The latest on the Urban Myth Collective and its peeps.

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We had originally wanted to time this announcement for April 1st, but whatever, nevermind.

Up until this point the exclusive domain of solo singer-songwriters*, the first person construct Urban Myth Recording Collective is totally stoked to announce the addition of not one, but TWO new bands to our artist roster: Bull City and Down By Avalon.

Why TWO bands? Because they have plenty of awesome songs, and awesome songs are right there on our mission statement in between drink lots of coffee and no whites after boxing day.

Why now? Because they made awesome records and we would like to share them with you. I mean, you’re probably gonna end up sharing them on the internets, sooner or later.

Why not? Exactly. So here they are, our new babies:

Continue reading →

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We couldn’t help but note that Chris Warren’s Hole on Bloor St. (from Crazy Wisdom) is on two Canadian iTunes Essentials collections, Toronto iTunes Essentials (under Next Steps), and Cross Canada Backroads (under Deep Cuts).

Bryk better get his ass in gear and get Spadina Expressway back on the iTunes… although it was recently cited on in a Paved.ca blog elegy for Jane Jacobs.

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Toronto Chris Warren peeps, you’re in luck!  

This Saturday, 24th March at the Tranzac (292 Brunswick @ Bloor) Chris Plays his first gig in a while, and it’s even an EARLY show!  6 pm to 8 pm. PWYC.

This will be the first live appearance of a trio made up of CW, Ryan Granville-Martin on drums and Michael Herring on upright bass.  Ryan & Michael are both principal players on Chris’ third CD.

Yes, third CD. With this album, Chris has taken a decided swing towards “the jazz”. “We just have to find a mariachi band and things will pretty well fall into place,” beams Warren.

The as-yet-untitled album tracks are still solidly centred around his dextrous acoustic guitar work, but the new songs seem to do fine without the relatively rococo arrangements he employed on his first two albums. The ones we’ve heard feature stand-up bass, piano and gypsy violin. Some as yet unnamed guest vocalists of to-be-determined pop star status may appear on some of the tracks. (Not cryptic at all, Chris.)  

Chris will follow that with a festival gig:

The Red Festival, a four-day extravaganza of music, comedy, poetry, dance and more.  Chris will be playing a short set with Michael Herring on upright bass. 
Sunday, April 15th at the Lula Lounge (1585 Dundas St. W.) 7 p.m.
See www.GirlCanCreate.com for more details. 

CW website: www.chriswarren.cc
The obligatory myspace page: www.myspace.com/thetorontochriswarren         

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Shhhhh… do you hear it? That sweet sound?

That’s Corey Landis’ Self-Titled (some might even call it eponymous) record, which is finally, quietly available through the intercession of those endless tubes of commerce we call the interweb.

Listen first, then buy over at CD Baby

Download it from the iTunes

Or just get it at Amazon.com with the rest of your gold box items.

It’s been over a year in the making, and it’s easily Corey’s best sounding record of his strongest batch of songs. We know everyone says that, but this time it’s true. Like a Long Beach circus carney might shout, “ladies and gentlemen, we have a WINNER!”

Feauring Corey’s piano in the forefront of simple, acoustic arrangements, the record evokes the darkly humorous and off-kilter west coast albums of the ’70s (the “good old days”, right?) singer-songwriter era (Randy Newman’s “Sail Away”, Tom Waits’s “Small Change”, Elton John’s self-titled album, etc.) with both feet planted firmly in a thoroughly dystopian El Lay of the present.

Corey Landis (the album, not the person) features wonderful string and woodwind arrangements by film composer Joey Newman (of the same Newman film-scoring dynasty as Lionel, Alfred, Thomas, and most tellingly, Randy) and was mixed by Greg Hayes (Warren Zevon, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen) at historic–and now defunct–Signet Sound, former home of Motown West.

Read more about it here or at Corey’s spiffy new website.

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There’s a sweet new Dan Bryk review and article over at Chicago rawkzine Glorious Noise today, marking the return of the “Bryk by Bryk” pun in at least one article per bi-annum.

The article reviews Bryk’s recent NYC set, and discusses his immigration and “career” travails, the outlook for Urban Myth, and since we haven’t formally announced it here yet… Bryk’s brand new green card. (i.e.; there’s gonna be some b-r-y-k in the u-s-a…)

To sweeten the deal, there’s The Next Best Thing, an exclusive love-letter from the forthcoming Pop Psychology. Does Bryk finally bring the rock? You decide.

