The Lines we Draw

Recorded live at the Oakwood Centre on 5th of May 2018.

“Change is inevitable if you’re lucky,” says guitarist / vocalist Alex Edkins while talking about Atlas Vending, the fourth full-length album by Toronto’s Metz. “Our goal is to remain in flux, to grow in a natural and gradual way. We’ve always been wary to not overthink or intellectualize the music we love but also not satisfied until we’ve accomplished something that pushes us forward.” The music made by Edkins and his compatriots Hayden Menzies (drums) and Chris Slorach (bass) has always been a little difficult to pin down.

Recordings of Tchaikovsky symphonies are appearing less frequently since the great major label implosion of a few years ago, and the upside is that we can once again approach new releases with interest, and even anticipation. Conductor Tugan Sokhiev’s light, sinewy reading gives the impression of a fresh approach to this warhorse work. He elicits bold if not particularly brazen sounds from the Toulouse orchestra brass in the dramatic opening and throughout the first movement–especially the close, where I was once again reminded that this is pretty scary music. He achieves this effect not only by energetic tempos, but also by highlighting the harmonic tension Tchaikovsky built into the score, and by taking great care with the music’s unique timbral characteristics (woodwinds in particular).

A collection of 25 madrigals from 23 different composers, from the famous to the obscure, make up this Elizabethan curiosity, published in 1601 by Thomas Morley. A musical dedication to Queen Elizabeth 1, The Triumphs of Oriana displays the talents of English songwriters, long-overshadowed by their European counterparts, conjuring up an image of an idealised and mythical England of old.

The latest from experimental musician David Tibet is an arduous but rewarding album, the feeling of listening to a preacher behind the pulpit, or a doomsayer on the soapbox.

The team behind last year's excellent The Glory Days Of Aussie Pub Rock compilation return with another four-CD instalment paying testament to the halcyon days of our nation's live music scene, and fortunately they have a deep well from which to draw tunes and inspiration.