News

The Pack A.D. play a homecoming gig at the Biltmore Cabaret in Vancouver, followed up with touring across Canada this summer.

Maya Miller and Becky Black of The Pack A.D. are the hardest working gals we know. They've been on the road non-stop since March (SXSW), traveling in the Falcon (their van) all across the USA, playing 84 shows in 95 days, each show winning them new friends and fans.

They're doing it old school and it's all about the fans. How does old school work? "We tour like hell, and if you like us, then you tell your friends. Then your friends tell their friends and so on and before you know it, you've made the band. " They're not interested in being the flavour of the month.

Now back in Vancouver, The Pack A.D. are getting ready for their big homecoming gig at the Biltmore Cabaret on Friday June 19th (their last scheduled show in Vancouver til December). Then for the rest of the summer they will be back in their trusty van touring all across Canada before heading back over to Europe in the fall.

The Pack A.D. are going to play some music and have some drinks - so all you have to do is show up and bring your friends!

Fri June 19, Vancouver BC @ Biltmore Cabaret
Sat June 20, Kelowna BC @ Doc Willoughby's
Thu June 25, Calgary AB @ The Palomino - Sled Island
Fri June 26 Whitehorse YK @ Sunstroke Music Festival
Thu July 2 Edmonton AB @ Brixx Bar
Fri July 3 Regina SK @ O'Hanlons
Sat July 4 Winnipeg MB @ Lo Pub
Tues July 7 Thunder Bay ON @ The Apollo
Wed July 8 Sault Ste. Marie ON @ Arcadia House
Thu July 9, Sudbury ON @ The Townehouse
Fri July 10, London ON @ Call The Office
Sat July 11, Windsor ON @ Phog Lounge
Tues July 14, Kingston ON @ The Mansion
Thu July 16, Toronto ON @ The Horseshoe
Fri July 17, Montreal QC @ L'Esco
Sat July 18, Quebec City QC @ Festival d’été
Mon July 20, Halifax NS @ Gus's Pub
Tue July 21, New Minas NS @ West Side Charlies
Thu July 23, Ottawa ON @ Zaphod Beeblebrox
Thu July 30, Regina SK @ The Exchange
Fri July 31, Saskatoon SK @ Amigo's
Sat Aug 1, Lethbridge AB @ Henotic
Sun Aug 2, Canmore AB @ The Drake
Wed Aug 5, Calgary AB @ Broken City
Sat Aug 8, Nanaimo BC @ Green Mountain Music Festival

The band's full touring schedue is here!

After a few Top Secret meetings at the Dairy Queen (Cold War style – with our backs to each other, Oreo Blizzards in hand) the news is out, we’re piecing together a benefit compilation with our pals at CiTR 101.9 FM. It features 11 of our favourite Vancouver bands and only 300 waxy 180g LPs will be pressed, silkscreened and numbered by hand.
 
Proceeds from this limited edition gem will support CiTR. Each of the bands on the record was kind enough to donate their song (many tracks are previously unreleased!) and Stuart McKillop at Rain City Recorders donated mastering time. David Barclay of Nice Snacks contributed the artwork.
 
To reserve a copy, please donate to CiTR. The release date is currently TBD - with luck, they will be back from the vinyl plant this January.
 
We’re excited for this one. Hope you are too!
 
The CiTR Pop Alliance Compilation: vol 2
Release date: TBD
 
Tracklisting:
Side A
1) Apollo Ghosts - Validation!
2) My Friend Wallis - Hiding
3) Slam Dunk - Slow Dance
4) Role Mach - Montana
5) Kellarissa - Flatlands
Side B
6) Fine Mist (featuring Nick Krgovich) - I Could Shout
7) No Kids - He'll Have To Go (demo)
8) fanshaw - Diana
9) Watermelon - How I Came (demo)
10) Shane Turner Overdrive - Age 25-29 Hairline
11) Spring Break - Stephanie Meyer's 115th Dream

The girls of The Pack AD are a well oiled touring machine, and after four months on the road they are still going strong! Exclaim and Mint Records offer you a chance to win autographed Pack AD treasures (including: the band's signed and destroyed cymbal/drum head, Pack A.D. vinyl, Mint samplers, a Mint tote bag and pins galore!). Hit up our pals at exclaim.ca here for contest details, then go see the girls tear the roof off of a venue near you!

July 14 - the Mansion - Kingston, ON
July 15 - Brunswick Tavern - St. Thomas, ON
July 16 - Horseshoe Tavern - Toronto, ON
July 17 - L'Escogriffe - Montreal, QC
July 18 - Festival d'ete Off - Quebec City, QC
July 20 - Gus's Pub - Halifax, NS
July 21 - West Side Charlie's - New Mines, NS
July 30 - the Exchange - Regina, SK
July 21 - Amigo's Cantiina - Saskatoon, SK
August 1 - Henotic - Lethbridge, AB
August 2 - the Drake - Canmore, AB
August 5 - Broken City - Calgary, AB
August 7 - Logan's Pub - Victoria, BC
August 8 - Green Mountain Music Festival - Nanaimo, BC

Attention LP lovers: time to break your piggy banks and roll some quarters. Mint just got in its first ever vinyl batch of the critically lauded debut solo album from Olivia "fanshaw" Fetherstonhaugh, known simply as "your next favorite band" by the folks at HeroHill. As you may already know, that debut, produced with a selection of Olivia's friends and former Minty collaborators, received a CD release in February of 2010. Yet, as the wait for this pressing has fostered the growth of ecstatic anticipation assured to be soon satisfied, the time to cop Dark Eyes on wax is finally upon us, restoring balance to the universe and peace of mind to its inhabitants.

