Sloan

Sloan's new album, Parallel Play, came out yesterday. My pre-ordered copy is somewhere in the mail, but Yep Roc is nice and lets you download it as well as having a hard copy. This morning, after spilling my coffee on my light blueish green shirt ("I'd call that seafoam," said a co-worker who shouldn't say things like "seafoam"), on my long, hot walk to the train, I listened to the album for the second time - first on headphones. I wasn't going to be easy to please aft... MORE

Most of you may know this group, but not this song. I like the Beatle feel of the drums and the sweet Harrison-like guitar bits. These guys make a lot of great music and they have a new CD coming out in a few weeks. You can hear some of it here. http://www.myspace.com/sloan http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=alb.234837&variant=play

I have had a worse season than this. Spring 1994 was hell on earth. Surely summer 2007 isn't that bad. But make no mistake, it is awful. So in the interest of turning the beat around, I present "Summer's My Season," by Sloan. It's one long and dirgey play on words -- which would be painful, you'd think, but it's actually fantastic. May it make the remaining weeks of this season bearable.

The initial American pressing of Sloan's One Chord to Another (1997) contained a bonus disc patterned after the Beach Boys' live-in-the-studio Party! Titled Recorded Live At A Sloan Party!, it features Sloan running through a few of its own songs plus a handful of covers, including Roxy Music's "Over You" and "I Can't Let Go" by The Hollies. In the comments, you'll find a, let's say, unorthodox medley of "On The Road Again" by Canned Heat and "Transona Five" by Stereolab, ... MORE

Yep Roc has the new CD to stream (It's also available in Rhapsody). Here's a "Red Button" song sample. Then to hear the whole CD, visit this link. Listen Here          

I love being proven wrong. Well, when it comes to being proven wrong about things I'd love to be wrong about, like hating the latest album by my favorite band. Never Hear the End of It is still not fantastic, but now that I've sat with it a few months and recently saw Sloan play the songs live, there's more than one song that I can more than stand. Today's example is "Another Way I Could Do It." Here's the thing: At about 1:30 in, the song turns fantastic. It's got a... MORE

Below the border, Canadian popsters fail to push themselves above the packBy Ethan StanislawskiFriday, January 12th, 2007 When aliens descend upon the rubble once known as the planet Earth and come across the great tomes of rock ’n’ roll, how will a band like Sloan appear in their eyes? Quite prominently, if it’s somewhere north of the 49th parallel, as the Halifax natives are one of the most successful bands in Canadian history. Stateside, however, their legacy is mor... MORE

Sloan's Never Hear the End of It has been an ongoing debate for me. I hated it — hated it — when I first heard it. Shocking really, as the song I had heard in advance ("Fading Into Obscurity") was really just perfect. So I hated it when it came out in the fall. Saw Sloan live in the winter and liked a song or two a little better. By May, when they recently played a couple of shows, I'd been won over to a few more songs. Still not 30, and there will always be a handful that... MORE

I see there are a slew of Canadians on this here Mog, and I live in Detroit, about 5 minutes from Windsor, Ontario.So, it's only fitting that I open the e-floor for discussion of the greatest band(s) or singer(s) from our northern neighbor. I mean, it's a huuuuuuuuuuuge country, right? So there has gotta be a huuuuuuuuuuuuge number of sweet little rock 'n' rollers from it, right? I'm not a huge fan of Our Lady Peace or Alanis. So who am I missing out on? Who do I need to b... MORE

In two weeks-ish, it will be 10 years since I first met Sloan, since my first Sloan interview. When it happened, they were touring One Chord to Another which is probably my favorite album of theirs of all (though sometimes lately I think it's Navy Blues). And this song, it's on that record, and oh it's good. It came up on Baby Soda, the iPod Nano of champion (me) today on my way to work, and I felt like I was in a time machine. There are probably 600 reasons for this, an... MORE

Went to the Independent in the SF on Monday night to see Sloan. I have to admit I liked their opener, The 88, more than I liked them. Different energy, however, so all in all they were both enjoyable to watch. The 88 had a more poppy sound and reeked with the potential to “go big.” They had on matching polka dotted ties and collared shirts. Very MTV friendly (kind of a turnoff, but hey). Sloan, on the other hand, put on a longer show than I had anticipated (seeing as the... MORE

Dear Sloan, Your latest album, Never Hear the End of It is terrible. It is an incredible disappointment and I hate it. There. I've said it.

The Onion's AV Club recently announced that they're starting their own musical Hall of Fame (for real, not a smartass version), and their first inductee is Sloan's Between the Bridges. I was floored. I fell in love with this record the first time I heard it at one of those listening stations in Borders, and it was the soundtrack to my life for several years, as I moved from Kansas City back to my hometown in eastern Iowa. The funny thing is, as far as I know, the CD didn't... MORE