National Capital Rock

Get the point!?!

2012-01-29T01:11:00.000-05:00

Back to the basement, or whatever the Montgomery Legion Folks call their lower show space. Needls//Pins are a couple of ex-Ontarians and a Vancouver lady who like their pop-punk rough.

Guitarist Adam Ess, drummer Macy and bassist Tony X.

Ess sings!

X sings!

Macy hits!

Pointy action!

The shouty bit!

Rhythm section action!

Adam frets!

Singalong action!

More monochromatic Macy!

The whole black-and-white lot!

They've been quiet for the last few months, but played a show in Vancouver last night.

Show reminder: Bum Ticket and The Mudplots rock The Daily Grind on Somerset; W!nslow, SayWeCanFly, Carry Yourself and Landslider play Mugshots. Annie Becker and Stacy Ricker are at the Rainbow.

Sharp and round

2012-01-28T02:16:00.000-05:00

I stomped through the mush over to Yogi's Meatlocker - a.k.a. The House Of Targ - to check out Swarm of Spheres' EP release show alongside Djanguar and Klovenhoofs. Someone was making a terrific ruckus as I approached, and as it emerged it wasn't Djanguar, who couldn't make it.

In fact it was Spilt Guts - last seen on this blog in the opening slot for KEN Mode at Cafe DeKcuf - crushing the audience with some hardcore shoutiness and a rolling wall of low end.

Spilt Guts at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

Guitar action!

Spilt Guts at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

DJ Gary Voicemail - a.k.a. Ian Manhire was spinning tunes between sets.

DJ Gary Voicemail at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 012

Spilt Guts were followed by Klovenhoofs, who were down to three members for some reason. With Shawn Jam Hill not in evidence, Davey switched over to his new Fender Jazzmaster (It's a feedback monster - not that there's anything wrong with that") for a raucous set.

Klovenhoofs at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

Scott sings!

Klovenhoofs at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

Swarm of Spheres was born from the ashes of Jesus Mullet, unleashed a new album of heavy psyche (more heavy than psyche, I should say) and have been giving it away online. Seems like excuse enough to get several dozen people down to the Meatlocker and pummel them with noise.

Swarm of Spheres at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

Mark hits! There was much end-of-show snare drum abuse.

Swarm of Spheres at Yogi's Meatlocker, January 27, 2012

Great sets and a great crowd, too.

Show reminder: The Nils FC, Mothers Children, Benevenstanciano and Shot Nerves go to jail like they all deserve! Seriously, the show is at the hostel bar (next door to the SAW Gallery, that is), Mugshots. Speaking of Club SAW, you'll find Rae Spoon and CPI there tonight. And speaking of unusual venues, The Kingmakers perform at Fatboys Southern Smokehouse. Camp Radio and the lovely Great Aunt Ida perform at Irene's; Organ Eyes and The Matt Farriers look in at Raw Sugar. The Mackenzie Rhythm Section is at the Rainbow; The Flats and No Fly List keep it on the level at the Elmdale;art-rocking oddballs Zeego Circle play the Avant-Garde.

Thar she blows

2012-01-27T01:16:00.000-05:00

It seems there are a bunch more punk rock shows going on of late at the Montgomery Legion Hall; this one featured folks from Lethbridge, Alberta, a scene I hear punches above its weight. You may recognize a couple of these folks from their service in Endangered Ape at one of the Royal Oak Rock'N'Roll Pizza Parties.

Joel sings and hits!

Paul sings!

Evan frets!

Singalong action!

Extra Paul!

And so on!

Black and white action!

The whole monochromatic lot!

Tambourine action!

No news lately.

Show reminder: There's goth aplenty at the Montogomery Legion with Red Death Masquerade, Liisa Ladouceur, DJ Th'Elf and DJ Reverie. Plaster Babies, Static Revolt, Black Market Candy, and International Maniac Institute play Baseline Station. Swam of Spheres unleash their new EP at Yogi's Meatlocker with Djanguar and Klovenhoofs. Bum Ticket and The Mudplots perform at The Daily Grind on Somerset. Kayla Howran releases her new CD at the Rainbow with Uncle Sean and the Shifty Drifters. Sunfields light up Raw Sugar. Jack Pine & The Fire and The John Punch Band perform at Irene's. Rudeboy skanks at the Elmdale. Claude Munson, Lora Bidner, Kaleigh Watts and Liam Meagher play the Avant-Garde Bar.

Semiprecious stones

2012-01-26T00:53:00.000-05:00

First time I saw Adam Waito, he was with Telefauna at The Rainbow - a fine show! Since then he's moved on to fronting his own band as Adam & The Amethysts, releasing the well-received Amethyst Amulet in 2008 and the even more appreciated Flickering Flashlight in octopber 2011 on Ottawa's own Kelp records.

That Adam! Also bassist Scott Johnson Gailey and drummer Jordan Cramer, a.k.a. Owl Loris.

