The Whitsundays, an Edmonton group featuring members of The Faunts, Shout Out Out Out Out, and The Wet Secrets, play lush 60s-inspired psychedelic pop. To my mind they sound like Magnetic Fields, Plants & Animals, and The Beatles all rolled into one. In other words: good stuff. Currently on tour, they stop in at Sneaky Dee’s this Friday along with locals The Superstitions, and Pick A Piper, another group boasting members from other bands (Brad Weber from Caribou, for instance).
It took me forever but I've finally posted all of my reviews for Canadian Music Fest. They are as follows:
Canadian Music Fest is over, but as you all know that doesn't mean the music stops. (I think some other people don't realize we have amazing music every night in this city, and for cheap!) Last week I did some hibernating, but still managed to see some quality stuff. The Happiness Project (Charles Spearin's new project) at The Music Gallery was brilliant; nice to see Muskox in that lovely space, too. Saturday I saw a couple new-to-me bands: Eliott Brood (!) and Herman Dune (!), plus Basia Bulat, Jon-Rae Fletcher, and Cuff the Duke, a band I will love always and forever. As you can see, I didn't get out to the festival other than that Saturday Lee's Palace show, but no biggie since I see great bands all the time.Full listings are up, here.
Speaking of great bands, this week's Wombat Wednesday at Tranzac features the aforementioned Muskox, the quiet folk loveliness of The Weather Station, and the mesmerizing The Owle Bird. A great, varied bill. Some touring bands are still in town, picking up gigs the week after Canadian Musicfest; from Ireland, FRED and Walter Mitty & the Realists; Liverpool's Familiar Looking Strangers; and Australia's Forgiven Rival. You've got a couple chances this week to catch Alistair Christl's Swingin' Chandeliers, a fantastic rockabilly act. The Drake Hotel's playing host to good lineups on Wednesday and Thursday. A handful of young bands who've made a name for themselves in the indie scene in the last year are playing at Lee's Palace this Saturday (Dinosaur Bones, Oh No Forest Fires, Still Life Still, and Arietta, who've got an album coming out this spring). Local electro-pop dance band Beth in Battle Mode celebrate the release of their second album on Friday at the El Mo. Wavelength promises to be good and very Wavelength: from country to in-sa-ni-ty all on the same bill. Lots more to see and hear . . . check below!
The newly dubbed Canadian Musicfest, the music showcase component of this year's Canadian Music Week kicks off tonight(Mar 11) with a few venues but heads into full gear from Thursday March 12 to Saturday March 14, and then ending like it started with a few select venues on Sunday(Mar 15). I'll likely skip the festivities tonight although perhaps if I get the bug I'll take in some of the Eye Weekly CMW showcase tonight at Gladstone Hotel or maybe check out Scottish indie folk-pop outfit We See Lights at the Horseshoe. I've been perusing the CMF schedule all day and I think I've finally come up with a schedule to my liking. Thursday, I mostly plan to camp out at Gladstone Hotel for the 2nd night of Eye Weekly's 3-way Throwdown with only the slight aberration that I'll likely take in We See Lights' set at Rancho Relaxo at 9 pm. However on Friday and Saturday I switch in to full club-hopping mode - if the TTC transit gods are on my side, I should hopefully make most of my planned schedule. For the life of me, I haven't found anything to my interest to check out at midnight on Friday night - perhaps I'll just swing by the Horseshoe Tavern and see how big of a lineup of people shivering in the cold there is trying to get in to see Handsome Furs. Oh good times. So taking a cue from Chromewaves recent CMF picks, here's mine (note: all the artist hyperlinks below point to their respective MySpace sites so click through and check them out):
New Jersey's Holler, Wild Rose! is trekking on up to our fair city to play the Audio Blood Tea Party at The Boat on Sunday March 15th. They'll be sharing the stage with Great Lenin's Ghost, Our History of Cowboys and The Paint Movement. The cost is $5 and there is rumoured to be lots of free tea. To welcome them to our fair city, I've got a pretty cool prize pack to give away. It consists of the following:
Just a note to let you all know that my friend Keith Hamilton is organizing a huge 10-city indie music festival, with all shows being pay-what-you-can at the door. The Pitter Patter Fest, now in it's third year, will happen on 28-31 May, and here in Toronto it'll be taking over ALL venues in Kensington Market, among other places. The festival's a great opportunity for both local and touring bands, since Keith can book you to play multiple shows in multiple towns.
