SCHEDULE TWO
Wow, have we got a gift for you…
You know, every so often you come across something on the ole’ internets that kind of blows your mind. Well, today I came across this site called Schedule Two. Based out of Minnesota(?), the site is absolutely loaded with awesome live concert videos. There’re already 25+ acts featured, with about 5 or so videos per band. The performances have impeccable sound, straight out the soundboard and are typically shot with about three cameras. They give you the option of steaming clips via a built-in flash player, .mov video or even as a downloadable clip ready for play on your ipod.
Just a few of the artists they’ve shot include (links lead to videos) The Thermals, Grizzly Bear, Asobi Seksu, The Hold Steady, Mates of State and rising stars Voxtrot.
The Thermals, February 27, 2007
I particularly urge you to check out the clips for The Thermals and The Hold Steady – two bands I desperately wanted to have on the show, but it just didn’t work out.
Happy viewing...
Posted by Geoff M at 02:05 PM | Comments (0)
March 29, 2007An open letter to Morrissey
Dear Morrissey,
Allow me to introduce myself to you: my name is Antonella, I am a mere 23 years old, but I am a devoted fan of yours, and have been since I was 13, maybe 12. So, a decade isn’t that long considering you’ve been making music since before I was conceived, but it’s a long time once you consider my age.
My issue, on this beautiful March day is that you’ve announced your “North American” tour with no plans to venture over the border. Why, how now, Dear Morrissey? I am puzzled as to the reason why you insist on ignoring the needs of your loving Canadian fans. Is this because of Canada’s shame? I’m speaking of our annual seal hunt of course, which you should know, many Canadians do not support. In fact, I can safely say the majority of your fans do not support the hunt. We recognize its cruelty, and I’m sure much like myself, many have signed petitions calling for its end. We’ve all seen the horrific footage of a family of seals beaten to their end by the greedy east coaster. And once again, many of us no not support this.
So, you’re taking a stance against the government. Fine. But why are your fans the ones who suffer because of the decisions our government made? Do you think any of our MP’s are Morrissey fans? Certainly Harper isn’t one. Yet, those of us who have little to no control over the hunt are the ones left out in the cold. This doesn’t really make sense to me.
The very fact that you have spoken out against it is powerful. But then you went on to say that you would not be coming to Canada during your promo tour for Ringleader for the Tormentor. But now, months later your policy is still in place and quite frankly I think it’s gone too far. You’re seriously pissing me off.
I’ve only had the pleasure of seeing you once live, and believe me when I say that it was one of the best night’s of my life. You opened with Big Mouth Strikes Again and left with a piece of my heart, forever yours. Did you know our government had decided to start the hunt years ago, yet you were never against visiting this great nation of ours before?
And let’s make one thing clear: you’re going to stop playing shows here because of our seal hunt, yet play numerous shows in the States when they have been at war with Iraq, something you also do not support? Morrissey, baby, choose your battles wisely.
Write a letter to Harper and get yourself over here to enrich our lives one more time. But as it stands, you have failed me.
Sincerely yours,
Antonella Lombardi
Posted by anto+nella at 10:44 AM | Comments (1)
March 28, 2007100 songs
I would like to begin by saying that friend and colleague Jose agreed that it was a-ok to post something like this here. You’re not going to find out about any cool, new band (much like all of my entries) because quite frankly, this is a bit of a rant. You’ve been warned.
I’m really upset over my decision to purchase a Motorola RAZR SLVR L7 over the Sony Ericsson W810. What lured me was the iTunes feature, which, as it stands, comes with a 512 MB card. The Sony cell comes with an MP3 player but I was led to believe that it would be more difficult for me to deal with than iTunes. I'm not so hot on computers, ok?! The Rogers sales associate told me that I could purchase a larger card to hold more songs but as I discovered the other morning when I was attempting to pack more punch into my playlist, my iTunes informed me that despite having space left on my card for more song, the phone can only hold 100 songs. 100 SONGS? That’s it? Are they bloody joking me? Why would Rogers tell me that I could even buy a 4 g card for my phone if it only has the capability of holding a mere 100 songs? I am a music fan, not a 55 year old mother looking to just put the latest Josh Groban on my phone. In fact, there isn’t even enough room to accommodate the entire Ryan Adams catalogue!
I know what you’re thinking: “why don’t you just go buy an iPod?”
Well, I had one, and it recently called it quits on being my best mate. I plugged it into my brand new macbook and it completely died on me, with no hope of coming back to life. I’m still upset about it, and knowing that this Apple product has a shelf life of an apparent three years has me wondering if I should even bother purchasing another one in the near future. Seriously Apple, get your effing shit together. I understand this is new technology, but don’t sell me something, which at the time was $500, that is going to die on me a few short years later. But that’s neither here nor there.