Robert Lessard plays the cellow while Kelp supremo Jon Bartlett works the board.

Adam bends!

Let me just turn that flash up a bit.

Roberta switches to the keys!

The whole black and white lot!

More Adam!

Bonus Rebecca!

Barefoot action!

More Scott!

The end!

No word on what they're up to lately.

Show reminder: Orchid Thieves, New Age Soldier and Cardiopanic perform at the Elmdale. Cam Jones plays the Avant-Garde.

Hooo goes there?

2012-01-25T00:42:00.000-05:00

As the city headed into mid-August, I toddled over to raw Sugar for Adam & The Amethysts, latest signees to the Kelp Records media empire. Their opening act was one-man shoegazer Owl Loris, a.k.a. Amethysts drummer Jordan Robson Cramer.

That Jordan!

And the crowd goes wild!

Another angle on Owl Loris.

And now I'm just fooling around.

It's all getting a bit blurry.

And less blurry.

I can't find much word on what he's up to lately.

Show reminder:The MacGregor Sisters unleash their new CD at the Rainbow; Oh My My and Apocalypstic perform at the Elmdale.

Ills and plagues

2012-01-24T01:02:00.000-05:00

I saw a fair bit of Loviatar in 2011. Apart from this show at Cafe DeKcuf, there were gigs with Monobrow in October and a titanic set opening for Red Fang in November. I've always thought they sounded pretty good, but I can definitely hear upward progress ... or maybe that's just doom-induced tinnitus.

J.P prepares to hit!

So many pedals, so little time ...

Justin sings!

J.P. hits.

Guitar action!

Rhythm section action!

J.P. sings!

Justin frets!

The shouty bit!

Bonus Shane!

Feedback action!

The whole lot!

Bonus Bond!

They were recording in December, so hopefully some new tracks will emerge from the depths of doom soon.

Show reminder: Speaking of Cafe DeKcuf, Nightbox and Fevers perform there tonight; downstairs at Mavericks you'll find JJ Grey & Mofro and Monkey Junk.

Nailed it

2012-01-23T01:14:00.000-05:00

The festival of loudness continues with a hot set from local grinders Biipiigwan; this was the first outing I'd seen them at with Mekhaya man Seb Choquette behind the kit.

Dennis Scale and Seb, rhythm section of incredible volume.

Michael Shrives frets!

Musky prepares to devour the microphone.

Headbanging action!

Bendy action!

Extra Shrives!

The whole lot!

Seb hits!

Michael sings!

Extra Dennis!

Seb works the cymbals.

Guitar action!

Shirtless action!

Downstroking action!

Yet more Dennis.

The end!

Super stuff.

Horseplay

2012-01-22T00:12:00.000-05:00

Back to the extremities of volume with Mares of Thrace. Named after the man-eating horses of Greek myth, the Calgary duo of Thérèse Lanz and drummer Stefani MacKichan have been making loud noise for some time, with Lanze taking a trip through Ottawa with KEN Mode as their bassist in March 2011.

Stefani has a nice new pink drum kit!

Therese has a bunch of misbehaving gear!

Therese sings!

Rhythm section action! Well, I guess the whole band is rhythm section ...

They're a forceful pair.

The shouty bit!

Stefani hits!

And so on!

Guitar action!

Faceoff action!

I haven't heard much, so presumably they're tied to a bronze manger somewhere.

Show reminder: Holy Cobras and Mannequin (who have a new tape out) play Overkill Bar; the Joe Gaspar Band is at The Rainbow; Joel Kaiser and The Devil’s Own, The Sick Sick Sicks and Mystery Pill rock the Elmdale House.

Cruisin' for a bruisin'

2012-01-21T00:43:00.000-05:00

In the early years of the 21st century, a group of musicians came together in Toronto to perform as a Fall tribute band. They dubbed themselves The Creeping Nobodies and soldiered on with varying lineups until around 2009. Some former Nobodies brought their subsequent bands - Karaoke and Bruised Knees - up to Ottawa for a show with locals Caymans, put on by the Bruised Tongue folks.

The Caymans made me think a bit of Royal Trux, early-to-mid period. Guitarist Blake Hargreaves I saw last performing as 50% of Thames at Sounds Unlikely.

Caymans at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

Drummer Joni Sadler was of course part of the Sounds Unlikely crew in addition to working at CHUO.

Caymans at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

As unlikely as my Caymans-Royal Trux comparison might sound, I thought Karaoke reminded me of antipodean odd-rockers Tall Dwarves. Seriously brain, what are you thinking?!? Anyway, there's something in the vocal cadences and rhythms of Michelle Breslin and Derek Westerholm that put me in mind ...

Karaoke at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

It's a two-guitar combo that really works.

Karaoke at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

Quartet Bruised Knees closed the night with a somewhat more conventional band performance, making me think a bit of postpunks Joy Division and others of that era, as well as more modern chillwave combos.

