New wave vocal/synth awesome from a Canadian triple bill of Tasseomancy, Young Galaxy and Austra happened on November 16 at Electric Owl in Vancouver and I was there, swooning. Check the gallery of all three bands.

Mike Doughty and His Band Fantastic were exactly that (yunno, Mike Doughty and a fantastic band) on November 8 at Neumos in Seattle. I made the trek across borders to say to old friends and new and dig the treats that came forthwith. Check out the review and photos.

Helping to make dreams happen since November 10, 2011, I am The BackstageRider. Watch the cute video!

House dance music dude and producer SBTRKT (like, opposite of “add”) made his Vancouver debut at Fortune the other night and despite a few clunks, warmed up the sozzled nowhere-to-be-the-next-day late-night crowd.

Portishead defies expectations at Vancouver’s most horrible venue to present an emotionally charged performance filled with flawless moments and serious intensity. Check out the full photo gallery and review here.

SubPop noisepop from London, UK’s Male Bonding as they took over the Electric Owl in Vancouver on October 21. Bring on the fuzzy hookiness!

The news that the Stone Roses were reuniting moved me to bash out an ENORMOUS column pondering the complexities of this decision. What do you think? Good idea or bad? Have you never heard of the Stone Roses and are now curious? Let me know what you reckon.

Yuck wrapped their North American tour at the Music Hall in Williamsburg, NYC on October 14 and our roving New York photographer and Fucking Nostalgic friend Chris was there to catalog the event. Yummy Yuck!

Cumbria, England’s Wild Beasts leave the Lake District, end up in Vancouver for the first time at the Biltmore on October 8 and discover – to their surprise – that they’re so well-loved some girl wants to have their babies. Not me. Another girl. Enjoy the pics.