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Collective Effervescence with Eliza McLamb at Bar Le Ritz
Years ago in American high school, there was a pretty girl in my year whose friends were friends with my friends; she played guitar and worked at the perfume store next to the kratom cafe I frequented. Fast forward seven years and that girl is a touring musician selling out venues to screaming fans and I’m getting guest-listed for her show. Eliza McLamb’s debut album Going Through It, released on her birthday at the beginning of this year, is emotionally raw and wrecked. This album is ripe with dialectical emotions, straddling the pain of being alone to tumultuous relationships, big city living and finding commercial success with the conflictual need for backroads and deep woods, and loving so hard and hurting so much. Her band reflects this, with silences holding the audience’s breath to walls of sound with distortion pedals and screaming lyrics. With the clear acoustic guitars overlaid on fuzzed-out solos and hard-hitting drums McLamb’s music sounds like an indie gothic with an urgency to be known while remaining sexily mysterious.
Eliza’s vocals fully convey the depths of feeling put into her songs, both lyrically and sonically. When she sings you feel it all go deep inside of you, pulling out feelings you didn’t even know you had. When the music surrounds you it's as if you are standing there, as her, growing older in front of the frozen creek, or forcing your Corolla down backroads and over potholes. It feels strange to me, like I have a special connection to her music, though I’m sure all the young girls in the audience feel the same, but I am intimately aware of the landscape we came from. Eliza Mclamb’s and my hometown is a Southern liberal enclave, with woods surrounding every neighborhood and school, and creeks that meander through and into the open escape of rolling pasture fields. I hear a significant appreciation for the beauty of the natural world that encompasses us in Eliza’s lyrics, especially in her new single ‘God Take Me Out of LA’. The opening lines lament the lack of nature and weather in LA, her deep desire to get out of the fast-paced concrete jungles she worked so hard to get into, and the pain of visiting home and seeing what you’ve missed: the overflowing creeks, the fallen trees, your family and the scattering of friends who stayed. I feel I understand what she means, running off to a big city that feels like it hates you, feeling stuck, undecided, and that nagging and disappointing urge to move back home, to our creeks and our woods.
Eliza’s concert was really sweet, she was quiet when she spoke but it felt meaningful when she did. She interacted with the audience as if we were friends, asking for our honest reaction to her new, unreleased songs, encouraging us to sing along, and sharing her feelings about her tour coming to a close. Halfway through the show, she told us she felt annoyed that the venue smelled like chocolate cake as if someone was pranking her with delicious treats until she realized it was her chocolate cake-scented makeup getting sweated off in the hot red stage lights. The band was very tight, they all played their instruments extremely well, even the horrifically cracked cymbal, and expertly navigated each of their pedalboards. They adapted to awkward moments of tangled cables and guitar straps disconnecting with friendly giggles while continuing to play. During her second to last song, ‘Lena Grove’, Eliza introduced it as her own version of an encore, so we know that when she leaves the stage it's really over and she's not coming back. She donned her acoustic guitar as her band left the stage, swooned out the heart-wrenching lyrics, and slowly her bandmates came back on stage and picked up the quieter song into a roaring wave. They played one more song and left the stage for good. That is a fantastic way to do an encore.
It was really cool and inspiring to see someone from high school become a successful touring musician, especially someone who still follows my defunct private Instagram account I used to overshare my teenage antics. It feels almost invasive to listen to her music, like I have some level of intimate knowledge about what she's singing about, despite us never being close. Oh, the things teenagers will post on social media.
Jasper Cobb is the host of The Castle, on air every Friday at 1 PM
POP Montreal: Saturday
POP Montreal returned for its annual weekend of concert after concert spread over 5 days, with over 400 artists and bands playing at over 50 venues across the city. On Thursday, CJLO staff attended a few of the shows POP had to offer
Lisa Rupnik
After attending POP for a few days in a row, by Saturday I was running out of steam. Yet, with the festival’s amazing lineup, my mind somehow convinced my body to get up and give it one last shot. With a cute outfit, complete with tote bag and badge I was ready to hit up the heart of Mile End for night 3
It was by lucky coincidence that the artists I wanted to see happened to be playing on different floors of the Rialto on the same night. Not so lucky were the overlapping set times, as is the ongoing struggle with Pop. This time my festival plan felt more like a football coach revving up his team, dividing up time and assets to have the best experience possible.
The first artist I knew I wanted to see was Nabihah Iqbal. I was lucky enough to see her perform in Austin, Texas this past March as part of an unofficial SXSW showcase put on by Creem Magazine. If you would like to know more about that, please refer to my article on the festival that I wrote this past spring. But before Nabihah Iqbal took the stage local indie rockers Dresser performed to a very receptive crowd. The band was tight, and it was a pleasure to watch them effortlessly play music together. The combination of guitar riffs, bass lines and drums felt easy and simple as if they were passing a ball back and forth. The audience swayed in slow motion and it would come to no surprise if Dresser left with a few new fans after their performance.
Once Nabihah Iqbal took the stage, I was suddenly reminded of her unmistakable presence. Both in her music and personal fashion, she really has her own style devoid of any trends or influence from others. Hair tucked in her leather cap, with a frilled jacket and polka dot guitar, Nabihah Iqbal feels like your cool friend who should be the center of attention but instead is modest and down to earth. Her set was very similar to Austin's in the sense that she played with just her guitar and a multi-instrumentalist on sax. When she played her most popular songs like “This World Couldn’t Keep Us” and “Sunflower”, the timid Mile End crowd turned momentarily into a mini club.
Once she had performed the songs I knew I needed to hear, I slowly tiptoed my way out of the venue to catch the last bit of Astrid Sonne. After FOMO from missing ML Buch this past June, I knew I couldn’t risk missing such a great experimental artist again. So I secretly snuck my way into the Rialto basement trying not to disturb the show going on down there. Astrid Sonne was accompanied by another multi-instrumentalist and the two of them on stage created intricate, rich and personal music. For a very low-key and quiet performance, the crowd was very respectful and seemed genuinely connected to the music. Her performance felt too short, and when she stood up for a bow you could feel her genuine warmth radiating from her smile. She seemed grateful to be there and the crowd was more than generous with applause.