Bruised Knees at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

Lots of cool guitar noises from every act...

Bruised Knees at Raw Sugar, January 20, 2012

Great sounding sets from everyone!

Show reminder: Kingdom Shore, The James Annett Trio, CPI and DJ Jairus Khan will be providing some more out-sounds at Raw Sugar; Flying Fortress, Criticull and Muffler Crunch rock The Brass Monkey; Danny Rebel & The KGB, Freshly Cut and The Sentries play Club SAW; Bludgeoned, Sofistifucks and Asile make some noise at HasselHouse on 295 Powell. The Souljazz Orchestra performs at Mavericks; The Back Talk Organ Trio are at Irene's; the Elmdale hosts The Steve Thomas Band and The Jimmy Roy Band.

Let there be jangle

2012-01-20T01:27:00.000-05:00

Back in July 2010 Ottawa was treated to its first sighting of Real Estate, a New Jersey band with a fondness for mellow, New-Zealandish fuzz-pop. Then, they were opening for Kurt Vile. With the release of their second album Days, they seem to be charting a steady course for the hipster stratosphere: Their headlining show at Mavericks was even sold out a few days in advance. That may be because they were accompanied by the also-lauded Babies, or perhaps because local boyish charmers Kalle Mattson opened things up.

Kalle and Co. had already begun playing by the time I rolled through the doors.

Kalle Mattson at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

They have a newish drummer, and nice trumpet accompaniment for this set from another recent recruit, J.F. Beauchamp.

Kalle Mattson at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

The Babies deceptively energetic pop had me thinking of The Vaselines. An excellent rhythm section kept things moving along, and male-female vocals are always nice to hear when done right.

The Babies at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

Cassie Ramone sings some.

The Babies at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

Real Estate ended the night in their laidback fashion. I remembered them as pretty mellow when they were here at Babylon. I think they were mellower this time, but also a bit more polished ... or maybe that's just the haircuts speaking.

Real Estate at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

Well, at least some people - like their new drummer - are keeping it long.

Real Estate at Mavericks, January 19, 2012

A really fine show, and an enthusiastic crowd to help things along.

Show reminder: Irish Nails, Beer Barons, Static Revolt and Kraken The Case play The Rainbow; Bruised Knees, Karaoke and Caymans perform at Raw Sugar Cafe; The Riot Police and Breaking The Fourth are at Zaphod's; Rocket Rached and The Fat City 8 blast off at Irene's; the Elmdale hosts Ladies of the Canyon and The Heartbroken.

They can do it

2012-01-19T01:46:00.001-05:00

I've been listening to a lot of loud music lately, both recorded and live. This gig featuring Mares of Thrace, Biipiigwan, Enabler and Loviatar certainly fit the volume bill.

We have your volume right here ...

First up were Enabler. Frontman Jeff Lohrber has a pretty formidable resume Harlots, Today is the Day, Shai Hulud, Saviour For A Fallen Hero and tour drummer for Trap Them. But first some other folks, starting ex-American Heritage man Scott Shellhammer on second guitar.

Amanda Daniels rocks the low end, ringer Robby Wright mans the traps.

Jeff sings!

More Amanda!

Robby hits!

Scott enters the zone.

Hair-waving action!

Scott sings!

Enabling action!

Jeff's other side!

The whole lot!

A most promising start to the evening.

Show reminder: Real Estate, The Babies and Kalle Mattson play Mavericks; Anamanaguchi, Extreme Animals and Moon King (Maddy and Daniel's post-Spiral Beach duo) perform at Club SAW; the Elmdale hosts Orchid Thieves, New Age Soldier and Cardiopanic.

Be brave

2012-01-18T01:33:00.000-05:00

The Cowards rounded the night out with some hard-rocking stuff. Not 100% my bag (as I said earlier, it struck me as a ... er ... well-lubricated performance) but entertaining enough to watch.

And the handy guide is always appreciated!

Vanessa sings, Kyle handles the six strings.

Faceoff action with Kyle and Sean!

Hair-waving action, plus Barr on bass.

Running about!

Grimacing action!

More Vanessa!

Extra Sean!

Pat hits!

Barefoot clapping action!

Kyle sings!

No shirt, no shoes ... eh, why not.

They even have hats!

Harmonica action!

They certainly got an enthusiastic audience response.

Show reminder: Lora Binder is at the Rainbow; Petunia Petunia rocks the Elmdale with Poppa Goodtimes.

More death

2012-01-17T00:42:00.000-05:00

I saw Pretty Little Death Machine four times in 2011; either they're keeping busy or our schedules are remarkably synchronised, or both. Anyway, their Rainbow show rocked as per usual.

Matt frets!

Another Matt! And beer!

Ty sings!

Faceoff action!

Ike hits!

Six-stringed action!

More Ike!

The whole lot!

Monitors, still mostly for standing on.

The shouty bit!