At any rate, I hope this issue can be solved, and right now, before I get further infuriated, I shall chalk it up to a bit of a misunderstanding. Hopefully Rogers does the right thing and allows me to switch to a phone that is better suited to my lifestyle. for free. Ah, who am I kidding, it’s a huge corporation and I’m just another bill that needs to be paid.
I’ll keep you posted on how the issue is handled. Although here’s my prediction: it ends with a sad girl in tears.
Posted by anto+nella at 04:11 PM | Comments (0)
March 23, 2007CAN WE TALK NEW RECORDS FOR A SEC?
Hopefully you’ve had a chance to catch up on all of my adventures/misadventures at sxsw. as I mentioned, probably the best part of the festival for me was the new discoveries – and as I anxiously wait by the door for Mr. postman to deliver me some new records, I’ve been biding my time listening to tracks from two other releases due out later this spring…
The new albums from Voxtrot and the National = probably my most anticipated of the spring. A new song from each record finally surfaced this week (as a free, legit download) and to put it simply, my appetite is ridiculously whet. If you’ve admired either band’s earlier work, I’m bloody positive you’re going to be into this new sht. Or if these bands are new to you, take note.
Kid Gloves, off Voxtrot’s self-titled debut offers a hooky melody straight from the start with a chorus of vocals doing this “oh oh oh” thing – its great. Ramesh Srivastava’s classic-sounding vocals come in shortly after, rhyming up a storm, leading up to a killer chorus that just soars. You kind of get the jest of how the song’s going to play out early on, but it doesn’t matter one bit - because the payoff in the end is completely huge. The album hits stores May 22nd. Download Kid Gloves here:
The first track to surface off The National’s upcoming record Boxer, is a beautiful piano-driven pop ditty called Fake Empire. The song opens plainly with a lone piano line, complemented perfectly by Matt Berninger’s deep, smoky vocals. As the song shifts and drums enter, you know you’re in for something epic – but in a brilliant move, the band pulls back, stripping the song down once more before letting loose. From there on, it’s smooth sailing, with a slow build-up full of warm fuzzy guitars and eventually, some kind of trumpet / trombone duel. Pure gold! Boxer is also out on May 22nd. Download Fake Empire here:
The National – Fake Empire.mp3
Posted by Geoff M at 10:34 AM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2007SXSW WRAP-UP
I finally had some time on Sunday to reflect upon the wild week it was. How I battled through sickness, bouncers, crazy gut-rot and the odd headache – and came out way on top.
After the amazing day I had on Saturday, I left Austin most excited about the new musical discoveries. Bands like Matt and Kim and Ladyhawk left me stunned. Shit Disco too. One of the first things I did after getting home was track down these bands to figure out how I could buy their records as quickly as possible. There’s nothing quite like a band just totally selling their record with a killer live performance.
Since I’ve gotten back, I keep getting asked who the highlights were – and if you’ve been keeping score, there really were a lot. But if I had to name just a few…
-obviously, the above mentioned new discoveries
-watching Voxtrot, who as I said, were probably the most poised band at the festival, debut songs from their forthcoming record
-Beirut playing probably one of the most unconventional, spontaneous shows they’ll play all year
-Asobi Seksu playing amazingly loud and triumphantly while i absolutely drenched in afternoon sun
-Apostle of Hustle doing all Canadians proud playing 7 shows in 4 days. i saw two and they were both fantastic!
-Headlights, maybe the most underexposed band in America right now, playing an outside patio for my first show of the week… and hearing 'Put Us Back Together' while approaching the venue, I truly knew I’d arrived
-seeing Annuals twice(!), proving too that they’re ridiculously underexposed and poised for greatness. They’re set to open a bunch of dates on the Kaiser Chiefs / Walkmen tour… I can’t wait to hear stories of them blowing both bands off the stage
-all the random BBQs, parties and cool swag I scored (who doesn’t love cool swag)
And pretty much just the Austin vibe in general. It reminded me a lot of Toronto, yet oddly enough, more laid back, and minus the rows of condo towers. I still can’t believe the city let us kids go so wild (though really, I’m sure our presence didn’t hurt the local economy). But you know what, I didn’t hear bout no one gettin’ in no fights or anything. Apparently, the singer from the Walkmen got arrested – but even that was just a big understanding. They totally do it right down there and I’m sure I’ll be back. Thanks for following along.
look at these wicked dogs i found!
