!earshot year-end picks 2005

Heidi Ebert

I'm Heidi Ebert I'm the music director at CHMA 106.9 FM in Sackville, NB. I have a show called French Breakfast Radio with my co-host Emily "The Spaniard" Shepard, and I host the Top 31 Countdown on Friday nights. Today I got my car stuck in a snowbank.

Top 3 of 2005:
Jon-Rae and the River - Old Songs for the New Town – (Permafrost)
Wickedly sharp gospel ragers. Amazing stuff. 

Chad Van Gaalen - Infiniheart – (Subpop)
A bedroom-recorded headphone album full of lovely stories.
Tons of Fun University - The Them They're Talking About – (Mother Press Media)
See question 2.

Honourable mention:
K'naan – The Dusty Foot Philosopher – (Track & Field)
Fresh, socially aware hip-hop. A clever mockery of the glamourous world of 
rappers.

Underrated record of the year:
Tons of Fun University - The Them They're Talking About – (Mother Press Media)
I might be cheating here, because this is more poetry than anything else. But we catalogued this with our music, not our spoken word. 3 dudes from out west - incredible poets, beatboxers, musicians (harmonica, anyone?). This record gives me goosebumps. And I haven't even seen them live. Yowzah.

Overrated record of the year:
Controller.Controller - X-Amounts – (Paper Bag)
Sounds just like History. Sorry, Nirmala, but I just don't care. What else have you got?

Best Local Release:
Shotgun and Jaybird - Shotgun and Jaybird – (Independent)
This is really a compilation/re-release of songs from previous records, plus a couple that usually only get played live. It was put together as a fundraiser, and is one of the only Shotgun and Jaybird records still in print which makes it Sackville gold.

Best Personal Campus Radio Moment:
Doing traffic reports from one of the two traffic-light-equipped intersections in town. "There's a red Jeep coming North along Main St. with a dog in the passenger seat and it's going to be turning left, but it'll have to wait because ... wait ... here's another vehicle, a white minivan with a broken headlight is coming through ..."

Most Anticipated Record for 2006
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.