Tonight was Master Joda's final night of charity rock shows for the Mustard Seed. It's been quite a successful run. You may have seen coverage on Chek TV. It's great to see bands out there not doing it for the money. Well, I suppose they were all doing it for the money. Money for the Mustard Seed....
It was a bit bare by the time Crash Assassin took the stage. This is a young band that boasts 8 albums of original material written by Yukon Deighton. He sings and plays guitar in the band. Mackenzie Barry is on drums and New Colors bassist Catalina Deighton completes the line up. The sound resembles that garage rock revival that appeared in the early 2000s. There is never a reliance on distortion. It's just straight ahead rock n' roll. Cat Deighton bounced around the stage much like the female version of Krist Novoselic. Though, it seemed like she was the only one who was having fun during the set. Barry perched behind the drums in a state of absolute concentration, despite making a few mistakes. Yukon Deighton has the voice, and demonstrated that he can pull off some Wolfmother-like riffs amongst his frenzy of power chords. Most of the songs are quite dark and the lyrics come across very stream of consciousness. There is also a fair bit of grunge flavours that seep in the music. They closed their set with ultra-happy "Lemon", which was completely different from their prior songs [maybe too much]. I think this band has a lot of potential, but that will come with age. This is a fine wine that just needs a little more time in the cellar. The band needs to show more energy on stage. Perhaps some back up vocals?
It was time to be handsomely distracted by Handsome Distraction, whatever that means. The first time I saw Handsome Distraction was at the Cambie in Esquimalt about two years ago. They didn't even have a bassist. With switches in the line up, we now have Devin Perfect on vocals/guitar, Corey Scheiding on lead guitar, Chris Weaver on bass and Bryan Reiber on drums. From the get go, the band sweats professionalism. They are very tight. Perfect achieved some heavenly [and hellish] guitar tones from his pedals, though it was Scheiding that wowed us with his prowess for licks. For only being his first show with the band, he made it look easy. Another great thing about this band is that everyone lends their voices, all the while, Perfect is the main singer. It just adds a lot of dimension to the songs. Reiber is also an incredible singer behind the kit and he is always crisp with his drumming. Does this guy even make mistakes? Chris Weaver was more the screamer. I'm not sure if screaming suits this kind of band. It was better when Weaver stuck to singing. Perfect also let out a few shrieks during the set...but I think the band's music is more set for clean vocals. The sound reminds me of the commercial accessibility to current day Kings of Leon in the way that the chorus come across as anthems. Though, the music is more upfront like that of The Thermals or Hollerado. It never gets too heavy, but the riffs do pack a punch. Perfect talks a bit too much. I'm glad he mentioned the Mustard Seed, but he almost talked after every song. Less talk, more rock! Keep an eye on this band. Even though they had cartoons playing in the background, they refused to be upstaged by Optimus Prime.
We have a break to announce that 1500 had been raised for the Mustard Seed. That number, later in the night, became 1800. Someone from the Mustard Seed does a speech. I don't think he's much for public speaking, but he thanks Master Joda, the V-Lounge and the bands. Applause ensues. They take a group photo with all the bands involved that were present that night.
Sea-Sekshun is up next. They call themselves Ska-punge. That is ska/punk/grunge. I think that label is misleading, and I really believe no band should try to create their own genres. Leave it to the people to brand it. Grunge was coined by a journalist, and the rest is history. Really this band's songs are divided into grunge, ska-punk or ballad. The three aren't really combined. The band is fronted by Jake Sunstrum on guitar. I will give him props on his guitar work. For such a young talent, he can solo quite well. There were some volume issues during the set, which was unfortunate. Tyler Swagar could be early contender for bass god. You could almost pin him for a look-a-like of local Zone DJ Jon Williams. His vocal contributions to set highlight "A La Ska" was an injection of fun that serves the band well. Ross Hobbs held it down at the other side of the stage as rhythm guitarist. He definitely has the look. Tom Gracie was on drums borrowing the kit from Weak Patrol. He was a bit too infatuated with the cow bell. It should have been used sparingly. The band was at their best doing ska punk. You could get the idea that they could play ska in their sleep. This can't be said for the grunge part. Not that it was bad. It just doesn't come across as strongly when Sunstrum goes for the Cobain slur. Same can be said for the quieter songs. His voice just doesn't carry. It's more fitted to submitting a verbal onslaught. The good thing is this is another young band that was playing tonight and they have all the right connections to make sure they are successful in the future while honing exactly what ska-punge is supposed to sound like. Their set was cut short due to things running behind. They don't seem too happy about it.
Suddenly the place is packed with people wearing Weak Patrol shirts. It's for a good reason. I always kicked myself for coming near the end of their opening set a month ago. Well, here they were again in their army inspired uniforms. Didn't take long for the place to erupt with the band's high energy indie rock. I still follow my "New Pornographers fronted by Jello Biafra" statement. It's hard to imagine how this band doesn't get tired. Frontman Caleb Kennedy strums his acoustic guitar harder than anyone I've ever seen and sweat seemed to shake from his flailing body. Carling Battistuzzi is always jumping around, swinging her hair. She has such a rock voice to her, but not in a way that would be non-accessible to the listener. Willis Schneider just gets the job done everytime I see him. He isn't much for putting on a show. He allows the others in the band to do so. Jaime Nolan had a bit of trouble getting the engine started as he stumbled through the first initial lead bits. He laughs it off. Dekan Delaney puts on a clinic each time. Really, this has to be one of the top acts in Victoria. Not only are they consistent with well crafted indie rock with classic influences, they have the shirts, they have the CDs, the uniforms [as stated] and they even have an animated background that spans the whole concert. Each song is handled with gusto. Highlights included a huge band dance off during a drum solo by Delaney, which was neat. Another was Nolan's use of the wah-wah pedal during one tune that reminded me of black exploitation films. I resisted the need to pimp walk across the dance floor. Unfortunately, they were also cut short even though they brought most of the crowd in so that the hoochies and guidos could spend the last half hour shaking it to Lady Gaga. Still, they ended it on a high note with an Ennio Morricone inspired number that started with Delaney whistling backed by Kennedy's chugging guitar. This is a song you need to hear, especially with the climax sing-along that gets me everytime.
All in all, the night had it's ups and downs. I would definitely recommend both Handsome Distraction and Weak Patrol to anyone looking to catch some local music. These bands are going to blow you away. It's always great to keep in mind all the bands that put in their efforts to make these charity concerts successful. So, pat yourself on the back, Victoria. 1800 is nothing to scoff at.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Mighty Power/Sons of Nova/Moss Rock @ The V-Lounge [Nov.25th]
Christmas is a hard time for most. There are those out there that aren't as fortunate, and that's why Master Joda's series of shows this holiday season is such a blessing. All donations upon entry go to The Mustard Seed, though it seemed for this Thursday night, charity couldn't compete with Zone Band of the Month. Not that I am saying the Zone is evil. It was just a fair bit of bad timing. Even with a sparse attendance, the show must go on and there was no reason not to have a good time.
Opening the night was Mighty Power. They had an 80's punk ethic with a nice leaning of funky riffs by vocalist/guitarist Miles Lyndan. Things were a bit shaky to begin with and the group was nervous. Drummer Ian Anderson shuffled along as Mighty Power found their groove. This was the first show with the group for bassist Pedro Java, but kudos to him, because he fit right in. A note for note cover of the Raconteurs "Steady As She Goes" was some nice ear candy, though they did little to improve or ruin it. Their performance got better as time went on and I really enjoyed Lyndan's use of jazzy funk chords, but there's something lacking vocally for this band in all areas. Miles Lyndan has a good voice. It's the melody and the lyrics that need some buffering. During one song, he sings about how there are bigfoots and smallfoots. I get the reference, but when you sing "The bigfoot steps on the smallfoot and the smallfoot says 'Ouch!'"...it lacks mature lyricism. I would also like to hear Pedro Java harmonize with Lyndan. There is a lot of room that could compliment the vocals. Lyndan was very excited to be on stage, which is great. I like how the band was getting into the music, and feeling it in their bones. It's when that excitedness creeped into Lyndan's banter when you wish he would catch his breath. At times, he didn't even know what he was trying to say. Sometimes the music does the talking just fine, and I thought they succeeded in warming up the small crowd tonight at the V-Lounge.
A bit more people were coming in as Sons of Nova were setting up. I've seen the band a couple times and each show they crank it up a notch. The group kicked things off with "It's On", which will be off their new record. It's like if you combined the heavy rock of Black Sabbath with the swagger of Aerosmith and pushed it into a tar pit. The vocals are shared between bassist Aram Heinze [who is more gruff/in your face] and guitarist Codine Vandal [who has a more clean sound]. Vandal has come a long way as a singer. It's great to see this band where they are at now. They could easily headline and bring in a crowd. They even started the first and only mosh pit of the night. Another highlight was a Kyuss cover, but no one in the crowd [including me] seemed very familiar with it. They mixed new material with a few classics from their humble beginnings, though I do miss City Limits and End of the Line. 2nd guitarist Rex Gielfeldt did a great job beefing up the riffs when Vandal would bust into a solo. Speaking of solos, Heinze amazed the crowd with a bass solo as well. Not to mention Adam Griffiths, who was drumming up a sweat and battling with the stage smoke machine. Sons of Nova definitely have found their sound. It's an endless barrage of stoner riffs that get straight to the point. Most of their song content is sexual. Whether it's about getting a hard on or how they are going to "turn you out". Hopefully they expand their inspirations with the next batch of songs to see what else they are capable of.
Last but not least was Moss Rock. They had promised the first 100 people in the door would receive free paintball passes. It's a shame that didn't work out for them. All of those thoughts were nullified once they bust into my personal favourite "Cop". Nate Ripley was on fire tonight as he put his heart and soul into his performance. Lots of the songs, since they are a three piece, follow the formula where the first verse features little or no guitar. This was his time to croon and wave his hands dramatically. He was also sporting quite a furry guitar strap. That's the thing with this band. They don't take themselves too seriously. The three microphones were less about back up vocals and more about making people laugh. Bassist Jeff Bauman was a giant on stage, pounding away at his bass in something you'd call a power stance. Drummer Bryan Reiber, who also does duty for Handsome Distraction, was crisp at every moment. For someone who just uses a single kick, it's amazing how much he can accomplish. The songs are catchy as hell. This is a band that doesn't limit themselves or set parameters. They played a country song. They played a slow song. They entered into some psychedelia. Some riffs may have even fit in Sons of Nova's set. It was this time of the night when a group of guidos with their orange skinned arm candy bustled into the club expecting some fist pumping excitement. The men weren't so keen on this rock n' roll. One exclaimed to his girl "Come on, let's get out of here. I wanna hear some MUSIC!". The girls were, instead, caught in the Moss Rock web and the band's slick rhythm's got them dancing [although, they wouldn't stay till the end]. Things got pretty ugly when Ripley broke a string. Suddenly they didn't know what to do to fill the time it took for Nate to get the string on. Luckily, the sound guy advised them to do a bass and drum solo, which was pretty cool. There were also some really awful jokes. REALLY AWFUL. If there is anything this band needs to work on, it's banter. They are at there best just being themselves. It's when they have to answer to the crowd when things tend to stall. Bauman's banter seemed to originate from a totally different concert than he was at, like if he was playing for Slayer. Other than that, this band should be a lot more popular than they are right now. They were the only band this night that were asked for an encore, where they premiered a work in progress that didn't even have lyrics. The loose jamming worked for the song and it went over well. It's tough to top Cop, and I felt that it was a great way to ignite the crowd, but it would serve better to cap off the night.