The last artist of the night was Ouri who, by the way, is one of my all-time favourite local Montreal artists, who surprisingly I have actually never seen before. Multitalented, she sang, and played harp, cello, and keyboard during her performance and was accompanied by a guitar, bass and drum player with a surprise guest: a wispy-haired woman who was none other than Helena Deland. Ouri’s performance was such a demonstration of her unique voice as a songwriter but also as a sonic world builder. When I listen to her music, I love to disconnect from myself and follow her melodies and see where they will take me. Her songs blend so many different genres, and styles, and present complex feelings and ideas. The only thing tying it all back together is her beautiful soul at the root. And with Helena Deland on stage, the crowd was treated to a couple of sneak previews of some Hildegard songs from their new album Jour 1596. You simply could not get any better than this.
Lisa Rupnik is the station manager at CJLO and co-host of The Last Stop. She is also an avid record collector, a “no nonsense” film lover and feels that her personality can be best defined by her two favourite bands: YMO and Sparks
Robert Portnoff
Saturday night saw a triple bill at La Sala Rossa starting with Montreal’s synth-punk heroine, Laura Krieg. Alone on stage, but for a synthesizer, she commanded the attention of the audience with a steely glare and an allure reminiscent of a black widow spider about to devour its prey. Playing through songs from her 2018 album Recherche Spatiale and her 2021 EP Vie Magique.
Next was another Montreal artist Alix Fernz, who was formerly in the band Blood Skin Atopic and also worked with Montreal bands La Sécurité and Hippie Hourrah. Now out on his own he recently released his first album, Bizou.
For the concert at La Sala Rosa, he was joined on stage with the usual cohorts: bass, drums and guitar plus the man himself, Alix Fernz on synthesizer and vocals. For this night the band provided a more rock, post-punk vibe to the show as opposed to the electronic sound of the studio album.
Closing out the evening at La Sala Rossa was punk/new wave icon Edith Nylon. Originating in Paris during the summer of 1977, and opening for acts like the Police and then The Kinks in November of 1979. Unfortunately, the band decided to call it a career in December of 1983. Recently though, after a forty-year hiatus in the rock and roll desert, Edith Nylon has found a resurgence with a new generation of fans. As such, the renewed interest resulted in a 2021 album, La Fin de la Vie Sauvage
Led by the vocals of Mylène Khaski and the guitar of Christophe Boutin and Karl Mormet. The wealth of experience was clearly on display at La Sala Rossa with the band being quite relaxed and often could be seen with a smile on their face or laughing as they interacted with the audience. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and one could clearly see the band was appreciative of their renewed rock star status. Those in attendance were also quite appreciative when calling out for a second encore.
Sunday night, the end of the road for Pop Montreal 2024 and the Rialto was hosting, La Route Chante: Hommage à Lhasa. Lhasa de Sela was a Mexican-American musician who after a short visit in 1991 fell for the charms of Montreal and decided to call the city her home. Almost 15 years after her death from cancer in 2010, POP put together a wonderful tribute night dedicated to her art and music, all under the direction of Joe Grass and a who’s who of artists that included the likes of The Barr Brothers, Feist, Calexico, Juana Molina, Silvana Estrada, Klô Pelgag, Myriam Gendron, Bibi Club, Helena Deland, La Force, Laurence Anne, Yves Desrosiers, Samantha de la Vega and The Stone Bonnet Choir.
The highlight of the evening was the singing of twenty-seven-year-old Mexican musician and songwriter Silvana Estrada. First appearing solo, she dismayed the packed house by displaying a vocal range that could befit any top opera in the world. Then joined by members of the Tucson, Arizona band Calexico the Mexican side of Lhasa’s heritage emerged, and the Rialto was full of people dancing in the aisles.
Sam Kitch
Having missed POP Friday due to circumstances wildly out of my control (fell asleep on the couch at 7:30), I was duly excited for Saturday night. I decided to start the night off burrowed deep in the Little Italy, at Bar L’Hemisphere Gauche, and after warming up with a truly stunning round of pinball, I was ready to take in some kick-ass independent music. Starting off the night was a beautiful, full-circle solo performance from local musician Pompey (read about my previous POP experience with Pompey here.) While Pompey’s music comes from a place of hurt, and has developed through years of trauma, there is a warm familiarity to it. In between bouts of distorted, aching vocals and crashing guitars are hidden moments of peaceful serenity, vanishing just as quickly as they came in another heart-wrenching wave of sound. If you haven’t yet heard Pompey’s “snug tug”, I urge you to indulge; just make sure you’re in a good headspace before, or it might just break you.
Following up Pompey was Montreal’s premiere post-grunge outfit, Sunforger, with a soul-shaking set filled to the brim with harsh, grating riffs and razor-sharp songwriting. Jumping time signatures what felt like every other track, I have never been so on my toes throughout a set; completely unaware of what was next to come, and yet totally and wholly absorbed by the music. Sunforger is one of those “close your eyes and listen” bands, transporting you to other planets through their weird, distorted sonic medium.
Next up was Gawbé, a Quebec City beacon for all things alternative rock. While my French is not good enough to translate songs on the fly, I don’t think something as simple as a language barrier can stand in the way of understanding Gawbé. Her lively, down-to-earth attitude seems to convey all you need to know, guiding you along with a helpful hand and a wonderful, rolling drum line.
The final act of the night, and the one that drew me to L’Hemisphere in the first place, was Montreal indie darlings knitting. Fresh off the release of their newest project, Some Kind Of Heaven, catching knitting live right now feels like something you’ll tell your kids about in 20 years. Bringing to mind ideas of The Pixies and Pavement, knitting’s sound walks the line of grunge influence perfectly, maintaining a beautiful level of grit without sounding messy and distorted. It’s music to walk through a busy street to, bobbing and weaving between crowds, all the while emersed in your own sonic world. A highlight of the set came with their performance of “Heaven”, a track with a chorus so catchy you'll wake up singing it (I’m dead serious, it happened to me.)
