Frank YangSomewhere over the last few weeks Sunday night’s Wedding Present show at The Horseshoe got co-opted as the “closing party” for Canadian Musicfest, an appellation I personally refused to acknowledge. The 21st anniversary show for Seamonsters? Absolutely. The tour in support of their just-released new record Valentina? Certainly. Closing party for a festival that at no point acknowledged the band as part of their programme or acknowledged they were exponentially greater than most everyone else who played? Not so much. But I suppose if you got in for free on account of having a CMW wristband, then you probably weren’t complaining.

And if you got there in time to see the openers, you were probably a little confused. Which is fair. Of the two bands listed as accompanying The Wedding Present on this Spring tour – Washington D.C.’s Jet Age or Tokyo’s Pinky Piglets – it was never clear which was going to be at the Toronto show, which was right at the changeover point of the routing. As it turned out we were getting both but even so, there was some further confusion as Pinky Piglets no longer existed having opted to change their name to the more cryptic Toquiwa and even then, they weren’t the band that took the stage first – that was the drum and bass duo called Zarigani $, who were also Toquiwa’s rhythm section and completely unbilled; I wouldn’t have even known what they were called had it not been for the helpful sign hanging off a keyboard stand. Got all that? No? That’s okay. They played some cartoon version of punk-prog for about 15 minutes – far too short a set to try and bridge the cultural divide and understand it – and then brought out two more members and transformed, Voltron-style, into Toquiwa.

And though no less bizarre to behold, they were at least somewhat easier to get a handle on. The addition of a guitarist and lead singer solidified a kind of punk/rockabilliy aesthetic, though still totally cartoon-like. The quartet looked like they were plucked straight off the playground of the Tokyo chapter of The School Of Rock, though the ease with which singer Asuja pounded back a beer adorably solicited from the audience was a hint that they were a bit older than they looked. In any case, it was energetic, ridiculous, gobs of fun and the band thanked The Wedding Present for taking them out on tour by covering “Kennedy” in their own unique manner.

The Jet Age, on the other hand, were about as opposite a band as you were likely to find, comprised of three guys who appeared to have lived through and learned from the days of ’90s college rock. They were a pretty straight power trio playing pretty straight rock with hints of hardcore in their DNA, each player clearly proficient with their instrument but having a fair bit of trouble sounding like they were actually playing with one another instead of overtop, falling out of time with each other on more than few occasions. Their monitors may have had something to do with it – their timing seemed to improve after some adjustments to their mixes – but that didn’t do anything to address the fact that their songs were, at best, unmemorable.

It sounds a bit perverse, but I actually had to make every effort to avoid seeing The Wedding Present at SXSW. They were playing a number of shows there but only one was a Seamonsters recital – I was actually there right before they went on and fled – so I would have had to catch at least two of them to equal this one and festival burnout notwithstanding, seeing them back in Toronto seemed the most logical thing to do. And kudos to The Wedding Present for being clever enough to keep me coming back; this would be my seventh time seeing David Gedge and company in the past decade or so, most recently in April 2010 doing Bizarro. So you’d think that I could skip one, but not seeing/hearing them play Seamonsters wasn’t even on the table – it’s easily my favourite Wedding Present record, marking the point at which they really evolved beyond being a clever singles band with a distinctive sound to an outfit capable of creating complete albums that were both emotionally and sonically rich.

Which is not to say that just hearing them showcase Valentina wouldn’t have been sufficient draw. Whatever he’s called his project, Gedge has been a remarkably consistent songwriter over the past quarter-century and even with the four-year layoff from El Rey, he’s not lost a step. It doesn’t break new ground – at this point, that’s not something to be expected – but does prove that the failures and foibles of romance will always be fertile ground for someone like Gedge to till and Valentina confirms that his lyrical edge is sharp as ever and musically, well loud guitars really never go out of style.

