Allan\'s World Music Indie Music Blog that does reviews, looking at upcoming bands or reviewing some well known favorites. Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 0 0 3 1019

Articles from Allan\'s World Music

Ben Marwood 2008-01-17 08:24:21 My friend recently recommended Ben Marwood to me, and knowing her good tastes, I wasn’t surprised that I would enjoy his music immensely. Marwood, hailing from the UK, is an indie folk rock/acoustic artist. His music features catchy guitar riffs and sweet folksy vocals a la Ben Folds. I was able to get my hands on his EP, Give Up (2005), which I found to have elements of pop rock comparable to his former work, but that may be due to his former EP being produced entirely lo fi, and Give Up being recorded in a studio. Not to mention the track “X Ways,” probably the most “rock” Marwood has gotten, with distorted electric guitar and heavier drum beats, almost reminiscent of the pop punk scene of the late nineties. Although I haven’t heard much outside Give Up and what’s available on his myspace and official website, you can definitely hear his influences. However, he makes an original sound of his own by blending his voice with guitar that it’s almost so hard to de ...

The Bell - Make Some Quiet Review 2008-01-15 16:15:29 The Bell is an indie Swedish band with influences such as Echo & The Bunny Men and Joy Division. You could argue many newer bands use this influence in the post-punk revival genre BUT The Bell stays true to their influences that it feels nostalgic and if you told me this band was from the 80s I’d believe you. Usually when I think of Swedish bands, either you think of Scandinavian metal or indie pop (from the likes of Peter, Bjorn and John + Shout Out Louds). It was definitely refreshing hearing a small band like The Bell. This band is basically the 2000’s version of Echo & The Bunnymen using a drum a machine and I swear Mathias Stromberg sounds like Ian McCulloch which I find more of a great thing. The only other thing is probably the mix of poppy sounds used by synthesizers which give a Joy Division feel. “Make Some Quiet” hits the US on February 12, 2008 and luckily for me I was given a review copy. I wouldn’t instinctively call The Bell a pop ba ...

The Cab 2008-01-14 16:00:55 In a little over a week I’ll be seeing recently signed Fueled By Ramen sensation, The Cab, at The Mod Club Theatre in downtown Toronto. They have been staying out of the lime light over the past year, which is uncharacteristic of Fueled By Ramen bands. Not releasing much material beyond I’ll Run, their only official single, they have been keeping busy in the studio preparing for their debut album and have most recently gone on tour with Cobra Starship. However, with the help of the internet, I was able to stream many of their older demos, not likely to be on their album, but good material to garner an idea of what to expect from them as they make their splash in early 2008. The band from Las Vegas Nevada, has become a little known secret for many listeners, but they are expected to make a huge push this year as their album is slated for a first quarter 2008 release. Backed by Fueled By Ramen, I am extremely excited to hear their new material and what their final sound will be. With ...

Daft Punk - Alive 2007 Review 2008-01-08 16:15:10 It’s weird with Daft Punk. They are one of the first electronic artists I would name as my favorite and it’s a rarity finding someone who actually hates them because they’ve released some great stuff. Generally with some awesome singles, I never actually got around to ever picking up and listening to a full Daft Punk album. I think others share the same sentiment as Daft Punk is recognized with songs like “Da Funk”, “Around The World” and “One More Time” but would the average person know the name of a Daft Punk album? I doubt it and it’s a shame. When putting on Daft Punk’s Alive (the 2007 version) it almost makes me feel like I missed out big time with this electronic house duo from France. Sure I liked them but I didn’t appreciate them enough like this record makes me feel. “Alive” may be just a live soundtrack but it really taps into the greatness into what you would see hear if you saw them. The al ...

Burial - Untrue Review 2008-01-04 14:00:08 Burial is an anonymous musician from the UK that has been making some noise with his release “Untrue” late in the year. On Metacritic it stands as the best album of the year and many publications have announced it as the top album of the year. Due to this, like usual I tend to check out what’s all the fuss about. Burial has done some interviews but his identity is still unknown. Pretty mysterious but it gives off a cool aura about it. Some things of note, Burial is a dubstep musician, basically a genre used by some musicians. I would probably call dubstep a subgenre of electronica. Also Burial’s music is made using SoundForge. I am not quite sure I would’ve liked to know that as a computer doesn’t seem like a instrument (but lots of artists do this so whatever). Beginning with “Untrue’, I played it multiple times, trying to see what I thought. Every time though, I had a different experience. At one point I was enlightened and I wanted to ...