Though I had to call it there, I thoroughly enjoyed POP this year. Bringing even more life to Mile-End is always something I’ll endorse, especially when it's backed by some of the coolest local music one can find.
Sam Kitch is the magazine editor at CJLO 1690AM. He is also the host of I Think You Might Like This, a hip-hop show airing Tuesdays at 2:00 PM.
Aviva Majerczyk
On the final full day of Music programming at Pop Montreal, my energy was not at its highest. Saturday was one of those days when I really, really did not want to leave my house. Blessed with the ability to walk to any Pop venue from my apartment fairly quickly, as the evening went on, I found myself duelling the “okay time to get up off the couch” impulse. But, eventually, with one opener left, I made my way down to Bar L’Escogriffe for Jane Penny’s headlining show. And I couldn’t be more glad I did.
As I got to the venue, and saw a few friends and CJLO DJs mingling outside, I knew this show was going to have a great crowd energy. I was finally pulled into L’Esco when it was time for friends of the station Fireball Kid + Ura Star to go on. Fireball Kid and Ura Star put on an infectious set. The synthy party pop of these overlapping acts had the whole venue dancing and singing along, with the guys jumping up on the stage risers, holding ceiling beams for support as they sweat and danced away over the crowd. A true party band, this set immediately jumpstarted by energy for the night.
After another pint and a bit of mingling with friends, it was time for Jane Penny to take the stage. I have been a fan of TOPS since I was in high school, a certifiably iconic Montreal band. Yet, to this day, I have never seen them live. I had also missed co-founder and frontwoman Jane Penny’s solo album release show earlier this year, so, despite having to peel myself off the couch earlier in the night, there’s really no way I would have missed this show. Penny’s album Surfacing was one of the albums to define my summer of 2024, so it only felt right to mark the end of summer, as Pop Montreal tends to do, with this show.
Penny played off her solo album, as well as an unreleased track, slinking around the small L’Esco stage with long corded microphone in hand. The set had an almost lounge-act feeling, especially on the hyper-smooth sultry songs like “Artificial Genuine.” Later in the set, she went behind her keyboard as well as played her iconic flute, which of course got big cheers from the crowd.
This L’Esco Pop show felt like a return of a hometown hero, with a packed house and lots of familiar faces in the crowd (other TOPS members and lots of local bands in attendance). The event was unmistakably Mile End, and, in that way, it helped me have a bit more appreciation for the neighbourhood I call home.
Aviva Majerczyk is the head music director at CJLO 1690AM. She is also the host of The Alley, a folk-rock show airing Fridays at 11:00 AM.
Myles Smith Leaves Montreal Slightly Less Lonely
Halfway through the first leg of The Slightly Less Lonely Tour, Myles Smith stopped in Montreal for the first time on Saturday, October 26th. The tour, sparked by his TikTok successes and his breakout hit “Stargazing”, drew a passionate crowd to the Theatre Beanfield, eager to experience his emotional and personal sound live.
Smith opened the show with a story that many found relatable, sharing how just 13 months prior, he was working nine-to-five, yet felt compelled to take a leap of faith into music. Little by little, he built up the confidence to pursue his dreams—a journey the audience felt a part of as he shared his music and stories.
As a long-time concertgoer, I can confidently say this was one of the best shows I’ve attended, partly due to the show’s impressive punctuality and professionalism. Opening act Lily Fitts, an up-and-coming indie-folk artist, took the stage right at 8 p.m. Her set, a mix of released singles and unreleased gems, was the perfect blend of introspective lyrics about relationships, both romantic and platonic, leaving the audience wanting more. Fitts wrapped up her set with a cover of Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season”, a sweet touch that brought me full circle since my first-ever concert, in 2019, was Kahan on that very same stage.
At 8:45 p.m., the band appeared, decked out in Canadiens jerseys, with Smith himself sporting the expo’s: Guerrero’s number 27. They opened with “River”, a powerful song choice that hinted at the raw emotion Smith would pour into the night. He followed with a haunting cover of “Sweater Weather” and then played his song “Solo”, stripped down to just Smith and his electric guitar before the rest of the band joined in. This interplay between solo moments and full-band builds continued throughout the night, creating a dynamic, and captivating experience.
Between songs, Smith shared deeply personal stories, connecting each to universal themes of love, loss, and growth. In one particularly profound moment, he performed “My First Heartbreak”, an acoustic unreleased ballad about his father. The crowd held its breath as he played, absorbed by the vulnerability of the moment. At the end of the song, he thanked the audience for the safe space we’d created, one that allowed him to share these personal pieces of his life.
One of the most memorable moments of the night was when Smith encouraged the audience to turn on their phone flashlights if they had ever felt alone or struggled with their demons. “And now,” he said, “in a moment of bravery, I just want you to show every single person here your light.” The arena glowed with tiny, flickering lights, each a symbol of shared experiences and resilience. He followed this heartwarming moment with his latest release, “Wait for You”, leaving a lasting impact.
Throughout the show, Smith’s connection and appreciation towards his fans was clear. He even performed “Stargazing” three times, each time with a different twist. The second time, he surprised everyone by jumping into the crowd and singing along with his fans, who were overjoyed to be part of the performance. Later, he asked the audience to put away their phones for one chorus to experience the music solely within the room. Even Lily Fitts joined him for this acoustic moment, creating a magical atmosphere where everyone sang and danced together. As the night wound down, Smith made a point to thank his band, crew, tech team, and venue staff for their hard work. Watching him interact with his bandmates and share hugs at the end, I could tell this tour wasn’t just about him—it was a collective journey with everyone involved.
Smith also surprised the audience with an announcement about his next project, titled A Minute, scheduled for release on November 8th. The news, now official, hints at an exciting new chapter for Smith. As I left the concert, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had just witnessed something extraordinary. Smith’s openness, his gratitude toward his fans, and his raw, soulful music left a permanent mark. In a world that often feels divided, Smith’s concert reminded us all that we are, in fact, slightly less lonely.
