The Rest had a wonderful 2009. They self released their sophomore album Everyone All At Once to much critical acclaim and thus ended up on numerous “Best Of” list for the year. They sold out shows in their hometown of Toronto, Canada. They dropped another E.P., WOW, to even greater critical ass kissing awesomeness. All the while, they built a massive fan base not only in the Ontario underworld, but across the globe. And with only three and half months into the current year, the …

FensePost is excited to bring to you an exclusive premiere of the new Vaus video for “San Francisco” off The Floating Celebration, out today on Night World Records.

So this is it, the first FensePost Podcast. A few weeks ago I sat down and compiled a mix of various songs; some new, some old, most finding some relation to garage rock or garage pop. Hence the title, From The Garage. The theme is loose, so some bands fit and some don’t. There are sixteen songs total here, stemming from local Seattle and Portland acts on across the world. New Zealand, Sweden, Canada… you get the picture. Enough banter — listen to the FenseCast …

As one of the few individuals to own a copy of Ugly But Honest, You Should Be At Home Here and Songs About Leaving by Carissa’s Wierd (sic), let alone ALL THREE, including their super-duper rare tour album, Scrap Book, it’s only with a hint of sadness that I relay to you the news that Hardly Art will reissue all three of the band’s proper albums. But the probable decline in value of rarities is far below the excitement I have for all the world who has yet to …

Has it really been two years since I was last at SXSW? Time sure does fly! The festival is back and likely crazier and more sponsored than ever. And I’m only slightly jealous of all the fun thousands of people will have as they descend upon Austin. I had some good times at SXSW ‘07 and ‘08, from working with the folks at The Current from Minneapolis to witnessing the joint Hootenanny production at Lovejoy’s sponsored by Three Imaginary Girls and Magic Marker Records (above photo …

The 2010 Sasquatch Festival line-up was announced last week and after perusing the list a few times, I started to hone in on who the hot bands will (or, better yet, should) be. Now, festivals for me are all about camping out at a stage for several bands before moving on to another, but I figured I’d throw that trend to the wind for this post. My second disclaimer; before you point out that I’m recommending the small folk, understand that I also tend to shun the big …

Song, By Toad Records is a little label introduced to me by friend and FensePost favorite Jon Rooney (Virgin of the Birds, Abandoned Love Records). It all began as a blog based in Edinburgh which, like this blog, posts album reviews, various features and podcasts (coming soon to this blog). With each release containing between 300 and 500 handmade copies, the label, like the blog, is devoted to supporting their local scene but isn’t above giving a hefty nod to those across the globe.

So last year I wrote a little post to introduce y’all to some sweet bands playing in the Cumulus Festival. As the second installment of the fest begins tomorrow, I figured I should do it again. After all, FensePost loves supporting local PNW bands and Cumulus Festival does a good job billing them to play.

Stepping off the band bandwagon, Holly Miranda has decided to go solo. And with a recent 7″ (Forest Green), an EP (Sleep On Fire) and now a forthcoming LP due out late this month on XL Recordings (The Magician’s Private Library), her new project is set to take off.

This is it, the last call. The last show. And yet it’s a first for me; my first time visiting the Department Of Safety in Anacortes. The evening began with a brief drive along dark highways to the town known most, perhaps, for its ferry system connecting mainland Washington with the San Juan Islands. Eight years before, in 2002, the Department Of Safety opened with a show featuring performances from Karl Blau, P:Ano, and, among others, Microphones. This night would be quite similar, though also …