New Year’s Resolution for Allan’s World Music 2008-01-01 19:00:32 This blog has moved a lot faster then I have expected to since I started it as a “side-project” to my main sports blog in August. I’ve been hard at work doing various things to better this site whether it’s trying to better things financially or trying to bring in more readers. Either way it’s been really won and with bands constantly contacting us, there’s never a day where I run out of things to blog, it’s more about finding to fit things in! Okay here’s are my goals for Allan’s World Music in 2008: 1. Find at least one more writer (definitely from Toronto) who tastes are a little bit different but still indie. I’ve been asking some friends and I will continue to do so but I may find an “outsider”. If you’re interested feel free to contact me . Another Step Away by A Place To Bury Strangers 2. Build Up Traffic and Readership. I guess you could say I’m pretty satisfied with the traffic levels and subsc ...

Klaxons - Myths of the Near Future Review 2007-12-29 18:24:03 The Klaxons don’t really need an introduction when it comes to the internet. They had a huge year in 2007 winning the Mercury Prize and elected with having the top album of the year under some publications. This album follows the likes of The Arctic Monkeys and Franz Ferdinand. This award didn’t go out without controversy as I’ve heard many ripping this album and undeserving of such an honor against the likes of Amy Winehouse, Arctic Monkeys (probably because they won in ‘06), Bat For Lashes among others. “Myths of Near Future” was released in the UK on January 29 and in the US on March 27 of this year. To say I’m “late” is an under statement but music is supposed to be timeless so who cares. I really just wanted to judge for myself what the hype/anti-hype was and to form my own opinion. I don’t know really where to start when writing a review for this album but the Klaxons are placed in the category of Dance-punk or psychede ...

Allan’s Top Songs of 07 #25-1 2007-12-28 19:00:58 I decided to change my mind and do the rest of the list today. As you can see, Okkervil dominated the top songs of ‘07 quite handedly with 4 tracks placing in the top 50. I actually hated doing this list…not that it was subpar but I think I would’ve felt better doing a review today. Just no writing quality in putting out this list though it’s great for traffic bait. 25. She’s a Rejector by Of Montreal (link) 24. Patty Lee by Les Savy Fav (link) 23. Open Doors by Josh Ritter (link) 22. White Dove by John Vanderslice (link) 21. Handsome Furs Hate This City by The Handsome Furs 20. Weekend Without Makeup by The Long Blondes (link) 19. Meat Market by Everybody Else (link) 18. 1234 by Feist 17. Wolf and Crane by Siberian (link) 16. Walcott by Vampire Weekend 15. Fluorescent Adolescent by The Arctic Monkeys 14. Apartment Story by The National (link) 13. Red Rabbits by The Shins 12. Impossible by The Shout Out Louds 11. Right Moves by Josh Ritter (link) 10. Up On Yo ...

Panda Bear - Person Pitch Review 2007-12-27 17:06:17 Panda Bear is the stage name for musician Noah Lennox who is also of Animal Collective. This album was released very early in the year, March 20th in fact and while I am very late on the review, I thought I definitely have to check it out after Tiny Mix Tapes and Pitchfork named this their best album of the year. I tried to read up on what Panda Bear would be so I would know what to expect when playing “Person Pitch” but when it’s labeled as experimental, dance, pop, dub and electronic… if you can picture what you would be listening to after listening to those categories, you have to be a genius. When first playing it, I felt like saying “oh no…” since the first track “Comfy in Nautica” starts off with what I would call the grinding noise of machinery I just HATE. Thankfully that pace doesn’t keep up and it slows down for my listening pleasure. One note I found with Panda Bear’s style is that this music is definitely w ...

Babyshambles: Shotter’s Nation Review 2007-12-26 15:15:58 From his on-and-off relationship with supermodel Kate Moss to his regular confrontation with the law, 2007 was a year that made headlines for Pete Doherty. Babyshambles, an indie rock band he formed while taking a break from The Libertines, also released their latest album, Shotter’s Nation, in October of this year. Shotter’s Nation is their second album and is, in my opinion, way more superior than their first effort, Down In Albion. Shotter’s Nation contains 12 tracks and a guest appearance by 60’s folk legend Bert Jansch in the acoustic closer, ‘Lost Art Of Murder’. Personally, I think Shotter’s Nation is a great album. From the thrilling guitar opening of ‘Carry On Up The Morning’ to the confessional lyrics of the Clash-style ‘You Talk’ to the the acoustic ballad of ‘Lost Art Of Murder’, this album is full of solid tunes. Although not a masterpiece, this is certainly a step-up from their messy 2005 debut ...

