Backstage Rider checks out San Fran indie band GIRLS before the rest of the world gets to see them on the the festival circuit. What was it like? WHAT THE HELL HAS HAPPENED TO CHRISTOPHER OWENS’ HAIR? The music? Yeah, pretty. Now, if you’ll excuse me I’m off to slow dance with a guy with a crew cut at the sock hop. Hope he likes my poodle skirt…and my flask of whiskey, garter, and new anchor tattoo.

Heard of Turin Brakes? No? If you were living in the UK in the early aughties, you’d not be able to escape their brand of edgy folk-rock. But 10 years on, Olly Knights and Gale Paridjanian find themselves having to reintroduce the band and their new album Outbursts… but are all the more relaxed for it. Read on in this exclusive Backstage Rider interview.

UK folksters Turin Brakes hit the West Coast for their first North Uhmerican gigs in 5 years in Vancouver. Check out the extensive gallery from the May 9 Venue show.

The National are back! The National are back! High Violet launches today and comes with a marketing juggernaut. Also find out why on May 15 you should be glued to your computer and turn up the speakers.

Aren’t awesome international media darlings supposed to play awesome venues when they’re back in their hometown? Yeah, that’s what we thought. But nevermind, we will let you live, Japandroids. For you have brought the punk rock back.

Pictures of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Axl Rose, John Taylor from Duran Duran, oh and the new video from The Nervous Wreckords featuring one Mr. Brian Karscig and the hot Lindsay Matheson. They’re just “Doin’ it to do it”, don’tcha know.

Guilty About Girls has a new video out for the poppy little number, “Candy Candy”. They shot it this past weekend. Here it is in all its black and white glory, served up with some colourful anecdotes. Would you like fries with that?

Yeasayer’s Vancouver visit was prepped and primed and ready to go off. And it did. Just not at the levels of nuclear awesomeness that many of us expecting. Find out why, and peruse the exhaustive – well, okay, there’s 12 photos – gallery.

Slightly dodgy hand-held video of Florence & the Machine performing “Dog Days Are Over” live at the Vancouver Commodore Ballroom, April 14, 2010, along with a crowd of totally raving lunatic fans going absolutely nutso with joy and bounce.