WINNY STARDUST
This is the kind of news we'd probably hear on MTV, but for those who didn't hear: David Bowie, arguably the best musician of all time, praised the Arcade Fire's album Funeral. NOT ONLY did Ziggy Stardust just come out and say it was the best album of the year, the fucker POSTED a picture of the album on his website with a message saying it's the best thing he's heard in a long time and you should buy it. www.davidbowie.com.

ROUGH YEAR OF TOURING
In other Arcade Fire news, they've signed to Rough Trade in Europe and will be touring for awhile - but I've also heard they are nearly done the songs for a new album. What are the chances of them playing a flashlight show in a little art space with a few days notice? Not likely. www.arcadefire.com.

YOU DOWN WITH OTT?
The Over the Top Festival is one of the best up-and-coming festivals in Toronto. In fact, many believe it's already the best. The details aren't confirmed but we thought we'd whet your appetite with some dates. Mark off these days on your calendar: 5, 6, 7, 8 - May 2005. This is an attempt at an all-ages festival with all kinds of music. Last year saw The Unicorns, Chromeo, The Diskettes, and Japanther play great sets. The extremely organized and talented Eric Warner is behind the scenes so contact him at overthetopfest@overthetopfest.com if you have any questions.

BROKEN OWEN
When news broke that Owen P. was broke (okay, just his foot), half the bands in the Toronto gasped for air. This occurred partly because he's a nice guy with lots of people who care about him and also because he plays in half the bands in the city. Music might have shut down all together in Toronto - but we hear he is OK and will be fine. Not only that, his solo project Final Fantasy will be opening for (you guessed it) The Arcade Fire's North American tour in January. http://lesmouches.cjb.net.

SICK OF PLAYING IN TORONTO?
Hamilton has a new variety night seeking performers and personalities. "ECLECTRICITY" Every Wednesday at the Casbah Lounge in downtown Hamilton. The night is launching Wednesday January 5, but contact Joel at spacecushion@hotmail.com if you'd like to find out more.

"...AND A HAPPY NEW ALBUM!"
The Bar Mitzvah Brothers have self-released a winter album with... winter songs. We have little information, so you may have to order the album off their site or contact them or pop into local shops and ask. www.barmitzvahbrothers.cjb.net.

DEPEND ON DEPENDENT
Dependent records have a shitload of new promises for 2005. And we like promises! Wintersleep will start out 2005 by releasing their sophomore album in Canada on February 15th - which hopefully will be closely followed by a couple more video releases and extensive national touring. The Remains of Brian Borcherdt B is the title for the second half of this huge endeavor, the first half was released last summer. B continues where the debut left off taking us through another collection of Brian's beautiful songscapes. www.dependentmusic.com has the rest!

HOW MANY PAULS DOES IT TAKE TO...?
The Pauls are humble. In fact, as far as we know, they never had a "real" CD release party. They slyly self-released a hand-crafted album that happens to be a gem of a disc. The Pauls don't have a website either. The members of the Pauls, many of whom are named Paul, busk on the street. You should throw them some money if you see them - in fact, throw them a few more dollars and ask for their disc, Pauls or Nothing.

WOODEN'T IT BE NICE
Thursday, Jan. 20 is a hotly anticipated date in Toronto indie rock... one of Ontario's Best Bands Ever is hopping on the post-punk reunion bandwagon (ha ha). Ottawa's Wooden Stars were around for most of the Ô90s, releasing three fantastic albums, plus making a handful of singles and compilation appearances, before calling it quits in 1999. With their mix of clean yet jagged guitars, soulful vocal harmonies and cracked-up rhythms, the WS were definitely a force to be reckoned with. We welcome their return at the Horseshoe on the 20th, with guests the Sea Snakes.

Steven Himmelfarb with files from Jonny Dovercourt