The Hermit - Turn Up The Stereo EP 2007-12-24 18:12:32 The Hermit is a electronic/pop band out of Vancouver, BC. I haven’t heard about them until I was e-mailed just a few weeks ago and I checked out their EP “Turn Up The Stereo” which featured 3 tracks and remixes of them. It’s likely you haven’t heard about them either. When it comes to independent music it feels like there’s a zillion bands I haven’t heard of. The Hermit actually beat out the likes of Caribou and Junior Boys for Favorite Canadian Indie Electronica band in 2006. I would say The Hermit feels more like a dance group. It doesn’t feel like Electronic music and it’s not quite* pop. Classifying in genres is difficult and it differs from song to song. I must say after listening to their EP, I am in love with Allison Shevernoha’s vocals. I think she definitely carries the music with her sweet/dreamy voice. The Hermit’s stuff isn’t challenging and I think it would be great to hear on radio since the tunes you ...

Nevending White Lights: Act II The Blood and the Life Eternal Review 2007-12-22 18:03:35 Daniel Victor released another album to his Neverending White Lights project on October 30th of this year. For the first act (an album I enjoyed thoroughly) he had the likes of Dallas Green, Jason Anderson (Finger Eleven), Raine Maida (Our Lady Peace), Nick Hexum of 311 and more. Despite all the featured vocalists it was a great album and I believed Victor could do some more solo stuff to garner some respect. Act II features 5 tracks with Victor on vocals, but not as an impressive as a lineup I would say when it comes to featured singers. Granted Auf Def Maur, Aqualung, Lexi from Magneta Lane, Hawksley Workman, Sune Rose Wagner (Raveonettes) etc is still pretty good company. Musically I didn’t dig this one, even if it wasn’t much of a draw for me when it came to lead singers. A lot of the songs on the first act really displayed the lead singer’s vocal range as well as musically it couldn’t have been any better. Act II feels too mellow and sobering at times that ...

White Williams: Smoke Review 2007-12-20 15:31:04 White Williams is headed by Joe Williams a 23-year old from Cleveland. He plays experimental electronic/pop music. I recently stumbled across it by reading Pitchfork’s review of Smoke. I really didn’t read it because they made references I know very little about and I just followed my ears to his myspace and liked what I heard and compelled me to purchase the album. I found myself extremely addicted to White William’s style of music, it feels more like pop music but with the complexity of electronic music and at times gives off a psychedelic vibe. I found myself liking 90% of the albums on here a lot, lyrically it doesn’t seem challenging but it’s compliments the music very well (or takes a backburner). This is probably the first experimental album I seem to “get” as it is very random at times with the sounds but I find every sound just as soothing. This album is getting a 4.5 out of 5 from me. Some great tracks on here though there were a few ...

Mixtape For the Holidays (Without Being Christmas-y) 2007-12-18 14:26:56 The term Christmas doesn’t really suit this blog well. None of us are Christian (I think) and whether it is Athiest, Christianity, Judaism, Agnostic, Buddhism, (or even Satanism?). Either way everyone is basically off from school or work or whatever daily happenings of their life. So it’s great to have some get togethers and overall it’s supposed to be a fun rocking time. I am not going with the generic Christmas songs but I think going with happier type songs. I do have a favorite Christmas song (by The Raveonettes). Anyway I found this list hard to do…who knows maybe it’s the selection I have on this blog or just that most songs are depressing or angry and have nothing to do with being cheerfully happy? Enough ranting. 1. Feist - It’s Cool To Love Your Family 2. Jens Lekman - Your Arms Around Me 3. The Beatles - Come Together 4. The Elected - Would You Come With Me? 5. Of Montreal - On the Drive Home 6. Josh Ritter - Real Long Distance 7. Arcade F ...

Holy Fuck - LP Review 2007-12-17 17:26:34 Holy fuck it’s a band name called Holy Fuck! Some people tend to dwell on the band’s profane name but I personally find it funny to see it used in newspapers freely. I’ve seen reviews of Holy Fuck in Toronto area newspapers (not that I take stock in their reviews) but I’ve never really listened to their stuff until recently. It’s really sad but I probably know about a handful of people who’ve even heard of the band Holy Fuck despite coming from the same city. Anyway for those who also don’t know much about Holy Fuck, they are an electronic/experimental type band. Apparently unlike most electronic acts these days, they don’t use technologies gifts like programmed back tracks or laptops live so they must be a joy to see live. Onto the album “LP” which I hate as a title, I enjoy the name Holy Fuck but LP just comes off as bland as it tells you nothing about the theme of the album. “LP” has only 9 tracks with a few a j ...