vintage

I re-read my NXNE post (which did not get posted on time) and I discovered that I didn’t say much of note except for “This was really great!” and “That was terrific!” and so I decided to axe it. Here is the short version of the very, very, very small number of things that I attended.

The Burning Hell @ the Horseshoe Tavern: This band is amazing. They are coming off the release of their second full-length, Baby, and I think they get more energetic every time I see them. The bonus of this show is that they were almost all rip-roaring drunk, particularly Mathias (the frontman, brain, and master ukulele-man behind the project), which added about ten thousand energy points. “Grave Situation Pt. 1″ has never sounded so good, and I was amazed both at the number of people filling the ‘Shoe for their set and at how many of those people were raucously yelling along to most of the songs.

Six Shooter Records BBQ: For those unaware of the recent tradition, Six Shooter Records hosts a backlot BBQ on the Saturday of NXNE behind their store on Queen East. This year it poured fairly aggressively, but it was still packed full of umbrella-wielding, good-humoured folks; NQ Arbuckle, the afternoon’s host, definitely fits into the latter category. I believe the margaritas may have contributed to his good humour later in the day, but nonetheless, he did magnificently. There were great, and I mean great, performances by the likes of Justin Rutledge (including a rockin’ version of his “jellybean song”), The Beauties, Luke Doucet, Martin Tielli — yeah! — backed by Luke Doucet and Selina Martin, Rose Cousins, and a bunch of others too. Highlights included … well, the whole thing. I am sure you can imagine what the original post looked like.

And that’s about all I did. We played a show at Mitzi’s Sister on the Saturday night, though, and Chart magazine loved us. So that’s something! (I apologise for shameless self-promotion; in my defense, it has been quite some time since that happened around these parts.)

Much shorter than the last post, and hopefully you’ll actually get to read it this time! I hope things get interesting around here again so I have things to talk about. I am working my way through a couple of books (Claudia Dey’s Stunt and Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany), so when I finish them — which will be soon — perhaps you will see some musings.

Ho hum, summertime, etc.

Tags: entire cities, horseshoe tavern, justin rutledge, luke doucet, martin tielli, mitzi's sister, north by northeast, nq arbuckle, nxne, rose cousins, selina martin, six shooter records, the beauties, toronto

I’ve finally decided on the best live shows I saw all year. I couldn’t narrow it down to ten (largely because of the Calgary Folk Music Festival), but who decided that was the format for year-end lists? Fifteen it is, and in chronological order because I cannot figure out how to rank them.

Sloan (March 6, The Supermarket, Toronto)
review

Just by virtue of the fact that they played a host of songs I never thought I’d see them do (“Stood Up” and “Same Old Flame”, for example, from an old 7″ released around 1996), gave us a preview of some new tunes a few months before Parallel Play, and had a good time on a small stage.

The Bad Plus (May 24, Quincy’s, Calgary)
review

One of the more talented jazz groups I have had the pleasure of witnessing, and of course, they ended with their now-famous cover of Rush’s “Tom Sawyer” (which the Bad Plus have released on 2007’s Prog). Incredibly talented and versatile musicians, and Quincy’s was a great venue for them.

The Weakerthans (July 24, Calgary Folk Festival)
review

I credit this show with catapulting me into becoming a Weakerthans fan. They were terrific, and just the perfect sort of music for a summer afternoon. There couldn’t have been anything better about the Weakerthans’ short folk festival set.

Be Good Tanyas (July 25, Calgary Folk Festival)
review

I’ve wanted to see the Tanyas for quite a few years, dating back to the first time I heard “The Littlest Birds” from Blue Horse. Unfortunately, they didn’t play that, but they put on a very impressive show at the Folk Festival, reminding us that their blend of bluegrass, folk and country is not going anywhere. Three of the finest voices this country has to offer.

Andrew Bird (July 25, Calgary Folk Festival)
review

Definitely one of the most unique and interesting acts at the Folk Festival this year. It was hard to believe everything was being done by one man and a hard-working loop pedal; very intricate and delicately crafted music, and a great experience to see it being done live.

