Vancouver's lié Share Bizarre Video For Albums First Single "Digging in the Desert" 

Their fourth album, You Want It Real, is out February 28th, 2020 on Mint Records

Today, lié announced their new LP, You Want It Real, with the launch of a video for the first single. "Digging in the Desert" is a spiky and blistering post-punk track highlighted by surreal lyrics and an equally bizarre video by Vancouver director Justin Gradin (known for his strange videos for White Lung and Black Mountain). The song pairs heavy bass and skull-searing guitars as bassist and vocalist Brittany West guides us through the sandy moonscapes of New Mexico — a setting she’s picked to explore what she describes as “hedonistic feelings and being eaten alive by the hardships of love playing out in a fever dream in my mind."

Watch "Digging in the Desert" Here: https://youtu.be/sUjrU9sYEQA

With ties to techno and a penchant for earth-rumbling post-punk — along with a staunch willingness to stop rape culture, privilege and patriarchy in its tracks — there’s no denying that Vancouver trio lié [pronounced “lee-ey” and lower-case preferred] are an integral force in the global underground. Since forming in 2013, they’ve only grown louder, brasher and more intense as they’ve developed their sound across numerous releases and a near endless stream of international DIY tours. That momentum has culminated in You Want It Real, an eight-song LP to be released on February 28, 2020 via Mint Records.

You Want It Real, the band’s fourth album, expands on previous themes with an assured intensity and plenty of world-weary lyrics. Sonically, lié’s recordings have unleashed the full-bore wall of sound that’s present in their live shows. That’s due in part to the work of legendary punk producer Jesse Gander (White Lung, Japandroids), who has helped unlock a further disharmony of melody and feedback in the band’s relentless aggression.

Pre-order You Want It Real Here: https://www.mintrecs.com/store/you-want-it-real

Limited to 300 copies on yellow vinyl!

 

Vancouver's Woolworm Share New Albums First Single "Hold the Bow" Via Indie88

Their third album, Awe, is out November 8th, 2019 on Mint Records

Today, Woolworm announced their third LP, Awe, with the launch of the first single via Indie88. "Hold The Bow" is an urgent and uptempo track sprinkled with jangle and backed by heavy drumming. The song was inspired by Marina Abramović's performance art piece Rest Energy, says frontman Giles Roy. “The image of two people leaning back opposite each other, one holding a bow and the other holding an arrow pointed at their heart. Like the piece itself, the song is about complete trust. It's also a sort of love song, but not possessive, romantic love. It's more about unconditional love.”

Listen now:

Pre-order the LP now and receive limited edition white vinyl!
https://www.mintrecs.com/store/awe

Vancouver's Necking Sign to Mint!

We're putting out their debut album, Cut You Teeth, on July 5th, 2019

Check out their first single, Big Mouth, now!

Mint Records is thrilled to announce the debut album, Cut Your Teeth, from one of Vancouver's most exciting new bands, Necking. The band has earned a reputation for their energetic and fun live shows in the city after playing almost every weekend for a year.

Today, Necking shared the ferocious first single, "Big Mouth," from their new record via Exclaim. Drummer and lyricist, Melissa Kuipers, reveal the inspiration for the track; "Big Mouth is the dollar store version of “Our Lips are Sealed” by the Go-Go’s covered by Hilary and Hailey Duff. It’s about having a mediocre time with someone and them leaving convinced you’re obsessed with them. This song is the brave face you put on after you’ve overshared and overstayed your welcome."

Cut Your Teeth is about finding independence after being stuck in a cycle of codependence. It’s about being fixated on the wrong thing and figuring out how to pay attention to yourself instead. The songs are about loss, getting too involved with your boss and living in a studio apartment. At its core, Cut Your Teeth is about trying to navigate relationships of all kinds - romantic, friendly, professional - and fucking up a lot, but making it work. The album is loud, angry, funny, and deals with our everyday experiences. It’s about being bummed, but in a fun and sexy way!

Dumb shared a video for the first single and title track from their upcoming album - Club Nites - being released via Mint Records on June 7th, 2019. Coming in at just over two minutes, there is a snarl and boisterousness from the four-piece, reminiscent of the likes of Bodega and The Fall.

