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2003
 Terri Clark - Pain to Kill2003 | Administrator | Saturday, 29 August 2009 Look out, Shania. Although Clark’s been around the block, she’s come up with a stronger collection of no-nonsense, kick-ass country songs than... READMORE |
 Harry Manx and Kevin Breit - Jubilee2003 | Administrator | Saturday, 29 August 2009 Born on the Isle of Man now living on B.C.’s Saltspring Island, Manx draws rich, Ry Cooder-like atmospherics from his laptop and... READMORE |
 Various artists - The Now Sound of Brazil2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Brazilian music, full of sensuous voices and stirring rhythms, may be the sexiest sound around. The languid style fits easily with lounge... READMORE |
 Bob Log III - Log Bomb2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 One-man band Bob Log III comes across like a creative loose cannon, firing off in so many directions—back-porch blues, trailer-trash boogie and... READMORE |
 Kasse Mady Diabaté - Kassi Kasse2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 It is said that jalis, the hereditary musicians of West Africa also known as griots, are like walking libraries because they carry... READMORE |
 Lou Reed - The Raven2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Why issue a two-CD set based on horror author Edgar Allan Poe? “Obsessions, paranoia, willful acts of self destruction surround us constantly,”... READMORE |
 Pet Shop Boys - Disco 32003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 They’ve dabbled in Latin music, remakes of The Village People—even a gay musical on London’s West End. But Pet Shop Boys’ Neil... READMORE |
 Lyle Lovett - Smile2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Although the sad-faced Texas singer-songwriter with the Eraserhead hair started out with his heart in country, his style has grown increasingly eclectic... READMORE |
 Various artists - We’re a Happy Family: A Tribute to the Ramones2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 When Joey Ramone died in 2001, there was such an outpouring of nostalgia that it seemed the entire music world had been... READMORE |
 Massive Attack - 100th Window2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Bristol's trip-hop pioneers have much to live up to after Mezzanine, which became one of the most ubiquitous albums of the late... READMORE |
 Cinder - Break Your Silence2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Like an angry Everglade croc, hard-rocking Cinder has roared out of the Florida swamps to threaten the safety of innocents everywhere. Producer... READMORE |
 Jojo Hermann - Defector2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Hermann is the keyboardist for Widespread Panic, one of the many popular neo-hippie jam bands, like Phish and Blues Traveller, to have... READMORE |
 Eleni Mandell - Country for True Lovers2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 In the past, Mandell has mixed Rickie Lee Jones bohemia with Lotte Lenya torchiness. Now the Los Angeles singer has added a... READMORE |
 Kenny Brown - Stingray2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 A student of Johnny Woods and Mississippi Fred McDowell and sideman to R.L. Burnside, guitarist Kenny Brown alternates between acoustic and electric... READMORE |
 The Datsuns - The Datsuns2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 While most of the garage-rock mania has centered on Sweden and America, this helter-skelter outfit is part of a growing contingent from... READMORE |
 Jacky Terrasson - Smile2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 One of the most inventive pianists working in jazz today, Terrasson has released six distinctive albums of classic and contemporary standards. Here,... READMORE |
 The (International) Noise Conspiracy - Bigger Cages, Longer Chains2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Although less prominent than The Hives or Soundtrack of Our Lives, T(I)NC lead the political vanguard of the Swedish rock invasion. Displaying... READMORE |
 Ry Cooder & Manuel Galbán - Mambo Sinuendo2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Fans of Cooder’s slinky, cinematic style will rejoice at his latest Cuban collaboration. Unlike Buena Vista Social Club, in which Cooder (rightfully)... READMORE |
 Solange Knowles - Solo Star2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Sixteen-year-old Solange Knowles hopes to follow in the footsteps of her big sister, Beyoncé, who fronts female r&b hitmakers Destiny’s Child and... READMORE |
 ScoLoHoFo - Oh!2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 An all-star jazz collective made up of guitarist John Scofield, saxophonist Joe Lovano, bassist Dave Holland and drummer Al Foster, ScoLoHoFo has... READMORE |
 Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Nocturama2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 With his penchant for romantic gloom, Cave has often drawn comparisons to Leonard Cohen. But where the Aussie goth balladeer differs from... READMORE |
 Stefon Harris - The Grand Unification Theory2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 He’s played with Cassandra Wilson and Steve Coleman and was voted Best New Talent by Jazziz magazine. After releasing an impressively strong... READMORE |
