NEW MUSIC: Corduroy

Hey friends!

Just a quick post. This week's New Music Update is a great Toronto band called Corduroy. They just released their first 'Demoroy' - 3 tracks that are available for free download on their Myspace. Check out the video below and visit them on Myspace here: http://www.myspace.com/thebandcorduroy. Tell all your friends!

SHOW REVIEW: Daniel Johnston Lets it All Out at the Mod Club

Saturday, October 17th ,2009 @ The Mod Club in Toronto
Daniel Johnston w/ The Capitol Years and Giant Hand

Ottawa opener Kirk Ramsey (ie. Giant Hand) is an excruciatingly inspired performer. You can see the passion dripping off each song. This fact is both his strongest point and weakest. Mid-set he stopped playing and expressed his excitement for playing with Daniel Johnston, citing him as the reason he started making music. He took things a bit far by saying he is wearing the same shirt as he did the first show he played, and his voice got muffled almost as if he shed a tear. It was awkward for the audience, yet slightly adorable. At the beginning of his captivating set it became apparent his songwriting is hugely inspired by Daniel, almost a bit too much (especially to be opening for the legend himself). Yet as the set progressed and Ramsey moved on to looping his acoustic guitar and shouting in to the microphone, he gained more of an identity. So much so that by the end of his acoustic /drum machine-based set he walked away a delightful performer and songwriter all of his own. One that will surely be moving up the Canadian indie music community ranks, especially with this opening spot under his belt. His debut album Coming Home is available now. http://www.myspace.com/gianthand

Philidelphia's The Capitol Years stole the show with their four-part-harmony driven post-rock. There was essentially nothing bad about this band, though nothing entirely original. Akin to Midlake or Grizzly Bear, they write great songs driven by guitars and memorable vocal hooks. They're the type of band that would sound incredible on vinyl. Their drummer was a spectacle all on his own, flamboyantly overplaying the shit out of his parts. It was almost nauseating, but regardless, you couldn't deny the fact that these boys were having a great time playing. I usually find myself bored and restless during opening bands, but these guys were a pleasant addition to my night. http://www.myspace.com/thecapitolyears

Then out came Daniel Johnston himself and without any introduction launched in to his first song. Just like I had seen on DVD and Youtube so many times, with his binders of lyrics and shaking frame. Daniel is a truly fragile musician, and I couldn't help but have the huge urge to give him a hug. He first started playing his hollow tracks with his guitar, the kind without a headstock. Then his tour manager Brett came out to take over the guitar duties while Daniel sang. He gripped the microphone while he sang and it vibrated, you could really see him reliving each moment of where he was when he wrote these songs, and for a second I almost felt bad for the guy to have to be digging this stuff up. It looked like he was really deepy affected. He made a few jokes with the audience, one about him only doing this for the comic books (he can buy 400$ worth of comic books after!). He took an intermission about half way through, presumably for a smoke, and then returned. The Capitol Years played double duty and backed DJ for the second half of his set. Daniel looked like he was having a great time and the crowd fed off his enthusiasm. He even incorparated two Beatles covers in between his own timeless tracks. He left the stage to a roaring crowd, begging for more. Despite the rumors that Daniel doesn't do encores he came back out for one last "Christmas wish", as he said it, and played "True Love Will Find You in the End", which was probably the most beautiful thing I've heard and seen all year. Before last night the closest I had ever come to Daniel was from watching the amazing doc "The Devil and Daniel Johnston" (seriously watch it if you have not), and seeing the real thing truly solidified, for me at least, what a passionate and fully-immersed songwriter he really is. One of the only ones left who truly beleive in their words and songs, and write without pretention. Daniel deserves a lot more than the cult following he has obtained, he deserves to be recognized as one of most honest songwriters of our time, making him arguably the best. http://www.myspace.com/dannyjohnston

Below I've posted a video of a younger Daniel playing the classic "Casper the Friendly Ghost".

NEWS: Dinosaur Bones Hit the Road

Hey friends,
hugely buzzed about band Dinosaur Bones are heading to the east coast of our fair country. They'll be heading to Halifax to open for Crystal Antlers at Halifax Pop Explosion and making a few stops along the way (tour dates posted below). The band is truly unique. Brooding indie rock with post-rock tendencies. Rumor has it the five piece just got out of the studio working on their debut full length with The Arkells/Fucked Up producer Jon Drew. Add that to their extremely impressive resume (playing Edgefest, opening for Handsome Furs, Hey Rosetta! and more) and you can imagine where this young Toronto band will be by the end of next year. If you're in Toronto they'll be back on homesoil opening for Malajube on November 26th. I also found this neat video of them playing an acoustic track in Trinity Bellwoods Park shot by Humble Empire. Check it out! http://www.myspace.com/dinosaurbonesband

Tour dates:
Oct. 17 in Fredericton, NB at the Capitol
Oct. 19 in Moncton, NB at the Paramount
Oct. 20 in Halifax, NS at the Paragon Theatre (Halifax Pop Explosion w. Crystal Antlers)
Oct. 22 in Montreal, QC at Casa Del Popolo
Oct. 24 in Ottawa, ON at Barrymore's Music Hall
Nov. 10 in Guelph, ON at Vinyl
Nov. 13 in Barrie, ON at Oscar's
Nov. 26 in Toronto, ON at the Horseshoe Tavern (w. Malajube)

NEWS: Everlea Release Awesome New Music Video!

Kingston by way of Toronto band Everlea have been around for a while. They opened for Taking Back Sunday last month and will be headlining Toronto's MOD Club on November 21st. They just unleashed their new music video for single "Cigarettes" and it's stunning! Produced by well known photographer Brooks Reynolds, it's truly an interesting music video to watch! Which is hard to come by these days. Check it out below or visit Everlea online at: http://www.myspace.com/everlea

Welcome!

HandShake Drugs is a Blog devoted to promoting some of the best under-the-radar and under-played bands (mostly Canadian). We will have weekly updates of music for you to check out and reviews of shows etc. Stay tuned!