Unlike the Bizarro show where they had no new record to push and were thus able to preface the main event with a random selection of material drawn from throughout their career, this night’s first act leaned heavily on Valentina but the back catalog sprinkles – particularly “Quick Before It Melts” from the Cinerama years and Take Fountain closer “Perfect Blue” – were unexpected but tasty. That’s an upside of a band with a signature sound – with nothing ever sounding out of place in the set, you never know what they’ll pull out of their hats.

Well with the Seamonsters set, I suppose you knew exactly what they were going to do, and even though this was far from the same band that recorded that record – all the non-Gedge members were long gone and even this 2012 lineup was different from the one here last time, longtime bassist Terry de Castro having retired at the end of 2010 – they still attacked the material with the intensity you might expect from those who originally crafted it. I’d heard many of the songs included in sets before – and they were usually highlights – but played end to end they were able to recreate that crucial dimension of its flow, with all the churn, drone and lurch of the recording. It didn’t reproduce the gut-punch I felt when I heard it the first time, but it recalled it and that’s really all you could ask for. And while the band stuck to their tradition of not playing encores, that they played two more songs after the final note of “Octopussy” died out – not the bonus tracks from the US edition, that’d have been too much to hope – felt just as good.

And so what’s next? It’s still a few years before the 20th anniversary of Watusi; maybe the band will have gotten the right back and the album back in print by then? Be kind of an odd anniversary show otherwise. Or maybe a return to Cinerama! I’d be there. And possibly the only one.

BlogTO also has a review of the show and The Japan Times talks to Toquiwa about how they ended up touring with The Wedding Present.

Photos: The Wedding Present, The Jet Age, Toquiwa, Zarigani$ @ The Horseshoe – March 25, 2012
MP3: The Wedding Present – “You’re Dead”
MP3: The Wedding Present – “The Thing I Like Best About Him Is His Girl Friend”
Video: The Wedding Present – “You Jane”
Video: The Wedding Present – “You’re Dead”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Don’t Take Me Home Until I’m Drunk”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Ringway To Seatac”
Video: The Wedding Present – “I’m From Further North Than You”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Don’t Touch That Dial”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Interstate 5″
Video: The Wedding Present – “Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Chant Of The Ever Circling Skeletal Family”
Video: The Wedding Present – “No Christmas”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Loveslave”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Boing!”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Come Play With Me”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Silver Shorts”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Three”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Go Go Dancer”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Blue Eyes”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Dalliance”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Crawl”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Brassneck”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Why Are You Being So Reasonable Now?”
Video: The Wedding Present – “Nobody’s Twisting Your Arm”
Video: The Jet Age – “I Want You”
Video: The Jet Age – “I’m Starting To Wonder”
Video: Toquiwa – “Tokyo Merry Go Round”

Having taken an extended break following 2009′s disappointing Quicken The Heart, Maximo Park return on June 11 with album number four, The National Health. The title track is available to stream and initial impressions are that the time off has done them a world of good. Hope that’s the case.

Stream: Maximo Park – “The National Health”

DIY talks to The Futureheads about their new a capella record Rant, out this week, from which they’ve just released a video and there’s another “no instruments, please” video performance over at Digital Spy.

Video: The Futureheads – “The Old Dun Cow”

The Herald has a feature interview with Gerard Love, while The Guardian is streaming the whole of Electric Cables, the Teenage Fanclub songwriter’s gorgeous x1000 solo debut as Lightships, out this week.

Stream: Lightships / Electric Cables

The Fly check in with Hot Chip as they prepare for the June 12 release of In Our Heads and subsequent live date at The Sound Academy on July 15.

The Line Of Best Fit gets to know Fanfarlo.

Stereogum talks to Jason Pierce of Spiritualized about their new album Sweet Heart Sweet Light, out April 17. They play The Phoenix on May 5.

NPR talks to Noel Gallagher.

Clash interviews Graham Coxon.

The AV Club offers a Gateway To Geekery for Britpop, suggesting entry points for the works of Suede, Blur, and Pulp amongst others. I can offer a more concise guide: all of them. You’re welcome.

The Tallest Man On Earth has announced a new album entitled There’s No Leaving Now, due out June 12. Exclaim has details as well as some – not all – North American tour dates.

