Results tagged “live”

Photo of Tony Dekker by Trinh Nguyen

Photo of Tyr Jami and Todd MacDonald of The Winks by Jasa Baka

It’s been a while since the Okay Player collective have celebrated a release for anyone other than The Roots (yes, they just released their 10th full-length Rising Down last week, yes that is worthy of celebration). But this year, the collective is also celebrating Erykah Badu. After a 5 year hiatus following the release of a very underwhelming Worldwide Undergroud, the release of New Amerykah (part one of two EPs—the other scheduled to be released in July) has introduced a breath of fresh air for the gracious musician.

On a dim fall evening last September, Neil Haverty (guitarist/vocalist of local alt-gospel collective Bruce Peninsula) peered thankfully ahead at the Tranzac’s seated crowd. With utter honesty he acknowledged how honoured he felt to be opening that evening for headliner Mike Feuerstack of Snailhouse, as he recalled an important time in his life when he incessantly listened to the Wooden Stars. This sort of admirable sentiment is often associated with Mike Feuerstack, for whom Sappy Records released a tribute album last winter. Titled Do You Want to Talk All Night, the album joins such musicians as Rick White and Shotgun Jimmie, who cover classic Snailhouse tracks, to celebrate over a decade of brilliant musicianship and the workings of long-lasting songwriting.

Summer's concert season is well on its way, folks! This week a handful of exciting dates were announced, including Montreal's orchestral pop collective Islands, who play on May 29 at the Phoenix, Retribution Gospel Choir (side project for Alan Sparhawk of Low), who will be at the Rivoli on June 21, and West Coast experimental veterans Frog Eyes, who play at the Horseshoe on June 23—get your tickets early!

Truckloads of hype have preceded the arrival of Philadelphia’s Man Man at Lee’s Palace this evening. With heavy comparisons to the spirit of Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa, and a show repertoire that includes opening for Modest Mouse and Arcade Fire, the six-man (man) band have inevitably entered the zone of high expectation. The Toronto stop is included in their thorough North American tour (most recently selling out New York, Philadelphia and Boston dates), and supports the release of their third full-length, Rabbit Habits, on artist-friendly label Anti (home of Neko Case, Islands, and Cadence Weapon, to name a few).

Let's just get this out of the way right off the bat—Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin are a very very very good band. When we wrote about them last February on the heels of a way-too-short performance at Sneaky Dee's, we ran through the band's history with drummer Philip Dickey, and gushed that they "have a knack for hooks, likeable melodies, and a kind of rough, untidy rock and roll sound that is always bordering on pop." (It's true! They do!) One year later, we have two more reasons to gush: first, there's Pershing, the band's fantastic new album just released on Polyvinyl Records that's full of more sunny, hook-filled, and catchy maybe-it's-rock-or-maybe-it's-pop goodness; and second, the Springfield, Missouri band is finally back in Toronto again this Friday night, with a midnight headlining set at the El Mocambo.

This week's listings offer quite the myriad of options for all you concert-goers, from Nada Surf at the Opera House this evening to the Music Gallery's fundraiser with Swedish sweetheart Jens Lekman, Final Fantasy, and Katie Stelmanis tomorrow at the Great Hall. Wednesday, April 9 offers both The Dodos at El Mocambo and a sold-out New Pornographers/Okkervil River show at the Phoenix. Pas Chic Chic (a French side project from members of Godspeed! You Black Emperor) play at the Drake on Thursday, April 10. And on Friday, April 11, Madlib plays Wrongbar and Thunderheist, Bonjay, and Vitamins for You play Lee's Palace—a lineup almost as good as last year's Thunderheist and Bonjay NXNE showcase alongside Lesbians on Ecstasy and Yo Majesty.

Photo of David Longstreth of Dirty Projectors by David Topping.

This week's listings are definitely some of the most exciting in months! Obvious recommendations include Why? who play at the Silver Dollar on March 27; Basia Bulat, who plays Lee’s Palace on March 29; Owen, who plays El Mocambo on March 27; and The Roots, who play the Kool Haus on March 30. But those are shows that you probably already have tickets for. What you may not be so prepared for this week is the Pitter Patter Music Festival.

