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IRON & WINE + CALEXICO + Timber @ Spectrum
By Mikaela Bobiy - Lessons in Lo-Fi - 12/08/2005
This being one of the most highly-anticipated shows of the dwindling year, I had great expectations for this collaborative musical bonanza, and the Southerners did not disappoint. The show began with a bang with local band Timber, who provided a highly-energetic set and elicited an impressive response from an already packed Spectrum. Next, Calexico took the stage for a raucous set, featuring both old and new material. The band, which now includes six members, played a variety of instruments, from the trumpet to any number of percussive implements, lending a mariachi feel to the majority of their numbers. I also want to mention the band’s visuals, which were comprised of grainy, sepia-toned projections of Western-themed footage (deserts, horses, cacti, etc.) -- very hypnotic.
As promised, Calexico’s set was followed by a delightfully languid set by Sam Beam, a.k.a. Iron & Wine, with back-up vocals from his sister. Where Calexico energized the crowd with clap-alongs, Iron & Wine seduced the crowd with quiet lullabies, playing material from their several EPs and full-lengths. Although his stage presence was less than that of Joey Burns, Beam still managed to woo the audience (or me, at least) with his shy and intimate delivery. Highlights included a quiet rendition of "Jezebel", completed by projections of starry Western skies.
Already four hours (!) into the show, Calexico and Iron & Wine took the stage together, and proceeded to play, in order, the majority of their collaborative EP In the Reins, with the last two tracks of the album serving as an encore. The songs themselves were infused with the energy of a live setting, which in turn, seemed to spread to the artists, making what could have been a marathon affair seem fast-paced.
All in all, it was a most impressive evening, sparking a strong appreciation of Calexico and solidifying my already existent adoration of Iron & Wine.
[Tune in to Lessons In Lo-Fi Fridays from Noon to 2pm.]
THE DANDY WARHOLS @ Spectrum
By Antonella Fratino - The Siamese Libertines - 12/02/2005
Certain moments push beyond being mere coincidences. How I found myself flipping through a Nan Goldin retrospective while listening to The Dandy Warhols’ latest album, Odditorium or Warlords of Mars, was one of those moments -- defying machination but respecting some sort of ontological unity. Somewhere between Goldin’s gritty portraits and the evocative “Holding Me Up,” it just clicked -- and I realized why I’m such a fan of the Warhols. Like the cited photographer, the group has been criticized for being contrived, glossy and unoriginal. However, unlike other musicians, the Portland quartet unabashedly alludes to its influences while toying with the boho art world it is part of. And, as both sets of artists prove, certain tropes never get old. In mining matters of sex, drugs and rock 'n roll, Goldin and The Dandy Warhols capture an essence, a scene, a certain place and time. You want to be there. You want to join the party. Yeah.
I was there -- in that space of nostalgia and utter cool -- the night of their recent Montreal show at the Spectrum. My last live memory of the Warhols consists of a topless Zia McCabe bouncing about to “Song 2” when they toured with Blur back in 1997. This time around, it was about the boys showing skin as both frontman Courtney Taylor-Taylor and drummer Brent deBoer graced an ecstatic crowd with their shirtless presence. Already commanding the stage visually, the Warhols rocked, and rocked loudly. Engaging the audience with favourites “Not If You Were The Last Junkie On Earth” (which was performed with surprising enthusiasm), “Bohemian Like You”, “Boys Better”, and “We Used To Be Friends”, the band also incorporated the longer, more atmospheric tracks from Odditorium without losing drive.
Working two mikes seamlessly, Taylor-Taylor embodied the playful sexual energy from songs like “I Love You” and “Minnesoter”, as did the rest of the band members. What became evident as the show progressed was just how much the band actually felt their songs -- and respected the art of music. The Warhols weren’t just performing for the crowd but creating music with us, and their sincere involvement made the night all that more enjoyable. So much so that almost two hours into their set, I didn’t realize it was already time to go. This is when Taylor-Taylor did something I’ve always wanted to see happen in a concert but have never witnessed before. After thanking us for being so great (which we were), he presented the last three songs the band was going to play and stated that there would be no encore, as he felt the whole process was ridiculous. Sure enough, after playing the last song -- a great cover of “Little Drummer Boy” claimed to be performed only between Thanksgiving and Christmas -- the group headed off the stage. Knowing when to leave a good party, The Dandy Warhols did just that.