 The Music - The Music2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The latest buzz band to emerge from the Old Sod, this Leeds quartet with the stunningly pretentious name owes a stadium-size debt... READMORE |
 Appleton - Everything's Eventual2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Canadian-born sisters Nicole and Natalie Appleton know all about celebrity. As former members of Spice Girl wannabes All Saints, the Appletons saw... READMORE |
 The Skydiggers - Bittersweet Harmony2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Country-folk rockers The Skydiggers have always toiled in the shadows of their buddies in Blue Rodeo. But with their Buffalo Springfield vocals... READMORE |
 Ben Harper - Diamonds on the Inside2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 When he mixes high-powered rock and gentle ballads, Harper sounds like a strange hybrid of Lenny Kravitz and Tracy Chapman. Fortunately, the... READMORE |
 The Clash - The Essential Clash2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The loss of Joe Strummer launched the sort of revival that he despised—and tried to avoid, with his continual rejection of reunion... READMORE |
 Tangiers - Hot New Spirits2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Toronto’s answer to The Strokes. Guitarist Yuri Didrichsons and bassist James Sayce paid their dues with local garage gods The Deadly Snakes,... READMORE |
 The Be Good Tanyas - Chinatown2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Ex-treeplanters from Nelson, B.C., the Tanyas revel in old-timey music, with Samantha Parton, Frazey Ford and Trish Klein mixing haunting harmonies with... READMORE |
 Ashley MacIsaac - Ashley MacIsaac2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 MacIsaac’s roller-coaster ride has taken him from the heights of celebrity (collaborations with composer Phillip Glass and Talking Head David Byrne) to... READMORE |
 Ibrahim Ferrer - Buenos Hermanos2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 One of the great discoveries of Cuba’s Buena Vista Social Club, the septuagenarian Ferrer shines on his second solo album. Full of... READMORE |
 Lucy Woodward - While You Can2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 If you believe the hype, this 25-year-old English-born, New York-raised singer is pop’s new princess and a challenger to Avril Lavigne’s throne.... READMORE |
 The Hidden Cameras - The Smell of Our Own2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 They call their sound “gay folk church music” and it’s an apt description: with leader Joel Gibb’s homo-erotic lyrics backed by heavenly,... READMORE |
 CANO - The Best of CANO2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Francophone hippies from Sudbury, CANO (Coopérative des Artistes du Nouvel-Ontario) were Canrock pioneers. Like Quebec’s Beau Dommage or Stratford, Ont.’s Perth County... READMORE |
 Afro Celts - Seed2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Having dropped “Sound System” from the name, the U.K.-based worldbeat group now fancies itself more of a band than a collective. Still,... READMORE |
 Rosanne Cash - Rules of Travel2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The Man in Black’s daughter is back with her first studio album in a decade—and it’s a tour de force. Featuring eight... READMORE |
 Kazzer - Go for Broke2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Hamilton, Ont., which spawned Canrock pioneers Crowbar and ethereal producer Daniel Lanois, is now also responsible for Kazzer, hip-hop’s latest Great White... READMORE |
 The D4 - 6Twenty2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Like The Datsuns, The D4 is part of a growing garage-rock contingent from New Zealand. Both bands play loud and fast, with... READMORE |
 George Thorogood - Ride Til I Die2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Mr. Bad to the Bone hasn’t done anything good for years. The blues-rock guitarist is often dismissed by blues purists for his... READMORE |
 Lisa Marie Presley - To Whom It May Concern2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 As the daughter of the King of Rock ’n’ Roll and the former wife of the self-proclaimed King of Pop (a.k.a. Wacko... READMORE |
 The Dears - No Cities Left2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Montreal’s pop-noir orchestra deals in arty epics about the life’s warp and woof. Like Hawksley Workman, chief Dear Murray Lightburn favors panoramic... READMORE |
 The White Stripes - Elephant2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Everything about the Stripes is delicious, from their playful peppermint-candy motif and the clever media prank about Jack and Meg White being... READMORE |
 The Yardbirds - Birdland2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Any band that had three guitar gods—namely Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page—pass through its ranks is bound to enjoy mythological... READMORE |
 Lucinda Williams - World Without Tears2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 With the crackling sound of Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, Lucinda Williams took a stranglehold on yearning vocals. That big ache... READMORE |