"A disjointed tangle of nervous energy, (Club Nites) seems to pick up shrapnel and debris as it rolls along, all while maintaining some semblance of pop music." - Stereogum

On the single, Dumb singer Franco Rossino says, "Social interaction often gets institutionalized by the club, and this song breaks down some of the anxieties and joys of being at the club/thinking about the club, but as if we are at the club whenever we are in public. At the club at night-time, we are permitted to loosen our language and become uninhibited, we do what we want rather than what we are required to. A light is shed on previously hidden motives, and our daytime secrets become revealed embarrassingly."

Dumb are good at plenty of things, but relaxing isn’t one of them. The Vancouver four-piece write feverish tunes at a frantic pace, delivering catchy post-punk songs in two-minute blasts of wiry riffs and indignant social critiques. Less than a year since they signed to Mint Records for 2018’s Seeing Green, they’re already back with a new full-length, Club Nites -- this time with even more neuroticism and indignation!

As the title indicates, Club Nites is a collection of narratives drawn from the nightlife ecosystem. Attempting to break from the typical romanticized version of “the club” as seen on TV, the album instead depicts a bleak social setting, where we zoom in on seemingly petty details in order to reveal the cracks that Hollywood forgot to fill.

In typically tireless fashion, the band will immediately hit the road in North America upon the new album’s release. Clinging tightly to their DIY ethos, you will likely find the band engaging in meaningful interactions with their community and beyond, as they are doing their best to negate the spectacle by being approachable. If you’ve ever felt alienated by club nights, Club Nites is the antidote.

Today, Toronto's Kiwi jr. unveiled the video for their first single, "Leslie", off their debut album Football Money. The track is a pulpy murder mystery wrapped up in a two-minute burst of catchy garage-pop and this spirit is reflected in the video, a take off on French noir films of the 60's. The video debuted via Exclaim.ca.

https://exclaim.ca/music/article/kiwi_jr_sign_to_mint_records_for_footb…

The four members of Kiwi Jr. all live in Toronto, though they originally hail from Charlottetown, PEI, separately finding their ways to the big city over various points in the past decade. Now, having found a common language in jangling power-pop and hyper-literate college rock, they are releasing their debut album: Football Money which comes out March 29th, 2019 via Mint Records.

“It’s very much a Toronto record,” says singer-guitarist Jeremy Gaudet. “Even though we’re East Coasters, there’s no nostalgia or romanticizing small towns. This album is about the neighbourhoods we live in and our lives here.”

Kiwi Jr. — featuring frontman Jeremy alongside bandmates Brohan Moore (drums), Brian Murphy (guitar) and Mike Walker (bass) — make jangling power-pop anthems for that second coming of age, when young adulthood turns into full-blown grownup responsibility. Football Money’s 10 tracks document long-term relationships, proper adult jobs, and life in a big city that doesn’t care if you exist.

The brisk 27-minute LP is stuffed with instantly hummable hooks, but Kiwi Jr.’s knack for sweet simplicity is balanced by a love of complex song structures. Grooves turn on a dime, golden melodies emerge and are never repeated, and the lyrics are full of literary references and crafty narratives. Dig past the euphoric group shouts of title track “Football Money” and you’ll find a nuanced look at gentrification while “Salaryman” explores the wild lifestyles of hard-working office drones who party all night only to pass out on bus stop benches.

“Instead of being introspective, these songs are looking outward,” Jeremy explains. This album is about the people we meet and things that happen to make up our days and weeks. It’s less about trying to express ourselves — it’s more interpreting the outside world.”

Kiwi Jr.’s songs are laid-back but never lazy, as the band poured over the LP throughout the course of two years with producer Aaron Goldstein (Daniel Romano, City and Colour). It was mixed by Holy Fuck’s Graham Walsh (Preoccupations, METZ), with additional instrumentation and production from Alec O’Hanley (who plays with Brian in Alvvays).

Now that Football Money is done, it serves as a proof that, although big-city life can be alienating, you can still find yourself again by making an album with your friends.

It's that wonderful time of year when everybody decides to ruthlessly rank all the wonderful music they've listened to over the 11 months. We're not above it though! We asked a bunch of our bands to send in year end lists and then made a massive playlist out of it over at Spotify!

Dumb

Spirit of the Beehive - Hypnic Jerks

Table Sugar - Collected Acknowledgements

Navy Gangs - Poach

Palberta - Roach Going Down

Andrea Schiavelli - Good Time Now

Amused - Not Raj

Cardi B - Invasion of Privacy

Pllush - Stranger to the Pain

Milk - Mattress Ranch

Luge - Tall is Just a Feeling

 

Jarrett Samson (Tough Age)

Bodega: Endless Scroll

Masahiro Takahashi: Omnipresent Windows

Platitudes: Lauds & Matins

Keiji Heino & Sumac: American Dollar Bill- Keep Facing Sideways, You're Too Hideous To Look At Face On

S.H.I.T: What Do You Stand For?

