Ladywood

We are a Calgary based music blog that focuses on bringing you the greatest and latest in good music. Run by three effervescent ladies, we just post what we like and hope you like it too! Live, Love and Laugh ya'll, and listen to some good tunes while you're at it. Want to hear a tune? Click "Ask" and send us a message! We love hearing your sweet honey voices in our in boxes.

[thejoyofviolentmovement]

[ladywoood]

From thejoyofviolentmovement:

“Philadelphia” is the first single from Canadian rock band Paper Lions’ sophomore effort, My Friends(which will see an August 20th release). As the folks at Filter Magazine says of the track, “Paper Lions manages to create a tune both mellow and beautiful, instantly evoking the breezy feeling of youth and summer.” But I think that underneath the track, there’s a subtle bittersweet feeling that comes from the recognition that youth, like all things does not last. 

Thanks to M for the tip off to these guys! 

[ladywoood]

The Rural Alberta Advantage

On Sunday June 2 The Rural Alberta Advantage along with Ladyhawk will be presenting a free show outside Luke's Drug Mart in Bridgeland in Calgary, AB. The show is a precursor to the Sled Island Music Festival being held June 19-22 in Calgary. The Facebook event can be found here  or more info on the Sled Website. 

The RAA is one of my favourite bands and have arguably produced some of the best progressive Canadian folk in the last decade. Their relentless tradition of touring have taken the trio from humble recognition amongst indie rock die-hards as “Canada’s best unsigned band” to sold-out tours and devoted fans around the world with featured coverage from Spin Magazine, Pitchfork, The New York Times and Rolling Stone all taking note. 

      Their songs touch on familiar themes of hometown heartbreak, loss, love and even environmental disaster. Here's two particularly good tracks  “Tornado ‘87” and “Frank, AB,” about two of the worst natural disasters in Albertan and maybe even Canadian history. And while yo may be surprised by their choice of subject matter don't be surprised about the stage presence this trio has, it really is extraordinary. 

-C

[ladywoood]

Ellie Goulding- Alt-J Tessellate Cover

Ellie Goulding knows a thing or two about doing quality covers, from her luscious cover of Elton John's Your Song to her newest release, a cover of Alt-J's Tessellate, Ellie once again proves herself worthy of her pop princess title. The cover draws out the best elements of the original song (like the delicate electronic pulses and the slightly creepy synth beats) and marries them with her unique vocals plus a sexy sax solo in the middle. It's understated, clever and infinitely repeatable and for me it doesn't get much better than this. 

-C 

[ladywoood]

Tiger Beat

Here's a stellar mix from a good friend in Southern California. Check out his tiger beats and get in the zone with some chill electro. Follow Tiger Beat on Soundcloud for more mixes.  He's a bit a stud on the surf board too...

Peace and love,

Rayray 

[ladywoood]

Silent Rider

Silent Rider is a minimalist indie-folk pop act from Brooklyn, NY, fronted by electronic producer Reed Kackley. I'm really diggin their sound and Silent Rider's ability to incorporate real instruments to strengthen the electronic sounds. I just love remixes of Bon Iver's Skinny Love, and this one shouldn't be missed. Silent Rider is currently working on their second album, so in the meantime stream their first album below or download it for free!

Love, light and patience, Hannah

[stereogum]

Grimes @ Sasquatch! 2013

[ladywoood]

Grimes set at Sasquatch looks out of control! I think she`s channeling a little Elphaba from Oz with her green face and witchy hair....Im scared but I like it. 

-C

[ladywoood]

CHVRCHES

In what is sure to be a staple on our summer playlist, “Gun” is the newest single from the Scottish electro-pop trio CHVRCHES who will be releasing their highly anticipated (and as of yet unnamed) debut album in September. These guys are just blowing up! 

-C 

[ladywoood]

Imagine Dragons- Live at the BMO Centre

Having only the slightest familiarity with the platinum selling artists Imagine Dragons, we were delighted and surprised by their kick ass performance on Friday night at the BMO Centre mostly because we couldn't believe how many songs of the Mormon fronted band we actually knew.  

You could sense a little hesitation in the crowd when the 5 piece band first came on and it may have had something to do with the lackluster openers or the fact that the band entered to the sound of actual crickets cooing in the background (which actually went weirdly well with their somewhat Haloween-ish themed set). However when lead singer Dan Reynolds came on the stage, the crowds energy instantly transformed as he charmed the audience, even with one wrist in a cast. Throughout the set, he sang confidently and with strength, and the sound quality was authentic to what we are used to hearing from the band- crisp and clear. 

The stage was a kaleidoscope of colour and the antics of Reynolds along with their catchy tunes, kept the audience engaged for their 2 hour set. At one point, Reynolds even flew above the stage and played the a large bass drum that was suspended 30 feet up with no visible hesitation. Impressive sir. 

The band has already captivated fans across the globe with their platinum-selling singles “It’s Time” and “Radioactive”  and will continue their bid for world domination with their first-ever headlining North American tour including a recent stop at Sasquatch music festival where they played the mainstage. 

