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At the halfway point in the last month of summer, here’s a mix of my personal summer soundtrack, or at the least selections from it. Some of the list is obvious, some isn’t; but if there’s one thread through the majority of the tracks, it’s vocals – prominence of and excellence therein. There’s also one instrumental track, but that’s more about my current love affair with the guitar than anything.

GRIZZLY BEAR – TWO WEEKS

When it came out in June, Grizzly Bear’s Veckatimest debuted in the Billboard Top 10. Deal with that for a minute. There are always mixed feelings when an indie band breaks through, and it doesn’t really matter how we feel, because nothing will change the fact that the piano chord riff rules and the vocals that harken back to ’60s pop are amazing.

Download “Two Weeks” [MP3]

MIRAH – GENEROSITY

This song is not perfect to my ears. It has me at the beginning but kind of meanders as it continues and loses me, but not to an extent where I can’t still enjoy the soaring strings and aching precision of Mirah Zeitlyn’s voice.

Download “Generosity” [MP3]

NOUVELLE VAGUE – THE AMERICAN

This Simple Minds cover is fantastic. Dirty acoustic guitar and incredible vocals once again prove that this pop project is impossible to ignore.

Dowload “The American” [MP3}

DIRTY PROJECTORS - STILLNESS IS THE MOVE

I'm a sucker for vocals and that's where this group ultimately excels. This song closed their set when they opened for TV on the Radio in May, and I liked it a lot for the same reasons others hated it - the invocation of Mariah Carey-esque vocals. I don't know if you could call me an all-out MC fan, but I certainly do enjoy her from time to time and honestly, listening to this song makes me dream about a situation in which la MC would step away from the auto-tuner and get back to her vocal acrobatic roots.

Download "Stillness is the Move" [MP3]

ZWICKER – WHO YOU ARE (FEAT. HEIDI HAPPY)

From their all-in-all wonderful disc Songs of Lucid Dreamers, Swiss duo Zwicker did well in recruiting Heidi Happy for vocals on two tracks, including this one. Nice, nice, very nice!

Download “Who You Are” [MP3]

CHIC GAMINE – SHAKE OFF YOUR WORRIES

I think I’ve been taking for granted just how enormously talented this quartet is. Four vocalists, one drummer, and a focus and pop precision that the band’s forerunner, Madrigaia, seemed to lack at times. At any rate, this band is much cooler than Madrigaia, and this track is something you should listen to.

Download “Shake Off Your Worries” [MP3]

GENTLEMAN REG – WE’RE IN A THUNDERSTORM

This might make it onto the list for its name alone, because it’s an excellent descriptor for the summer we’ve been having here in Winnipeg. Rain, rain, all the time. And the relentless, disco-y acoustic flavour of this track is good for a sunny day or a rainy one.

Download “We’re in a Thunderstorm” [MP3]

INGRID GATIN – TIN HEART

If I were the sort who made predictions about up-and-comers and other esoteric concepts with regard to the music scene and the local one in particular, I’d definitely point to Ingrid Gatin. That’s why I profiled her for Stylus Magazine this month; that’s why I link you now to this track, which lacks polish but makes up for it with wonderful vocals and harmonies.

Download “Tin Heart” [MP3]

VOLCANOLESS IN CANADA – LONDON IN LOVE (THE BIRD’S NEST)

This track is one of my favourite discoveries of the summer, largely because I wouldn’t have found it at all if I hadn’t been corresponding with the folks at the Brandon Music and Art Festival, where this Saskatoon band performed. Once again, what really takes this track over the top are the vocals. I couldn’t resist making this the soundtrack to my July Video Scrapbook, where it also triggered the obsession of my friend Damian, who was curious when he saw me refer to it as “Prairie folk-rock,” which he equated with Spirit of the West. And to be fair, the first several bars of the song are a poor advertisement for what follows. But then Mitch Lysak starts to legitimately wail, his soaring vocals flying over some compelling guitar rhythms and when he sings, “Your face tonight, in Canada; oh, Canada,” you’re all in.

Download “London in Love” [MP3]

YEARS – ARE YOU UNLOVED

Years is the solo project of Do Make Say Think’s Ohad Benchetrit. It reminds me a lot of early Do Make stuff, but even less muddied by noise and orchestral stuff. At its heart, it’s engaging, beautiful guitar music.

Download “Are You Unloved” [for free at Years' MySpace]

Cross-posted to The Book of Right-On

It’s a Saturday in August, and I’m at home, messing around on the computer and putting off a de-cluttering expedition in my own apartment. To be fair, it’s not as though the weather really allows for anything more exciting or seasonally-appropriate. It’s cloudy and chilly again, though at least it’s not actually raining right now as it was yesterday (and has been frequently in recent weeks).

My tolerance level for clutter is high; in fact, I prefer and even require a good amount of visual stimulation to stoke my creativity, so I have a lot of art and tchotchkes around me. But a combination of factors has led to a level beyond even my capability to handle, so it’s time to take care of business. And I have done — last weekend, I came home from a friend’s cottage early and spent Sunday evening and the Monday of the long weekend emptying my main storage closet and sorting out some stuff to get rid of. The key problem here is craft supplies. Some would say I have “too many”; I say I have what I need. I need to have a collection of supplies that includes a wide variety of things, including the following: feathers, beads, glue guns, leatherworking supplies (you never know), paper, hole punches, glitter paint, regular paint, lace, ribbon, and more, in addition to the essentials of yarn and fabrics. So I’m not giving up my assortment of miscellany (it allows me to host costume preparation parties like the one I had on the occasion of Art’s Birthday back in January).

However, I do realize that I need to ditch the yarn I’m not going to use — specifically, the yarn that was originally obtained curbside or at thrift stores or for free, primarily acrylics, of course. I’ve already winnowed down to two Rubbermaid totes: one for (good) acrylics, one for natural fibers.

As for the fabric — well, I came up with a solution for that as well. It’s called “Mom’s House.” She wasn’t happy about it, but even she recognized the wisdom of me keeping my fabric at her place, because I tend to do my most serious sewing there. I decamp for a weekend and work steadily on her superior sewing machine, superior cutting mat, and superior workspace in general. I’d rather save my projects for trips to Mom’s instead of taking up my living space with temporary setups (a portable table for the machine, the coffeetable covered by my [old, cracked] cutting mat, etc.).

I’ve still got a lot of work to do (above: an aerial view of the aforementioned coffeetable), but I’m feeling confident it can be achieved. Also, I have COMPLETELY decluttered one corner of my living room, and let me tell you, looking over at it is quite the encouragement.

I haven’t posted in awhile because July got seriously out of hand. In the sense that I had to work way too much and on top of that I got sick. So I had little time for extras, and the video scrapbook is also on the light side. If you’re wondering, as a Winnipegger, where the Folk and Fringe Fest footage is, well, I can explain. I missed Folk Fest this year due to the wedding you see in the video, and I got sick during Fringe. It wasn’t my most thrilling month ever (hours spent at computers doesn’t make for gripping footage, and frankly neither does the buckets of rain we had). But this video does have: pretty people, pink balloons, fireworks, chocolate cake, sidewalk chalk, road trips, babies, flowers, water towers, and candy.

Another exciting development is that the soundtrack has diverted from its usual hipster Brooklyn origin to something closer to home — Saskatoon’s Volcanoless in Canada. Sometimes I just like the sound of a good prairie rock band with a killer singer.