No Talker is the second and latest release from local songstress Ivy Mairi. The album was partially inspired by cellist, composer, and singer Anne Bourne, a long-time influence on Mairi; the songstress also cites Neil Young and British singer Shirley Collins as inspirations. Mairi’s experience growing up in our city on Ward’s Island lends itself to an album that combines blues and jazz with more traditional folk influences.

No stranger to the Toronto scene, Mairi is part of the cast of musicians involved in Bruce Peninsula, and has also lent her voice to Isla Craig and to indie bands like Entire Cities.

No Talker starts off soft and mellow, with Mairi’s voice showing quiet conviction on the first two tracks, “Kenyatta,” and “Just Go.”

On this album, she is joined by backup musicians Lucas Gadke and Michael Brushey, who lend a soulful, blues-y feel to the songs. While bass and drums at times seem sparse, it is interesting to hear more supplemental use of instruments, without them overshadowing the solo feel of the album.

No Talker through its timbre alone advances a narrative, with the calmer, more bucolic early tracks building up to more soulful tunes, as though Mairi is coming out of her shell throughout the course of the album. You hear it in songs like “I Can See You,” where she suddenly busts out—different, deeper, haunting—it is cliched but entirely fitting to describe this as “Adele mashed up with Feist.” (Feel free to assess for yourself by listening to the track above.) The penultimate (and title) track feels very cathartic as a result, and it makes the last track on the album, the quiet “Wintry City,” resonate as a chilling denouement.

No Talker effectively balances more traditional, vocal-driven melodies with seemingly incongruous, technical classical melodic elements. It’s sort of like the pleasant culture shock of taking the ferry across to the Toronto Islands after years in the city—seeing how pretty the landscape is juxtaposed against the Toronto skyline and wondering why you hadn’t thought of going to visit before.

Local alt-country rockers the Wooden Sky‘s latest release, Every Child a Daughter, Every Moon a Sun, is out today on Black Box Recordings. Once again, the band wisely teamed up with producer Howard Bilerman, whose influence lends itself to singer Gavin Gardiner’s stories of urban heartbreak in the guise of traditional country melodies.

Most of the songs on the album adhere to predominantly folk and country influences, although there are nice experimental rock flourishes. The Wooden Sky seem to have caught on to how the basic structure of country songs aren’t always that different from rock songs, and blend the genres well when the tracks start to get louder.

Gardiner’s vocal breaks contrast nicely with a beautiful electric guitar duet in the opener, “City of Light.” We loved the outro to “Bald, Naked, and Red,” and the breakdown during “It Gets Old To Be Alone”—our favourite track on the album. We also liked “I’m Your Man,” the album’s climax track, which reminded us of a Figure 8-era Elliott Smith tune disguised as a mainstream country track. The chilling noisy ending segues bipolar-ly into a reprise of the album’s earlier track, “Angelina,” which resonates more hauntingly the second time around.

While Every Child‘s tunes occasionally veer towards the obvious—an effect of its country roots—the imagery in the lyrics offer a nice counterpoint to the music’s minimalist simplicity. Overall, the album is a worthwhile foray into widening the overlap between rock and country music. We love when the Wooden Sky gets a bit heavier, but appreciate the beauty of Every Child‘s softer songs, too. This is a good album to listen to amidst the stresses of post-reading week schoolwork catchup, or the frustrations of waiting for a streetcar.

The Holiday Crowd are no strangers to the Toronto music scene; Over the Bluffs is the band’s debut release, and they’ve been playing together for two years now. The group’s press release features a striking quote from Alan Cross that reads: “Close your eyes and you’d swear ["Never Speak of it Again"] was a long-lost Smiths track from 1985. It’s quite brilliant, in fact.” We’re not going to argue with Alan Cross; some of the best parts of the Smiths are right here on Bluffs, with delayed vocals, unselfconscious chord-change decisions, and sing-songy guitar licks. The influence of 1980s dream-pop is obviously at play.

