Concert Reviews

I first heard about Denmark’s Iceage in an Iggy Pop interview with Australia’s Triple J in 2013. They had just released their critically acclaimed sophomore album You’re Nothing, and Iggy was praising them on their ability to “express negative energy.” This led me to downloading the album immediately, and I’ve been a fan since. With Plowing Into the Field of Love, their 2014 album, they displayed their growth in both musicality and lyricism. Their latest effort, Beyondless, supports Iggy Pop’s claim. It demonstrates further growth and maturity and proves that Iceage is a band with something to say, and that they are here to stay.

Ever have one of those nights where you have two bands from two very different genres, play at the same time, at different venues? Well, imagine a concert where, on the same night and at one single venue, you could mosh to some garage punk AND sway and bop to some retro rock. Seems impossible? If this is your ideal Monday night, this past June 4^th, L’Escogriffe put on a fantastic dual concert that satisfied musical flip-floppers like myself. Math punk rock band Gym Shorts from Rhode Island and retro doo-wop rock band La Luz from Seattle showcased some sick riffs and mellow ballads. More importantly, the night was full of talented and badass women.

The eighth edition of Montreal’s punk music extravaganza, better known as Pouzza Fest, kicked off the festival season over the Victoria Day weekend, taking place outdoor at Quartier des spectacles and indoors at several establishments centered around the area. 

This year’s fest featured some returning Pouzza alumni like MU330 and The Creepshow, while welcoming some new bands like Reel Big Fish and Face to Face. Punk music has always been known for its political message, and War on Woman and Anti-Flag made sure that fire kept burning at the outdoor stage on Saturday night. 

First and foremost, I must give the Kalmunity Music Week 2018 a standing round of applause for creating an excellent event with numerous artists from home and abroad spanning numerous genres.

As part of the week, the collective hosted a hip-hop night featuring Washington D.C’s own Sa-Roc (a.k.a Goddess MC), and she did what she usually does: put on a great performance.

The Distortion Psychfest returned to Église S-E-J du Mile-End May 9 to 13 2018 for its third edition. The festival showcases some of the best psych, garage, and noise bands from Montreal and beyond. This years edition kicked things off with a double release party — Tel Aviv→New York guitarist Yonatan Gat’s latest LP Universalist, and Montreal band TEKE::TEKE’s debut EP Jikaku. Sheenah Ko which I unfortunately missed, opened the show filling in for Chris Forsyth, and Sunwatchers took care of the music for the after party.