A few weeks ago, we reviewed the newest record by Seven Nines and Tens and its mastermind Dave was so happy with it, that he offered to compile a playlist for us. How could we say no to that?!

Heads. “At the Coast.” I found out this week this band is on hiatus. That is a shame, their blend of noise rock and post hardcore is absolutely stunning.

Blinker the Star “Strange as they Say” Canada’s best songwriter. He recorded this record in LA with Ken Andrews and Kelli Scott from the band Failure.

Del the Funky Homosapien “You’re In Shambles” The lead off song from his 2nd record. His first record was front to back Parliament/Funkadelic samples with whimsical lyrical themes. Del goes hard lyrically on album #2 with a much jazzier sound as well.

Palms “Future Warrior” I like the intro and verse section of this song as much as anything Isis or Deftones have done.

The Sadies “Riverview Fog” guitarist Dallas Good recently passed and it’s such a shame given how magnificent this group is. The song was written about Eric’s Trip singer Rick White. After Good’s passing White wrote a set of lyrics over this song to reply. Such beauty.

Year of the Rabbit “Say Goodbye” One of Ken Andrew’s many post Failure projects. Nobody writes or produces a tighter arrangement than him.

Cloakroom “Lambspring” The band dialed back the wall of fuzz in regard to the guitar sound, added some interesting auxiliary production sounds and really, REALLY, dialed in the vocals in respect to being memorable, tuneful, and gorgeous.

Playing Enemy “Insomnia Ohio” Oneday, somehow, someway, I’ll have a noise rock project that will heavily borrow from this. Listen to that kick drum phrase in the main riff. Who the fuck does that?

Grover Washington Jr. “Knucklehead” I first heard this song sampled in NYC rapper K-Solo’s track “Fugitive.”</i> It’s so bloody funky and catchy.

Barkmarket “Visible Cow” Underrated noise rock band that were on Rick Rubin’s Def American label. Vocalist/guitarist Dave Sardy has gone on to produce everyone from The Rolling Stones, The Who, to Oasis. He has an incredible ear for sound, all his work is impeccable.

The Walkmen “Louisiana” The horns, piano, vocal melody, and overall feel of this tune is absolutely perfect.

King Crimson “Exiles” (live) - I cannot wait to see the documentary that just premiered at South by Southwest. This band has no peers concerning technically complex playing and songwriting.

Discordance Axis “Jigsaw” - the reissue of their legendary final record The Inalienable Dreamless was released by our label Willowtip, 3 weeks after our album was released. It’s pretty wild that my obscure, tiny band, get’s to creatively hang with legends such as these.

Blinker the Star “It’s Alright (Baby’s Coming Back) - Random facts: I was born in the same hospital as Jordan Blinker the Star, Pembroke General Hospital tucked away in the sleepy Ottawa Valley. Again, Jordan is Canada’s best songwriter even though this is an Eurythmics cover

Atlas Sound “Recent Bedroom” - The quintessential bedroom gaze record.

Led Zeppelin “Royal Orleans” The Presence record may be a dark horse among the diamonds that are the Zeppelin discography but it’s my favorite for so many reasons. This song is one of those reasons.

Nas “It Ain’t Hard to Tell” - Nasir Jones had it all. The son of a jazz musician, he took his obscene lyrical skills from the Queensbridge projects to the top of the rap game on this legendary debut.

Kayne West “We Don’t Care” The man has a work ethic that rivals anyone and that is all that needs to be said about it. His beats and production early in his career are the truth concerning overall quality.

James Gang “Walk Away” Joe Walsh has so many clever idiosyncrasies in his guitar phrases and songwriting. The arrangement of this tune is understated in how tight it is.

The Groundhogs “Cherry Red” - My buddy Jason from highschool had this cassette that was titled “Split Groundhogs.” We used to smoke weed and listen to it. At the time I enjoyed it but it took years for the obscene quality of this group to really sink in. That, and the fact they were called “The Groundhogs” not “Split Groundhogs.”

Holy Fawn “Drag Me to the Woods” Boston band Junius was my favorite “new” band for years. Then I heard Holy Fawn. They are in a league of their own in respect to sound, composition, and originality.