In the end, you win some and you lose some. There are plenty more opportunities to catch one of these shows and make a donation to the Mustard Seed. The show is well worth the minimum five dollars.
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| Mighty Power - Photo by Master Joda Promtions |
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| SON - Picture by Master Joda Promotions |
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| Moss Rock - Picture Courtesy of Master Joda Pormotions |
In the end, you win some and you lose some. There are plenty more opportunities to catch one of these shows and make a donation to the Mustard Seed. The show is well worth the minimum five dollars.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Bosma, Coll, Linguanti, Jackson and Brown @ The Fort Street Cafe [Nov 16th]
Runway Studios presented us with a very special acoustic night at the Fort Street Cafe with many artists from local Victoria bands. The turn out was great and the atmosphere was quite welcoming.
Ciara Brown is an ex-member of the New Colors, and she was accompanied by Scawt Polachuk of the current New Colors. Isn't that nice? Things started off great with a cover of The Pixies "Where is my mind?". Once they kicked off Bush's "Glycerin", you would wager a guess we were going to have ourselves a cover extravaganza! Most of the covers were old alternative/grunge tunes from the early 90's. There was an original, and it was fairly in line with the others that were presented. It would be nice to hear more originals. Something that speaks from the heart. Despite a misstep during Pearl Jam's Black, it was a great set. Her voice brought an angelic quality to a lot of the dark material in the lyrics.
Some guy named Stinky Jackson played. He was an asshole, and everyone threw bottles of piss at the stage.
Next up was Gio Linguanti, and he brought a hip hop/reggae/rock flavour to the set. Two people actually danced! I would compare it to an artist like KO. He also plays in a band called Liquid Tuesdaze, which is much different from his solo work. Speaking with all honesty, what he presented was a much more concise sound than his band's catalogue, which suffers from a lack of focus. All of Gio's songs flowed together. I should also mention that he is theatrical in his set. His stage set-up included candles, vanilla scented incense and a lamp. During one song's introduction, he read a passage from a book. It seemed like a bit of a momentum killer to me, but the people that came to see him were into it. Not that I'm opposed to reading a book during a gig, it just seemed to drag. What do I know anyway?
Samuel Coll. The myth. The legend. The moustache. Good on him for his Movember ways. He played some non-Year of the Rat material for us and it was well fitted to the venue. I especially like him breaking out a cover of "Oh, Comely" by Neutral Milk Hotel. Although he told me he'd be playing his own stuff tonight, he did lay down a Year of the Rat goodie for us. Coll has a very distinctive voice. It took a while for me to warm up to it, but this is coming from someone who has seen Year of the Rat play more than once. For some people it is a bit of a hurdle to access his music. For anyone who hasn't heard Coll belt it out, it's in the same vein as Ian Curtis but not as bored. If you are having trouble, give it a chance. You shall be rewarded.
Closing the night out was David Bosma. He had a piano player with him and it really rounded out the sound. It was nothing too abrasive. Quite calming, but enough to keep one's interest. There's nothing bad I can say about this guy. A veteran of the local Victoria scene, it was fairly evident why he was headlining tonight. Consistent songwriting, a pleasant voice and pure musicianship prevails. Jack Weyler commanded the piano with vigour. The piano itself sounded just a tad out of tune, bringing a honky-tonk element to the proceedings. Still, the group was tight, so it didn't matter.
For all those who were there, thanks for coming on a Tuesday after a long weekend. For those who weren't, there are various youtube videos from Ciara Brown and DT Jackson [but he should bury his head in shame for playing such horrible sounding tripe].
Ciara Brown is an ex-member of the New Colors, and she was accompanied by Scawt Polachuk of the current New Colors. Isn't that nice? Things started off great with a cover of The Pixies "Where is my mind?". Once they kicked off Bush's "Glycerin", you would wager a guess we were going to have ourselves a cover extravaganza! Most of the covers were old alternative/grunge tunes from the early 90's. There was an original, and it was fairly in line with the others that were presented. It would be nice to hear more originals. Something that speaks from the heart. Despite a misstep during Pearl Jam's Black, it was a great set. Her voice brought an angelic quality to a lot of the dark material in the lyrics.
Some guy named Stinky Jackson played. He was an asshole, and everyone threw bottles of piss at the stage.
Next up was Gio Linguanti, and he brought a hip hop/reggae/rock flavour to the set. Two people actually danced! I would compare it to an artist like KO. He also plays in a band called Liquid Tuesdaze, which is much different from his solo work. Speaking with all honesty, what he presented was a much more concise sound than his band's catalogue, which suffers from a lack of focus. All of Gio's songs flowed together. I should also mention that he is theatrical in his set. His stage set-up included candles, vanilla scented incense and a lamp. During one song's introduction, he read a passage from a book. It seemed like a bit of a momentum killer to me, but the people that came to see him were into it. Not that I'm opposed to reading a book during a gig, it just seemed to drag. What do I know anyway?
Samuel Coll. The myth. The legend. The moustache. Good on him for his Movember ways. He played some non-Year of the Rat material for us and it was well fitted to the venue. I especially like him breaking out a cover of "Oh, Comely" by Neutral Milk Hotel. Although he told me he'd be playing his own stuff tonight, he did lay down a Year of the Rat goodie for us. Coll has a very distinctive voice. It took a while for me to warm up to it, but this is coming from someone who has seen Year of the Rat play more than once. For some people it is a bit of a hurdle to access his music. For anyone who hasn't heard Coll belt it out, it's in the same vein as Ian Curtis but not as bored. If you are having trouble, give it a chance. You shall be rewarded.
Closing the night out was David Bosma. He had a piano player with him and it really rounded out the sound. It was nothing too abrasive. Quite calming, but enough to keep one's interest. There's nothing bad I can say about this guy. A veteran of the local Victoria scene, it was fairly evident why he was headlining tonight. Consistent songwriting, a pleasant voice and pure musicianship prevails. Jack Weyler commanded the piano with vigour. The piano itself sounded just a tad out of tune, bringing a honky-tonk element to the proceedings. Still, the group was tight, so it didn't matter.
For all those who were there, thanks for coming on a Tuesday after a long weekend. For those who weren't, there are various youtube videos from Ciara Brown and DT Jackson [but he should bury his head in shame for playing such horrible sounding tripe].
The acceptance of lip-synching and auto-tune in modern society
From the invention of television, there has been that eager tension to put on the best performance. Through variety TV shows like The Ed Sullivan Show, there was no question that it could make or break a career. Somewhere down the line, someone decided that the best way to have an artist portray themselves was to pretend to sing. Even further down that dotted line, another idea was that you could take beautiful people and dub them over with different ugly people. Image was key. Now in today's world, you don't need talent, just as long as you have a pitch corrector.
The first time I had my audio innocence shattered was when I learned a band from Los Angeles named the Monkees didn't play their own instruments. Well, this is a half truth. Yes, they were hired as actors and although they did not contribute anything but vocals until 1967, they were fully functioning musicians. Problem was, at the conception of the show, no one played drums. The producers decided Davy Jones would be the frontman, Michael Nesmith on guitar, Peter Tork on bass and the unlucky Micky Dolenz on drums. For their first two albums, session musicians filled in for the boys and they had no creative input for the music. Though, the guys did tour without the use of trickery. Their show matched the oddball humour of A Hard Day's Night, and the public were eating it up. The band fought for their need to express themselves after many behind the scene arguments with the show's producers wrote and record an album called Headquarters, which reached #1 for one week in 1967. Unfortunately, that's when, instead of fighting with the producers, they started fighting amongst themselves about direction. The show was ultimately cancelled in 1968, though the band continued to release music. The problem with this is it's still happening with people like Miley Cyrus or whatever Disney and Nickalodeon is pushing down our kid's throats. The end result is always the same: The artist tries to redefine themselves by being the polar opposite of the sugar coated image that made them popular, usually through sexually explicit lyrics and imagery.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScXXaBu1Ing
When we were not all singing and dancing with our tambourines, there was also a focus on pure image in the punk scene. In 1975, the UK brought us The Sex Pistols. Johnny Rotten on vocals, Steve Jones on guitar, Paul Cook on drums and Glen Matlock on bass. Matlock eventually left the band due to a mutual agreement, but the myth was he was kicked out for liking The Beatles. That's when Rotten spotted Sid Vicious. Although he had very little musical talent, he had the look and the edge Johnny was looking for. They put him on bass, but he was, indeed, terrible. He only played on one track on Nevermind the Bullocks for the song "Bodies" and even that was overdubbed. Matlock was brought back in behind the scenes. I even heard stories that someone would play bass behind a curtain during their shows. Issues arose when Sid got all strung out on Heroin and would attack fans. Rotten has said that Vicious had a thirst for fame. In the end, he murdered his girlfriend and then later committed suicide, but there will always be controversy that he would have been too high at the time to kill Nancy Spungen. This would be a case of having the bad boy image blow up in one's face. Yet we love it, don't we? We love when Bert McCracken of The Used excessively drops the f-bomb on live television or Mike Patton of Faith No More exposes himself. We want these people to shock us. Controversy can only fuel album sales. Just don't speak out against god, war or the president.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgWDYlGvyZk
Milli Vanilli was a pop duo formed in Germany in 1988. It was fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus, but they didn't actually sing at all like our past two stories. In 1990, their grammy for 2 X 2 was revoked when it was discovered their records were not the voices of Morvan or Pilatus. No, these two guys were model/dancers Frank Farian [The Mastermind] found in a Munich club. The duo had several hits, but even during their tours, they used pre-recorded vocals. It bit them in the ass in 1989 when during a performance for MTV, the vocals began to skip. The duo tried to play it off, but the damage was done. They were nothing but puppets on a string. Milli Vanilli tried to redeem themselves, like The Monkees, by releasing albums with their own voices but without much success. Rob Pilatus died of a drug overdose on April 2, 1998 right before their Back and in the Attack promotional tour. It makes me think, these guys are living the high life. All they do is get on stage and pretend to sing, while the real talent that has backed them since the beginning don't get the credit they deserve. Would you take anyone seriously if someone boasted they wrote for Milli Vanilli? No, the connotation will always be that they were fake and talentless. Here is their crowning glory:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udS5qBrBFqE
It's still good to know a public display of lip-sync fail can ruin a career. Need I say more about Ashlee Simpson? Yes, I'm sure it must be very hard to follow in the shadow of your more talented sister. In October 2004, she was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Her first song went without problems, but when they started the second song, the vocals for the first song played instead. The band did there best to cover it up and after some amazing redneck jiggery, Simpson exited the stage. At the end of the show, she had the lady balls to say that her band started playing the wrong song! Then it was her drummer pressed the wrong button. Poor Ashlee had acid reflux and "was not advised to sing". So, basically, it was any fault but her own. Though, even after this display, she did put out another album. I guess the lucky thing was that even though she was helped through the writing process, there weren't any grammies to take away from her.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Rt318_cEsw
Yet, for some odd reason, we've embraced lip syncing during concerts. It's one thing to screw up on live TV, but when you have big name artists touring to a vocal track, that's gotta be the biggest farce of it all. What are we paying for? Don't give me no shit that the show is so elaborate that an artist can't sing and dance at the same time. Why dance at all? Musicians is a term for people that produce music. Daily we are losing that term to sham entertainers who provide nothing but skimpy outfits and gyrations not uncommon in your local strip club. The show's focus is never about the music in the pop world. It resembles more of a Broadway extravaganza or Cirque de Soleil. My personal favourite offender is Britney Spears. It's hard to pick an exact moment that is her worst lip-syncing disaster, but unlike Simpsons, it hasn't seemed to have affected Spears at all. We should all remember a horrid moment at the MTV Video Music Awards where she "performed" Gimme More. The best parts were the shots of the various celebrities in the audience all with shocked facial expressions. Yet, even after a performance so mind numbingly bad [which, I think she blamed on cold medication], her album still rose to the top in Canada and #2 in the US. Even during her concerts, there are instances that she is NOT singing. Does the audience boo? Does the audience get up and ask for a refund? No, we just seemingly sit there and ignore it. Are we that fucking dense? Watch as a fan wanders up on stage and she yells at him to sit down. She must be speaking in tongues!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqfwYo1K1g8
Alas, the finale moment. Where you do nothing to hide the fact you can't sing and you openly use something called "auto-tune". It's right there in the title folks. T-Pain uses auto-tune. Kanye uses auto-tune. There is so much modulation on Ke$ha's voice she sounds like an alien, but don't worry, they can get away with it because auto-tune is totally trendy right now, like OMG. What message are we sending young inspiring musicians? You don't need to be talented. You just need the look. You just need the attitude. It's all backed up by the studios and music television nor radio do little to change that. Ever since the invention of Pro-Tools, it's not about playing the song until you get it right. Hell, you can stumble through a take and that can be that. Leave it in the hands of the producers to cut it up, correct the pitch and shine it up for release. Sorry, Lil Wayne is not a singer, and he will never be the new Jimi Hendrix. There's a lot of people that state rap is dead or that it's a fragment of its old self. That's true, but that doesn't mean Timbaland has to start swooning us in a duet with Chad Kroeger of Nickelback. I wish there was some way we could gather all the auto-tune devices and just have a massive fire, like the way they used to burn Beatles albums. We've accepted lip syncing and we've accepted voice modulation. The kind of stuff that would ruin your career back in the 60's if someone felt you weren't genuine. To prove anyone can use auto-tune, here's Antoine Dodson live on the BET awards
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke_ft98rDN8&feature=related
What can we do? Well, we need to support the artists out there that are writing and performing their own material without cheating. This accounts for CD/MP3 and vinyl sales. This accounts for concerts. Why is it so many great artists get dropped from their labels due to lack of album sales, when the mongoloids reach the top of the castle? It's all in the hands of the consumer. I like to think Victoria has pretty good taste. I hope you have enjoyed this little article. I'd love to hear what you think about it. Other than that, I'll see you at show soon!
