Earth as Prologue

Holy Ghost! “Dumb Disco Ideas” (by DFArecords) Few...

Tue, 14 May 2013 10:36:00 -0700

Holy Ghost! “Dumb Disco Ideas” (by DFArecords)

Few things are more exciting than a new Holy Ghost! LP. See them May 26 if you live in Vancouver.

“First Fires (ft. Grey Reverend)” - Bonobo A great...

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 12:49:47 -0700

“First Fires (ft. Grey Reverend)” - Bonobo

A great mellow track by Bonobo. Preview the whole album here.

Kenya Chords (by Nick Bertke) Pogo (AKA Nick Bertke) has...

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:16:31 -0700

Kenya Chords (by Nick Bertke)

Pogo (AKA Nick Bertke) has released a few new world remixes as of late, definitely worth checking out. See also The Ghan and Indian Pacific.

“Evil Friends” - Portugal. The Man A great and...

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:45:28 -0700

“Evil Friends” - Portugal. The Man

A great and familiar sound from the upcoming Portugal. The Man. So far, it’s only available for digital pre-order through iTunes. I hope that changes, since P.TM always has the most beautiful packaging.

“A tout a l’heure” - Bibio I’m hooked...

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:15:00 -0800

“A tout a l’heure” - Bibio

I’m hooked on the new Bibio. Download it here.

“We’ve Been Here Before (Allosaurus Remix)” -...

Mon, 04 Feb 2013 11:00:00 -0800

“We’ve Been Here Before (Allosaurus Remix)” - Old English

In honour of the release of Toronto-based Old English’s first full length tomorrow, please enjoy this beautiful remix by Hamilton’s Allosaurus. Pre-order Prose & Kahns here.

Geometry Daily

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 09:33:10 -0800

I’m not sure how I didn’t already know about Geometry Daily, a project by Tilman Zitzmann. I really love his colour selection, really summed up in the video above. This will certainly serve as inspiration for those shapes + alpha + text + image-style designs that I love.

K-os Album Preview

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 12:01:00 -0800

BLack on BLonde, the new album by k-os, is up for preview with song-by-song commentary here. So far, the first two tracks are stand-outs and the commentary is a nice touch—makes it a more personal listening experience.

I could be wrong, but I think this is a Canada-only link; if so, just Google an album stream. They’re out there.

Experiencing God - Part IV

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 19:00:26 -0800

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8)

Right before leaving earth, Jesus says the Spirit will come with power to witness. One chapter later, the Holy Spirit comes and the disciples see tongues of fire and begin speaking in different languages. This is when they receive this power, and the rest of the book of Acts describes the impact they had because of the Spirit.

Compare this with 1 Samuel 10:6, where Samuel explains to Saul…

The Spirit of the Lord will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person.

God’s Holy Spirit living in us means several things. It means that God has made us a dwelling place for Himself. And it also comes with great power. The Spirit inside us means that we carry with us:

Boldness. After being persecuted for their faith, the disciples pray for a boldness to preach. Immediately after their prayer, they receive this boldness (Acts 4:29-31).
Authority. Peter uses the authority given to Him from the Spirit to speak out and heal a crippled beggar (Acts 3:6).
Reminder. The Holy Spirit works to call to mind the things we need to say to impart truth and life into others (John 14:26).
Peace, Joy, Etc. Galatians 5:22-23 lists the fruit that we can expect in our lives because of the power of the Spirit living in us.
Intercession/Prophecy. In 1 Corinthians 12 and 14, Paul lists several gifts that we can seek and ask God for. Intercession is praying on someone else’s behalf. This is what we are able to do, and what the Holy Spirit does for us. Prophecy is speaking the very words of God to encourage, uplift, edify other believers.
Affirmation. The Holy Spirit in us acts as a guarantee of the life after this one (Ephesians 1:13-14).

Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:3)

When we invite Jesus into our life, we are making Him our Lord and Saviour. However, many people make Jesus Saviour (“I’m going to Heaven”), but not Lord (allowing Him to be King in our lives). The Holy Spirit works in us to make Him Lord of our lives, making us more and more of a servant and making Jesus Christ more and more in control.

A beautiful song and video by Youth Lagoon (AKA Trevor Powers)....

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 11:10:27 -0800

A beautiful song and video by Youth Lagoon (AKA Trevor Powers). New to me, but I’ll definitely be keeping him on my music radar.

“Snap” - Nosaj Thing I’ve heard a handful of...

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 12:41:45 -0800

“Snap” - Nosaj Thing

I’ve heard a handful of excellent remixes by Nosaj Thing, and stumbled across this original piece today while browsing the depths of Soundcloud.

Toro y Moi Free Tour Sampler

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 16:17:36 -0800

“Harm in Change” - Toro y Moi Stream...