It’s not too late to see Myles Smith live on his debut tour. He’s coming back to Theatre Beanfield next Wednesday, November 6th, and also stopping at MTELUS during the second leg of his tour on Friday, April 18th, 2025. Don’t miss out and get your tickets now!
Empress Of's Birthday Eve Show at Bar Le Ritz
Empress Of’s birthday-eve show at Bar Le Ritz closed out the North American leg of her tour for her newest album For Your Consideration. The show was opened by Casey MQ, a former Torontonian DJ turned Los Angeles producer, whose soft vocals cooed into the microphone and coaxed the dispersed audience toward the stage. In the crowd of 30- to 40-something-year-olds I could hear whispers about his Club Quarantine project, a Zoom-based nightly club created by a group of Torontonian hyperpop-y artists in the early days of COVID lockdown. Club Q’s popularity grew exponentially, starting in March of 2020 with ‘crowds’ barely passing 100 screens, to hosting big-name artists like Charli XCX and Alice Glass in April, capping out the Zoom attendance limits at 1,000. As one of the early attendees of Club Q, it helped buffer the adjustment from partying five nights a week as a first-year university student to staring at a screen for any form of social engagement. It's been really heartwarming to see Casey MQ go from being a shy DJ partying online with his friends to living in Los Angeles as a producer and releasing his own music. Though I’ve never been a big fan of his music, which feels too much like Taylor Swift’s 1989 era to me, I appreciate seeing how far he's come. In his performance, Casey repeatedly switched from standing with the microphone to sitting next to his laptop playing a keyboard. This felt sweet but a bit awkward, to constantly be shifting positions; and while he didn’t have much to say he was very appreciative of Empress Of for being brought along on this tour In my opinion, sometimes it's best to stay quiet rather than repeat oneself when on stage.
Once Empress Of came on stage, in a matching plaid top and side-split pleated skirt, the audience was full and concentrated in the front. Unlike many concerts I’ve been to there was no weird two-foot space between the stage and the first row of onlookers. Perhaps it was Bar Le Ritz’s layout or the quality of fans present, either way, it was refreshing to not have to awkwardly shuffle forward when the performer asks you to come closer. Empress Of immediately jumped into playing songs from her newest album, For Your Consideration, released this past spring, and the remix album at the beginning of October. She only stopped to greet the crowd and introduce her multi-instrumentalist behind her after her second or third song, as if she wanted to slam us into dance rather than build up anticipation as some artists do. Her one-woman band was Cecilia, one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen. She stood to the side of center stage and created the entire sonic landscape by playing keyboard, Moog, guitar, looping vocals and controlling drum backing tracks. Empress Of declared herself a yapper, and when Cecilia found her talking too much between tracks she would just start playing the next song. It was a really cute dynamic, and I couldn’t tell if the sexual tension was between Cecilia and Empress Of or the audience collectively thirsting over the two beautiful and talented women on stage.
This was the last set of the For Your Consideration North American tour, and the night before her 35th birthday, she made this clear by going hard. She had a plethora of self-choreographed dance moves and would repeatedly pick up a fan on the floor and raise it up above her head to blow through her hair before setting it back on the stage to blow her skirt up, Marilyn Monroe-esque, showing off her leather underwear. The set list for the show was wonderfully inclusive, with lots of songs from the newest album, her hits from the past that transported me back to high school feels; and songs from her 2020 album I’m Your Empress Of. These included her “theme song” as she described it, along with audio clips of her mother, during which she would raise her hands up in gratitude towards the hanging speakers. One thing I found exciting was her inclusion of songs she had recently featured on like Shygirl’s 4eva and Kito’s Wild Girl. I’m not used to artists performing songs they feature on without the main artist and I really like it, especially since I’ve seen Shygirl perform 4eva at the Charli XCX x Troye Sivan Sweat tour this past September.
I enjoyed thinking that I may have been the youngest person in the audience, it felt nice to be in a friendly crowd with no need to fight to keep my spot in the front. There was a gay couple in front of me, who would occasionally turn to each other to make jokes and giggle, very adorable; and an older woman in her 50s next to me who, during her favorite songs, would reach her arms up and lose herself in dance. It was a really sweet crowd of fans who knew the lyrics to everything, from newer songs to hits from 2017. However, in recent female-fronted concerts, I’ve noticed an uncomfortable trend of one normal-looking guy (ie. not one of the girls or the gays) standing in the dead center of the front row, holding a phone out and recording the entire concert. I don’t want to assume anything but I do find it strange, like, if you’re so obsessed with the artist, why don’t you put your phone down and enjoy the concert in the moment? I’ll never understand behavior like this, but I’m biased, I even feel embarrassed to pull my phone out to take the picture that is required for these write-ups.
The Art of the Unconventional: Experiencing Xiu Xiu Live and In Album
Few bands have the ability to create music that feels like both a confessional and a confrontation, but Xiu Xiu’s artistry does just that. Xiu Xiu performed in Montreal on October 18th, less than a month after releasing their latest album, 13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips, marking another milestone for the California-based band that has been around since 2002. Using a mix of haunting melodies and experimental sounds, Xiu Xiu’s performance was definitely memorable; their set that night journeyed through complex and layered compositions that have become Xiu Xiu’s trademark, shifting from atmospheric to intense with seamless transitions.
The intermission music after the opening act, Picastro, finished their set was classical violin, featuring songs like Tabula Rasa: I. Ludus, which heavily contrasted Xiu Xiu’s performance. The music fluctuated from soft and lulling, to loud, pounding, and even angry, often within the same song. A captivating element was the act the guitarist and lead singer Jamie Stewart put on, moving his whole body by jumping, kicking, acting grandiosely and making dramatic gestures in key moments. His performance was even humorous at times, like when he pranced across the stage with an instrument on his head. It is also an extension of their music, which is very exaggerated and striking. The kind of music they create would be considered experimental, unconventional, even avant-garde as it mixes noise with pop sounds, which Xiu Xiu is no stranger to, as they have covered many songs from pop (and other) artists like Rihanna.