The first time I had my audio innocence shattered was when I learned a band from Los Angeles named the Monkees didn't play their own instruments. Well, this is a half truth. Yes, they were hired as actors and although they did not contribute anything but vocals until 1967, they were fully functioning musicians. Problem was, at the conception of the show, no one played drums. The producers decided Davy Jones would be the frontman, Michael Nesmith on guitar, Peter Tork on bass and the unlucky Micky Dolenz on drums. For their first two albums, session musicians filled in for the boys and they had no creative input for the music. Though, the guys did tour without the use of trickery. Their show matched the oddball humour of A Hard Day's Night, and the public were eating it up. The band fought for their need to express themselves after many behind the scene arguments with the show's producers wrote and record an album called Headquarters, which reached #1 for one week in 1967. Unfortunately, that's when, instead of fighting with the producers, they started fighting amongst themselves about direction. The show was ultimately cancelled in 1968, though the band continued to release music. The problem with this is it's still happening with people like Miley Cyrus or whatever Disney and Nickalodeon is pushing down our kid's throats. The end result is always the same: The artist tries to redefine themselves by being the polar opposite of the sugar coated image that made them popular, usually through sexually explicit lyrics and imagery.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScXXaBu1Ing
When we were not all singing and dancing with our tambourines, there was also a focus on pure image in the punk scene. In 1975, the UK brought us The Sex Pistols. Johnny Rotten on vocals, Steve Jones on guitar, Paul Cook on drums and Glen Matlock on bass. Matlock eventually left the band due to a mutual agreement, but the myth was he was kicked out for liking The Beatles. That's when Rotten spotted Sid Vicious. Although he had very little musical talent, he had the look and the edge Johnny was looking for. They put him on bass, but he was, indeed, terrible. He only played on one track on Nevermind the Bullocks for the song "Bodies" and even that was overdubbed. Matlock was brought back in behind the scenes. I even heard stories that someone would play bass behind a curtain during their shows. Issues arose when Sid got all strung out on Heroin and would attack fans. Rotten has said that Vicious had a thirst for fame. In the end, he murdered his girlfriend and then later committed suicide, but there will always be controversy that he would have been too high at the time to kill Nancy Spungen. This would be a case of having the bad boy image blow up in one's face. Yet we love it, don't we? We love when Bert McCracken of The Used excessively drops the f-bomb on live television or Mike Patton of Faith No More exposes himself. We want these people to shock us. Controversy can only fuel album sales. Just don't speak out against god, war or the president.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgWDYlGvyZk
Milli Vanilli was a pop duo formed in Germany in 1988. It was fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus, but they didn't actually sing at all like our past two stories. In 1990, their grammy for 2 X 2 was revoked when it was discovered their records were not the voices of Morvan or Pilatus. No, these two guys were model/dancers Frank Farian [The Mastermind] found in a Munich club. The duo had several hits, but even during their tours, they used pre-recorded vocals. It bit them in the ass in 1989 when during a performance for MTV, the vocals began to skip. The duo tried to play it off, but the damage was done. They were nothing but puppets on a string. Milli Vanilli tried to redeem themselves, like The Monkees, by releasing albums with their own voices but without much success. Rob Pilatus died of a drug overdose on April 2, 1998 right before their Back and in the Attack promotional tour. It makes me think, these guys are living the high life. All they do is get on stage and pretend to sing, while the real talent that has backed them since the beginning don't get the credit they deserve. Would you take anyone seriously if someone boasted they wrote for Milli Vanilli? No, the connotation will always be that they were fake and talentless. Here is their crowning glory:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udS5qBrBFqE
It's still good to know a public display of lip-sync fail can ruin a career. Need I say more about Ashlee Simpson? Yes, I'm sure it must be very hard to follow in the shadow of your more talented sister. In October 2004, she was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Her first song went without problems, but when they started the second song, the vocals for the first song played instead. The band did there best to cover it up and after some amazing redneck jiggery, Simpson exited the stage. At the end of the show, she had the lady balls to say that her band started playing the wrong song! Then it was her drummer pressed the wrong button. Poor Ashlee had acid reflux and "was not advised to sing". So, basically, it was any fault but her own. Though, even after this display, she did put out another album. I guess the lucky thing was that even though she was helped through the writing process, there weren't any grammies to take away from her.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Rt318_cEsw
Yet, for some odd reason, we've embraced lip syncing during concerts. It's one thing to screw up on live TV, but when you have big name artists touring to a vocal track, that's gotta be the biggest farce of it all. What are we paying for? Don't give me no shit that the show is so elaborate that an artist can't sing and dance at the same time. Why dance at all? Musicians is a term for people that produce music. Daily we are losing that term to sham entertainers who provide nothing but skimpy outfits and gyrations not uncommon in your local strip club. The show's focus is never about the music in the pop world. It resembles more of a Broadway extravaganza or Cirque de Soleil. My personal favourite offender is Britney Spears. It's hard to pick an exact moment that is her worst lip-syncing disaster, but unlike Simpsons, it hasn't seemed to have affected Spears at all. We should all remember a horrid moment at the MTV Video Music Awards where she "performed" Gimme More. The best parts were the shots of the various celebrities in the audience all with shocked facial expressions. Yet, even after a performance so mind numbingly bad [which, I think she blamed on cold medication], her album still rose to the top in Canada and #2 in the US. Even during her concerts, there are instances that she is NOT singing. Does the audience boo? Does the audience get up and ask for a refund? No, we just seemingly sit there and ignore it. Are we that fucking dense? Watch as a fan wanders up on stage and she yells at him to sit down. She must be speaking in tongues!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqfwYo1K1g8
Alas, the finale moment. Where you do nothing to hide the fact you can't sing and you openly use something called "auto-tune". It's right there in the title folks. T-Pain uses auto-tune. Kanye uses auto-tune. There is so much modulation on Ke$ha's voice she sounds like an alien, but don't worry, they can get away with it because auto-tune is totally trendy right now, like OMG. What message are we sending young inspiring musicians? You don't need to be talented. You just need the look. You just need the attitude. It's all backed up by the studios and music television nor radio do little to change that. Ever since the invention of Pro-Tools, it's not about playing the song until you get it right. Hell, you can stumble through a take and that can be that. Leave it in the hands of the producers to cut it up, correct the pitch and shine it up for release. Sorry, Lil Wayne is not a singer, and he will never be the new Jimi Hendrix. There's a lot of people that state rap is dead or that it's a fragment of its old self. That's true, but that doesn't mean Timbaland has to start swooning us in a duet with Chad Kroeger of Nickelback. I wish there was some way we could gather all the auto-tune devices and just have a massive fire, like the way they used to burn Beatles albums. We've accepted lip syncing and we've accepted voice modulation. The kind of stuff that would ruin your career back in the 60's if someone felt you weren't genuine. To prove anyone can use auto-tune, here's Antoine Dodson live on the BET awards
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ke_ft98rDN8&feature=related
What can we do? Well, we need to support the artists out there that are writing and performing their own material without cheating. This accounts for CD/MP3 and vinyl sales. This accounts for concerts. Why is it so many great artists get dropped from their labels due to lack of album sales, when the mongoloids reach the top of the castle? It's all in the hands of the consumer. I like to think Victoria has pretty good taste. I hope you have enjoyed this little article. I'd love to hear what you think about it. Other than that, I'll see you at show soon!
Friday, November 12, 2010
Just for Laughs 10th Anniversary Alumni Edition ft/ Jeremy Hotz @ McPherson Playhouse [Nov.10th]
I am going to take a little detour here and tell you about the Just for Laughs 10th Anniversary Alumni Edition that happened at the McPherson Playhouse on Wednesday. It may not have had any bands, but the show did have its own personal DJ, who warmed up the crowd that tried to track down their seat numbers in the swanky venue. I suppose that's how I'm going to tie this to Bandnight.