Eric Warner has done it again! The man behind such endearing stories of booking concerts while still under-age, running an incredible independent label that just won’t stop, and being a soldier through those good ol’ days of Viking Club and Dollarama has just announced an ambitious lineup for this year’s Over The Top Festival. Equal parts film and music (with a hint of theatre), the festival spans five days from April 30 to May 4, and offers all events to all ages.

This week Musicologist wants you to meet Sing Leaf. This orchestral/experimental-folk sextet combines intricate pieces of woven sounds ranging from airy flute to a reversed loop of acoustic guitar to sparse banjo overtop of minimalist electronic bases. Their sound is warm and sincere, and offers promising comparisons to many of the ripened initiatives in similar genres (Yo La Tengo’s And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out, for example). Sing Leaf play at a much-anticipated Beach House show on March 28 at El Mocambo—tickets are $8.50.

Torontoist is ahead of the game for previewing some of the best music choices this week (Queen West fire benefit, Forest City Lovers' CD release) but Musicologist will give you one more recommendation—just for kicks.

Photo of Forest City Lovers by Joe Fuda

Today’s release on Xbox Live Arcade is Trigger Heart Exelica, an originally Japan-only Dreamcast "bullet hell" vertically scrolling shooter, and if that sentence doesn’t make any sense to you whatsoever, that’s totally fine.

There are tons of great shows for all you concertgoers this week, including a particularly time-sensitive one tonight. Apparently a sold-out Wrong Bar for Crystal Castles last Thursday was not enough for the electro-punk duo. A last-minute show has been booked at the Wrong Bar tonight (alongside LA’s Health) before they continue on with their extensive North American tour. With no tickets to be purchased in advance, you better drop what you’re doing and immediately line up to secure a spot inside. Similar high-energy performances will come this week from Montreal’s Think About Life (includes Graham Van Pelt of Miracle Fortress and Magic Weapon’s Jordan Robson-Cramer), who are playing the Drake on Friday, February 29, and MEN (JD Samon and Johanna Fateman of Le Tigre), who are playing Lee’s Palace on Saturday, March 1—both shows will definitely not disappoint.

A brief stint of Radiohead concert rumours spread like wildfires last week. Ticketmaster had announced that the band would play two shows on May 26 and 27 at the Air Canada Centre, but mentioned neither the date for the tickets to go on sale nor the price of the tickets themselves—the announcement was quickly removed from the site. This is not the first time Ticketmaster has announced a Radiohead show that did not exist, and most knew the ticket-selling mongrels were wrong, as both Greenplastic and W.A.S.T.E. (the two most reliable Radiohead news sources) announced a small batch of US dates to come in May with the remainder of (unannounced) North American dates to follow Radiohead’s summer tour of the UK and Europe. With accurate Canadian dates sure to be released any day now, Musicologist recommends relying on both Greenplastic and W.A.S.T.E. for pre-sale opportunities.

This week, Musicologist is pleased to share that Wavelength will be hosting a festival celebrating their anniversary. The weekly music series has come a long way since its inception in 1999 and has seen various bookers, venues, and, of course, musicians contribute to the success of the series. Wavelength commits to showcasing great music at an accessible cost (all shows are pay-what-you-can) and most recently, has made a vow to feature diversity in the selected genres and performers. All of these elements are reflected in this year’s ambitious festival.

Today launched Dear Toronto, a new independent videoblog site by Adam Schwabe, Ryan Couldrey, and Rebecca Black. The trio had previously collaborated at BlogTO, but recently decided to branch out on their own to focus on strictly video-based content.

Musicologist is not sure The Drake is a large enough venue for the arrival of Baby Dee on Wednesday, February 6. The multi-disciplined artist is a classically trained harpist, organist, legendary Cleveland street and circus performer, and collaborator with such brilliant acts as Antony and the Johnsons. The 54-year-old performer brings a wealth of musical and artistic experience to the stage, and her transgendered politics are surfaced through her healthy variation of wistful harp and piano-driven pieces (often reminiscent of 70s singer-songwriters) and (most evidently on her recent release, Safe Inside the Day) ones resembling those of a cabaret score. It is difficult to not love Baby Dee for her eccentricity and musicianship, but most critics and new listeners have qualms with her sparse, unfocused voice. Similar to Joanna Newsom or Tom Waits, one must look beyond Baby Dee's unique voice and understand where it comes from—a less-than-perfect voice with heart is better than a big one with no emotion.

