LCD Soundsystem's last show

Check this out: The final LCD Soundsystem show at Madison Square Garden. These guys combine so many genres and influences to produce some pretty epic tunes and this is one serious party to celebrate all that.

It's almost 4 hours of glorious music and features some incredible collaborations not the least of which is Arcade Fire. Check the summary on Youtube for the set list.

Inspiration In The Parking Garage

This is pretty cool. Taking those impromptu concerts in malls to another level.



"Coming out of a music educators' conference in the Eugene Hilton, I heard some beautiful voices as I walked to my car. Some choir kids had located a place with good acoustics, and they were just making beautiful music. The lights over their heads only made the moment more angelic."

Oh Japan, the Harbinger of Doom

At first I was shocked but then I realized that how is this any different than watching Britney Spears or Nickelback? It isn't different at all. Both are marketed commodities that are polished and set up in order to make everyone involved a bunch of money.

Oh Japan - why do you always have to be the harbinger of doom. And why do you always make it seem so innocent.

Lenny Kravitz randomly joins a Choir in New Orleans

Lenny Kravitz was something I listened to back in High School but he still has a bit of that cool factor. Now imagine if he randomly walked up to your choir and joined in with singing one of his most well known songs.

He was just sitting up on a terrace in New Orleans having a drink, and he heard the First Baptist Church in Lewisville’s The Voice of Praise Choir singing “Fly Away” so of course he joined them.

3rd Annual Enjoyment Awards

It is the new year and although it started more than a month ago I figure that I should continue my annual tradition which was started in 2007 and miraculously also happened for 2008. So this is my most enjoyed random stuff of 2009.
Once again, I am not confining my list to music and it is not necessarily only from this year. My list is all about the stuff I got the most enjoyment out of in 2009.
Anyways, here it is:

My most enjoyed artist of 2009 was:
I gotta say Bon Iver. His album came highly recommended to me and I definitely did not regret spending the money on that one.

Some runners up were Sufjan Stevens (of course - after seeing him live), Joel Plaskett and Andrew Bird.

My most enjoyed album of 2009 was:
It is a 3-way tie between 'Noble Beast' by Andrew Bird, 'For Emma, Forever Ago' by Bon Iver and Joel Plaskett's album 'Three'.

Some runners up:
Jenn Grant - 'Echoes'
Great Lake Swimmers - 'Lost Channels'
M. Ward - 'Transistor Radio' and 'Post-War'
The Welcome Wagon - 'Welcome to the Welcome Wagon'

My most enjoyed compilation album of 2009 was:
'Dark Was the Night' which features Sufjan, Iron & Wine, Bon Iver, My Brightest Diamond and Canadians Feist, Arcade Fire and Buck 65 (among many others). It was put together mostly by the guys from The National as an AIDS benefit album. If there is one indie album you should buy this year it is this one because it gives you a great slice of the sounds and bands who are really doing cool stuff right now.

My most enjoyed song of 2009 was:
I always find this one so tough because it bounces around so much. I have to make a list:
'In the Blue Moonlight' - Joel Plaskett
'Tough City' - Oh Susanna!
'You'll Go Far' - Jenn Grant
'White Winter Hymnal' - Fleet Foxes
'Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa' - Vampire Weekend
and so many more.....

My most enjoyed live performance of 2009 was:
Sooooooo many to choose from! Joel Plaskett, Jenn Grant, Sufjan Stevens. Nope I can't really choose between those three.
The spring was a good time for concerts in Ottawa.

My most enjoyed Local Band (Greater Ottawa Area) of 2009 was:
I guess I haven't got into to many local bands this year but as far as Canadian Indie acts go I'd have to pick Octoberman and Dan Mangan - and both have strong ties to the west coast.

My most enjoyed music venue of 2009 was:
It's a tough choice between the First Baptist Church downtown and the Black Sheep Inn out in Wakefield. I'm going to the Church again in a few weeks to see Basia Bulat so maybe that will make up my mind.

My most enjoyed quote of 2009 was:
"I've downloaded hundreds of records....why would I care someone downloads ours? That is such a petty thing to care about. I mean, how much money does one person need?"- Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes when asked when asked whether he minded if people 'stole' his albums.

My most enjoyed beer of 2009 was:
Well I have enjoyed Beau's Lug Tread several times this year and thoroughly enjoyed it. Here is a picture of me enjoying said beer!

My most enjoyed TV show of 2009 was:
Firefly. I know it was made several years ago but I didn't get to watch it until this year. I absolutely love it. Don't think you have to be a sci-fi nerd to watch it either.

