Evening Hymns CD Release w/ The Harbour Coats @ the Tranzac, Dec. 4. 2009

My experiences Thursday and Friday night really couldn't've been a whole lot different. While Thursday night was primarily and friends and family sort of thing, Friday night was a real scenester sort of... scene. I don't go to a ton of shows, but I recognized at least two dozen or so people from other pretty awesome bands. This may have been because there were, according to the National Post, 16 or so of Jonas Bonnetta (Evening Hymns)'s closests friends (I assume) that appeared on his new, and excellent, album Spirit Guides.

When Paul found out that the Harbour Coats were opening for Evening Hymns, who I was really interested in seeing, he suggested/insisted that we get there early. After the first few bars of the first song I figured out why... and everyone else did too, I guess, because the packed main room at the Tranzac went from being a-buzz to library quiet (note: not the Weldon Library @ Western). So, after the first song I turn to Paul and say something like, "Wow, that guy sounds a lot like Springsteen"; to which Paul replies something like, "Yeah, he's the lead singer of the Constantines, people have been calling him an angry Springsteen for years". Me, "Oh" (if that exchange made Paul sound like a dick, he wasn't, he was very nice about my Constantines ignorance).

I thought the Harbour Coats set was outstanding, so I'm pretty anxious to start listening to some old Constantines records, while I anxiously await a release from the Harbour Coats.

As I mentioned on Friday morning Evening Hymns is the project of Jonas Bonnetta w/ a little help from his friends. On stage Friday night he brought out a pile of friends. I can remember seeing: Mike Dugay, a guy from Ohbijou, the guy from the Wooden Sky, a girl from the Magic, and others, I suspect. They weren't out there with him all the time, the Evening Hymns set fluxtuated between singer-songwriter and big orchestral band type music, but the highlights of the night for me all involved the full band. Especially live, from 5 feet away no less, songs like "Cedars" "Broken Rifle" and especially "Mountain Song" -- the ones with the choral parts -- sounded, for lack of a better word, awesome.

The only thing I wonder, given how busy all the parts of Evening Hymns are, is whether people outside the GTA are going to get to see this band. I won't speculate, because I have no idea what the plan with the band is, but it'd be a real shame if some form of this band didn't get across the country. In part, because they put together a helluva show, but also because Spirit Guides deserves to be in the discussion for next year's Polaris Prize, and I feel like bands without a strong national following (see: basically everyone I wanted to win the Polaris) aren't able to capture a broad enough spectrum of voters to end up being short listed.

[mp3] Evening Hymns - Cedars
[mp3] Evening Hymns - Broken Rifle


The Harbour Coats (or, Bryan Webb)






A video by Colin Medley



Evening Hymns











Another video, also by Colin Medley.

Don (is) Campbell @ the Hideout, Dec. 3rd, 2009

It's hard to know exactly what to say about the Don (is) Campbell (Experience). Mostly, that's because Don and I grew up together, are good friends, and there is no sense in which one can provide an objective opinion on the music of someone who is a grade school chum of theirs (and a member of the 1994 London Gus Macker - Toilet Bowl Winning 3 on 3 team!).

I can say that among my group of friends there was some sense of trepidation -- what if Donny's originals completely tanked? We've seen him play covers for the last decade, know that he is a tremendously talented guitarist, and we've heard snippets of his song-writing, but, as a parent, you worry. So, basically, Don had somewhere near 50? 100? or so parent, or parent-like figures in attendance on Thursday to see him perform his first set of originals w/ a backing band (which included one of his brothers, another brother as the emcee/hype man, and his sister selling merch). And the first few songs we all sort of sat around, nervously, trying to figure out how this whole Don-trying-to-be-a-musician thing was going to work out.

It turns out, it went great. Don's not going to be the next big blog act, that's just not the aesthetic of his music, but given his knack for writing accessible, catchy, hooks; his stage presence, and the fact that Don just has that... look (and you can have him in your bedroom for only $15! -- you had to be there).

