On April 16th at Dovercourt House, winners of the Russian-Language Noise-Rock band most popular with anglophones in the Greater Toronto Area award, Lenin i Shumov will be releasing their first ‘real’ cd (real in the sense that it will have been manufactured in a factory as opposed to at home on someone’s computer). It is a five song EP recorded with Jeff McMurrich.

To celebrate the occasion amazing bands No Dynamics and Everybody Get Sick are all playing as well!

Ring in the Spring with “The Lovely Music” of the S.S. Cardiacs. (more…)

This is the OWEN PALLETT IS A GENIUS release of 2005, topping his past achievements in Les Mouches (cf OWEN PALLETT IS A GENIUS release of 2004 “You’re Worth More To Me Than 1,000 Christians”) and setting a high standard for the upcoming OPIAG 2006 (Rumoured to involve Owen’s accension to heaven on the back of a centaur shortly after recording and mixing are completed). (more…)

Blocks normally takes pride in being a local, Toronto kind of thing. It worked for Dischord and who are we to argue if something works for Dischord? Well, there’s always an exception (even at Dischord) and here when a band like the Diskettes is actually something that exists in the world you really really have to take notice. Basically, the Diskettes are not just the best but also the most punk band in Canada. (more…)

The first CD release by Toronto’s favourite answer to Half-Japanese. Chris (19) and his brother Charlie (13, ex-12) unveil this amazing collection of home recordings and also give a glimpse into the world of wonder and magic that is the current, full-band, rock-power version of the Frank FB_A line-up with some video of live performance and a few new songs at the end. (more…)

Lenin i Shumov’s first CD-R

On Oct. 17, 2004 The Blocks Recording Club and Consumption records were given a room at The Gladstone Hotel in Toronto by CANZINE, a large and renowned ‘Zine Fair held annually by Broken Pencil Magazine. The decision was then made for a recording studio to be built in the room and for bands that were entirely new, so new that even the people in them had not yet met, to record one album an hour for the entire duration of the fair. Each recording was then mixed (by Leon Taheny) and released jointly by Consumption and Blocks with hand-made packaging and lots of love in less than an hour. (more…)

This is the long-awaited, finally available, all-hymns solo recording by Toronto’s (ex-Vancouver’s) most beloved drunk country and western/rock and roll musician. Contains several big hits: Didn’t It Rain?, Down By The Riverside, Just A Closer Walk With Thee.. and many others. Perfect for Sunday mornings.

Over two years in the making this is kind of like the Remebrance of Things Past of Toronto-based UK-influenced indie-punk. Ample doses of the Fall, the Birthday Party, Sonic Youth (UK), bound up and analyzed over a long period of time and finally put together, with a master’s touch, into a sprawling mega-record. (more…)

Deep Dark United come off as a cross between Xiu Xiu, Fine Young Cannibals at 16rpm, Frog Eyes and Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra. Full-blown experimental soul-jazz collides with messy synthesizers and are subsequently chanelled through the Wah Pedal and surreal dirty-uncle sense of humour of band leader Alex Lukashevsy. (more…)

A co-release with Jennifer Lopez Knife records. This is Ninja High School’s incredible debut record. Featuring more positive hardcore disguised as ‘rap’ than anyone has ever shaken a stick at in their entire lives. Those awed by the live performances will be even further stunned by the intricate mixing and subtle production of this release.