Watching legends OR NXNE Day #4

First off, I can't believe this was over a week ago already!

Saturday dawned with impending thunderstorms to wash out Iggy & The Stooges from Yonge-Dundas Square. Naturally, this was a cause for concern, so on our way to a conference on how to get your band onto summer festival line-ups, C and I stopped at two Shoppers Drugmarts in search of rain ponchos. Weirdly, we found none.

After the conference, we went for lunch and then to Sunrise Records to catch Holly McNarland's set. We were early enough to see Colleen Brown and Rah Rah prior. It's funny to note that there were (apparently) 650 bands playing NXNE shows, and we saw hardly any, and I wanted to see so many, and we managed to see Colleen Brown THREE times! Anyhow, I was less than enthusiastic about Rah Rah's set; I enjoyed the tunes, but something just wasn't right (turns out it was just the venue. Rah Rah were great when we saw them on Sunday at the El Mocambo. I bought both of their CDs).

Holly's drummer didn't make it to the gig, so she played an acoustic set consisting of "Water" and "Beautiful Blue", and a bunch of new songs that I hadn't heard before. As usual, her voice and stage presence were mesmerizing.

Our next stop took us to Yonge-Dundas Square for The Raveonettes, who absolutely rocked! I only knew a couple of songs going into the show, and I came out wishing they had brought merch with them. Iggy & The Stooges were up next, and the crowd was insane. People were spilling out into the street (which thankfully was blocked off for two blocks or so in every direction). The crowdsurfing started two songs in. I stayed near the front for five songs and then I made my way out--not because of the crowd, but because C and I had to leave before the set was over to get to The Rivoli for Holly McNarland's set. We skipped Iggy's encore, which I'm sure consisted of "Lust for Life," and made our way to the next venue.

Colleen Brown Band hadn't yet started when we arrived, so we got to see her plugged in. I'm still torn as to how I prefer her music live. She has a very Sarah McLachlanesque voice, so she was drowned out by the drums and guitar, but the added instruments didn't hurt the songs' melodies at all, and I do tend toward the heavier side of things (how kickass is that new Against Me! single???).

Holly was awesome, but I was disappointed that she only got a 40-minute set, which left no room for old favourites from Stuff or Home is Where my Feet Are.



We saw two songs by Kulas, didn't like them, and left for Parks & Rec at the Painted Lady. Tiniest. Venue. Ever! It was packed with people--because the band is fantastic. Honestly, I only saw two bands that I didn't like during the whole festival, so forgive the broken record of "this band was awesome!" That's why you do research before you go, Kids.

Up next is a recap of NXNE Day the Last.

Capturing a moment OR NXNE Day #3

Think back to the first time you saw your favourite band or were absolutely floored by a band you'd never heard of before live. Remember the tingling in your spine, the joy in your heart, that you'd really found something special. I had this experience on Friday, and I'll tell you about it a little later.

C and I's first engagement was a conference about touring in the U.S.. It was an interesting discussion on where and how to get gigs along the East Coast, and when Schubas was mentioned, I got to lean over and say "I've been there!"

Said the Whale were the first band at Yonge-Dundas Square. These guys are one of my favourite bands (yes I do say that a lot...I have about 100 Top 10 Favourite Bands), and I loved their set. I've said it before, and I'll say it again right now: "Camilo" has one of the cutest music videos EVER. Next up was K-OS; I'm not much of a fan, but his set was decent. Highlights for me were "Crabbuckit" and "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman". We watched about half of Sloan's set before heading into the Hard Rock Cafe for --

MY NEW FAVOURITE BAND: Amos the Transparent! This band kicks ass. They have such intensity on stage, and they really connect with the audience (and I'm not just saying that because they hauled half the audience on stage for one song, either). I could tell they really love playing music. Even the bass player was singing along and trying to get the crowd into it.

