So, 917 Main st. is the new name of the newly renovated Cobalt. It just so happens to also be the address, funny how sometimes things just work out so perfectly like that. Well, without getting into the very heated discussion revolving around the fabled venue, I will say this: as great and clever as the new name is, on Thursday night 917 main st should have gone back to it’s old moniker. Titus Andronicus brought the ruckus! Goddamn, they brought the mother-fuckin RUCKUS! Going to this show gave me mild brain damage, but I’ma gonna do my best.

Ok, there is just so much to tell you guys about. Where do I start? Well, there was this opening band, right, they were pretty good, but I think that they were really stoned or something. Maybe they were just sleeping. But they had good songs though, really rockin like Iggy meets Dylan kinda, but less original. They were good though. And then Titus was setting up, right, and they had all these American flags like on their amps and stuff, and then this guy in the crowd ripped one down before they started playing, and they got all sour faced (I think they really like America, their new album being about the civil war and all). They didn’t say nothin about it though. So then they started playing and WHOA!, they blew my darned socks off. All the other people there really liked it too, they were all jumping up and down and singing and falling over and riding on each others shoulders and throwing beer. Man it was just great! So Titus plays a few songs, right, and the singer jumps down in the crowd and everyone is having a blast. And after that he takes a little pause, right, and he says, he says “Yo, that guy who ripped down our flag before, you’re a stupid jerk and you should go home” and we don’t like you and blah blah. But it was no biggie cause that guys friends said he had gone home a long time ago and he was really drunk. After that Titus totally started rocking again and everyone forgot about flags and guys and jerks and whatever and just had a great time having a great time. Man, I love Titus Andronicus.

Titus Andronicus Forever – Titus Andronicus

My Time Outside The Womb – Titus Andronicus

-sloobi

Our friends at winniecooper.net are a bunch of awesome guys. What feels like only weeks ago, when they staged their first  night in a little dive bar has expanded into a realm which it will never return, like the rings of Saturn or Cloud City. No More Strangers proudly celebrated their first year with a bang I could have never expected. The newly renovated Funky Winkerbean, ripe with anticipation and smiling faces was wall to wall with people by 10:00pm, an early start aided by some wild laser lights and some expert dj’ing by the resident head masters Hunk The Drunk and Christian Flores. A few distracted and scattered bodies swayed and bobbed on the dance floor waiting for the night to truly begin. And when Myths took the stage, our minds crumbled with they flung into our faces. Two girlies pranced around the stage in homemade garb, lace wrapped tightly around their faces. Laptop beats pounded endlessly, delayed and echoed unintelligible shrieks cascading over a sea of synthy grimy electro. Harder to describe than most bands this video will give you a pretty good idea of the feelings I was left with:

When that was finally over and we’d smoked our way through a half pack each, most returned to the dance floor or the epic bar line to secure their final drink before the much anticipated Diamond Rings took to the stage. A small speech was made by founder HUNK and cake was distributed. What came next was a real spectacle. Diamond Rings, gold tights, neon make up and freshly painted nails was a captivating presence as I’ve ever seen. An 80′s pop hero, half Bowie half Laurie Anderson and of course 100% glam idol. Incredibly smooth choreographed dance moves across a stage too small to hold his brilliance. Although it wasn’t the fastest dance music I’ve ever heard, it kept the crowd captivated and swaying to and fro. As Diamond Rings announced his last song, balloons cascaded from over head filling the room with colour and cries of delight. And then it was over, a packed dance floor continued to bob with the music until with a flick of the light switch, it was over and everyone was ushered into the street.

Diamond Rings – Wait & See

Congrats Winnie Cooper and No More Strangers for being oh so awesome! We love you.

(photo credit to W.C)

-lionsteeth

A lively atmosphere in Antisocial Skateshop proved to be a sign of what was to come. 50 or so bearded men and raven haired ladies, Pilsners in hand milled in and out of the sparsely decorated Main St skate haven. I had few preconceptions of the opener Friendship and The Fawn, having only glanced across their Myspace to see the descriptor Folk/Bluegrass/Minimalist. We chuckled about it on the way to the venue, Planets being one of the loudest and fastest bands I can imagine touring with such a group seemed almost comical. However when the lights dimmed, candles where lit and everyone took a seat on the floor, I realized this was serious. Friendship and the Fawn lived true to their genre, however instead of resenting them I was quite impressed. It made sense to have a slow and almost droney band open for the complete opposite, no band is truly like Planets so why bother trying. The two ladies of Friendship and the Fawn plucked lazy at various instruments including banjo, ukulele, glockenspiel and accordion, incorporating a few members of the audience to aid in vocal harmony in two songs. Minimal is the perfect word for these two, relying heavily on vocal melody I wasn’t left wanting more, however I was left wanting one thing…Planets.