[The Siamese Libertines rule, OK? Thursdays 4pm-6pm]
SEPULTURA - Live in Sao Paulo
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By Kyle O'Blivion - Into the Coven - 11/08/2005
Sepultura return with their first release since 2003's Roorback. The blazing 21-song "best of" setlist contains material from each of their nine studio albums, dating all the way back to 1986's Morbid Visions. For those metalheads who have been living under a rock for the last 20 years, this double-CD set will provide you with a great introduction to Sepultura's lengthy discography. However for fans of mainly the "older" albums (myself included), another live Sepultura album may seem a bit excessive. 2002's Under a Pale Grey Sky (the last show featuring original vocalist/guitarist Max Cavalera and recorded in 1996) seemed to capture what may have, arguably, been the best of Sepultura's recorded material -- everything up to 1996's Roots -- with their best lineup. Live in Sao Paulo does not add much to the first double live CD, except for a few songs from the post-Max albums. It also seems a bit excessive that this was released as both a double-CD and DVD, sold separately from one another. It would have made sense to see these two released as one package, with a lower price tag. Unless you're a completist or new to the band, you may want to skip this release and stick to listening to Under a Pale Grey Sky with the classic Sepultura lineup.
[Tune in to Into The Coven Saturdays 8pm-10pm]
NADA SURF @ La Sala Rossa
By Cara Ventura - Classified - 10/11/2005
There is something to be said for having the uncanny ability to tell a story with a song...
...and here comes the Weezer comparison (“in the second sentence?”, you may ask. Yes). Pinkerton was a painstakingly written album. The ups and downs of love and life -- dare I say high/lows -- were documented with an ingenuity and heart-on-sleeve mentality that was at once explorative and concise. The balance is devastating. As a side note, the album is so personal -- and the poor initial reception was taken so personally -- that Rivers Cuomo and company never perform tracks off of said album live.
Here we go, then. New York-based Nada Surf pre-existed Weezer as a band: Weezer formed in 1993 shortly after frontman Cuomo left Baltimore for college on the West Coast, whereas Nada Surf members have been together since 1988. They released their first indie single in 1993, and shortly thereafter Nada Surf was signed to Elektra where they finally released their first LP High/Low in 1996, nine months after Pinkerton dropped. Pinkerton took nine months to record; High/Low was recorded during the third month of Pinkerton’s recording. Both albums were produced by Ric Ocasek.
The track “Popular” was a hit, but never brought Nada Surf to the forefront of the geek rock scene as “Buddy Holly” did for Weezer. It is possible that the somewhat mean-spirited tongue-in-cheek attack on the cool high school kids didn’t sit well with the alternative rock audience of 1996, although the more probable reason is that "Buddy Holly" was catchier (and had a freakin' cool Spike Jonze-directed video that got insane rotation on MTV). Nada Surf thus had to deal with being overshadowed by the sensitive rock that the Weezer phenomenon brought to the Top 40 lists of the mid-90's. As their career pushed forward, they became known for the unparalleled ability in the alternative pop scene to tell a coherent and witty story with each up-tempo song on each album.
All this paves the way for some discussion about the show at La Sala Rossa on a crisp October evening. Chris Walla (of Death Cab for Cutie guitarist fame) produced The Weight Is A Gift and that hit music store shelves on September 20th 2005. But first, a bit about The Weight Is A Gift. It is good… it is musically solid, and sounds quintessentially Nada Surf with their trademark perfectly in-key vocal harmonies and extremely competent musicianship. Herein lies the “but”.
The lyrics seem half-baked and the concepts behind the stories are not strikingly cogent. If I didn’t understand English, or if I was twelve years old, I’m pretty sure I’d like this album infinitely more. There doesn’t seem to be any huge step in a direction away from the niche that they have found tried and true -- and to be fair, they have been an obvious musical influence on acts that sprung up around the turn of the millennium. "Blankest Year" and "All Is A Game" could have been easily placed on any of their albums, yet somehow they don’t sound terribly anachronistic.