After Amos, we saw a few of Hollerado's songs (thankfully including my fave, "Juliette." Super Spike is going to be so awesome!!!), before heading tot he Horseshoe Tavern for Mudhoney. Honestly, how could we not see Mudhoney, right? C went back to the apartment we rented instead of sticking around, but I had a blast. That band's still got it...whatever it is. I had hoped to catch Spirits afterwards, but due to a power outtage all along Queen Street, Mudhoney's set started at 2am instead of 1am and went til almost 3:30.

Needless to say, I was exhausted when I got home with my largest CD stash of the week.

Outlaws and Gunslingers OR NXNE Day #2

Thursday (June 17) began with an interesting panel about US radio formats. Those in attendance were given rate cards, and then a song was played. When it was done, everyone held up a number from one to ten, depending on how much you liked the song (I also played the Guess the Artist Game in my head lol. My apologies to The Arcade Fire for calling them just another band that sounds like The Arcade Fire!).

C and I spent the evening at Lee's Palace for the Outlaws and Gunslingers showcase, which featured artists from Six Shooter Records. Andy Kim started the night with a decent set, but while I think he's a great singer, I wasn't moved by his original songs; his cover of "Sugar, Sugar" was easily the best tune in his set.

The next three sets consisted of three artists playing three songs each (yeah, I know). First up was Danny Michel, Justin Rutledge, and Oh Susanna. I had never heard any of Oh Susanna's stuff, but Danny and Justin are favourites of mine, and it was cool to hear them play on each other's songs.

Royal Wood, Andy Maize of the Skydiggers, and Amelia Curran were next. My second favourite part of the night was Amelia dancing spastically like Andy. To an outsider, one might think she was mocking him, but she opened for the Skydiggers on their recent cross-Canada tour, so it was done out of fun.

My favourite set of the night came from Hawksley Workman, Jim Cuddy, and Colleen Brown, and here's why: Jim Cuddy sang along with "Warhol's Protrait of Gretzky", eff words and all and it was great. Now, I also get to brag that while I was in Ottawa, we went to the art gallery and purchased postcards of Warhol's Portrait of Gretzky, and after the show I met Sir Workman and he merrily autographed said postcard. Best piece of memorabilia ever. It's okay if you're jealous.

The Beauties were up next with their raucous rockabilly set. I had never heard of them before, and I actually liked them a lot. We left after their set for some zzzs.

Day #3 featuring Said the Whale, Sloan, and my new favourite band is on deck...

Sorry this isn't from the show, but dangit, it's awesome.

Not as planned, but just as good

Every June, North by Northeast (NXNE) takes over downtown Toronto, filling its venues with live bands of all genres from around the globe. I spent a good three days going through the original line-up list, giving checkmarks and exmarks and asterisks to the bands I liked, didn't like, or loved. I was pumped when The Meligrove Band finally got slotted in for today (Wednesday) at the CN Tower. The Balconies were also on the bill, a group I'd heard good things about, and Hollerado, whom I love (and whom are playing Super-Spike this year with Social Code).

Sadly, after walking around the CN Tower looking for an outdoor stage of any kind, I found out that the concert was in the Tower's restaurant AND that I had to pre-register to attend it. Disappointed, I decided to return to the apartment I'm sharing with my friend for the week and figure out what to do instead.

Looking through the guide we were giving upon picking up our passes, I saw that Kathleen Edwards and Arkells were supposed to be playing at The Courthouse BUT when I looked online for confirmation, I couldn't find any.

Finally, I agreed to go to the Karen Elson concert at the El Mocambo. This was not a NXNE show at all, but it probably should have been. Afterall, the opening act was from Hamilton, and she's British. This is definitely in line with the festival. I was quite impressed with San Sebastian; they could easily tour with the likes of Social Code or Marianas Trench. I was most impressed with Karen's vocals. She's fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect, seeing as how Jack White is her husband and she's a model, but she kept the crowd engaged and kept telling us we were "too sweet."

