Soulsavers, the always wonderful British electronica duo, released their fourth album, “The Light That the Dead See” on May 22^nd, via V2 Records. The album is a dark romance of earthy guitars, ambient sounds and the beautiful voice of Dave Gahan from long time collaborating band, Depeche Mode. Gahan’s sweet melodies persist throughout the entire album as a guest vocalist.

Soulsavers has been around since 2000, but really exploded into the mainstream scene in 2007, with their song “Revival” being featured on “Grey’s Anatomy.” However, just recently the group has decided to move their sound away from something initially electronically heavy, to a more organic, string and percussion approach. This new direction is helped greatly with David Gahan’s accompaniment.  Gahan’s is a voice that goes between smooth and harsh as easily as water to ice and it fits perfectly in the album’s lush, atmospheric production by switching up the overall mood of each song.

“No. 1 Against The Rush”is available on 12” and digital download on May 29th preceding the 11-track album, WIXIW (pronounced “wish you”), out June 5th, 2012. The single will feature remixes of the title track from Vince Clarke and Matmos plus an exclusive b-side, “We’ll Never Learn." This exclusive remix is by People Get Ready, and will unavailable elsewhere.

WIXIW is Liars’ sixth studio album and the follow up to 2010’s critically lauded Sisterworld. The album will be available on CD, deluxe vinyl (with CD) and limited edition vinyl with silk-screened embossed covers hand dipped in black wax by the band. Pre-order is available here where you can see images of the limited edition run being produced.

Victoria's folk-rock band Jon and Roy are releasing their 4th full length album Let It Go on June 12.  Their newest album features 10 original tracks including their first single "Vibrant Scene".  Jon and Roy have released four other albums to date and have played gigs with bands such as Mother Mother and Hannah Georgas.  Jon and Roy have played the folk festival circuit here in Canada and have toured across the UK and Canada. 

Let it Go is described as the perfect summer playlist, and lives up to this description.  The songs were inspired from a sense of freedom, breaking constraints and expectations.  The outcome is a laidback album with catchy rhythms and smooth vocals that still remains unique and diverse.  It creates the perfect vibe for relaxing on your porch during a beautiful summer's night. 

The album begins with a welcoming, country sound in "Mountain Town".  This song perfectly eases you into the album with its smooth rhythm and toe-tapping beat.  "Vibrant Scene", the first single, is considerably more upbeat with repetitive lyrics begging you to sing along.  "Let It Go", the title track, starts with a heavy kick of percussion but is not overcrowded with instruments.]]>http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/rss-comments-entry-16430023.xmlMusicmusicNicole SamsonSat, 26 May 2012 16:00:20 +0000http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/2012/5/26/sigur-ros-valtari-review.html447583:5006575:16448258    Icelandic musicians Sigur Rós released their first album fifteen -- yes, fifteen --  years ago, and they’ve been making music steadily ever since. Their next full length, Valtari, will be released on Monday.

     Sigur Rós, when I first started actively seeking out music, was instantly on high rotation. In my younger years, their singing in “Hopelandish,” a made-up language (or no language at all, depending upon how you look at it), was compelling in itself. Although it is often the case that, when listening to non-classical music, a song’s lyrics have the greatest impact on me, Sigur Rós’ music subverts that linguistic prejudice of mine and allows me to appreciate pure sound. Without words, I think, music is more open to interpretation. And, I propose, such ambiguity is a richness. Sigur Rós creates a mood, not a singular meaning: their music is all the more universal, and perhaps affectively powerful, because of it. Although one might argue that listening to music in any foreign language has the same effect, I would have to disagree; Sigur Rós makes a conscious, artistic choice, and this lends a dimension to the work that it would not otherwise have.]]>http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/rss-comments-entry-16448258.xmlCold SpecksLiarsMeredith ShawMusicPhedreThe JunctionCorrie PetersSat, 26 May 2012 15:00:15 +0000http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/2012/5/26/new-videos-this-week-liars-meredith-shaw-phedre-and-more.html447583:5006575:16428834Happy weekend everyone!

We've got an awesome list of new videos for you to check out this week. Which ones will be your new summer jams? Let us know in the comments.

Alright, enough shameless baiting. Let's get to it..

Cold Specks - Blank Maps

This video has been out for a while, but Cold Specks' new album, I Predict a Graceful Expulsion, just came out on Tuesday. I haven't heard anything else yet, but if the record is as beautiful as "Blank Maps", it could be my new rainy afternoon playlist. New Adele, anyone?

Young Liars - Colours

We previewed Young Liars' new single, "Colours", on here a little while ago and they just released the new video. Directed by Amazing Factory Productions, the same group that did We Are The City's album-length music video last year, it's a nice little indie-pop-rock video, complete with said 'colours' ink-blot style.

NS: When did you first start making clothes?

JW: I started when I was like thirteen, fourteen. It was the early 90’s, just like buying used stuff and fixing it up and cutting it and adding stuff, and doing all of that.

NS: Are you self-taught, did you go to school for design, or both?

JW: Yeah, my mother taught me when I was young, and then I went to LaSalle College after high school, where I studied fashion design and costume design. And then you’re just always learning, as you go on.

NS: And when did you start the boutique, Lustre?   

JW: Lustre opened its doors in March, 2006. I was at a different location and then in November of 2009, we moved to this location. [4069 boul. St-Laurent]

NS: So you design two collections a year, or is it somewhat more open?

JW: Well, there are two official collections, if you want, so those are what we do, like everyone else, about six to eight months previous on catalogue. But then, in the store, I also design all year, I design constantly. So if I watch a cool movie and I get inspired, well, I’m not going to wait six months to design it, I’m going to do it that week and have it in the store like two weeks later.]]>http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/rss-comments-entry-16417883.xmlMusicdark circleslive shownegative standardspunk rockxothuguaSteve AnwyllThu, 24 May 2012 02:36:18 +0000http://www.unnomdeguerre.com/home/2012/5/23/three-bands-a-punk-rock-commune-and-the-realization-that-thi.html447583:5006575:16420498

I want to write about a place more then I want to write about what I did. But, to write about a place I will be forced to write about how I got to gain a cursory knowledge of the place, in the first place, and that’s a story of what I did.

So as I see it being linked more closely to music then anything else I will loosely tell a tale of a live show.

Last night (time of writing, 22:23 Tuesday the twenty-second) after a day of spending my time in the constant turmoil of a hangover seventy-two hours well over due, I was coaxed by friends to go out. I was feeling pretty bad about every thing.

When we got to the old mortuary in Verdun it was very unassuming. It looked like any other abandoned funeral parlor done in the classic Montréal style, nothing but blocks. Almost everything here is just great big squares.

Although unassuming the building was ominous; dingy and overgrown with large bushes out front, the coming darkness creeping up behind us sent out long dark shadows.