Living in a Shadow
Some Party is a newsletter sharing the latest in independent Canadian rock'n'roll, curated more-or-less weekly by Adam White. Each edition explores punk, garage, psych, and otherwise uncategorizable indie rock, drawing lines from proto to post and taking some weird diversions along the way.
Psychbike"Living in a Shadow"
Preview and purchase at Bandcamp - Watch on YouTube
The self-titled debut from Sudbury post-punk outfit Psychbike is due November 15 through the Feral Kid sublabel Tetryon Tapes. The band's previewing the eleven-song LP with "Living in a Shadow," a propulsive lead single that trades off vocals between Steph Fournier and Matthew Ellis (with the latter's off-kilter, Biafra-esque howl in full effect). That interplay plays out over a goth-yet-surfy punk tune, drawing parallels to early Californian rackets from the likes of T.S.O.L. and X. In a statement, Ellis shared:
"The shadow is cast from our own projections. The fears of being misperceived, misunderstood, and eventually excluded become a controlling force and inevitably we slowly become these things."
The band recorded at the Piss Factory with Mitch Houle (of Tommy and the Commies and Statues) engineering.
The four-piece brings together members of Teleporters, Strange Attractor, and Like a Girl. They'll celebrate the record at the Townhouse Tavern in their hometown on November 15 with Strange Attractor and Toronto's Cult Crime. On the 23rd they'll take to Toronto's Low Bar for a packed gig with Imploders, Pillea, and Montreal's Psychic Armour. An all-ages matinee's set for Guelph's Planet Bean the day after.
Psychbike's following up on their livewire 2023 demos. The band's spent much of the past year slinking around underground clubs in Ontario and Quebec with the likes of Mvll Crimes, Imploders, and Golgen Shitters. Those treks included stops at northern Ontario festivals like Up Here and River & Sky and the Ottawa punk gathering Sitting on the Outside.
Motherhood"Bok Globule"
Watch on YouTube - Preview and purchase at Bandcamp
Fredericton art-punk trio Motherhood returns this winter with Thunder Perfect Mind, a new record due January 24 through the Forward Music Group. On this outing, the band promises a sci-fi narrative spanning ten songs, following the plight of a character abducted along New Brunswick's Wolastoq River and then pulled across space and time. The announcement arrived alongside the single "Bok Globule," a frenetic garage-punk track packing some twisted Pixies energy. It finds their protagonist yearning to escape an "ethereal prison" they've dubbed The Cloud. You'll see robots, aliens, and starfields galore in the accompanying video from director Naomi Peters.
While the narrative framing and space rock imagery may suggest a descent into nerdy prog excess, the band's claiming the opposite. Multi-instrumentalist Penny Stevens shared:
"Despite it being a concept album that's basically a sci-fi novel, it's the most approachable album we've ever made."
Vocalist/guitarist Brydon Crain seconded the notion, adding:
"We see what people respond to at our shows and we wanted to give them songs they'll love."
The new record finds the group recording in analog with co-producer Kyle Cunjak (The Olympic Symphonium) at the Memramcook Recording Company and Never Nuthin Recording. Deerhoof's Greg Saunier mixed the album. Hamilton's Kyle Stewart painted the album's striking cover art.
Motherhood features Crain and Stevens with drummer Adam Sipkema. The new album follows up on 2022's Winded LP. Earlier this year, the band issued a two-song single, "Dry Heave" and "Wandering." Both tracks appear on the track listing for Thunder Perfect Mind.
Ducks Ltd."Grim Symmetry"
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Toronto jangle-pop heroes Ducks Ltd. have recently shared "Grim Symmetry," a one-off follow-up single to February's triumphant Harms Way LP. Despite its name, the song finds the band in a buoyant mood. In a press release, the band shared some of the track's winding history, which spans nearly their full discography:
"We initially wrote it when we were working on [2021's] Modern Fiction, and it was one of our favorites from those sessions, but somewhere in the transition from the demo to the first attempt at a 'final' version of it we lost the thread and ended up leaving it off the record.
When we went to work on Harm's Way we really wanted to take another crack at it, and through a combination of changing the key, applying some interesting compression (courtesy of producer Dave Vettraino!) and the some backing vocal ideas that Jason Balla came up with we got to a version that we were happy with. I think cause it was written so long ago it ultimately didn't feel like it fit with the vibes and the themes of Harm's Way, so we ended up holding onto it again, but we're excited to finally get this one out in the world."
The track follows May's "When You're Outside," another orphan of the Harm's Way sessions. The recording features Tom McGreevy on rhythm guitar, bass, and keys, with Evan Lewis on lead guitar. Julia Steiner and Margaret McCarthy of the Chicago bands Ratboys and Moontype sing backup on the track. The Ducks' ongoing kinship with the Windy City scene reaches the stage next month. Ratboys join Ducks Ltd. for fall shows at Toronto's Lee's Palace (November 8) and Montreal's Bar Le Riz (November 9). They'll return the favour with a stateside gig at Chicago's Thalia Hall on November 29.
Ducks Ltd.'s sophomore LP Harms Way arrived through Royal Mountain and Carpark in February.
FRVITSThe Great Internet EP
Preview and purchase at Bandcamp
Montreal space-punk aggressors FRVITS are back with The Great Internet, a new five-song 7" for Slovenly Recordings. The hyperactive collection follows up on the group's 2021 debut Stupid Era with four originals (sung in French, English, and Spanish) alongside a cover of The Stupids' 1985 classic "Wipe Out." That tune features Red Mass principal Roy 'Choyce' Vucino on lead guitar.
FRVITS recorded the EP in Montreal with Adrian Popovich (We Are Wolves, American Lips) engineering. David Forcier (CIVIC, SWAB) mixed and mastered on the other side of the globe in Melbourne. The EP's available digitally and on vinyl, with a limited "overripe banana" variant on offer alongside the standard black.
Now self-proclaimed as Montreal's "first and only dot matrix rock & roll band," FRVITS performs as a four-piece. That lineup comes with a new set of wacky stage names, with lead vocals credited to Le Big Bisou, Gulag Gary appearing on guitar and synth, and Kanadian Karl drumming. Bassist/co-lead vocalist Alexander Ortiz plays it straight and uses his real name in the credits. I appreciate that as someone who's lost days chasing funky Discogs metadata.
Punitive DamageHate Training
Preview and purchase at Bandcamp
Vancouver/Seattle bruisers Punitive Damage are back with Hate Training, a new EP out, issued on vinyl through Convulse Records and on tape via the UK's Conviction Records. The six-song record delivers a blistering set of hardcore at its most efficient, with most tracks hovering around the minute mark. The group has plenty of present-day tragedy to fuel their aggressive social commentary - with the album announcement framed as a statement of solidarity with civilians in Palestine. "We're being asked to deny the reality unfolding before our eyes," they shared in their Instagram post.
The five-piece recorded with Jesse Gander at Rain City Recorders (Pack Rat, Wares). Taylor Young mixed at The Pit, with Carl Saff mastering. Jess Nyx of the Calgary heavies Mortality Rate and World Of Pleasure makes a guest appearance on vocals.
The single-sided 12" EP arrives in several colour variants through both labels, following up on the band's 2022 LP This Is The Blackout (Atomic Action! Records). The roster of Punitive Damage includes current and past members of World of Pleasure, Keep it Clear, Change, Woolworm, and Regional Justice Center.