 Russell Crowe & 30 Odd Foot of Grunts - Other Ways of Speaking2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Russell Crowe has drawn plenty of skeptics with this oddly named group, although he actually started making music with them long before... READMORE |
 Tony Allen - Home Cooking2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Nigerian master drummer Tony Allen was the rhythmic power behind Afrobeat king Fela Kuti’s throne—the bandleader needed four drummers to replace him... READMORE |
 Ziggy Marley - Dragonfly2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 On his solo debut, the son of Bob exchanges his brothers and sisters (a.k.a. the Melody Makers) for such heavyweights as guitarist... READMORE |
 Evan Dando - Baby I’m Bored2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The Lemonheads were alt-rock’s melodic answer to Nirvana and Evan Dando was a poppier Kurt Cobain. Inspired by Gram Parsons and blessed... READMORE |
 Madonna - American Life2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The material mum in cammo? You know the anti-war movement has momentum when la Madonna appears as a grenade-throwing revolutionary in her... READMORE |
 Maria McKee - High Dive2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 A product of the Los Angeles scene, Maria McKee is best known as the leader of Lone Justice, a short-lived country-rock band... READMORE |
 Kinnie Starr - Sun Again2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 A trip-hoppy poet who mixes rap and rock with spoken word and jazzy grooves, Vancouver’s Kinnie Starr is overdue for a major... READMORE |
 LiveonRelease - Goes on a Fieldtrip2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Baby Bifs, the four teenage girls in LiveonRelease are indebted to their den mother, Vancouver punk queen Bif Naked. At 10, Brittin... READMORE |
 Blur - Think Tank2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Remember the Battle of Britpop, when Blur and Oasis slugged it out for chart supremacy? Well, apart from the ubiquity of “Song... READMORE |
 Brendan Benson - Lapalco2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 His debut album, 1996’s One Mississippi, was hailed by Esquire magazine as among “the greatest overlooked pop masterpieces of the decade.” So... READMORE |
 The Thorns - The Thorns2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 With shades of The Eagles and Crosby, Stills & Nash, the Thorns brings together three talented singer-songwriters—Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge and Shawn... READMORE |
 Gino Vannelli - Canto2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The quintessential Italian stallion, Gino Vannelli was Canada’s hairy-chested prince of disco and synth-rock during the 1970s. After a religious awakening in... READMORE |
 Richard Thompson - The Old Kit Bag2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Like Canada’s Bruce Cockburn, England’s Richard Thompson is a fretboard genius and a gifted songwriter who enjoys more acclaim than fame. Thompson’s... READMORE |
 Sam Roberts - We Were Born in a Flame2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Montreal’s Sam Roberts is already a Canrock success story: his six-song EP, The Inhuman Condition, spawned three hit singles with “Brother Down,”... READMORE |
 The RH Factor - Hard Groove2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Like a hip scientist, Roy Hargrove mixes jazz and funk with soul and hip hop on this experimental, 14-track collection. The trumpeter,... READMORE |
 Shocore - Evilution2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Vancouver’s Shocore are hard-core party animals. With scary vocals, screaming guitars and thundering percussion, Shocore earned a reputation as a Limp Bizkit-style... READMORE |
 Steely Dan - Everything Must Go2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Quizzical looks greeted Steely Dan’s win over Eminem and Radiohead for Album of the Year at the 2001 Grammys. After all, it... READMORE |
 Pat Metheny - One Quiet Night2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The celebrated U.S. jazz guitarist delivers something unique: an entire album with a single acoustic guitar—no overdubs or extra parts. Using what... READMORE |
 Less than Jake - Anthem2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Veterans of numerous Vans Warped tours (they’re on again this summer), these dudes from Gainesville, Florida are both prolific and melodic—qualities that... READMORE |
 Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos - The Secret Sun2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Tied to the Norah Jones juggernaut, Harris—who wrote five songs on her Grammy-sweeping Come Away with Me, including the massive hit “Don’t... READMORE |
 Lizz Wright - Salt2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 In the wake of Norah Jones’ chart-topping, jazz labels are seeking singers with greater crossover potential. Wright, who blends r&b, folk and... READMORE |
 Rooney - Rooney2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Tuneful pop-rock is what this five-piece band from Los Angeles peddles. They’ve opened for Weezer and the Strokes and drawn comparisons to... READMORE |