Blue Rodeo (July 26, Calgary Folk Festival)
review

Words can’t describe how much fun I had with Blue Rodeo. It had rained most of the afternoon and evening that day and I was ready to bail, but I’m glad we stuck it out — it’s obvious to me now why Blue Rodeo have been around for such a long time. Incredible musicians, and their joy of playing radiates from everything they do.

Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet (July 27, Calgary Folk Festival)
review

Abigail Washburn: a redheaded Southern belle who can sing in fluent Mandarin, accompanied by a string band. This alone is good enough to land the Sparrow Quartet on the list, but on top of that, they are amazing (also featuring banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck). To see these musicians is a real experience.

Squeeze (August 28, Kool Haus, Toronto)
review

I’ve wanted this to happen for years, and when it finally did, nothing was a letdown. Tilbrook was on top form, his voice and guitar skills as good as they ever were, and a bonus of touring without an album to back was a setlist jam-packed with all kinds of unexpected songs. A party from start to finish.

Sigur Rós (September 22, Massey Hall, Toronto)
review

I didn’t know what to expect going into this, but everything about it was great. Ethereal and soaring and very, very musical. The encore didn’t hurt either: a huge, joyful version of “Gobbledigook” featuring all the members of opening band Parachutes, and near the end, the biggest blast of confetti I’ve ever seen inside a concert hall. We were picking up the pieces for weeks!

Martin Tielli (September 28, Hugh’s Room, Toronto)

I regret not doing a proper review for this show, since it stayed with me for quite a few weeks. Tielli is one of those musicians you can go to when you’re sick of everyone doing the same thing, because he’s never, ever conventional. An incredible performance of his solo tunes and Rheos material with a great band of supporting musicians.

David Byrne (October 29, Massey Hall, Toronto)
review

Byrne is a real legend, and deservedly so; he did all the right things on the Massey stage, and added some quirks too (like the dancers!). The new material translates exceptionally well live, and he threw in some Talking Heads favourites too. He’s a thrilling performer, and one I’d see again in a heartbeat.

Hayden (November 1, Massey Hall, Toronto)

Backed by members of Cuff the Duke, Hayden’s jamming-in-a-living-room sort of set was homey and perfect, filling the beautiful old Massey Hall with his easygoing music. I didn’t want it to end. I’d see him again quite readily, especially since I bought his album after the show and know it reasonably better now.

Robin Williams (November 22, Massey Hall, Toronto)

The funniest hour and a half I’ve spent all year. Robin Williams just does not stop talking, and flits around from subject to subject to potty joke faster than light. Much ado was made about the American election, but also the Canadian one (he did a remarkable impression of Prime Minister Harper), and his accents and miming skills are among the most hilarious things I’ve seen in a while.

Justin Rutledge (December 1, Cameron House, Toronto)

If ever there were a perfect show, this might be it. The Cameron House’s front room capacity is about 70, and there were at least that many people crammed in there to hear Justin Rutledge on night 4 of his “Incredible Shrinking Tour” (each night brought a smaller venue). Many songs from Man Descending were played, and he went over two hours before finally deciding to take a break. I had no idea that much time had passed — a testament to the captivating things happening on stage.

Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Cafe (December 14, Massey Hall, Toronto)

I must confess: before this, I didn’t even like Stuart McLean. I would turn the radio off when the Vinyl Café started. However, there’s something about seeing the live version that makes things all the more enjoyable; ad-libs, personal anecdotes, and the really great musicians he brought along with him. I have been inducted into the world of Dave and Morley, and while I probably won’t listen to too many studio broadcasts, the live ones have a certain warmth that I really enjoyed.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: There were two shows that I feel worthy of mentioning here, but they didn’t make the main list mostly because I was heavily involved with them (and that is probably a conflict of interest!). One of them is The Bicycles’ CD release party at Lee’s Palace on November 8, featuring a myriad of guest performers like Forest City Lovers, Henri Fabergé and the Adorables, Sloan, Hooded Fang, $100, Matt Murphy, etc. I did play in about 8 songs, but the Bicycles put on a fantastic performance in every one, including backing up all the aforementioned bands. It was a great way to bring Oh No, It’s Love into the world. (review)

The other is Entire Cities’ CD release party at the Canadian Corps Hall on April 11. This is my band, and we had planned for quite some time to get the release party in order. Everything went without a hitch; no delays, no PA problems, great sound, and a lovely time. It still stands as probably the best show I’ve ever played, and certainly the best show with Entire Cities; I think that in itself merits a mention.