Also, I can't remember if I watched Battlstar Galactica this year or last year. It should be a close tie.

My most enjoyed movie of 2009 was:
Maybe the Where the Wild Things Are adaptation. It was pretty cool.

Maybe Serenity, because the finale to that Firefly series sure is better after you watch the series.

My most enjoyed proud uncle moment was:

When my neice, Elyssa, got over her fear of the Vespa (if even for an afternoon) at the Nepean Sailing Club!

My most enjoyed technology of 2009 was:
The continuing world domination by Google which just so happens to be extremely convenient for me since I use almost all their products.

Or maybe the news that foreign owned cellphone companies are coming to Canada. Hopefully I can get the Google Nexus One!!!!

My most enjoyed purchase of 2009:
The new kitchen even though it isn't done yet.

My most enjoyed city of 2009 was:
Kingston, ON Canada - Lots of history, tons of awesome restaurants, small enough to walk around, big enough to spend money on the downtown. Yes I was impressed. Don't judge it by the view you get from the 401.

I have to say that Memphis could have won this. Maybe if I spent more time there and got a better feel for the city.
The other close second had to be Boston. That is definitely a city I could live in (if I could afford it) if not drive in. The roads are insane - almost as bad (read: awesome) as an old European city - but there is lots of beautiful coastal spots and some fantastic architecture. Kingston just won because I really felt like I understood the city after staying there. Boston would take a little longer - must go back!

My most enjoyed architecture of 2009:

It has got to be MIT in Cambridge by Canadian Frank Gehry.

My most enjoyed book of 2009:

It was probably 'Brave New World' by Auldous Huxley which we read for our book club. I have read it before but getting to discuss it was just fantastic.

Other than that I'd have to say 'Name of the Wind' by Patrick Rothfuss which is a remarkably well written fantasy story that I picked up on a whim on my way home from Memphis. I say remarkable because usually fantasy books are not all that well written.

Either way this year promises to be great for reading thanks to the Jubilee Book Club I joined.

My most enjoyed Jubilee Church event of 2009:

Probably the Soup'n'Socks initiative that we have going on right now. We run around downtown handing out free soup and socks to anyone who needs it (especially homeless people).

My most enjoyed news item of 2009:

Climategate.

My most enjoyed sport of 2009:
Definitely snowboarding, I don’t have any other regular sports.

Most enjoyed website of 2009:
Definitely xkcd but Neatorama is pretty close. Yup, I'm a geek.

And last but not least my most enjoyed person of 2009 was:
Irene - she wins it again!?! incredible!!!! I'm sensing a trend, is this rigged you think?

Sufjan Part Deux

For anybody who is interested you can find a good review of the aforementioned Montreal Sufjan Stevens show here.

And here is the setlist:

01The Mistress Witch From McClure (Or, the Mind That Knows Itself)
02 Impossible Souls
03 Jacksonville
04 Holland
05 All Delighted People
06 Casimir Pulaski Day
07 To Be Alone With You
08 The Dress Looks Nice On You
09 Age of Adz

Pause - when girl faints right behind me and concert stops.

10 Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! (Rebuild! Restore! Reconsider!)
11 Majesty Snowbird
12 Chicago

Encore
13 John Wayne Gacy, Jr

Unplanned Encore #2
14 There’s Too Much Love

Sufjan Stevens in Montreal

This show was just so amazing I can't believe I haven't blogged about it. Possibly because I am so insanely busy. Kindof maybe.
I ended up getting the last ticket to the show (long story) and having to go by myself. It turned out I could not sell the ticket because it was set up to prevent scalpers which is cool I guess.
Anyway, I get there and it was this cool venue that is basically a huge cavernous basement. It was a pretty tight venue. I am horrible at guessing sizes of crowds but it couldn't have been much more than 500 people. No wonder it sold out so insanely fast.I joined the tight group of crazy Sufjan fans at the front of the stage. I met some cool people and swapped Sufjan stories. It was cool just feeling the vibe.I have never been the type of person who would get excited about seeing a famous person. The only time was when I wanted to kick Micheal Moore off the ramparts when we saw him in the south of France. But there was definitly something going on when he walked out on the stage and started to help set up instruments for the opener's opening band. I had to keep reminding myself that this is kind of crap that Sufjan himself would despise. Why are we worshipping him? So that was pretty much going through my mind in endless circles the first several minutes of seeing him. Am I a messed up indie-boy or what? I could have reached through the crowd and grabbed his ankle, I was that close to him. Weirdest. Feeling. Ever.

