!earshot Top 200 of 2021

Eagerly Awaited

Anticipation is the sweetest agony. We look forward with hope and eagerness not marred by cold reality Here are some records music geeks are eagerly waiting for this year. Of course, it is the ones we aren’t expecting that will amaze us the most.

Julie Doiron has teamed up with her former Eric's Trip mates (Rick White, Mark
Gaudet, Chris Thompson) for another go-round. She is one of the most enchanting live performers I've ever seen -- she usually plays alone these days, or with Shotgun & Jaybird when they're all in the same town. The new record is likely to be a total diversion from what her more recently-turned fans are used to. Risky and wonderful.

Robert Pollard: From a Compound Eye (Merge)
Because I Miss GBV

Destroyer's Rubies (Merge)
From what I've heard, Rubies is looking to be a culmination of Destroyer's work thus far, combining the fake verses real dialectic of Your Blues and combining it with the all-out rock of This Night.

I want to hear the sophomore release by the Bloc Party. Because it will suck. And I will laugh and laugh... - Luke Meat - CiTR Vancouver

The Arcade Fire, Sufjan Stevens, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.  ’06 is going to be great!

Northern Faction 3, the Balanced crew has been slowly growing a great base of electronic artists in Winnipeg and beyond so I hope I can be greeted by some nice deep, atmospheric and obscure tracks.
www.balanced-records.com

Paper Moon ­ Broken Hearts Break Faster Every Day – (Endearing Records)
I’ve heard the advance of this album and Paper Moon will be the next band
from Winnipeg to get the attention they deserve on the national stage.

Hard to narrow down to just one.  I'm looking forward to hearing what Yeah Yeah Yeah's have been upto after they ran down a lot of other bands second CDs last year.  Also looking forward to hearing new music from Belle & Sebastian and Muse.  The one CD I'm most looking forward to though is The Arctic Monkeys.  Shouldn't be too long before we finally get to hear the album even if everyone has been listening/trading the demos for months.

Fan_3 - Let Me Clear My Throat - (Geffen)

A white, teenage, female rapper who does the theme song for "Darcy's Wild Life"; watching to see if she scores a hit single will be too entertaining for words.

ten year drought's new record.... riiiiiiiight.
Dale Kibbons – UMFM Winnipeg

The January release by Austin band The Gourds.  I was lucky enough to see them live in 5 U.S. states during 2005 -- my most satisfying musical moments of the year.
Also looking forward to the next Be Good Tanyas release which will hopefully wash out the bad taste of ‘that’Zellers ad.

Cat Power - The Greatest – (Matador)
If the rest of the album is anything like the title track, we're in 
for an incredible and very different Cat Power experience.

A new studio album from Cardiacs because it's been a long time.
Something new from Tipsy, because it's been a long time.
Anything from Wrong Records because I loves the 'ArdKore.

There are so many! I'm really looking forward to Calexico's next release due in the Spring of 2006.  Also can't wait to see what Abigail Washburn does next.

I want to hear the sophomore release by the Bloc Party. Because it will suck. And I will laugh and laugh...

Cat Power's The Greatest. It has to be amazing, it can't be called the greatest for nothing.
Belle and Sebastian's  The Life Pursuit. B & S have not written one bad song period.

The record I'm most anticipating for 2006 is the release of the Victoria alt-country compilation "Cavalcade of Scars". A project of this kind is long overdue considering the depth and variety of talent in this town

The Devin Townsend Band- Devin is a genius....always got tricks up his sleeves...

I'm anticipating Radiohead's new release. Why? Cause it's bloody Radiohead!!!

Record I am most anticipating is the forthcoming June Garber release due out by the end of the year, I hope. She is originally from South Africa but makes her home in Toronto Canada now. I had an opportunity to interview her in London and she is once again back on the jazz scene after a hiatus of about 10 years. Still has great delivery, feel for the songs and a great set of pipes!