Melissa HesseSeeing as how Minneapolis’ Now, Now Every Children is just a two-piece, trying to distill the appeal of their debut Cars down to even simpler components might seem like folly but it’s not only possible, it’s easy – it’s Cacie Dalager’s voice. Sure, you could say that the lead singer’s voice is the most obvious make or break thing for any pop band, but for NNEC, it’s much more than that.

It’s not an especially powerful instrument, at least as far as strength and range goes, but it does seem to reside in that magical frequency where innocence, experience, hope and cynicism intersect – her timbre and phrasing managing to evoke all of the above at various points throughout the record, often simultaneously. It has a natural sleepy sweetness but when used to deliver sentiments of feisty defiance as it does on Cars, it’s a potent combination.

But even for all the praise I lay at the base of Dalager’s throat, it does not stand alone. That would be gross. Now, Now Every Children’s musical accouterments are not many, but they are well-chosen and effective. All the sounds on Cars were created by Dalager and co-conspirator Bradley Hale – chugging electric guitar, friendly synth lines and organ drones courtesy of the former and clattering percussion from the latter, all placed exactly so to give the songs heft whilst keeping them lean. It’s a real accomplishment that Cars sounds so vibrantly live off the floor, considering its decidedly studio origins, and also how it melds hummable, sing-songy melodies with a raw sonic attack. It’s certainly not a new idea, but Now, Now Every Children do it in a way that sounds fresh, even to jaded ears.

Now, Now Every Children are currently on the road and will be in Toronto on August 2 for a date at the El Mocambo. Locals who aren’t out of town getting their Simcoe Day on are heartily encouraged to attend. There’s interviews with the band at Decider and Interview.

MP3: Now, Now Every Children – “Everyone You Know”
MP3: Now, Now Every Children – “Sleep Through Summer”
MP3: Now, Now Every Children – “Cars”
Video: Now, Now Every Children – “Friends With My Sister”

Also on that tour (and thus at the El Mo on August 2) is another duo from the midwest, Cincinnati’s Bad Veins. They’re releasing their debut self-titled album tomorrow and are the subject of a feature at Filter and a session at Ardent Sessions. The album is also streaming at Spinner.

MP3: Bad Veins – “Gold And Warm”
Video: Bad Veins – “Gold And Warm”
Stream: Bad Veins / Bad Veins

PitchforkTV is streaming a Yeah Yeah Yeahs featurette for one week only – well, the rest of this week anyways. It was originally released as a teaser for this year’s release of It’s Blitz!. Yeah Yeah Yeahs are playing two shows at the Kool Haus on August 4 and 5.

Video: Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Snakesweat

Spinner has an Interface session and San Diego City Beat with Ida Maria.

MPR is streaming a radio session with The Jayhawks.

The Jim James/M Ward/Conor Oberst/Mike Mogis-powered supergroup Monsters Of Folk are giving away an MP3 from their upcoming self-titled debut, out September 22, in exchange for your politeness. Grab it off their website, read some comments on the project from band members at Spinner and NME and keep an eye out for tour dates for this Fall.

Interestingly, Jim James is credited on the Monsters Of Folk website as “Yim Yames”, his solo alter ego. Tribute To, his George Harrison tribute EP, will be out on August 4 and a full-length solo record is in the works. Billboard talks to James/Yames about the Harrison EP, a song from which is available to download on his website.

LexGo and Pantagraph talk to Neko Case.

Director Bruce MacDonald explains his plans for the Broken Social Scene-powered film This Movie Is Broken to The Globe & Mail. They’re aiming for a release something early next year.

Pitchfork salutes Merge Records on the occasion of its 20th anniversary by talking to some of the label’s marquee artists, including Arcade Fire, Spoon and M Ward.

Nick HeldermanI’d honestly thought I’d have been able to build a post around the Torontontario V Fest announcement this week. All signs pointed to them finally coming clean about the when, where – already a poorly kept secret, sure – but more importantly the who. And yet here we are at Friday with no official word, just seven weeks out from when it’s all supposed to go down (August 29 and 30 at Burl’s Creek near Orillia, Ontario) and so instead of reporting facts, I will delve into the rumour mill for goodies. Though when it comes straight from the artist’s mouth, it probably counts as somewhat more than rumour. I refer, of course, to the fact that Nine Inch Nails has decided that Bonnaroo would not mark their final live North American appearance, as originally intended, and instead will do a few more dates including a headlining slot at the Ontario edition of V Fest. And in addition to NIN, a few other acts came to light this week though nothing major: Thunderheist, Trouble Andrew (does his presence imply Santigold? I can’t imagine anyone would want him on his own), and though not confirmed, I don’t think it’s any big secret what the August 30 “TBA” for Toronto on the Pet Shop Boys’ Fall itinerary means.