Anyway, it was a sweet show. The openers where Montreal band Shapes and Sizes who where a last minute add-on. Interesting but they need a bit of work live. Possibly because they were doing it at the last minute and where missing someone. The second band was Cryptacize who where pretty much awesome. I definitely want to check out more of them....When Sufjan started up you could have heard a pin drop in the epic quiet parts and the sound of everyone whisper-singing along for Casimir Pulaski Day was something I will never forget.The trumpets where a super nice touch that I wasn't really expecting. The trumpets simply "make" Chicago.And two crazy things happened at this show. Right in the middle of one of the super intense new songs a girl behind me fainted. The whole concert stopped. The lights came on, Sufjan and the band started asking questions, someone told Sufjan that he was too intense and eventually the girl woke up and was escorted out. Sufjan decided to skip the rest of that song and the show continued.The second thing was the encore. First the band went off and after the obligatory cheering some came back and they did a few more songs. But then the lights came on, the radio came on and it was pretty clear that the concert was over. But no one (and seriously NO ONE) was leaving. Everyone kept cheering at chanting 'One More Song'. This went on for probably 20 or 25 minutes and I had decided that since I was so close to the front and the venue was so small I was not going to leave. But sure enough Sufjan came back on (looked reluctant) and did another song. Everybody was going crazy but of course it quieted right down when he started to play. Gotta love indie folk-rock shows.Anyway, it was a fantastic time and I can now cross that off my list of Life Goals. Next is to do the El Camino de Santiago.

Something to Smile About

A few days ago while going through my podcast subscriptions I came across this awesome Radio3 Session from a live show featuring Jenn Grant and her east coast buddies Hey Rosetta!
Since I always love listening to Jenn and I have seen her live I gave it a listen. It really was a classic and I highly recommend everyone to give this a listen.

She is just so amazing live and she has these awesome little in between song rambles. So funny!
Here is a taste of what she is all about. This is a live session she did for Verge Radio.

Spring Concerts #4: Great Lake Swimmers w/ Timber Timbre

This last of the spring concerts (of which I can remember) was just two weeks ago. We went with a couple friends to see the Great Lake Swimmers perform at the First Baptist Church downtown. We arrived quite early and ended up being the first in line so we spent the time chatting on the steps of the church as the line grew behind us. The show was sold out and people kept asking us for tickets. We also chatted with a guy waiting in line with us and it turned out that he had been at many of the same concerts I had been at in the last year (including Radiohead in Montreal).
The opening band was called Timber Timbre and were more experimental than I had expected. They do have a song on rotation on Radio3 but they were definitely more intense than I had expected after listening to their songs online. The first song consisted of looping all kinds of sounds which ended up sounding like a marsh of crickets and other wildlife. Very interesting and it sounded quite cool.
When Tony Dekker came out it was just like the last time we saw him. He is so great in his timid/shy delivery. You do not expect his voice to be so powerful and dynamic. And as expected the church atmosphere just added to that.
We saw them about two years ago on our first year anniversary on a snowy March evening in Wakefield. This show was just as good. Not quite as intimate but great sound and a bigger band more than made up for it.
One of those new additions is Julie Fader who played a fantastic flute piece and provided amazing backup vocals. When we saw them last time Basia Bulat did some of those backup parts as she was opening for them.
We had a chance to chat it up with Tony Dekker after the show and ask him about Dunnville/Wainfleet since that is where he is from. He is such a nice and down to earth guy and quickly obliged our request to sign his set list that we had stolen from on stage after the show.
Definitely a highlight from all the concerts I have been to. But really there are so many fantastic artists out there. How can you chose between them. You just have to see them all. I want to go see Justin Rutledge again this Saturday but alas I may be getting 'redirected' to family time. Too bad, I hope I can at least catch him today since he should be playing somewhere downtown on Canada Day.

Spring Concerts #3: Joel Plaskett w/ friends and family

This next concert was really neat because I am a relatively new fan of Plaskett. I liked his solo stuff and the other stuff he did with his band 'The Emergency' but I never really got into it. It was too Canadian for me or something. Kind of like the Tragically Hip. I also didn't really care for his 90's punk band 'Thrush Hermit'. Whatever it was I became fast fan when I started listening to his latest 'solo' album called 'Three'. This album is a concept album consisting of three discs and many songs have a 3 word title. I think it is also a more mature shift for him with more complicated lyrics and better vocals but it definitely still has his trademark east coast easy going humor.
The album was recorded specifically with his father and two singer songwriters (who are also on his label) Ana Egge and Rose Cousins. Since their voices are so integral to the songs they had to go on tour with him.

