As mentioned in last week’s blog entry, the remixed and remastered version of the demo that was recorded last fall as a requirement for the CONGA 2008 is available online in digital format. At last!

Here’s the cover art and track listing :

1. Reinfused
2. In The Taste Of The Day
3. Countless Questions
4. Creeper

A few notes :

“In The Taste Of The Day” is a remix of a 2005 recording and thus features Poligraf’s previous bassist, Isaac Desgagné-Bouchard, on bass and backing vocals.

“Reinfused” was recorded as a spare track and replaces Gentle Giant’s “Cogs In Cogs” which was originally included on the demo that was submitted to the contest.

Both these songs have been selected as “singles” and are available for free download on some of the fine sites listed below.

We plan to release a CD version in the weeks to come, but before we proceed we must first select a mastering engineer among those who have been generous enough to offer us a free sample of their abilities. The lucky winner will get to master all 4 tracks. You’re invited to influence our choice by letting us know which track sounds the best to your ears.

Even though the tunes have been remixed and remastered and augmented with a few overdubs, these recordings are a far cry from what we would like to offer you. You can hear the occasional bum notes, some of the vocals are badly out of tune and couldn’t be redone, and as we were limited by the number of available channels during our recording sessions, the tom-toms are barely recognizable. Also, most of the tracks were corrupted to some extent because of a problem with our recording setup (i.e. “clock sync”), and although some digital restoration tools have been used to declick the final mixes, there are still artefacts remaining.

We know it’s nearly a crime against humanity not being able to offer you decent versions of these songs as they deserve better than a rushed recording. If you’d like to help us rectify this unfortunate situation, you’re invited to show your support. And by the way, if you are in a position to help us record our first album, please contact us as we are currently considering our options.

Here’s a list of music sites, music stores, and social networks where Poligraf has a presence :

• amazingtunes
• ArtistLaunch
• Facebook
• Fuzz
• indiestore
• iSound
• mp3.com.au
• Music Forte
• MySpace
• Newsvine
• purevolume
• Slicethepie
• SoundClick
• Stage.fm
• Supernova
• thesixtyone
• TuneShout
• YouTube

And here’s what you can do to help :

• post comments and reviews about our music
• add our music to your playlists
• add us to your friends/contacts
• recommend us to your friends/contacts
• vote for us
• buy our tracks
• generally show your enthusiasm for what we do

Please note that wherever possible we have set the songs’ price at 80 cents, but it may vary from store to store according to each site’s particularities.

Thanks in advance for your participation!

Other locations will follow, and we plan to post an update here when we’re done, but in the meantime keep an eye on the links section as new sites will appear there first.

Looks like it’s a wrap. We thank you for your continued support. Hope you enjoy the music!

A few updates to the site :

Just noticed that the theme was messed up under Internet Explorer 6. Sorry for the inconvenience. I fixed the stylesheet to rectify the most obvious issues. I’ll try to give it a thorough examination sometimes soon.

A new photo album, “Live @ CONGA 2008” is now available in the gallery. Enjoy!

I’ve changed the header image. Hope you like it!

Many developments to report in this last week of a very busy February 2008. New music is available online for your patient ears to feast on, plans for a live date in April are in the works, and the band has finally decided to record a full-fledged album. But first things first, here’s a CONGA 2008 wrap-up.

As you must know by now, despite having received very good comments, Poligraf wasn’t selected for the finals. All in all, the whole experience has been a very positive one, and we even got to celebrate a little when Christian was presented with the performance award for best drummer overall. It is our friends from DETOUR who have deservingly been crowned best act of this year’s edition of the contest. Congrats boys! For an inside look into the semi-finals, be sure to read Christopher’s “Retour sur le CONGA” (in French).

Well, I say wrap-up, but there’s still a possibility that we put our hands on some audio and video recordings of our semi-finals performance. More on that when/if it materializes.

The gears are in motion for a live performance in April. If all unfolds according to plan, we will share the stage with Leitmotiv, and the gig will take place at La Ninkasi. Further details when available.

After almost surprisingly painless discussions, we have decided that the timing was right for us to record our first album. Yay Poligraf! The first step is figuring out the best possible road ahead, and we are currently considering our options. Stay tuned as we intend to document the process as much as possible.

And last but not least, the digital version of a remixed and remastered “CONGA 2008 Demo” is now available online. But, as it is already time for me to get ready for tonight’s rehearsal, you will have to wait a few hours for the full story.

As always, thank you for your patience and support!

Poligraf gave a good performance (in fact, better than good considering that it was the first ever for this line-up) which earned the band enthusiastic comments and was loudly applauded by an attentive crowd and our friend Ben.

The band would like to thank the whole CONGA 2008 team for a much appreciated experience, Christian’s dad who drove most of our gear and us to the venue, our tech Martin Daris, and everybody who braved the weather and attended the show! Thanks guys!

Our friend Jean-Philippe Côté took some very good pictures of us on stage. Jean-Philippe also pointed us in the direction of patwhite.com, where our photogenic selves have been chosen to grace the contest announcement. Thank you Jeepy!

The finalists will be announced after this evening’s semi-final. Stay tuned!

Please take notice that the CONGA 2008 semi-finals will be held at l’Amphithéâtre 1112 du Pavillon Adrien-Pouliot de l’Université Laval instead of the previously announced venue. Sorry for any inconvenience caused.

The event listing has been updated accordingly.

The CONGA 2008 schedule is now available at the contest’s website.

Poligraf will play the second semi-final and will be sharing the stage with DETOUR and Euphoric Sight.

Please see the event listing for more details.

Great news! The band has been selected to play in the semi-finals of the CONGA 2008 band contest!

Details will be announced as the schedule becomes available.

Poligraf’s new website is now online!

Don’t be surprised should you encounter some quirks while we tweak the platform.

Stay tuned as more contents will be added over the next few days.