As promised in our last update, The Wooden Sky have a major tour announcement to make! They’ll be heading across Canada with friends and special guests, Yukon Blonde for a 28-date National tour presented by AUX! All the details can be found either at EXCLAIM.CA or AUX.TV.

Dates can also be found in the tours section of our website!

The good news just keeps on coming to the Black Box family these days! Yesterday the 2010 Polaris Music Prize Long List was announced, and we’re ecstatic to say that both The Wooden Sky and Shad were included! The Wooden Sky has been nominated for 2009’s “If I Don’t Come Home, You’ll Know I’m Gone”, and Shad has been nominated for the recently released “TSOL”. You can check out the full Polaris Long List here.

In other news, Shad has announced a national tour supporting K’Naan across Canada in the Fall. The dates are as follows:
Sept 25 - Vancouver, BC @ Malkin Bowl
Sept 27 - Calgary, BC @ MacEwan Hall
Sept 28 - Edmonton, AB @ Edmonton Events Centre
Sept 29 - Winnipeg, MB @ Burton Cummings Theatre
Oct 1 - Toronto, ON @ The Koolhaus

A little birdie told me there may be some more dates coming, no promises but stay tuned. Don’t forget to tune into the 2010 MMVA’s this Sunday where Classified is up for 3 awards, and Ten Second Epic is up for one!

Ian

Hey all!

Just a quick update on some tour announcements, and a reminder about some Shad stuff that was announced this week…

SHAD
Lots of stuff going on, so rather than write it all into a flowery paragraph, deal with these links!
IN STORE PERFORMANCE: Monday, May 24th @ Sonic Boom, 7PM
ALBUM PREVIEW: exclaim.ca - Shad’s video was #1 on Exclaim’s Click Hear in April, lets make him #1 again in May!
“YAA I GET IT” SINGLE: Available now on iTunes!
PRE ORDER: maplemusic.com (comes with an exclusive hand-screened poster)
TOUR: Edmonton show rescheduled to June 7th at The Brixx (full dates in the shows section)
ALBUM RELEASE: May 25th!!

LIVING WITH LIONS
LWL just launched their new MySpace last night, which features an in-studio video blog (stay tuned for more coming soon!), tour announcements with Polar Bear Club and Sights & Sounds (full dates in the shows section), and a note about Shayne leaving the band and Bill Crook from A Textbook Tragedy joining. Go to http://myspace.com/livingwithlions for all the info, and make sure to follow the band on twitter - @lwlband.

THE WOODEN SKY
The Wooden Sky have announced a run of dates in the US - some headline dates, and some alongside Indiana’s Austin Lucas (full dates in the shows section). We’ve also announced several festivals for the summer, so pack a blanket and come hang out. More news about some fall headline touring is coming, as well as the European/UK release of ‘If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone”.

Hey all. It’s opening day for our Toronto Blue Jays, and hopefully that along with another Maple Leafs (and soon to be Raptors) elimination from the play-offs, the SUMMER is almost here! Here’s the latest…

SHAD
If you were living under a rock last week, you missed our big announcement via Exclaim that Shad’s new record, TSOL will be hitting shelves on May 25th. In support of the record, Shad also announced tour dates with Grand Analog and D-Sisive, as follows:
w/Grand Analog
5/27 Winnipeg, MB - Pyramid Cabaret
5/28 Saskatoon, SK - Amigo’s
5/29 Edmonton, AB - Starlite Room
6/3 Vancouver, BC - The Biltmore Cabaret
6/4 Victoria, BC - Sugar Nightclub
6/5 Kelowna, BC - Habitat
6/6 Calgary, AB - Republik
w/D-Sisive
6/12 Toronto, ON - The Opera House
6/15 Hamilton, ON - Casbah
6/16 Peterborough, ON - The Red Dog
6/17 London, ON - Call The Office
6/18 London, ON - Call The Office
Keep your eyes peeled this week - we’ll be launching the new video for the first single off of TSOL, “Yaa I Get It”, directed by HotDogGarbage. You can see a quick teaser HERE- just TRY not to watch it more than once!

JUNOS
Black Box is heading to St. John’s later this week for the 2010 Juno Awards! Ten Second Epic and Classified are nominated for awards, and both have very busy weekends scheduled. Classified, and Ten Second Epic’s Andrew Usenik and Patrick Birtles will be taking part in the Juno Cup (musicians vs. NHL alumni). Check out Andrew and Pat training HERE.

Beyond that, both artists are playing shows as part of Junofest on Friday night - visit the JUNO FEST WEBSITE for details, and make sure to tune in on Sunday night for the red carpet and award ceremony!