Posted by Geoff M at 06:42 PM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2007DAY 4 - LAST NIGHT
7:30pm
I headed out for the final night of the festival in search of some hardcore Tex-Mex – or as they call it in Texas, Mexican. Makes sense. I thought it best to journey a little out of the downtown core in hopes of finding something authentic – and for that I was rewarded. It was kind of cool too, for the first time I felt like I was actually in Texas and not just in another city.
8:30pm
Post chow-down I hit up a party, also on the outskirts, to see Montreal superstars Land of Talk and Brooklyn upstarts Matt and Kim. The schedule was way behind and LoT wasn’t hitting the stage till much later, but Matt and Kim certainly arrived. These guys are a pretty straightforward duo – Matt on keys, Kim on drums. Lo-fi and energetic, it’s power-pop with an edge with ridiculously juicy hooks. The stage was in the parking lot of this run down bar and was literally surrounded by kids 360 degrees, all going absolutely mad. I joined in. It was a totally spontaneous party and you could tell it was one of those shows that the band will never forget. I can’t pick up their record any quicker.
10:30pm
Once the party simmered down, I bounced over to Stubb’s to catch a big set by hometown heroes Spoon. The line-up outside was fkn unbelievable, stretching way down the street. Now some people may have been deterred, but not me and my hombre RJ. After trying to grease two separate dudes and sneak in through two different back doors, we finally found an opening and went for it. Success! Spoon came on not too long after and rocked through a solid set of familiar hits off their last two records (no love for Girls Can Tell, though!), plus a few new tracks. Not mind-blowing, but totally decent.
12:30am
With the night growing older, I opted out of any more showcases and went straight for the after parties. I rendezvoused with my friend Stevie and headed out to this Vice jam, across the river and up a hill in this massive lodge. Killer venue. the place was packed with kids, all getting down, but after a few tours, our swelling crew decided to take-off to hit up something more glamorous(?) downtown.
1:30am
This Blender/Absolute jam had the goods. Good crowd, good cocktails, good times. The kids from Tokyo Police Club hit the stage at some point and raced through a set of sharp power-pop rock. They kind of hit the spot. And then at some hour… it was all over. Just like that. But what a week...
Posted by Geoff M at 05:57 PM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2007Catch A Ryde(r) On The Serena Train
Every once in awhile you see a performer live that just melts your heart. Last week during Canadian Music Week I went to the Songwriter’s Café and got to meet Serena Ryder.
Now I am a fan. In fact, quite a huge fan of her voice. Her latest album, "If Your Memory Serves You Well", is beautiful from beginning to end. You would never believe that this incredibly powerful voice would come out of this tiny girl. So being a fan and knowing the album, I thought I would be prepared for her performance. I was wrong. She belted out songs in such a way that everyone in the audience was shook right up. If you have the opportunity to see her, I highly recommend it. Pick up the album while you are at it. It is worth it for track 7 alone.
Peace out.
hx
Posted by Wendy at 04:06 PM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2007DAY 4 – SO NICE & SUNNY
After the first two days, I kind of thought I’d be a little relieved once Saturday came around and the fest was wrapping up. Maybe I haven’t stressed it enough – but it really is a marathon. On Friday, downtown Austin got decidedly busier too. The streets were now packed with drunks and music was constantly blaring from everywhere. To be honest, I can’t believe a civilized city would actually let its downtown core descend into such madness – but I shouldn’t complain. This festival really is like nothing else and I have been having a pretty ridiculously awesome time. And so the last day begins…
mess of people
11:00am
Got off to an early start today, met up with RJ and headed away from downtown, across the river to do a little shopping and check out this other part of town. The south Congress area as its known, is full of cool shops, restaurants and had pretty much the exact same vibe and set-up as Commercial Drive in Vancouver or Mont Royal in Montreal. I scored some wicked t-shirts made by this artist from Denton, tx at this awesome store Parts & Labour. Also had some super tasty Mexican breakfast. Hmmm, hvevos rancheros!
1:30pm
Once the afternoon sun hit, I was ready to start watching some bands again. I mentioned the other day how I’ve been really into this new wave of rock/electro bands, so was determined to catch this UK group Shit Disco. How they settled upon Shit Disco as their name, I have no idea – but they fkn shred. The synths were fat and the guitars, even fatter. These guys played fast and furiously with a totally punk-rock aesthetic. Easily one of the most impressive ‘new’ bands I saw at the festival.