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Lee Feldman marks his return to the venerable studio of New Joisey’s mighty freeform station WFMU this coming Monday.

Lee live on WFMU (91.1 FM)
Irene Trudel’s show
Monday, March 19th
3 – 6 pm
Interwebcast live at www.wfmu.org  

WFMU’s website says: Evoking platitudes from reviewers such as, “Harry Nilsson meets Fats Waller,” and “Randy Newman by way of Lou Reed and Paul Simon,” Lee Feldman is a very entertaining singer, pianist, and songwriter. His third album, “I’ve Forgotten Everything” is, according to Stereophile Magazine, “unlike anything else in contemporary pop.” Lee is also the creator of STARBOY, an animated musical about a 2-dimensional superhero who lives with his uncle, a Mathematician. Lee brings his trio to WFMU.

Hell, if we were to write a press release, it would probably go something like that!

(FYI, Dan Bryk’s recent WFMU appearance (on Pseu Braun’s show) has been archived for your listening plaisir here).

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ImageCritically acclaimed singer/songwriter/spambot Lee Feldman and his trio are going to be the special musical guest on WNYC’s Soundcheck this Thursday, January 4th, at some point between 2 and 5 PM.

Listen in the NYC area at FM 93.9 or AM 820, elsewhere you’ll have to resort to the interweb.

Update: The show has now been archived for your post-facto enjoyment.

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Dan Bryk is the lead story in this week’s Independent Weekly Music section!

No, really! And best of all, writer Grayson Currin folds in a charming, even funny interview with Dan and his Christmas Record partner-in-grime/dubstep Erin McGinn.

Here’s a leedle snippet of the article:

“Dan Bryk just released Christmas Record. It’s his first Christmas album. He insists it will be his last.

On the back cover, Bryk is dressed up as Santa Claus, his hyperbolic white beard falling all the way to the armrests of an oversized wooden chair. Bryk had his picture taken tonight, too: First, in front of a large, metal Christmas tree, smiling wide-eyed, like a kid whose holiday wait has finally ended. He had the same expression posing in front of a pink plastic pig that wore a red Santa hat. Christmas is this guy’s thing, right?

Not exactly. It’s perfectly believable when, not 15 minutes later, Bryk glances down at the sidewalk, shrugs and dismisses the whole thing: “I don’t know about Christmas, really. I guess it’s just not my season.”

Bryk isn’t kidding. The 30-something songwriter, known for his piano playing and keen observational wit, doesn’t hate Christmas, but he certainly doesn’t like it, either. Perhaps the front cover of Christmas Record tells the story of his antipathy best: A bright, red ornament is shattered across an otherwise pristine white floor. The shards are too big for the ornament to have been thrown. It looks like it was hanging high with seasonal spirit. Then it came crashing down. The hook that held it to the branch is still there. Maybe someone bumped into it? Maybe someone shook the tree? Or maybe it just got tired of trying.

That’s the sentiment of a Dan Bryk Christmas, detailed in what has to be one of the most self-effacing Christmas albums ever. It’s predicated neither on seasonal and spiritual joy nor money-making maneuvers. It’s just an honest (if exaggerated) appraisal of the holiday’s inspired difficulties—infinite loneliness, bad luck, bankrupting ambitions and overactive materialism. You know, the kind of stuff that people call “cheer…”

And damn, he’s just getting started! Read the whole thing at their site. As if that wasn’t enough, Brian Howe (who also wrote a nifty review of Love Me For Christmas for Pitchfork) gave Christmas Record a sweet album review AND to top it all off, they printed the entire lyrics to Great Adventure flanked by candy canes. It really is a sight to see!

Talk about a Christmas present!

Happy Holidays, Everybody!!!

From all of us (all over the place!!) at Urban Myth!

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Like a Sisyphean caveat, Dan Bryk’s Christmas Record is quietly rolling uphill, picking up some great reviews along the way…

Grayson Currin of Independent Weekly:

“The 30-something songwriter, known for his piano playing and keen observational wit, doesn’t hate Christmas, but he certainly doesn’t like it, either. Perhaps the front cover of Christmas Record tells the story of his antipathy best: A bright, red ornament is shattered across an otherwise pristine white floor. The shards are too big for the ornament to have been thrown. It looks like it was hanging high with seasonal spirit. Then it came crashing down. The hook that held it to the branch is still there. Maybe someone bumped into it? Maybe someone shook the tree? Or maybe it just got tired of trying.