Tomorrow we're off to see Danny Michel, Hawksley Workman, Justin Rutledge, Amelia Curran, and many many more. Stay tuned!

Chicago

Chicago is the fourth American city that I have visited. I can't believe how much I did in 4 days! I only spent time in the hotel to sleep.

About 40 of us Cre Comm students went on a little road trip, and here is the rundown of what I did:

We arrived on Tuesday, May 4 at 4:30pm, and immediately just went walking around. We went to the Hancock building for a few drinks and then some of us walked to the Millennium Park face fountain and the Bean.

Wednesday morning we had passes to the Art Gallery, so I wandered around that til 1-ish and then went for lunch with some classmates. We went up the Sears Tower, and then shopped for a bit.

A friend and I went to see Aqualung Wednesday night at Schuba's. He was soooo amazing! And British. And hilarious. It was a sold-out concert, so people were packed in, although no one was so rude that we felt like sardines. At one point, Matt (Aqualung's real name) said he needed us to use our hive minds to transport a beer from the back of the room to the front of the stage. It was a success; he was very happy lol. I got to meet him after the show and had to explain where Winnipeg was in relation to Toronto and Vancouver.

Thursday morning a bunch of us went on the Untouchables Mobster bus tour. It was cool. Two guys dress up like they're from the '20s and drive a group around in an old school bus that has been painted black. They alternate talking about how it was in the days of Prohibition and the gangsters. It was pretty interesting. In the afternoon we went to Ketchum, a PR firm, to learn about what people do there. At 5, we went on a Pirate Cruise (lol) in which the crew dressed up as pirates and the guide (Dread Pirate Zack) told us about pirates in Chicago...from Sault Ste Marie.

After supper at Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's, 7 of us went to the piano bar next door. It was 11:30pm, and no one was in there. We sat around the piano, and the dude played our requests all night! This included "Don't Stop Believing" to the power of twice! It was great.

Friday morning we went on an architectural boat cruise, and then in the afternoon a couple of us went to the Field Museum. That place is huge!!! I only got to see 3 of their galleries in 2 and a half hours. :( I walked 45 mins back to the hotel, and then we went for deep dish pizza. I

And then we left at 8am on Saturday, stayed overnight in Minneapolis, and arrived home Sunday evening at 6:30.

You can view all my pics on Flickr.

Change of plans

I was going to write a post about how much I love Arkells and why they should win Best New Artist at the Junos tonight, but I've just learned some sad news that should take precedence.

I was checking my Twitter Feed when @AUXTV tweeted about the sudden death of You Say Party! We Say Die! drummer Devon Clifford.

Unfortunately, I missed YSP!WSD! on their recent Winnipeg stop @ the Albert, but I did get to see them a couple of years ago in Ottawa. I didn't know any of their music at the time, just their name and the buzz surrounding them from various indie music circles. I convinced my friend that we should go to the show, and we were glad we did. The band was full of energy, playing to a packed Zaphod's.

RIP Devon. Another life ended too soon.

Dancing to yesterday

At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about the new Hawksley Workman song. There's been an irritating shift for rock bands to put out dance records that started a couple of years ago with Good Charlotte's Good Morning Revival in 2007, and has since spread to the likes of Simple Plan, Hedley, and Faber Drive. (I'm not a fan of all of these bands, but I listen to everything because how can I legitimately say I don't like an artist or band or song if I've never heard it/them at least once?)

I first heard Workman's "Dance to Yesterday" while driving to work one Sunday morning, and I immediately was disappointed that he would jump on such a silly bandwagon. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE his music. But this song was just...weird. Observe:



Now, I have to say that it's grown on me. I really like this song. Why? Well, besides the fact that it's pretty impossible for me not to like everything Workman does, this song rings true for me. I've been listening to a lot of Oldies--'50s and '60s Oldies, not like 1994 Oldies!--and so I AM dancing to yesterday, in that sense. For me, this song is full of nostalgia, and that's been a theme for me lately (see previous post!).