Shit Disco, Beauty Bar patio
3:00pm
My hombre Frank (who you may know from such NewMusic segments as Check This: Chromewaves) was hosting a party all afternoon with bands currated by himself and some other bloggers. Asobi Seksu was the main attraction for me. I’d seen the Brooklyn based shoegazing rockers blow the sht out of the Horseshoe last year and have been keen to see them again ever since. The setting was pretty damn immaculate too. On an outdoor stage with a beautiful afternoon sun and just enough of a breeze, Asobi Sesksu tore it out. I’m gonna say, maybe, best set of the festival. Its not often you get to watch intimate shows outdoors and that’s one thing that SX really has going for it. The band didn’t miss a note either. Ridiculously enjoyable.
Asobi Seksu, Mohawk patio
Menomena followed Asobi. I had no idea they were even playing this jam, which was a wicked surprise. I’ve written before about how awesome their new record is – Friend and Foe really is genius-rock. Definitely one of the best records of the year so far. As a 3-piece, they brought the songs of the album to life with remarkable colour. I really was blown away. I can’t wait to see them play a full-length show next Friday back home.
4:30pm
I sadly left the party to rendezvous with RJ at this other party in hopes of scoring some free Asics. The thought of leaving Austin with a free pair of Asics had me pretty damn excited. If only I wore a size 14. They were pretty much cleaned out. I grabbed a free cocktail to console myself and headed off to this other party down the street…
5:00pm
Levis and Fadar magazine were hosting huge outdoor parties all week long at this place the Fort. It was pretty much just a big lot with a tent and some kind of crazy maze thing. Vancouver’s Ladyhawk hit the stage at the stroke of happy hour and totally blew me away. Amazing musical discovery. I feel like a total idiot for missing the boat on them up until now, but will definitely be making up for lost time.
Posted by Geoff M at 09:12 PM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2007DAY 3 – FLOSSTRA’!
8:00pm
Exhausted from an indulgent afternoon, I had a brief sit at the hotel before heading out for the night. I kind of eased into things and caught a pair of laid back performances over at the festival convention centre. In one of the big halls, they were doing tapings for some TV show, so I dropped in and watched sets by Annuals and Peter Bjorn and John. Annuals seem to impress me more and more every time I see them. For a young band, they seem to ‘get it’ so well. They’ve got such amazing instincts and play with such passion. A real treat to watch.
Peter Bjorn and John kept things upbeat and cheery throughout their set. I think this was their last of 6 shows in 3 days – they sounded suitably tight and surprisingly still inspired.
10:00pm
Post PB&J, I headed over to watch rising DJ stars Flosstradamus. These guys couldn’t have brought more of a party. Brazilian dance troupe Blonde de Role followed them up and tried to outdo the Chicago mix-masters, but fell short. Not by a lot though. Blonde de Role were a blast. They dropped a chunk of big juicy samples that had the kids going crazy. Good times for sure.
12:00am
I closed the night off with some straight up indie rock. Chin Up Chin Up serve it up nice and easy, with really smart, hooky straightforward rock tunes. Totally reminiscent of early Death Cab, they’ve got a real knack for writing clever melodies with great intertwining keyboard and guitar parts. Kind of just what I needed at that point after spending almost all of my party at the Flosstra/Blonde de show. And that was it.
Posted by Geoff M at 08:04 PM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2007DAY 3 – SOLDIERING ON…
12:30pm
Having gotten over my ‘cold’ anxiety on Thursday, I woke up with a new enthusiasm on Friday – charged and ready to kick the sht out of the day. My first show was an early one, Do Make Say Think at 12:30. There’s something really strange about going into a dark club just after you wake up – especially if you’re out in a dark club just before you sleep. It’s a weird state. I guess Do Make kind of helped. Their set-time got bumped up so I only caught the last bit, but they sounded bloody fierce.
1:00am
Post Do Make, I headed to a grab some breakfast at one of the free BBQ’s going on. BBC America and the Australian people were both throwing jams, already serving drinks and tasty sausages. Can’t say no to that - though the wine was a little tough going down. I think the bottle must have been off.
3:00pm
I spent most of Friday afternoon wandering around, checking out downtown Austin and popping in and out of parties with my good buddy RJ. His film, “Jandek: Duality of Self” was having its world premiere, so were getting kind of amped for that. Prior to the big screening, we darted into the Arthouse – a really cool contemporary gallery – and poked around for a bit. RJ’s screening was at a really cool café/theatre called the Hideout. There was a good crowd out. I’d call it a success for sure.
4:30pm
I seamlessly slipped back into party mode after the screening and made my way back to the hub to catch pieces of sets by The Broken West and The Big Sleep. Both bands sounded remarkably tight. The new Broken West record is kind of one of my faves of the moment, so it was great to finally see them.