Wasting no time after the Friendship and The Fawn, Planets took the stage to do final sound adjustments before laying waste to Antisocial Skateshop.  As the bassist did a quick pedal test, and I could feel my chest cavity begin to rumble, but this was only a slight hint of the onslaught that was about to ensue.   Now, I have been a pretty big Planets fan for quite some time, and their album has been on pretty constant rotation, but to hear them live was a completely different story.  You can get a bit detached listening to such technical music from the album, so to see the songs performed in front of me, probably one of the most engaging shows I have been to in a while.  Planets were relentless, only taking a few seconds in between each song to let out some hoarse “thank you”s, and the odd hoot and holler before diving headfirst into the next song.  All in all it was an intense and exhausting experience, in the best ways possible.

Friendship And The Fawn – Sleep By Your Ghost
Planets – Vow of Silence

-lionsteeth & iceonthetrail

My love for Julie Doiron started at an early age, around 16. My boss at the mall clothing store I worked at passed me a cd, “Shotgun + Jaybird plus Julie Randoms” Scribbled across the front with girlish hearts and doodles occupying the rest of the space. We would listen to it quietly, unplugging the company controlled radio and coughing loudly when Julie would yell cuss words. I still have that cd, and although I own almost all Shotgun and Jaybird/Julie albums, there are still quite a few songs only that cd can provide. Before this Biltmore show I had never seen Julie and I must I admit I had high expectations, not in a critical way, in a loving way. I felt like I was watching a good friend preform and had an almost giddy feeling when Julie walked past in the bar.  Surprisingly an early 8:00pm show on Saturday night was still sold out and the line to buy tickets was down the street. When the curtain finally lifted to expose the pig-tailed and messy Julie, black Les-Paul in hand and amp cranked to 10, I noticed another familiar face. The keyboardist for the Constantines is now Julies backing band, god damn what a treat that was. Hightlights included Snow In November, Borrowed Mini-Vans, a cover of Ladyhawks “Teenage Love Song”, and Consolation Prize. Not to mention a treat from her newest project Daniel, Fred and Julie featuring Fred of Shotgun and Jaybird, and Daniel of Attack In Black.  And then it was over, the crowed briefly parted only to gather around tighter this time for Bowerbirds who took to the stage quite quickly. The mood was soft and Bowerbirds preformed perfectly, accordion and light acoustic guitar bouncing off one another while all four members sang in lovely harmonies.  Highlights of this set included Silverclouds, Chimes, a rowdy anti-olympic cheer, a drunken fellow double fisting PBR constantly leaning into me for support and the crowd pleaser of the night, an energetic version of the song Crooked Lust which I loved. And that was it, we where ushered out of the venue to make room for the gang of people lined up the block to see Attack In Black who where scheudled to preform only 45 minutes afterwards. I give this  show 4 PBR’s out of 5.

Julie Doiron – Spill Yr Lungs (live)

Bowerbirds – Crooked Lust

-lionsteeth

Just this past Monday I had the great fortune of seeing these two wonderful bands play at the Biltmore.  I arrived, much to my dismay, in the middle of the Ruby Suns set. The song “Oh, Mojave” was being played, but it sounded different. It was a more stripped down, much more electronic version of the song. And something was wrong onstage. “There is mischief afoot!”, I thought to myself. After listening to the Ruby Suns studio album, “sea Lion”, I was positive that there had to be at least 6 or 7 people in the band. But up on stage there were only 3. Did my eyes deceive me? Where were the others hiding? Turns out the three onstage had  tiny versions of themselves hidden in sampling machines and keyboards, so they could double their beautiful music out put. The result was an amazing show. It definately had a more stripped down feel compared to the record, with a bigger emphasis on the electronic aspects of the songs. This worked out well though, at some points making me feel as if I were listening for the first time. Varying from soft lullabies to dancy upbeat pop music that had all three members (Ryan McPhun, Amee Robinson, Bevan Smith) doing multiple things onstage at once, the performance was just as engaging to watch as it was to listen to.

