by SHANE SINNOTT

This past Tuesday saw the release of the latest album by Hayden, called In Field & Town. It’s been three years since the last record, but don’t expect a dramatic change—Hayden sticks with the melancholy acoustic numbers he’s known for. If you go over to the B(oo)tlog blog (awful name), you can download a recording of an entire live show that features a bunch of songs from the new record, including the title track—go to tinyurl.com/366nq3. I’m also going to give you a link for “Bad As They Seem,” for old time’s sake: tinyurl.com/24lg8g. If you like, you can also see all this stuff for yourself on Sunday, Jan. 20, when Hayden plays at le National with Basia Bulat.

The other big show this week is on Monday, when Peter Björn and John play Club Soda. This band really sucks—their single “Young Folks” is irritating to the extreme, the cutesy video only slightly less so. I’m really glad they’re playing here, though, as it gives me an excuse to say this. If you must, you can download “The Chills” at tinyurl.com/39qsna. Opening are local shoegazers Young Galaxy, who sound very Arts & Crafts-y, and have a single called “Outside the City” that you can download at tinyurl.com/2agvgo.

In the neverending story surrounding Canada’s copyright laws, our Federal Court of Appeals last week overturned a ruling that would have placed a $75 levy on iPods sold in Canada. It took the court less than 24 hours to see what a lot of us already know, namely that an iPod levy would be total bullshit. Hopefully, a similar manner of thinking will dominate when discussion of revamping Canada’s copyright laws resumes. Our government is intending to significantly and imminently tighten our copyright laws in regards to online music sharing. If you’re interested in learning more or influencing the decision, you can look at www.faircopyrightforcanada.ca, the web site for Canadians for Fair Copyright, a group that’s attempting to educate Canadians on the implications of the by-all-accounts draconian legislation that will arrive shortly.