So yeah. Another week, another non-announcement. On the plus side, it’s evident that they’re trying to put together something really good and the last Canadian V of the Summer will have a bona fide, big-time headline act – I wouldn’t call myself a fan of Trent but there’s no arguing his stature – but on the downside, even a leak this size hasn’t been enough to prod them into announcing anything, which to my paranoid sensibilities doesn’t necessarily bode well for the rest of the bill. But it’ll come, and until then, I’m going to engage in more rampant and unfounded lineup speculation while clearing out a big old pile of links and stuff.

Paste talks to Bowerbirds about their second album Upper Air was released this week. Daytrotter and They Shoot Music have also released sessions with the band – audio and video respectively – who are on the road to support. They’re not doing anything August 29 or 30, but do have a date at Sneaky Dee’s next week on July 14 so it’s unlikely they’re playing V Fest.

Magnet’s “Wrens Watch” feature has coaxed another new song demo MP3 from Wrens, who continue to work on their follow-up to Meadowlands. It’s conceivable that they could make the trek up here for V – the calendar is clear – but probably haven’t been invited.

Pitchfork has the first taste of Bonfires On The Heath, the new album from The Clientele, out October 6. They played V Fest back in 2007 and while I’d love to see them again, they’re already making a short North American trek this month and probably won’t be back till the Fall.

MP3: The Clientele – “I Wonder Who We Are”

Editors’ Tom Smith keeps up the sci-fi soundtrack talking points in discussing their new record In This Light And On This Evening, out September 21, with NME. The band also played V in 2007 and would certainly be welcomed back, but are probably going to stick to Europe for the Fall before coming to North America to promote.

The Line Of Best Fit talks to Yo La Tengo – their new record Popular Songs is out September 8. They’ve got a November European tour scheduled – they could do North America before that, but probably no dates before the record is released.

Ca Va Cool has an interview with Telekinesis’ Michael Benjamin Lerner. Their calendar is clear for late August but they’re far too small to be added to a festival bill when they’re not already touring through the region.

Wheat are offering a new MP3 from their forthcoming album White Ink Black Ink, due out July 21. Odds of playing V? Less than Telekinesis.

MP3: Wheat – “Changes Is”

The Bird & The Bee have a new video from Ray Guns Are Not Just For The Future. They have nothing on the schedule, and I’d personally love to see them again in any setting. But they are probably not playing V.

Video: The Bird & The Bee – “My Love”

Jenny Lewis has released yet another new video from Acid Tongue. Why ask why? She’s finishing some US tour dates and is in Japan in early August. Maybe she can come to Toronto in late August.

Video: Jenny Lewis – “See Fernando”

NPR interviews Steve Earle. He’s at Massey Hall on Saturday, which really precludes his playing V in August. Not that he probably would anyways.

PitchforkTV is streaming the Townes Van Zandt documentary Be Here To Love Me for the next week. I saw this film at TIFF 2004 and it’s a lovely work. It’d be quite a coup if V got Townes to play, but I’m not holding my breath.

Video: Be Here To Love Me

The Denver Post interviews Son Volt’s Jay Farrar. They’re touring from July through early August, then picking up again second week of September. Don’t see them interrupting the downtime to trek up here to play in front of, well, people who probably aren’t fans. The NIN and Son Volt fanbase Venn diagrams don’t overlap much.

American Songwriter has excerpted a portion of their cover feature on Wilco, The Boston Globe has an interview with Jeff Tweedy and The Boston Herald talks to Nels Cline about his role in the band. They’re in Dublin on August 28. Probably not in Toronto on August 29 or 30.

NPR is streaming Sonic Youth’s recent show in Washington DC. They’re playing the Vancouver V Fest but having just played Toronto last week, I don’t expect a return engagement so soon.

Spinner gets Metric to recount their run-in with Spinal Tap at Stonehenge after Glastonbury this year. Metric are seemingly playing every other V in the country, I give them very good odds for being at the Toronto edition. Spinal Tap just did the “unwigged” thing at Massey Hall, but doing V – in character, of course – would be kinda great. Their new record is Back From The Dead.

