I know most people are not a fan of Mondays, given that it's the start of a new work week and all that that entails, but I like the idea of new starts and all of the potential they bring. And what better day than a Monday to start a new series… and one that celebrates another year of great music at that.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: The Clientele Album Title: Strange geometry Year released: 2005 Year reissued: 2016 Details: standard black The skinny: More Clientele vinyl hitting my turntable this week, this one a warm and long overdue reacquaintance.

<< #33    |    #31 >> Well, I learned something new when writing this post. Before sitting down to draft it and indeed, when putting together this list, many moons ago, I was thinking that Terry Jacks was the originator of this song and I had an idea that the flavour of this post would be highly nostalgic, given that his version was one of my father’s faves.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: The Clientele Album Title: Suburban light Year released: 2000 Year reissued: 2014 Details: 180 gram The skinny: Okay. So I don’t usually make a habit out of posting two of these ‘Vinyl love’ pieces in a row.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: The Clientele Album Title: The violet hour Year released: 2003 Year reissued: 2025 Details: standard black The skinny: Here’s one that’s been on my vinyl wish list for a very, very long time, perhaps even from day one of my collecting vinyl in earnest.

<< #26   |   #24 >> Back in the early 90s, Toronto alternative radio station CFNY collaborated with music retailer extraordinaire HMV on a series of alternative music compilations. Fittingly titled "Free at last", the radio station would hand them out as promotional items at events and the store would give them out free with purchases of music by at least one of the artists appearing on the compilation.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: Concrete Blonde Album Title: Bloodletting Year released: 1990 Year reissued: 2017 Details: standard black The skinny: Well, it’s All Hallow’s Eve again and though it’s been years since I’ve celebrated it in any traditional sense and double that since I dressed up in costume as the holiday warrants, I know it’s an important one to many people and I do try to observe it every year in my own way.

<< #80    |    #78 >> At track #79, we've got "So alive" by Daniel Ash's third and longest lasting band, Love and Rockets. After the ground-breaking goth act, Bauhaus, disbanded in 1983, guitarist Daniel Ash focused more on his side project, Tones on Tail, with friend Glenn Campling and Bauhaus drummer Kevin Haskins. They would release an album and a litany of EPs (including popular club single "Go!") before dissolving in 1984.

<< #8    |    #6 >> Here’s a band that may be largely forgotten to the quickly moving trends of musical history. Stellastarr* was formed in 2000 out of the ashes of a couple other short-lived bands, arising from the burgeoning indie rock scene in Brooklyn and Manhattan that would also give us The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Vampire Weekend, and TV on the Radio.

Artist: Amy Millan When: October 17th, 2025 Where: Club Saw, Ottawa Context: I’ve seen Stars live five times and Broken Social Scene twice* but it had been quite a while since I’d seen either one. However, this wasn’t the reason why I really wanted to see Amy Millan, even though I do often lean towards the songs she sings with Stars.

<< #10    |    #8 >> Ever since pioneering shoegaze rock band, Ride, called it quits rather spectacularly back in 1995, I’d been firmly planted in camp Mark Gardener in terms of following the post-breakup careers of the two warring principal songwriters and driving forces behind the band. I’d always preferred his voice and with the exception of "Vapour trail…

<< #34    |    #32 >> Fifteen years ago or so, I was going out to the cinemas semi-regularly with a group of guys from work. All four of us were happily married but the films we often went to were ones that our wives would likely not have been interested in seeing so they gladly allowed us these nights out with the guys.

<< #81    |    #79 >> If you’ve been around this blog before, you’d know that I’ve written about the legendary synth pop band originally from Basildon, England many times over. So instead of treading and retreading over familiar ground, I’ll tell you a story*. (Mind you if you are looking for more words about the band and this song, have a gander at…

Artist: No Joy When: October 1st, 2025 Where: The 27 Club, Ottawa Context: No Joy is an act that I’ve been waiting to see for well over a decade. Indeed, I had planned to see them in 2015 when they were touring in support of their third album, “More faithful”, and they were hitting a now-defunct local spot that was even more intimate than Wednesday night’s venue*.

<< #17    |    #15 >> For a time back at the end of 2013, I found myself listening to nothing but Black Hearted Brother and their debut album, "Stars are our home". The album was released in October of that year and took me completely by surprise. At the time, I had pretty much given up on any new material from Mojave 3, and well, forget about Slowdive, and Halstead's solo work, while excellent, had never been mind-blowing.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: Operators Album Title: Blue wave Year released: 2016 Details: white The skinny: Here’s an album that hasn’t seen my turntable in some time.

<< #27   |   #25 >> On my old, long defunct blog Music Insanity, I remember writing a post about all those bands that I’ve respected and tried many times over the years to ‘get into’ but ultimately, failed. The list at that time included The Ramones, Skinny Puppy, Husker Du, Bon Iver, Destroyer, Broken Social Scene*, and of course, Sonic Youth.