Guitar vs. guitar!

And so on!

Their next show is at Oliver's January 27.

Show reminder: Baltimore's mighty Sacred Love, Motivator, Take the Thrown and War Nerve play the Kent Street Legion;the Elmdale hosts Jason Mercer, The Superlative, Derek Jones and Cam Jones. Andrew Aguiar is at the Avant-Garde.

Vegetable matter

2012-01-16T01:29:00.000-05:00

Back in August I toodled over to The Rainbow to check out Celery Troff, The Cowards and Pretty Little Death Machine. I'd already seen PDLM a couple of times by then and have been happy to see them again since, but Celery Troff and The Cowards were unknown to me (at least as a band; I'd bumped into Celery Troff's drummer Andrew at shows a few times).

Bassist Mike, guitarist and singer Aaron, and a penguin.

Andrew hits!

Mike keeps it together with some duct tape.

Aaron frets.

The whole lot!

Aaron sings!

Jumping action!

Guest guitar action from Ty of PLDM.

Ty sings!

Andrew gets set for a double whammy.

Aaron bends!

Guest vocal action!

Aaron goes down.

The jumpy end!

They plan to release their next record in early 2012.

Rock injection

2012-01-15T01:23:00.000-05:00

Back to Mavericks, where The Polymorphines finished the night off with some rock, a glowing drumkit and a guest appearance.

Nicholas Apocalypse takes a different approach to the microphone.

Heinz Scrubar goes that way while Jeremy B. goes this way.

Jimmy hits thr aforementioned luminescent drumkit.

Heinz bends!

Extra Jimmy!

Heinz sings!

Heinz goes down!

Jeremy sings!

Faceoff action!

Singalong action!

Heinz goes for a ride!

Summit at the drums!

Lidija from Roberta Bondar kicks in some tambourine.

More singalong action! (Unfortunately my pic of Lidija leaping into the crowd didn't work.

Back to back action!

Jimmy Jr. advances the art of cymbal playing.

Wolfgang and Sammy from The Girlfriends and Rat Tails add some cowbell.

The whole unbuttoned lot!

Their next show is this very night at Overkill in the Byward Market.

Show reminder: Jay Aymar performs at The Elmdale. Josef Mieto plays The Rainbow.

Noise and anti-noise

2012-01-14T02:18:00.000-05:00

Last night at Raw Sugar was quite electronic, with the placeMACHINE folks curating sets from Adam Saikaley (most recently seen as 50% of Silkken Laumann at Babylon), RLMDL - a.k.a. Jordan Allen of Paramedics, and Math Rosen, who's headed off to Toronto, making this his last local gig. Unless he comes to visit, which I'd guess he probably will.

Adam used an amp, speaker cone, microphone and cymbals to create some grinding, feedbacking sounds. Unfortunately, the cymbal refused to cooperate at the end by falling off the table like it was supposed to.

Adam Saikaley at Raw Sugar, January 13, 2012

The music of RLMDL (that's Rolemodel if you have some vowels to spare) was far more melodic. Actually it made me think of Junior Boys and Sufjan Steven's Age of ADZ (possibly because I was listening to the latter on the way to Raw Sugar and back - I'm easily influenced). Here Jordan tweaks some sounds as Luca videos.

RLMDL at Raw Sugar, January 13, 2012

Math Rosen started his set off with a bit of soundtrack to a likely-to-never-be-made film called Cyberpunks before switching to some of his bread-and-butter dance tracks.

Math Rosen at Raw Sugar, January 14, 2012

All a fun listen, though somewhat short on the jumping about of most of the shows I go to.

Show reminder: Thunderuncle, In Heat and four-stroke rock the Clocktower Pub; The Capitol Beat and The Thundermonks perform at Zaphod's; The Drowned Rats, Jenny Woo, and The MudPlots play the Rainbow; Slim Moore & The Mar-Kays entertain at Mavericks; Rocksnake and Gypsy Wind blow into the Elmdale House. The Train Jumpers and L. Poushinsky are at Irene's. The Town Hall Cryers (not to be confused with the Town Cryers) and Personal Helicopter drop by the Avant-Garde Bar.

Flight pattern

2012-01-13T01:42:00.000-05:00

Once again, it's those fine instrumental chaps The Flaps. They might seem to be a bit quiet compared to the other acts on the bill, but they can turn up the volume if need be ...

On our right, Jaime, Martin and John!

And a Gretsch-toting Pat Lawlor.

Jamie hits!

Rhythm section!

More Jamie!

Bounced flash action!

Extra Pat!

Smiley John!

Pat kicks!

Jamie grimaces!

The whole lot!

Haven't heard much from them since ... maybe they're hibernating in a cozy recording studio somewhere?