The show began with Ben Seidman. It says in my "yearbook" program that Seidman is the only person in history to be named resident magician at Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay. Sounds promising. I've always found Penn and Teller very entertaining. Unfortunately Ben Seidman's main trick was to make the crowd uncomfortable. He's one of those wacky comedians that would be better suited for a set at Chucky Cheese than here at the Playhouse. He told us that it bothered him that most people think he is gay, but that it was ok, because most people don't know he is a woman. Did you hear that? Even the crickets are uncomfortable. Well, it's magic time! He pulls someone out of the audience. I couldn't help but notice the man, whose name was Michelle, mouth the words "Oh fuck". The trick was probably one you've seen a million times. He asks for a twenty dollar bill. Man signs twenty dollar bill. Folds twenty dollar bill. Magician puts a paper clip on the twenty, and the man clips it to his pocket. With a little sleight of hand and distraction, Seidman swoops in. The money is gone! Where could it be? Well, it's paper clipped to the man's upper back, and for some reason he also has the man's credit card. I also have to say with every joke or trick, Seidman would turn black and go "Oh no he didn't!" or "Oh snap!" with various head movements. Again, uncomfortable. It doesn't end there. He tells poor Michelle he won't give back his belongings unless he passes a test. So, Michelle has to sit in a chair. Seidman cues some music to the DJ, who is positioned behind a veiled curtain. Basically it was a montage of guess which hand I'm holding a napkin. We finally reached some funny bits when he started distracting his captive and throwing the napkins away to show his hands were empty. It got a bit more ridiculous each time to the point he was throwing his shoes. He thanked Michelle and his act was over. I sink in my chair hoping this isn't the level of comedy we will be subjected to.
Then a booming voice came on, welcoming us to the show. Some lucky bastards in the nose bleeds get a "free seat upgrade" thanks to Capital One. The Just for Laugh theme song plays in full before our host, Frank Spadone, comes to the stage. I didn't know at the time but Spadone's credits are quite fantastic. I notice he had a role in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. I'll have to watch it again to point him out. He did a great job in warming up the crowd after such a frightful display. His shtick is about being a Catholic Italian with a traditional family upbringing in Canada. His job was to fill the holes in between each act, so I will give an overview of his whole act instead of trying to break each part down. A highlight was telling us that in the Italian house, you have the downstairs and then the top floor is basically the showroom, where everything is wrapped in plastic. That his father bought a new couch, and when Spadone tried to sit on it, he was told it wasn't for comfort, it was for decoration. There was a nice rant about how women like to control men because they are so used to playing with dolls in their childhood. So, for two minutes he plays his wife telling him what to wear, what to eat, he's driving too fast, he's driving too slow, don't fart, not to drink too much...with the climax where it resembles the teachers of Charlie Brown. There was also talk of the coming of age for women. How a mother can be proud of their daughter's first period, but you'll never hear a son tell his father about the first time he masturbated in the shower.
Next up was Ryan Hamilton. He was named one of Rolling Stone's top five comics to watch in 2009. He was also part of this years Last Comic Standing. Outside of Jeremy Hotz, who I will get to later, he was the best comedian of the night. His material was clean. He didn't dip into any blue material or resort to toilet humour. The best way I can describe him is you take the set up of Jerry Seinfeld and then the punchline of Will Farell, you'll get Ryan Hamilton. The main part of his set was about how he is from Idaho, and now he resides in New York. A New Yorker says "Oh yeah, Idaho. I know Idaho, that's in the Midwest". No it isn't. Hamilton describes New Yorkers just think of the west coast is LA, the east coast is New York and the rest of America is the Midwest. There was also a funny bit about hot air balloons being the worst form of transportation. Nobody goes to work in a hot air balloon. He described a date where he took a girl up in a hot air balloon, and how you are stuck with that person for, at least, two hours no matter if it's a good date or not. I'd definitely recommend him.
Spadone comes on again. Once Hamilton has raised the bar, you can sense Spadone is struggling a bit. He seems flustered. He tells some more jokes, but the crowd isn't as rewarding as his first set. It's just additional anecdotes about his Italian upbringing. I'm not exactly sure why he just didn't do his set, and then MC'd the rest of the night. Finally he introduces the next comic, Robert Kelly who plays Louis CK's brother on the show Louie and has also toured with Dane Cook.
This guy was the polar opposite of Hamilton's clean quirky delivery. This Boston native was crass and swore like a sailor. He was a heavy set man, and opened his set with his hatred for skinny people. He points to the man in the Capital One seats [who actually got called on by almost every comedian this night, for some reason], and tells him that he is doomed to become fat and ugly. He tells us he just doesn't care anymore. There comes a point in a man's life where he doesn't give a shit. This involves pushing his wife over while she's tying her shoes at the flea market and farting in a baby's face. Yes, farting in a baby's face. He told us he was holding one in for so long and someone rolled a baby carriage up behind him. He couldn't resist, on account of being old, fat and not caring. He went pretty far with it, to describe the baby's reactions. It sounds horrible and we all felt guilty for laughing. He tells the crowd you know you've become too fat when you drop something and then you consider if you really need it. The man was truly in your face and not pulling any punches. Another example of that was describing how he had to pull his fat up to expose his penis that resembled chewed up bubble gum in a bush. He brought the audience to tears telling us a story where his wife waxed his ass. There were other fart jokes involving tight jeans and the sound that followed. You get the point.
Spadone is here on stage trying to play off the toilet humour of Kelly. More fart jokes. Announces British comedian Gina Yashere.
She asks "How we doing, Victoria!?" in a harsh accent. I'm one of three that actually understood what she just said. Yikes. The crowd stares in a confused clutter of flesh. It took some time to adjust to her accent, but she did a decent job in making the crowd laugh. She talks about her mother immigrating to London from Nigeria, and why in the world out of every place on the map would she pick somewhere that rains so much. Plus a location with so much subtle racism. Then she asks where the black people are at. "Is there any black people in Victoria?". Someone in the back claps. It's funny when you think about it, and she picked up on it. Not sure if anyone registered it, or perhaps thought of it politically incorrect to laugh about a black person sitting way in the back of the theatre. She tells us about the time she wanted to get in touch with her Nigerian roots, so she went to her homeland. "Nigerians are fucking crazy! I stayed in my hotel the whole time with all the other white people". Then she also went below the taste level talking about how good she was in her 20's squatting over the toilet, but now she's pissing all down her thighs, her shoes and sometimes the woman in the next stall. She says she thinks her flaps are a bit off. There was commentary that she loves kids, but she's not into the whole childbirth part. Gina tells us she has a hard enough time with a big poo and it's not like you can break a baby into pieces. Again, guilty for laughing. Another highlight was how her mother keeps asking when Yashere is getting married and having children so she's been borrowing random kids. The problem is she can't get the same kid each time so there's an age gap. The kid was nine months last week and now he is three. Black one week, Chinese the next. She tells her mother he is just sleepy. There was a classic routine about modern rap, where she rapped the words "bitch ho ho bitch ho bitch n**ga bitch ho ho.....diamonds.....bitch ho ho bitch".
In comes Spadone to proclaim he was the one Gina peed on in the next stall, and that he should stop using women's bathrooms. Ok, that was a bit funny, but it was time for our main comic, the miserable Jeremy Hotz!
First thing you will notice if you've only seen Hotz on TV is that he likes to swear as much as the next guy. Instead of saying "_____, what a miserable _____ that is", miserable is replaced by the word "shit". A lot of the best laughs seemed to just come off the top of his head. First he dug into our recent weather the day before the show. How he was struggling through the wind, yet all the locals were acting like it was perfectly normal weather. He tells us a story about flying on Air Canada. What a shit airline that is, he says [though, he realizes that they are one of the sponsors, so he retracts. Tells us it's that shit airline with the leaf on it]. How he was looking at the map that showed all the places Air Canada flew and Victoria was just a red dot in the ocean. That Victoria must have been so small, it doesn't even show up on a map. Then when they were about to land, the plane began to sway back and forth erratically. "Fuck, the pilot can't find it either!". He scanned the audience, picking out a few choice faces to talk to. The best moments was when he would ask where in Victoria everyone was from. One person tells him they are from North Saanich. "North sandwich?", Hotz asks with a disgusted demeanour. He asks an old man if he knew where North Sandwich was. The old man informs him that's where all the rich snobs live. Hotz points to the VIP booths and gives the finger to the North Sandwich people. He chastises them a bit, before he realizes there are booths on the other side of the stage as well. There's North Sandwich people everywhere! He asks the same old man where he is from, he is from plain ol'saanich. Hotz makes an observation that the more north you are in the sandwich, the better. Another audience member lives in Gordon Head, which suddenly becomes Gordon's Head. "So, you aren't really here right now, are you? You live in Gordon's Head!". He asks the crowd if anyone just lives in simple Victoria. One man, the popular one with the Capital One seats, answers he is. He lives just down the street. Hotz asks him if he walked to the show. No, the man took a cab. Hotz buries his face in his hands, something he would do again and again. "You took a cab down the street? You lazy bastard". The great irony of it was that it was established the same man owned several shoe stores and that you'd think someone that sells shoes would have no problem walking down the street. At one point of the show, he catches someone leaning over in there seat. "What are you, fucking puking over there!?". The way he just read the audience was priceless. He would ask questions to relate to his giant Rolodex of comedy. There were also digs against Americans, how they start wars and then call Canada in to clean it up. He tells us about this one time, in LA if I remember correctly, where he was walking his dog and his dog went number two. A man rolled down his window and yells "You better get all of that!", so he picks up the feces and places it in the back of the man's truck so he can see he got all of it himself. Another funny bit was talking about playing on Prince Edward Island, and that anyone that lives on an island has to be a "stand-offish" person. He tells us PEI is even more stand-offish than Vancouver Island, but he saw something he couldn't believe. Right off the ocean, on their very own island sat a single house. "Who the fuck is that guy?", he pondered. He muses that the guy must be thinking if PEI gets any closer, he's getting the fuck out of there. Hotz amusingly says that Prince Edward Island should be renamed Quebec, since they want to separate anyway. It seems he just thought that one up, and caught himself chuckling. "I'll have to use that one again, but obviously not in Montreal". There was another bit about people who have crazy eyes, and how you aren't sure if they are looking at you. He also attacked nose hair trimmers. "What a shit product that is! They don't trim your nose hair, they sharpen them!". He was on for about forty minutes, but it felt like ten. He wishes us all a good night. Do comedians do encores?
It seemed over so quickly [the whole show was about an hour and a half]. All the comics made their ways out to say goodbye as the Just for Laughs theme song played. It was announced they would be available to sign our "yearbooks" after the show. Overall, it was a great show. I could have done without Seidman's wacky magicianship and Spadone should have just did one set instead of trying to segue with more of his own material between the others. I was very surprised at all the fart jokes. I guess I'm just too used to the Just for Laughs I see on television. You know, the ones from the early 90's they show repeatedly on the Comedy Network.
