While researching the forthcoming albums that we'd be
playing the crap out of yesterday, we found out that the Canadian spazz-wavers Hot Hot Heat are readying their next full-length with
pop guru Butch Walker, who, as you may have noticed, is something of a
revered figure around these parts. We listened to Hot Hot Heat's glammed-out "5 Times Out Of 100" a
lot when it came out back in 2002, but our interest in the band has waned with each successive record; if anyone can get us to keep hoping that these British Columbians return to their dark-pop nook, it'll be Walker, who even made us give the
Rock Star Supernova band a second listen.
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Idolator
Venerable Seattle label Sub Pop is two decades old this year, and the Seattle Times has run down its storied history of weathering various industry calamities (from alt-rock's slow death to the record biz's slow death) while also managing the deft feat of continuing to expand its aesthetic remit by signing less-than-commercial acts like noize boys Wolf Eyes and sludge punks Pissed Jeans, a luxury in a troubled era that's perhaps made possible by the label's ten best-selling albums of all time. While the following list will probably not come as much of a surprise to anyone familiar with the label's last decade or so, it will probably make a few more labels wish they had signed Sam Beam or gotten a very public shout-out from a Scrubs cast member.
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