But in making the decision to emulate such distinct musical styles, bands risk veering into pastiche territory. Lead singer Imran Haniff seems as though he’s doing a Morrissey impression at points on the album. Nonetheless, he has a beautiful voice, and as the band continues to write music, we hope to hear him expand his horizons. Still, there is obvious talent within the Holiday Crowd, and Morrissey comparisons aside, Over the Bluffs is very catchy. We loved “Tiresome,” “Pennies Found,” and the outro to “Painted Like a Forest.” Dream-pop recently permeated Pitchfork culture through the likes of Wild Nothing. Because of that, this album may see a lot of success. It won’t hurt that the mix is beautiful. It was done mostly by David Hermiston at Inception Studios. Two of the songs were mixed by Alex Bonenfant.

The Holiday Crowd describe their album as a love letter to Scarborough, Ontario. Within the New Wave narrative framework of songs written about hometown ennui, at first it seems a bit of a stretch to think of suburban Toronto cast in the role of an industrial, dreary England town for the sake of some sort of pastoral rejection—but we’ll throw them a bone. It is refreshing to hear a new take on Canadiana, with nary a harmonica in sight.

CORRECTION, February 16, 3:31 PM: Over the Bluffs is The Holiday Crowd’s debut release, not their second, as previously stated. The above has been changed.

Local pop rockers Donlands + Mortimer have slowly built hype for themselves, playing occasional shows over the last few years. There’s no mistake D+M put on a great live show, and yet the group is one of those bands you just ache to hear on a recording: the musicianship of the team is so strong, they’d be any producer’s dream.

While the group has yet to release a full-length album that would satiate our desire to hear the band from the comfort of our homes, this 7-inch will suffice for now. “What You Offer,” and its B-Side, “One Eye,” were made available for free download through the group’s Bandcamp site last week.

The single itself, “What You Offer,” features fun, relatable lyrics, with sharp vocals from Army Girls’ Carmen Elle, who shares lead-vocal duties in the band. Her voice on the track sounds like a more skilled and slightly more syrupy Kim Deal (thanks in part to what we imagine were fantastic acoustics at The Barn Window Studio). The B-side, “One Eye,” is a bit more chilled out, and features vocalist Steven Foster, who also plays drums in the group. The harmonies are flawless; it is a refreshing treat to hear voices soar through notes with such minimal effort.

Donlands + Mortimer, in just two tracks, demonstrate their ability to compose complex chord progressions, lending some love to often under-appreciated brass players through the band’s intricate orchestrations. Both songs are rife with seamless transitions and showcase the obvious musical chops of the band members. With this much talent under their belts, it would be a shame to let Donlands + Mortimer go unnoticed.

Fort York is the kind of band name you wish you thought up with your friends first. According to Fort York’s Bandcamp page mythology, the group was spawned by roommates living on Toronto’s Brunswick Avenue, who constructed a rehearsal space in their house around the same time they picked up a banjo. Feels Like Then is the group’s first release.

The bottom of the group’s Bandcamp page lists the tags “Fleet Foxes” and “Bon Iver.” The album’s first and title track, “Feels Like Then,” is certainly reminiscent of the latter, with currently-trending Bon Iver-ish songwriting tendencies mixed in with a more mainstream melody. We also liked its layered, madrigal outro. Beyond the inclusion of harmonies, the band’s self-comparison to Fleet Foxes falls a bit short. Fort York are less rustic than their Fleet Foxes predecessors; we found the chord progressions hearken a bit closer to earlier Elliott Smith.

It is obvious Fort York are talented songwriters; they seem to be limiting themselves here by self-locating within the Canadiana alt-rock canon. The folk aspect of the music feels forced at times, although still enjoyable; the second track, “When She Was Dead,” is a nice sentimental country tune similar to Cuff the Duke. But the album’s best elements are in the songs which stray from the genre altogether, such as the sixth track, “Sarah,” featuring a chilling keyboard line from Conor Lavelle. The song is reminiscent of early Elton John, and showcases the group’s songwriting potential. Genre reservations aside, all the songs on the album are entertaining, and we imagine Fort York could be a lot of fun to see live. It was also nice to hear the vocals so forward in the mix; credit here goes to expert mixing and mastering from Peter Hamilton at One Fell Swoop Studios, and Ben Somer at Lacquer Channel Mastering.