 Lillix - Falling Uphill2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Could “It’s About Time” be the next “Complicated”? That’s what Madonna’s label and Nickelback’s lawyer are banking on, positioning Lillix as an... READMORE |
 Gordon Downie - Battle of the Nudes2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 That Downie’s first poetry book, Coke Machine Glow, outsold published works by such CanLit icons as Leonard Cohen can be explained by... READMORE |
 Sugar Ray - In the Pursuit of Leisure2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Ever since “Fly” flew up the charts, Sugar Ray has been known for infectious, sun-kissed pop. Although the California group started with... READMORE |
 Train - My Private Nation2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 An ability to mimic classic rock initially sent Train rolling down the tracks. The quintet drew comparisons to Elton John with the... READMORE |
 Radiohead - Hail to the Thief2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The title, taken from a slogan used at anti-George Bush rallies, reveals the bias of numerous protest songs, from the Orwellian nightmare... READMORE |
 Lara St. John - Re: Bach2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The music of Johann Sebastian Bach has always possessed a wonderful elasticity—check out Wendy Carlos’ Moog synthesized Switched on Bach. Here, violinist... READMORE |
 Play - Replay2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The Swedish Invasion has landed, bringing top garage-rock bands like The Hives and the (International) Noise Conspiracy. Unfortunately, Swedish pop groups are... READMORE |
 Grandaddy - Sumday2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Often compared to Pavement because its members also hail from northern California and favour a lo-fi approach, indie-rockers Grandaddy have a knack... READMORE |
 Revis - Places for Breathing2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 What hell hath Pearl Jam wrought? Post-grunge bands keep spawning and mutating with alarming frequency. First there was the late ’90s wave... READMORE |
 EastMountainSouth - EastMountainSouth2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 Kat Maslich and Peter Adams mix traditional Appalachian sounds with modern pop sensibilities, making the Deep South duo a sure hit with... READMORE |
 Shirley Horn - May the Music Never End2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 A late jazz bloomer, vocalist-pianist Horn first rose to prominence in her 50s, although she had been championed much earlier by Miles... READMORE |
 Liz Phair - Liz Phair2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 She burst onto the scene flaunting her liberated self with Exile in Guyville. Although she’s now married and become a mother, the... READMORE |
 Nina Simone - Four Women: The Nina Simone Philips Recordings2003 | Administrator | Thursday, 8 July 2010 The High Priestess of Soul gets the reissue treatment she deserves with this handsome four-CD set, featuring music recorded from 1964-66. Simone... READMORE |
 The Beach Boys - Sounds of Summer: The Very Best of the Beach Boys2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 With 30 Top 40 hits, including 13 Top 10s and four number ones, this amounts to the California pop group’s equivalent of... READMORE |
 R.L. Burnside - Early Recordings2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 If the Beach Boys conjure up visions of surfing, California girls and a woody on the beach, R.L. Burnside’s buzzing, down-home blues... READMORE |
 54-40 - Goodbye Flatland2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Vancouver’s 54-40 proves they’ve lost none of the feistiness or melodic strengths that characterized much of the band’s best work in the... READMORE |
 Jay Farrar - Terroir Blues2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Farrar is one of the godfathers of alt-country, having forged a fusion of punk and country with Jeff Tweedy in Uncle Tulepo... READMORE |
 Blackie & the Rodeo Kings - BARK2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 A roots-rock supergroup, featuring Stephen Fearing, Colin Linden and Tom Wilson, BARK was formed initially as a Willie P. Bennett tribute band.... READMORE |
 Michelle Branch - Hotel Paper2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The 19-year-old Arizona native has emerged as one of the few teen sensations with real songwriting chops. Channeling inspiration from older label... READMORE |
 Luther Wright & the Wrongs - Guitar Pickin’ Martyrs2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Ex-members of Weeping Tile, the Kingston, Ont. band that spawned the wondrous Sarah Harmer, LW &TW defied the odds and made a... READMORE |
 Boy - Boy2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Boasting the sort of left-of-centre, slightly rococo balladry of Rufus Wainwright or Hawksley Workman, Boy (a.k.a. Stephen Noel Kozmeniuk) is a wonder... READMORE |
 The Mars Volta - De-Loused in the Comatorium2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Fast and furious, At the Drive-In caused a stir with time-shifting punk-rock numbers like “One Armed Scissor.” From the ashes of that... READMORE |