Here`s a few radio favourites of theirs that you might enjoy! 

-C 

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[ladywoood]

Modcast Mondays

Need a killer mixtape to ease you into the work week? Check out the latest Modcast by Tame Impala's front man Kevin Parker. For other awesome Modcast mixtapes click here.

Happy Monday!

H.

[ladywoood]

Hometown Heartthrob Ellen Doty

Ladywood was fortunate enough to attend's Ellen's soldout show at the Plaza, thanks to Ellen, and our listening ears couldn't be more grateful for the knockout performance we witnessed. Comfortable stage characters take a long time for many musicians to develop but Ellen's playful demeanour and loveable lyrics were contagious. She had the crowd locked in with every note and most of the audience had genuine smiles locked on their faces all night. Fierce, fun and brilliantly talented, Ellen's on the road to being a big competitor in the jazz scene and she's the perfect candidate to sing to our hearts about passionate life moments. These frame shots of time define us, and Doty's music brings us back to a healthy place where we can reflect and feel touched by our first loves or the sadness of heart ache. It wouldn't be fair to leave out Doty's band as well. It was a well rounded jazz entourage and these boys deserve a huge round of applause for their energy and infectious love of performing. Overall the show included a lovely mix of songs from Doty's second EP, covers and a couple impromptu beats. Let's just say she shut the house down with a well deserved roaring standing ovation. 

We chatted with Ellen at the Purple Perk in Mission on a beautiful spring day in May and talked about her newest release as well as her upcoming Western Canadian tour. They say that we are all a product of our environment, and the lovely Ellen Doty certainly hails from an environment overflowing with musicality. Having a family that loves music as much as she does has been a tremendous help to Doty. “My taste for Jazz was passed down from my grandparents who grew up in LA across the street from Nat King Cole- he would play on his little white piano at parties where they would dance for Duke Ellington.” Doty's natural proclivity to the sounds of classic jazz music rained into her parents homes as well. “They just listened to so much jazz growing up that it got passed down to my dad who passed it down to me. I didn’t sing Jazz until university where I studied vocal Jazz at Carleton but it’s always been around.” Having started her career by performing at corporate events in Calgary, Doty knows that staying up to date with what people are listening to is an important part of her job as a performer, and her taste in music grows with her abilities as a musician. “I listen to a lot of old classic Jazz like Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, and Billy Holiday but paired with R & B like Lauren Hill or Corinne Bailey Ray,” Doty explains about her diverse tastes “I listen to a lot of pop music because I do a lot of corporate events, so I have to know a lot of top 40” she laughs. 

It’s natural to assume as a young emerging artist in Calgary, Doty has had a difficult road to success but she says it’s not as challenging as you would think for musicians to support themselves here. The bustling corporate scene provides a lot of musical opportunities yet the city is lacking a general support for the arts, Doty explains. Having the Jazz festival cancelled, as well as funding being cut to the Mount Royal Jazz program, meant Doty had to go elsewhere for the success she craved. Serendipitously enough Dave Mancini a prominent jazz artist and clinician who has toured with Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Bob Hope and many others saw Ellen perform at the Palliser and noticed her talent. “He (Mancini) was staying at the Palliser hotel and saw me perform there and gave me the opportunity to work with him in New York in September. I was studying Geology at the University of Calgary and I decided not to go back to school for a semester and go out and pursue this opportunity. So I flew out there, studied at Julliard and did a concert with Dave, and then the station asked if I could record a second EP with them, and I said sure. We started recording in December and now here we are!” Doty's music will be making its way across the country in no time with her second EP and a Western Canada Tour.

Sitting in the sunshine with the doe eyed Doty we saw excitement bursting out of her every word . “We are already talking about recording the full album when we get back from tour in August!” she dishes excitedly. Sporting an adorable polka dot blouse and some ruby red lipstick is the perfect accompaniment to her sultry Jazz singer alter ego. Ellen's Western Canadian tour concludes with a show at the Ironwood on August 10th, a fitting venue for the chanteuse. We love hearing about local talent at Ladywood and Ellen Doty is the perfect example of the great, if under-appreciated talent, that our city has to offer. So go see her show at the Ironwood in August and pick up her EP, available on itunes now. It’ll be well worth it. 

[ladywoood]

Whats on at Ladywood- Links you need to see

Nylon's blog tackles some of the best live performances of The Doors in an ode to Ray Manzarek. 

Messiah complex? What messiah complex? Reports suggest Kanye will go biblical with title of next album, which is apparently set for 18 June release date. Yeezus Kanye, when will it end?

From Searching for Sugarman to Gimme Shelter, music documentaries have played a large role in our cultural zeitgeist. The Guardian counts down the 10 best music documentaries of all time here. 

Yesterday would have been Notorious B.I.G.'s bday, which basically is a national holiday in our book. We'll always love Big Poppa. Happy 41st. 

Why Do Americans Need Our Electronic Musicians to Look Like Cartoon Characters? And other such pressing questions are answered at Flavorwire. 

