Alright, so the Stanley Cup Final is on its way to another city yet again and my home town team is on its way to the big dance. The Ottawa Senators are easily one of the favourites to win the biggest hardware of them all this year and with good reason too. Their big line of Heatly, Spezza and Alfredson is scoring like wildfire but their supporting lines are also putting the puck in the net. Their defence has been stellar on both fronts as well and, for a team that has constantly been dubbed a playoff underachiever, they've come along way under thier new coach.

The Sens, however, will have to get past the wrath of the Buffalo Sabres, the President's Trophy winner this season. These same Sabres have been a force to be reckoned with this season, with massive offensive output from co-captains Chris Drury and Daniel Briere as well as the rest of the young team plus great defense and a stellar netminder in Ryan Miller, these guys were seated as Cup contendors since the first game of the regular season. These guys have knocked off the Senators 3 times before, including last year to take them to a heartbreaking loss to Carolina, so it's no secret that the Sens are out for blood. Can the Sabres pull out another series from under thier belts? Only time will tell. 

Eastern conference aside, the Western conference looks just as promissing. With a new head coach and the retirement/trades of the majority of their original Stanley Cup winning line-up, the Detroit Red Wings were thought by many to be a team that would decline this season. However, with Dominic Hasek returning to top Dominator form at a bargain price, a new 30-goal scorer in Henrik Zetterberg and a defensive system almost second to none with Nicklas Lindstrom at the helm, all critics were silenced as they made another 110+ point season while many defencemen and forwards were out of the line-up. Also, at the trade deadline, they acquired Todd Bertuzzi, back from a back injury, that could end up being a key offensive factor not just in the playoffs, but in years to come. Can this dreamteam keep their incredible Cinderella story going?

And finally, we have the Anaheim Ducks. After their ties to Disney were finally severed last summe, the Ducks finally had the ability to she their heart of gold and replace it with a black uniform and a fighting spirit that has transmitted into many real fights. But their league-leading penalty time isn't the only new story. A young and very talented line-up of offensive giants from the present and future are combined to make one of the most diverse teams out there. Also, their attack from the blueline is unmatchable with Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger adding an agressive, yet point-scoring duo of much power and praise. Plus, veteran Teamu Selanne is quite possibly the best player in the western conference this post season. Add it all together, and you have a melting pot of Cup-winning proportions. 

I still stand by my pick of an Ottawa/Detroit Stanley Cup final, but the Ducks and Sabres won't go without a fight. These four teams are definitely the best in the league, virtually unmatched by others previously eliminated. I wish success to each one in the future and in the third round, set to begin tomorrow. 

January was a month with very little music and that didn't surprise me at all. It was a time where the indie kids shined more than the mainstream scene because it's the start of the new year. After all, the world still hasn't gotten over Gwen Stefani's new piece of crap, they can't shove the new Fall Out Boy album down our throats yet.

Either way, January wasn't without its highlights, as The Shins released their third album, Wincing The Night Away. This album was as cheery, poppy and brilliantly charismatic as The Shins have always been. Yet, they've created a more moody album this time around to appeal to the emo and indie kids worldwide. Nevertheless, they still shine on this one.

Guess what? Damon Albarn's back again...again! The Good, The Bad and The Queen is his latest project with Paul Simon of THE CLASH!!! His latest work, originally planned as a solo project, was produced by Danger Mouse and drummed by Fela Kuti drummer Tony Allen (and how can this not sound like fun at this point?). The album is a spectacular piece of pop music, already in the running for album of the year, and just possesses such potential for future albums. I believe, as tragic as the loss of Gorillaz and Blur would be, Albarn could run with this project alone for quite a while.

Finally, the biggest surprise of the month came from Ms. Norah Jones with her third album Not Too Late. The woman has always been a favourite of my parents and grandparents even, but I've suddenly found myself taking an interest in her work. The woman is a VERY talented musician, and it shows on her latest work. It greatly differs from her sophomore spectacular, Come Away With Me, but still sounds incredible. Pick it up if you have some spare pocket change lying around.

What this month came down to was the indie scene. With other releases from bands like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Of Montreal, Fujiya and Miyagi, Field Music and many more bands that I've never heard of, if you want indie rock, January is the month for you. But for the rest of us who desire substance over simply the next big thing, February should hold some interesting stuff. With new Bloc Party on the way, Apostle of Hustle, The Magic Numbers and hey, even Yoko Ono has an album coming out (*shivers*), February should hold surprises of all kinds.

