I have nothing against Maclean's magazine, but to paraphrase Public Enemy, "Maclean's is a great read for most, but it's never done $h!t for me ...". Until their article on the 25 coolest web sites introduced me to insound.com. Insound is based in New York City specializes in hard-to-find indie music. It reminded me of Other Music, an ultra-cool music shop with similar cred which I visited while in NYC a few years ago (OM is still the only shop I have ever seen with a "Krautrock" section). I checked out insound.com and put it to the test. You see, music snobs like me have our ways of determining if a music store is up to snuff. We look up a few "ultra-credible" bands (credible in our humble opinion) and observe the selection. I usually look up bands such as Joy Division, Velvet Underground and My Bloody Valentine.

Now for the true purpose of this article -- the CD I found while searching under MBV.

Clairecords has released a compo titled "Several Bands Galore Volume 2". It features the "sounds of the bands of the MBV mailing list" -- it says so right on the cover. That nine word sentence in quotations was all the convincing I needed. I ordered the CD. I didn't care if all the bands were unsigned. They love MBV, and have figured out 17 different methods of carrying on their legacy, therefore they are my brothers and sisters. Upon receiving the disc, the phrase "MBV Lovefest" became buzzwords in my house.

The diversity of the music on this CD is testament to the growing consensus that MBV's influence, like Bob Dylan's, is so widespread that it's almost invisible. There are Slint/Mogwai grinding dirges, FX-laden ambience a la early Labradford, and volume-power pop that MBV patented with "Isn't Anything". Taken as a whole, this 17-track collection is as patchy as you might expect, but the best bits are truly phenomenal. Some of them: * "Affect" by Lisa Johnson. One of the most gorgeous songs I've heard in the last couple of years, melting the rustic beauty of the Sundays with the aura from MBV's "Sometimes". This song was an instant addition to my shortlist of Songs That I Have To Hear More Than Once In A Row, along with (for example) "Laid" by James and "Here She Comes" by Slowdive. ** "This Feeling" by snowmobile. In which one Kevin Wood creates the lo-fi atmosphere to end all lo-fi atmospheres. Much like Flying Saucer Attack's "My Dreaming Hill" played through an improperly tuned AM radio. All the while, an eerie "whooshing" permeates the entire song, much like the guitar track during the bridge of MBV's "When You Sleep". Either Kevin Wood spent many an hour trying to create these sounds or he discovered it by accident while recording on the worst possible equipment. Either way, "This Feeling" is genius. *** "Epic" by Wail. A slow building instrumental propelled by an insistent acoustic guitar riff. The way the percussion and effects appear to drift in and out of the mix recall Fleetwood Mac's "Sara", oddly enough. Any track that starts soft and builds up to maximum volume is likely to be OK in my book. **** Other favourites include "Again" by Widescreen (say goodbye to Morcheeba), "Ends of Forever" by Fortean Halo (Faust/Spacemen 3 drone-fest), and "Moments In Space" by Rachel Goldstar (Labradford meet Pornography-era Cure in the planetarium). I eagerly await "Several Bands Galore" vols. 3-382.