A great effort for the group’s first release; we look forward to seeing future releases from Fort York—even if just for their excellent band name.

Christopher Stopa, inside Bakerbots Baking

Four days before Christmas, user “americathesn” uploaded an audio track to YouTube under the title “Untitled Bends Era Radiohead Song.” Radiohead fans took heed. They insisted upon the track’s authenticity on sites like Gawker and NME.

Christopher Stopa, a Toronto local, was first forwarded the NME article by a friend who told him to check out the track. At first Stopa thought his iTunes was on, or that the site had to be some sort of prank. He hadn’t thought about the song for years, and he couldn’t believe it was being attributed to Radiohead. “Sit Still,” as the tune was originally titled, was on a demo he’d put together a decade ago with his old band Public. Stopa shared the article on Facebook just before heading off to a family cottage for the holidays, along with a note saying that the song was his.

Stopa’s Facebook post made its way, via a few re-shares, into the hands of CNN‘s Erin Burnett, who covered the story last week. Anyone from the Bloor and Ossington area who watched the CNN segment might have recognized the unmasked songwriter from one of their neighbourhood’s best new places to snack: Bakerbots Baking.

Stopa had tried to make it as a full-time musician, going so far as to move to New York for a few years. He wasn’t successful, and he moved back to Toronto. Last summer, he and his partner Rosanna opened Bakerbots on the east side of Delaware Avenue, north of Bloor Street. Along with its beautiful custom-order cakes and melt-in-your-mouth meringues, the independently owned cafe makes its own ice cream sandwiches, with homemade cookies and fresh ice cream supplied by Ed’s Real Scoop.

Stopa’s not sure who put “Sit Still” (which you can stream, below) up on YouTube, but he suspects whoever did so found a copy of the demo he shopped around while he was in New York, and posted the song by accident. While he admits Radiohead had some influence on the song’s composition, he contends that it hearkens back more to a general ’90s alternative style that was popular at the time. He finds it to be more reminiscent of Jeff Buckley, Travis, and the Hours.

Despite his internet success, Stopa is reluctant to get back into the music game. “I don’t really know the value of this anyway,” he said. “As nice as it is, because I like Radiohead, and on some technical level it means I sang [the song] well, I don’t really want to be known as the person that was mistaken [for] Radiohead. Art is about making something interesting.” Another factor at play is the fact that, upon the introduction of the aforementioned fresh ice cream sandwiches at Bakerbots, sales began booming. Stopa hasn’t had a lot of time to work on his music ever since, even despite the cold weather.

Stopa still performs music as a hobby. “Now I just record an acoustic track and a vocal track for an hour and a half, and then it’s like two o’clock in the morning and I’m tired and have to be back at work at 9 a.m., so I just go home,” he said. “I feel like I’m actually getting something that’s more what I wanted by not working on it as much. So that’s kind of funny.”

Photo by Robin Hatch/Torontoist.

The name Gregory Cochrane may sound familiar to the Toronto comedy crowd: Cochrane has been seen at local nights like Gong the Show, and was a finalist a few years ago in Yuk Yuk’s Great Canadian Laugh Off. Although not his first musical endeavour, valley of dreams sees Gregory Cochrane in a fairly substantial shift from his previous musical foray, the “stoner doom” metal group KEEF.

The release joins the likes of e.e. cummings, and bell hooks in the growing canon of intentionally uncapitalized cultural references, which is necessarily difficult for journalists to copy edit. Unlike these aforementioned predecessors, valley of dreams features easily accessible content and fun, relatable lyrics. before the echo is classic, unabashed ’90s rock, the kind of stuff we imagine Cher Horowitz-era Californian teenagers listening to in a Jeep Wrangler with the flaps rolled up.

The opening track, “quality time,” is reminiscent of Radish-era Ben Kweller; “part of our appeal” sounds a bit like what might happen if Brian Wilson took a stab at grunge music; and “don’t wait” has some new-but-also-old Oasis vibes—like how you wish Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds actually sounded—and ends with a cool Pixies-like rhythm shift. Drummer Ilios Steryannis’ stylings deserve a big shout-out, as they truly solidify before the echo within the alternative rock framework.

