Deerhunter, Marnie Stern @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto (September 12, 2013)

I don't recall if Atlanta's Deerhunter have been through town since opening for Spoon at Sound Academy back in April 2010 but I did get another chance to see the group again in 2011 when I travelled to Chicago for the Pitchfork Music Festival that year. Most recently the band's been promoting their sixth studio album entitled Monomania. I missed the first openers, a sole male behind an array of electronic doodads and a keyboard, but did catch the second opener, Marnie Stern who herself and her two-member band are promoting a new album released earlier in the year cheekily entitled The Chronicles of Marnia. I've been lazy to review shows, although in brief will mention that Deerhunter played a fine set that encompassed elements of pop, punk, feedback and drone. I've thought this before but on paper they sound derivative but live they are entirely delectable, lead vocalist Bradford Cox unpredictable / wacky stage presence notwithstanding. Check out the photos from the show.

Exclaim and The National Post have reviews of the show.

  Marnie Stern & Bradford Cox: photo by Michael Ligon

  Deerhunter: photo by Michael Ligon

  Bradford Cox of Deerhunter: photo by Michael Ligon

Photos: Deerhunter, Marnie Stern @ Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto (September 12, 2013)

Riot Fest @ Fort York Garrison Common, Toronto (August 25, 2013)

Ushering in the dog days of summer a few weeks back was the two-day long weekend travelling music festival Riot Fest which took over the grounds of Fort York Garrison Common. Day One was strictly for the younger generation (eg. A Day to Remember, Pierce the Veil, Every Time I Die, Mayday Parade, Grade, The Ghost Inside & Structures) which I passed on and so I chose to take in Day Two only which while including newer acts like Best Coast mostly featured bands of an older ilk including Dinosaur Jr., Rocket From The Crypt, The Weakerthans, Iggy and The Stooges and of course the much anticipated reunion of The Replacements, Toronto which had the honour of hosting the first live reunion of Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson (plus backing band of Josh Freese and David Minehan) after 22 years. Other than Best Coast, I'd not seen any of the other acts live. I'd caught a J Mascis solo set at the James Street Supercrawl in Hamilton a few Septembers ago, a Lou Barlow in-store a few years back and a John Samson solo set at Lee's Palace back in 2009 but save for that, Riot Fest was my first time seeing their respective bands as well as my first time seeing Rocket From The Crypt, Iggy and The Stooges and The Replacements.


  Bethany Cosentino of Best Coast: photo by Michael Ligon

I kind of remember Best Coast as a one trick pony, playing the same garagey, surf-pop number over and over, but that wasn't true at all during their set. They're more varied sonically than that and although their are particularly innovative, they managed to charm me by the end of their set. Bethany mentioned how it was an honour to play the festival and that she was the only girl amongst the bands in the lineup, which drew applause from the crowd.


  J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.: photo by Michael Ligon

Dinosaur Jr.' set, while great, felt low-key surprisingly even during J's most shredded guitar solos but it was great to hear "The Wagon" and "Just Live Heaven". Lou Barlow seemed much more animated on bass than I would have imagined.


  The Venue: photo by Michael Ligon

Ah yes, Fort York Garrison Common. You became almost a second home to me this summer, having been there already twice before for other festivals [TURF, The Grove Music Festival].


  Rocket From The Crypt: photo by Michael Ligon

San Diego's horn-embellished punks Rocket From The Crypt were a name that floated around during my indie rock 90's days who I never really explored in depth back then. They were very much an enigma then and still are today with their punk-driven brand of rock n' roll with more than a dash of horns, like a collision of rockabilly and punk but without the awful aftertaste. I remember the sun coming out during the set (after it had been mostly grey prior to this) and the dust storm being kicked up near the front of the stage by what I presume were concert-goers really getting into the music. With the band wearing matching black and white, rockabilly shirts they were perhaps the best-dressed band of the day.


  John Samson of The Weakerthans: photo by Michael Ligon

In his off-time, it appears that Weakerthans vocalist John Samson has mountain-men'd himself up with his beard and outgrown locks. Mellowest set of the day for sure, and perhaps the odd-band-out, their lyrical pop-rock in contrast with the punkier roots of all the other acts on the bill. Fox Jaws' Carleigh Aikins was a special guest on one song to sing duet with Samson.


  Iggy and The Stooges: photo by Michael Ligon

Still sounding dangerous after all these years, Iggy and The Stooges (which included The Minutemen's Mike Watt on bass, plus original members guitarist James Williamson and drummer Scott Asheton) played pretty much what amounted to a greatest hits set playing classics like "Raw Power", "Fun House", "Search and Destroy", and my personal favourite "I Wanna be Your Dog" as well as plugging the most recent Iggy and The Stooges album Ready To Die (released earlier this year}, and then throwing in a great performance of a solo Iggy tune ("The Passenger") for good measure. Though well-meaning I think it was an error in judgement bringing up audience members on to the stage for a dancy party during the more askewed punk-jazz of "Fun House" but other than that this was a terrific set.