In between tracks, there were meaningful pauses of silence, which were likely intentional, to make each song more poignant and moving. Interestingly, in these moments, the band interacts with the audience as they must also remain silent. When some concertgoers were speaking loudly during a beat of silence, they were called out and told by Jamie that if they were louder than them, they were too loud.
The songs that stood out to me were the ones that had upsetting themes of sexual violence and evoked true, harsh screams from Angela Seo, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist. One track in particular stood out to me, Wig Master, which is on their 2006 album The Air Force, but blended beautifully with the rest of the set. It was performed very differently from the way it was originally recorded; it debuted with a vibrator being taped onto a cowbell, creating a rhythmic beating quite jarringly paired with the painfully loud and intentionally jolting sounds of the song. The song is likely meant to cause discomfort as it recounted a painful experience, and some lyrics were vocalizing disturbing thoughts, which certainly took me aback, but made it all the more enthralling! Some members of the audience were laughing probably out of discomfort, and others were plugging their ears as the music was noxiously loud, which again was intentional in getting the message behind the song across. The use of the vibrator as an instrument references a project Xiu Xiu did in 2015, where they taped 999 pink vibrators to a Danh Vo “We the People” copper sculpture, recorded different tracks, and named the album Kling Klang.
It seems as though 13” Frank Beltrame Italian Stiletto with Bison Horn Grips is Xiu Xiu’s most exploratory and maximalist project to date, bordering on rock, but twisting it into something else entirely. This album reflects Xiu Xiu’s unique style, which is innovative, blurs lines and rejects simplicity. Tracks like “Common Loon”, which is very upbeat and vibrant, contest what we have previously seen from Xiu Xiu, which tends to be more melancholic and dark. Themes in this album touch on love, sexuality, and self-acceptance, which is not unheard of in their discography, but they have touched on much darker things like suicide and abuse. Drummer David Kendrick’s contributions bring new energy to tracks like “One Maestro Chord” and “T.D.F.T.W.” (The Devil Forgiven That’s Why), which maximize percussion and vigour, and contrast other tracks like “Sleep Blvd.”, which uses synth, and is significantly softer and dreamlike.
Watching Xiu Xiu perform live is less a concert and more a visceral experience; their willingness to explore difficult subjects, combined with their dynamic range of sound, made their performance a whirlwind of emotions that left a lasting impact. The interplay between vulnerability and aggression captures the essence of their artistry, inviting audiences to not only listen but to feel deeply. For anyone seeking a profound musical experience that challenges perceptions and evokes emotion, attending a Xiu Xiu concert is highly recommended.
David Cross Band's Four-Hour King Crimson Cookout
David Cross Band’s performance at Club Soda was one of the most alienating evenings of live music I have ever endured. It was in most ways, objectively lame, but much of it was so endearing or otherwise strange that this feeling of inadequacy was easy to forget about. I have seldom felt so out of place in my entire life. I went expecting some great music and left satisfied in the part of my brain that loves not knowing what is happening.
I found out about the show a week before it happened through one of the poorest Instagram advertisements I’d ever seen. It was a fuzzed-out video with the words “David Cross Band plays King Crimson’ over it. It was the kind of thing I could have made on my iPod in three minutes at age ten, and I didn’t even know who David Cross was.
David Cross was the violinist for the legendary King Crimson between 1972 and 1974, which in my young opinion is their greatest run of records. King Crimson is a band that’s extremely hit or miss for me, but some of those songs are worth any opportunity to see played live, due to their grandiosity alone. I’d pay money to see any group of guys play “Starless”, and David Cross himself being there was just a plus. The post’s description promised King Crimson alumni playing Larks’ Tongues in Aspic (1973) front to back, as well as ‘most’ of Red (1974) and Starless and Bible Black (1974). The word ‘most’ frightened me, as this is prog rock, so even one song each from those other albums would add a good 30 minutes to the show minimum. I was in for a long one.
My friend who’d agreed to come cancelled on me last minute, and after 20 minutes of calling people with invites, I gave up and just went alone. This actually added to my experience, as sitting through the four-hour show without anyone to quip at was maddening to the point of hilarity.
When I arrived at Club Soda, I realized I was in for something new. The floor where I’d planned to stand was full of little lounge chairs and beer tables. People were sitting around, chatting and drinking as if in their own backyards. They had successfully turned Club Soda’s energy into that of an indoor cookout. I was an outlier in the audience by having hair. The distilled culture of aging Quebecois prog-heads all washed over me in an instant, in all its tough love glory. The audience was filled with wives and sons dragged by weirdo fathers proclaiming, ‘I know you don’t like my music, but you have to see this.’ I wasn’t sure yet what being there said about me, but I wasn’t about to be the only one without a beer.
I got a nice seat in the upstairs section. It was the first time I’d ever poked around up there. The openers were a band called Miriodor, from Quebec City, who announced that they don’t play very often anymore and that this was a special occasion. It was soon obvious that for those in tune with Quebecois prog-rock, (a deceptively large community outside of Montreal) these guys were the real deal. I wouldn’t doubt it if you told me half of the audience was there simply to see Miriodor, who’ve had an active, however aging, cult following for over 40 years. It’s a great thing when a band achieves perfect morphological homogeny with their audience. If any player swapped with an audience member while I wasn’t looking, I’d never notice. They all had that rough-edged but quiet barbecue swagger about them.
Miriodor’s music was about what you’d expect from a niche band stuck in the 70s. Apocalyptic, multiphase riffing. Quirky, shifting melodies and rapid chord changes. Some long droning passages with synthesizers. One song opened with a bizarre series of samples including opera singing and a car crash. The crowd seemed to love it and that’s what’s important, this never could have been my scene. A man screamed out so loudly and inappropriately during one of their songs that I saw him being scolded by his wife in the audience. Based on their music alone, you can tell Miriodor are King Crimson worshippers, and that this self-proclaimed rare appearance of theirs is a big night for them. I can’t imagine what it’s like to finally open for your heroes at such an old age. Their teen summer flick had its credits roll in their 70s. It’s possible that makes the payoff even more worth it, and that is a beautiful thing, even if it also took them this long to get the girl. After playing their final song, a perk to a seated audience revealed itself, and the band got a standing ovation.