5:00pm
Coming out of the Broken West, I bumped into our good friend Chris Nelson, who had been running around town like a superhero interviewing bands and shooting performances for the upcoming NewMusic SXSW TV special(!). He was about to join me and go see Norwegian punk legends Turbonegro, until he realized the show was across town. You get so spoiled by everything being so centralized that anything outside of the hub can seem a bit daunting. We went our separate ways.
Turbonegro were playing the outdoor stage at this crazy Vice party. Moments after I got in someone started yelling at me to take a beer. Literally, yelling. It’s a good thing I’m not averse to PBR. It was pretty wild. So was Turbonegro. They couldn’t have been more in their element.
Once they were done, I moved into the bar next door where Chromeo was about to hit the stage. These guys are pretty well my favorite party band. The idea of watching them in a dank bar at 5:30 in the afternoon, with the sun blazing outside seemed a bit odd – but the place was packed and the kids there were all about getting down. Chromeo ran through all the classics and also dropped a few awesome tunes from their new record. Can’t wait for that!
Chromeo with DJ A-Trak
Label mates 120 Days followed Chromeo. The Norwegian electronic-rockers (who by the way, are on The NewMusic on Monday!!!) assaulted the crowd with their spacey post-rock. I’m completely impressed by how well they’re able to play the songs from their record live and actually turn it up a notch. Its kind of intense and totally worth seeing if you get the chance.
dudes outside Vice jam
Posted by Geoff M at 07:57 PM | Comments (0)
March 16, 2007DAY 2 - THE RIGHT SIDE OF SICK(?)...
9:00pm
I left the dinnertime New Zealand BBQ feeling like a champ, amped for a killer night of bands. Up first was this Swedish pop/electro group Lo-Fi Fnk, who were definitely near the top of my must-see list. These guys are one of whole whack of bands playing a new style of electro, with heavy pop tendencies and songs structured more in the vein of traditional rock songs. Think the Presents, Hot Chip, CSS. Lo-FI were amazing. I danced my face off. The packed crowd was pretty into it too, but didn’t quite match my personal enthusiasm.
10:00pm
Feeling pumped, I headed to festival’s marquee venue Stubb’s BBQ – a massive outdoor, open-air venue, but completely old school as if they had gun fights here back in the day. (that’s totally a stereotypical exaggeration). I was kind of keen on checking out one of the big shows here and having been shut out of Lily Allen the previous night, figured it was worth checking in to see Bloc Party, the Dears and last minute replacement openers, me hombres Apostle of Hustle.
Playing probably the their biggest gig ever, Apostle totally showed up and brought the goods. So too did the Dears. Having seen them play their awesome new record ‘Gang of Losers’ in a few clubs last fall, I was really excited to see them on a big stage and show off their big sound. The Dears were 100% world class. They played through the new material flawlessly; sounding bigger than I’d ever heard them before, truly belonging and owning the big stage. Its no wonder they blew up in the UK with their last record, the Dears have really evolved into the kind of band that can handle any kind of showcase. Absolutely one of, if not Canada’s best musical exports.
But the night kind of belonged to Bloc Party. I loved how these guys flexed their muscles on the new record, didn’t remake Silent Alarm and challenged their audience a bit as they matured into better musicians. BP played a mix of new album tracks of old album classics. As if Positive Tension, Banquet and This Modern Love already sound like classic songs!?! The new songs were met with similar enthusiasm, sounding tight, polished and stadium-ready. Its rare that a band so young in their career can have such poise, confidence and a pair of killer records to back it all up.
1:00am
I ended the night with a late set by Albert Hammond Jr. – the Stokes rhythm maestro turned pop/rock solo superstar. AHJ’s record is one of my favorites of this year so far. It’s laid back vibe instantly wipes away the opportunity for serious Strokes comparisons as its clear that Hammond wanted to make a very different record, one that’s fun and breezy, yet totally smart. Backed by a four-piece band, AHJ rocked through the bulk of the album, plus a few b-sides. His stage presence was a little odd and non-chalant (not ready to be a frontman?), but the songs totally made it up it. With the big, guitar-heavy band, they sounded totally full. AHJ’s got a whole thing going on here, which certainly proves he’s got the chops to make it should (dare I say it) things with the Strokes not work out.
Killer, absolutely killer day.
Posted by Geoff M at 01:09 PM | Comments (0)
March 16, 2007DAY 2 - THE WRONG SIDE OF SICK...
1:30pm
I only wish I woke up sick from drinking the night before… unfortunately, it was a cold that’d be lurking up on me for a few days – finally deciding to take action. The jerk! Needless to say, I got off to a slow start and stumbled around the busy streets (many of which are now closed down for the festival) to find something ‘fresh’ to eat. Is that too much to ask? Everything downtown seems to be fried… I just needed something good (and no, in case you were wondering – I was not yet ready for BBQ).