Specially remastered for vinyl by Bob Weston, this special 180 gram release promises to be that much more vibrant, ethereal, and lush than ever heard before, as connoisseurs of the LP format have come to expect. All the exquisite nuances of Olivia's breathy, lilting vocals and minimal, airy instrumentation will be noticeably present to even the least trained ear. This means that, to those of the insufferably analog ilk, this release is, for all intents and purposes, the first true issuing of the album called "haunting" by Exclaim and "beautifully crafted" by AllMusic. Check it out again for the very first time.

Oh - and before we forget, there is a new video too - watch it here. 

"Dark Eyes is an album whose quiet surfaces are deceptive; this music often seems calm on first glance, but there's a remarkable amount of energy and drama lurking below the surface, and on "Strong Hips," "Vegas," and "O Sailor," Fanshaw paints a powerful widescreen image with just a few boldly applied strokes of her musical brush. The compact scale of the production and arrangements on Dark Eyes at once draws in the listener and fills up the room despite the clean surfaces; Fanshaw has built a giant of an album out of little details, and it's one of the most audacious debuts of 2010." - Mark Demming, AllMusic

Psst... Have you heard, Mint Records is at it again, preparing to release more untamed albums into the wild.

May 15, 2007 - Nick Krgovich (of P:ano) shall be celebrating the birth of his latest vinyl creation titled, One Woman Show. This 7" features three savoury experiments in pop.

May 15, 2007 - The Awkward Stage and Young and Sexy or The Young and Sexy and Awkward Stage share the glory in the first of our upcoming Double A Side 7" Series.

May 15, 2007 - The Choir Practice, our very own vocal collective of indie pop bliss, shall greet the world with their first collection of songs.

June 12, 2007 - Immaculate Machine's Fables a followup to Ones and Zeros shall magically appear on record store shelves. (Want to get at it NOW? Fables shall be available on itunes early, like May 30th early!)

July 3, 2007 - Carolyn Mark, knows it and will be telling Canada, Nothing is Free. The album will be released in the USA September 18,2007!

What about Bella, you ask? No One Will Know, their Mint debut CD, will be hitting also on September 18, 2007!

So there. It's out. Now, go tell your friends!

Immaculate Machine do not speak Mandarin, but they certainly can sing it. After being teased about their French EP by CBC Radio 3 personality Grant Lawrence, the band went back to the studio with their friend Marie (pictured with Brooke, at right), who translated “Dear Confessor” into Mandarin and taught it to them phonetically. Brooke, Kathryn and Luke then went to the CBC Studios and personally presented the song to Grant. According to Brooke, they don't know precisely what they're saying but those fluent in Mandarin have told them it is quite well done.

...and Immaculate Machine have a surprise for you too. You can download, “Wo Xiang Tanbai” right here, for free!

May 29th is a big day for us at Mint Records. Not only is our Fancy New Website up and rolling (Hooray!!), but today, our pals at itunes are offering Immaculate Machine's single, "Jarhand" for FREE!! Get it here. It's the illustrious single of the week!

Then, on May 30th, download all of Fables on itunes, it's specially priced (and you'll have it two weeks earlier than your friends). If you'd like a physical copy of the CD/LP for your collection, visit a record store (It's out on June 12th), or if you live in the woods, order it from our friends at Maple Music.

Vancouverites! Be sure to visit us at Red Cat Records (4307 Main St.) on June 1st; we're having a little advance listening shindig and showing off some Immaculate artwork by the band's resident artist, Caitlin Gallupe. Afterwards, we're marching across the street to The Main for some late night eats and a performance by Victoria's Vincat!

If you're busy that night, stop by the Ukrainian Hall (805 E. Pender) for the CD Release Party on June 16th. Immaculate Machine, Meatdraw and Victoria, Victoria will be there. We'll be there. And you should be there too.

To celebrate Nardwuar's 20th Anniversary on CiTR, on the evening of November 2nd, there will be a special free, all ages gig. Come see Nardwuar's band, The Evaporators, plus The Tranzmitors, The Pack A.D. and Kid Kordene at the Sub Ballroom in Vancouver.

ps: This is all happening AFTER Nard's 20 hour Interview Marathon on CiTR. Beginning at 9:00 on November 1st, Nardwuar is celebrating the 20th Anniversary of his Vancouver Radio Show (1987-2007) on CiTR 101.9 FM with a 20 hour, "Live on the Air" Nardwuar Interview Marathon. You can tune in and listen online here.

Who: Nardwuar, The Evaporators, The Tranzmitors, The Pack A.D. and Kid Kordene.

What: Nardwuar celebrates his 20 years on CiTR with a free all ages show.

Where: The UBC SUB Ballroom, Vancouver, BC.

When: Friday, November 2nd at 7:30pm.

Why: Just baking a cake just wouldn't cut it.

Yes, that's right folks, just a few days until Immaculate Machine's Fables is on those record store shelves on Tuesday, June 12. If you haven't had a chance to preview the record, the entire thing is available to stream here. Thanks Quicktime! And, our pals at Pitchfork are up on the Immaculate fun too, here's what they've said so far. We know, we know, Ian Danzig said it first, but, hooray for Tuesdays indeed!!!

Normally, we celebrate the holidays with our annual Mint Records Ridiculously Early Xmas Party (Remember last year? Nardwuar hauled up members of Franz Ferdinand and The Cribs). This year, we've changed things up. On December 14th and December 15th, The Mint Records Just in Time for Xmas Party will take place at the Railway Club with an unprecedented number of bands performing.