The show began with Ben Seidman. It says in my "yearbook" program that Seidman is the only person in history to be named resident magician at Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay. Sounds promising. I've always found Penn and Teller very entertaining. Unfortunately Ben Seidman's main trick was to make the crowd uncomfortable. He's one of those wacky comedians that would be better suited for a set at Chucky Cheese than here at the Playhouse. He told us that it bothered him that most people think he is gay, but that it was ok, because most people don't know he is a woman. Did you hear that? Even the crickets are uncomfortable. Well, it's magic time! He pulls someone out of the audience. I couldn't help but notice the man, whose name was Michelle, mouth the words "Oh fuck". The trick was probably one you've seen a million times. He asks for a twenty dollar bill. Man signs twenty dollar bill. Folds twenty dollar bill. Magician puts a paper clip on the twenty, and the man clips it to his pocket. With a little sleight of hand and distraction, Seidman swoops in. The money is gone! Where could it be? Well, it's paper clipped to the man's upper back, and for some reason he also has the man's credit card. I also have to say with every joke or trick, Seidman would turn black and go "Oh no he didn't!" or "Oh snap!" with various head movements. Again, uncomfortable. It doesn't end there. He tells poor Michelle he won't give back his belongings unless he passes a test. So, Michelle has to sit in a chair. Seidman cues some music to the DJ, who is positioned behind a veiled curtain. Basically it was a montage of guess which hand I'm holding a napkin. We finally reached some funny bits when he started distracting his captive and throwing the napkins away to show his hands were empty. It got a bit more ridiculous each time to the point he was throwing his shoes. He thanked Michelle and his act was over. I sink in my chair hoping this isn't the level of comedy we will be subjected to.
Then a booming voice came on, welcoming us to the show. Some lucky bastards in the nose bleeds get a "free seat upgrade" thanks to Capital One. The Just for Laugh theme song plays in full before our host, Frank Spadone, comes to the stage. I didn't know at the time but Spadone's credits are quite fantastic. I notice he had a role in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. I'll have to watch it again to point him out. He did a great job in warming up the crowd after such a frightful display. His shtick is about being a Catholic Italian with a traditional family upbringing in Canada. His job was to fill the holes in between each act, so I will give an overview of his whole act instead of trying to break each part down. A highlight was telling us that in the Italian house, you have the downstairs and then the top floor is basically the showroom, where everything is wrapped in plastic. That his father bought a new couch, and when Spadone tried to sit on it, he was told it wasn't for comfort, it was for decoration. There was a nice rant about how women like to control men because they are so used to playing with dolls in their childhood. So, for two minutes he plays his wife telling him what to wear, what to eat, he's driving too fast, he's driving too slow, don't fart, not to drink too much...with the climax where it resembles the teachers of Charlie Brown. There was also talk of the coming of age for women. How a mother can be proud of their daughter's first period, but you'll never hear a son tell his father about the first time he masturbated in the shower.
Next up was Ryan Hamilton. He was named one of Rolling Stone's top five comics to watch in 2009. He was also part of this years Last Comic Standing. Outside of Jeremy Hotz, who I will get to later, he was the best comedian of the night. His material was clean. He didn't dip into any blue material or resort to toilet humour. The best way I can describe him is you take the set up of Jerry Seinfeld and then the punchline of Will Farell, you'll get Ryan Hamilton. The main part of his set was about how he is from Idaho, and now he resides in New York. A New Yorker says "Oh yeah, Idaho. I know Idaho, that's in the Midwest". No it isn't. Hamilton describes New Yorkers just think of the west coast is LA, the east coast is New York and the rest of America is the Midwest. There was also a funny bit about hot air balloons being the worst form of transportation. Nobody goes to work in a hot air balloon. He described a date where he took a girl up in a hot air balloon, and how you are stuck with that person for, at least, two hours no matter if it's a good date or not. I'd definitely recommend him.
Spadone comes on again. Once Hamilton has raised the bar, you can sense Spadone is struggling a bit. He seems flustered. He tells some more jokes, but the crowd isn't as rewarding as his first set. It's just additional anecdotes about his Italian upbringing. I'm not exactly sure why he just didn't do his set, and then MC'd the rest of the night. Finally he introduces the next comic, Robert Kelly who plays Louis CK's brother on the show Louie and has also toured with Dane Cook.
This guy was the polar opposite of Hamilton's clean quirky delivery. This Boston native was crass and swore like a sailor. He was a heavy set man, and opened his set with his hatred for skinny people. He points to the man in the Capital One seats [who actually got called on by almost every comedian this night, for some reason], and tells him that he is doomed to become fat and ugly. He tells us he just doesn't care anymore. There comes a point in a man's life where he doesn't give a shit. This involves pushing his wife over while she's tying her shoes at the flea market and farting in a baby's face. Yes, farting in a baby's face. He told us he was holding one in for so long and someone rolled a baby carriage up behind him. He couldn't resist, on account of being old, fat and not caring. He went pretty far with it, to describe the baby's reactions. It sounds horrible and we all felt guilty for laughing. He tells the crowd you know you've become too fat when you drop something and then you consider if you really need it. The man was truly in your face and not pulling any punches. Another example of that was describing how he had to pull his fat up to expose his penis that resembled chewed up bubble gum in a bush. He brought the audience to tears telling us a story where his wife waxed his ass. There were other fart jokes involving tight jeans and the sound that followed. You get the point.
Spadone is here on stage trying to play off the toilet humour of Kelly. More fart jokes. Announces British comedian Gina Yashere.
She asks "How we doing, Victoria!?" in a harsh accent. I'm one of three that actually understood what she just said. Yikes. The crowd stares in a confused clutter of flesh. It took some time to adjust to her accent, but she did a decent job in making the crowd laugh. She talks about her mother immigrating to London from Nigeria, and why in the world out of every place on the map would she pick somewhere that rains so much. Plus a location with so much subtle racism. Then she asks where the black people are at. "Is there any black people in Victoria?". Someone in the back claps. It's funny when you think about it, and she picked up on it. Not sure if anyone registered it, or perhaps thought of it politically incorrect to laugh about a black person sitting way in the back of the theatre. She tells us about the time she wanted to get in touch with her Nigerian roots, so she went to her homeland. "Nigerians are fucking crazy! I stayed in my hotel the whole time with all the other white people". Then she also went below the taste level talking about how good she was in her 20's squatting over the toilet, but now she's pissing all down her thighs, her shoes and sometimes the woman in the next stall. She says she thinks her flaps are a bit off. There was commentary that she loves kids, but she's not into the whole childbirth part. Gina tells us she has a hard enough time with a big poo and it's not like you can break a baby into pieces. Again, guilty for laughing. Another highlight was how her mother keeps asking when Yashere is getting married and having children so she's been borrowing random kids. The problem is she can't get the same kid each time so there's an age gap. The kid was nine months last week and now he is three. Black one week, Chinese the next. She tells her mother he is just sleepy. There was a classic routine about modern rap, where she rapped the words "bitch ho ho bitch ho bitch n**ga bitch ho ho.....diamonds.....bitch ho ho bitch".
In comes Spadone to proclaim he was the one Gina peed on in the next stall, and that he should stop using women's bathrooms. Ok, that was a bit funny, but it was time for our main comic, the miserable Jeremy Hotz!
First thing you will notice if you've only seen Hotz on TV is that he likes to swear as much as the next guy. Instead of saying "_____, what a miserable _____ that is", miserable is replaced by the word "shit". A lot of the best laughs seemed to just come off the top of his head. First he dug into our recent weather the day before the show. How he was struggling through the wind, yet all the locals were acting like it was perfectly normal weather. He tells us a story about flying on Air Canada. What a shit airline that is, he says [though, he realizes that they are one of the sponsors, so he retracts. Tells us it's that shit airline with the leaf on it]. How he was looking at the map that showed all the places Air Canada flew and Victoria was just a red dot in the ocean. That Victoria must have been so small, it doesn't even show up on a map. Then when they were about to land, the plane began to sway back and forth erratically. "Fuck, the pilot can't find it either!". He scanned the audience, picking out a few choice faces to talk to. The best moments was when he would ask where in Victoria everyone was from. One person tells him they are from North Saanich. "North sandwich?", Hotz asks with a disgusted demeanour. He asks an old man if he knew where North Sandwich was. The old man informs him that's where all the rich snobs live. Hotz points to the VIP booths and gives the finger to the North Sandwich people. He chastises them a bit, before he realizes there are booths on the other side of the stage as well. There's North Sandwich people everywhere! He asks the same old man where he is from, he is from plain ol'saanich. Hotz makes an observation that the more north you are in the sandwich, the better. Another audience member lives in Gordon Head, which suddenly becomes Gordon's Head. "So, you aren't really here right now, are you? You live in Gordon's Head!". He asks the crowd if anyone just lives in simple Victoria. One man, the popular one with the Capital One seats, answers he is. He lives just down the street. Hotz asks him if he walked to the show. No, the man took a cab. Hotz buries his face in his hands, something he would do again and again. "You took a cab down the street? You lazy bastard". The great irony of it was that it was established the same man owned several shoe stores and that you'd think someone that sells shoes would have no problem walking down the street. At one point of the show, he catches someone leaning over in there seat. "What are you, fucking puking over there!?". The way he just read the audience was priceless. He would ask questions to relate to his giant Rolodex of comedy. There were also digs against Americans, how they start wars and then call Canada in to clean it up. He tells us about this one time, in LA if I remember correctly, where he was walking his dog and his dog went number two. A man rolled down his window and yells "You better get all of that!", so he picks up the feces and places it in the back of the man's truck so he can see he got all of it himself. Another funny bit was talking about playing on Prince Edward Island, and that anyone that lives on an island has to be a "stand-offish" person. He tells us PEI is even more stand-offish than Vancouver Island, but he saw something he couldn't believe. Right off the ocean, on their very own island sat a single house. "Who the fuck is that guy?", he pondered. He muses that the guy must be thinking if PEI gets any closer, he's getting the fuck out of there. Hotz amusingly says that Prince Edward Island should be renamed Quebec, since they want to separate anyway. It seems he just thought that one up, and caught himself chuckling. "I'll have to use that one again, but obviously not in Montreal". There was another bit about people who have crazy eyes, and how you aren't sure if they are looking at you. He also attacked nose hair trimmers. "What a shit product that is! They don't trim your nose hair, they sharpen them!". He was on for about forty minutes, but it felt like ten. He wishes us all a good night. Do comedians do encores?
It seemed over so quickly [the whole show was about an hour and a half]. All the comics made their ways out to say goodbye as the Just for Laughs theme song played. It was announced they would be available to sign our "yearbooks" after the show. Overall, it was a great show. I could have done without Seidman's wacky magicianship and Spadone should have just did one set instead of trying to segue with more of his own material between the others. I was very surprised at all the fart jokes. I guess I'm just too used to the Just for Laughs I see on television. You know, the ones from the early 90's they show repeatedly on the Comedy Network.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Weak Patrol/Funk Vigilante/Black Hat Villain @ V-Lounge [Nov.5th]
I rushed to the V-Lounge after work hoping that I hadn't missed too much. Out of breath, and out of patience for public transit, I was informed I had arrived at the tail end of Weak Patrol's set.