That’s the sentiment of a Dan Bryk Christmas, detailed in what has to be one of the most self-effacing Christmas albums ever. It’s predicated neither on seasonal and spiritual joy nor money-making maneuvers. It’s just an honest (if exaggerated) appraisal of the holiday’s inspired difficulties—infinite loneliness, bad luck, bankrupting ambitions and overactive materialism. You know, the kind of stuff that people call “cheer…”

Carmen Lyon of Suite 101.com’s Top 10 Indie Christmas Albums

3. Dan Bryk: “Christmas Record

“All I can really say is that this is probably the most original of Christmas-themed albums out there. It’s so strangely unique that I sometimes wonder how holiday-related it really is, and then I realize that’s what Dan Bryk does and that’s why I love it!”

John Sakamoto of the Toronto Star’s Anti-Hit List and Podcast:

2. Dan Bryk

“In which the displaced Torontonian (he now calls North Carolina home) encounters Jesus changing a flat tire in the parking lot of a Radio Shack and becomes reacquainted with the true meaning of the season. What ensues may be intermittently sardonic — after preaching about peace and the wings of a dove, “Jesus” self-deprecatingly observes, “I know they’re clichés, but they work” — yet the overall tone of earnestness deftly plays against the song’s comic premise.”

Brian Howe of Pitchfork:

“[Four Stars] Sleigh bells and chimes are a hallmark of popular Yuletide songs, evoking so much winter wonder at once– reindeer on the roof, hansom carriages in the snow, tinkling icicles falling from the eaves. Leave it to wittily depressive Dan Bryk to warp their good cheer toward the doomy, intoning them like funeral bells amid the ominous drums and minor-key pianos of this gloom-pop Christmas crash ‘n’ burn… A real grinch, all right, but anyone who’s got a shitty Christmas or two under their belt will know what he means. Oh, did I mention that the song is kind of a suicide note? Merry Christmas.”

Jeff Liberty of KV Style Magazine (Kennebecasis Valley, New Brunswick):

“Dan is one of the most eloquent lyricists who also possesses a potent sense of humour. He is also a master craftsman of brilliant pop sensibilities. Armed with a piano, Dan was the Indie “It Boy” a few years back. He has since moved south and continues to craft some of the best pop music never heard. The Christmas Record is a great addition to his already rich catalogue and is a must for the true music aficionado. Songs that are sometimes auto-biographical and other unique holiday songs soon to be classics sit side by side on the disc. This CD is for those looking for a Christmas release with a new outlook and maybe one that hits closer to home. My favorite track is Cozy Evenings (Morgan David Remix) and it is maybe one of the best Christmas songs i have ever heard! Fans of Joe Jackson, Ben Folds and Randy Newman will love this cd and i highly recommend ALL of Dan’s CDs.”

Kerry Doole of Corriere Canadese Tandem (Toronto):

“If you’re still searching for a Christmas album with a difference, seek out Christmas Record from DAN BRYK. The former Torontonian is now based in Raleigh, North Carolina, and he’s come up with a disc that is both contemporary and seasonal in sensibility. His melodic piano-driven pop balladry suits the seasonal vibe real well, and he mixes tunes from other songwriters with originals and classics…”

Gabino Travassos of Mote (Calgary):

“You know of course that the guy who wrote “…and Now Our Love is Dead” didn’t just release a chirpy little Christmas album full of family-friendly good cheer. Nor is this a sarcastic stab in the heart of the holiday season that you might expect from a smug indie rocker. Instead this is an entertaining, sensitive yet comedic, singer-singwriter album similar to his 2000 release Lovers Leap, but instead the songs are about Christmas, a tete-a-tete with Jesus Christ, and a long drive across the United States… it will keep you alive with indie rock Christmas tales year round.”

songs:illinois:

“Someone halfheartedly complained recently in the comments section that the Christmas song I linked to didn’t sound enough like Christmas. I guess they meant an idealized Christmas where everyone’s happy and families get along and we don’t have to go back to work the next day. But the majority of folks don’t live that Christmas so here’s Dan Byrk’s (although “Cozy Evenings” is a cover) take on Christmas. These are songs that use Christmas as a backdrop to make some broader point, usually a very melancholy one about loneliness and missed opportunities. Because of that they are timeless and not just something to be consumed and used up over the holidays.”

And our favourite, from masashi on myspace:

“I just bought your X-mas album. Thank goodness, an X-mas album that rocks. You rule.”

Thanks man!

Listen to Christmas Record in its entirety here.