SOUNDTRACK: WEAKERTHANS–Reconstruction Site (2003) & Watermark (single) (2001).
I heard about the Weakerthans in, I think Esquire, of all places, in their Canadian Bands You Must Listen To article. They were described as more literate than The Decemberists, and even thought I have not actually included a Decemberists album yet, my love for them is pure. So I thought I’d check them out. Turns out the main Weakerthan used to be the main guy in Propagandhi, a fun, overly political punk band that I enjoyed when I was feeling overly political myself. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that the Weakerthans keep a similar musical sensibility: catchy pop punk stylings, yet they are less angry and more introspective. The music is not as brash as other pop punk bands, in fact there are even some quiet parts! (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY-How Strange, Innocence (2005).
Explosions in the Sky is one of those instrumental bands that the kids are raving about these days. Bands have been doing instrumentals forever, really, but I guess about a decade or so ago, some bands started specializing in an all instrumental format. Bands like Scenic, Mogwai and Godspeed You Black Emperor are probably the forefathers, although to be honest I can’t think of too too many more bands doing the style (aside from the Constellation Label in general). These bands work a great, atmospheric sound, usually building to a crescendo and pulling away before reaching the ultimate climax. This album is EITS’ first, recently reissued. There are some bands who hit their stride running on their first record, these usually seem to be bands that aren’t too complicated. Nothing wrong with them, in fact their debuts are often stellar, as if they were born playing their style. EITS is not one of these bands. 
I Just Read About That... 