Niki & The Dove have released a new video from their forthcoming debut Instinct, out May 14 in Europe; a North American release date has not yet been confirmed.

Video: Niki & The Dove – “Tomorrow”

The Boston Globe and NOW talk to First Aid Kit while NPR puts them behind a Tiny Desk and makes them play a show. They do the same though from a regular old stage on April 4 at The Great Hall.

Daytrotter has posted a session with The Raveonettes.

MusicOmh chats with Pip Browne of Ladyhawke, whose new album Anxiety is out May 25.

Frank YangIf you were to ask me what the daylight portion of SXSW Friday, I’d just point you over here.

Shearwater
- Austin art-rock band led by Jonathan Meiburg whose latest album Animal Joy is their most visceral and possibly best release to date. Clash talks to Meiburg about his literary influences and Stereogum has premiered a new video.

Photos: Shearwater @ The ACC Radio Day Stage – March 16, 2012
MP3: Shearwater – “You As You Were”
MP3: Shearwater – “Breaking The Yearlings”
MP3: Shearwater – “Black Eyes”
MP3: Shearwater – “God Made Me”
MP3: Shearwater – “Castaways”
MP3: Shearwater – “South Col”
MP3: Shearwater – “The Snow Leopard”
MP3: Shearwater – “Rooks”
MP3: Shearwater – “Red Sea, Black Sea”
MP3: Shearwater – “Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five”
MP3: Shearwater – “White Waves”
MP3: Shearwater – “Whipping Boy”
Video: Shearwater – “You As You Were”
Video: Shearwater – “Breaking The Yearlings”

Fanfarlo
- Anglo-Swedish collective who’ve just released their difficult second album in Rooms Filled With Light. The Boston Globe has an interview and NYC Taper is sharing a recording of another of their SXSW showcases.

Photos: Fanfarlo @ The ACC Radio Day Stage – March 16, 2012
Video: Fanfarlo – “Shiny Things”
Video: Fanfarlo – “Replicate”
Video: Fanfarlo – “De.Con.Struc.Tion”
Video: Fanfarlo – “Atlas”
Video: Fanfarlo – “Fire Escape”
Video: Fanfarlo – “The Walls Are Coming Down”
Video: Fanfarlo – “Harold T Wilkins”

The Big Pink
- London electro-rock duo who followed up their breakout 2009 debut A Brief History Of Love earlier this year with the bigger-reaching Future This.

Photos: The Big Pink @ Stubb’s – March 16, 2012
MP3: The Big Pink – “Stay Gold”
MP3: The Big Pink – “Give It Up”
MP3: The Big Pink – “Dominos”
MP3: The Big Pink – “Velvet”
Video: The Big Pink – “Hit The Ground (Superman)”
Video: The Big Pink – “Dominos”
Video: The Big Pink – “Velvet”
Video: The Big Pink – “Too Young To Love”

Best Coast
- California guitar-pop duo with the most famous cat in indie rock will release their second album The Only Place on May 15 with a date at The Phoenix to follow on July 21. Fuse has an interview with frontwoman Bethany Cosentino.

Photos: Best Coast @ Stubb’s – March 16, 2012
MP3: Best Coast – “The Only Place”
MP3: Best Coast – “Boyfriend”
MP3: Best Coast – “Something In The Way”
Video: Best Coast – “When I’m With You”
Video: Best Coast – “Our Deal”
Video: Best Coast – “Boyfriend”
Video: Best Coast – “Crazy For You”

Frank YangWhat day was this? Friday? Only? If one thing was becoming clear to me as my eighth SXSW ploughed forwards, it was that I was not as young as I once was and the physical grind of the festival was taking more of a toll than it had in years past – even with the previous night’s itinerary consisting only of sitting in a padded chair for four hours, standing in line for 90 minutes and then sitting cross-legged in a church for a bit. Hardly a triathlon.

