a certain indie-cred darkness, and more concerned with making a bid for the big-time. The honest truth is that the record does both, if you're willing to give it a chance.

Interpol doesn't seem concerned at all with which side of their fan base will enjoy the record. Antics has a pacing that serves each of it's 10 tracks perfectly. It soars on the the wings of lingering reverberated guitar phrases, and gives in to it's dark impulses with bold bass lines and stuttering drum work. Paul Banks' vocals are brooding, and deliberately trade off between pleading lovelorn confessions and slightly sexual subtext; all of which serves the music as much as his lower-register voice does perfectly. But there's more to Interpol than most bands of this cluttered genre. They somehow manage to balance hooks and danceable rhythms with a mysterious cloud of dark seduction that slowly draws you into the album with each successive listen.

"Evil" starts off with a lone bassline and Banks' crooning voice as he beckons a lover by name, and the song soon opens up with a very danceable beat and repeating guitar strokes that sound effortless- the perfect encapsulation of what this band, and the album, is really all about. The song will no doubt get you dancing and nodding your head with guilt-free approval. No small feat.

"Not Even Jail", possibly my favourite song from Antics, carries the other side of the Interpol coin. It begins with an insistent drum and bass rhythm as a lone angular guitar line creates the atmosphere of glacial cascading ice. The image isn't perfect, but there's no other way to properly describe just how big this song sounds, even as the building instrumentals never incorporate unnecessary instruments into the mix. The pleading vocal from Banks matches the forward pace of the song, before a perfectly timed and wonderfully executed outro breaks through the cold and warmly brings the song to a fade-out ending.

"Public Pervert", though oddly named, takes it's time and sets an "alone-at-sea" vibe that sinks in deep. It's a love song, and Banks keeps his vocal sweetly crooned over a bed of slow-to-medium pacing that comes together for a brilliantly enticing chorus that just drips with passionate longing. This song just makes me swoon, and I don't care if that sounds weird! Just try not to be swept under it's spell.

Since the record has only 10 tracks, it is hard to find one misstep in the bunch. Although album-opener "Next Exit" surprisingly plods along at a snail's pace, it's just a red herring for the wonderfully upbeat rock and roll found within the remaining 9 tracks. Interpol has something special, although it is sometimes hard to figure out exactly what that special quality is.

It would be easy to sit back and complain about everything this album is not. Although, it's a lot more fun to forget all about that and slowly let it draw you into it's magically dark and seductive world. Antics retains a special place in my collection because it took it's time to burrow it's way into my head and my heart. And hopefully, it will do the same for you.
Just give it a chance.

Narc (Track 3)

ALBUM REVIEW: Brand New- The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me (2006)

A lot can be said for a band that knows how to properly mature. All too often, bands take a chance at a new, compelling sound and, unfortunately, end up alienating their entire fan base. And it isn't always because the music sucks-- the band may have just misjudged their audience and taken a step into a direction either too far away or (sometimes) not quite far enough.

And then there's Brand New. After an enjoyable and adept debut album like Your Favorite Weapon, it would have been easy to continually carry the pop-punk torch. After all, Brand New was better than most, and somehow found a way to sound thrilling while keeping within the confines of a sound that had become all-too familiar by the time they hit the scene. It was an admirable first step, but Brand New weren't going to rest on their laurels.

Deja Entendu, their sophomore offering, came storming out of the gates with a lilting interlude that crashed head-first into second track (and first single) "Sic Transit Gloria" and everyone took a collective double-take. Who was this new, confident, dynamic band? What did they do with the pop-punk? Although I'm sure nobody missed the old sound, because Deja Entendu was a wonderful second outing. Varied and textural, there were only traces of the younger incarnation of Brand New to be found throughout. They were on to something a bit bigger.

Come 2006, and the collective surprised had dimmed to an overall acknowledgment that Brand New had created something special. But nobody could have imagined or prepared themselves for their third outing, The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me. It was an entirely new beast from a band that had only hinted they had the potential to create something as visceral, heartbreaking, and disarming as this record is.

The record plays like a total exorcism for the band- and especially- vocalist/lyricist Jesse Lacey. There is a darkness that permeates the entire record, but it isn't attached to any kind of goth-trend aesthetic. The band isn't creating a new sound to somehow corner a new market of fans, rather, the music sounds grown-into and lived-in. It sounds as though the band is genuinely searching for a way to make sense of how fucked up life can be. These aren't the kids you heard singing about girlfriends moving abroad or feeling uncomfortable in a physical relationship; these songs focus on the inner-psyche and the questions we ask ourselves that are never easily answered.

"Sowing Season" with it's slow-build and exclamatory bursting chorus line sets the tone as the first song of the record, but it's only a marginal taste of what's in store.

"Millstone", the second track, is permeated with a nervous paranoia as Lacey sings about longing for innocence and friends that have forgotten he exists. There's a poignancy and depth to his words, he doesn't sound contrived even as he berates himself for causing friends and family to drift away. The regret is palpable.

"Jesus", possibly the most moving song you will ever hear, is the sound of an entirely broken man, grasping at faith while his skeptical humanity takes jabs at his childhood indoctrination. This is heavy stuff, yet the song is instantly relatable and is woven together with an insistent plucked guitar line and a simple drum beat, which only underscores the heartache and regret at the core of the song.

Later, "You Won't Know" shows a father trying his best to come to grips with being shielded from his only child. Lacey's emotion absolutely explodes in this song, as well as "Not The Sun", and "The Archers Arms Have Broken"; these songs and the others in-between all share a thematic symmetry. They are loud, they are raw, they are visceral, and they are undeniably human. Lacey isn't projecting self-righteous anger. On the contrary, he is standing in the thick of losing his grip on everything he once believed in. The music isn't following any trends so much as texturally interpreting the despair you can hear dripping from his lips.

Brand new take a whole new approach to their music this time out. Instead of relying on the emo-isms of past releases, the band creates an unsteady atmosphere of tension and terse dynamics that serves the thematic content perfectly. There are moments of light all over the record, but they are only part of a bleaker portrait. You can feel Lacey searching for redemption, but what makes the album so compelling is that it provides no easy answers, no simple way out. You cannot help but be swept into the soul-searching, hoping Lacey will find a way out of the darkness through the catharsis of facing down his demons. It's an admirable first step but it's also the hardest one to take.

The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me is the kind of record that makes you stop and take notice. It digs into your skin, it nags at that secret part of you nobody asks about. It takes you on a journey through its soundscapes and tries its best to put an arm around you when you're out in the cold. The record benefits from repeated spins and has no shortage of goose-bump inducing moments to come back to. Brand New actually charts new territory and, with this release, tell the world they are hell-bent on growing up.

No matter how much it hurts.

 "Not The Sun" (Track 8)

08 Not The Sun by timpozzi