Malajube have a new video from their Polaris-nominated album Labyrinthes. Their schedule is clear, they could be at V.

Video: Malajube – “Luna”

The Scotsman talks to Dean & Britta. I don’t think their 13 Most Beautiful… Warhol soundtrack show would work too well on a big outdoor stage.

Mew are releasing their new album No More Stories… on August 25 and have already been tapped to play some of Nine Inch Nails’ other “final” shows – why not this one? Spinner has an MP3 from the new record.

MP3: Mew – “Repeaterbeater”

PitchforkTV is running video of Fleet Foxes’ performance from Pitchfork Festival last year. Obviously they do the festival thing, but with an August 4 date at Massey Hall, a V slot is unlikely.

But for everyone who had tickets for that Fleet Foxes show and were crushed that it meant missing the Yeah Yeah Yeahs show at the Kool Haus that same night, rejoice! A second Yeah Yeah Yeahs show has been added for August 5, same venue. Tickets $32.50, on sale today at 10AM. And yes, this pretty much guarantees that they won’t be at V – that is, if being at Reading/Leeds across the Atlantic wasn’t guarantee enough.

Off The Beaten Tracks gets an acoustic video session out of The Thermals. They’re in Europe through mid-August. Swinging by Toronto en route back to Portland seems improbable.

Decider and Austin360 have features on Spoon. Besides their own Spoon-fest in Austin this weekend and performance at the Wanderlust yoga/music festival in Lake Tahoe at the end of the month, they’re not doing much. They could be playing V.

Contact Music has an interview with Glasvegas – they’re one of many bands at Reading/Leeds the weekend of V, so are obviously not playing Toronto. What’s more curious is the routing of their mid-September tour supporting Kings Of Leon, which puts them in Long Island on the 14th, Montreal on the 16th, Ottawa on the 17th, Hamilton on the 19th, London on the 20th and Detroit on the 22nd. Obviously this leaves many opportunities to make a Toronto stop, and yet there currently is none. As I said, curious.

Daytrotter has a session with Ida Maria, who seems awfully reluctant to make her Toronto debut. She’s on tour in North America till early August and then will be back for Monolith in Denver in mid-September. Obviously a lot more dates would have to surface to keep her on the continent from late August till then, but I can see it happening.

NPR is streaming a radio session with Phoenix. They’re playing V in the UK the weekend before the Ontario edition, and are back in September for a string of dates including Monolith and ACL. Odds of them playing our V are slim to none.

The List talks to St Vincent’s Annie Clark, who is at the Horseshoe on August 8 and will consequently not be at V Fest.

And while I know it’ll never happen, I would love beyond words for Superchunk to come and play V Fest. Or play anywhere nearby. This acoustic version of “Detroit Has A Skyline Too” came from a recent radio session. Loverly.

MP3: Superchunk – “Detroit Has A Skyline” (acoustic)

The Boxer Rebellion, who made headlines by charting in the top 10 on iTunes’ charts with the wholly independent release of their second album Union, will be at the Mod Club on August 8 – tickets $11.50. Though they’d probably fit the V demographic, this show means they’re unlikely to be there.

Video: The Boxer Rebellion – “Evacuate”

Either of these bands – …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead and The Secret Machines – would be a decent addition to a festival bill, but they won’t be to V because they’ve got a date at Lee’s Palace on September 22 – tickets $18.50.

MP3: The Secret Machines – “Dreaming Of Dreaming”
MP3: The Secret Machines – “Atomic Heels”

You know, this little “who’s playing V” meme turned out a helluva lot more tiring than I expected. Whew.

MySpaceIf I were a more paranoid person, I’d say that Norway’s Ida Maria was deliberately avoiding me. Back in March, she was a no-show for both her official SxSW showcases showcases and at almost the same time, she cut her stint as opener for Glasvegas to just a handful of dates, dropping off the tour just a couple shows before she’d have played Toronto. Maddening, right?

Getting a handle on her debut album Fortress ‘Round My Heart really isn’t any simpler. It was originally released in the UK in the Summer of 2008 on Sony and though a goodly amount of buzz was generated, the relationship between artist and label didn’t work out and she was cut loose. The record was re-released in February of this year independently with rejigged track listing and artwork and it was expected this indie version would be the one to trickle over to North America but it was instead picked up by Mercury Records and pushed back until April, when it came out over here with yet another track listing and different cover art.