Dorothea Paas: One For the Road

Lithics: Mating Surfaces

U.S Girls: in A Poem Unlimited

Mope Grooves: The Waves

Sabiwa: 輪迴

 

lié

CRUMB - Community Service

Surfbort - Friendship Music

Marie Davidson - Working Class Woman

Table Sugar - Collected Acknowledgments

Shame - Songs of Praise

Juice - Demo 2018

The Protomartyr/Spray Paint -  split 7” “Irony Prompts a Party Rat”

Body Break - Instrumentals no 1.

Policy of Truth - Demos II

Helena Hauff - Qualm

 

Jessica Jalbert (Faith Healer)

Alanis Obomsawin - Bush Lady 

Christine and the Queens - Chris

Dumb - Seeing Green

John Coltrane - Both Directions at Once

Kristian North - The Last Rock and Roll Record

Neil Young - Roxy: Tonight’s the Night Live

Power Trip - Opening Fire (compilation)

Sophie - Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides

Tony Molina - Kill the Lights

Video Age - Pop Therapy

 

 

Saturday, December 2nd, 2017

featuring:

The Astoria - 769 East Hastings, Vancouver, BC

This holiday season you’re invited to the first (and quite possibly very last) presentation of The Minties, Mint Records' Awards Show and mandatory holiday function! Hosted by the legendary Ben Lai (Shindig! + CiTR’s Radio Thunderbird Hell) the night will be a non stop display of glitz and glamour so make sure to dust off your cummerbund and diamonds and aim your limo at the opulent ballroom of the Astoria Hotel. An evening not to be missed, you’ll be rubbing elbows and watching sets from the biggest stars of Team Mint!
 
As per our festive tradition the first 50 celebs through the door will receive a deluxe gift bag jammed with luxury goodies from Mint, Neptoon Records, Red Cat Records, Audiopile, Nemesis Coffee and Six Cent Press. Proceeds from the party will go to support some of our favourite causes; Girls Rock Camp Vancouver, Good Night Out Vancouver and Vancouver Urban Native Youth Association.
 
Advance tickets are available at Red Cat Records and Neptoon Records as well as online at Brown Paper Tickets.

More info on Facebook

Get Tickets

Mint Has Remastered The Pack a.d.'s Debut Album and Shared Bonus Track "All Reasons" to Celebrate!

Tintype Out Digitally and on Limited Edition Colour Vinyl from Mint Records on September 28, 2018

Mint Records is very excited to announce that we will be re-issuing the debut album of Vancouver grit-rock warriors The Pack a.d. on exclusive colour vinyl. The band originally recorded the album as their demo tape which Mint then released as their first album in 2008. Today we shared a long lost deep cut, "All Reasons", that was rescued from some dusty tapes and will be added to the digital version of the album. The re-issue also featured updated cover art based on the band's original art from their CDR demo. If you can find the original we challenge you to spot the differences! 

 

 

It all started in the mid ‘aughts. This band called The Pack came out of nowhere with some dirt and booze flavoured garage rock and the world made them put “a.d.” at the end of their name to signify that things would never be the same. Soon after recording their debut album, Tintype, the band came over to the Mint offices with a bottle of Jack Daniels and walked out of there with a record contract. Tintype came out shortly after in the middle of a grey January in 2008.
 
A decade later the band has played close to a thousand shows and released seven albums. Their music still feels like a cup of black coffee that you drank too fast (why is my leg moving like that?) but along the way Tintype fell out of print. We’ve decided to fix that. Tintype is finally being re-issued on the format it was meant to be heard… vinyl. We had it re-mastered and we dug through some dusty boxes for old flyers and photos to include in the liner notes to make it extra special and remind you of what you missed or can’t remember. 
  
The Pack a.d. is going back on the road this fall. You’ll be able to get the limited edition gold vinyl version of Tintype from them at all of their shows as well as some special anniversary party in-stores at our favourite record shops.