AND IN OTHER NEWS…
- The Wooden Sky have launched part 9 of their “Documentary In Parts” series from last summers Bedrooms & Backstreets tour on their VIMEO CHANNEL. The band is home for now after 2 solid months on the road. We’ll be announcing some summer festival appearances in the coming days…

- Living With Lions is now confirmed to be in studio with Dan Weston in May to record the follow up to 2008’s Make Your Mark. Expect the record out this fall on Black Box in Canada and Adeline in the US. We’ll be announcing some tour dates for June in the next week or so as well!

- Northcote continues across Canada with Dave Hause from The Loved Ones this week, culminating in a show with Frank Turner at the Media Club in Vancouver. Visit his MYSPACE for all the details. Northcote is also confirmed for Sled Island Festival in Calgary this summer - hit up SLEDISLAND.COM for the full lineup.

- Crash Parallel is back in studio recording some new tracks for their forthcoming release. More info is coming, so stay tuned or visit CRASHPARALLEL.COM for more details.

As always, make sure you’re following Skate4Cancer’s skate through Australia. They have a lot of exciting stuff happening, including C1rca’s commitment to donate $1 toward a S4C drop-in centre in Toronto for every time THIS VIDEO is viewed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rg_zrN9_W5c
Check it out and please pass it along!

That’s all for now!
Ian

Ok - we’ve been slacking on our web updates, but we have some really exciting news to share!

The 2010 Juno Award Nominations have been announced, and we’ve got artists with 4 nominations! Ten Second Epic pop their Juno nom cherry with a New Group of the Year nomination, while Classified is nominated for Single, Video and Rap Recording of the Year. Big day for us here at Black Box - Ten Second Epic’s ‘Hometown’ and Classified’s “Self Explanatory” were huge priorities for us this past year. It’s great to see our artists recognized for their accomplishments. Congrats to Andrew, Dan, Sandy, Pat, Craig & Luke for these well deserved honours. We’ll see you in St. John’s for a party! Congrats also goes out to all the other nominees!

On another note, Shad’s new record, titled “TSOL” is now scheduled for release on May 25th. We’ll have new music for you in the next week or two, so stay tuned here or to our twitter (@weareblackbox) to find out how you can be among the first to hear it.

The Wooden Sky are finishing up their coast-to-coast tour this week, and then preparing for the Chartattack CMW Showcase at The Horseshoe on March 13th. All the details for that showcase can be found HERE.

That’s about all for now! Thanks again for your ongoing support!

Ian

Hey friends,

It’s been a while since our last update, so here’s a real quick one

First off, Northcote’s (Matt from Means) new EP “Borrowed Chords, Tired Eyes” is available on iTunes today! It also features a bonus track that you won’t find on the actual CD called “Peacemaker”. You can pick up your copy HERE

You can also purchase a physical copy at any upcoming show, or online at MAPLEMUSIC.COM.

Secondly, The Wooden Sky’s new album “If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone” is now available on 12″ Vinyl! The LP can be purchased at shows, or on MAPLEMUSIC.COM and comes with a high-quality digital download of the full record and a bonus track called “Leave A Light On”. The record will also be available in stores as of December 21st - what a perfect Christmas gift! It’s a really beautiful piece - gatefold, nice stock. Definitely worth checking out.

Lastly, The Wooden Sky will be performing on MTV Live tomorrow! The show airs tomorrow at 6pm (live) and 11pm (taped), and you can get all the info on how to attend HERE!

We’re close to shutting it down for the holidays. So if we don’t span you between now and then, have a happy, safe and enjoyable holiday from Jason, Sarah and myself here at Black Box. We had a great ‘09, and are looking forward to another big year in oh-ten (including Shad and Living With Lions albums!!)

Peace!
Ian

Hey guys,

We have a few really important things to share as we approach the weekend, so here it goes…

1) We are very excited to welcome Northcote to the Black Box family! Northcoate is the solo moniker of Matt Goud, former member of Means and The Emerson Letters. Matt has been layign low since Means parted ways at this time last year, and has recorded a phenomenal EP called “Borrowed Chords, Tired Eyes” that will be released for purchase online and off-stage later this month. You can hear the EP in its entirety on the Northcote - MySpace. Also check out the upcoming November tour dates with Andy Shauf.

2) Living With Lions have finally announced more Canadian Dates, after almost a year working hard down in the States. They’ll trek up this way following The Fest 8 in Gainesville, and head across Canada with our good friends/up and comers, Toronto’s Brighter Brightest. Check the tour section for all the details, and keep an eye out for a new Brighter Brightest video coming to your internet/tv very soon.

3) Shad is in Toronto working hard on his follow up to 2007’s ‘The Old Prince’. He is playing some select dates though, including his first headline performance in New York City at Pianos on November 4th. If you’re planning to be in the Big Apple, or have friends in the area please spread the word! And stay tuned for new music!