The performance was, as expected, perfectly executed. The sound in the venue usually causes issues, but they were ignorable. Even the discrepancy between the production on the album and the somewhat unclear acoustics became a non-issue due to the chemistry between the band members, the audience and the music. There was a sense of nostalgia in the show. I did feel as if I was walking back into in that sort of limbo era, post-Pavement pre-Get Up Kids.
There is an earnestness in Matthew Caws’ performance. He has a really genuine heart-on-sleeve delivery with each note he sings and each chord he plays. Matthew is a good balance to Daniel Lorca’s bravado and very "on" stage style. The latter's persona-driven performance of Let Go’s "Là pour ça" was almost cringeworthy.
I enjoyed myself. The show earns three and a half happy faces out of five -- mostly for the overall solidness of the performance. Yet it really wasn’t anything to write home about.
[Classified is currently on hiatus. Keep an eye out for a return to the CJLO family soon.]
JAMES BLUNT + Sarah Blasko @ Café Campus
By Trevor Kiernander - Ones and Zeroes - 10/31/2005
Please take this review with a grain of salt, as I am fully aware of the star power that this artist has recently garnered...
Recently I had the opportunity to see yet another ‘buzz’ artist whose buzz I hadn’t previously caught, James Blunt. I’ll chalk it up to being ridiculously busy for the last year and a half, but I don’t often get to hear new music or at least a great deal of it. So when the Blunt show dropped in my lap and I was like “James what? Blunt who?”, I figured I’d better start the research. I checked out his site which was ‘pretty’ and I had the joy of watching his "You’re Beautiful" video. It was at this point -- coupled with the ‘anonymous’ remark that Blunt was like Antony if he were really David Gray -- that I felt I was going to dread the evening. Supposedly he is huge across the pond in the UK, but watching "You’re Beautiful", I couldn’t tell if he was serious or taking the piss out of the singer/songwriter genre; now that I am back from the show, I am still rather skeptical.
The sold-out show at Café Campus opened with Sarah Blasko. I unfortunately only caught her last song but from what I heard, it angered me that I didn’t get there sooner. Although her voice is similar to that tired throaty female vocals thing (does that make sense to anyone? I would rather not mention other artists), she definitely penetrated the room and there wasn’t a whisper from anyone. I ended up forgoing beer to grab the CD (which was a staggering $20!!! I was wondering if the bar took a cut). Blasko was fresh off a tour with Martha Wainwright, which was rather fitting. Be sure to keep an eye on her.
Now for the Bluntster. I had my doubting cynical coat on that evening, so being made to wait for a simple guitar/keyboard set-up was kinda driving me nuts (especially since at that point, I was still torn between drinking or buying Blasko’s CD, and part of me was worried I would throw my empty bottles if things got worse). He finally ventured on stage with his “bitch” Paul, to huge roars of applause. Am I that far removed from pop music? Should I give up painting and listen to commercial radio day-in day-out? His first three songs had something to do with his shoulder, or a shoulder, or someone’s shoulder, I’m not quite sure as I found myself paying more attention to the crew beside me.
I’d like to take a moment to give some shout-outs to the jock posse that nearly named all the songs out loud as the first few bars were played. You guys were soooo close! I was rooting for you, but you can’t win ‘em all. Perhaps at the next John Mayer show. Way to go champs! Be sure to bone up on your singing though, it’s rather distracting when you don’t know the words or the notes.
Anyway, I’m not quite sure if I would consider Blunt to be the embodiment of Antony as Gray, but quite possibly Cat Stevens as John Mayer. I found his lyrics to be quite simple and predictable, somewhat flakey, but yet I could see how he was attracting the masses. The tunes were rather catchy and he has the acoustic singer/songwriter look down pat. I’m willing to bet that maybe six or seven years earlier, I could see myself being into Blunt, but with so much intelligent music out there, I think you get my point. I mean, I really like artists such as Damien Rice, but I couldn’t wrap myself around Blunt. Perhaps this is the equivalent of high and low art, and what is exceptional and what is kitsch. I don’t know.
Perhaps I am being a little harsh, as he wasn’t all that terrible, sometimes even funny. His rendition of the Pixies' "Where Is My Mind" was refreshing (and kudos to the jockos for picking up on that one too! You guys!) but with the set closer "You’re Beautiful", I just pictured the video of him taking off his clothes and had to leave.