First thing I noticed was the insane energy. The floor was absolutely packed with people dancing. Vocalist Caleb Kennedy was sweating bullets while he strummed his acoustic guitar ferociously. All the members were clad in army inspired uniforms. Carling Battistuzzi was constantly bouncing up and down, providing a sweetness to Kennedy's more punk infused vocals. It was like Jello Biafra singing for the New Pornographers, or something along those lines. Like a NME buzz band NME hasn't heard of yet. Willis Schneider kept stoic and professional on bass. On the other side of the stage Jaime Nolan, who you could mistake for John Lennon at times, was unabashed on lead guitar and really cranked the temperature for every solo. Dekan Delaney smashed his drums with authority. After they played their last song...it was decided they'd actually play a couple more. I was very thankful. They are an incredible band. Kennedy pushed so hard that he broke a string on the second to last song, then another on the very last song. Mentioning the Dead Kennedys and The New Pornographers, there are also a whole lot of different influences here. A lot going back to classic rock, pre-90's. Keep your eyes on these guys, because you don't know what brilliance they are going to come up with next. A chant brewed after their set, and I knew I needed to see this band from start to finish, but it wasn't out of tardiness by choice AKA a job.
Next up was Funk Vigilante. I couldn't help but think, what the fuck is going on? I had never heard of Funk Vigilante. I assumed they were, of course, going to be a funk band of some sort. Yet, they put huge sirens on their amps. The bassist was wearing fairy wings and a light up necklace. The keyboardist was wearing a V for Vendetta mask, and I wasn't sure if he liked the movie or was a frequent user of 4chan. Where was the singer? I braced myself for something strange and weird. Upon being announced, the singer rushed the stage in a top hat. By the first note, rap rock has made a comeback with this Rage Against the Machine/Red Hot Chili Peppers hybrid. Did I complain? No, because it was good. All the songs were quite political. Vocalist Ghosty Boy definitely had the Zack de la Rocha vibe. At times, if you closed your eyes, you might actually forget what concert you were at. Bassist Matt Williams' hero would be Flea. He even had his moves. The other members were harder to pin down. The guitarists, I am unsure which was which since Funk Vigilante haven't been so vigilant to update their profiles to include their current roster. I will say Jud Makay hits his drums harder than anyone I've ever seen. I was surprised there weren't fragments of wood hitting the crowd. His drum had an interesting set up. He plays the open style, with the high hat on the same side as the ride playing the snare with his left. The keyboardist wasn't only just a keyboardist. He switched between keys, samples, drum n bass beats, hand drum and, at one point, left his station to shoot the fans with Nerf missiles. Due to the political nature of the band, the Nerf bullets even had a reason. I told my friend, this band is like every 90's hard rock band rolled into one. During Tankman, which he explained was about the man who stood up to a tank at Tianamen Square, I couldn't help but think Jane's Addiction's Mountain Song. A different song started quite a bit like Smashing Pumpkin's Quiet. All that aside, I felt like this was the band of the night, because they combined political awareness with pure fun. There was a lot of singing along. A lot of the songs would start with Ghosty Boy teaching us some lyrics. Thinking about it, there was a bit too much of that. I'm all for crowd participation, but near the end of the set, it almost seemed like every song he wanted us to sing something. It would best be used sparingly, perhaps for their strongest songs. Another highlight was a ska song, which was a break from the heavy onslaught of riffs. The keyboardist proved another one of his talents, the trumpet. Is there anything this guy can't play. By this point the mask had fallen off long ago. The band was flying around the stage, but gladly no one knocked eachother over. I was really impressed with these guys, but I hope they are as involved in their lyrics as they are to singing petitions or attending protests. If not, lyrics like "Fuck the riot police!" are nothing more than a spew of kool aid.
Ghosty Boy promised us that Black Hat Villain was just as heavy or heavier than they were. Everyone was telling me these guys were really good. If their merch table was any indication, they better be. I saw several people walking around in their "Black Nation" t-shirts. The people that were coming on stage look like they could be in a metal band. Where did all the young people go? Suddenly I was stuck with a lot of people in their 30's/40's/50's. The lead singer came on stage dressed really nice with also a top hat [popular item tonight], sun glasses and a cane. Well, this is interesting so far. It is announced that Black Hat Villain was Zone's band of the month for April, in which singer Scotty Tuesday replied "Fuck the Zone! They don't play our song". Fair enough. Well, right from the get-go, this was definitely not a Zone band. More of what they would play on the Fox or the Q. Scotty Tuesday used his cane as a prop and came across as a mix of Scott Weiland and late Jim Morrison. Yet the sound of the band was more Shinedown, than anything else. Guitarists Sam Edmundson and Abe Cox traded off some hard rock riffs, often times providing harmonies to eachother's pieces. This isn't a band heavy with solos. Just straight forward rock and roll. They have an impressive fanbase. People knew the words. Women were going crazy. The thing with this group, is that they are accessible enough for the females, but also have flourishes of metal in their music to keep the men rocking. I see this band going far, just based on the fact all their songs are radio tailored to be that magic length of about 3 minutes. The vocals were great. They really complimented eachother with Edmundson going just a bit higher in tone than Tuesday. Drummer Tim Sweeting made it look easy in the back. I really liked how, even though they are highly accessible, they embraced different time signatures. The choruses were like anthems. Scotty Tuesday is the ultimate frontman. He engaged the crowd, and played it up. After their last song, it seemed pretty obvious they were going to play one more but they made it seem like they needed to think about it while they huddled at side of the stage. Upon return, they said they couldn't leave without playing their single "My Generation". No shit. Do Victoria bands really need to do fake encores? In any case, this was the last song and a lot of pushing ensued. It came apparent, this was yet another rock show where people like to be as close to the stage as possible, yet get offended with crashing bodies. Please, for the love of god, stand somewhere else. This is definitely for the woman who told a guy "No, you stay over there! What is your problem?". I'd say the same thing to you. People cried for one last song, but it was not to be.
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| Weak Patrol - Photo by Master Joda Promotions |
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| Funk Vigilante - Photo by Master Joda Promotions |
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| Black Hat Villain - Photo by Master Joda Promotions |
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Liquid Tuesdaze/The New Colors/Year of the Rat @ Logan's Pub [Oct.28th, 2010]
By the time I post this, it'll be Halloween...so, happy Halloween folks. Don't blow up your pet with illegal fireworks.
It was a great turn out for a Thursday night for this Runway Studios showcase. Expect more showcases down the line as Steven Klipper's band roster keeps sprouting like a weed, but a weed you mysteriously don't want to die. One of those fantastic good weeds you never hear about, but ENOUGH RAMBLING. On with the show...
Liquid Tuesdaze soundchecked a song that sounded a bit like a Bad Religion. It was a song that got me excited that this was going to be a great night for music, even if Raw War was exiled from the bill for being too young. The sound check was quite misleading. Their real set started with an instrumental, which some people I talked to thought it was a poor way to open the show, but I have no problem with an instrumental intro as long as the next song is worth the hype. Well, what I can say about Liquid Tuesdaze is that I felt like I was in some sort of daze of confusion. The music is decent. The musicians had chops. The reason for my confusion was there were three different singers seemingly fronting three different bands. I wish I could address them by name, but they don't have a website for information. The overall feel was definitely rooted in classic rock. The main vocalist handled the bass, and you could feel like he was enjoying himself. That's very important. The drummer also was visibly feeling the music. Yet, one of the guitarists did 100% of the banter. Why is this? Is it a System of a Down scenario? Is he the Daron Malakian to his Serj Tankian? The guitarists stayed in their designated area playing along during the set. No one seemed to communicate with each other. It was like "Hey, yeah, I'm in a band and I'm waiting to play my song". The frontman's tunes were what you'd commonly hear on the Q or Jack FM. More 60's or 70's oriented but with an alternative twist. Linguinti [lead guitar], on the other hand, played one song and it was more of a Hendrix piece with that soulful guitar vibe. It was nice. The other guitarist performed his song that was the most rock of the set. He was shouting his lyrics, more than singing them. Out of all three of them, I am glad the bassists carries the major portion of the set. Don't get it twisted, I'm not saying the other guys can't carry their weight. There just needs to be some sort of common ground that they can all enjoy equally. They have a track that is an ode to BC, which they state is the greatest place to live. I do agree with them, but it was a bit too over the top patriotic for me. Their greatest moment was their final song, that was a delicate homage to Pink Floyd. Talking with the guys after the set, I learned that the song was primarily written by the shouty guitarist. See, there's nothing wrong with writing songs and just letting the frontman sing. This band would be better tailored to the college crowd. I could tell a lot of people came out for some heavy rock n' roll. Perhaps these fellows were a bit too clean cut for the Logan's crowd. The other two members are more than capable of branching out in their own bands. In fact, on Nov.16 at the Fort Street Cafe, Gio Linguinti is playing a solo set. I am very eager to hear what his own material sounds like.
The first time I saw The New Colors was in September at the V-Lounge opening for Year of the Rat [deja vu]. Anyone who has seen this band will always think the same thing: Nirvana. Though, before you count them out as copycats, you should know there is much more than that connection as far as sounds go. I would equate it to those who listen to Muse for the first time and say "it sounds like Radiohead". I was sure one of those miserable human beings, until I listen deeper, which is exactly what you must do for The New Colors. Two members of the band got in the festive spirit [the bassist and the second guitarist], by dressing up. The bassist had a dress fashioned out of newspaper, and the guitarist came as the mad hatter. Almost makes you wish the other two followed suit, but this isn't a costume competition, it's a rock show! This band is amazingly tight. Their set was flawless. There's definitely that grunge underlay, but you will also find influences from the likes of The Doors and Tool. One riff in their arsenal, I could have sworn was a Tool cover when I first heard it. That song in question proves that they are also capable of different time signatures. All the songs are catchy, but heavy. Frontman Scawt Polachuk can scream his face off. He definitely has that Kurt Cobain delivery as far as vocals go, but he screams like Frank Black. I suppose some people can say Kurt Cobain copied Frank Black so, in reality it would be a Frank Black delivery. Well, shut it, I'm trying to write a review. This isn't question/answer period. Drummer Brad Schaaf is a trained jazz drummer [as I understand], and he is as solid as they come. Though, I get the feeling he thinks I'm a bit weird, but that's ok. Maybe he is more accostumed to being in the background. Guitarist Brandon Brown rocked and swayed to the music. His role is rhythm, while Polachuk rips through solos. Then there is bassist Cat Deighton, who was earlier concerned about her newspaper dress falling apart and showing something unintended. She is definitely a popular woman to the drunk male demographic. When I saw them at the V-Lounge, there was an individual we dubbed as Cowboy Steve [or something like that]. Clad in a cowboy hat and way too old to be there, he seemed transfixed on her. In the smoking area, he made his move with the tactic we like to call "flattery". Yes, female bassists get a lot of attention. Sometimes for all the wrong reasons! Deighton is a very capable bassist. She knows her way around a fretboard. Another aspect of this band, oddly, is psychedelia. Yes kids, drop that acid, because for one song, you can pretend you attended Woodstock '69 [at least for the intro]. It's that kind of experimentation that will do well for The New Colors. They really need to shake off the Nirvana comparison. It may haunt them.
