Music

Tanya Donelly was already a fixture of the 90s college rock scene when she formed Belly in 1991. Having already been a part of Throwing Muses with her stepsister Kristin Hersh and one of the original Breeders, coming out of the gates Belly already had quite the pedigree. The band released two wonderful albums, Star in 1993 and King in '95 to critical acclaim and then quietly disappeared.

Sure, Sam Kinison rode his intense brand of politically incorrect humour all the way to massive fame in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, but did you know the fallen comedian could rock out with the best of them? Released as the closing track on his 1988 album Have You Seen Me Lately?, Kinison’s take on the Chip Taylor classic “Wild Thing” is a revelatory showcase for his patented yelling and unique presence.

No matter how you look at it, 1979 was a landmark year in popular music. Boasting releases like Public Image Limited’s Metal Box, The Clash’s London Calling, and Talking Heads’ Fear of Music, 1979 marked a watershed moment when the finest acts from the once revolutionary punk movement shed the genre’s rapidly stifling influence and pushed their creativity to dizzying new heights.

“Hey, we’re getting the band back together.” That sentence can either be an absolute joy or a complete nightmare depending on the situation. At the moment we seem to be knee deep in 90s nostalgia. Dinosaur Jr. has been putting out consistently good records since their original lineup reunited. BLUR gave it another kick at the can and made a surprisingly awesome addition to their discography. Even Pavement and Guided By Voices decided to do a victory lap. On the heels of all of that comes the return of one band that actually seems as vital as ever.

Frankie Cosmos have been on tour for what seems like forever now and as we get closer to the release of their new album and Sub Pop debut Vessel, which drops March 30th, they have been releasing some really fun new music. Today this takes the form of “Being Alive,” which has dropped with a stunning Daniel Martin directed video. The clip is a collage of live performance, stop motion animation and puppets.

Bully’s Alicia Bognanno has this wonderful ability to be able to switch between a smooth drawl and an absolutely vicious scream at the drop of a hat. The new single, “Focused”, off of their Sub Pop debut last years visceral and heartbreaking Losing, showcases this in a real wonderful way.  The band has been keeping busy since the album dropped. They are about to kick off a world tour, with a Vancouver stop on February 26 at The Biltmore Cabaret, and to celebrate they have released the charmingly surreal video for “Focused”.

The sprawl of Los Angeles is a very unique thing. Even if you haven’t been there before you’ve probably seen enough movies to know exactly what that looks and probably smells like. From the businessmen rushing along on their phones to the angelic youth soaking up the sun atop a pair of roller blades to the ranting and ravings of the more eccentric members of the community, the new Cameron Dutra directed video for “Psycho Star” by psychedelic provocateur King Tuff deftly captures both the surreal and humdrum aspects of this world.

Titus Andronicus have had a very interesting career. Things really kicked off for the New Jersey bred band with the release of their sophomore record The Monitor.

They Might Be Giants are as about a singular thing as you can be in the music industry these days. They are clearly from a different time but have still managed to keep their songs feeling vital and fresh, and that’s no small feat for a duo that has been crafting wonderful and wonderfully pithy music for over 30 years now. The band has just recently released their twelfth studio album, I Like Fun, and today they grace us with the Nick Offerman starring video for “The Greatest”.

The Ballantynes are trouble. Their organ speckled grooves, smooth bass lines and all around well-dressed, tambourine-shaking bad attitudes make them so hard to resist. Yesterday the Vancouver-based R&B outfit released their new track and video for the absolutely alluring “Villain”.  Directed by Greg Gillespie, the clip is shot almost entirely in close up, cloaking the band and their rag tag group of pals in an aura of mystery.