4) Skate4Cancer is in the Aviva Community Fund competition. We started the competition about 3 weeks late, and about 3000 votes behind. As of today, we have taken the lead by about 250 votes! If you have already voted, thanks for your support - and please keep voting once a day so we can maintain/build our lead! If you haven’t voted yet, WHY NOT?? Do it now! VOTE!

5) The Wooden Sky is home from tour, and gearing up for their next run of dates through Ontario and Quebec in November! Check out all the dates in the tours section, and make sure to pick up your tickets for the Toronto date ASAP - this will not be a show to miss. Info is here!

Thats all for now. Thanks for reading!

Ian

Hey friends,

So when The Wooden Sky embarked on the “Bedrooms & Backstreets” tour last month, they brought along our good friend and world famous (or soon to be) director Scott Cudmore to capture the trip on film. The result is “If I Don’t Come Home, You’ll Know I’m Gone - A Documentary In Pieces”. It’s a dark, weird and beautiful look at some of the unique spaces the band found themselves in, performing songs from the new album as well as “When Lost At Sea”. Part one has just been released. You can view it here, or visit our Vimeo Channel.

Part 2 in the ongoing series will be released on October 14th. Stay tuned, and let us know what you think! The band has also announced their first headline show in Toronto since the release of their album - Friday, November 13th @ Lee’s Palace w/Hooded Fang and Brian Borcherdt. Tickets are available at Rotate This, SoundScapes, The Horseshow and online at ticketmaster.ca. You never know what The Wooden Sky have in store, so make sure you pick up your ticket’s early.

In other news, Ten Second Epic will be on Much On Demand tomorrow prior to their show at Sound Academy with Silverstein! Make sure to check it out. Also tomorrow, Skate4Cancer’s Rob Dyer will appear on LA Ink on TLC - check your local listings for air times.

Finally, we’re stoked to confirm that Crash Parallel has announced tour dates in October with none other than Collective Soul. The dates run across the country, so make sure you check crashparallel.com for more info.

That’s about all the news for now. One love!

Ian

Hey everyone,

So September is here, and the unofficial summer appears to be upon us. Here’s a real quick run down of what we have going on right now.

1) The Wooden Sky’s new record, “If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone” is out now. Reviews have been great - if you haven’t checked it out yet, make sure you do. We’ll be launching the first in a series of documentary-style videos from their summer tour in the coming week or so. They’ll be busy this Fall on tour with Elliott Brood, and some headline shows to be announced next week!

2) As school and work are back in full session, we’re getting our Black Box Street team back in order. If you’re into our diverse roster, helping out some great artists and getting some cool stuff in return, e-mail Sarah - street@weareblackbox.com. If you are in college or university, we especially need your help, so get in touch!

3) Shad is home from a long but successful haul on the 2009 Vans Warped Tour. He’s got a few shows this fall but we’re especially excited that he will be settling in to record his next album before the year is out. Expect new Shad music sometime in early 2010.

4) Classified hit the road again this week with his new Australian BFF’s, Hilltop Hoods. Check out the dates and make sure to get your tickets early.

5) Ten Second Epic’s video for “Every Day” continues to climb the MuchMusic countdown. Thanks for your continued support on that front. Check them out on tour w/Silverstein and A Day To Remember this fall!

6) Living With Lions album “Make Your Mark” hit shelves in the US at the end of July through Adeline Records. They’ll be heading down to The Fest 8 in October with our good friends in A Wilhelm Scream.

Make sure to check out our tours section for information on:
Classified w/Hilltop Hoods Sept 9-26
The Wooden Sky w/Elliott Brood Sept 25-Oct 22
Ten Second Epic w/Silverstein Sept 16-Oct 3
Living With Lions w/A Wilhelm Scream Oct 9-Nov 7
Shad headline dates!

Hello everyone!

The day has arrived. The Wooden Sky’s new record “If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone” is available in stores or online. It’s been receiving great reviews, and now you can pick it up to judge for yourself.

Head over to iTunes now to check out the song “When We Were Young”, which is the Single of the Week for this week!

The album should be available in record stores across the country - if they are sold out when you get there, make sure to ask them to order in some more copies for you and your friends. If you’re in Toronto, all the regular indie outlets should have copies, but if they sell out, make sure to visit Sonic Boom on Bloor just East of Bathurst - they have a good stock available.

If you would like to purchase online, here are some links:

iTunes (includes the exclusive bonus track, “Leave A Light On)
thenewmusic.ca” to preview the entire record!

Thanks to everyone who joined us at Sonic Boom last night for the in-store album release performance. We had a great time and we hope you did too. Thanks for your support, and please help us spread the word about the new album!

TWS