Even so, I was glad that my day’s programme was relatively easy, both from a running around town point of view and writing the bands up that I was planning to see – after all, I was quite familiar with them all. Particularly Shearwater, whom I’d seen back in Toronto less than a month ago – maybe it was unnecessary to see them again so soon, but their Animal Joy remains one of my favourite releases of the year and seeing them in their hometown has become something of a SXSW tradition – this would the fifth year I’d done so. They were up early for a radio session in the Austin Convention Center – maybe not the most rocking venue on paper, but a room with great light, sound and sightlines and to hear Jonathan Meiburg tell it, a far better venue than the show they’d played late the previous night; a show where glow sticks abounded, their lead-in act was a rapper and which he described as the wrongest show of his life as a musician. Ah, SouthBy. Their set was compact, comprising just “The Snow Leopard” leading into side A of Animal Joy, and while not the fieriest performance one could have imagined it was still plenty elegant and satisfying.

An hour or so later, which I spent exploring the exhibition portion of the conference, the same room played host to Anglo-Swedish combo Fanfarlo. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I’d completely forgotten that I’d originally discovered the band at SXSW 2009 – hell, at the time I was calling them one of the highlights of the fest. Sigh. Anyways, this time they weren’t the unknown band from overseas winning over the unsuspecting, but the established act who’d achieved a goodly amount of success with their debut Reservoir and had just released the follow-up, Rooms Filled With Light. It couldn’t have been an easy record to make, with the band surely aware that repeating the moves that made Reservoir such a joy would also basically doom them to be regarded as Arcade Fire-alikes forevermore, but turning their back on those strengths would potentially cost them their hard-earned fanbase.

So the band can and should be proud that with Rooms, they’ve managed to strike just about the right balance between the two and establish a sound that’s marginally less immediate but arguably as rewarding but more importantly, more definitively their own. Live, they shed some of the gloss of the new record – it’s sonically shiny, but not excessively so – and reined in the old material a bit so as to stand more uniformly in line, though they could still pull out the dramatics and exuberance when they needed that extra bit of punctuation. It’s funny; though I loved Reservoir when it was new, it didn’t have the shelf life I would have liked. Though Rooms took a while for me to warm to, I suspect I’ll be listening to it longer. Fanfarlo bring their new record to town for a show at The Mod Club on Saturday, March 24.

It was then time to hoof it from the Convention Center auditorium to Stubb’s outdoor amphitheatre where Spin was hosting their always-anticipated day show, just in time to see another London-based act who’d just followed up a successful 2009 debut, The Big Pink. In their case, it was A Brief History Of Love that had to be matched and unfortunately, Future This has not been up to the task. Granted, History was no monument in the annals of songwriting, but it had a big, electro-shoegaze sound that was immediately appealing and some mammoth hooks in the singles – more than enough to make a good impression. Future This tweaks the formula some, but doesn’t hit the sweet spot and it simultaneously feels more bombastic yet slighter in substance. It’s not a fatal miscalculation, but a disappointing one all the same.

Luckily for them, those shortcomings matter far less in a big festival setting, where bombast is your friend, than they do through the headphones. Unluckily for them, their set was in the middle of the afternoon where the light show and smoke machines that defined the aesthetic of the History tours were non-starters, leaving them fully exposed as a four-piece that’s really a two-piece, with Milo Cordell and Zan Lyons manning their laptops and leaving the actual performing to guitarist/vocalist Robbie Furze and drummer Victoria Smith. Furze gave it his best to be an engaging frontman but came across as enthusiastically awkward, particularly when he set down the guitar and busted out some dance moves. None of which mattered, of course, when they busted out “Dominos” – it must be nice to have a song in your back pocket that’s an instant party.

The appeal of Best Coast has always perplexed me some. I mean, I get why people like them; Bethany Cosentino writes some pleasant pop tunes, but there’s not a whole lot to them. But maybe it’s that simplicity that draws people in? I don’t know. All I know is that upon the announcement recently that it existed and would be out May 15, their second album The Only Place became one of the more anticipated records of 2012. And while the fact that it was produced by Jon Brion gives some hope that if nothing else, it will be more sonically interesting than Crazy For You, that growth wasn’t necessarily on display during their set.