It’s ironic that things should be so complicated around Ms Borli Sivertsen, because what she does is about as simple as it gets. Raw, irresistible guitar-rock with whiffs of garage and bubblegum, simultaneously anchored and buoyed by Sivertsen’s rough and giddy vocals. “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked” might seem like a gimmicky tune with limited shelf life, but has hooks that go far beyond the titillating title. The rest of the album barrels along with tales of booze and bawdiness, all recounted with reckless glee only pausing for breath a couple of times. It has remarkably high re-play value, helped along by the fact that the whole thing clocks in at barely 32 minutes and offering a super sugar buzz without being saccharine-sweet.

Having already made some late-night TV appearances, garnering all kinds of attention of the right kind and now set to play Lollapalooza in August, more North American touring seems like a given. Perhaps late Summer is a reasonable assumption for her first Toronto date? After all, she can’t evade me forever.

There’s features on Ida Maria at Interview, Black Book, Elle and Canadian Press.

Video: Ida Maria – “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked”
Video: Ida Maria – “Oh My God”
Video: Ida Maria – “Stella”
MySpace: Ida Maria

This week also marks the North American release of A Camp’s second album, the strangely polarizing Colonia. Some really like it, some really dislike it. I opted for “sorta like” when I reviewed it back in February. There’s interviews with head Camp counselor Nina Persson at The Glaswegian, State, Prefix and Birmingham Mail while Black Book asks her about her favourite NYC hangouts. A Camp are at the Mod Club on June 1 and the album is streaming this week at Spinner.

MP3: A Camp – “Stronger Than Jesus” (Harlem session)
Video: A Camp – “Stronger Than Jesus”
Stream: A Camp / Colonia

Uncensored Interview has a chat on video with Emil Svanangen of Loney Dear. They’re at the Rivoli next Friday night, May 8.

Daytrotter offers up a session with Cut Off Your Hands.

There’s a couple new videos from little blonde English girls with debut albums coming out soon. Little Boots’ Hands is out June 9, Polly Scattergood’s debut self-title gets a North American release on May 19.

Video: Little Boots – “New In Town”
Video: Polly Scattergood – “Please Don’t Touch”

The Globe & Mail talks to Adele, who plays Massey Hall tonight. It was also announced that she’ll be the first artists to perform on the new incarnation of MTV Unplugged – wow, it’ll be such a relief to be able to finally hear her sing without the wall of electric guitars drowning her out.

The Sun quotes Graham Coxon as saying that the Blur reunion should cover all the band’s material – even the stuff he wasn’t a part of.

Interview talks to Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie.

Clash talks to Super Furry Animals drummer Dafydd Ieuan, Wales Online to frontman Gruff Rhys.

The Daily Growl gets Mumford & Sons to pick seven songs.

Annie MusselmanPrior to last year, M Ward’s career path was one of fairly slow and steady growth. His earlier works cultivated a mysterious, almost baroque tone and largely showcased his instrumental virtuosity and occasionally his world-worn rasp. Subsequent works found him acting as a sort of musical time capsule, an archivist for music of bygone eras of Americana country and folk whose increasingly confident singing and songwriting allowed him to not only pay tribute to, but contribute to that canon.

She & Him, his 2008 collaboration with singer-actress Zooey Deschanel, was probably intended as a diversion but perhaps predictably blew up into the highest-profile project Ward has been involved in, their debut album Volume One garnering no small amount of praise – much (but not all) of it deserved. The musicality was pure Ward, but Deschanel’s bright vocals and direct, simple songwriting gave it a sunnier disposition than you’d usually associate with him.

And judging from his latest record, it’s rubbed off on him. Hold Time finds a jauntier Matt Ward than on past works, still laid back and in no real rush to get anywhere besides the back porch but with a bit more spring in the step nonetheless. Though things still get evocatively sad and nostalgic where necessary – the duet with Lucinda Williams on “Oh Lonesome Me” and the title track, for example – there’s a sense of fun that runs through much of the album and makes it feel extra fresh – Ward has mastered and assimilated classic pop idioms into his fearsome musical repertoire, and the world is a better place for it. Those who long for his fearsome solo guitar pieces or transformative cover songs may find things a bit too straight for their liking, but for the rest of us who know you can throw Transfiguration Of Vincent on anytime, it’s another great effort from an artist who manages to constantly move forward by staying rooted in the past.