  The Replacements: photo by Michael Ligon

Having been in highschool back in the mid to late 80's I was too busy listening to the British acts like The Smiths, The Cure, and New Order perhaps too immature to have cared much about or appreciate an American band like The Replacements. It probably wasn't until the early 90's when Muchmusic and their alternative music video show The Wedge seemed to feature The Replacements' music videos for "Left Of The Dial" and "Bastards of Young" (both videos similarly filmed with a fixed shot of a speaker) as staples of the program. Sign of the times back then I guess that music videos got me to take notice of an artist. I'd still count myself as a sporadic listener of them even after that but, colour me impressed [how pun-ny of me], after witnessing their reunion set at Fort York Garrison Common a few weeks ago. Covering all aspects of their career from their early punk days to their later major label releases, it was a fantastic setlist all around. That the band had limited their reunion (at least for now) to only three cities (Toronto, Denver, Chicago) on the travelling Riot Fest roadshow is a shame for everyone else but wow, what an honour and an experience it was to see them.

Photos: Riot Fest @ Fort York Garrison Common, Toronto (August 25, 2013)

The Grove Music Festival @ Fort York Garrison Common, Toronto (August 3, 2013)

As you can see by the lateness of this post, I got lazy with posting over the last month and now here we are with summer at it's end. I took in the inaugural Grove Music Festival down at Fort York Garrison Common at the beginning of August. It's no Osheaga [which was happening the same weekend] but The Grove Music Festival was a compact and perfectly enjoyable festival in itself with a diverse lineup that hit in all the rights spots with me catching acts ranging from the slacker punk rock of Wavves, to the no-frills rap flow of Earl Sweatshirt, the working-class, Jersey rock of Gaslight Anthem, the mash-up styles of Girl Talk, the scintillating electro-pop of Hot Chip, and the exhilarating pop of Phoenix. No sense in reviewing it at this point. Just enjoy the photos:

  Wavves: photo by Michael Ligon

  Earl Sweatshirt: photo by Michael Ligon

  Gaslight Anthem: photo by Michael Ligon

  Girl Talk: photo by Michael Ligon

  Hot Chip: photo by Michael Ligon

  Phoenix: photo by Michael Ligon

Photos: The Grove Music Festival @ Fort York Garrison Common, Toronto (August 3, 2013)

Bjork @ Echo Beach, Toronto (July 16, 2013)

  Bjork @ Echo Beach, Toronto: photo by Michael Ligon

Bjork. Echo Beach. Warm summer night.

The all-female Icelandic choir Graduale Nobili.

Tesla Coil.

Video projections. Starfish. Landscapes. This beautiful Earth.

Army of Me. [set list]

Dance Party. Sing-a-longs.

"Raise your flag higher, higher, Raise your flag higher, higher" [from encore song "Declare Independence", dedicated to Trayvon Martin]

Delirious. Euphoric. Moving.

Concert of the summer, if not, of the year.

Eleanor Friedberger, Teen @ Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto (June 5, 2013)

   Teen: photo by Michael Ligon

Let's time warp back to the beginning of June when a NYC double-bill took over the Horseshoe Tavern, with the Brooklyn-based band TEEN opening for Eleanor Friedberger. TEEN [yes, in all caps] is the project of Kristina Lieberson, keyboardist for Here We Go Magic and whose membership also includes her sisters Katherine and Lizzie as well as member Jane Herships [taking time out of her own folk project Spider]. A bit of a schizophrenic approach musically from a base of guitar, drums, keyboards, bass and vocals, their songs varied from new-wavey, synth-pop to artier, more idiosyncratic excursions. For the sake of a song or two, vocalist Lieberson provided some interesting vocal inflections. Adventurous listening but perhaps a bit frustrating if all you want to do is hum along. The band's most debut full-length In Limbo (produced by Spaceman3′s Sonic Boom) was released through Washington,DC label Carpark Records in August 2012.


   Eleanor Friedberger: photo by Michael Ligon

The last time I'd seen Eleanor Friedberger live was during the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City this past October during which she performed solo but it was just over a year ago that I'd last seen her perform with a band when she played a show at the Garrison. Comparing her recent show with her set at the Garrison last year, it was quite apparent how much more engaging she was, and how much more fun she seemed to have this time around. It wasn't like a night-and-day difference between the two shows - the improved vibe of this show was far more subtle than that - but to me it made a world of difference. In support of her second full-length entitled Personal Record, she continues to hone the pop-craftmanship [alternating between upbeat and melancholy] that she mastered on her first LP Last Summer. My lack of notes for this show makes it difficult to really review it set-wise but a perusal of the her set lists on setlist.com around that time[eg. her set list in Chicago @ Empty Bottle on June 7] seem to indicate she was playing the same/similar set list across different stops on the tour ie. an even mix of songs between the first and second albums. I bought the vinyl of the new record and even got Eleanor to sign it for me after the show. Still a small but loyal fan base in Toronto it seems, it was a decent turnout for the Wednesday night of this show, a larger turnout I'd estimate than the maybe half-full turnout for her show at the Garrison last year. Criminally under-appreciated in my opinion, but for now I'll bask in the glow of being in that club of her early supporters.