THE PACK A.D. LIVE:
Aug 31 Spirit Bar - Nelson, B.C. #
Sept 1 The Northern - Fernie, B.C.
Sept 5 Commonwealth - Calgary, AB #
Sept 6 The Station - Edmonton, AB #
Sept 7 Amigos - Saskatoon, SK #
Sept 8 West End Cultural Center - Winnipeg, MB #
Sept 10 White Rabbit - Indianapolis, IN ^^
Sept 11 Northside Tavern - Cincinnati, OH ^^
Sept 12 Gibson Music Hall - Appelton, WI ^^
Sept 13 Company Brewing - Milwaukee, WI ^^
Sept 15 SuperCrawl - Hamilton, ON
Sept 17 Phog Lounge - Windsor, ON # **
Sept 18 Call the Office - London, ON # **
Sept 20 Horseshoe Tavern - Toronto, ON # **
Sept 21 27 Club - Ottawa, ON # **
Sept 22 TBA - Montreal, QC 

with 
# Sorry Edith (Vancouver, BC)
^^ Brother O Brother (Indianapolis, IN) 
** Basement Revolver (Hamilton, ON)

Hey, we know it's a long way from the cuddle-core and alt-country of Mint's roots but you know what? We love some really vicious punk. Some really grim and dark punk. lié scratches those itches raw and reminds you of everything you should still be angry about. Mint recently re-issued lié's debut album, Consent, on cassette after it lingered out of print for several years. Their follow up album, Truth or Consequences, on Austin, TX based art-punk label Monofonus Press led to extensive touring. After playing at every "ask a punk" venue across North America, lié flew down to Austin to record with Ian Rundell (Spray Paint, The Rebel, etc). The resulting record, Hounds, is cold, hostile, and most of all dark. Mint and Monofonus have teamed up to co-release the new album and we will be offering it on exclusive red vinyl, available only in Canada!

 

 

-----------------------

Art by JS Aurelius

Recorded in Austin, TX by Ian Rundel

Mastered by Mikey Young

Peach Kelli Pop's new EP, Which Witch, is coming out in under two weeks for Record Store Day but we love it so much we've already lined up another record from everyone's favourite sunshine punks. Peach Kelli Pop are back with Gentle Leader, the band’s 4th full length album and first in three years. Gentle Leader is a departure for Peach Kelli Pop’s founder, Allie Hanlon, demonstrating growth and a new confidence as a musician and songwriter. The album captures the band at a crossroads exploring new ideas and complexity while maintaining their colorful energy. Today, NPR debuted the first single from the record, the absolutely giddy "Hello Kitty Knife"

Gentle Leader’s 10 tracks are inspired by a unique range of guitar driven power pop and feedback laden post-punk from the 80’s and 90’s. Unlike the band's past releases which were almost entirely written, recorded and produced by Hanlon, Gentle Leader is a collaborative effort. Hanlon shared production duties with engineer Roland Cosio who also played guitar on some of the songs. Sophie Negrini is also featured on guitar, while Andrew Bassett of Portland’s party-punk band The Mean Jeans provided the drumming. Gina Negrini, the band's bassist, contributed the song “Quiet” to the album. This new collaborative spirit works well, highlighting the strengths of each performer and creating a more sophisticated record without sacrificing Hanlon’s distinct vision.

Gentle Leader frequently jumps from distortion and hyperactivity into soft harmonies and tangible vulnerability. The exhilarating “Hello Kitty Knife” kicks the album off with a giddy urgency. Things take a turn with an intimate take on the UK indie-pop classic “Honey” by The Marine Girls. The unembellished vocals and shimmering guitars reflect the spirit of the 80s' DIY underground and are brought to light by the production values reminiscent of an early Violent Femmes album. “Black Magic” transports the listener to the moment one first realizes their relationship will soon end, capturing the distinct feeling of heartbreak and angst with its disorienting buzz saw guitar. The dreamy “Parasomnia” is hazy doo-wop drenched in layers of warped vintage Casio synth tones with Hanlon singing solemnly about the inconvenience of obsessive desire. Like a collection of short stories, each of the 10 tracks on Gentle Leader possesses its own background, narrative and unique charm.

Further evidence of the band’s evolution, Hanlon opted to retire the the classic layout featured on the band’s previous album covers. Gentle Leader features a fantastical illustration by Brooklyn artist Miza Coplin that captures the animated, abstract and vibrant world in which Peach Kelli Pop exists. Like an entry point to that world, lyrical references and themes from songs on Gentle Leader can be found in Coplin’s artwork.

Peach Kelli Pop will be touring extensively in support of Gentle Leader and the Which Witch EP, including time in Japan in May, followed by a full tour of North America in the summer and Europe later in the year.