Music

Dirty Projectors have always been divisive. They are the type of band that people desperately love or hate and it’s easy to see it from both sides. Their records all share the same touchstones such as complex musicianship, unusual rhythm and melodic structures, abstract lyrical concepts and challenging arrangements that can culminate in a pretension that many find unappealing.

Since the early 2000’s Vancouver’s Alex Maher has been hitting the venues of this country in various forms. A saxophone player, singer songwriter, guitarist and percussionist who has played with countless artists and on his own with Nettwerk Records Flannel Jimmy, Maher is finally set to release his own collection of solo work today with an EP entitled Aether.  Lead single  “No One Else” combines all of Maher’s strengths in a wonderfully compact four minutes.

Vancouver's Maiwah comes from quite the pedigree. Former members of celebrated dance rock outfit Facts hooked up with singer songwriter Kristie McCraken and combined all their experience crafting perfect pop songs and have created a wonderfully warm and rewarding R&B tinged electronic album. Right off the bat the band immerses you in their world. There is this thick atmosphere that ties the production together.

Sometimes it’s good to get away. Withdraw somewhere quiet. Unplug from the distractions of modern life and recharge. In 2014, Nothingness founder, Bill Young did just that. He left the bustle of city life in Vancouver and retreated into the misty shores of Pender Island. Once there Young was afforded the opportunity to embrace the solitude and really dig into what it is he wanted to say as a musician. Nothingness’s debut Being is the culmination of this introspection.

Vancouver’s Adrian Glynn wants to wish you all a very Happy Valentine’s Day with the premiere of his brand new video for the single, “The Kind That Keeps You Up At Night.” Directed by Erik Horn the video was inspired by a line from the television series Transparent.  When lead actor Jeffrey Tambor’s character comes out a trans woman to his daughter she asks, “So this means you'll be dressing up as a woman now?" and he responds, "Honey, all my life, my whole life, I've been dressing up like

Dirty Projectors have a knack at making things seem easy. It’s this sleight of hand that makes the band so intriguing. With the single “Cool Your Heart”, off their upcoming self-titled album due 02/24 (Domino Records), Dave Longstreth and company use this skill to their full advantage. Joined by D∆WN, with some behind-the-scenes help from Solange Knowles, “Cool Your Heart” sneaks up you so subtlety that before you have even realized it you are already neck deep in a hook that just won’t quit. The production featured here is dazzling.

Getting the old band together is tough enough at the best of times, but when drug and alcohol-fuelled egos and decades of bitterness led your once steady ship of rock astray, you better hope your guitarist and singer’s finances aren’t nearly as solid as that rock they call Gibraltar. Otherwise that dog don’t hunt. And when you’re finally making sweet music again with your fellow compatriots, how do you ensure the resulting product isn’t a total wash? Ask Van Halen. They figured it out.

After their old band Philociraptor disbanded, Steve Mann and Justin Penney immediately formed the new project Gun Control. Why, you may ask, so quickly afterwards? Because, as two thirds of the Vancouver-based lo-fi poppers claim, Gun Control is just a cool name.

Vomit, masturbation, diarrhea and clowns. Clearly the boys in Vancouver’s War Baby know how to get your attention. The fiery three-piece just released Coma Kid, a surprise free EP, last week and with it the disturbing, somewhat grotesque but all around extremely captivating new video for the title track.