Photos: Eleanor Friedberger, Teen @ Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto (June 5, 2013)
Bandcamp: Teen
SoundCloud: Eleanor Friedberger
Video: Teen - "Better" (music video)
Video: Eleanor Friedberger - "Stare At The Sun" (music video)

Toronto Urban Roots Festival @ Fort York Garrison Common (July 4 & 5, 2013)

   Tracyanne Campbell of Camera Obscura: photo by Michael Ligon

The inaugural Toronto Urban Roots Festival, TURF for short, had a successful first run about a week and a half back down at Fort York Garrison Common, if I do say so. The festival also included extra night shows that took place at the Horseshoe Tavern and Lee's Palace, giving some of the acts an extra time slot to perform. The festival spanned four nights and two full days and had an admirable selection of local and international talent. And if I wasn't totally enamored with the whole lineup [that's just a matter of personal taste], the calibre of acts was decent.

With a new album Desire Lines recently released to promote, Scottish indie pop group Camera Obscura hit the summer festival circuit, much to the dismay of their British physical disposition. While lead vocalist Tracyanne Campbell mentioned to the crowd at TURF that it was nice to be in Toronto again and as the sun started to just set, she remarked something along the lines that the cooler temperatures wouldn't be so bad. Having seen them numerous times in the past, I found the set pleasant if unremarkable if only because the band are sticking to what they do best. I'm not sure if I'd wanted them to evolve their sound but overall I still have a soft spot for their brand of sparkling Scottish pop music and it was good to see them live again. They played a few new songs but it was old favourites like "Teenager", "Tears For Affairs", "French Navy" and their now predictable "Razzle Dazzle Rose" which the crowd savoured.


   Joel Plaskett: photo by Michael Ligon

TSN sports announcer Dave Hodge was a special guest this evening, making reference as to how he was suppose to have introduced this next band in Calgary during the Sled Island Music Festival several weeks prior but which got cancelled due to the massive flooding [and in retrospect how coincidentally TURF got rained on hard on the Sunday Night and then experienced the torrential storms the day after]. Introducing Joel Plasket Emergency, Joel and the band played a great set that had them riffing in classic rock style with Plaskett's clever lyrics and playful stage persona. Plaskett even admitted to being a little nervous but soon he settled into a zone. He'd just played NYC's Central Park just prior, and also Canada Day had just past and so in salute to both countries, the band delved into "True Patriot Love". Plaskett was a great frontman, playing up to the audience, his gangly physique slinking around the mic at times. That I'm not that familiar with his catalogue [although I did recognize a number of the tunes he played that night] is a bit of a shame as he played one of the better sets of the whole festival.


   She & Him: photo by Michael Ligon

I went into duo She & Him's set knowing generally what to expect even though I haven't really heard them all that much - nostalgia-tinged originals and covers, with a heavy nod to the popular music of the fifties and the sixties. There was a crack band of musicians backing them, with notable contributions from their lead guitarist as well as their two female back-up vocalists, The Chapin Sisters, Abigail and Lily. There were covers of Blondie's "Sunday Girl", "Unchained Melody" (originally made famous by The Righteous Brothers), and Buddy Holly's "Rave On". It was a bit of a disappointment that the the band had requested that the audience not take photos, going so far as to have organizers post notices all around the grounds instructing fans to please not use their cell phones to take photos and video and to enjoy the performance that the band was providing in 3D. Ok, I snuck a few photos with my point-and-shoot including the one above. This wasn't the set to necessarily convert me to the band - it felt more pleasant than than remarkable - but it was a nice, soothing way to end off Day One of TURF. The duo's on the road promoting their fourth studio full-length Volume 3 which was released this past May.

Photos: Toronto Urban Roots Festival @ Fort York Garrison Common (July 4, 2013)

-------


   Justin Townes Earle: photo by Michael Ligon

For Day Two of TURF, I arrived during the set of American singer-songwriter Justin Townes Earle playing a set for the early crowd at the East Stage. I know of him having passed through town [I believe playing the Horseshoe most times, and maybe the Phoenix Concert Theatre] on numerous occasions but had not ever taken the opportunity to see him live. Seeing him live, Earle in my opinion takes that Elvis Costello approach towards pop music infusing various influences such as country and blues, making his songs wholly satisfying to a pop music fan like me who isn't a country / blues purist. Before ending the set with his last song, Earle commented on the heat ["Sweating like a whore in church"] and then dove into a terrific rendition of The Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait".


   Fitz and The Tantrums: photo by Michael Ligon

Perhaps the odd-man-out act of the whole TURF lineup was Los Angeles soul / pop act Fitz and The Tantrums. While I wasn't so keen on the band musically [just a matter of personal, taste], I'd give credit to co-lead vocalists Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs keeping up the energy of the set and getting the audience to participate. The band played a cover of Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" , which like some other songs during the sets included some pronounced sax work, that sounded straight up like what UK producer Mark Ronson might have produced. As the sun was just about setting, I was ready to end off day two at the East Stage with Arkells.


