By Brad Halasz
20 Odd Years is a celebration of Buck 65’s 20 year history in the Canadian hip-hop scene. He’s part of a cohort of Canadian rappers who carved out their own niche with a unique style, rather than imitating high-profile Americans. Where others would release a greatest hits album to mark this milestone, Buck 65 does… Continue reading Spun: Buck 65
James Blake was a remarkable success story last year. The Brit stormed the Internet with the release of two critically acclaimed EPs and managed to place as the runner-up in the BBC’s Sound of England poll that highlights up-and-coming English musicians. That means the pressure was on for his recently released self-titled debut LP and,… Continue reading Spun: James Blake
The Decemberists have a penchant for instruments usually found in polka bands, churches and orchestras. Among this musical diversity, their new album The King is Dead somehow finds peace, tolerance and a middle ground. Their lyrics are a Pandora’s box of the musical world- sometimes morbid and yet sometimes hopeful too. “Don’t Carry It All”… Continue reading Spun: The Decemberists
Recorded over the course of two years in various studios throughout Toronto, the name Patchwork for the debut album from Us & Others is a fitting title for all the album tries to incorporate. Sadly, the metaphoric effect is lost over the course of the album as all the poetry and creativity are drowned in… Continue reading Spun: Us & Others
By Ken Clarke
Vancouver musician Jimmy Zee’s latest release is an R&B mixture of various genres bordering on blues rock, funk, soul and folk. Each track is dominated by Zee’s appropriately gravelly vocals which tie all of the song styles together into a cohesive whole. Zee penned all but one of the songs himself with the exception being… Continue reading Spun: Jimmy Zee
Imagine you’re sitting on the front porch of your farmhouse listening to your big brother play his guitar. It’s a beautiful summer’s evening and you just had an enormous dinner of spaghetti and meatballs. Your mother is sewing up the holes in your socks and your father has pulled out his old trumpet to jam… Continue reading Spun: Amos Lee
The name Deadhorse conjures up images of a metal band from Texas in the ’90s, or of that iconic scene from The Godfather. Deadhorse, however, are neither of these things. They have a hometown bent and their debut album is definitely heavy on the talent. Sometimes listening to an album is like finding a few… Continue reading Spun: Deadhorse
By Remi Watts
Do you know where we go when we die? I am not so sure about you, but I know where I am going. As my lungs enact their last efforts, my heart performs its final pump and my digits and limbs stretch out in one definitive grasp, my brain will throb and vibrate to the… Continue reading Spun: Braids
By Adam Marofke
Coming off their successful 2007 LP In Ghost Colours, Australian electro-pop outfit Cut Copy return with Zonoscope. The album continues in the same vein as their previous two full-lengths, dishing out 11 tracks of blissful, dance-floor ready jams. The album’s opener, “Need You Now” builds up all through its six minutes to swirling waves of… Continue reading Spun: Cut Copy
Though Contra didn’t quite live up to the standard set by Vampire Weekend’s breakout self-titled debut, it was remarkably successful in its own right. Riding this wave of success, the band has now released a series of live recordings under an iTunes Sessions label. The iTunes Sessions are composed of both tweaked versions of Vampire… Continue reading Spun: Vampire Weekend