Caribou at Button Factory Dec 9

Caribou is riding a wave of positive vibes lately for his recording Swim. Its surfacing on a few notable best of the year lists. Caribou aka Dan Snaith from Dundas, Ontario was a finalist for Canada's juried Polaris Music Prize. I'd don't think he has moved on much from his previous work with this record but he's still pretty awesome. Those who see him this week will witness a kid on the rise. See him before he becomes a superstar with superstar pricing.

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Joel Plaskett - Crawdaddy - Nov 19

Mr. Joel Plaskett is simply the best of the best that Canada offers at the moment. His shows are intimate no matter the venue. he is affable, enjoyable, self-deprecating and at the same time fully aware of his talents. He belongs in the Tower Of Song with Cohen, Young and Lightfoot. His latest album Three (3 discs/ 27 songs) is a triumph, so deeply layered that even after a year and a half since its release it still has given up all its secrets. Don't miss him.
He plays Crawdaddy in Dublin Friday November 19th, The Set Theatre in Kilkenny on Saturday and Roisin Dubh in Galway Sunday.

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Tokyo Police Club - The Academy - Nov 5

There are very few folks in Canada that I have come across who know that Ireland is bilingual. Funny as Canada is - French and English. Occasionally I've explained (or lied really) that my first tongue is Gaelic and that my language was stolen from me thus forcing me to speak English to which the poor sod would reply... well your English is good.
Tokyo Police Club are from a place just north of Toronto, Canada's largest city. This track is from their debut, A Lesson In Crime. They have a new record Champ which they are touring. They stop in at The Academy in Dublin Friday November 5.
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Gonzales - The Sugar Club, Dublin, Nov. 13

Patrick Pentland of Sloan is Canadian but born in Belfast. In an interview I conducted with him once I asked him what his Irishness brought to his music. He replied that he felt Europe informed his music more than Ireland.
The Guess Who sang "American Woman get away from me" back in 1970.
40 years later Chilly Gonzales declares I Am Europe.
Canadian rock 'n rollers lean East not South. The Demics (ironically from London, Ontario) wanted to go to New York City but Peaches, Feist and Gonzales chose Berlin.
Gonzales chooses Dublin on November 13. He plays The Sugar Club.

Holy Fuck - Whelans, Dublin, Nov. 19

1MB, which eases the listener into Latin, the new album from Toronto's cantronica outfit Holy Fuck, seems to reference one of Canada's finest bands, The Rheostatics and one of their finest records Whale Music, in particular the track What's Going On.

Its a curious thing as that's the first thought that pops into the head listening to Holy Fuck, well the second really, the first is Holy Fuck!, then Whats going on?

Incidently Dave Bidini spent sometime in the early 80s at Trinity College. Upon his return home he formed the Rheostatics. Just saying.

1MB fades into Red Lights, a four minute soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever if Joe Strummer had written and starred in it. Its a dubtastic groove. Latin America brings out the teutonica splicing Kraftwerkian optimism with Happy Mondays menace. Stay Lit continues the trans-european express but thats trans as in Neil Young. Silva & Grimes picks up the pace and it's a run past motel money murder madness cities at night. SHT MTN ups the menace meter and Stilleto unhinge that Neil Young/Kraftwerk express and send it hurtling down the side of the mtn, hly sht! Lucky takes the deep groove dub rhythms and places them among the swaying Cars of Gary Numan. P.I.G.S. the longest track at six minutes updates the beats into N.I.N. territory.

Latin takes the listener deeper into the groove, deeper until the scape is inverted like an hourglasss and one is then rising, rising, rising, the euphoria, the joy, the escape into the space, the light, the vastness of the soundscape around you. Holy Fuck is uttered in all its reverence.

Holy Fuck are Brian Bordschedt, Graham Walsh, Matt McQuaid and Matt Schulz. Originally Kevin Lynn of King Cobb Steelie and Glen Milchem of alt-country act Blue Rodeo were involved which points to the organic ad-lib approach of the band.
Holy Fuck enjoy a campfire singsong as much as anyone. However these kats bring duct tape, a solar panel, and whatever can be found around the cottage workshed prior to nightfall to the circle. They make electronica without the electrics for the most part.

Others in the Cantronica camp include Caribou, Black Mold and Woodhands.

Holy Fuck have made something as obtuse, as obscure yet as important as Latin.

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