   Arkells: photo by Michael Ligon

I lived through Hamilton rock group Arkells infancy when they'd formed in 2006 and then had afterwards had probably played Toronto and the GTA more times than I'd been able to keep track. Even when they'd started to get radio play on 102.1 FM The Edge and I'd liked what I'd heard, I for some reason just never got around to seeing them live. I heard bits of Springsteen and The Constantines in the band's sound, and I'd liken lead vocalist Max Kerman a little bit to Afghan Whigs Greg Dulli, adding a soulful grit to the vocals amidst the overall rock histronics. Fans aplenty stuck around for the set, many of them singing along to faves like "Oh, The Boss Is Coming" and "Whistleblower" and then the band ended off the night with Kernan dappering himself up with a white sportcoat and leading the band into a fantastic all-Motown covers set with members of Toronto cover band Dwayne Gretzky on back-up vocals.

Photos: Toronto Urban Roots Festival @ Fort York Garrison Common (July 5, 2013)

Smokey Robinson @ Toronto Star Stage, Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto Jazz Festival (June 21, 2013)

  Smokey Robinson: photo by Michael Ligon

When Martin Fry and Mark White of the UK pop band ABC released their hit song "When Smokey Sings" (a tribute to the Motown living legend Smokey Robinson) back in 1987, it contained the definitive lyric, 'When Smokey sings, I forget everything'. And that was so true as watched Mr. Robinson kick off the Toronto Jazz Festival on on a weather-perfect Friday night, with a free show down at Nathan Phillips Square. I didn't bother lining up for a wristband to secure a spot in the tented area that encompassed the stage but took satisfaction to watch the show from outside the tent catching occasional glimpses and photo opportunites [thank god for the 15x optical zoom on my point and shoot] of the man as he entertained the crowd with a variety of hits. There were many highlights and some of those included his dramatic, more soulful rendition of "Tracks of My Tears" [a song that he said had been penned by a young Stevie Wonder], renditions of songs like "My Girl" and "The Way You Do The Things You Do" [songs Smokey had wrote for The Temptations], and Smokey's classic "I Second That Emotion". Dressed in all white, with his band and back-up vocalists following suit, plus a few dancers who came out later, Smokey later shed the white blazer he started out the evening in as things started to cook. In good spirits for the entire night, Smokey quiped and bantered [about the old Motown days, for example] throughout the night that had the audience stuck on his every word. For me the most sublime song of the night was actualy one I was not really particularly too familiar with, although I was sure I'd heard the song at least a few times in my life, but not nearly enough times and that was his 1965-released song "Ooo Baby Baby" which was really one of the most heartbreaking, romantic songs I've ever heard. The audience singalong on "Cruisin'" for which Smokey had two volunteers from the audience each lead one half of the audience in a sort of battle to outsing each other on the song's line 'I love it when we're cruisin' together', was a great way to end the evening. 73 years old this past February, Smokey is, if you will excuse the pun, still smokin'.

Photos: Smokey Robinson @ Toronto Star Stage, Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto Jazz Festival (June 21, 2013)

Review - NXNE (June 15, 2013)

On this fine Canada Day I thought take some time to get up my last slice of NXNE reviews for Saturday June 15. After taking some time out from NXNE for a relaxing afternoon set from Sarah Harmer who was performing as part of Luminato, I had the rest of the day to figure out what I'd do for NXNE. I had some picks for NXNE that night that I was fairly certain I'd try to go to them but I had the rest of the afternoon into the early evening to decide to what to do so with nothing better to do, I went to check out the action at Yonge Dundas Square.


  Moon King: photo by Michael Ligon

I got to Yonge Dundas Square in time to catch Moon King fronted by Maddy Wilde, and Daniel Woodhead who used to be in Toronto indie group Spiral Beach. Where Spiral Beach's lauching point was quirky indie rock that had a conciseness to its instrumentation, Moon King go for a far looser sound, taking elements of punk, shoegaze, and just a tad bit of psychedelia, wrapped up in the energetic reverb-tinged vocals of Woodhead and Wilde. The midday distractions of Yonge Dundas Square prevented me from getting more than a mild appreciation for what the band was doing on stage, but at least what they were doing was interesting. On another note, my thirst beckoned and so I went on a quest to quench it.


  Serena Ryder: photo by Michael Ligon

I had more than a few hours to kill and somehow found myself down on Queen St. near the MuchMusic building where the MMVA's were preparing for their broadcast the day after. Miss Serena Ryder was sound checking, running through a mini-medley of her hits "What I Wouldn't Do" and "Stompa" multiple times. It seemed that it wasn't so much a sound-check as much as the crew and her were trying to get all the camera angles and her marks on the floor right. And by the way, I saw her performance on television the day after and she nailed it. Went to Burger Priest down the street for the first time [thumbs up] and was making my way to the Garrison for the 8 pm set of Toronto band Breeze but the transit gods were not co-operating so instead made my way to Czehoski for the 9 pm set of Swiss singer songwriter Heidi Happy.


