Arts & Entertainment The Best of 2007 s the year’s top hits the OP Staff pick Tain eee, Agstetantacaitor. Iain W. Reeve Assistant Editor In addition to being the Assistant Editor here at the Other Press, Iain Reeve is an avid trebuchet enthusiast and hobo musician. ALBULMS: Iron & Wine — The Shephera’s Dog Sam Beam has made a steady progression from his first album, where he recorded just himself on an eight-track playing nary more than an acoustic guitar. This album, his third, features a full band, clever orchestrations, and gives his songs new energy Patrick MacKenzie Music Columnist Laura Kelsey Opinions Editor Before signing onas the Opinions ~~ without losing his earthy, humble feel. The perfect album to listen to inside on a cold evening, with a hot beverage and snow flicking off the windows. The National — The Boxer The National’s previous album set the stage for a band trying to fill the same deep voiced, New York-inspired shoes as the Velvet Underground. However, this year’s offering is dense, varied, and dark without being weepy and self interested. The drums of Bryan Devendorf alone sell this album; he drives the arrangements, his presence alternating between sparse and overwhelming, but always coming and going at the right times. An album of anti-anthems with so many singable sections. Feist — The Reminder One of Canada’s trendiest exports, Leslie Feist has ensured her place in our collective consciousness for some time by doing what few can do: following up an amazing album with one that is even better. Walking the line between new ground and Pat is the scribe behind the always revealing Song of the Week column. He’s also the President and founder of the Vancouver chapter of the Gary Sinise fan club. ALBULMS: Modest Mouse — We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank With Isaac Brock’s vocals sounding like a barking dog on most tracks, We Were Dead is a strange brew of heavy guitar oriented pop and/or rock. Editor at the Other Press, Ms. Kelsey was a senior editor at Cat Fancy. She currently runs a lucrative freelance writing enterprise submitting contrived naughty letters to Hustler and Hustler Canada. ALBULMS: Conquer By Supremacy — TRUE. NORTH. STRONG All right, call me biased, but my number one album of the year is Conquer By Supremacy’s TRUE. NORTH. STRONG. The album is a compilation/collaboration by many in the local metal familiar features, Leslie reminds us why we love her, and sends us a collection of toe-tapping, weep worthy tunes that were built for urban cafes and art shows. Her diverse and inviting voice and sharp work on the guitar makes her a unique talent that we should all take (even more) notice of. CONCERTS: Wilco — August 20 at the Malkin Bowl The Malkin Bowl is one of the most well-guarded secrets in Vancouver as far as venues are concerned. The mid-size, outdoor, strong-sounding hunk of Stanley Park was the perfect summer venue for rock workhorses Wilco. A catalogue sprawling setlist delivered with note perfect performance didn’t hurt either. The New Pornographers — September 20 at the Commodore If you live in Vancouver and like this resident indie superband, it’s likely that you’ve seen the Pornos before. I certainly have, and in spite of what some called Rush — Snakes and Arrows In spite of the fact that these venerable hosers from _ the Great White North are now in their fifties, they still can, when pressed, write some trippy, kick- ass rock tunes. Radiohead — In Rainbows Though Thom Yorke has said he’s more interested in creating music with a computer than with traditional instruments, In Rainbows solidly occupies guitar, bass and drums territory. It’s also hauntingly beautiful. scene, with yours truly doing vocal duties. Because the songs were composed with different musicians, each has its own unique sound, and range from death and black metal to power metal. Deadriver Wasteland — They Die, We Fight If you like metal, you will find it hard to not like Deadriver Wasteland. Their new album They Die, We Fight is an incredible blend of metal sub- genres. a “stilted” performance lacking energy, I felt that this was the best the full line-up has looked, intertwining their energetic old material, and their sprawling, deliberate new material to create a varied and engaging set. The Weakerthans — October 6 at the Commodore I have a soft spot for my fellow Manitobans, and seeing them with an added member, more energy than ever, and some engaging new material made this one memorable. It was also one of those shows where the band played every song I wanted to hear and had me singing along the whole time. You can’t beat that. MOVIES: Superbad This film has re-written the rules of the teenage comedy the same way John Hughes did in the 80s. What’s more, it was written by Burnaby native Seth Rogen. Michael Cera of Arrested Development fame shines, and looks to follow up with a standout performance in CONCERTS: Flaming Lips — September 18 at the Malkin Bowl You don’t need drugs to enjoy the Lips. Enough said. Arcade Fire — May 24 at Deer Lake Park Believe the hype. Modest Mouse — April 17 at the PNE Forum Okay, the Forum is a lousy venue, but I’d see Modest Mouse anywhere and so should you. Hammerfall — Steel Meets Steel: Ten Years of Glory Hammerfall never disappoints, and this “best of’ album,” celebrating ten years of “letting the hammer fall,” is no exception. I enjoy blasting these power classics and watching the cheese leak out of my speakers!! CONCERTS: Wolven Ancestry/Verbal Deception/Anatolian Wisdom — August 26 at The Cobalt Thisshow BLEW MEAWAY ! It’s rare to have anything Canadian tour through Vancouver that isn’t the upcoming Toronto Film Fest pick Juno. The Darjeeling Limited Yes it was something of a rehash for Wes Anderson, yes it wasn’t as funny as his other movies, and yes showing Natalie Portman’s hindquarters got it the wrong kind of attention. However, the fact that this simple tale that doesn’t go very far beats out most of the Hollywood pack while still being a rehash says something about modern film. Transformers Just kidding, this film was exceptionally horrible. Rather than point out another good film, I felt that this childhood raping, Hollywood co-opting tragedy was worthy of special note. Ford sponsorship, a focus on sexy young people rather than giant robots, and a little too much American military masturbation made me cringe with every scene. Tip for the sequel: the film is called Transformers, not People Who Were Peripherally Affected by the Transformers. MORE ROBOTS! MOVIES: Control Dark, atmospheric, like Joy Division. sad—just No Country for Old Men What can I say? It’s a Coen Brothers movie. Into the Wild Based on the life of unknown idealist Christopher McCandless, Into the Wild is an odd, yet perfectly fitting morality tale for our peculiar age. grindcore or shitty black metal, so this show was a treat. Being the huge Ensiferum fan that I am, I was delighted to discover that Alberta’s Verbal Deception would be bringing their fun blend of pirate metal. But the biggest surprise of the night came in the form of Ontario black metallers Wolven Ancestry—or more like their incredible front man, Lord Defiler. He exerted a passion and flair for showmanship that is rarely seen.