Blog design seems very irrelevant to your arguments and I could care less if you hate it. Live with it. It isn’t going to be changed. More people have liked it rather then not so you’re in the minority.

We need to stop pointing to other web resources in my writing? What?! That is far from the point of our writing. We appreciate what everyone has to say on an album. I read reviews all of the time. I tend to have my own opinion a lot of the time – which you have to disagree with. We are about discussing music. We’re not out to look like a music authority. Some opinions you take with a grain of salt, others not so much.

I don’t expect to take any our reviews “seriously”. We just write whatever is in our hearts. I write whatever I feel is the truth, whether poorly argued or not (with bad sentence structure and spelling errors included!). I won’t bullshit you or anyone and just maybe that is important to some people. All I’ve done is simply state an opinion in comments and my blog post – unfortunately for some (wink) isn’t good enough. I’m not going to agree with everyone and that is that.

And again, you need to stop pointing at other web resources in your writing. Form an opinion and back it up with personal thought vs. links to other, far better known sites. Who the fuck cares what PopMatters said? Who cares if P4K likes something you also like? Does that somehow affirm your position? What happens when you truthfully like something that they don’t? Are you wanting all of your readers to just go to those other sites instead, since you continually point towards them as “a stronger resource”?

Why are you even doing this then?

Hmm my blog is ugly? Most would be disagree.

Lame? Possibly.

I will go stumble myself .

That would be Apologies to the Queen Mary, Short List finalist for the inaugural Polaris Prize?

I actually find it harder to discuss music on Chromewaves but it’s a good news source nonetheless.

We’re still struggling to find a true direction. I think we’ll stick to the album reviews from a variety of genres nonetheless. We’ve struggled in the true “discussion” section of our blog. We’ve tried but it hasn’t worked.

Your points are valid on the Woodpigeon record. I just look at PopMatters as a stronger resource but alas that’s up to opinion (it all is). I guess I’d be harsher while reviewing Treasury Library Canada – it wasn’t great in my opinion and there are always tons of great Canadian records.

As for Montreal. Can I say they are a tad overrated? Toronto is no catch but meh, I’m not that impressed by Montreal.

I guess I could list quite a few right now that should be on there: (my opinions are much different then of other bloggers but by no means was I disrespecting them – the list just didn’t turn out how most would imagine as NXEW covered).

Faunts: Feel.Love.Thinking.Of
The Rest -Everyone All At Once (I’m calling it my best of the year but other then bloggers, not many publications have said anything)
Julie Doiron’s I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day – It at least deserves a longlist mention.
Oldfolk’s Home – We Are The Feeding Line. This is such a good lo-fi electro album from Winnipeg. It was re-released but technically wasn’t Treasury Library Canada?
Deep Dark Woods – was rated pretty well by P4K but not included on the longlist.

(this is all on the top of my head)

As for the Metric album. I’d like to clarify: I’ve listened to it a few times. It definitely isn’t bad and when I said I haven’t listened to it much, I mean as much as I listen to albums when I review them (probably listen to an album at least 10-20 times).

P.S. I know I should really finish these posts (or be complete) and I’d hate to have excuses but I just had knee surgery and really am having a tough time.

You mention that your writers are volunteer, but so are your readers, Mr. Allan.

To return for a moment to your comments on the Polaris list, yes, there’s 17 artists from Montreal listed. But I’m sure you’ve most likely noticed a rather high level and concentration of fine artists based in that city during your time working on this site. It’s a cultural capital not only of Canada, but of North America — and in many ways internationally.

The suggestion that Julie Doiron didn’t make it onto this year’s long list coming down to her home base in a small town is also silly. Apparently this record didn’t make as big an impression on 181 of your peers. And to be honest, it hasn’t really grabbed me as much as earlier work either. Lest we forget Doiron’s presence on the short list for her previous album, which pretty much nips your suggestion of big city xenophobia in the bud.

Finally, you take time to bad mouth the new Metric album without having even heard it. Frank Yang’s got it on his list, and that guy’s nothing if not entirely thoughtful. I’m not a fan, but at least Frank’s gone ahead and given it a chance before saying anything.

As for your overall list of what shouldn’t be there, you name 4 bands in total, and point at a PopMatters review on the Woodpigeon review as though that’s the final word on the matter. Perhaps your search engine would also point you to the media attention this group has been getting in the UK and Europe — outlets such as The Guardian, MOJO, Q, The Times of London, Les Inrockeenes, and others all handing over platitudes and 4-star reviews. And finally, your own review of ‘Houndstooth Europa’ handed over a 4.5/5, while your review of the ‘Treasury Library Canada’ album itself came with a 3.9/5. That’s a 4-star review up next to a 4 1/2 star one, which when it comes down to it are both decidedly positive readings of a record that you’ve taken pains to bad mouth in this post. (Didn’t iheartmusic.net also nominate this record for Polaris last year when it was just a self-released independent home-made package?)

Beyond that, you offer NO examples as to the wealth of small town bands that should be on this list. I’d like to put up my hand and say, “Well, AWMUSIC, just look at Calgary. 4 records up for Polaris, when in the past the city’s only involvement has been Mr. Van Gaalen.” It’s not a huge tide yet, I’ll admit, but at least there’s indication that things are opening up slightly in a new, more nationally-minded direction.

At concerned reader. Perhaps, I find it to be blogger-level quality. I try my best to edit posts. I guess that’s where I’m conflicted. More posts = more traffic. To my writers, why should they stick around when I’m leaving their posts on the cutting room floor. They are volunteer after all.

However you are right on my personal tastes. I always meant to have it as a personal tastes post. The only gripes would be that there aren’t as small town artists (whom are deserving).

It depends on quality vs quantity. I guess on a whole I’d prefer quality of course. However, we’re still in the small stages of a blog and quantity is keeping us above water.

Maybe, I should’ve put more humor into it. It’s something we’d like to do obviously but I digress.

That said, when it comes to the Polaris Prize Long List, I’m curious about what you would think your inclusion in the voting process would have accomplished. What’s been published is the concensus between 181 writers across the country. Your proclamation of certain albums as “iffy” is an inane exercise of personal taste. So you don’t like Wolf Parade or Woodpigeon’s albums all that much. It seems that enough of your peers disagree — instead of propelling negativity towards records you disagree with, perhaps that thought should push you back towards reconsidering your initial reactions.

If anything, I’d suggest you focus on publishing fewer articles with far more thought and editorial quality behind them. A decision to opt for quality over quantity would have a definite effect on not only on the size of your readership, but also the respect coming your way in the future from the likes of the Polaris Prize committee and your national peers.

It’s a long list so of course it’s going to include all the big names that have released albums that qualify. That includes Cohen, whose album does qualify but definitely won’t make the shortlist.

I agree with your comments on Metric. That album definitely does not deserve to be on the list. But there are some great ones. The Handsome Furs record is awesome, as are the Beast, Great Lake Swimmers, and Pink Mountaintops albums.

Unfortunately I think the best Canadian album of 2009 is the new Rock Plaza Central, but it came out a little late to be properly considered.

I know Chad VanGaalen is a critical fave, and we’ve disagreed on this in the past, but I find him really over-rated.