Between acts, I went for a little walk to catch my breath and mentally prepare for another three hours of music. As I walked, I immersed myself in some of the drunkest people I have ever seen. Nobody’s wives looked impressed. Back inside, the venue played both a song with the Soviet Union’s anthem as a guitar solo, and Pink Floyd’s Animals, which people sang along to. There was weight to the culture I had accidentally barged into, and the people were ready for some prog.
The David Cross Band stepped onstage and immediately carried on the feeling of the openers. David himself was elegantly suited and wearing a fedora. A real bloke. He was slightly hunched over but looked very good for his age overall. The man is a 75-year-old rock violinist, and that is something I’m sure the world is quickly running out of. After playing an original song that I didn’t recognize, he announced the names of every member of the band. They looked very thrown together, all being of different ages and dressed for different eras of rock music. I’m sure every one of them has an interesting story as to how they ended up playing with this band, but here it just seemed like a jumble of random folks plus a former King Crimson member, whose presence added more absurdity than star power.
David Crossed off the center square of Montreal concert bingo by attempting to speak French and thanked us for giving them our ears before getting into the King Crimson stuff. First, they played The "Great Deceiver", the opener from Starless and Bible Black, which he announced by saying he couldn’t remember the name of. I couldn’t tell if that was meant to be a little nudge to the superfans in the audience to call the name out or a genuine admission of a mental blank. Next, they played Red’s first track, and I started to really get into it. Despite having 3 alternating vocalists, their singing was always the weakest part of the performance. Every time they’d play a purely instrumental track, I found myself appreciating it a lot more, Red was the first of these moments.
They announced that they’d play one more non-King-Crimson song, called "Calamity". David Cross explained the song’s metaphor before even playing it, likening a relationship to a shipwreck. The song was terrible, and, along with the beer-foamed cheer the relationship joke got from the audience, really made me question what I was doing at this show. The fact that I’d frantically looked for somebody to bring along became absurd. They were losing me again.
David Cross then announced that it was time for us to go on a journey, unambiguously calling for the beginning of Larks’ Tongues in Aspic. On record, the album starts with a hypnotic Mbira (Kalimba) symphony. When every member pulled out a tiny thumb piano and awkwardly played it into their singing microphones, I was overcome with joy. Two hours deep, I felt that I could sit through another two.
Everything they played off the full, central album was gold. Many of the heavy parts involved wild, distorted playing from David Cross and his tiny green electric violin, and he could really play. His playing peaked on "Exiles", the album’s third track, with its beautiful sun-touched string leads and slow melodic builds. Mick Paul, the bassist, with his often-dull singing voice did a very good job on this track as well. I was able to immerse myself in the drama of it. A lot of King Crimson’s music walks a delicate line of trying hard to sound grand, beautiful and baroque without crossing over into sounding stupid and pretentious. This line is sometimes crossed even on their albums. That tightrope is much thinner at what amounts to a glorified cover band, which makes the moments where they do pull it all off all that much more impressive. Between passages of songs, there were several moments of sprawling improvisation. These were the moments when the tightrope snapped, and what they were trying to accomplish was never possible. They simply didn’t have enough chemistry as a band, and it always brought me back to the small-town local cookout vibe of the whole thing.
After "Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part Two", the album’s chaotic final track, the band all joined hands and bowed as if on their opening night for a high school play. They didn’t bother with waiting for the audience to urge an encore, as the flyer had promised a lot more music. I was quite tired by then and decided that I would stay until they inevitably played "Starless", which is by far my favourite King Crimson song, and one that nails that mysterious, larger-than-life alien creep so effortlessly, it never bothers me how full of itself it really is. I imagined that they’d save this song for last, which they did, but I did not expect it to be up next. When the opening strings welcomed us to its desolate sound, I felt a genuine rush of excitement. Robert Fripp’s iconic guitar tone on the recording has always been one of my favourite aspects of the song, and I, unfortunately, cannot say that John Mitchell had the same majesty in his performance. His vocals sorely lacked in the same way. Luckily, these were my only complaints about their performance of "Starless", and those only affect the first section of the song. The slow, anxiety-inducing climb toward the song’s climactic breakdown was something of awe, and people cheered throughout anticipating its release. That final burst of energy could never disappoint. I closed my eyes for a short while during the apex and was taken away from the barbecue and towards my idea of seeing the real King Crimson live back in the 70s. This was, after all, the closest I’d ever get. They even managed to nail some grinding, heavy improvisations before their grand finish.
After the band bowed again, and I headed outside, I witnessed a concertgoer in such a furious argument with his wife that he pulled his pants down and mooned her publicly. It was the final piece clicking into place to reveal the true nature of this strange subculture I’d naively peered into. My place in it all still leaves me wondering.
Concordia student unions campaign to restore shuttle to full service
Multiple groups at Concordia are working to convince the university to restore full service for the shuttle bus between the Downtown campus and the Loyola campus.
Back in June, Concordia announced that the shuttle bus which students use to get between the two campuses would reduce services. The bus now only runs from 9:15 am to 6:30 pm, making commuting difficult for students with early morning and late evening classes.
Since the announcement the Concordia student union has been gathering testimonials and petition signatures to restore the shuttle busses early morning and late evening service. The petition currently has 1500 signatures and 500 testimonials.
The cuts to the shuttle come as a result of Concordia’s current financial crisis. In its budget announced in May, Concordia forecasted a deficit of $78.9 million by the end of the 2024-25 school year.
Concordia told CJLO they are aware of the campaign and have no intentions of restoring the service, saying the cuts save them money.
Sueco Surfs The Night Away
For his first time in Montreal, Sueco took the stage at Le Studio TD for a roaring Tuesday night on The Attempted Lover Tour: The namesake of his most recent album.