Ward is currently on the road and will be at the Phoenix in Toronto on Monday, April 27 and courtesy of Against The Grain, I’ve got a couple pairs of passes to give away for the show. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want to hold time” in the subject line and your full name in the body. Contest closes at midnight, April 23.

The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette and CNN have interviews with Ward.

MP3: M Ward – “Never Had Nobody Like You”
MP3: M Ward – “Rave On”
Video: M Ward – “Hold Time”
Video: M Ward – “Rave On”
MySpace: M Ward

The Independent lists off 20 things you probably didn’t know about Bob Dylan. His new album Together Through Life is out next week and there’s now a video for one of the songs.

Video: Bob Dylan – “Beyond Here Lies Nothin’”

Filter profiles Andrew Bird.

Paste hangs out with The Decemberists. They’re at the Kool Haus on August 3.

Aquarium Drunkard talks to Jason Lytle about his new record Yours Truly, The Commuter. The record is out May 19 and Spinner has the title track to download.

MP3: Jason Lytle – “Yours Truly, The Commuter”

Originally supposed to be out yesterday, Ohbijou’s sophomore album Beacons appears to have a new release date set for June 2.

MP3: Ohbijou – “Black Ice”

Ohbijou’s Casey Mecija has also begun organizing a new music series in town entitled “Heavy Vessel”, which is intended to feature local bands playing in a sandbox in a schoolyard, but inclimate weather forced the inaugural edition to be held indoors instead. Chart has a review of the first show and some video footage has also surfaced – Sucking A Lemon with a clip featuring a scaled-down Bruce Peninsula and Colin Medley capturing a performance by The Acorn’s Rolf Klausener.

JAM talks to Gentleman Reg. He’s at the Mod Club June 1 opening for A Camp.

To mark the start of their upcoming tour, which begins April 30 at the Mod Club in Toronto, The Dears will be releasing a new b-side or unreleased track to download every week, the first of which can be grabbed below. Also check out an interview with Natalia Yanchak at Singing Lamb.

MP3: The Dears – “Halfmast”

Prefix interviews Metric.

Decider talks to Ida Maria.

The Washington Post, Duke Chronicle and Decider talk to Thao Ngyuen of Thao with The Get Down Stay Down. I’ve failed to see them every time they’ve come to Toronto and also missed every one of their shows at SxSW, but they’re playing The Bowery Ballroom in New York the evening I get there next month. I think I should make the effort to out and see them. They’ve made a puppet-powered video for a Lovin’ spoonful cover they recorded for a split 7″ for Record Store Day.

Video: Thao with The Get Down Stay Down – “Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind”

Having just released their self-titled debut, The Mt St Helen’s Vietnam Band have a date at the Horseshoe on June 2. Decider has an interview with the band.

MP3: The Mt St Helen’s Vietnam Band – “Cheer For Fate”
MP3: The Mt St Helen’s Vietnam Band – “Anchors Dropped”
Video: The Mt St Helen’s Vietnam Band – “Cheer For Fate”

City Pages and Black Book Q&A Chairlift, who just reissued their 2008 album Does You Inspire You in remastered form and with a couple of bonus tracks, one of which you can hear over at Stereogum. Chairlift are in town this Saturday, April 25, at the Phoenix opening up for Peter Bjorn & John, with whom JAM and Metromix have interviews and MPR a session.

MySpaceSo, yes – my head is a wee bit fried right now from endless photo processing. And on top of that, I actually had no planned posts, per se, for after SxSW – just a mess of links that have accumulated over the past week. So I’ll just vomit some of those out for you to get through the day. ‘Kay?

To begin – this post at BrooklynVegan made me first do a double-take, and then fire up Expedia to check prices for flights to New York City over the May long weekend. Why? The Radio Dept are coming to North America. It’s just a single show so far on May 16 at the Bell House in Brooklyn as part of NYC Popfest, but this interview with the band at Ca Va Cool reveals there’s one more NYC date to come and maybe – maybe – some more North American touring come Fall. But I will say this – if I’m not Barcelona-bound at the end of May, I could very well be en route to Brooklyn for the May 2-4. Hell, maybe even either way. Who wants to come?