Though they were now operating as a four-piece – they were but three when I saw them at Pitchfork 2010 – their sound wasn’t especially different, nor did the new material come across much differently from the old. From the stage banter, Cosentino seemed equally chipper and punchy, perhaps trying to get a rise out of the crowd who were enthused but also a bit lethargic; maybe it was the heat.

No, not a busy Friday day, but I would make up for it in the evening.

The new Spiritualized video comes with the requisite “NSFW” warning, but at least it’s for violence and overall grimness rather than just flashing a pair of ta-tas. Sweet Heart Sweet Light is out April 17 and they’re at The Phoenix on May 5.

Video: Spiritualized – “Hey Jane”

The Modfather Paul Weller is playing just three North American shows in support of his new album Sonik Kicks, and the only one not in New York is May 21 at The Sound Academy – tickets are $59.50 for general admission and $79.50 for VIP balcony.

MP3: Paul Weller – “Around The Lake”
Video: Paul Weller – “Green”
Video: Paul Weller – “That Dangerous Age”

The Cribs have rolled out a new video from The Brazen Bull, out May 8. They’ll preview it at Lee’s Palace on April 11.

Video: The Cribs – “Come On, Be A No-One”

Paste welcomes Wild Beasts for a video session.

Pretty heady days for Teenage Fanclub fans – first Norman Blake put out the Jonny collaboration with Euros Childs last year, next Gerard Love’s Lightships releases its debut Electric Cable on April 17 and now comes word that Ray McGinley, along with Fannies collaborator Dave McGowan, has a new project called Snowgoose that will release its debut album Harmony Springs on vinyl come April 21 for Record Store Day and with other formats to follow in May. Note that McGinley is not the vocalist in this project, but he can’t help but add some magic to it nonetheless.

Video: Snowgoose – “Sycamore”

Drowned In Sound gets a track-by-track walkthrough of Blood Red Shoes’ new album In Time To Voices, out next week in the UK. They also recently rolled out a video from the release.

Video: Blood Red Shoes – “Cold”

If you had to pick a band to play a concert at the Large Hadron Collider, who would it be? British Sea Power, of course. The Quietus talks to the band about the soundtrack they’re writing for the 1999 film Out Of The Present and which they’ll be performing at the CERN labs in Switzerland.

iTunesBack in high school, like many others, I was a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan. Siamese Dream was the jam. Played the cassette to death, eventually replaced it with a CD and if it were possible, the laser in my discman would have burned right through it. And yet, I didn’t take to Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness at all – too many reasons to get into here, but they’re probably the obvious ones. In fact, I think I listened to the whole thing maybe once, ever, and cherry-picked the songs I liked onto mix tapes before falling off of the Pumpkins bandwagon completely.

All of which is to say that I have no recollection of the existence of the song, “We Only Come Out At Night” whatsoever. It wasn’t a single, so it wouldn’t have been inescapable on MuchMusic and the radio and whatnot, and yet the jaunty little tune seems to have become enough of a favourite that it was the band’s encore closer around 2008 – maybe they even closed their V Fest 2007 appearance with it, I don’t know, I’d left by that point – and spawned countless amateur covers on YouTube. And also this one by Anglo-Swedish pop outfit Fanfarlo. They recorded it for a 2010 iTunes session and, while on paper the idea of a pop band such as they covering an ’90s-alt band such as the Pumpkins would seem irreconcilable, this one quite suits their sound. See above about “jaunty”.

Fanfarlo released their second album Rooms Filled With Light last week and will be in town at The Mod Club next Saturday – March 25 – as part of Canadian Musicfest. Smashing Pumpkins – that is to say Billy Corgan and whomever is playing with him at the moment – have been busy both releasing new music – Teargarden by Kaleidyscope is an ongoing 44-song series/album that’s being made available free to subscribers – and an album comprised of songs from that series entitled Oceania is supposed to be due out this Spring. Oh, and both Siamese Dream and Gish were reissued in fancy deluxe formats last year… I think I may have to get that Siamese Dream one. High school me would have loved it.