Oh, Mojave – Ruby Suns

Adventure Tour – Ruby Suns

Next up were the Dodos.  

They played a wonderful set full of danceable pop and catchy melodies. Lead singer/ guitar player Meric Long displayed a masterful talent with loop machines, looping both his vocals and guitar riffs, sometimes simultaneously, and adding loads of depth usually unheard of for a three piece pop act. Add to this the absolutely fan-fucking-tastic drumming of Logan Kroeber, beautiful rolls on the floor tom with plenty of rim shots and booming beats with sharp snare hits that had me dancing involuntarily, and you’ve got yourself one hell of a great band. But wait, there’s more. A third member, Keaton Snyder, was playing a giant vibraphone and another floor tom! Infusing yet more depth into the songs. Especially during the slower breakdowns. At one point both Long and Snyder were playing the vibraphone with bows from a cello. The result was a haunting, yet very pretty, humming melody. It was something that I have never seen before, so for that reason and so much more, I suggest that you go check out the Dodos. It’s for your own good. And go see them next time they are in town, you won’t be disapointed.

Paint the Rust – The Dodos

The Season – The Dodos

We arrive at the Rio around 7:30 with low expectations. Last time I saw Chad Vangaalen was at the Commadore opening for Hawksley Workman at Vancouvers weird attempt to rock up the Can-Con.

It was February, and when Chad took the stage, he announced “we’re feeling pretty bad, ate some bad sushi last night.” He was right, it was bad. No feeling in the songs, struggling with his own vocal delivery and a crowd anxious to be rocked by Hawksley. Long story short, I was not impressed.

Sitting third row this time however, the venue packed with laid back hipsters, not beer swilling 99.3 CFOX-Bro’s, I have to admit I was quite excited. Lazy indie hits flowed from the loud speakers as everyone seemed to scramble for a seat within the first 4 rows. After a long wait, Castle Music took the stage.  In  Jennifer Castles hand, a tiny guitar and that’s it. The first song was a bit of a let down, which proved to be the case for most of the set. Her open tuned guitar sounding tiny and weak over her well amplified voice. Her fingers couldn’t seem to find the strings they where intended for 50% of the time and a few songs where just damn ridiculous, one in particular sung entirely in a Capella about a sea captain and his wife. Jennifer Castle did however have a few good moments, when she could hit everything well, it sounded great, her voice filling the room with many hums and misty harmonies.

and then she told a story about Chad Vangaalen becoming a Witch in Victoria, I laughed… picturing it in my head.

And then about 25 minutes later I witnessed it. The entire band, including a long black wig clad Chad Vangaalen enters the stage. Every member in some sort of strange hat, Chad in his wig, looking more like a Gothic Kim Mitchell than a witch. Opening with a strange mythical folk jam, including Chad on a lute and all other members fiddling with some sort of string instrument, or Julie playing her Elementary School recorder, very well, it was quite the spectacle. When the mood of Nordic viking song ended, Chad announced it was his friend Toms birthday and asked said Tom for a request. Which was: ‘Pump Up The Jam’. Fuck, it was awesome. This concert really proved to me what had been dwelling in the back of my mind the whole show. Chad Vangaalen is the new Canadian Indie Rock icon! There I said it. Move aside Kevin Drew, pack your bags Emily Haines. There is absolutely something for everyone in Vangaalen’s music. Be it his haunting falsetto, the rhythm based guitar lines or the electronic filled noise jams, you can really find yourself in his music. At this point in the concert most people had left their comfortable movie theater seats and gathered at the foot of the stage, worshiping at the altar of Vangaalen, and he delivered.

Every song was executed with perfection, his voice never faltering, never missing a note. clever stage banter everyone laughed along with and finally, playing a set of every song I wanted to hear (save TMNT mask). As well as a ton of new material. Finally an encore of  ‘Willow Tree’ and the set was over. Chad Vangaalen you have restored my faith in you, and I am once again worshiping at the altar of Vangaalen along side everyone that witnessed him last night.

Chad Vangaalen – I was I was a Dog

Chad Vangaalen – Microscopic World

-lionsteeth