Stream: KC Accidental - Captured Anthems for an Empty Bathtub/Anthems for the Could've Bin Pills

KC Accidental was the pre-Broken Social Scene project of Kevin Drew and Charles Spearin (also of Do Make Say Think). This is a re-release of their two albums combined on one disc. It's all instrumental, and if you're a fan of BSS' excellent debut Feel Good Lost you should dig this, in particular the amazing, desolate-sounding 'Tired Hands', the equal of anything they would go on to create. Having said that, there's also post-rock fuzziness ahoy to go along with the more ambient soundscapes.

The whole record is streaming over at http://www.spinner.com/new-releases#/4, where you can also find streams of Bruce Springsteen's The Promise and the impressive Sports from newcomers Weekend.

Speaking of BSS-related stuff, Charles Spearin's The Happiness Project is well worth checking out if you haven't yet: released last year, it's essentially speech and spoken word set to music, but it's really well done, particularly here:

Video: Broken Social Scene - Meet Me In The Basement

"This video was made as a response to the G20 Summit in Toronto June, 2010.
The rest speaks for itself.
It was sent to us by a lover of our music who wants to remain anonymous.
We are very proud to share this mash-up with you."

- Broken Social Scene

Broken Social Scene - Meet Me In The Basement from Arts & Crafts on Vimeo.

Primavera Sound : stage breakdowns

The Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona is now less than a month away, and the breakdown of what's going down throughout the long weekend is becoming clearer. A daily timetable for the festival, showing what stage each act will be playing, is available here:

http://www.primaverasound.com/ps.php?seccion=horarios&id=dia&idioma=en

It's notable that there's some excellent bands playing in the Parc Joan Miro, a separate venue acessible to ticket-holders, on Saturday and Sunday - including A Sunny Day in Glasgow, Ganglians and Thee Oh Sees. For anyone who arrives in Barcelona early, there's also a Wichita Records showcase in the Apolo venue on Wednesday night featuring Los Campesinos, Peggy Sue and First Aid Kit.

As well as that, an extremely provisional timetable is doing the rounds:

http://www.primaverasound.com/ps.php?seccion=horarios&id=dia&idioma=en

While times have yet to be confirmed, the prospect of a back-to-back Broken Social Scene-Pavement-Fuck Buttons triple bill on the first night is almost too awesome to comprehend.

Good shouts as well in giving Owen Pallett and Low slots in the Auditorium.

Is anyone getting excited yet?

Broken Social Scene - tasters from Forgiveness Rock Record

Broken Social Scene: free MP3 and new album details

Excellent news ahoy: Canadian collective Broken Social Scene will release the long-awaited follow up to 2005's superlative self-titled LP in May. Titled Forgiveness Rock Record, the album is produced by John McEntire of Tortoise and The Sea and Cake - a possibly significant development, seeing that previous producer David Newfeld was regarded as such an integral factor in the sprawling, textured soundscapes of the Scene's previous two albums. Forgiveness Rock Record will be released May 3rd on City Slang/Cooperative Music.

Meanwhile, the first taster of the album has been made available as a free download. The 7-minute long 'World Sick' is a bit tame, if we're honest, a bit safe, but you know...keep the faith. See what you think, visit here for the MP3:

http://www.brokensocialscene.ca/

Primavera line-up grows in awesomeness

I've been going through the line-up for the Primavera Sound festival (May 27 - 29), and it's actually enough to make your head explode with the sheer volume of great bands playing in the Parc Del Forum in Barcelona. A heap of new acts were announced last week:

Broken Social Scene, Beach House, Les Savy Fav, Diplo, Pet Shop Boys, Sunny Day Real Estate, Titus Andronicus, the Almighty Defenders, Surfer Blood, Best Coast, the Field, the Books, a Sunny Day in Glasgow, Owen Pallett, Matt and Kim, Sleigh Bells, Florence and the Machine, CocoRosie, the Slits, Gary Numan, Scout Niblett, Moderat, Marc Almond, the Smith Westerns, The Charlatans, The Drums.

That's added to an already mouthwatering list of acts that includes the reformed Pavement and the Pixies.

Full line-up and other details available here: http://www.primaverasound.com/ps.php?seccion=home&idioma=en

Albums Of The Decade : 1 - Broken Social Scene - You Forgot It In People (2002)

In a decade when so much great music emerged from Canada, this 2002 album from the Toronto-based collective was the point where all that untrammelled creativity reached its glorious peak. Rousing, swelling, superb indie anthems like ‘KC Accidental’, ‘Stars and Sons’ and ‘Cause = Time’ are hook-laden and danceable, the tunes never suffering despite the arsenal of instruments thrown into the mix. It was a sound that cleared the way for Arcade Fire and influenced much of what was to follow, but it’s the more subdued moments that really seal YFIIP’s classic status. ‘I’m Still Your Fag’ is desolate, hypnotic minimalism; the majestic ‘Shampoo Suicide’’s trance-inducing ambience gives way to a haunting, multi-layered climax; while on ‘Anthems for a Seventeen-Year Old Girl’, a sublime banjo-and-strings backdrop frames a gorgeously-sung (by Metric’s Emily Haines) lament for lost youth: "Park that car / Drop that phone / Sleep on the floor / Dream about me...". There’s also time for detours into garage squall (‘Almost Crimes’), bleary dream-pop (‘Looks Just Like The Sun’) and a sun-kissed instrumental jam (‘Pacific Theme’), yet at no point does the album lose its irresistible flow. Eclectic, adventurous and exhilarating, it’s a record to lose yourself in.

Albums Of The Decade : 8 - Broken Social Scene - Broken Social Scene (2005)

After the sustained excellence of 2002's You Forgot It In People, sprawling Canadian collective Broken Social Scene returned with a third album that was defiantly non-commercial, leader Kevin Drew telling MTV "We made a dirty-sounding, right/wrong record. We [eliminated] the catchiest singles from the record. We don't live up to what label and promotion people want us to be — we're not about that". The production on Broken Social Scene was overwhelmingly dense and cluttered on first listen, layer upon layer of instrument upon instrument smothering whatever tunes existed underneath and resulting in a melange of disorientating sonics. However, as one stuck with it, the genius of the album began to emerge: tracks like 'Hotel' and 'Bandwitch' lay down haunting, evocative rhythms that owed as much to electronica as post-rock, 'Swimmers' and 'Major Label Debut' created a hazy, dreamy mood, 'Ibi Dreams of Pavement' and 'It's All Gonna Break' rocked out in shambolic fashion, while the extraordinary 'Handjobs for the Holidays' began sounding like an out-of-focus, brass-infused Dinosaur Jr track and ended sounding like a long-lost track from Loveless. You know, I don't believe I have any higher praise.