All in all, I guess I could give him a 6 out of 10. But if I were going to suggest singer/ songwriters, there are far too many to even begin to list that would most probably be a far better use of your time. But I am me...
[Tune in to Ones And Zeroes every Monday from 10am to noon.]
AMERICAN ANALOG SET @ Petit Campus
By Louis Rozza - Hooked On Sonics - 11/14/2005
American Analog Set are nearing the tail end of a long North American tour which started in support of their sixth record Set Free, released on the Arts & Craft label. On this night, they hit Montreal for the first time in a while, and if what the band has been saying is true, this could be the last time they will tour. My introduction to the recorded history of American Analog Set came pretty late in their career, with 2003’s fine The Promise of Love which was so good that it inspired me to pick up my guitar again and start a new band. Since then, I have heard more of their material and read numerous articles; they still remain an influence. The band was in fine form, playing a set comprised of not only the new record but also some gems from earlier releases. The main sound of American Analog Set comes from the organ and keyboards, which pulsates through every song, reminiscent of that drone-pop sound that Stereolab used to have. The set was filled with quiet ambient guitars and keys, and on occasion pouring over into a gigantic wall of sound. It was a perfect soundtrack to the beginning of winter: quiet, dark, repetitive, somber. The band was in good sprits too, with singer Andrew Kenny often thanking the crowd, especially the ones who were sitting on the floor in front of the stage, which he said made him feel more at home. The one shortcoming was that I wish they played longer; it was so enjoyable that the hour or so that they did play just flew by. The crowd, mesmerized throughout, wanted more too and coaxed the band into one final song, a request made by someone in the audience. All in all, it was a great experience to finally see one of my favorite bands live.
[Tune in to HOOKED ON SONiCS Tuesdays 6pm – 8pm.]
NASHVILLE PUSSY + Bionic @ Café Campus
By Dallas Richter - Dont Mess With Dallas - 10/05/2005
Opening for Nashville Pussy was supposed to be some band called Whitey Houston (don’t let that wit escape you), but something happened where these dudes from Edmonton couldn’t make it to Montreal. The Whitey CD is actually pretty good. Anyhoo, so local rockers Bionic opened up instead. Now, I’ve never heard much of Bionic, but I’ve been told a lot of stuff, so there was a lot of hype to live up. Fortunately, they lived up to it. Frontman Johnson Cummins, writer of the sans doubt best weekly Mirror column, managed to bring it hard, heavy and loud, filling the room with bobbing heads.
I got my first taste of Nashville -- amongst other sorts -- Pussy in CEGEP. I found the High As Hell CD when my neighbour moved out and said “we left some shit behind, feel free to take it”. I guess it was some kind of going-away gift -- there was a case of 12, a pack of smokes and a Nashville Pussy CD.
When they took the stage at Café Campus, I saw the biggest congregation of sweaty redneck-types since my short visit to Alabama this summer. There was an undeniable party vibe in the air. I wanted to be a part of the party, so I spent the money I saved for a taxi home on beer and kept $2.50 for the last metro. Nashville Pussy brought the noise and had the crowd buzzing. One of the coolest things about Nashville Pussy is that you picture these two ugly, fat hillbillies scoring with hot chicks, including the other two band members, who themselves are sexy stripper-type girls. There is hope in that message somehow. The music was gritty, gyrating, and wooooah-fueled (the newest trend-word for coke that I just invented). Singer Blaine Cartwright, who sounds like asbestos, chain-smoke and a hangover, provided an atmosphere that allowed us to just hang out and not have to look cool, which I hadn’t felt in the last twenty shows I went to.
They played what I think are their best older songs and lots from the new album. They even played a Turbonegro cover. Guitarist Ruyter Suys made out with some hot girl in the audience and while it is a stupid male fantasy, it felt acceptable to enjoy it then and there. The show was fuckin’ great. It made me wanna scream “hell yeah!” all night.
[Tune in to Don’t Mess With Dallas Tuesdays 10am to noon.]