I guess, to me, what Thursday night proved is that his success is going to be determined not by ability -- there's a market out there for his music -- but whether he's going to be able to get his music to the ears of the right people to distribute that music. So, if you know someone who knows someone, do me a favour and pass along Donny's myspace link. After all, this is the best chance I have of living out my Entourage fantasy...

The Don (is) Campbell (Experience)

Summerworks Festival: Sunparlour Players w/ Josh Reichmann Oracle Band @ the Theatre Centre. Aug. 14. 2009

... man I shouldn't have had so much to drink the other night...

The Josh Reichmann Oracle Band, which, last night at least, was Josh Reichmann (presumably) and a back-up (interpretive) dancer wasn't exactly what I was expecting as an opener for the SPP. Reichmann sang over his electro-beats backing track and, I think in a different, clubbier, context it would've been pretty cool. In the theatre setting opening for the Sunparlour Players, something was off. That said, I certainly think that there's something there, and I'm making a mental note to investigate JROB further...

The Sunparlour Players who followed - very quickly, I might add, so kudos to the show organizers - were pretty spectacular. This is probably not news to people that are familiar with the band, their music, and their live show. Their set consisted of a mix of their old (Hymns for the Happy) and their new (Wave North) material, and culminated with an encore performance of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck", which is always a good time.

This is probably the 6 or 7th time I've seen the SPP in their various incarnations, and, while I see a fair number of shows, I've seen them more than I've seen any other musical act (except for my buddy Donny, new album coming!). That, I think, is in part a location thing (they often play in places close to where I have lived), but the other part is that they are probably the best live act around (in the city of Toronto). I keep tabs on when/where they're playing shows, and I make it out to them, because they're fun, energetic, and the character in Andrew Penner's voice live really brings the songs from the record to life.

I'm kind of curious where they go from here... they've got a pretty loyal following here in TO, but, with all of the uncertainty in the music industry its hard to see how they're going to make a living (unless they somehow strike it rich with their mustard recipe). Although, really, you could say that about virtually every band that I write about, and not everyone puts on a live show like they do...

[mp3] Sunparlour Players - Talk it to Death (live @ the Theatre Centre)
[mp3] Sunparlour Players - Battle of '77 (live @ the Theatre Centre)

A very cool video...




Josh Reichmann Oracle Band






The Sunparlour Players

Parkas w/ Whitebelt Octopus & Tacoma Hellfarm Tragedy @ the Silver Dollar, July 25. 2009

I went to see the Parkas on Saturday night and I've finally recovered (note: part of this may be moving and/or drinking related).

The Tacoma Hellfarm Tragedy was the first band up, who I missed... next time.

Next, the Whitebelt Octopus, who drove all the way from Ithaca, NY, performed his brand of incredibly vulgar, superbly hilarious, white-boy-electro-rap songs for about 40 minutes. I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't supremely shocked by all the "hat" (see photos below), the number of MF bombs, and the number of references of him beeing his el on some tees, but after the initial shock, I had an awesome, awesome, time. He writes the kind rhymes that kids in grade school write, subject matter aside. They're certainly not clever, or thought provoking, or anything else particularly moving, but the rhymes combined with the hat, dancemoves, and electro-beats were nothing short of entertaining. I think had the set gone on longer, it would've been a little too much, but I would definitely, definitely, go and check the Whitebelt Motherfucking Octopus if he swims his way back up to the T.Dot.

The Parkas, while they share the same sense of humour as the Whitebelt, their set took a different sort of tone. Yes, they made jokes (often at the expense of other members of the band, as is their way), but there was an underlying sense of sadness/nostalgia (this makes much more sense if you know that this was the Parkas last show ever). But I think the Parkas, knowing it was their last show, really savoured every moment. They weren't always perfect - not that I could really tell other than based on the 'I definitely just screwed that up' looks that they would flash each other - they played music like I imagine they would've when they first started as a band: a little bit drunk and ripping away on their instruments.

And, if I haven't plugged their stuff enough, a reminder that their soon to be released, post-humous album, You Should've Killed Us When You Had the Chance, is out soon and is excellent. A couple of songs from their new album:

[mp3] The Parkas - Don't Say No
[mp3] The Parkas - The Gang's All Gone


Whitebelt Octopus





The Parkas