Most should be very excited by the wide gamut of shows announced this week; Musicologist is excited, but distracted by the concept of a $30.75 Hedley ticket. But yes, excitement: Rick White and The Luyas (one third Jessie Stein of Miracle Fortress and SS Cardiacs, two thirds Bell Orchestre’s Pietro Amato and Stefan Schneider) play the Music Gallery on February 9. Gogol Bordello returns on March 2, shortly after their over-the-top performance last October. New York’s Vampire Weekend evidently can’t get enough of Toronto coming back for the third time since last summer on February 11. Basia Bulat (with Musicologist-loving Katie Stelmanis) is headlining her own show after a heavy North American, Hayden-supporting tour on March 29. Finally, Thee Silver Mt. Zion play on June 7 and 8 as per their (sometimes) annual Toronto visit—sadly, both shows will be Patti Smith-less.

No, you are not mistaken; Michael Bublé, Ozzy Osbourne and Rob Zombie are all passing through the city this week. Imagine Michael Bublé (for some unknown reason) making a vocal cameo during Ozzy’s sure-to-be "Crazy Train" encore? Best mash-up, ever! Or not. Ozzy, Michael, and that ridiculous idea aside, there is a show worthy of your attendance for reasons beyond an ideal encore.

Films! Films films films films. Sometimes it’s hard to get this column started, so we just sit in front of a blank word document and type the word "films" until it doesn’t make any sense to us any more. But by then, we’ve got started typing, at least, and so we continue.

Photo of Matt of Epigram by Richelle Forsey

Calling all local dance floor heroes and heroines! Hearts are ga-gunking to the clocks, which countdown to a night of pure electro-bliss. This Saturday night, Kensington Market’s Teranga (159 Augusta Avenue) will play host to Woodhands, Bocce, Opopo, and Green Go for what will undoubtedly be the sweatiest night of your lives. Too generous? No! With a lineup like Saturday’s, you'll definitely need to bring a second set of clothes.

Oh, how this time of the year can be so unexciting. Holidays are done, the New Year has come, and there is not much to look forward to until, well, the new statutory holiday. Until then, Musicologist recommends indulging in the odd show that surfaces from the woodwork and makes trekking through 20-below weather worthwhile. This Friday, for example, is worth that trek: Metal Kites and Great Bloomers are playing the Rivoli for a mere 5 bucks.

The Drake is gearing up for an ambitious week of post-holiday, end of year music celebration. They are calling the short run What's in the Box: 5 nights, 5 bands, 5 bucks—a clever ploy to attract the empty-pocketed portion of the city (that's if you go for the music, not the booze). Despite being known for attracting enemies to the neighbourhood in the past (err...every Saturday night), the 5 nights (5 bands, 5 bucks) of solidly booked bills might win over the locals, even if it's just for those 5 nights (5 bands, 5 bucks).

Musicologist's generous boast last week of a busier than usual month for music was definitely that: generous. While this week's listings seem a bit skeletal compared to the past few, there are definitely a few events worthy of precious holiday season time.

In celebration of 60 years and counting for the local, legendary Horseshoe Tavern, Joel Plaskett Emergency will be performing six consecutive shows this week beginning Monday, each day playing in chronological order an album in their discography of full-lengths. After seeing its days as a blacksmith shop, a strip club, and of course the host of some of the most legendary first time Toronto performances including Willie Nelson, The Talking Heads, and Neutral Milk Hotel,...

If you are saddened by your procrastination that cost you Richard Hawley and Jose Gonzalez tickets this week, you can direct your attention to the eclectic choice of shows as a mild substitute. It does, however, appear as if local label Arts and Crafts have successfully cornered the market on this week's moderately sized shows (read: tickets that cost no more than $35). Tuesday you can catch Jason Collett with a surprise guest at the...