At some points he brought his whole band out to do some of the songs and hammer out some of the classics. This concert was quite monumental because he was playing a concert with more people on stage than ever before.
We sat on the front row of the Balcony at the Bronson Centre. It was a pretty good view.
All in all it was a great show that made me into a much bigger fan of his than ever before. That is what a good show is supposed to do I think.

Spring Concerts #2: Miss Emily Brown w/ Mother Mother

The next concert that I went to (or that I can remember) was at the Black Sheep Inn. Best venue ever by the way.
We had seen Mother Mother before and a few friends were coming up so we decided to check them out again.

The opener was Miss Emily Brown from Iroquois, Ontario (south of Ottawa). She did this jazzy/folksy set that was a great counterpoint to the rock show that was to follow.
One of her songs from her latest project was basically turning letters from nurses in the Second World War into songs. I thought lyrically and musically the effect was quite emotional. Apparently she just needs some more money and she will be making an entire cd with those songs. Very intriguing.

Mother Mother are a pretty rocking band with fantastic and very unique vocals mainly from a brother and sister from BC. The band also includes another girl who also does back up vocals. They use the vocals of the girls and guy to the max. It is what makes this band unique and great to listen to.

Once again it was another memorable show at the Black Sheep Inn.

Spring Concerts #1: Metric, Malajube & Bedouin Soundclash

I realize that I have been neglecting the whole blog thing for the past few months but I really wanted to write a bit about several of the concerts that I went to during this time.
I am starting with the Metric show at the Civic Centre.

The Quebec band 'Malajube' who sing exclusively in french opened up the show and blasted through their set. I found them too loud and messy to enjoy even though they pulled off their radio hits fairly decently. For the rest it wasn't very memorable.

The next band, Bedouin Soundclash, I thought were a one-hit-wonder back a few years ago. However they have morphed into a powerful reggae rock band with a bit of Bob Marley feel.
I especially like the added touch of touring with a brass section. These guys were a really nice touch.
By the time Metric came out the crowd was pretty pumped. Emily Haines and her crew really know how to rock the place. They are one of the biggest Canadian bands right now and they really looked it. Their album was leaked online months before it's intended release and it was instantly a hit around the world. That is an incredible story for this small time Toronto indie-band.
Emily Haines was able to bring the place down and raise it up with her crazy on-stage antics and dynamic voice.
All in all it was a fantastic show and I really was blown away by Metric and Bedouin Soundclash. Both bands far exceeded my expectations.

Gimme that Beat Beat Stuff!

Hannah Georgas has been making the rounds on the CEEB for the past year with a couple songs including this one called 'The Beat Stuff'. She is playing with Spencer from fellow Vancouver band 'Said the Whale'.

Hopefully we'll be able to catch her performance with 'Said the Whale' on Canada Day. It is actually right on the hill.

Some other acts we don't want to miss are:
Justin Rutledge and Julie Doiron using the Six String Nation Guitar in Majors Hill Park.
Coeur de Pirate and Belle Orchestre at Jazzfest at Confederation Park.
oh and fireworks!

Bluesfest 2009!

So we have to make up our minds on which days to hit up Bluesfest.

Here are the days and artists I really want to check out:

Thurs July 9th: Brothers Chaffey, The Stills, Iron & Wine
Friday July 10th: Okkervil River, DeVotchKa
Saturday July 11th: United Steel Workers, Hey Rosetta!, Jill Barber, Loreena McKennit

Wed. July 15th: Arkells, The National, Skydiggers
Thurs July 16th: Politique, M83, Coeur de pirate
Friday July 17th: Library Voices, Cake, Clem Snide

Right now the 9th, the 15th and the 16th are at the top of my list. The 15th is also when KISS plays which is apparently driving up the price of that day to 55$. That seems a bit steep to me. I really wish I could have volunteered and got the free full 11 day pass. Oh well, you can't do everything and I probably would have burned out.

Heart of a Pirate

So the back story to this video is some guy wanted to do a time lapse video of his 9-month old child playing in the dining room for 4 hours. He does it and adds a song by the independent Montreal artist Béatrice Martin who goes by the moniker 'Coeur de Pirate'. He doesn't expect anything really but the video ended up going viral with almost a million views and ended up being featured on american national TV on CNN.
Anyway, here is the super cute video with the perfect musical background:

And thanks to this unexpected bit Coeur de Pirate is doing quite well these days. She is all over the place now and even made her own music video.