Show reminder: Math Rosen, RLMDR and Adam Saikaley perform at Raw Sugar; My Favorite Trajedy, Cody Allen Band, Old Stereo, Open Sky play The Rainbow; Ray Harris unleashes his new CD at the Elmdale with an assist from Al Wood and the Woodsmen. The Devillaires release their new CD at D'Arcy McGee's on Sparks. Jan Purcell & Pine Road are at Irene's; The Cowards, Celery Troff and The Abbreviations jam ino the Avant-Garde.

Get an eyeful

2012-01-12T01:21:00.000-05:00

Montreal combo Devil eyes isn't the ost frrequent visitor to town, but they seem to pop round every year or two to rock out and break something.

Emilor is all sparkly.

Those Eyes! Matt and Zeelagh round the trio out.

Matt sings!

Zeelagh hits!

Emilor sings!

More Zeelagh!

Bass action!

Guitar action!

Hurray for Satan!

Matt turns, Emilor bends!

Matt works the feedback.

The shouty bit!

Faceoff action!

Emilor works the mike.

Zeelagh gets some vocal time.

Matt works the floor.

Emilor switches to the kit.

And so on!

You can download a fine comp of their work for free at Bandcamp.

Show reminder: Thatch Roof Carousel and The Walkouts perform at the Elmdale.

The indelicate sound of thunder

2012-01-11T01:08:00.000-05:00

The Polymorphines recorded an EP with scuzz rock legend Tim Kerr of Big Boys, Poison 13 and Lord High Fixers, among others in Austin. They officially introduced it to their fellow Ottawans at Mavericks at the end of July. On hand to open things up were another three bands, starting with local rock agglomeration Thunderuncle, which features folks from the Fucking Machines, The Mighty Eagle Band, The Middens, Four Stroke, Weapons of Mass Seduction, Wrist Pain, LBJ, Harshey, Pleather, Manpower, FurnaceFace, Mumbleweed, The Allrights and Neanderthal Sponge.

Larry, Kris and an obscured Dave Dudley on drums.

Joe frets, Jon sings!

Extra Larry.

Dave hits!

The shouty bit!

Kris bends!

Singalong action!

Shoutalong action!

More Dave. I moved.

The end!

They have an upcoming gig with In Heat and Four-Stroke at The Clocktower this Saturday.

Show reminder: I See Stars, Stick To Your Guns, Memphis May Fire, Our Last Night and Make Me Famous perform at Ritual; Ray Harris CD Release Party unleashes his new CD at the Elmdale, with an assist from Al Wood and the Woodsmen.

The B.A. experience

2012-01-10T01:20:00.001-05:00

Hamilton's B.A. Johnston is an entertaining fellow. Last time I saw him was at the Avant-Garde in 2005, but not much has changed in the life of Johnston: It's still tall tales of the unsuccessful and fry-cooking.

B.A. makes his triumphant, sparkler-twirling entry!

His guitar has seen better days ... though it was about as beaten up when I saw him perform way back when.

B.A. works the crowd.

Casio action!

Audience participation action!

B.A. takes a stand!

B.A. works the floor!

More guitar!

B.A. removes shirt, multitasks!

Jumping action!

Piracy meets with some technical difficulties.

Things ended up in the women's bathroom, as they often do.

He's playing a free show at the Manx on Sunday and will be touring the heck out of his soon-to-be released Hi Dudes!! all over the place starting in March on the West Coast ... I imagine he'll be getting around to Ottawa again some time in April.

Show reminder: Keturah Johnson plays the Rainbow, early-ish. The Elmdale hosts James Leclair and Andrew Aguiar.

When's the money?

2012-01-09T01:16:00.000-05:00

Rocking duo The Tim Machine Millionaires held down the middle spot. It was very much in the vein of guitarist and singer Patrick Shanks' other music projects, for example with the Silent K and Romps, albeit with fewer songs about pancakes.

Jason Vaughn, also of Cold Coffee & Salty Boots and The Band Whose Name Is A Symbol and Patrick Shanks, of many Ottawa bands.

Jason sings!

And so on!

More Patrick.

Black and white action! I completely forgot that my Nikon was in the shop, thus I dragged my Olympus out of mothballs.

Extra Jason!

Bounced flash action!

The end!

Shanker and Romps apparently put in an afternoon performance at Irene's on Saturday I was unaware of. Oh well! As for The Time Machine Millionaire's, I understand they've recently expanded to a trio.

Fill the dancefloor

2012-01-08T15:07:00.000-05:00

Just a few months ago - September 2011 to be exact - Ol' Savannah played a Rainbow gig with The Dusty Drifters and Rene Yoxon. Apparently they had a good time because here they are back with a headlining gig of their own and plans to return in the spring.

First up was Morgan Friend, who also fronts the Bible All-Stars. He was filling in for the Bank Robbers Union, who had to cancel.

Morgan Friend at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

He was accompanied by Sick Sick Sicks guitarist Max Cossette and BAS guitarist Greg Langille to play bass (and a bit of guitar).