2:15pm
After walking around in a panic for 40 minutes or so, not finding anywhere to eat and realizing that I’d already missed like 3 bands I’d wanted to see, I tried to wash away my misery by checking out an early Headlights set (again). Mission accomplished. I downed nearly a handful of free Vitamin water bottles and conceded to myself that I totally have a crush on Headlights singer Erin Fein. Can’t deny it.
After the Headlights show I scurried back into the streets and eventually found what looked to be an oasis of a sandwich shop. It was all magic till first bite, when I met the taste of ‘cobra snake poison-like’ mustard. A massive coffee did nothing to help the situation.
3:00pm
Loney, Dear helped a bit though. The sensitive Scandinavian folk-pop hero played an inspiring bunch of tracks from his new Subpop record Loney, Noir. My stomach was still churning, but the music was gold.
3:30pm
I darted out of Loney, Dear a touch early to scoot across town (like 5 blocks) in time to see Annuals at this classic Austin venue Antoine’s. I arrived and UK testosterone rockers Mando Diao were still cutting it up. After a pair of soft indie rock acts, these hombres were a touch heavy for my liking. Maybe it was just me, but it felt like a total Libertines revival. Annuals eventually hit the stage and made the absolute fkn most of their short set. If you haven’t heard them, think Funeral-era Arcade Fire (isn’t it weird to already be dropping Arcade Fire ‘eras’?) but way sunnier. Their songs have a certain bombast and energy, often with long build-ups and tremendous pay-offs. Their debut from last year is a well-worth checking out.
Prior to the Annuals set, I indulged in my first drink of the day. Such a good call. How a little bit of alcohol suddenly set me on the road to recovery, I have no idea – but I didn’t question it.
4:30pm
I left Antoine’s, spilling out into a street full of people and a massive line waiting to get in to see Blonde Redhead. It’s kind of a funny thing walking through the streets during the festival – there’s sounds of music bleeding in from everywhere. As I walked back to the centre of town, I picked out in the mess of noise the sound of The Besnard Lakes. I quickly set my radar and began walking toward the sound, finally managing to pinpoint it while walking down an alley behind a row of bars. Totally wanting to catch the song (Disaster, off their new record… Are A Dark Horse), I darted through the back door, down a pile of stairs and accidentally crossed the side of the stage to get down to join the crowd. Whoops. People must have thought, ‘who the fk is this guy running across the stage.’ Anyway, awesome. It last their last song, but fully amazing and fully worth the effort.
5:15pm
Eventually, I made my way over to see a late afternoon show by Andrew Bird. I wrote a month or so back on the blog here about how awesome this track (Heretics) off his new album is. Dude, debuted said track and a handful of other fantastic new songs, all with a vibe seemingly more upbeat than his earlier stuff. Bird’s kind of one of those multi-instrumentalist phenoms who plays violin, loops the parts throughout the songs and then tears on guitar overtop. It’s pretty awesome.
6:00pm
Walking back home after the show, feeling much better and chuffed from a great afternoon, my radar once again proved its worth, this time through the sense of smell. It was BBQ. Like Toucan Sam I followed my nose to this jam being put on by the New Zealand people here at the festival. As much beers + BBQ as you could ingest! I indulged and fk was it awesome. I also befriended a trio of Swedish dudes from this band ‘The Faintest Ideas.’ Nicest dudes ever! We chatted about their love for Canadian rock and how they’re having such a rad time on their first trip to North America. Such nice dudes.
The Faintest Ideas
Posted by Geoff M at 01:01 PM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007DAY 1 - NIGHT FALLS ON AUSTIN...
The line-up of showcases for Wednesday night was maybe the strongest of the festival, so I knew there was going to have to be sacrifices (The Broken West, Annuals, Lily Allen, Loney, Dear) but I’m hoping to make amends Wednesday.
9:00pm
The night began at the Beggars/4AD showcase with former Delgados frontwoman Emma Pollock. I kind of had trouble getting into this new slower, mid-tempo solo material. I felt pretty indifferent towards her performance. Following Pollock on the same stage was New Mexican phenom Beirut. The barely 21-year-old multi-instrumentalist was backed by a 7-piece band that included an accordion, violin, trumpet, French horn and some other kind of horn. Beirut plays an almost gypsy style of pop, sounding like they came from the old world – but with all the sensibilities of modern pop\. Surely, you’ve heard their hit Postcard From Italy (its currently making the rounds in a Dove commercial), which they rocked on the accordion, rather than ukulele, b/c there wasn’t enough time to set up all the ukes. They still killed it. The whole set was amazing. An early contender for highlight of the fest.