And I really hope I can see her perform at Bluesfest along with Politique and M83!

Billy Bob has nothing on The Sadies

If you haven't heard or seen the episode of Q with Billy Bob Thorton acting like a child not getting his way than you must be living under a rock.
Either way here it is:

The performance that he walks off from is not posted because of legal issues (that will probably never be resolved). Here is another performance of his 'Cosmic Country Music'.

Now I just wanted to compare this to a Canadian band that is both far more talented and far more experienced despite being quite a bit younger. The Sadies have been doing this type of Alt-Country for quite some time and are pretty much a Canadian indie-rock fixture. They even have their own label. Here is an example of the stuff they do. I couldn't find a really good example but this one will have to do:

So when Billy Bob tries to say that he is the only one doing this and starts comparing himself to Tom Petty and says that Canada doesn't have anything as good as his band well I beg to differ. For such a small spread out population we have an incredible music scene. Sure we don't get up and through bottles and chairs at each other but we would rather hear the music and check out the talent which is something that apparently you don't do at a Boxmasters show.

Jenn Grant w/ Jon & Roy

A couple weekends ago on Valentines Day we saw another show at the Black Sheep Inn.
This time it was the super talented (and surprisingly hilarious) Jenn Grant who just released her new cd 'Echoes'.

This is the opening band, Jon & Roy, who had great vocals and a really fantastic drummer. The drummer did a quasi-cymbal solo at one point. He was really contained and simplistically scintillating.Jenn Grant's band consisted of a bass(maybe tenor) sax/piano player, a violin/viola player, an electric bass player and Jenn on acoustic guitar. This is a picture of the group of us at the concert. Sarah doesn't like people's faces apparently.Rocking the place with sweet harmonies and beautiful lyrics.
The concert was great and I couldn't resist buying the cd.

If you want to hear her cd you can check it out at Radio3 here.

Miley Cyrus vs Stinkin' Radiohead

In a hilarious twist of reality it seems that the Disney pop-star herself claims to be a fan of one of the most anti-pop bands out there, Radiohead.  Actually I should say she used to be a 'fan'.

Apparently in an interview with some generic commercial radio hosts (one who claims to not even know who Radiohead is) she rants about how a certain band wouldn't meet her backstage at the Grammy's for a photo.

Radiohead's response to her manager's request was that they "don't really do that."  Apparently getting told 'No' was to much for the mini-diva so she had to leave.  

One of her responses in the interview was that she is "in the business to make people happy" implying that Radiohead aren't.  Well, duh, if you actually knew anything about their music you would realize that making people happy is the last thing on their minds.  They have some of the saddest self-depreciating music around.  She should also know that Thom Yorke and the other guys are all pretty shy and reserved when it comes to the spotlight of fame.  This is also evidently something she cannot comprehend so she then goes on, vowing to ruin 'stinkin' Radiohead.'  All I can say is Good Luck.  No one cares, least of all Radiohead.

You can listen to the lame 10 minute interview here. I don't recommend it unless you are into listening to grown men act like 15 year old girls meeting their favourite pop-star.

But I do recommend reading Pitchfork's hilarious take on the situation here.

In other feuding music news, what is with the Flaming Lips vs Arcade Fire fued?  Or Ben Folds vs Charles Spearin/Stars?  Or the best one of all The Acorn vs Ohbijou.  Is Radio3 turning into a gossip mag?

Realistic Sound

Here is a great ad I stumbled across.

I have a feeling certain people will appreciate that.

Searchlight Winner Announced!

The Searchlight winner for best live music venue in Canada was just announced on CBC Radio3.

Here is the top 10 list:

Aeolian Hall, London ON
Amigo's Cantina, Saskatoon SK
Baba's Lounge, Charlottetown PE
Call The Office, London ON
The Capital Bar, Fredericton NB 

George's Fabulous Roadhouse, Sackville NB 

The Grad Club, Kingston ON 

Phog Lounge, Windsor ON 

Starlight Social Club, Waterloo ON 

Zaphod Beeblebrox, Ottawa ON

And the winner is:

Phog Lounge in Windsor ON

It is pretty clear that all of these places are great venues.  So now I have a new goal in life....check all of them out.  Especially the Phog Lounge.