  Heidi Happy: photo by Michael Ligon

I know Czehoski has been booked as venue for NXNE for several years now, but it's just the worst as a music venue. It has a small stage at the back of the house with dinner tables and dinner patrons flanking each side of the narrow space that leads to the stage. I watched from the back with a beer I ordered from the bar which seemed like the least awkward thing I could do at the time. Thankfully, it seemed like most of the dinner patrons were trying to be respectful and pay attention to the artist while they actually ate but still the venue just seemed totally wrong. Heidi Happy, I think sensed a bit of distraction at times, but made the most of it with her mostly folk-pop ballads. (She also did an acapella cover of a German-Swiss song that was fun to watch and hear.) Alternating between acoustic and reverb-y electric guitar, she also used a looper quite frequently for rhythms and vocal backing as well as other instruments at times like a mini xylophone. Her overall approach as well as the use of a looper reminded me of Feist. I enjoyed her set although I was a bit disappointed that she wasn't playing with a band since some of the songs of hers I've heard off YouTube definitely sound great fleshed out instrumentally. From what I recall, Heidi Happy has come through town for festival appearances (CMW, NXNE) several times now, so I woudn't be surprised if she makes a return trip in the future.


  Chad Valley: photo by Michael Ligon

I thought I'd shoot over to BLK BOX on the streetcar but hadn't anticipated fire trucks coming down the street and blocking off traffic as well as the streetcar. Fortunately, the traffic delay was only temporary and the streetcar got through and I was off to see UK electro-pop artist Chad Valley at BLK BOX. It's no surprise it's called BLK BOX. It's a room that literally is painted black. Devoid of white light, it was mostly red and maybe some hues of blue illuminating Chad Valley on stage. The brainchild of the project is vocalist / instrumentalist Hugo Manuel. With Manuel behind a bank of keyboards, his soaring vocals (along with his soulful backup singer) helped to propel the vibrant electro-pop rhythms and melodies that reminded a lot of M83. Chad Valley's full-length debut Young Hunger was released in 2012, featuring collaborations with artists like Twin Shadow and Active Child, and something I think I'd like to check out.


  Norman Wong Arts & Crafts Photo Exhibit: photo by Michael Ligon

Fortunately, I was just in the vicinity of the Arts & Crafts Pop Up and decided to pop-in to check out photographer Norman Wong's exhibit. They had a DJ playing and a bar and it would have been a nice chill way to hang out for a bit but there wasn't that many people there which was a shame. Perhaps everyone was down the at the Horseshoe Tavern, if the long lineup was any indication at 11:30 pm trying to get into the venue for Fucked Up's 1:00 am set. I was only swinging by and wasn't planning on catching Fucked Up anyway so I made my way up the street towards Kensington Market to catch my final set of the night as it would turn out.


  Un: photo by Michael Ligon

Having missed seeing their only set during Canadian Musicfest earlier this year, it was fortunate I got to catch Montreal electro-dance duo UN (pronounced like the prefix “un-”, and one of the most impossible names to search on the internet )who were playing the tiny venue Handlebar in Kensington Market. Consisiting of member Kara Keith (whose performed under her own name and with bands like Falconhawk) and Jen Reimer (and according to her website is sound artist and performer based in Montréal known for creating site-specific performances in resonant urban locations), UN specialize in a spunky synth-pop dance tunes with Reimer's solid, almost metronomic, drum beats and Keith's new-wave-ish vocals. They sparked a fair amount of dancing and leg-shaking for those on-hand and fun times were had. Conceived as a solo project for Keith in 2010, but then adding Reimer shortly after, it took the band three years to release their first full-length, the cheekily named UN Titled, earlier this year.(via ALTSOUNDS) The band had recently gone to Calgary for the Sled Island festival but like most of the bands were affected by the flood but did get to play a backyard show while there with some other bands with all proceeds going to flood relief.(via Mixtape Magazine) How good of them. Hope to see them back around these parts some time in the future.

I'd wanted to have caught Mikal Cronin's 1:00 am set at the Silver Dollar but the twitter feed was all a flutter that it was packed and I said to myself, screw that, and headed home. In my mind, I'm picturing that scene from "Lethal Weapon" and Danny Glover's charcacter Murtaugh saying "I'm too old for this shit". Another NXNE is in the books, but I'll probably be back next year.

Photos: NXNE in Toronto (June 15, 2013)

Sarah Harmer (Luminato Festival) @ David Pecaut Square, Toronto (June 15, 2013)

  Sarah Harmer: photo by Michael Ligon


  Sarah Harmer: photo by Michael Ligon


  Sarah Harmer: photo by Michael Ligon

While the kids were probably living it up on Bruise Cruise on Saturday June 15th of NXNE weekend, I decided to take some time out of NXNE and check out Sarah Harmer who was performing a free set at David Pecaut Square as part of the Luminato Festival. As Sarah had mentioned, it had been about a year since she last performed in Toronto, which I'm assuming she's referring to her participation in the Bicentennial Celebration of the War of 1812 concert that took place at Fort York Garrison Common on July 14 of last year.