Recorded and mastered by Chris Perra at Hostile Studios, Cochrane’s compositions showcase an unselfconscious embrace of ’90s indie rock tendencies. Laced with Pavement, there’s some Halifax in there, too, like a less excitable early Sloan, or Super Friendz with the vocals held back in the mix. You can stream “totally it” above, and stream or download the entire album for free via valley of dreams’ Bandcamp page.

It’s strangely tricky to find information about Etobicoke native Cold Specks, whose debut seven-inch single officially dropped last week via local name-making label Arts and Crafts. Maybe you’ve already heard of her; she’s currently opening up for St. Vincent on a few tour dates, and played with her last week at the Phoenix. Despite hailing from the GTA, it wasn’t until Cold Specks (an alias for Al Spx, which seems like an alias itself) moved to the U.K. that listeners in North America began to hear about her music.

According to the Star‘s profile, Cold Specks was discovered after passing a demo along to a friend, whose brother happened to be producer Jim Anderson (who’s worked with Los Campesinos! and Mark Ronson). The seven-inch was recorded by Anderson at Sub Bubble Recording Studio in London, and since then, Cold Specks has been blowing up up on all the right UK sites, like the Guardian and NME.

The soulful timbre of Specks’ voice on the A-Side, “Holland,” has been rightfully compared to Sister Rosetta Tharpe; we also find she sounds like a bit of a grittier, drunker Stevie Nicks, or a sassy, feminine Win Butler. The B-side, “Old Stepstone,” is sung as a solo a cappella number, and manages to remain captivating the whole time. After a riveting performance of the song on BBC Two’s Later With Jools Holland (the show that launched Adele’s career), it seems like only a matter of time before Kanye uses it as a sample—both these songs are begging to be remixed with a beat underneath.

Just as mainstream listeners in the 1960s weren’t, perhaps, ready for rock ‘n’ roll music until the British invasion of groups like the Beatles cemented the genre in their minds, it seems Toronto wasn’t ready for Cold Specks until she brought her music back to us via the UK. We’re sorry we didn’t hear about Cold Specks earlier, because she’s the type of performer you feel privileged to know about in advance.

Folk rock ensemble the Gertrudes have just released their third album, Till The Morning Shows Her Face To Me, through Apple Crisp Records. The Kingston-based group’s latest release is an engrossing combination of Canadiana and electronic music. Instrumentation includes a mix of traditional folk instruments like the banjo and the fiddle, as well as a cello, a mandolin, and a theremin. The album stands out as a result of this unique instrumentation and clever choices of combinations of instruments and shifting styles. The album is very fun and displays the group’s musical sensibilities through the multitude of genres it explores.

Till The Morning exhibits immense musical versatility. Look no further than the title track for proof: “Derby Girl” starts off sounding like a frenetic Nick Drake, then sounds a bit like a Canadiana Talking Heads with a killer ’90s-alternative-rock chorus, lamenting a breakup with a riot grrl. “Good People” starts up slowly and transitions magically into a completely different ending, like a sonically accelerated Elliott Brood. The social collective element of the band lends a Last Waltz-y feel to tracks like “Carolina.”

Singer Amanda Balsys shines on “Yellow Yard” (streaming above) and “Passage”; her voice is stunning, with a focused, soulful tone. The last track, “Lonely Days,” sung by Annie Clifford, is reminiscent of an early Joni Mitchell single, and it’s a sublime conclusion to the LP. Till The Morning Shows Her Face To Me is relaxing music for an overcast afternoon, like a folk version of the Chemical Brothers. Pick up this album for a fantastic remedy to the winter blues.

Not one, not two, but three Isaiah Mustafas in one shot. Now that's value.

This morning, we visited the Eaton Centre for a two-hour meet-and-greet with former NFL practice squad wide receiver Isaiah Mustafa, best known for his role as “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” in recent Old Spice ads. The photograph opportunity conveniently accompanied the launch of the new Old Spice scent, “Fiji,” samples of which were distributed to those who obliged to have their photo taken and uploaded to the company’s Facebook page.