 Susan Aglukark - Big Feeling2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 It’s been easy to give this Inuit singer-songwriter short shrift, lumping her in with easy listening, CBC-supported stars like Rita MacNeil. While... READMORE |
 Sloan - Action Pact2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The worst you could say about Sloan is that the group’s four members—who all write songs and take turns at lead vocals—are... READMORE |
 The Dandy Warhols - Welcome to the Monkey House2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Up to now, the Portland, Ore. poseurs have reveled in their Velvet Underground affectations, adopting psychedelic flourishes and even flaunting a song... READMORE |
 Aaron Neville - Nature Boy: The Standards Album2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Rod Stewart’s done it. So, too, has Bryan Ferry. So it’s not surprising that the angel-voiced former dockworker from New Orleans should... READMORE |
 Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Take Them On, On Your Own2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 It’s no wonder that Oasis’ Noel Gallagher once wanted to sign BRMC to his own Brother Records label. Much of the California... READMORE |
 The Ravonettes - Chain Gang of Love2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The Danish duo of Sharin Foo and Sune Rose Wagner do for the ’60s girl group sound what the White Stripes’ Jack... READMORE |
 Jimmy Rankin - Handmade2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 As a member of the Rankin Family, Jimmy sang his way into Canadian hearts and homes with original Maritime songs and his... READMORE |
 Calvin Richardson - 2:35 p.m.2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Richardson claims to worship at the altar of Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye. And certainly “Keep on Pushin’,” the opening... READMORE |
 Chemical Brothers - Singles 93-032003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 With jackhammer beats, dizzying breakdowns and wild effects, the Manchester electronica duo succeeded in crossing over into rock’s mainstream. Their “Block Rockin’... READMORE |
 Frank Black & the Catholics - Show Me Your Tears2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The album’s title and songs called “Horrible Day,” “This Old Heartache” and “When Will Happiness Find Me Again” leave no doubt about... READMORE |
 David Usher - Hallucinations2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 There’s obviously an audience for Usher’s brand of oh-so-sensitive pop: his solo albums, Little Songs and Morning Orbit have gone gold and... READMORE |
 Various artists - Remembering Patsy Cline2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Tribute albums bring out the best and the worst in their participants. The most successful contributors pay homage while remaining true to... READMORE |
 Jann Arden - Love is the Only Soldier2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Arden’s songs are so deeply woven into our cultural fabric that it’s almost unpatriotic to criticize them—not that there’s much reason to.... READMORE |
 Dakona - Perfect Change2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 For its major label debut, Dakona chose to work with producer Arnold Lanni, best known for his work with Toronto’s Our Lady... READMORE |
 Alexandra Slate - Edge of the Girl2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 At 21, Toronto’s Slate comes across like a wannabe Chrissie Hynde, or at least a tougher Sarah McLachlan. Her bio says she... READMORE |
 Buck 65 - Talkin’ Honky Blues2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The “hick from Mount Uniacke” in Nova Scotia returns with another collection of unapologetically nerdy and totally listenable backwoods hip-hop. Whether rapping... READMORE |
 Elvis Costello - North2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Are Diana Krall and Elvis Costello morphing into each other? While Krall inches further into pop, her future hubby has plunged headlong... READMORE |
 Matt Dusk - Two Shots2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 A graduate of Toronto’s St. Michael’s Choir School, which produced such hit vocal groups as the Diamonds and the Four Lads, the... READMORE |
 Emmylou Harris - Stumble into Grace2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Like fine acoustic instruments, Harris’s voice keeps improving with age. Now 56, the silver-haired singer recently hit her prime with the Grammy-winning... READMORE |
 Rufus Wainwright - Want One2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 “Oh what a world my parents gave me,” he sings on the opening track, which features the theme from Ravel’s “Bolero,” no... READMORE |
 Various artists - The Guitar and the Gun2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Recorded in the Ghanaian countryside during a military coup, this collection of African gospel and rootsy highlife music sounds even fresher now... READMORE |
 The Sattalites - Reggaefication2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Canada’s reggae veterans have “reggae-fied” everything from the Beatles’ “She Loves You” to Cat Stevens’ “The First Cut is the Deepest.” Here,... READMORE |
