popwreckoning

Montreal’s Land of Talk has announced a North America tour in promotion of its sophomore album: Cloak and Cipher.

The album is due out August 24 on Saddle Creek Records. The debut album from the band was highly praised for its frontwoman’s – Lizzie Powell‘s -  powerful Stevie Nicks-like vocals and lush guitar riffs. This sophomore album promises to be just as brilliant as the first.

Cloak and Cipher features a slew of Canadian guests including Jeremy Gara of Arcade Fire, Patrick Watson, Stars and fall tourmates, Besnard Lakes. Tickets for the tour are available in an album pre-order bundle here.

Tour Dates:
9/16 Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
9/19 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Tavern
9/21 Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
9/22 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
9/23 Omaha, NE @ Slowdown
9/25 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
9/26 Salt Lake City @ Kilby Court
9/29 Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room
9/30 Calgary, AB @ Dicken’s Pub
10/2 Victoria, BC @ Lucky Bar
10/3 Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore
10/4 Seattle, WA @ Crocodile*
10/5 Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios*
10/7 San Francisco, CA @ Independent*
10/8 Los Angeles, CA @ Echo Plex (Culture Collide Festival)*
10/9 Costa Mesa @ Detroit Bar *
10/10 San Diego, CA @ Casbah*
10/12 Phoenix, AZ @ The Rhythm Room*
10/15 Austin, TX @ The Parish
10/16 Dallas, TX @ The Nightmare
11/2 Portland, ME @ Space Gallery
11/3 Boston, MA @ TT the Bear’s
11/5 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brendas
11/6 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
11/7 Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel
*w/ Besnard Lakes

Montreal trio Land of Talk, spearheaded by vocalist and songwriter Elizabeth Powell, have announced the release of their sophomore full-length album, Cloak and Cipher, out August 24th, 2010 on Saddle Creek. Joining Powell on the album are Eoin O Laoghaire (bass) and Andrew Barr (drums) and special guests drawn from the Montreal music scene and beyond including Patrick Watson as well as members of Stars, Silver Mount Zion Band, Wintersleep, Besnard Lakes, Arcade Fire and Esmerine.

Stand out live sets brought attention to Powell’s voice and presence when the band toured with Broken Social Scene. Powell harnesses the power from the live shows to make the complex composition that is Cloak and Cipher.

This record is the document of Powell’s past and future, cleaved together. In those teenage years, an analog child, her recordings were strictly to 4-track tape. Cloak and Cipher’s songs were roughed out in the digital Garageband software, a first for Powell. It afforded her the space to return to her old process – isolated, quiet, layered construction. Realized in the studio, these songs became vast yet intricate: expansive arrangements anchored by taut instrumentation. The lyrics are borrowed newspaper headlines, veiled confessions, and passages from books, annihilated and morphed into song. Tracks like “Hamburg, Noon” swing tensely between acrobatic vocals and rumbling guitars while “Swift Coin” roars to the fore like an eviscerating siren; exploding into a rollicking and joyous guitar anthem. The halfway point, “The Hate I Won’t Commit,” featuring a piano solo from Patrick Watson, weaves between abrasive and gentle, expanding through choral backing vocals and distressed, emotive pleas from Powell. “Quarry Hymns” is the sweetest and saddest Land of Talk you will hear, insistently driven by Arcade Fire’s Jeremy Gara on drums. The record concludes with the dreamy and ethereal “Better and Closer” gently rocking you asunder.

Land of Talk hit the road later this month with Besnard Lakes.

Cloak and Cipher track listing in full:
1. Cloak and Cipher
2. Goaltime Exposure
3. Quarry Hymns
4. Swift Coin
5. Color Me Badd
6. The Hate I Won’t Commit
7. Hamburg, Noon
8. Blangee Blee
9. Playita
10. Better and Closer

Land of Talk tour dates:
5/26/10 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom*
5/27/10 Washington, DC @ Black Cat*
5/28/10 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom*
5/29/10 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s*
5/30/10 Cambridge, MA @ TT the Bears*
5/31/10 Portland, ME @ Space Gallery
*w/ Besnard Lakes

Saddle Creek knows a powerful female voice when they hear one. They helped launch the career of Jenny Lewis, have been the home to the phenomenal ladies in Azure Ray and their sister label Team Love boasts the gang vocals of the tap-dancing gals in Tilly and the Wall. The latest female-fronted band to join the roster, Land of Talk, is no different. Singer Lizzie Powell lives up to the legacy of the Saddle Creek gals.

If you missed out on the talk about Land of Talk, no worries. We’ve got you covered. You can download a new mp3 off the group’s forthcoming Fun and Laughter EP. The song is called “May You Never.” Just right click and save as to download or stream on our site.

Land of Talk – May You Never

The Fun and Laughter EP includes four new songs and three videos. The hard copy comes with original art by the band.

Track Listing:
01. Sixteen Asterisk
02. May You Never
03. As Me
04. A Series Of Small Flames
05. The Man Who Breaks Things (Dark Shuffle) – Video
06. Troubled – Video
07. Some Are Lakes – Video

Tour Dates:
Oct. 27 – Casbah / San Diego, CA
Oct. 29 – Spaceland / Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 30 – Cellar Door / Visalia, CA
Nov. 2 – Cafe Du Nord / San Francisco, CA
Nov. 4 – Doug Fir Lounge / Portland, OR
Nov. 5 – High Dive / Seattle, WA
Nov. 6 – Nightlight / Bellingham, WA
Nov. 7 – Biltmore Cabaret / Vancouver, BC

Land of Talk: website | myspace