this record is exactly what you’d expect from lockett pundt (1/4 of deerhunter), and that’s not to say that it’s boring or predictable. take away the poppy yet insightful lyrics of bradford cox, the irresistible pulsating bass of josh fauver and the razor-sharp drum lines of moses archuleta and what you have left is a lot of atmosphere, and a set of songs that really don’t obey form or feel that they need to in order to keep you interested. some songs on the floodlight collective are poppier than others, but it really doesn’t matter; this record is the result of pundt being left to his own devices, and it’s wonderful to hear him on his own. the floodlight collective is consistent with what you’ve heard from pundt’s other related projects before, and his consistency as a songwriter is really what makes this record a worthwhile stop on your ipod. songs like “red oak way” will just drip from your headphones, they’re full of such hazy aural warmth that they’ll make you forget that this is probably the 100th album that you’ve heard this year with reverberated everything. at this point lotus plaza aren’t essential listening, but they’re a solid investment if you’re keen on deerhunter or ambient dream pop.

octahedron is the recorded equivalent of the mars volta saying ‘if you didn’t get it the first time, we’ll say it again, but slower.’ yet, even if they’re dumbing things down a bit, this is the most interesting they’ve sounded since frances the mute. they’ve withdrawn towards a kind of accessibility here with much slower songs and by employing more conventional song structures. the album even follows a structure, complete with rise, climax and falling action; however, the mars volta’s inaccessibility never really stemmed from their complex structures, or lightning-speed riffs, rather, it was their abandonment of the dub-laden grooves from their first record that made them sound rigid and boring. while they might not be back to their rhythmically-challenging, groovy selves, octahedron proves at the very least that the mars volta are capable of being interesting when they’ve been forced to change and rethink  things.

yessir, saturday was solely about the sonics. these legendary proto-punk/garage rockers were in town, and played the young and dundas square stage. while their stage banter was just about as embarrassing as watching your father trying to make jokes for a similarly large group of people, their music was nothing but on-point, brimming with the same level of testosterone-fuelled intensity that has been distilled in their infamous catalogue. they got off to a rough start, as the bad jokes and the “you’re our favourite audience, ever!” comments wore a bit thin, but they were easily forgiven and only slight blemishes on an otherwise pristine set. screaming through everything from “strychnine” to “psycho” and even “louie, louie,” the sonics easily hit all the right notes (pianist/vocalist gerry roslie and guitarist larry parypa were both particularly good), and it was an awesome way to end my first NXNE experience.

according to saxophonist rob lind, the sonics will be heading into the studio this year to record a new album! it’d be really cool if they took that opportunity to maybe work with some of the people they’ve influenced over the years, mark arm and iggy pop come to mind as obvious choices, but i bet someone like jack white would jump at the chance.

i then made my way to lee’s palace, where i remained for the rest of the evening. mika miko were the first to hit the stage, and to my surprise, were a fantastic live act. i didn’t have them pegged to be horrible, but i wasn’t sure what to expect either. they tore through their new songs with a raw sound only matched by early punk bands like the germs, and even threw in a great rendition of the ramones’ “commando,” which fit right in alongside their original material.

the dead science followed, and although they had a decent set, they were definitely not the right type of band to be playing at such a show. everyone else who performed that night played very reductive, almost primitive styles of rock, with the dead science leaning more towards art rock. no age certainly toy with atmospherics, but while many of their songs rely on the kind of noise also employed by bands like sonic youth and my bloody valentine, their song structures never drift far from the straightforward power-pop of bands like the nerves. what also hurt the dead science’s reception was their singer’s vocal performance. sounding like a cross between david bowie and brian molko doing their best to sing a show tune, sam mickens certainly intrigued, but he had poor projection, so it was often difficult to hear or understand him. given that their songs often took very cacophonous turns, it’s a shame his voice could not really compete. had he been able to sing over the racket, i think it would’ve made for a much more profound experience. i’ll definitely check out their recordings though, i think their music might lend itself better to that medium.

with the black lips’ cole alexander now watching from the side lines, no age started their set with the classic “everybody’s down” and proceeded to do what they do best: cause utter destruction. the audience responded in the only way they knew how: with a surge of energy that went unparalleled for the rest of the night. no age are great to see live because they pour so much of themselves into their performances that it’s hard to not want to return the same kind of exuberance. that night they also treated the audience to two new songs from their forthcoming EP— they sounded like standard no age fare, but i’ll reserve my judgements until after the EP is released.

the king khan and BBQ show were the “surprise” guests of the night, and played a similar set to that of the night before. this larger venue, however, was a much better setting for the band’s dirty, sexy garage rock and songs like “too much in love” and “fish fight” were obvious highlights. also, khan was covered in gold body paint this time.