MP3: Fanfarlo – “We Only Come Out At Night”
Video: The Smashing Pumpkins – “We Only Come Out At Night” (live in New York – June 11, 2008)

The GuardianWith her tenure in Ash, as sidewoman to the likes of KT Tunstall and Bat For Lashes and a solo career that’s yielded three good albums, Charlotte Hatherley has pretty well established herself as a purveyor of sharp, smart power-pop and more than a bit of a guitar heroine. But apparently she’s been hiding another side of herself that worships at the altar of ’80s-vintage electro-pop and that side has now surfaced under the guise of Sylver Tongue.

So far there’s just the one single to represent her first work since 2009′s New Worlds, but it comes with an accompanying video that demonstrates in no uncertain terms what the aesthetic of the project is, which is to say happily neon and glammy. The track itself is far from a club floor banger, its dreamy pace probably better suited for slow dances at proms and if you traded some synths for guits, it wouldn’t have been out of place on her second album The Deep Blue. In any case, it’s good to know that Hatherley remains a solid songwriter, whatever the genre or identity.

Album information is still forthcoming, but the “New band of the day” feature at The Guardian implies they’ve heard more from her and they like it. Which bodes well.

MP3: Sylver Tongue – “Hook You Up”
Video: Sylver Tongue – “Hook You Up”

The Independent and The Fly have interviews with Beth Jeans Houghton.

Pitchfork has got the… interesting cover art from the new Spiritualized record Sweet Heart Sweet Light, due out April 17, and a stream of the first single. They’re at The Phoenix on May 5.

Stream: Spiritualized – “Hey Jane”

SXSW chats with We Were Promised Jetpacks, who will be at Lee’s Palace on April 15.

Mystery Jets have given their fourth album a title of Radlands and a release date of April 30; some details on the release and a trailer for the album can be found at Exclaim.

Charles Watson of Slow Club talks to The Vinyl District.

The Fly chats with the Brewis brothers of Field Music.

NPR has a World Cafe session with Los Campesinos!.

DIY interviews Fanfarlo, whose Rooms Filled With Light comes out on Tuesday, February 28. They play The Mod Club on March 25.

The April 17 Kaiser Chiefs show at The Phoenix has been moved to The Opera House due to “scheduling conflicts”, so don’t read the downgrade in venue as indicative of their popularity. No, seriously.

English DJ-type guy Star Slinger is back for a show at Lee’s Palace on May 14 as part of a Spring tour.

MP3: Star Slinger – “Mornin’”
MP3: Star Slinger – “Minted”

James Blake talks to Spinner about where he wants to head, musically-speaking, next.

Under The Radar has got videos of Blur’s comeback performance at The Brits earlier this week, and The Quietus examines the merits of some of their lesser-known, non-album tracks. Oh, and they’re now headlining the Way Out West festival in Gothenburg, Sweden in August – anyone want to go?

Holy Moly has a sit-down with Niki & The Dove. Their debut Instinct is out May 14.

The Line Of Best Fit has posted a video session with The Mary Onettes.

Denmark’s Alcoholic Faith Mission, whom I believe impressed a lot of people when they were here for NXNE last year, are coming back for a date at The Drake on May 2, tickets $13.50 in advance. They’re giving away their last album Daylight From Above until February 29 over here and their new one Ask Me This comes out March 27.

MP3: Alcoholic Faith Mission – “Running With Insanity”

Paste has an interview with Icelandic composer Ólufar Arnalds about his two new releases: Living Room Songs, which collects tracks that were recorded and released one a day last October and Another Happy Day, which is a soundtrack to the film of the same name and out next week. One of the Living Room Songs tracks also has a video, even though clips of the actual recording sessions for each song are also out there. Arnalds was one of the highlights at Iceland Airwaves last year, and has been soundtracking a lot of my time lately. Recommended if you like pretty things.

MP3: Ólufar Arnalds – “Near Light”
Video: Ólufar Arnalds – “Near Light”
Stream: Ólufar Arnalds / Another Happy Day original soundtrack and Living Room Songs