 Various artists - Livin’ Lovin’ Losin’: Songs of the Louvin Brothers2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 As tribute album titles go, this one takes first prize. The music’s pretty damn good too. This homage to the brothers’ vintage... READMORE |
 Rickie Lee Jones - The Evening of My Best Day2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Like fellow boho Tom Waits, with who she was once romantically involved, Jones has always flourished on the fringes of pop music.... READMORE |
 Various artists - Beautiful: A Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 A mixed bag, this Lightfoot love-in ranges from refreshing interpretations by Cowboy Junkies (a rocking “The Way I Feel”), Bruce Cockburn (a... READMORE |
 Elbow - Cast of Thousands2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Musically mellow and lyrically intelligent, Elbow avoid the misery-guts tag of so many British guitar bands. On the follow up to their... READMORE |
 Jet - Get Born2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Unabashed retro rockers from Down Under are nothing new—in fact, this four-piece from Melbourne shares management with Sydney’s Vines, last year’s buzz... READMORE |
 Jonny Lang - Long Time Coming2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 This fall, Martin Scorcese attempts to do for the blues what Ken Burns did for jazz, with a flood of branded CDs... READMORE |
 The Strokes - Room on Fire2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 With their raunchy sound and snotty attitude, New York’s the Strokes were the darlings in the vanguard of the recent garage-rock revolution.... READMORE |
 Various artists - Just Because I’m a Woman2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Dolly Parton, as Joan Osborne says in the liner notes, is “a gifted artist cleverly disguised as a media superstar and sex... READMORE |
 Travis - 12 Memories2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The members of Scotland’s Travis have made a career out of wearing their sensitive hearts on their sleeves, singing tender love songs... READMORE |
 Van Morrison - What’s Wrong with this Picture?2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Belfast’s blue-eyed soul shouter has always swung effortlessly from rock and r&b to Celtic music and other styles. In the 1990s, he... READMORE |
 Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - Streetcore2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 When he died last December, Joe Strummer joined John Lennon and Bob Marley in rock heaven as a true idealist. Strummer’s final... READMORE |
 Florent Vollant - Katak2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 As one half of Kashtin, the northern Quebec duo whose albums sung in their native Innu language became hits in the 1990s,... READMORE |
 Joss Stone - The Soul Sessions2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Put this on, close your eyes and try to convince yourself that the singer is a 16-year-old blonde English schoolgirl. It’s simply... READMORE |
 Ryan Adams - Rock ’n’ Roll2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 He may be prolific, but Ryan Adams can also be pretty pathetic—witness the hissy-fit he threw when a concert-goer joked about his... READMORE |
 Iggy Pop - Skull Ring2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The Iggster is in good form here, collaborating with original members of the Stooges on their first new music together in 30... READMORE |
 Lene - Play with Me2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Aqua’s former Barbie Girl can be commended for successfully taking on Mattel. But Lene Nystrom’s committed an unpardonable sin with her solo... READMORE |
 The Thrills - So Much for the City2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Is it any wonder that Irish lads are obsessed with America’s West Coast? Dublin’s Thrills are clearly infatuated with all things California,... READMORE |
 Maria - My Soul2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The latest contestant in the r&b queen sweepstakes, Maria has more going for her than most pretenders to the throne. On her... READMORE |
 Sheryl Crow - The Very Best Of Sheryl Crow2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 She’s come a long way from working as a music teacher for autistic children and as a backup singer on Wacko Jacko’s... READMORE |
 No Doubt - Singles Collection2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 By now, No Doubt has defied every Doubting Thomas who ever predicted the California group was a pop-ska flash in the pan.... READMORE |
 Various artists - French Café2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 If the saucy sounds of accordion and français make you go “oo-la-la,” this is for you. Although Django Reinhardt and Edith Piaf... READMORE |
 Ronald Isley - Here I Am: Ronald Isley Sings Burt Bacharach2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The hit-making genius of Burt Bacharach has served countless interpreters well over the years, from Gene Pitney, Dusty Springfield and Dionne Warwick... READMORE |