Happy Interneting! 

-C 

[ladywoood]

Tame Impala Bassist Nick Allbrook Quits Band

In some rather tragic news to the world of psych-pop, bassist of the Aussie group Tame Impala, Nick Allbrook, has rather unexpectedly quit the band. 

A statement on Tame Impala's website explained that "Nick Roland Paisley Adams Allbrook is hopping off the Tame Impala band wagon so that he can try and screw his head back on, and make an attempt to assimilate back into society. A task the rest of us fear we will one day have to perform...."

Despite the vaguely acerbic nature of the statement (they full named him!) apparently there are no hard feelings between the parties involved. The statement continued, explaining, "We're super happy for our bro Nick and wish him well in all his various fucking awesome artistic spewings and endeavours that he'll actually have time for now.. Good on ya brah."

Allbrook will be replaced by Cam Avery, who has collaborated with the group before in their previous release Pond. When asked by NME about his departure, Allbrook said, "All bands and projects and stuff will keep going, it's just hard to keep them all going if you're touring all the time. The only bad part will be not seeing my mates every day. I love them more than anything."

We saw these guys perform at Coachella and they definitely put on quite the show, so it's sad to think that maybe a part of that magic is gone now, but as we like to say here at Ladywood- Onwards and Upwards. Even though for Nick it may feel like he can only go backwards......

Ha! See what I did there? Niiiiiiiiccccceeee. 

-C 

[ladywoood]

More from The Chainsmokers

Here's another great track from The Chainsmokers- a remix of Say Lou Lou's Julian. 

This is another one of those summer beats that seeps into your brain and gives you that heady feeling that only comes from days spent by the ocean and nights spent dancing under the stars. So turn this song up and let it's beautiful blend of Pop, Indie and Progressive wash over you as we all slowly settle into these early summer months.

-C 

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 

― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

[ladywoood]

Get Ready for Summer with Peking Duk

If this sexy video featuring Peking Duk's new track "The Way You Are" doesn't get you pumped for the hot summer months...I don't know what will. This Aussie duo is exploding and rightly so...they produce quality dance-inducing tracks by fusing electro with house. Check them out!

Love and light, H.

[ladywoood]

Milky Chance

Milky Chance: German. Genuine. Genius.

Sounds like: Asaf Avidan

Record: Sadnecessary, which will drop May 31st 2013, through Lichtdicht Records. 

Conclusion: 5 stars...this Deutsch dude knows what's up. In a time when dubstep dominates our music culture its refreshing to hear an artist like Milky Chance create his own sound by blending reggae inspired guitar, bass, electronic percussion and vocals. There is a certain authenticity behind his music that is rare in today's scene as artists get lost behind computers and drum kits. The title of his debut album, Sadnecessary, not only resonates with me but provokes self-reflection. Sadness is a necessary emotion and must be experienced in order to feel happiness. Good & evil, ying & yang or Harry Potter & Voldemort are all dichotomies that require mutual exclusivity. And as Passenger so eloquently puts it: "Only know you've been high when you're feeling low". We must learn to accept and embrace the beauty of life's contrasts, instead of allowing the lows to create misery and heartache. Life is tough and unfair, but it goes on, and gets better for he/she who rises to the occasion. 

Love & light, H.

[ladywoood]

Sleepy Sunday ft. GZUS

Hello my ladywood lovers! Here's a chillstep track to get your Sunday Funday going! Enjoy. Oh and here's a quote: 

"The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem."- Theodore Rubin

H.

[toroymeow]

[ladywoood]

Happy Saturday Everyone! 

I'm currently enjoying the warm southern air down in the Music City of Nashville Tennessee, and thought that before I share a full recap of this wonderful city with you all in a few days, I would give you a little snippet of some of the best tunes I've heard on my visit so far. Last night I was lucky enough to get some amazing seats to the Friday night showing of The Grand Ole Opry- a Nashville staple- and amoung many of the fine performers was the Canadian sister duo of Lennon and Maisey.

Already youtube sensations at 13 and 8 years old respectively, Lennon and Maisey have perfectly complimentary voices that harmonize in a way that only really comes from family. Above is their video of their version of Robyn's Call Your Girlfriend and below is their version of The Lumineer's Hey Ho, a song they performed on the Orpy stage last night.  The girls are currently starring on the ABC drama Nashville and I just can't seem to get enough. While not strictly country, these girls have enough of that folky twang to make them a bit of a bridge from traditional country music scene into a more contemporary, pop infused genre, like little tiny Taylor Swifts- but with better glasses. 

This city oozes with a creative energy- when everyone from your valet to your tour guide is a singer/songwriter- music is the lifeblood of Nashville. It been a great trip so far and I can't wait to give the whole rundown of this southern gem. So get prepared for some more steel guitars, George Jones-eque country crooning and some bluegrass banjo- an unusual sound for Ladywood for sure, but not unwelcome. Consider it a warmup for Stampede, a little country never hurt anyone. Actually I think that might be a country song already. 

-C