Alright, it's finally here. The decisions have been long and tough (particularly the Album of the Year choice) and coming to a decision was not an easy task. Just know, whatever the result, every album nominated is fantastic and worthy of its nomination. The winners are:

Pop Album:
John Mayer - Continuum
Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton - Knives Don't Have Your Back
KT Tunstall - Eye To The Telescope
Yusuf Islam - An Other Cup
Final Fantasy - He Poos Clouds

Rock Album:
Bob Dylan - Modern Times
The Who - Endless Wire
The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers
Muse - Black Holes and Revelations
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium
The Subways - Young for Eternity

Hip-Hop/Rap Album
K-os - Atlantis: Hymns for Disco
The Roots - Game Theory
Outkast - Idlewild
Ghostface Killah - Fishscale
Lupe Fiasco - Food and Liquor

R&B/Soul Album
John Legend - Once Again
Ali Farka Toure - Savane
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
Corinne Bailey Rae - Corinne Bailey Rae
Mary J. Blige - Reflections: A Retrospective

Country
Solomon Burke - Nashville
Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings the Food
Johnny Cash - American V: A Hundred Highways
Calexico - Garden Ruin
Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions

Electronic/Dance
Thom Yorke - The Eraser
MSTRKRFT - The Looks
The DFA - DFA Remixes: Chapter 1
Goldfrapp - Supernature

Alternative/Indie
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
The Flaming Lips - At War With the Mystics
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

Metal
Mastodon - Blood Mountain
Tool - 10,000 Days
Iron Maiden - A Matter of Life and Death
Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

Album of the Year
TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Tool - 10,000 Days

Single of the Year
Wolf Like Me - TV on the Radio
ELEctrik HeaT - the seekwiLL - K-os
Steady, As She Goes - The Raconteurs
Vicarious - Tool
Other Side of the World - KT Tunstall

Debut Album
The Subways - Young For Eternity
The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
KT Tunstall - Eye to the Telescope

Artistic Achievement Award
Danger Mouse

Alright, it's almost Christmas time, so my album of the year search is in full swing. I'm about to classify some of my picks for the best albums by genre of the year 2006.

It's been a cool year for music lovers, with a new Chili Peppers album, new Snow Patrol, Jay-Z, The Flaming Lips, The Killers, Evanescence, Tool, Beck, K-os, Bob Dylan, Sonic Youth, TV on the Radio, etc., etc. and music fans were, for the most part, pleased. Some were great, some were crap, some made your ears want to split every time you heard them (yes, I'm talking to you Fergie). But no matter how bad it got, there were always the great ones to pick up the dead weight.

So lets get things started. The nominees (so far) are:

Pop Album:
John Mayer - Continuum
Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton - Knives Don't Have Your Back
KT Tunstall - Eye To The Telescope
Yusuf Islam - An Other Cup
Final Fantasy - He Poos Clouds

Rock Album:
Bob Dylan - Modern Times
The Who - Endless Wire
The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers
Muse - Black Holes and Revelations
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium
The Subways - Young for Eternity

Hip-Hop/Rap Album
K-os - Atlantis: Hymns for Disco
The Roots - Game Theory
Outkast - Idlewild
Ghostface Killah - Fishscale
Lupe Fiasco - Food and Liquor

R&B/Soul Album
John Legend - Once Again
Ali Farka Toure - Savane
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
Corinne Bailey Rae - Corinne Bailey Rae
Mary J. Blige - Reflections: A Retrospective

Country
Solomon Burke - Nashville
Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings the Food
Johnny Cash - American V: A Hundred Highways
Calexico - Garden Ruin
Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions

Electronic/Dance
Thom Yorke - The Eraser
MSTRKRFT - The Looks
The DFA - DFA Remixes: Chapter 1
Goldfrapp - Supernature

Alternative/Indie
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
The Flaming Lips - At War With the Mystics
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

Metal
Mastodon - Blood Mountain
Tool - 10,000 Days
Iron Maiden - A Matter of Life and Death
Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

Album of the Year
TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Bob Dylan - Modern Times
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Tool - 10,000 Days

Single of the Year
Wolf Like Me - TV on the Radio
ELEctrik HeaT - the seekwiLL - K-os
Steady, As She Goes - The Raconteurs
Vicarious - Tool
Other Side of the World - KT Tunstall

Debut Album
The Subways - Young For Eternity
The Raconteurs - Broken Boy Soldiers
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elseware
KT Tunstall - Eye to the Telescope

Artistic Achievement Award
Danger Mouse

This list is subject to change as not all the nominees have been filled. Many other respectable albums have not made this list and there will be many comments because of it, but all in all they're my selections and I believe they should be there over others mentionned. Again, the lists are subject to change overtime and, by the end of they year, they certainly will. Results will be posted soon and check out that Neko Case album. It's INCREDIBLE.