Morgan Friend at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

I've seen Lefty McRighty perform with The Boxcar Cadavers and The Shameless Bastards, but in 90 Pounds of Ugly he hands most of the singing work over to sultry Patsie Clash who does a bang-up job and looks mighty fine to boot. Off course this is a McRighty project so they are songs about insane people and getting naked. They also covered Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time and 1976 Brit disco sensation 5000 Volts' Dr. Kiss Kiss (which actually works quite well as a country tune).

90 Pounds Of Ugly at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

Standup Steve is also part of this outfit (drummer Ernie Legend rounds it out).

90 Pounds Of Ugly at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

Finally Ol' Savannah came on satge for some old-fashioned urban mountain music and book-demolishing.

Ol' Savannah at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

There was also some string busting and a bit of accordion-busting (fortunately fixed with some handy duct tape).

Ol' Savannah at The Rainbow, January 7, 2012

There was certainly a lot of folks shaking it about.

Show reminder: The Cowards and the Mudplots rock the Overkill Bar; Slyde and Calfax perform at the Rainbow.

Back to the great indoors

2012-01-07T01:32:00.000-05:00

With Bluesfest over, things return to our regular irregular schedule of showgoing with a performance at Irene's by The Allrights. It's been some time since I was at Irene's - all too often the place is full up by the time I arrive. This gig was pretty full too, as is often the case when headliner B.A. Johnston comes to town.

Mel frets!

And that's about all the tolerance I had for low-light photography.

Jon hits!

Chris sings!

Mel sings!

Singalong action!

After two weeks of daylight my flash-fu is horrid.

Guitar action!

Jon sings!

Dave sings!

Faceoff action!

The end!

You can download their new album at their Bandcamp.

Show reminder: A Darker Day, Claudia, Project Mars and Descendant play Greenfield's Pub; Ol' Savannah, Ninety Pounds of Ugly and Morgan Friend play The Rainbow; Ideamen, Soul In Stone, Shot By Jack, One More Me and Celery Troff perform at Zaphod's; Trevor Alguire and Steve Earle tribute outfit Exit-0 play Irene's. The Elmdale hosts Phil Motion, The Easy Lo-Fi and The Marlow Beat Kings.

Bluesfest: Cheap Trick

2012-01-06T01:09:00.000-05:00

The final show of Bluesfest 2011 was by power-pop legends Cheap Trick. I've always been a big fan, but apparently Mother Nature isn't so keen. We got about five tunes, then the lightning, rain and wind made an appearance and blew the roof off - that's not a metaphor.

Daxx Nielsen, son of Rick, prepares his soon to be demolished kit.

Let's not tempt the fates, shall we Robin?

Jumping Rick action!

The whole lot, including Tom Petersson on 12-string bass.

Amplified action!

Twelve-string action!

It's getting a bit windy!

Audience singalong action!

Tricky action!

Rick sings! Note checkered in-line earpiece and pick-laden microphone stand.

A few minutes later the stage they were on looked like this:

A narrow escape.

Show reminder: Zalanboor, Destroyer Scene, Annoize, Vanishing Act and Barrow Wight rock the Avant Garde Bar; For the Birds and Swaying Tuesdays flock to the Rainbow; Abstract and Amanda Bon (i.e. a vast horde of local musical lights) invade Irene's; The Charlie Otis Truss, Anastasia Filippova and Matthew Atkinson play a benefit for the youngsters of Keys for Kids at the Elmdale.

Bluesfest: Tristen

2012-01-05T01:18:00.001-05:00

Tristen Gaspadarek comes from Chicago but now calls Nashville home. She's pretty cute and sings about drug deals and killing people - always a good combination.

The lady herself!

Her mystery drummer brushes up.

Buddy Hughen rocks the Ric.

Tristen sings!

Rhythm section action with Jordan Caress.

Guitar action!

More Jordan!

Closeup action!

Buddy sings!

The whole lot!

Ukulele action!

And so on!

Extra Buddy!

More ukulele!

Hmm, it's starting to get a bit windy ...

She has a holiday single you can download at her website if you're so inclined.

Show reminder: The Dreadnoughts, The BCASA, The Beer Barons and The Scally Cap Brats polka it up at Mavericks; Sonic Defense release their new CD with Neil Gerster and Ant Plant at the Elmdale.

Bluesfest: Court Yard Hounds

2012-01-04T01:15:00.001-05:00

Even people who don't follow music have probably heard of the Dixie Chicks, given their occasional dabbling in controversy. The Chicks went on hiatus in 2008, but the act's two sisters, Emily Robison and Marty Maguire, were apparently still eager to record and tour, and thus The Court Yard Hounds were born.

Emily - now that's what I call a steel guitar.

Martie on mandolin.

Court yard action! The drummer is Nina Singh, who has also played with Grady, Johnny "Guitar" Watson and Gene Simmons.

Bass action with George Reiff!

Acoustic guitar action with - I think - Jeff Plankenhorn.