 Al Green - I Can’t Stop2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The Reverend has undeniable powers. I once witnessed a magical Al Green performance at a New Orleans festival, after a particularly dismal... READMORE |
 Reba McEntire - Room to Breathe2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 More a feel-good brand like Oprah than a cutting-edge country artist, Reba McEntire has become a one-woman industry, spawning a TV series... READMORE |
 Nelly Furtado - Folklore2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The banjo is the instrument du jour (having replaced the once-trendy tabla). Banjos are on new albums by Rufus Wainwright and the... READMORE |
 Jane Siberry - SHUSHAN the Palace (Hymns of Earth)2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Part of the problem with seasonal recordings is the well-worn familiarity of so many yuletide chestnuts. Who needs another “Frosty the Snowman”—even... READMORE |
 Various artists - Yule be Miserable2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Harvey Pekar, the comic depressive of American Splendor fame, says of these downbeat jazz numbers: “at least most of them don’t have... READMORE |
 Various artists - Maybe This Christmas Too?2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The first installment of this new series of holiday albums for indie-rock fans featured a robust duet between Sarah McLachlan and Barenaked... READMORE |
 Various artists - Christmas Remixed2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Another way to put a new spin on holiday classics—literally, in this case—is to for DJs and remixers to deconstruct and reassemble... READMORE |
 Default - Elocation2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Along with Rake and Theory of a Dead Man, Default is one of several baby Nickelbacks—spawned by Chad Kroeger’s hoser-rock empire. The... READMORE |
 Jason McCoy - Sins, Lies & Angels2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Minesing, Ont. native Jason McCoy sounds like the genuine article with his brand of country music. Unlike some of his cowboy-hat-wearing contemporaries... READMORE |
 Ryan Adams - Love is Hell, Part 12003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 With this eight-track EP and his excellent, recently released Rock ’n’ Roll album, Ryan Adams has suddenly flooded the market with his... READMORE |
 Alicia Keys - Diary of Alicia Keys2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 The much-anticipated followup to Keys’ debut album, which earned five Grammy Awards, mixes classic soul sounds with contemporary hip hop. The first... READMORE |
 Pat Martino - Think Tank2003 | Administrator | Sunday, 11 July 2010 Guitarist Pat Martino is a modern jazz miracle: he relearned to play his instrument by listening to his old records after a... READMORE |
 Josh Rouse - 19722003 | Administrator | Monday, 12 July 2010 The Nashville-born singer-songwriter’s fourth release is a deliberately retro-sounding album steeped in mellow, early ’70s pop. The title track references Carole King... READMORE |
Reviews
 “Weird Al” Yankovic - Alpocalypse2011 | Administrator | Thursday, 11 August 2011 “Weird Al” has enjoyed a lengthy career—longer than some of the pop stars he parodies—with his zany brand of humor. Yankovic’s 13th album has plenty of satirical highlights, including Lady... |
 Pet Shop Boys - Format2012 | Administrator | Friday, 24 February 2012 Fans of England’s Pet Shop Boys will pant over this 2-CD set of B-sides and bonus tracks recorded between 1996 and 2009. As usual, the Boys’ strength lies in Neil... |
 Rick Springfield - The Essential Rick Springfield2011 | Administrator | Monday, 14 March 2011 Many know Rick Springfield for his 1981 chart-topper “Jesse’s Girl,” but he’s equally as famous for his role as playboy doctor Noah Drake on General Hospital. With this two-CD set,... |
 Indigo Girls - Beauty Queen Sister2011 | Administrator | Saturday, 22 October 2011 There’s always been a political edge to Indigo Girls. But the Grammy-winning folk-rock duo has never let its message get in the way of a good melody. The 12th studio... |
Features
 Alex Cuba - A Magical Musical Blend2011 | Administrator | Monday, 21 March 2011 With his oversized Afro and razored sideburns, Alex Cuba cuts a cool figure, a cross between ’70s soul man and stylish rocker. It’s a look that has been attracting attention ever since the musician, born... |
 Kobo Town2013 | Administrator | Wednesday, 5 June 2013 Drew Gonsalves laughs about how he had to leave Trinidad to discover the rich calypso tradition of his birthplace. As a teenager, he was far more interested in rock and heavy metal music than the songs... |
 The Messengers2013 | Administrator | Wednesday, 13 March 2013 For Adam Messinger and Nasri Atweh, success has come from having the right songs at the right time. Within a month of relocating to Los Angeles from Toronto in 2007, the songwriting-producing duo known as... |
 The Midway State - From Riches to Rags and Back Again2011 | Administrator | Wednesday, 31 August 2011 Nathan Ferraro doesn’t seem the least bit bitter—which is surprising, given everything he’s been through. In fact, the affable, afro-haired frontman exudes all the serenity of a Buddhist monk, as he sits in a Toronto café... |