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 09:38:58 -0800

“Harm in Change” - Toro y Moi

Stream Toro’s Anything in Return in its entirety right now over at Pitchfork. It’s taking some time for this album to grow on me, but I will do it justice and listen to it another five hundred times to make sure that happens. Highlights of course are “Say That”, “So Many Details”, and the hearing that thumpin’ bass for the first time in “Cola”. All in all a great sound, but will take some warming up.

Experiencing God - Part III

Thu, 03 Jan 2013 13:54:00 -0800

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

A new year means new beginnings for many. Why not use that fresh burst of motivation and pour into your relationship with your Creator? Decide on a time commitment, daily, weekly, even monthly (you can do better than monthly!) and spend that time reading Scripture, thanking God, praying through that Scripture, or time in quiet with Him. I can guarantee you will find this discipline refreshing and enlightening in a way that will make you wonder why you didn’t do it sooner.

Truth brings freedom. When Jesus was tempted by Satan, he quoted Scripture each time to free Himself from this temptation. Memorizing Scripture helps us recall to mind what is true about ourselves and what is true about God (the Holy Spirit also helps us do this), so that we avoid temptation and can claim the truths of God over our life! Knowing truth like “I am a child of God” or “I am an heir with Christ” or “He is pleased with me because of Christ” brings incredible freedom in our situation, but we have to first know the Scripture.

Truth brings life. When Jesus has an intense Bible study with two disciples after His resurrection, one of them says:

Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures? (Luke 24:32)

When you read God’s Word, don’t ask, “How does this apply to me?” but ask instead, “What does this say about God/Jesus?” When Jesus is revealed in Scripture, we find our hearts burning to know Him deeper. A great longing inside of ourselves is being satisfied when this happens. When we see Him for who He is in Scripture, we can then turn to Him in praise and prayer and draw nearer to Him. And when this happens, God draws near to us!

Toro Y Moi “Say That” (by CarparkRecords) Always...

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 14:03:58 -0800

Toro Y Moi “Say That” (by CarparkRecords)

Always groovy. New album in a few weeks.

Top 10 Albums of 2012

Tue, 01 Jan 2013 10:00:49 -0800

As the countdown finished yesterday, with Hot Chip taking the top spot, here is the simple text version of my top ten albums of the year. In all fairness, I’ve probably overlooked many—feel free to raise an uproar!—and you’ll likely see a post soon on the best of those.

Also: Honourable mentions.

Have you formed your own top ten? Send me a link. Here they are, the best albums of the year, in order (scroll down for individual posts + songs):

In Our Heads - Hot Chip
One Wing - The Chariot
Soft Fall - Sun Airway
Ex-Lives - Every Time I Die
Shrines - Purity Ring
Ten Stories - mewithoutYou
Bloom - Beach House
The Church of the Good Thief - Right Away, Great Captain!
Timid, the Brave - Timid, the Brave
Crystal Castles (III) - Crystal Castles

#1. In Our Heads - Hot Chip I admit: it was easy picking ten...

Mon, 31 Dec 2012 10:00:42 -0800

#1. In Our Heads - Hot Chip

I admit: it was easy picking ten albums—the difficulty was ordering them. But with songs like “Night and Day” and “Flutes” and many others, In Our Heads kept floating to the top. Hot Chip does what they do best and make another pop album without trying to please the masses… which often ends up very pleasing… to the masses.

Track: “Let Me Be Him”

#2. One Wing - The Chariot The tracks together read...

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 10:00:40 -0800

#2. One Wing - The Chariot

The tracks together read “Forgot not your first love. Speak in tongues and cheek”, with each word representing one track (that’s right—even “in” and “and” are tracks). As The Chariot often does, you get a short break from all the madness (“Your”), and the album works beautifully as a whole. The biggest problem: it’s over much too fast.

Track: “First” (if you don’t do hardcore, jump ahead to about 1:20 if you can)

#3. Soft Fall - Sun Airway If you haven’t heard Sun...

Sat, 29 Dec 2012 10:00:44 -0800

#3. Soft Fall - Sun Airway

If you haven’t heard Sun Airway’s first album, you better get on that. Personally, this one took a few more listens before it became an album I love. Sun Airway started as pleasant background music and grew and grew until I couldn’t stop listening.

Track: “Soft Fall“

#4. Ex-Lives - Every Time I Die Every Time I Die are veterans...

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 10:00:29 -0800

#4. Ex-Lives - Every Time I Die

Every Time I Die are veterans of hardcore now, and the addition of a new drummer seems to have contributed to making this possibly their heaviest album yet. The album is especially good if you picked up the bonus tracks, making it a 14-track beast.

Track: “The Low Road Has No Exits”