Last Gang Publishing

Last Gang Signing Mark Sultan Dialed-In for "$"

One of Last Gang's most recent signings is Montréal's Mark Sultan, whose second album under his given name, identified simply as $ (pronounced Status) has been released on the Last Gang Records label. It follows up his 2007 opus, Sultanic Verses. The Montreal Mirror newspaper's Johnson Cummins named Sultan's $ CD "Disc of the Week" in giving it 9-out-of-10. He notes that Sultan is "...showcasing his immense knowledge of '50s doo-wop, '60s soul and '70s punk on his most sonically adventurous moment yet. Things are rough and raw as ever, but as raucous and cacophonous as he can get here, it's still his serious, soul-encrusted croon and expert songwriting talent, with nods to the early years of rock 'n' roll, that really make this undeniably unique and rewarding."

Sultan was a mainstay of the Montréal punk scene in the band The Spaceshits. Since then, and through a half-dozen eclectic musical projects including Les Sexareenos, BBQ (Mark Sultan), Mind Controls, The King Khan & BBQ Show, The Almighty Defenders and the more recent BBQ and the Ding Dongs, this restless creative spirit with a wanderlust – his travels have taken him to four continents – has defied categorization. Following recent tour dates in Italy, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Canada through March, Sultan was in California in mid-April for dates at Spaceland in Los Angeles (BBQ) and The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco (The Almighty Defenders). The Almighty Defenders play dates in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Denmark through May finishing up in Barcelona, Spain at the Primavera Sound Festival at the end of the month. The King Kahn & BBQ Show will also play the Primavera Festival.

The ole/Last Gang song "La Le La La" by Kinnie Starr featuring Tegan Quin was heard in an Easter-period (March 15th-April 4th) TV ad for PayLess ShoeSource ("Kids love filling up their baskets at Easter!) This is not a rare occurrence for Starr whose songs have been featured on the TV series The L Word and Thirteen as well as in Zellers' ads, on Le Chateau's regular national playlists in Canada and Fashion Television Canada.

Three ole/Last Gang songs have been placed in the new Canadian TV series Shattered, set to air on Showcase in Canada, including Silver Starling's "Blue Light", Magneta Lane's "Lady Bones" and Mother Mother's "Sleep Awake."

Though Mother Mother is currently in the studio recording their third album with group front-man Ryan Guldemond producing, things are going to get even busier in the next few weeks. The Vancouver-group's album O My Heart is out in the U.K. and Europe at the end of May with the single "Hay Loft" preceding it on April 19th. Prior to the release, the group will play dates in London, Liverpool and Brighton. "Legs Away", a track from the band's debut Last Gang Records album, Touch Up, is featured in the Natalie Portman/Lisa Kudrow film Love and Other Impossible Pursuits, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in the Fall but had its distribution delayed.

Toronto-based electro-hop DJ/production duo Let's Go To War, who co-wrote the track "Mmm Papi" with Nicole Morier and Britney Spears, which appears on Spears' current album Circus, were featured performers at The GSUS Affair CD launch party at the Tattoo Rock Parlour in Toronto on April 8th. The compilation CD, which includes the Let's Go To War track "Burn Down The Disco" is made available for free at all official GSUS retailers and at the GSUS Boutique in Toronto.

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