Rating: NNNNN
1 MANITOBA START BREAKING MY HEART (Leaf) The friendliest, least
alienating electronic music this side of 4Hero.
2 TWO-MINUTE MIRACLES VOLUME II (Teenage USA) Homespun jangle by the
local pop underground’s producer of choice, Andy Magoffin.
3 HAYDEN SKYSCRAPER NATIONAL PARK (Universal) Recorded on the cheap
in isolation over many, many months, this is the sound of a singer/songwriter
returning to form.
4 MOONSTARR DUPONT (PTR) Broken beats and bossa meltdowns from the
reclusive PTR point-man. Props from Gilles Peterson and Rainer Trüby were well
deserved.
5 THE CONSTANTINES (Three Gut) Not as devastating as their live show,
this debut disc still manages to capture the Guelph soul punks at full
throttle.
6 JANE BUNNETT ALMA DE SANTIAGO (Blue Note) Havana Jane’s shift to
Santiago, Cuba’s spiritual centre of music, gave rise to some of the most
soulful jazz/son shakedowns the saxophonist has managed yet.
7 ROYAL CITY ALONE AT THE MICROPHONE (Three Gut) Creaking country and
a pervading sense of impending doom. Chilling.
8 NAUTILUS TWELVE (Innera) Skull-cracking rhymes spun over what is,
to my knowledge, the first use of the break from the Sesame Street pinball
classic 12.
9 THE SADIES TREMENDOUS EFFORTS (Bloodshot) There was always much
more to the Sadies twang than country, and they’ve let it all hang out on this
aptly named disc.
10 DAN WHITELEY HIGHWAY HOME (independent) Former Heartbreak Hill
mandolinist Whiteley shows why he’s considered one of the country’s finest
pickers.