To say that the ways of the Radio Dept are mysterious doesn’t even begin to cover it, as there’s been no word in many months as to the status of their third album Clinging To A Scheme, originally scheduled for a September 2008 release and then pulled. And so we wait. And we wait. The aforementioned bit about Autumn touring implies that it should be finished and out by then, but who knows. It’s not all bleakness for fans of their gorgeous Scandanavian synth-pop, though – they’ve made a complete live recording from last May available to download on their site. It’s not the finest audio quality – it sounds like a fan recording rather than soundboard – but it’s mostly listenable and the set contains a few new songs. There’s also a variety of live material available for download on their website but for whatever reason, some of the best stuff is inaccessible. How Radio Dept typical.

MP3: The Radio Dept – “Freddie and the Trojan Horse”
MP3: The Radio Dept – “The Worst Taste in Music”
MP3: The Radio Dept – “A Window”
MP3: The Radio Dept – “Pulling Our Weight”
MP3: The Radio Dept – “Why Won’t You Talk About It?”
ZIP: The Radio Dept / Live In Lund – May 18, 2008

Clash, Irish Times and Black Book talk to Nina Persson of A Camp. Colonia is out domestically on April 28 and they play the Mod Club on June 1.

Clash and New York Magazine talk to Peter Bjorn & John, whose Living Thing is out next week but streaming at their MySpace. They’re at the Phoenix on April 25.

Stream: Peter Bjorn & John / Living Thing

Pitchfork reports that Norway’s Ida Maria will give her 2008 debut Fortress Around My Heart a North America release on April 14. She was originally supposed to play two SxSW showcases last week but missed them both due to visa issues. She was also supposed to open up the whole of Glasvegas’ North American tour, including the April 3 date at the Mod Club in Toronto. Now she’s only with them as far as the March 31 show in Boston. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was doing her best to avoid me.

Video: Ida Maria – “Oh My God”
Video: Ida Maria – “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked”
Video: Ida Maria – “Stella”

Le Blogotheque features a Take-Away Show with Sigur Ros in a French cafe. Loverly.

Patrick Wolf has released the first video from The Bachelor, out June 1, and if it were a film it’d have a big ‘ol NC-17 rating attached to it. Oh my. Stereogum gets an update from Wolf on how the album is coming along.

Video: Patrick Wolf – “Vulture”

Drowned In Sound meets Doves, whose Kingdom Of Rust is out April 7 and who are at the Kool Haus on June 1.

Filter and The Times have features on White Lies, in town next Tuesday at Lee’s Palace.

CMJ reports that Elvis Costello is suddenly prolific again, with a new country-Americana album in Secret, Profane And Sugarcane set for release on June 2. The last time he walked this stylistic path, we go the sublime King Of America. Can he do it again? If he even comes close, it’ll be a worthy record.

Manic Street Preachers will release the Albini-produced, Edwards-penned Journal For Plague Lovers on May 18. Details at The Quietus.

The new album from The Rumble Strips has a name and release date. Look for Welcome To The Walk Alone on June 8. Details at NME.

The rumour mill has a Metric show at the Mod Club on April 14 with Holy Fuck as support. They said they had something special planned for the April 7 release of Fantasies – I think a little club show would qualify. Will confirm that when I can but in the meantime, watch their new video. And read this interview at Clash.

Video: Metric – “Gimme Sympathy”

French Kicks are at the Horseshoe on April 27, tickets $10.50.

MP3: French Kicks – “Also Ran”

New York state folk duo Gregory & The Hawk have a date at the El Mocambo on May 2. They were recently featured on Bandstand Busking.

BrooklynVegan reports that Jonathan Richman and Vic Chesnutt are hitting the road together this Summer, and that tour includes a June 25 date at The Great Hall in Toronto.

Camera Obscura have announced a North American tour in support of My Maudlin Career, out April 21. The Toronto date finds them at Lee’s Palace on June 27, a considerably smaller venue than their last couple visits, which were to the Opera House and Phoenix. Expect this to sell out super-quick.

Jay Reatard will be at the Mod Club on June 29.

Crystal Castles have a July 25 date at the Sound Academy as part of the TIME Festival.

Due to “personal medical issues”, Passion Pit have cancelled their April 3 date at Lee’s Palace, which in turn was a make-up date for their January 24 date at the Horseshoe, which was cancelled due to visa issues. Their debut Manners is out May 26.