We got the word on this one from a reader named Kate, who informs us of the following:Broken Social Scene were going to have a show on the island in Toronto but because of the city strike they had to cancel it. As an apology of sorts last night they held a free show at the Harborfront. Needless to say the outdoor venue was packed. As was the sta...

The newest Fantasies track gets a simple treatment: "Sick Muse" features a lower-tech sound stage than "Gimme Sympathy" and none of the layered animations of "Help, I'm Alive," and it feels more alive because of it. (Thanks for the tip, Mark.) Basically, a stationary camera cuts between the (ever wardrobe changing) band hamming it up and rocking...

Metric are lightening up. A little. While the Toronto-based band's music has always leaned toward the upbeat-- shock-treatment new wave, dance, and rock-- its worldview is usually anything but. Whether singer and main lyricist Emily Haines is railing against war ("Succexy"), stagnant art ("Dead Disco"), or an increasingly overbearing world ("The...

-- According to MTV, Lil Wayne has pushed back the release of his terrible-idea rock album Rebirth (which my Pitchfork News colleague Ryan Dombal inexplicably believes will be good) to May 19. Here's hoping he just goes ahead and pushes it back to Never.-- Next month, button-cute axe-wrecker Marnie Stern will tour the U.S., so here's your cha...

Photo by Kathryn Yu You can count on Metric lead singer Emily Haines to mix the most emo shit you've seen/heard in your life (see: her quite good and quite hushed solo album, a new "behind the music"-style video about Metric's upcoming album) with some real rock-star panache (see: opening for the Rolling Stones, her gold lamé outfit a...