Martie strums!

Brad Rice has also performed with Keith Urban and Ryan Adams.

Emily sings!

Martie sings!

Banjo action!

Faceoff action!

Resonator action!

Martie fiddles about.

Sibling action!

Bonus Brad! The keyboardist is Bukka Allen.

More Bukka!

Guest vocal action from Robin Zander of Cheap Trick!

Their next date is Feb. 10 in sunny San Antonio, Texas.

Show reminder: The Coppertone and Kris Ward play Raw Sugar Cafe.

Bluesfest: Philly Moves

2012-01-03T01:10:00.000-05:00

I don't listen to a lot of hip hop and rap (I think my sole purchase this year in the vein was the Shabazz Palaces' CD) but I enjoyed the performance by Philly Moves. They seem like a fun bunch. On the other hand, it's hard to photograph them, no doubt due to the aforementioned hopping.

DJ action with So Nice!

Hype action with Rockwell!

Tragic works the crowd!

More Tragic!

Extra Rockwell and So Nice!

Just look at the sunny, relatively clear sky!

So Nice spins!

Pointing action!

Guest vocal action!

Tragic talks up the crowd.

More guest vocal action!

Then I departed to take in the Court Yard Hounds.

Bluesfest: David Maxwell

2012-01-02T01:31:00.000-05:00

When you go to Bluesfest and catch a wide range of acts, you are almost guaranteed to see and hear The Texas Horns and David Maxwell. I'm not sure if the horns have every had a spot for themselves, but Maxwell most certainly has ... and here he is!

Or at least his guitarist.

The man himself.

And, er, that's it.

Then I popped off to see Philly Moves.

The best of 2011

2012-01-01T02:03:00.118-05:00

Every year I compile a Top 10 list for the folks at Pennyblackmusic. In no particular order, they were One Hundred Dollars' Songs of Man; Austra's Feel It Break; Daniel Romano's Sleep Beneath The Willow, Phaedra's The Sea, Sub Rosa's No Help For The Mighty Ones; The Skull Defekts' Peer Amid; Psychic Paramount's II; Purling Hiss's Lounge Lizards; A Winged Victory For The Sullen's self-titled effort (my favourite this year, by the way); and Yob's Atma.

Austra at Ritual, December 3, 2011

As in previous years, it doesn't manage to cover everything I've lent an ear to. For one thing, I started making my list early (so as not to leave off folks who released albums early in the year), but by the time October rolled around I already had my ten in hand. For another, as is my habit I omit re-releases and albums I've already reviewed in that year. (As an example, as a drooling Marissa Nadler fan, it goes without saying that her self-titled, self-released album would appear, and possibly her second covers album as well, though it hasn't arrived in the post yet.) I'm also going to avoid naming a fave local album since I haven't heard the oft-praised Steve Adamyk Band CD yet and basically like everything local, being a shameless homer.
Onward! I listened to a lot of stellar roots-rock this year. Of course I dug The Drive-By Truckers' Go-Go Boots, and also liked what I heard from brassy, Miranda Lambert-ish singer Lydia Loveless on Indestructible Machine, but my favourites were a pair of homegrown acts: Daniel Romano's Sleep Beneath The Willows and One Hundred Dollars' Songs of Man.

One Hundred Dollars at Mavericks, February 3, 2010

Then there's the stuff that just sticks in your mind: Mitchell and Manley's Norcal Values is a prime example. Daniel Higgs solo stuff is mindbending all by itself, but his LP release with The Skull Defekts was even greater than the sum of its parts. Also most listenable: Colin Stetson's much lauded New History Warfare, Vol. 1. and Sean Smith's Huge Fluid Freedom.
Of course, my first love is fuzz, and plenty of acts delivered in spades. Kurt Vile played a killer set here at Babylon in 2010, and his Smoke Ring For My Halo was even a step up. I'm going to deduct points for releasing a deluxe edition before the end of the year, though! Ty Segall's new Goodbye Bread and his Goner singles collection were also killer.

Kurt Vile at Babylon, July 21, 2010

I listened to a bunch of metal this year, and naturally Red Fang rocked both on their sophomore album Murder The Mountains and live. Hammers of Misfortune were great as usual with 17th Street. Mastodon's The Hunter also was pretty killer, though a shade less engaging than Crack The Skye. I suppose I should also mention the mighty Kvelertak and Electric Wizard's latest, though both are technically 2010 releases. On the other side of the metal coin, I listened to a bunch of stuff some hardcore metal fans might put in quotation marks: SubRosa, for example, whose No Help for the Mighty Ones was a fine slice of goth doom sludge. Caina was another band I just found out about and who subsequently called it a day after releasing the sensational Hands That Pluck. I also have to mention Autopsy, whose Macabre Eternal might even be their best.

