Monday, June 27, 2016

Out of the woods

I made my second trip to Bar Robo on Wednesday to catch some folky  andd roots-rocking action courtesy of Old Cabin, Clara Engel and Quin Gibson. The night started with a solo turn from Gibson, who's also a member of local combo The Steamers.

Quin Gibson at Bar Robo

Acoustic action!

Quin Gibson at Bar Robo

Next up, Clara Engel, who has a fantastic voice that's ideal for her eerie tunes.

Clara Engel at Bar Robo

And so on!

Clara Engel at Bar Robo

Things got a bit louder with Old Cabin. Last time Jon Barr came through (when Raw Sugar occupied the space), he had some local horn accompaniment and Laura Beach on violin, this time around he had a more conventional lineup with a keyboardist, drummer and bassist. Here's Jon!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Tuqued action!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Percussive action!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Keyboard action!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Jon sings!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Elderly action!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

Rhythm section action!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

And so on!

Old Cabin at Bar Robo

A very pleasant evening. I also heartily recommend Bar Robo's hibiscus soda.

Explosive ending

I had a bit of a late start on Ottawa Explosion activities Sunday, and missed a chunk of Nice Try's set (along with all of BB Cream, The Lonely Parade, Faux Cults and Mixer); still, the Bloomington, Indiana duo made a good start with some lo-fi pop. Here's some closeup action with singer Madeline!

Nice Try at Club SAW

Kahler hits!

Nice Try at Club SAW

Extra Madeline!

Nice Try at Club SAW

Danelectro action!

Nice Try at Club SAW

Extra Kahler!

Nice Try at Club SAW

Chiller were a more rocking affair, which is unsurprising when you consider it includes Erin from Black Tower and The Visitors, Tim from Year Zero and Million Dollar Marxists, and Eric and Ilisha from Feral Trash (and a bunch of other bands, including Fear of Lipstick, in Eric's case). They're playing July 17 at Pressed.

Chiller at Club SAW

Eric sings!

Chiller at Club SAW

Bass action with Erin!

Chiller at Club SAW

Tim hits!

Chiller at Club SAW

Guitar action with Eric!

Chiller at Club SAW

More guitar action with Ilisha!

Chiller at Club SAW

Head-banging action!

Chiller at Club SAW

Chilling action!

Chiller at Club SAW

A shouty bit!

Chiller at Club SAW

The whole lot!

Chiller at Club SAW

Extra Tim!

Chiller at Club SAW

More headbanging!

Chiller at Club SAW

Even more Eric!

Chiller at Club SAW

Cassie Ramone made a name for herself with The Vivian Girls. When that band split at the start of January 2014, Ramone headed out on her own and released a solo album that August. Those tunes made for a nice come-down, sit-down set.

Cassie Ramone at Club SAW

Cassie sings!

Cassie Ramone at Club SAW

And so on!

Cassie Ramone at Club SAW

Ramone is touring with Colleen Green and they make an excellent double bill. For this set her band was in her iPad, which wasn't functioning at 100%.

Colleen Green at Club SAW

Colleen sings!

Colleen Green at Club SAW

Guitar action!

Colleen Green at Club SAW

Hair-tossing action!

Colleen Green at Club SAW

Her final number was going to be guitarless but her iPad finally klonked out so that was it for the Explosion at Club SAW.

Colleen Green at Club SAW

And that's it for this year (I missed the closing party at Pressed). Can't wait until July 2017, when it looks like OXW is going to be hunting up a new home.

Saturday, June 25, 2016

Wet, dirty and freaky

The remaining lineup at Club SAW was really excellent: Crusades, Wet Brain, TV Freaks and Soupcans. Unfortunately, I dropped and broke my flash (continuing on my tradition of breaking at least one piece of camera gear per Ottawa Explosion), so my remaining photos were all pretty grainy. Here's Crusades tearing it up.

Crusades at Club SAW

Emmanuel sings!

Crusades at Club SAW

Feedback action!

Crusades at Club SAW

Bass action with Skotty!

Crusades at Club SAW

Sparkly guitar action with Dave!

Crusades at Club SAW

The audience got really crazy for TV Freaks. Here's some rhythm section action!

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Dave always gets a little crazy himself.

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Nathan hits!

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Audience singalong action!

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Kevin is under there somewhere.

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Shirtless action! (Also, guitarist T.J. in the background - I couldn't get close enough for a good shot.)

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Even more Dave!

TV Freaks at House of Targ

Wet Brain have played at the Explosion before, but this was my first time catching them live. Here's a bit of soundchecking action with bassist Sienna and guitarist Madi!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

Madi sings!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

More Sienna!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

Amanda hits!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

More Madi!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

More bass action with Camila! Is it just me, or are there a lot of dual-bass bands about these days?

Wet Brain at Club SAW

Sienna sings!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

More Amanda!
Wet Brain at Club SAW

Extra Camila!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

Brainy action!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

And so on!

Wet Brain at Club SAW

I was super-tempted to stick around for The Soupcans, but I also knew The Dirty Nil was playing at Ritual. I decided to head over there, if only because I knew the light would be better ... here's guitarist Luke!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Rhythm section action with Kyle and David!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Luke sings!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Bonus Kyle!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Bendy action!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Dirty action!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Dave sings!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual

Even more Luke!

The Dirty Nil at Ritual