William Schultz grew up playing the guitar and writing his own songs, before beginning his career producing beats, then inevitably, releasing his own music. Adopting the name Sueco, his career took off five years ago and the passion of his fans has not dwindled. As soon as the doors opened at 7 pm, the line of fans that had gathered on the block eagerly stormed to the stage, no barricade in sight (which did become an issue later on).
It was my first time attending a show at Le Studio TD and I wasn’t expecting it to be such a small venue, especially given the closure of the balcony that night. Sueco was able to interact with fans, which made for a more intimate experience. Accompanied by his band, Jumbotron James on guitar, Christian, or Dr. Zombie on Drums and Jordy the Blond on Base.
While most people I had met around me were friendly, by 8:30 pm the tension had risen within the crowd in anticipation for the start of the performance. People were feeling angsty, so much so that a fight broke out a couple of feet from me. Luckily, all was forgotten by 8:45 pm, when Sueco opened with “Bathroom Floor” and “Anastasia”, two songs from his newest album, followed by a throwback single, “Story Of My Life (feat. Trippie Redd)”. The crowd was going feral, pits were moshed, heads were banging so much that I can only imagine the pain they’d feel the next morning, and let me tell you; there was a lot of surfing. Sueco even brought out his CROWD SURF 9000, a board designated for surfing the crowd. Lifted by his fans, he moved through the room, all while performing his breakout single “Fast” which blew up on TikTok in 2019.
Fans followed by example, and many surfed their way to the stage throughout the rest of the show. It was definitely the most energetic concert I’ve been to, with fans putting their all into every song that was performed. During Sueco’s interaction with the crowd, fans were often trolling, yelling unique profanities, but the artist took it with grace and played along. He was just happy that his “beautiful family was getting bigger every day.” Lost in a sea of white, red and black, there were fans of all ages — from middle-aged rockers, young adults, and a couple of parents with their gangs of kids. Two of them were Johnny and Sadie, who were attending their first-ever concert, with a front-row view. Their names were chanted in celebration, which made their night all the more memorable.
During his last song, “Paralyzed”, Sueco separated the crowd and started his own mega-mosh pit, giving us rules to make it both as safe and as crazy as possible. At the end of the show, when everyone began chanting for an encore, some of the audience (which snowballed into the whole crowd) began asking for two songs. Sueco came back to the stage for an encore, “Mulholland Drive”, and finally closed the night with “Motel 666”.
Overall, I enjoyed the show and its contagious energy. The size of the venue contributed to that as it felt more like a small community, and fans were able to connect with the artist, especially in comparison to much larger venues. It was beautiful being an outsider of this hardcore fandom; enjoying the music, but being able to watch a crowd sing with their artist and feel their feelings.
Danny Brown Demonstrates His Legacy at the SAT Space
For over a decade now, Danny Brown’s name has been unavoidable when discussing the state of modern hip-hop. Catering to a more dedicated audience than your average rapper, Brown has carved a name for himself as a legendary MC, rapping with ease over beats that would give your favourite lyricist a heart attack. Coming off the release of his most personal release yet, 2023’s Quaranta, I was able to catch Brown at his stop last Thursday at the SAT space, and man did it kick some ass.
The positioning of the SAT space has always irked me a little; squished tightly between climbing gyms and hot dog restaurants, the space feels far removed from the venue-heavy north side of Rue St-Laurent. The inside, however, is perfect for someone like Danny Brown. The room is tight-packed and industrial, with a stage that is close enough to the crowd to feel intimate, but far enough away that it still fosters a sense of sensationalism from its performers (Bar Le Ritz, take notes!) Upon entry, the genre of this show was immediately recognizable; lining the barricade were faces recognizable from the MAVI show earlier this month, and the MIKE show back in April - and upon recognition, the first question asked was always “Did you get your JPEGMAFIA tickets yet?” There’s a definitive Montreal crowd linked to the alternative hip-hop sound here in Montreal, and it’s always cool to see everyone brought together, especially for someone as prominent as Danny Brown.
To kick off the night, we were treated to a two-hour set from local DJ Charles Cozy. While I can’t imagine DJ’ing for a crowd who aren’t there to see you is easy, Cozy kept the vibe up the entire time, sliding fluidly between 90s West Coast crowd pleasers and new-age Buffalo boom-bap. This seemed to warm up the masses plenty, as by the end the jam-packed venue was filled with people rapping along to the set, with a couple of moshes to match.
This built-up energy came to peak as Danny Brown, toting head-to-toe leather and colourful hair (see Kevin Abstract Roadrunner era haircut), strutted out onto the dimly lit SAT stage. Almost immediately, we were treated to the high-pitched guitar twangs and rolling drum line of Quaranta’s title track, an aching reassessment by Brown of his life and career so far. Calls of “This rap shit done changed my life” echoed out through the crowd, and were immediately met with “Quaranta”’s explosive follow-up track, “Tantor”. The guitars on “Tantor” come at you like an unavoidable wave of heat, sending anyone unprepared flying 3 feet into the air. Brown’s refrain on the chorus very adequately presents a warning to any Danny Brown showgoer - “Strap the fuck up, it's time to ride.” What followed was an hour of straight, elbow-to-elbow moshing, with Brown filtering through the best verses of his career. A personal highlight was “Burfict!”, off of Scaring The Hoes, Brown's recent collaboration with rapper/producer JPEGMAFIA. The track features immense, cinematic horns blaring over punchy bass hits and echoing drums, the perfect soundtrack to accompany the horde of crowd surfers and limb tossers clashing tirelessly. By the end of Brown’s set, all that was left of the crowd was stretched collars and ruined sneakers, with a visible layer of sweat and concert-floor grime coating every visible surface. Still, screams of endorsement bellowed out from the collective sweaty hivemind, letting Brown know just how much his music means to Montreal. And, though he didn’t play “Best Life”, I still left the SAT feeling justified in my ticket, which is all one can really ask for.
Listen to Danny Brown’s Quaranta (Deluxe) Here
Sam Kitch is the magazine editor at CJLO 1690AM. He is also the host of I Think You Might Like This, a hip-hop show airing Tuesdays at 2:00 PM.