11:00pm
After balking at the wicked long line to get into Lily Allen, who was about to take the stage, I instead chose to catch this Brooklyn post-rock trio The Big Sleep. I was only slightly familiar with these guys’ music, but it took no time become ridiculously hooked. With a rotating mix of bass, keys, knob-twiddling and freaked-out loud guitars, The Big Sleep shredded though a 1/2 dozen amazing songs that would have had Wolfmother shaking in their booties.
12:30amish
right after big sleep, I darted back to the massive Emo’s complex where I was earlier for Emma Pollock + Beirut to catch the headlining show by Voxtrot – perhaps the band I was most keen to see in Austin. My relationship with these local hombres dates back to a sweaty night a Sneaky Dee’s in Toronto last spring. I spent the rest of last year and this year so far playing their first three EPs to death and I couldn’t be more amped for their first full-length to drop in May. Voxtrot are totally the most poised indie band of the moment and will unquestionably become indie heroes once their record drops. The show was pretty much everything I’d hoped for. A great mix of EP tracks and new songs – all of which sounded fantastic. I couldn’t have asked for anything more… the perfect end to a great day.
Posted by Geoff M at 02:23 PM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007DAY 1 - LET THE GAMES BEGIN...
1:30pm
Stepping off the bus from the airport, arriving in downtown Austin, I was instantly taken aback by how EVERYBODY on the street looked either like a ‘suit’ or they were in a band. Chris Nelson referred to it as “hipster Disney”. I think he was right…
2:30pm
Moments after checking in with the festival, I hit the trail to go catch some bands, but was quickly interrupted by a few members of the Canadian brigade here in Austin. Reg Harkema, who was here presenting his awesome flick “Monkey Warfare” as part of the SXSW Film Festival (the screenings went great!!!) and Andrew “Apostle of Hustle” Whiteman (who was stoked and overwhelmed to be playing 6 shows in 4 days). Much later in the afternoon, after emerging from a brief nap I was bombarded by a dude on the street shouting French at me – turns out it was one of the guys from Malajube. He looked lost, didn’t know what time it was and really needed to find a place to buy smokes. My broken French was invaluable.
3:00pm
Eventually I arrived at my first jam and caught an amazing set by Headlights, one of the bands I was most keen to see. The piano/guitar driven pop with guy/girl vocal thing can be so good when it’s done well and these totally have it down. Their debut, “Kill Them With Kindness” is absolutely worth checking out.
Headlights, Mohawk Patio
4:20pm
Next stop, the first Apostle show down the street so I could hook up with my pal RJ – who’s here premiering a new music film he co-directed “Jandek: Duality of Self.” We chatted and chowed down on the best tamales ive ever tasted, topped with chunky Texan style guacamole (how hungry are you now, just reading that?). so damn good.
5:00pm
Once Apostle was done, I managed to finagle myself into a party where Peter Bjorn & John playing. The bar was a tiny little open air hole (many of the venues/bars here are open air). The Swedish trio didn’t really disappoint, ripping through most of the tracks off Writer’s Block. Young Folks fell a tad flat if you ask me, but they made up with it by totally killing new single Object of My Affection.
6:20pm
Many more of the Canadian contingent came out late in the afternoon for this big “Canadian Blast BBQ”. I got their just in time to down a few margaritas and a set by Malajube. I was really reminded of how wicked their last record is and how tight a live band they’ve become. Frontman Julien was in pretty good spirits; I guess he scored some smokes.
Malajube, Canadian Blast BBQ
7:00pmish
Time for BBQ. Me and RJ (the Jandek dude) set out on a quest to find some serious Texas BBQ for dinner. We eventually settled upon this dive with a dirty old sign suggesting they serve meat. And meat they serve. Actually, meat is all they serve. We were greeted by a server who told us that they don’t even have a menu, the options are steak, steak or steak (she me have also muddled something about a chicken breast too, but I don’t think she wanted us to hear her). We went for steak. It wasn’t “BBQ” but it was pretty decent. The BBQ quest continues…
Posted by Geoff M at 02:15 PM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2007Shabazz!
If you’re in the Toronto area this weekend and you are lover of photography then I suggest you check out the Jamel Shabazz exhibit. The Brooklyn photographer has been capturing the urban side of things for the last 30 yrs.
"Back in the days, gangs would battle not with guns, but by breakdancing. Back in the days, the streets—not corporate planning—set the standards for style. Back in the days, Jamel Shabazz was on the scene, photographing everyday people hangin’ in Harlem, kickin’ it in Queens, and cold chillin’ in Brooklyn."