- nautically-themed hats & accessories (2)

- girls wearing gigantic plaid shirts (1,000)

- king khan sightings (3)

if only i had some foresight, i would’ve brought a camera with me to document these findings.

prior obligations and a lack of interest in any of the bands (aside from jaguar love and patrick wolf) that played on wednesday night kept me from exploring what NXNE had to offer on day one.

on day two, however, things got off to an early start as i headed to NXNE HQ to pick up my wristband around noon. there i got to see alan cross hold a panel discussion for his “explore music” show. the panel consisted of some guy from vice records and cole alexander from black lips, who was entertaining to say the least. their discussion revolved around a rather beaten-to-death topic — “the state of the music industry”— but nevertheless it was cool to see alan cross do his thing, and quite entertaining to see his lack of control over the hyperactive alexander.

later that day the real fun would begin as i travelled to young and dundas square to catch melissa auf der maur, and officially pop my NXNE cherry. auf der maur’s 40-minute set (the standard) was pretty solid, split between old and new material (although leaning more favourably to the former) and drew quite a large crowd. the newer songs drifted into generic radio-rock territory at times, but they were still grounded by catchy riffs and auf der maur’s awesome stage presence.

next, i sped along to the horseshoe, where i decided that for better or for worse, i would plant, as the two acts i wanted to see there were on at 12am and 1am, and having heard about the notorious lines outside the horseshoe tavern during NXNE, i didn’t’ want to risk not being let in. my first impression, however, had led me to believe that i had made a huge mistake.

i had not heard of the three artists that were to play prior to midnight, and the first of those three, spookey ruben, was terrible. while i was listening to his songs, which featured titles like “superpoke” and such lyrics as “welcome to the house of food/ open up a box of cake,” i wondered what i had got myself into. he and his band-mates played a weird kind of “fun” music, something like a cross between early bare naked ladies and cake; you know, the kind of band that could only have been famous in the 90s, or maintained a fan base through the internet. this morning, as i told my girlfriend about how terrible the band was, she directed me toward this, and it all made sense:

apparently they were slightly famous in the 90s, getting regular rotation on muchmusic and everything.

next on stage was the burning hell, a darkly comedic band from peterborough, on, who attempt to be just as “fun” as spookey ruben, but actually succeed and do so in spades. the key to their success is their witty take on the macabre subject matter that dominates their songs, which creates a unique balance; the burning hell will be the first to tell you that your death is inevitable, but they’ll say it with a smile and will be dancing with you all the way to the grave. a few of the songs reminded me of something you’d hear in the nightmare before christmas, as they used their more folksy leanings to evoke a slightly gothic kind of sensibility, which their humour works to cut-through and subvert. they got everyone in the horseshoe moving and laughing, but they were only the beginning of the party.

the united steelworkers of montreal played next, and much like their label mates the burning hell, they draw on a much older kind of music, recalling southern gothic country music, and use that approach to channel a much more intense and foreboding mood.

finally, the king khan and BBQ show arrived, and were welcomed by a packed tavern. at this point everyone was already hot and sweaty, but the turban-clad khan and BBQ managed to get the crowd moving with a renewed energy and spirit. they were joined up on stage by jared swilley of black lips, and a female vocalist i’m unfamiliar with (any help here would be great).

HEALTH got off to a late start, much to the dismay of many in the crowd, but they won them back quickly with the chaos they unleashed afterward. their set included a few new songs from their upcoming release GET COLOR, the definite highlight being “die slow.”

watching jarvis cocker’s commanding performance of “cunts are still running the world” to a thrilled audience at the 2008 pitchfork festival, one thing becomes clear: he has emerged post-pulp as a formidable live act. enter, further complications, an album recorded with producer (or whatever he does), steve albini, shortly after cocker’s appearance at the festival in chicago.

while his first solo disc, jarvis, might’ve been more stylized (perhaps the result of cocker co-writing a lot of the music with richard hawley), further complications is much more in-your-face rock ‘n’ roll— surely an impulse to encapsulate that kind of vitriolic energy his recent performances have been known for by employing a more live-off-the-floor approach to recording (ala albini). in a sense, cocker has pulled a grinderman; he’s offering a dirty, sweaty, bearded album, but unlike nick cave, his song-writing isn’t up to snuff, making further complications sound unfinished as much as it sounds raw and relentless. cocker’s boisterous persona can make up for the lack of good songs here, but it unfortunately can’t carry the album on its own.