This concert plus her show last year at Fort York Garrison Commons are/were such chill events that if it were not for Sarah's outstanding songs and songwriting I'd have probably been asleep. For the hour or so that she and her band [including Miss Julie Fader on background vocals and keyboards] performed, the audience was pleasantly entertained with some fan favourites like "Silver Road", "Almost", "Greeting Card Aisle", and "The Hideout". 'Here's a little acoustic number', she expressed as she segued into the bluegrass-y "I Am Aglow" and later some deeper cuts [well, at least to me] like Sarah's tribute to Canada's National Parks appropriately titled "The Park Song" [which included a cool organ solo], the mid-tempo pop of "Late Bloomer" and during the encore, the waltz-ian "Oleander" prior to which she exclaimed to the audience that we could stand up, but then slightly retracted that statement by saying that then again it was a country number. Sarah's music is such a sublime combination of her influences of folk, country, rock and pop and the set was such a sweet reminder of how truly talented she is.

Check out the rest of the photoset here.

Review - NXNE (June 14, 2013)

Friday night of this year's NXNE was relatively a light one for me as it turned out. I'd already decided that I'd brave the crowds down at Yonge Dundas Square for Canadian singer-songwriter Hayden and headliners The National. Unlike the previous day's weather, this evening was perfect on that note. It was fortuitous that I took a spot near the front, stage left, for Hayden's set when I did as it filled up quickly and only after looking at a few of my crowd shots did I see that the crowd extended all the way back to Yonge St. for The National's set.


  Hayden: photo by Michael Ligon

Starting a little after 7:30 pm,  Hayden took to the stage with a drummer and bass guitarist. His seventh full-length, the Polaris Music Prize long-listed Us Alone was released this past February through Arts and Crafts. Churning through some classics like "Bad As The Seem" and "Trees Lounge" and other older ones, interspersed with a selection from the new album, Hayden alternated between songs from guitar to keyboards. Singer songwriter Lou Canon (his sister in-law in fact) came as a special guest singing and playing keyboards on the song "Blurry Nights" as she does on the studio version on Us Alone, a lovely folk-rock number duet between her and Hayden.  He was at his best on tracks like the poppy "Rainy Saturday" off the new album which showed he still has life left in him. The venue itself was perhaps unforgiving in conveying Hayden's talents when you have thousands of fans waiting for no one else but the headliner, but perhaps Hayden's set converted a few music fans. 


  Matt Berninger: photo by Michael Ligon

As The National's show at the Air Canada Centre (theatre configuration) in December 2011 attested (the largest venue in Toronto they had played up till that point), The National had reached stadium-level status and succeeded. Getting booked to headline a free show at Yonge Dundas Square during NXNE was almost too good to be true and with the very recent release of their sixth studio album Trouble Will Find Me through 4AD,  this show was bound to be special or at least great. And it was. More than any other National show I've seen, this may have perhaps been the funniest I've seen Matt as he jokingly commented on the environment around him especially the Beyonce billboards staring at him from across the Eaton Centre and the Jack Astor patio above and to the side that he jokingly invited everyone after the show for a drink. I'd anticipated the band perhaps playing an hour and a half tops but having started just after 9 pm, the band went almost to 11 pm. It was a fine set list giving attention mostly to their most recent album and their previous one High Violet obviously but with a few nods to the fan faves off of Boxer and Alligator. The band didn't just phone it but seemed to give it as much as they would for any other show. Like Matt has done during previous shows including their show in Toronto at the Air Canada Centre back in December 2011, Matt jumped down into the audience at one point, running through crowd while singing with a wired mic with fans dutifully lifting the mic cord over their heads for Matt in order for it to not get tangled, ending with Matt back up at the front of the stage and the audience adrenalized.


  The National: photo by Michael Ligon

I was hoping for an acapella "Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks" to end off the show like they'd done back in December 2011 at the Air Canada Centre but really didn't think they actually do it in this outdoor venue. But lo and behold, they did it, as the entire band, including their horn section, moved towards the front of the stage, the Dessner brothers flanking each side of the lineup and adding some spare guitar. As the band sang acapella to the audience it didn't take long for the audience to join in wholeheartedly, perhaps the loudest audience singalong I think I've ever heard. Any sort of crowd chatter was stopped virtually in its tracks to the point that all you could hear besides the singing was the traffic noise off in the distance. What a wonderful end to a terrific show. That I hadn't checked out any more of the NXNE festival that night was perhaps because everything else would just pale in comparison and so I packed it in and ended on a high note.

Photos: NXNE - The National, Hayden (June 14, 2013)

Review - NXNE (June 12-13, 2013)

NXNE is in the books for another year and it was one of the more spontaneouos ones I've had in years. I bumped into some familiar faces along the way, but didn't seem many of you. It seems, by the looks of others NXNE coverage, we were all checking out different bands which is good in a way as the festival gets a wider scope of coverage because of that. I'd planned on starting my NXNE on Wednesday night with the 9 pm set at the Rivoli by Brooklyn dreampop outfit Heaven but found out at the venue that the group had border troubles and didn't make it in to Canada. That explains why their name had conspicuously vanished from the NXNE website schedule earliery in the day. Part of me wanted to stay for the 11 pm set by the Montreal-based Mozart's Sister, the electro-pop project of Caila Thompson-Hannant, a member of Shapes & Sizes but my impatience / desire to perhaps call it a night got the best of me.