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS + Caribou @ Club Soda
By Émilie Christiansen - 11/01/2005
Super Furry Animals were in town on November 1st and having experienced their live performance before, I knew they were not to be missed. Their shows are known to be a cornucopia of visuals and sound and I was not disappointed. Caribou (formerly known as Manitoba) opened the show and although I’ve never listened to any of their albums, their live set impressed me. The band members were constantly switching instruments and the songs flowed very smoothly from one to the other. It was made doubly interesting by the fact that the music was accompanied by an animated film in the background. They played a long opening set and still managed to keep my attention all the way through.
Between sets, they had a screen showing the turntables backstage in the dressing room, which they were using to DJ. From time to time, as done in previous shows, they would show us messages by writing on paper plates that they would put in front of the camera. SFA started with a “live” intro onscreen, consisting of the band jumping on a golf cart to enter the venue through the back. The band arrived onstage suited up in strange light-producing overalls. They looked furry, yet were producing an eerie green light. They might’ve been made of fiber optics. This effect, added to the background visuals and lights, did not leave you a single second to get bored. The band played mostly their latest songs, keeping the older favourites until the encore.
The band mostly let their surroundings create the action onstage, while they concentrated on producing crazy sounds on their instruments to please our ears. It is only towards the end that singer Gruff Rhys started being more playful. He would use different vocal effects and go nuts by using the microphone experimentally. The concert ended, per Super Furry Animals habit, with crowd pleaser “The Man Don’t Give a Fuck”. Messages decrying governments as liars and murderers were shown on screen and also played from an audio sample. It was a bit odd to jump from a party atmosphere to political rants. The show was concluded with more video work, featuring credits of the road crew and showed the band leaving the venue on their golf cart “live”. Finally, they showed a mini-montage of the city of Montreal. They used this montage of the city to thank the spectators and it was pretty funny to see the way that the editor used the “Go Montreal” Tremblay signs profusely.
Overall, I had a great time from start to finish. Long live crazy background visuals and furry light suits! Super Furry Animals know how to put on a strong live show and I would recommend anyone to see them live.
[Tune in to CJLO all the freakin' time.]
SPOON @ Club Soda
By Alex Huynh - Losing My Edge - 11/02/2005
Spoon are in a weird place. That's the conclusion I came away with after witnessing their first Montreal performance in three years. Back then, cramped in the muggy oven that was Casa Del Popolo, Spoon were an underrated indie band that just released their second record in less than 20 months. The 1-2 punch of Girls Can Tell and Kill The Moonlight would forge their identity, which was previously muddled thanks to the weight of their influences such as the Pixies, Hüsker Dü, Archers Of Loaf and Guided By Voices. Fast-forward to a roomier venue, a younger and less sweaty audience and strangely, their new position as quasi-elder statesmen of indie rock. Hell, you now got tepid crap factories like Robbers On High Street shamelessly ripping them off. Anyway, a lot has happened in three years -- hey, isn't The OC in its third season? -- and needless to say, they are no longer the underrated, rather faceless indie band that had just been acrimoniously dropped from Elektra. What they have become, however, is somewhat curious because with the critical acclaim of their latest release Gimme Fiction, it seems that they're like almost the token "intelligent" band that teenypitchforkers will like. I don't want to say that Spoon's recent work is too mature or subtle for such a young audience... but isn't it? Sweeping generalizations aside, it is heartwarming to see that after a long hard road, their minimalist and increasingly experimental power pop sound has found a growing audience almost solely on the strength of the music.
Starting off the set with Girls Can Tell's "Chicago At Night" was a bold move -- and so was singing into an unplugged mic -- as many expected the opening notes of "The Beast and Dragon, Adored" to welcome us. It did follow the set opener and seamlessly transitioned into "Sister Jack". With the next two songs being "Lines In The Suit" and the first real highlight "Paper Tiger", one expected a balanced set comprised of Spoon's last three albums. What followed was mostly Gimme Fiction songs, with notably "I Turn My Camera On" getting an enthusiastic reception. It was astounding to witness the level of tight musicianship that Spoon has reached, especially the rhythm section. Everything was executed flawlessly and in a classic fashion, but whereas the bits of experimentation work on Gimme Fiction, they came off as slightly sterile in a live context. This is a band on top of their game and with a deep catalogue; I was hoping -- perhaps unfairly -- that the songs would resonate more. As it stands, the brain probably enjoyed the show more than the heart.
