Yesterday a severed foot washed up on the western coast of Canada. It was the 5th severed foot to have washed up in the same area in the past year or so. In the article on cnn.com Constable Sharlene Brooks of the Delta Police Department in British Columbia was quoted as saying

“It is a little mysterious, but we don’t know if it is linked to others.

Are you fucking KIDDING me?!?! How many one footed pogo stick looking motherfuckers do they have hopping around Canada?! Is it so many that they don’t know if 5 severed feet washing on to shore in the same spot may not be related because this was a left foot and the others were right feet?!?!

I used to like Canada, but now I realized it’s fucked. If I were a serial killer I would totally move there. “We don’t know if these deaths are related because all 11 of these people were killed with a different size knife to the throat”.

Morons.

Every so often I find myself flipping through CDs in a jaded attempt to fins something, anything, with a little authenticity, originality or…well, something that doesn’t suck. It can be a tough job, actually. If only there were more bands like Surface of Atlantic, who really spoke out to me through the filter-less din of internet music. With softly uttered vocals, droning guitar repetition, swelling keyboards and minimalist electronica underpinning the unassumingly beautiful songs, Surface of Atlantic can easily knock the copy of Coldplay’s Parachutes or Death Cab’s Transatlanticism out of any sweater-wearing dorm rat’s CD changer. The aesthetic is decidedly mellow, but this is not to say the music lacks the right amount of rhythm to push it along at a simmering mid-tempo. Tracing the musical genealogy of this Montreal quintet back, you might find albums by Slowdive, Sigur Ros, Postal Service or The Poor Rich Ones populating their catalogs. This is truly noteworthy, and we suggest you stop what you’re doing and look into this majestic stuff.

Their latest LP, Ephemeral as we Speak, is available now.

Buy it on iTunes here.

Check out Surface of Atlantic’s really well put together Official Web Site for more up to the minute details (or, you know, look at their MySpace….)

Instrumentation
Dave Douville: vox+guit
Marco Gervais: guitar
Martin Poisson: bass
Francois Graham: Piano/keys
Fred Bujo : Drums

Discography
Ephemeral as we Speak LP - 2007
Fairmount Avenue EP - 2006

I am trying not to just phone this one in, because this band hails from Quebec, and if there’s anything more fierce and brutal than a Canadian, it’s a French-Canadian, and I don’t want these guys to track me down and beat the living end out of me. Luckily, by the sound of their jangle-pop, I think I can take them. Fuck it, I’m just phoning this one in then.

After The Weather has some pretty definite Britpop/psychedelic and frenetic Pacific Northwest influences, a not unpleasantly awkward-voiced singer and a shit ton of energy. I’m hearing Television vs. Hot Hot Heat, debating over whether The Arcade Fire holds up after repeated listens. Their name that is more clever upon further inspection (i.e., reading their bio): “After The Weather is a phrase that has no meaning without the context of television news.” Nice.

I would totally do recreational drugs with these guys if one of my bands played a show with them. Then we’d talk about how shamefully underrated the Stone Roses were, how the newer Digitech Whammy pedals aren’t as cool as the old ones, then we’d go out and try and pick up girls and probably fail. Shit, when you all coming to California? I just mapped out our evening.

Instrumentation
Matthew Hills - Vocals, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Rob Helsten - Bass Guitar, Vocals
Trevor Zaavedra - Drums

Discography
Self Titled EP - After The Weather

You can check them out on their space HERE.

And if you’re in the Montreal, Quebec area, check them out live:

Apr 5 2008 10:00P Bistro de Paris Montréal, Quebec
Apr 18 2008 8:00P Barfly Montreal, Quebec
May 2 2008 8:00P 3 Minots Montreal, Quebec
May 9 2008 9:00P Pub Saint-Ciboire Montreal, Quebec
May 20 2008 8:00P Bar St. Laurent 2 Montreal, Quebec
Jun 15 2008 8:00P Café Chaos Montreal, Quebec

Whatever Happened to Corduroy? Good question. I still have a pair of cords in my closet - dark blue, with pleats. The pleats kinda bum me out and since I can’t sew I have no idea how to get rid of them. Still they’re comfy as hell. Speaking of comfy feelings, listening to Toronto’s Whatever Happened to Corduroy? is like wearing those pants, only without the pleats. If your love of power-pop /melodic alt-rock makes you dress in loud, ugly all-over prints that would have made 1992-era MC Hammer nod in approval, and occasionally cut yourself “just to feel something,” you will thank me for this link. Their EP is available for sale here.