Who have I forgot? Surely not Year of the Rat. I cannot stress enough that this is the kind of band that should be Zone band of the month. They were the most commercially accessible group of the night, and I see great things for them. They've got the shirts. They've got the cds. They've probably got their name on your grandmother's underwear! Their brand of music is deemed "hard wave". That would be a mix of hard rock and new wave, if you are wondering. That label definitely fits. Samuel Coll's vocals are hard to pin point the influence, but I feel there is some Ian Curtis [Joy Division] in there, but unlike Curtis, it's not deadpan. No, Coll is a spitfire of energy. He also proves he knows what goes into a great solo. Samuel Coll switches from guitar to keyboard and can also excite the crowd without an instrument at all. There's also guitarist Mike Sanderson, who compliments the music at every moment. It's good to know there is someone out there that knows when to play leads and when to just double up the riff with an extra punch. Ryan Stringer, bassist, uses a variety of pedals that add a more electronic feel to the music. Drummer Clint Plett follows the groove with dance-oriented beats that will make you want to bust a move. When I first saw Year of the Rat, at the V-lounge...the one with Cowboy Steve, it was an unimpressive fare. A band not at their best, riddled with sound issues. Coming into this gig, I wasn't expecting much....but I was really blown away by an almost perfect set. The only misstep was a loss of pacing during one number, but Year of the Rat is the kind of band just to laugh it off. There is a use of pre-programmed pieces on Coll's laptop. At one point, Ryan Stringer turned off the impending doom, because it wouldn't have matched up with what they were going to play. When the beats work, they work well. That is the tough thing about relying on machines, they are unreliable and do not match up with adding a human player. Ghost players definitely take away from the live experience. It seems to really work with Year of the Rat, though, and is used tastefully. This seems to be a band that grows on you. They closed the set with a cover of Zombie by The Cranberries. It's a great take on the song. Much better than their other cover of Depeche Mode's Enjoy The Silence [just because Depeche Mode is hard to top]. I guess the only complaint is that the two shows I've seen there has been mistakes. You'd think a band that's been together this long would be able to play them in their sleep.
Oh, and to the girl who told me after the show I almost pulled her shirt down, I'm sorry. It definitely wasn't intentional and everyone was bumping around, since it was a rock show [which I was told you've never been to before]. For the future, you may want to stay a bit further away from the stage when Year of the Rat is playing, because there is definitely going to be some jumping and pushing.
It was a great turn out for a Thursday night for this Runway Studios showcase. Expect more showcases down the line as Steven Klipper's band roster keeps sprouting like a weed, but a weed you mysteriously don't want to die. One of those fantastic good weeds you never hear about, but ENOUGH RAMBLING. On with the show...
Liquid Tuesdaze soundchecked a song that sounded a bit like a Bad Religion. It was a song that got me excited that this was going to be a great night for music, even if Raw War was exiled from the bill for being too young. The sound check was quite misleading. Their real set started with an instrumental, which some people I talked to thought it was a poor way to open the show, but I have no problem with an instrumental intro as long as the next song is worth the hype. Well, what I can say about Liquid Tuesdaze is that I felt like I was in some sort of daze of confusion. The music is decent. The musicians had chops. The reason for my confusion was there were three different singers seemingly fronting three different bands. I wish I could address them by name, but they don't have a website for information. The overall feel was definitely rooted in classic rock. The main vocalist handled the bass, and you could feel like he was enjoying himself. That's very important. The drummer also was visibly feeling the music. Yet, one of the guitarists did 100% of the banter. Why is this? Is it a System of a Down scenario? Is he the Daron Malakian to his Serj Tankian? The guitarists stayed in their designated area playing along during the set. No one seemed to communicate with each other. It was like "Hey, yeah, I'm in a band and I'm waiting to play my song". The frontman's tunes were what you'd commonly hear on the Q or Jack FM. More 60's or 70's oriented but with an alternative twist. Linguinti [lead guitar], on the other hand, played one song and it was more of a Hendrix piece with that soulful guitar vibe. It was nice. The other guitarist performed his song that was the most rock of the set. He was shouting his lyrics, more than singing them. Out of all three of them, I am glad the bassists carries the major portion of the set. Don't get it twisted, I'm not saying the other guys can't carry their weight. There just needs to be some sort of common ground that they can all enjoy equally. They have a track that is an ode to BC, which they state is the greatest place to live. I do agree with them, but it was a bit too over the top patriotic for me. Their greatest moment was their final song, that was a delicate homage to Pink Floyd. Talking with the guys after the set, I learned that the song was primarily written by the shouty guitarist. See, there's nothing wrong with writing songs and just letting the frontman sing. This band would be better tailored to the college crowd. I could tell a lot of people came out for some heavy rock n' roll. Perhaps these fellows were a bit too clean cut for the Logan's crowd. The other two members are more than capable of branching out in their own bands. In fact, on Nov.16 at the Fort Street Cafe, Gio Linguinti is playing a solo set. I am very eager to hear what his own material sounds like.
The first time I saw The New Colors was in September at the V-Lounge opening for Year of the Rat [deja vu]. Anyone who has seen this band will always think the same thing: Nirvana. Though, before you count them out as copycats, you should know there is much more than that connection as far as sounds go. I would equate it to those who listen to Muse for the first time and say "it sounds like Radiohead". I was sure one of those miserable human beings, until I listen deeper, which is exactly what you must do for The New Colors. Two members of the band got in the festive spirit [the bassist and the second guitarist], by dressing up. The bassist had a dress fashioned out of newspaper, and the guitarist came as the mad hatter. Almost makes you wish the other two followed suit, but this isn't a costume competition, it's a rock show! This band is amazingly tight. Their set was flawless. There's definitely that grunge underlay, but you will also find influences from the likes of The Doors and Tool. One riff in their arsenal, I could have sworn was a Tool cover when I first heard it. That song in question proves that they are also capable of different time signatures. All the songs are catchy, but heavy. Frontman Scawt Polachuk can scream his face off. He definitely has that Kurt Cobain delivery as far as vocals go, but he screams like Frank Black. I suppose some people can say Kurt Cobain copied Frank Black so, in reality it would be a Frank Black delivery. Well, shut it, I'm trying to write a review. This isn't question/answer period. Drummer Brad Schaaf is a trained jazz drummer [as I understand], and he is as solid as they come. Though, I get the feeling he thinks I'm a bit weird, but that's ok. Maybe he is more accostumed to being in the background. Guitarist Brandon Brown rocked and swayed to the music. His role is rhythm, while Polachuk rips through solos. Then there is bassist Cat Deighton, who was earlier concerned about her newspaper dress falling apart and showing something unintended. She is definitely a popular woman to the drunk male demographic. When I saw them at the V-Lounge, there was an individual we dubbed as Cowboy Steve [or something like that]. Clad in a cowboy hat and way too old to be there, he seemed transfixed on her. In the smoking area, he made his move with the tactic we like to call "flattery". Yes, female bassists get a lot of attention. Sometimes for all the wrong reasons! Deighton is a very capable bassist. She knows her way around a fretboard. Another aspect of this band, oddly, is psychedelia. Yes kids, drop that acid, because for one song, you can pretend you attended Woodstock '69 [at least for the intro]. It's that kind of experimentation that will do well for The New Colors. They really need to shake off the Nirvana comparison. It may haunt them.
Who have I forgot? Surely not Year of the Rat. I cannot stress enough that this is the kind of band that should be Zone band of the month. They were the most commercially accessible group of the night, and I see great things for them. They've got the shirts. They've got the cds. They've probably got their name on your grandmother's underwear! Their brand of music is deemed "hard wave". That would be a mix of hard rock and new wave, if you are wondering. That label definitely fits. Samuel Coll's vocals are hard to pin point the influence, but I feel there is some Ian Curtis [Joy Division] in there, but unlike Curtis, it's not deadpan. No, Coll is a spitfire of energy. He also proves he knows what goes into a great solo. Samuel Coll switches from guitar to keyboard and can also excite the crowd without an instrument at all. There's also guitarist Mike Sanderson, who compliments the music at every moment. It's good to know there is someone out there that knows when to play leads and when to just double up the riff with an extra punch. Ryan Stringer, bassist, uses a variety of pedals that add a more electronic feel to the music. Drummer Clint Plett follows the groove with dance-oriented beats that will make you want to bust a move. When I first saw Year of the Rat, at the V-lounge...the one with Cowboy Steve, it was an unimpressive fare. A band not at their best, riddled with sound issues. Coming into this gig, I wasn't expecting much....but I was really blown away by an almost perfect set. The only misstep was a loss of pacing during one number, but Year of the Rat is the kind of band just to laugh it off. There is a use of pre-programmed pieces on Coll's laptop. At one point, Ryan Stringer turned off the impending doom, because it wouldn't have matched up with what they were going to play. When the beats work, they work well. That is the tough thing about relying on machines, they are unreliable and do not match up with adding a human player. Ghost players definitely take away from the live experience. It seems to really work with Year of the Rat, though, and is used tastefully. This seems to be a band that grows on you. They closed the set with a cover of Zombie by The Cranberries. It's a great take on the song. Much better than their other cover of Depeche Mode's Enjoy The Silence [just because Depeche Mode is hard to top]. I guess the only complaint is that the two shows I've seen there has been mistakes. You'd think a band that's been together this long would be able to play them in their sleep.
Oh, and to the girl who told me after the show I almost pulled her shirt down, I'm sorry. It definitely wasn't intentional and everyone was bumping around, since it was a rock show [which I was told you've never been to before]. For the future, you may want to stay a bit further away from the stage when Year of the Rat is playing, because there is definitely going to be some jumping and pushing.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Rotterdam/Devour the Undead/Rotten Rails/No Other Way @ Logan's [Oct.22,2010]
Logan's Pub was crawling with plenty of metalheads ready to let loose. With every second coming closer to the show, you could feel the pent up energy begin to boil while Slayer blasted through the PA. It's always a good sign when people are head banging even before the show has started. Of course, there was a birthday tonight of local promoter Master Joda, who you may also call Joe. Props to this man, because he really knows what goes into organizing and promoting a show.
It all started with the Ottawa band, No Other Way, who have set up base in Vancouver. Out of all the bands tonight, they were the most serious. You may ask, what that exactly means? Well, I'm not saying it as an insult to the other bands, but these guys had a table full of t-shirts and CDs ready to spring on the audience. These young guys are full of confidence and vigour. Their image is immaculate. You can gather that from a look at their myspace. It spoke a level of professionalism, but did the music match up? I sense some unearthed potential in this band. They certainly know how to shred their instruments. Playing to the crowd with every finger tap on the guitar. Every fill on the drums. The musicianship was all there, but what was lacking to take it to the next level is the songwriting. They were decent tunes, but perhaps these guys haven't found their voice yet. They transfer between Avenged Sevenfold to 80's power metal to more of a pop-punk sound. No Way Out seem like a band that would be good for throwing a party. Hell, they even covered Eye of the Tiger just to show you how accessible their music can be. With a little focus, this band could be as big as their merchandise portrays.