  Rituals: photo by Michael Ligon

However I looked at my NXNE picks for that night and saw that I had a pick for 10 pm that night down Queen St. westbound at The Shop @ Parts and Labour with Toronto group Rituals so I decided to jump onto the streetcar, ride westbound and along the way decide whether I should check out the show at The Shop. I'd come to my senses by the time I reached Parkdale and got off at the stop that was practically right in front of the venue [I had booked the next two days off work and decided to forgo sleep and not waste this opportunity.] My first time at the venue, my first impressions of it was that like the underground, intimate music venue of The Drake Hotel, The Shop @ Parts @ Labour was like an industrial, laid-back version of that. The venue was quickly filling up already. By the crowd reaction, my impression was that Rituals were still relatively new to the scene but the band's brand of music merging post-punk, no-wave and subtle psychedelic tones went over well with the crowd including myself. Music was more textural than melodic although not necessarily void of melody which I think I picked up in the gritty vocals or harmonic guitar tones in a song or two. Generally, they fall within the category of not-necessarily-my-thing-but-interesting-nonetheless and if more adventurous listening is your thing, definitely check them out. The band released a self-titled 7" EP in 2011 and earlier this year their Mesmerized EP as a digital download through their Bandcamp.

I almost packed it in for the night but then was convinced to stay for the next set by Olympia, Washington band Milk Music. Their grungy look, most of the band with long hair and one member with beard definitely fit in line with their sound which I could best describe as Slacker-dom punk, their sound more complex but essentially an extension of grunge and bands like Dinosaur Jr in the 90's. The band rose from the underground in 2009 with a self-titled cassette and then their Beyond Living EP (which got a wider release in 2011) and earlier this year released their full-length debut Cruise Your Illusion [ha ha, wicked title!] through Fat Possum Records. I'm tempted to listen to them but their set, which seemed to meander at times like a band on an extended jam, didn't quite gel for me that night. Oh, and the venue was getting too tightly packed and I had to escape towards the back for a breather. Although, there was a special guest [Tampa art-punks Merchandise] slotted for the midnight set time, I decided to call it a night.


  Old Man Markley: photo by Michael Ligon

Got a later start to the festival the next day but after getting organized, I made my way downtown to Yonge Dundas Square with nothing really better to do. It was punk night at the Square with Southern Californian punk rock veterans Social Distortion scheduled to play later that night. I arrived earlier as Los Angeles punk and bluegrass band Old Man Markley were already into their set. With the weather being uncertain, there wasn't that large of a crowd on hand which probably was a disappointment but the band didn't seem to mind. With male and female vocals, the band's punk tunes were embellished with root-sy elements such as fiddle and sounded enjoyable although certainly were not my thing. In tribute to the deceased singer Tony Sly of Northern California punks No Use For a Name, Old Man Markley played a cover of one of their songs ("The Feel Good Song of The Year") which seemed to go over well with the punks in the audience. Around since 2011, the band released their second album Down Side Up through Fat Wreck Records earlier this year.


  Social Distortion: photo by Michael Ligon

Not that I was ever a huge fan of Social Distortion but a selection of their tunes ("Ball of Chain", "Story of My Life", their cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire", "I Was Wrong") and later Mike Ness' first solo album seemed to have infiltrated my music listening back in the 90's, part of it due to the alt-country movement that I'd gained an affection for. Lead singer Mike Ness had been so bad-ass looking back in the 90's with his arm tattoos and greaser haircut, and although his hair is grayer, and was perhaps more dapper this night with his black collared shirt and black fedora he's still as bad-ass as ever. Intermittently raining throughout the half-hour or so I stayed for his set but after Ness and his band played "Story Of My Life", I was satisfied and I took towards Queen St. to catch the streetcar towards the Horseshoe Tavern.


  Carmen Elle of Diana: photo by Michael Ligon

Toronto's Diana were the band I was at the Horseshoe Tavern to see for their 10 pm time slot and as I had expected the place was almost near capacity. That the band's Canadian MusicFest set had alluded to earlier this year, the band are getting more popular by the moment. I started at the back but was fortunate to get closer to the stage off to the side near the merch table to get a better view by the time they got to playing their most excellent electro-soul-pop single "Born Again", vocalist Carmen Elle's smooth vocals floating over a delectable bed of dreamy synths, subtle beats, and voluptuous bass guitar backing, for which the 12-inch vinyl was being sold. A palpable excitement floated throughout the crowd, although it did felt bit scene-ish, but overall it was a good indication of hopefully exciting things to come for the band, most eagerly their full-length debut entitled Perputual Surrender expected to come out on Paper Bag Records on August 20 to which they were recently signed in Canada [the band were signed to indie label Jagjagjuwar in the US.]


  Merchandise: photo by Michael Ligon

Having skipped out on the secret headlining slot of Tampa indie-punks Merchandise at The Shop @ Parts and Labour the night before, I decided to stick around for them following the mass exodus of people after Diana's set. Comfortably full again by the time they took the stage, frontman Carson Cox announced it was birthday and if I recall something along the lines about hoping to get drunk. While the band members histories had roots in the hardcore / punk scene were, Merchandise are less punk and more noisy melodic rock, at times romantic sounding at least to my ears. Post-punk, if you will. The more I think of it they sound like noisier cousins to UK's White Lies. For a first time seeing them, I liked what I heard as did the audience also who wanted an encore if I recall, but didn't get one. Three albums in, the band's most recent full-length is this year's Total Nite released through Iowan indie record label Night People, garnering an 8/10 from Pitchfork.