Ontario rock fans take note of theri upcoming shows, which I have posted after the jump. (more…)

Yeah, you read right. Three severed human feet, all the same size, all wearing sneakers, all still unidentified and of unknown origins have washed up on Canada’s western Gulf Islands over the last 6 months:

The standing mystery began in August 2007 when a severed foot in a white and blue runner was discovered washed ashore on the beaches of Jedidiah Island in the Georgia Straight between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Authorities speculated it might have been lost in a boat propeller accident, due to foul play, or a hoax. Six days later, a second right foot in a black and white sneaker appeared on nearby Gabriola Island. The most recent find was on February 8, when a third right foot washed up on the east side of Valdes Island.

Speculated it might be a “hoax”? Are Canadian’s really that badass that, when they’re bored as fuck, they track down some human feet to plant on beaches, purely for the lulz? Yet another reason the move to Canada.

This has been one of the busiest weeks of my life, and being in the snow day in and day out doesn’t help all that much. I have made some real life realizations, such as; Cleveland is a dump, the Super Bowl is a lot more entertaining when it’s spent with friends, is catered and a keg of Coors light is brought into the situation, kids from Canada have funny accents, I never want to live in a snowy city, kids in Omaha are insane and they love to throw boxer briefs on stage, Lawrence, Kansas is one my most favorite places ever, days off are a very nice thing to have every once in a while. I’ll elaborate on a few of the days.

Cleveland, Ohio is not a nice town; I was constantly in fear of being robbed, beat up, raped or mocked for being white the entire time I was not inside the bus or the venue. But the show was crazy, and it marked the first sell out crowd of the tour. Our buddy, and Marilyn Manson drum tech, cabbed over to our show after the MM show was over, that’s a crazy job to have.

Madison, Wisconsin is a beautiful city, especially in the winter. I guess I take back my earlier comment about not wanting to live in a snowy city, because I would live in Madison in a second, but nowhere else with snow. This show marked the smallest crowd I’ve ever seen a band, any size, play to in years, but the kids that were there were great, they made the night very enjoyable.

St. Paul, Minnesota is town full of offices, and then if you’re lucky enough to work in one of these offices you can conveniently live a block away in your own condo, seems great to me, why wouldn’t you want to spend all your time in a three block radius of St. Paul? I got yelled at by the bartender for smoking inside, I don’t know all the laws they pass there, and who really cares? Around three in the morning we get a knock on the bus door, someone opens it up and lets this girl in, who, by the way, had the biggest fake boobs I’ve ever seen in person. She was crying some story to us about how her friends left her behind and she needed to use a phone to call a cab, all while she’s kicking off her shoes and jacket and making herself comfortable. We called her a cab which she decided wasn’t good enough for her once it arrived. She eventually left after getting ridiculed by half of the bus occupants for a good 45 minutes.

Omaha, Nebraska should have more than two venues considering it has so many bands. Tonight’s show was another sell out and was painfully hot inside. Matt purchased an air horn the night before which was used this night to startle kids outside our bus. I’ve never seen so many pissed off emo kids. One thing I don’t get is why the hell would you drive out of town to see a band and not purchase tickets beforehand? The venue had to turn away a ton of kids, but instead of leaving they decided to bug me all night and offer to “help” me with any task I wanted as long as they could get in. It may not sound that bad, but it is.

Lawrence, Kansas is a wonderful town, full of normal people. I’ve never been to the venue we played at and at first it looked a little sketchy beings that they show movies upstairs on certain days, but it was great. I got to see some friends I haven’t seen in a while and take in some great conversations at the local bars. I thought to myself I could live in Lawrence, and then I realized Chico is just the same, so I think that plan is nixed.

Salt Lake City, Utah is always a fun time. The show was sold out, the crowd was amazing, I was proposed to by a 17 year old during line check; I had to turn her down because her boyfriend didn’t like the idea. After our record breaking load out we threw a party for all the bands after the show, the promoter’s gave us a bunch of free liquor and beer and everyone got to know each other beyond the daily “hi, how’s it going” kind of thing. We have a day off tomorrow and then we’re headed to the west coast for what will most likely be the longest ten days ever.

Cleveland, OH

Deathtrap

Madison

As Cities Burn, the best band ever

Air Hornness

St. Paul, MN

Pierce the Veil