Happy new year, everybody! I look forward to the news and tunes of 2009 (already shaping up to be a pretty good year). Now if only that strike would end already.

Tags: abigail washburn & the sparrow quartet, andrew bird, be good tanyas, blue rodeo, david byrne, entire cities, hayden, justin rutledge, martin tielli, robin williams, sigur rós, sloan, squeeze, stuart mclean, the bad plus, the bicycles, the weakerthans

I owe you a few recaps, I think!

On September 27th and 28th, Martin Tielli performed at Hugh’s Room in support of his upcoming record, scheduled to drop around Christmas. I checked out the second show, which turned out to be well worth the $20 advance ticket. Tielli played for probably about two and a half hours (with a “cigarette break” or two), and not once did the time drag or the set become boring. His backing band was stellar, featuring musicians such as Selina Martin and Monica Gunter, and a large handful of Rheostatics favourites found their way into the setlist between excellent new Martin tracks — I was particularly thrilled to hear “Saskatchewan”.

Lately I’ve been feeling like a lot of the acts I’m seeing are just doing the same thing over and over, you know, a cute little chord progression and a quirky-just-like-everyone-else’s voice and some whimsical lyrics. I get frustrated going to shows sometimes because I don’t feel like I’m seeing anything new. Refreshingly, though, Martin Tielli can never be described as “cookie-cutter”. Everything he does is different and interesting and unexpected, and I really appreciate it. Whether it’s writing songs prominently featuring coleslaw or continuing to make crazy noises on his Steinberger, Tielli is always a new experience, and I love it.

I also worked the Alanis Morissette concert this past week at Massey, and while I can’t put her on the list of artists I really love, there’s no denying that she has been incredibly successful (the RIAA lists her as the most successful female rock act of all time, and Jagged Little Pill is the top selling debut album ever — just to name a few). She certainly knows how to put on a show, too. There were lights and strobes and a New Age-y tapestry with her painted on it, and she danced and thrashed and ran around the stage as if her energy was totally boundless. I was pretty impressed. While there was probably an empty seat or two somewhere in the hall, it was virtually sold out and the audience was really into it.

Scottish songster Alexi Murdoch opened, charming and folky with just a guitar and a few effects. Some of the crowd was restless during his set, and by the end the volume of chatter had gotten considerably louder, but I really enjoyed his tunes. Perhaps something more energetic might have been more appropriate for an Alanis warm-up, but nevertheless, Murdoch did a fine job and there were at least a few people who enjoyed his work, judging by the “I love you Alexi!” shouts from the main floor.

In other news, Canada has a federal election on Tuesday. My prediction: another Stephen Harper minority. I’m terrified to even think of the prospect of a majority, and unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Stéphane Dion’s Liberals will have enough of a showing to turf Harper out. In other words … this election will more than likely end up being a complete waste of time, money, and useless attack ads. And an example of Harper breaking a law that he made to essentially avoid this exact situation. Politics is awesome.

And finally, a teacher from Alberta won the Hockey Night in Canada anthem challenge earlier today. Colin Oberst — no relation to Conor, I assume — of Beaumont won $100,000 and half the lifetime royalties for his composition “Canadian Gold,” which is the new Hockey Night in Canada theme song now that CBC no longer has the rights to Dolores Claman’s iconic and familiar one. 13-year-old (!) Robert Fraser Burke came in second with “Sticks To The Ice” — I hope we see more of him in the future.

Tags: alanis morissette, cbc, hockey night in canada, hugh's room, martin tielli, massey hall, rheostatics