once again big business have made an album that turns metal on its head. the band has pushed themselves further into unfamiliar territory by bringing a third member, guitarist toshi kasai into the fold. kasai helps disturb the back and forth between bassist jarred warren and drummer coady willis, and his wailing leads accentuate the already driving and thunderous music. while warren and willis remain the principal songwriters, kasai’s influence is easily heard: the band is no longer just a simple sludge-metal outfit, they’re drawing from a much wider range of musical influences that bring the theatricality of prog together with the blistering urgency of punk, all under a mighty heavy hailstorm of some excellent sludge riffs. uber-fans may be put off by willis’ clean vocals, but the fact that they sound like an odd choice make them all the more necessary for such an idiosyncratic act to remain true to themselves.

in what sounds to be a project forged in the murkiest of bongwaters, omar rodriguez-lopez has released another noodly solo album, but this time he has enlisted the help of some fellow voltas as well as hella’s zach hill and jon hischke; however, like most of the mars volta’s (and mars volta spin-offs) output since 2005, there are only a few songs on this release that are really worth investing time in.

the main problem here is that this group doesn’t do much to unseat the listener’s expectations of how a meeting between rodriguez-lopez and hill might sound. often chaotic, complex and overwhelming, there are only a select number of times where the band sounds like they’re playing together. hill is an incredible drummer, but does not make an excellent foil to rodriguez-lopez for the simple fact that they sound like they’re playing over top of one another. blaming hill for the lack of synchronicity on the record would be unfair though, after all, he’s more than proven his ability to compliment other performers’ styles as a frequent collaborator with the likes of marnie stern, and more recently, no age. even though cryptomnesia is a rodriguez-lopez solo effort, he rarely seems to be at the helm of things, nor are his contributions the most interesting. in fact, hill and hischke provide the most pivotal moments on cryptomnesia when they are left to their own hellish devices. the standout songs are few and far between here, but when they’re good, they’re very good, which makes it all the more upsetting to hear how terrible the rest of the album is.

i wasn’t planning on going to see animal collective last night, but a couple of friends of mine offered me an extra ticket of theirs last-minute, and i decided to go against my better judgement. it’s been well documented that i’m not the biggest fan of animal collective’s more recent work, but i thought the concert would be a good opportunity to see how the songs from merriweather post pavillion held-up live, and a chance to expose myself to a side of the band i had never seen.

grouper opened, and while i like her music, i don’t think she was well suited as an opening act. she has the psych-folk element to her music that makes her a logical connection to the headliners, but last night’s audience was made up of people wearing keffiyehs soaked in LSD who had no interest in droney psychedelic music with no beat to it. also, the abysmal sound at the sound academy made grouper’s set a little more unbearable than it would’ve been otherwise— a fact made clear by the large hissing noise emanating from the PA system that was audibly distinct from the effects grouper was employing on stage. those factors didn’t help anyone who actually tried to enjoy grouper’s set, as anyone disinterested with her performance carried on as if nothing was happening. medium sized venues like the sound academy just don’t have the same kind of intimacy required for an act like grouper. i could see a band like high places having a better chance in that kind of setting.

animal collective took the stage shortly after grouper, and started things off with “chocolate girl,” a song that i was unfamiliar with, but one that helped set the mood for the evening quite well with its throbbing bass and avey tare’s often explosive vocals. i had heard that animal collective were playing some of panda bear’s songs on tour, but i was nevertheless surprised when “comfy in nautica” was played next. that moment was probably a personal favourite, and it was well received by others as well, but nothing could compare to the utter frenzy that took place when people heard the opening bars to “my girls.” overall their set was pretty diverse and not too MPP-heavy. it also stayed at a pretty constant pace, with minimal amounts of psychedelic noodling. frankly, they could’ve jammed away all they liked if they had simply ditched the “trippy” visuals that bombarded the audience at every opportunity. while i certainly enjoy the visual component of concerts, the 4:20/dorm room wall poster styled kaleidoscopic lightshow hurt their cause more than it helped. it felt like they were catering to the drug aesthetic more than necessary. yes, i know you’re a psychedelic band, you don’t need to show me.

it was unusual being at a concert for a band i really didn’t care for, but i enjoyed myself more than i thought i would. i also found it interesting to witness the different groupings of “stans” varying from the utterly devout, the plaid indie rocker, to fans who only cheered for the MPP songs (not sure where i fit in there). on a related note: this experience didn’t shed new light on the MPP material, however, it did make me more curious to mine more of animal collective’s older records.