After that stretch, songs from Kill The Moonlight and Girls Can Tell started to dominate the last half of the setlist, with "Fitted Shirt", "The Way We Get By" (to the loudest ovation of the evening) and the set closer, "Me and the Bean". The encore featured "Small Stakes", "Everything Hits At Once" and "My Mathematical Mind". From a biased standpoint, it was a great end to a very decent performance. Still, it was hard to shake the feeling that this wasn't as great as it could've been. It wasn't their stage presence either, because while Britt Daniel wasn't particularly chatty, he would occasionally flash a boyish smirk that would connect with the crowd. Speaking of which, the audience could have been described at best as polite and respectful. While Spoon isn't exactly "losing your shit" music, they should be able to deliver a transcendental performance that puts the crowd in a collective trance.
Spoon have moved past their indie rock peers by avoiding easy musical gimmickry and mastering their craft to an unbelievable extent. Starting out as a band that wore their influences on their sleeves, they have since managed to carve a sound that is distinctively theirs. Yet, they are not quite on the level of, say, Wilco when it comes to taking that critical and increasing commercial attention, and bringing it to the next level from a live perspective. At heart, they are still a bar band -- and I mean that as a compliment -- with arty tendencies, perhaps more fitting for small to medium-sized clubs. As their changing environment takes them to bigger venues, here's hoping that Spoon will adapt their live performances to match the ambitious music that they put out on record.
[Tune in to Losing My Edge Sundays 2pm-4pm and Tuesdays 8pm-10pm.]
MATTHEW GOOD @ Club Soda
By Marc Wiltshire - The Humpday Buffet - 10/18/2005
This marks my fifth occasion seeing Matthew Good live, and even after so many shows over the years, he still manages to evoke an incomparable emotional response from his audience. For the past ten years, Matthew Good’s music has revolved around my life on many different levels, without ever getting old. I have caught myself listening to his music consistently and still manage to discover something new about it, and moreover, about myself.
The show opener was different than what I was expecting, as he played a very slow-paced eight-minute song, which evolved into a powering climax. Good’s music seems to crawl on an audience, slowly and gently, weaving a web of melodies and lyrics that transcribe into something beautiful and heart-pumping. The show was filled with classic tracks dating back to his debut album and ranging until his most recent contributions from his ten-year retrospective album In A Coma: 1995-2005.
The thing I love the most about any concert is the discourse between the artist and the audience. Matthew Good is always exceptional for me in this regard. He’s the kind of musician that cherishes his fans for making his career move forward, and makes it very apparent in his shows (it’s the little things, like telling us the Canadiens won 4-3 against Boston, the game that was going on while the show was). The man knows which city he’s playing for. The audience’s interactions with Good made it feel like we were all friends with the band and that we were there to show support and have fun. A lot of shows, particularly bands who have marked their territory in the industry, seem to create a formal atmosphere around their show. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen some great shows by big-time artists and loved every moment of them, but eventually it feels somewhat formulaic and “professional” when the band is just playing, doing their thing and hardly interacting with its audience. A concert for me is a means of connecting two beings (artists and audience) to celebrate in one night of music. Seldom do I get that feeling from a band unless they’re playing at Missy Bar or somewhere similarly small. Matthew Good never disappoints me on this criterion. He’s so honest, modest and passionate about what he does, but more importantly, he shares that feeling with his audience.
My favorite part of the show was by far the encore. I suppose encores would frequently be a highlight, but in this particular instance, it relates to my point above. While the band got off stage and the audience was screaming with enthusiasm for their eventual return, a few fans began to sing “K-I-C-K-A-S-S, THAT’S THE WAY WE SPELL SUCCESS”, quoting the opening of one of The Matthew Good Band’s most famous songs, “Giant”. It sprung out of one person and before we knew it, the entire audience was singing along with it. It may not have been a surprise, but it was great to see Good play that song immediately when coming on stage. I have a feeling that he was going to play it, but maybe not right away, so it just added to that feeling of connection between the band and audience.
It still amazes me that even after hearing these songs so many times and seeing them being performed as often, Matthew Good’s music continues to blow me away and holds a special place in the lonely or sad moments in my life. His music is very therapeutic for me, and I’m sure it will continue to get even better.
[Tune in to The Humpday Buffet on Sundays 6pm – 8pm… which is always sexy.]
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