Next up was Rotten Rails, and that's when things got really insane. This was much heavier than No Other Way and it seemed what the crowd was waiting for, because the mosh frenzy that ensued was the biggest of the night. These guys have perfected the chugging guitar style, and it matched up nicely with Dylan Jackman's thunderous double bass. I couldn't help but get a distinct Superjoint Ritual vibe. Vocalist Rob Taylor screamed his face off, and the audience screamed back. There was great crowd interaction with these guys during the tune What The Fuck, and you've never truly lived until you've screamed those words during the chorus along with the band. These guys aren't much on solos. Neither are they on image. In fact, even after the gig I barely remembered what they looked like. I just remembered the music. Not because I was drunk, but because they don't exactly have a look. Of course, image isn't the primary principle of music. I just have a feeling if you combined the look and marketing of No Other Way and the music of Rotten Rails, you'd have something. Though, I may eat those words, because there was a huge chant from the crowd after their set. No frills. No gimmicks. No hamming it up with solos. Just a take no prisoners onslaught of brutality.
Bring on the dancers for Vancouver's Devour The Undead. In terms of sound, these guys were less about the chugging guitar and more about speed. At times it was like being caught in some sort of metal hurricane. The vocalist was a madman possessed, grunting along the lines of the band Kataklysm. It was a wall of noise. The guitarists traded off solos and showed that they really know their stuff. Overall, the band was tight. This is a group I will have no trouble remembering. The band were dabbed with fake blood and two girls danced upon speakers on each side of the stage. I've been noticing an influx of bands in the Victoria area that are taking in dancers. It sure adds to the overall enjoyment of the show, but you don't want the dancers to overshadow the music. Luckily, the band did have the chops not to be upstaged. Highlights included an instrumental, which sounds odd to say, where the singer took to the pit and went wild. There seemed to be a lot of lost energy after Rotten Rails, and I think he did a great job to keep the crowd motivated. This happened once again when a guest vocalist from Reaver took over the vocal duties for a song. What I'd like to hear more from Devour the Undead is variety. There were very few moments of breathing room, but I'm sure there are hardcore fans out there that would deem that as "selling out".
Last up, the headliners Rotterdam! First look of the band, the lead singer may look like a serial killer that would eat your corpse post-mortem. Funny thing is, he is a really nice guy and they dedicated their set to a friend, who if I remember correctly, was suffering from diabetes. There's a reason why these dudes have been around for so long, they slay. In ways it's more of a throwback to the heavy metal of the 80's/early 90's, but we aren't talking hair metal. We are talking more like Anthrax, Down [which they covered], Megadeth, Corrosion of Conformity and Entombed. It wasn't a wall of noise like Devour the Undead, it was more of a slow burn kind of metal. Definitely the heavy sound, but with some room to breath. Still rooted deep in southern rock, they really took control of the crowd and tore the roof off. The stage banter was well humoured from Vocalist Steve Migliarese. At one point he requested a barrel of vodka to be brought to the stage. This isn't a band that makes things too complicated. The riffs are actually quite simple. They present rocking tunes with exceptional solos. These guys, through all their experience, have learned it's about complimenting the music, not showing how good you could play. I bet if you challenged any of the band members to a musical duel, you'd be running home to mommy. The crowd was exhausted at this point, but there was a nice little rush near the end of the set. I guess people were realizing it was almost over and if there was any time to thrash around, it was now. As the last note rung out, we cried for an encore, but the lights had already come up to cap off a wicked gig.
So, the show as a whole was phenomenal. There weren't any shit bands. No one fucked up. No one was too drunk or high to play. There was something for everyone, and I suggest if any of these bands are playing, you should check them out. Also, keep track of any of Master Joda's productions, because his shows are selling out fast.
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| No Other Wa |
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| Rotten Rails |
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| Devour The Undead Dancer |
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| Rotterdam Singer: Steve Migliarese |
So, the show as a whole was phenomenal. There weren't any shit bands. No one fucked up. No one was too drunk or high to play. There was something for everyone, and I suggest if any of these bands are playing, you should check them out. Also, keep track of any of Master Joda's productions, because his shows are selling out fast.
Oz and Da Instrumentals @ Fort Street Cafe - October 19/2010
I witnessed something on Tuesday that went criminally without notice. Greenlaw's Oz and Da Instrumentals took the stage live at the Fort Street Cafe. I don't blame you for not being there. Upon looking for something to do, the name just flared up my interest. Why not? It's always a thrill to see live music.
When I arrived, they were already a half hour deep. I was introduced to a brave combination of jazz, hip hop, funk and dub. Problem: I was the only one there. From what I understand, Oz and Da Instrumentals is a two man group. Oz himself seems to rotate between pounding the keys to ripping up the bass. He also DJs around the Victoria area. In fact, I think this guy has a project every day of the week.
There wasn't any slow prodding music here. Everything was in place to initiate a dance party. The drummer was amazing. He made it look so easy without breaking a sweat, and I'm not talking about some simple AC/DC drumming, no, this was all over the map. You could tell these two have been playing together for quite a long time. There were other players in this equation that would sway in and out depending on Oz's instructions. There was a pianist and a trumpet player [which I was told, they all had never played together until that night]. Later in the set, they were joined by a female vocalist which gave it almost a Zero 7 presence. You could tell that everyone was improvising and they did it well. Her voice was great. Very jazz oriented, but points off for dropping the cliche "the revolution will not be televised", but that's just nitpicking. The best part of the show was the sudden impulse call outs for solos. Whether it was a bass solo, a piano solo, a drum solo and the smooth solo of the trumpet that handled itself like a vocal line until the vocalist came in. Since there wasn't really anyone there, there was a freedom to just have fun with it. At one point, with Oz on keyboards, the band rallied into a drum n' bass groove you'd most likely here at a place like Hush.
It was great to see a band not get bummed out by a low turn out and see it as an opportunity to let loose. The show itself ran for two and a half hours with breaks. There were a few people that did trickle in, which I am glad for, but here's to hoping the next time you hear about Oz and Da Instrumentals, you'll be dancing to their unique blend of music.
Written by Dylan Jackson
When I arrived, they were already a half hour deep. I was introduced to a brave combination of jazz, hip hop, funk and dub. Problem: I was the only one there. From what I understand, Oz and Da Instrumentals is a two man group. Oz himself seems to rotate between pounding the keys to ripping up the bass. He also DJs around the Victoria area. In fact, I think this guy has a project every day of the week.
There wasn't any slow prodding music here. Everything was in place to initiate a dance party. The drummer was amazing. He made it look so easy without breaking a sweat, and I'm not talking about some simple AC/DC drumming, no, this was all over the map. You could tell these two have been playing together for quite a long time. There were other players in this equation that would sway in and out depending on Oz's instructions. There was a pianist and a trumpet player [which I was told, they all had never played together until that night]. Later in the set, they were joined by a female vocalist which gave it almost a Zero 7 presence. You could tell that everyone was improvising and they did it well. Her voice was great. Very jazz oriented, but points off for dropping the cliche "the revolution will not be televised", but that's just nitpicking. The best part of the show was the sudden impulse call outs for solos. Whether it was a bass solo, a piano solo, a drum solo and the smooth solo of the trumpet that handled itself like a vocal line until the vocalist came in. Since there wasn't really anyone there, there was a freedom to just have fun with it. At one point, with Oz on keyboards, the band rallied into a drum n' bass groove you'd most likely here at a place like Hush.
It was great to see a band not get bummed out by a low turn out and see it as an opportunity to let loose. The show itself ran for two and a half hours with breaks. There were a few people that did trickle in, which I am glad for, but here's to hoping the next time you hear about Oz and Da Instrumentals, you'll be dancing to their unique blend of music.
Written by Dylan Jackson
Monday, October 18, 2010
Friday October 15/2010 - I, The Hunter, VonBones, SON, and Lust Boys - V-Lounge Show
I, The Hunter did an awesome job warming up the crowd. They mixed technical proficiency with an all out bomb blast of metal. The lead singer could shatter glass with his vicious growls. Everything about this band was dead on. The solos were out of this world...and the guy did them while wearing sunglasses. The drummer was crisp. Unfortunately, the crowd were not up to the task yet to truly let loose, but I, The Hunter definitely got everyone's attention. We were all staring in awe, if anything else.
Next was Sons of Nova. After a blast from the Lust Boys past, they launched into their stoner-heavy set. The only way I can describe these guys is a mix of Queens of the Stone Age and Black Sabbath. You can tell they were having a great time. Their songs were catchy and the vocal trading added a lot to the dynamic. They've added some dancers to their stage show, so even if you aren't into the music, you have some eye candy. Things really exploded when they launched into a cover of War Pigs.
VonBones was heavier than I expected! They really tore the place a new asshole. I'd say they were definitely the most punk-oriented of the night. The pit was insane during their performance. Some idiot decided it would be cool to smash a glass on the stage, but luckily no one was hurt. The lead singer has quite an intimidating howl. The band played like a well oiled machine. I love the stage presence and the banter. There was a lot of confidence presented, and they backed it up ten fold.
Last but not least, the Lust Boys brought the sleaze. One thing you need to admit about a Lust Boys show is they live the rock n' roll stereotype to the fullest and love every minute of it. A definite recommendation for anyone that loves the hard rock/metal of the 70's/80's. Vocalist Jayme "Gypsy" Black had the crowd in the palm of his hands. The band did their part as well, with the quick shout out lines in the choruses. If you liked the eye candy of the Sons of Nova show, there were even more women on stage. The band played off the dancers, and made them part of the show. They finished the set with a couple covers, and I don't think there was a single person in the V-Lounge not singing along.
No, I'm not some sort of idiotic fanboy. This was a well put together show from start to finish with four distinct sounding bands that set the place ablaze. Well done.
Written By Dylan Jackson
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| Sons Of Nova Taken By: Steven Klipper of Runway Studios |
Next was Sons of Nova. After a blast from the Lust Boys past, they launched into their stoner-heavy set. The only way I can describe these guys is a mix of Queens of the Stone Age and Black Sabbath. You can tell they were having a great time. Their songs were catchy and the vocal trading added a lot to the dynamic. They've added some dancers to their stage show, so even if you aren't into the music, you have some eye candy. Things really exploded when they launched into a cover of War Pigs.
VonBones was heavier than I expected! They really tore the place a new asshole. I'd say they were definitely the most punk-oriented of the night. The pit was insane during their performance. Some idiot decided it would be cool to smash a glass on the stage, but luckily no one was hurt. The lead singer has quite an intimidating howl. The band played like a well oiled machine. I love the stage presence and the banter. There was a lot of confidence presented, and they backed it up ten fold.
Last but not least, the Lust Boys brought the sleaze. One thing you need to admit about a Lust Boys show is they live the rock n' roll stereotype to the fullest and love every minute of it. A definite recommendation for anyone that loves the hard rock/metal of the 70's/80's. Vocalist Jayme "Gypsy" Black had the crowd in the palm of his hands. The band did their part as well, with the quick shout out lines in the choruses. If you liked the eye candy of the Sons of Nova show, there were even more women on stage. The band played off the dancers, and made them part of the show. They finished the set with a couple covers, and I don't think there was a single person in the V-Lounge not singing along.
No, I'm not some sort of idiotic fanboy. This was a well put together show from start to finish with four distinct sounding bands that set the place ablaze. Well done.
Written By Dylan Jackson
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