Drop Nineteens Pull Blankets of Sound Over Bar Le Ritz
Drop Nineteens is a band you’ve only heard of if you can define the word shoegaze or can at least give it your best shot. Some shoegaze adjacent bands manage to escape that whole zeitgeist, but Drop Nineteens are one you stumble upon if you’re specifically looking into the genre and its roots. There is often disagreement over the boundaries of the term and defining it without a sigh beforehand is rare. I can do it, however, because I live and breathe this stuff. Shoegaze is 90s-flavored alt-rock with a lot of guitar effects. It often, but not always, evokes a sense of melancholia and longing and is usually in some way inspired by the legendary My Bloody Valentine, despite nobody ever really sounding quite like them. Drop Nineteens is a band that checks all these boxes and is a prime example of the distilled shoegaze sound for those in the know.
Up until 2024, the band had yet to tour since before their breakup in 1995. I only get to see this band now because of the immense popularity of shoegazing on the internet that reunited them as fully formed adults. (Knowledge nugget: Back in 1992, Drop Nineteens played a show in Bristol with Radiohead as the opener.) I’m often skeptical of seeing reformed bands as adults, especially ones with music so quintessentially teenage, but their 2023 revival album Hard Light was leagues above what I had anticipated. Still, the music I love by the band is no doubt off of their first record, Delaware, which I discovered on my first shoegaze binge back in high school. The album’s unquestionable centrepiece, Kick the Tragedy, is a drawn-out instrumental that washes you away with soaring noise and gets you so high on its melodrama that by the time the spoken word passage hits in the back quarter of its 10-minute runtime, it’s impossible to still have the heart to call it corny. It shoots you through a tunnel of memories, letting you know that while there’s no going back from here, there is always hope in the future. This is the feeling I turn to shoegaze for. An embrasure of teenage wonder and confusion, and the sentiment that everything is different now, but somehow that’s okay.
But how do you dance to music best experienced staring longingly out the window? I’ve been to a few concerts like this one in the past and the answer is that you don’t. Some people sway, or bob, or jump a little, but mostly you stand still and let the musical current take hold of your body.
I arrived just as the opener, Olivia O. (who the band kept referring to as Olive) stepped onstage. She was alone up there and at Le Ritz that can lead to a pretty intimate atmosphere, which really suited her moody songwriting. Every song was punctuated with giggles and thank yous to the crowd, who were wildly diverse in age and style, but all shared some unspecific thing that made them obvious shoegaze concertgoers. She’d spend a whole two minutes creating ethereal vocal and flute loops that she’d go on to play her acoustic guitar and sing over. Her songs were equally angsty, vulnerable and fairylike. It was surprisingly captivating for a one-person show but still lacked that intoxicating feeling you get from a whole band playing in front of you. If I’d been more familiar with her songs in advance, maybe it would’ve felt less like somebody else’s friend ripping it at the back of a party. She mentioned being a citizen due to having Canadian parents and claimed that meant we liked her by default. From the back, I shouted, ‘Where from?’ and her reply was a word nobody has ever been happy to hear outside of a geography quiz; Ottawa. People cheered, but there was reluctance in their pitch.
Drop Nineteens stepped onstage, wearing their 30-year hiatus on their faces. These are not rockstars, they’re people who made some cult-followed music in their 20s and have been living completely ordinary lives since. They more resembled people you’d see taking their kids to the movies or complaining about local politics on cable TV. Vocalist and guitarist Greg Ackell’s awkward delivery in between songs turned that ‘regular guy look’ into something they’re taking on the chin. It was refreshing to see them not trying to be anything but what they are now, because what they are now is a group that was never meant to be famous.
I wasn’t sure what material they’d be playing, since they had just last year come out with a new project. When the first song they played was Delaware’s self-titled opener, I knew we’d be in good hands. The band had six members onstage and shifted between having either four guitars or two basses. Either way, their sound was undeniably huge. That classic fuzzy bliss pulled a curtain over everything else in the dim red lighting of Le Ritz’s stage. The two vocalists’ quiet harmonizing was warm under blankets of shimmering tone. When they played their third track, “Mayfield”, off an unreleased record from the band’s early years, Paula Kelley’s voice finally cut its way through the mix, showing off that her talent far outshined Ackell’s quiet rambling swagger. She sounded 17 years old as she pulled out her star-shaped tambourine and the slight wobble when hitting the high notes only added character. During sections of swelling guitars, every member would stare down at their feet, focusing on the various pedals. I kept thinking to myself ‘They’re really doing it.’ When they played “Winona”, another highlight from their debut, they renamed it Raquel, for a fan in the front row celebrating their 19th birthday. I’m almost sure I heard Raquel scream that it was their favourite song when they began playing. Their setlist did not overstay its welcome and was complete with both a cover of Lana Del Rey’s “White Dress” and a cover of Madonna’s “Angel”, which finished off the show pre-encore. They let us hang onto our cheering for longer than I’m used to until they finally stepped back into the light. After tying his shoe onstage, Ackell let us know that ‘they don’t call it shoegaze for nothing.’
The band returned to play one more favourite from the old catalogue, “My Aquarium”, before announcing that we knew what was coming next. Before “Kick the Tragedy” started, they talked about how that song is bigger than the band themselves. They told us that they dropped an official music video for the 30-year-old song only last week. The video is made up of hundreds of clips of fans dancing, enjoying themselves, seeing the world, or just hanging out, which the band had requested. The comment section underneath is filled with people pointing themselves out and gushing over this video immortalizing an experience they’ve had with a loved one. Ackell expressed gratitude that there were so many people who seemed to love the song so deeply and could not believe the staggering number of clips that had been sent in. There’s something about the homemade nature of the video that perfectly captures that transcendent feeling of the track, their combined emotional impact is something every fan of the band will feel. Before the first kick drum, Ackell announced that tonight, “Kick the Tragedy” was our song.
When the long haze was over, and the musicians departed from the stage one by one, we were left with nothing but Pete Koeplin’s steady drum beat to reflect on how it had all gone by so fast.
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