  Olenka and The Autumn Lovers: photo by Michael Ligon

I could have stuck around at the Horseshoe Tavern for Dan Deacon's set who I've never seen live, but I decided to end the night in a quieter fashion with the midnight set of London, Ontario indie folk group Olenka and The Autumn Lovers over at The Great Hall. Playing to a small but adoring audience, I noticed almost right away that there was less of the Eastern European folk influence in what they were performing and that there was a more prominent rootsy influence that Olenka and her band were focusing on. It seemed like an all-too brief set but nonetheless enjoyable.

Photos: NXNE in Toronto (June 12, 2013)
Photos: NXNE in Toronto (June 13, 2013)

Summer Festivals 2013 - Riot Fest

As the buzz of NXNE has now worn off, there are many more Toronto summer music festivals to look forward to and the most recent announcement and perhaps the most exciting for some is the reunion by Minneapolis punk / alternative rock legends The Replacements who'll be headlining the second night of the two-day travelling music festival Riot Fest which comes to Toronto over the weekend of August 24 and 25. As the poster above clearly shows, the first day of the festival[August 24] will primarily be featuring new-school emo / punk bands like Grade and A Day To Remember, but day two [August 25] is clearly where the excitement lies for many with The Replacements headlining and the remainder of the lineup that day including bands like Iggy and The Stooges, The Weakerthans, Rocket From The Crypt, and Dinosaur Jr. The Toronto stop will be The Replacements first show since 1991. Exciting times. Tickets for the weekend or for individual days can be purchased here.

Facebook: Riot Fest
Twitter: Riot Fest
Video: The Replacements - "Left Of The Dial" (music video)
Video: The Replacements - "Bastards of Young" (music video)
Video: The Replacements - "Alex Chilton" (music video)
Video: The Replacements - "Achin' To Be" (music video)

The Breeders, Beliefs @ Danforth Music Hall, Toronto (May 11, 2013)

  Kim Deal of The Breeders: photo by Michael Ligon

ABout a month ago, one of my favourite bands of the 90's, The Breeders, came to town as part of a tour for the 20th anniversary of their album Last Splash, with sisters Kim and Kelley Deal, bassist Josephine Wiggs, drummer Jim Macpherson and multi-instrumentalist Carrie Bradley. They played Last Splash in full and then treated us to a bunch of other Breeders faves like "Safari", their cover of The Beatles "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" and their cover of fellow Dayton-ites Guided By Voices song "Head To Toe". It was a pure nostalgia trip and it was loads of fun. Exclaim has a review of the show.

Photos: The Breeders, Beliefs @ Danforth Music Hall, Toronto (May 11, 2013)

Daughter, Wilsen @ The Great Hall, Toronto (May 7, 2013)

  Daughter @ The Great Hall: photo by Michael Ligon

There's a review of the show over at Chromewaves.

Photos: Daughter, Wilsen @ The Great Hall, Toronto (May 7, 2013)

Leonard Cohen @ Copps Coliseum, Hamilton (April 9, 2013)

  Leonard Cohen: photo by Michael Ligon


  Leonard Cohen: photo by Michael Ligon


  Leonard Cohen: photo by Michael Ligon

On a cold, windy, rainy night after work in April I made my way from Toronto to Hamilton by Go Transit to see the legendary Leonard Cohen at Copps Coliseum. Fresh from a 2 night stint at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, Cohen acknowledged that it was nice to be back in Canada. I hadn't planned to even go to the show, but when I realized the day before that there were still a few tickets available online, I decided that I owed it to myself as a music fan to check out the influential Cohen. With no opener, Cohen and band sauntered onto the stage to a rousing applause from the audience. A top notch group of musicians, including UK vocalists The Webb Sisters as well as long-time collaborator Sharon Robinson on background vocals, backed up Cohen that night, Cohen's music a delectable mix of gypsy, folk, jazz, blues, and pop influences. The night was strewn with highlights but for me some of my faves were the dance groove of "First We Take Manhattan", the keyboard / Casio-like beat driven "Tower Of London" [Cohen jokingly referring to his instrument as high-tech], a plaintive "Suzanne" with Cohen on guitar, and of course "Hallelujah" which drew a standing ovation. A non-musical highlight was Cohen's poetic reading of "A Thousand Kisses Deep" during which at times I almost choked up due to Cohen's moving, word-weary deilvery. Cohen was in high spirits throughout the night, bantering about being back in Canada, hoping this wouldn't be his last tour, about his hotel room and about wanting a cigarette. He also showed himself, even at 77 years of age, to be quite limber as he occasionally danced, then dropped to his knees. Dressed in a dark suit and hat, Cohen was the epitome of cool over the course of two main sets, and at least a few encores. Unfortunately, I had to leave a few songs into the second encore in order to catch the GO bus back westbound. As a live performer, it felt like Cohen was at the top of his game, and you can't say that for many artists of his age.

More photos here.

The Spec has a review of the show.