Kodak Lecture Series
7:30PM, Friday, March 16th, 2007
www.ryersonlectures.ca
PHOTO EXHIBITION
2-5PM, Saturday, March 17, 2007
For more on his work you can check out these books as well
The Last Sunday In June (scroll down for a bit)
Posted by Manny at 12:47 PM | Comments (0)
March 14, 2007DAY 1: BBQ, Beers, & Bands…
I must admit, I really know very little about Texas beyond the stereotypes that we all hear and laugh about This'll be my first time attending SXSW and really, my first time in the southern US, spare Florida and California (which don't really count). In addition to all the music and bands and revelry, I'm really amped to get my face messy and stomach loaded with some of some of renowned BBQ and Tex-Mex (which I really hope lives up to the stereotypes and reputation). I'm practically salivating already. If I can go on a bit of a tangent here...I did some reading up on the BBQ in Texas, particularly the Austin region - and those folk are pretty damn serous about their BBQ. There's no gas grilling, it's all wood smoked. And even the wood has to be a certain kind (post oak, aged 12 months or more is ideal). And don't expect the meat to be slathered in someone's grandmother's secret sauce – down in BBQ country, they don't need that sht. One article I read charged that the people who use BBQ sauce on ribs/brisket etc. are the same folk that put ketchup on… everything. Losers. So expect to hear a full report on the BBQ.
Of course, I'm going to see an assload of bands too and go to an assload of parties. I've taken careful consideration to make sure I don't miss anyone I'm super stoked to see (we'll see if that works out). One of the kind of awesome things about SXSW is that showcases and parties run from about noon hour till the wee hours every day, with most artists playing anywhere between 3-5 shows throughout the week. so if you have your shit together, you can really take advantage. For the most part, all of the venues are localized in one downtown hub - which actually kind of seems a bit frightening, considering the ridiculous availability of free beer + BBQ that I've read about (and am fully expecting and anticipating, I might add). A few artists near the top of my must-see list: Voxtrot, Beirut, Loney, Dear, Lily Allen, The Broken West, Headlights, Peter Bjorn & John, Annuals, Crystal Castles, Softlights, Apostle Of Hustle, Menomena, Malajube, Lo-Fi FNK, Holy Fuck...and that's just TODAY. For reals. Anyway, you get the gist.
Stay tuned...
-g
PS: Feel free to drop a line or leave a comment if you know of someone playing I must check out...or you want to take argument.
Posted by Geoff M at 05:16 PM | Comments (0)
March 14, 2007Messin' With Texas
The NewMusic is taking a fantastic pilgrimage this week - to a place deep south in the United States, in the land of longhorns and BBQ to the annual music mecca known only as South By South West (SXSW).
Throughout the week, I'll be reporting from the land of the drunk(?) and musically blissful and keeping you up to speed on everything you wish you were doing. Sorry, that's a bit cruel (no more of that). at the very least, you can read about some of best emerging and underexposed artists in the game and hopefully be inspired check out something new.
And if this cozy diary isn't enough of a SXSW fix (really, there's no way it could be), sit tight because the NewMusic will bring you a full SXSW special from our other home on TV in the very near future.
Posted by Geoff M at 05:12 PM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2007Throw Some D's Remix
'Ye does it again with his own remix of Throw Some D's. Aside from Kanye deliberately flashing his V's, this video is rap comedy at it's best. Fiddy and Cam should take notes from Kanye on how to do a video with no dough.
Posted by Manny at 06:38 PM | Comments (0)
March 02, 2007heads up: El Perro Del Mar
Every so often an artist comes along and pretty well unanimously seduces the whole NewMusic team. In case you haven’t met her yet, get acquainted with El Perro Del Mar.
The one-person project founded by Swedish siren Sarah Assbring is a total pop throwback, reminiscent of old school Motown and 60’s French pop. It’s haunting, beautiful and highly refreshing. Its the kind of moody music than can suit a full range of emotions, whether you’re felling blissful, bummed or even indifferent. From what we hear, El Perro doesn’t take to the road all that often, but she’s cast her inhibitions aside to undertake an 11-date North American tour which touches down in Toronto on Monday.
The NewMusic plans to catch up El Perro Del Mar and we’ve got something special in store, thanks to our good friends at MOCCA. Look out for the story later this month.
Head over to her myspace to check out a few songs from her self titled debut.
And for a special treat, follow this link to watch a special live cover of one of my favorite Velvet’s tunes.
Posted by Geoff M at 10:28 AM | Comments (0)