Just after 11:30 a.m., a (fully clothed) Mustafa showed up at the Old Spice set, which looked like it might belong to a mall Santa’s rogue, porn-addicted brother. Adorned in a “CANADA” scarf likely thrown on by a publicist at the last minute, Mustafa posed for photos on the arm of a white leather chair, next to a gift-wrapped replica of the Venus de Milo and a giant foil-wrapped chocolate Santa, while a chocolate fountain tried its best to erupt on his left. The slogan on displays around the set had notably been changed from “The man your man could smell like” to the phrase “The gift your man could smell like.”

Aside from the scattered turnout of thirty- or forty-something ladies, the lineup consisted primarily of teenaged boys, who appeared to justify the occasion by making fun of their friends: “Hey Adrian! You don’t have to buy deodorant this month! You get some for free!” The best part about these boys were the decisions they made on how to pose for the photos. Some of them avoid the chair altogether, opting to stand and point a self-aware finger at Mustafa. Some sat on the chair, but on the opposite arm, as if to say “My status is equivalent to the Old Spice guy’s” when really, once the photo is uploaded to Facebook, all it will say is “Wearing Old Spice has made my status equivalent to the Old Spice spokesman.” Very clever, Old Spice!

When your CV has “former Constantines frontman” on it, it’s likely that anything you put out as a side project is predestined for Canadian indie success. Shit-tonnes of indie cred aside, Provider, the debut solo foray of Bry Webb, still features all the elements of #1 albums on the last page of Exclaim!, with all the !earshot campus radio listings. For instance, is there a pedal steel? Yes, the instrument is featured prominently (and played expertly by Mike Brooks). Want to hear some wistful lady harmonies? Skip to “Zebras,” the third track on the album. But, you ask, does the album feature bucolic Canadian imagery, reminiscent of Harvest? As Webb sings on “Rivers of Gold” (streaming at right), “I was working in a gold rush city/I was playing in a band.” Check.

All Canadian generalizations aside, the album shows Webb’s massive versatility for songwriting. In the span of one album, his vocals go from the early Springsteen grit, on “Asa” and “Lowlife,” to sounding like a slightly more sentimental Leonard Cohen, on “Zebras” and “Persistent Spirit.” The album was recorded live off the floor, which is not an easy feat, and it adds a certain magical quality to the album. Like the side projects of his fellow ex-bandmates, Webb’s Provider is decidedly slower and more laid-back than anything the Constantines ever released. That said, our favourite track on the album was still “Ex-Punk,” because as nice as the rest of the album sounds, it reminded us of how great Webb sounds with drums underneath.

Take note: if you’re trying to hook up with your crush, turn on an episode of Planet Earth, put it on mute, and start playing this album. Provider is also a suitable replacement for Bon Iver for all your post-coital needs.

Katie Stelmanis of Austra casts her spell at the 2011 Polaris Prize ceremony. Austra is nominated for three Bucky Awards.

In the hierarchy of Canadian award shows, itself a tiny subset of international music-industry award shows, the CBC Bucky Awards fall somewhere close to the bottom, way below the MMVAs, somewhere near the Doras, and probably next to the Edge 102.1 CASBYs. Nevertheless, upon hearing the 2011 nominees had been announced, we rushed to the Radio 3 website, because there’s something special about feeling as though your vote counts in a “reality competition” and something very patriotic about choosing which of seven tracks sounds the “Most Canadian.”

Some nominations are predictable, like Sam Roberts for sexiest artist (come on!), the New Pornographers for best video, and nods for many Polaris-nominated bands. Still, like the massive variety of music broadcasted alongside each other on Radio 3, the Bucky Award nominees showcase CanCon in a way that celebrates the content of all music regardless of genre. Where else will you see Austra nominated in the same category (Best Vocals) as K-os?

Initially, we weren’t sure how Honheehonhee could possibly deserve a nod for Best New Band Name, but then we repeated the name out loud a few times and completely understood. And we had to laugh when the barely Canadian, but perhaps wholly deserving, Duck Sauce was nominated for Best Lyric for the song “Barbra Streisand.”

The full list of nominees, and public voting can be accessed on the Radio 3 website here. Voting for the Buckys is open to the public until November 27 at midnight; winners will be announced in a live broadcast with Grant Lawrence, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on December 7.