Recently, I was made a featured fan on MP3.com and I'd just like to say thanks for the honorable mention. 

Alright, these are some cool albums that I've picked up or downloaded and really, really enjoyed in the month of November:

TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Final Fantasy - He Poos Clouds
Spoon - Kill the Moonlight
The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
My Morning Jacket - Z
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

If you read the last blog, you'll probably know that I went to Death Cab for Cutie recently. I went expecting a mellow escape from the mundanities of everyday life and to break from routine for a bit. What I got was practically the opposite.

For those of you who don't know, Death Cab is the indie-rock outfit from somewhere in Washington State (possibly Seattle), USA. They generally favour a lower-toned, frequently piano-based flavour of music.

As previously stated, I went to Death Cab a part time fan not expecting too much. What I got in return was a band who knew their stuff and who are actually able to rock out. The majority of the show saw Ben Gibbard, the lead singer, on electric while he intermingled in between piano and acoustic. The rest of the band was pretty fantastic too. The band had a nice mix of a significant portion of Plans, their latest album, and a number of their older tracks, including stuff off their original demos. Standout tracks were everything off of Transatlanticism.

The opening band was Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. They're a pretty cool indie band from somewhere I don't remember. They're nothing fantastic, but were entertaining none the less.

Then Death Cab took the stage. I don't remember what song it was (probably something off Plans), but it started great. The concert was going pretty well, Ben had the crowd going but not really, really into it. Then he went off, walked out on stage with his acoustic and made emo kids all over the city sing with delight (pretty much everybody else got up and sung too) with a fine rendition of I Will Follow You Into The Dark. Afterward, to the same effect, the band played Soul Meets Body.

A few songs later, the band approached the end of their set with my favourite Death Cab song, We Looked Like Giants. It was a fast paced musical extravaganza, much like the song is on the disc. Also, on the same song, there's a 2 minute repetition of the same melody. That two minutes was extended to around 10 when a small drum kit was placed on stage and Ben ripped some crazy solos. I'd never seen Ben Gibbard as a musician in a light that I'd seen him on that song. I tip my hat to him.

The band closed their set with another Transatlanticism fav, The Sound of Settling. After a minute or so of pause, the band took to the stage for a 3 song encore which started with Your Heart is an Empty Room and ended with a stunning performance of Transatlanticism that had the whole crowd on its feet.

Overall, this was well worth the free ticket I was given and I'd definately do it again.

Rating: 4.5/5

Well, I'm actually gonna go sit through a Death Cab for Cutie concert. I don't really know why, something to do on a friday I guess, but I've never really been the big Death Cab fan. Transatlanticism was an absolutely phenominal album, but the new one's changed my views on them. Personnally, I think Ben Gibbard's much better in The Postal Service. Him, the guy from Dntel and Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley kick hard ass together.

I miss Rilo Kiley. Jenny was a brilliant singer and every song they put out has been stuck in my head at one point or another, particularly Portions for Foxes. Why did they have to break up? Jenny isn't all that good on her own, she needs the band.

Anyway, that's what I'm thinking this week.

Hey
Here are some of my picks for what to watch out for in September and October...

K-os: Atlantis-Hymns for Disco
Decemberists: The Crane Wife
Mastodon - Blood Mountain
Evanescence: The Open Door
The Killers: Sam's Town
Beck: The Information
Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton: Knives Don't Have Your Back
John Mayer: Continuum

Well, one of the founding fathers of rock has moved on to, as it was put, The Great Gig In The Sky. Syd Barrett, founding member of Pink Floyd, has passed away at the age of 60. He was a great man and he will be missed. Pink Floyd was one of the greatest bands of the 20th century and Barrett was a great man.

Syd Barrett: 1946-2006