Red Fang at Mavericks, Nov. 24, 2011

Last but not least, This has been a great year for reissues. I'm sure The Beach Boy's Smile reissue is at the top of a lot of people's list for the grandiose packing alone, but you hardly need me to pass the word of its existence (it's basically for diehard fanboys anyway). The Numero Group also pulled out the stops with their Syl Johnson box set and various Boddie Recording Company sets. Captured Tracks did fine service in rereleasing some shoegaze faves; their Nick Nicely comp is probably the pick of the litter. But for sheer "Damn the torpedoes, get this back in print!" glory I'm going to have to commend Jagjaguwar's decision to release the entirety of The Supreme Dick's out put in one very handy, four CD package - for the price of one, even!

Bluesfest: Mama Kin

2011-12-31T03:07:00.000-05:00

@011 must have been Bluesfest's Year of the Australians. I saw three myself. Well, okay, three isn't a lot, but Australia's quite far away, isn't it? We had the reggae act, the ska act, and now the slightly bohemian jazz department pops up in the shape of Mama Kin. Known as Danielle Caruana to her folks, she's the wife of John Butler, a fairly big name in Oz musical circles.

Some precise drumming from George Servanis.

It's a stripped down outfit - here's Brother Michael on keys and Ms. Caruana.

It's all about the snap brims, you know.

Mamma sings!

Gripping action!

George brushes up.

Caja action!

More Mama!

Looks like she's touring again in March - in Australia and New Zealand, anyway.

Show reminder: There are New Year's Eve shows hither and yon, the heaviest is probably Alaskan, Rough House, Currents, Shahman and We Fled Cairo at 446 Lisgar. Monkeyjunk rings in the New Year at The Rainbow; Electric Six does the same at Mavericks; The Ya-Yas do it Stones style at The Elmdale; Dry River Caravan is at Irene's.

Bluesfest: Ben Cooper

2011-12-30T01:24:00.000-05:00

Back in the depths of 2005, I chanced to see a pleasant performance at Zaphod Beeblebrox by Stone Melodies. I noted in my writeup that they had one a slot at the previous year's Bluesfest. This year I had a chance to see guitarist Ben Cooper on his own.

Harmonica adjusting action! (That's bassist Dan Joseph to the left of Cooper)

The omnipresent Tyler Kealey lends a hand on the keys.

Hail Satan!

Ben sings!

Extra drumming from Dan Loach!

And so on!

He'll be at Grace O'Malley's on Ogilvie Rd. for a New Year's Eve show with The Jackson Miles Band.

Show reminder: Critical Convictions, Avon Dealer and Spilt Guts rock Cafe Dekcuf; Holy Cobras, Roberta Bondar, Grime Kings and Boyhood play the Capital Rehearsal Hall at 240 Bank St.; Mark Crissinger and some other folks will perform at Irene's; Maria Hawkins is in the house at The Rainbow; Old Stereo with opener Sean Duhaime Trio are at the Elmdale.

Bluesfest: The Brothers Dube

2011-12-29T00:45:00.000-05:00

The Brothers Dube have done a lot of good work with their fundraising efforts, gigging outside the Bluesfest gates and elsewhere - I hear their latest tally is in the $135,000 range. They also got quite a bit of attention after last year's Bluesfest when Arcade Fire went out to jam with them (the brothers reportedly had no idea who they were). For this Bluesfest, they got some stage time (and also a big check from the Claridge Homes folks earlier in the festival).

Them brothers! Guitarist Liam, drummer Quinn and bassist Jan.

Jan chats up the crowd.

Quinn mans the traps.

Liam frets!

Jan sings!

Then I once again took a powder, this time to check out Ben Cooper. You can check out their website for the latest news and to give them a hand.

Show reminder: There's furious fundraising action at the Elmdale with Furious Gord and Dirty Little Secret.

Bluesfest: Amanda Rheaume

2011-12-28T00:37:00.002-05:00

Amanda Rheaume's another Ottawa performer who I only seem to ever catch at Bluesfest; I didn't see her last year but have been able to catch her upward arc in previous years.

Amanda strums and sings!

Steely action!

Bass action!

More Amanda!

Organ action!

Faceoff action!

Extra bass! And you can tell it's sunny out by the fare ... that didn't last!

Guitar action!

Harmonica action!

It was just a quick stop, then I rushed off to see The Dube Brothers do their thing. Edit, Dec. 30: So quick I forgot I came back to watch more of the show and take a few more photos ... here's some clapping action with sundry guests and tots.

Olympian action!

Amanda's next big scheduled gig in town is April 21 at the Masonic Hall, but I suspect they'll be more on her calendar in the New Year.

Show reminder: The Super Awesome Club rocks Irene's; The Late '94s, Aardwolf and Cope Only Cope are at The Rainbow; Megan Jerome, Rebecca Muir and Kaleigh Watts play the Elmdale.

Bluesfest: Mother Mother

2011-12-27T01:37:00.000-05:00

Mother Mother have been around for almost seven years, based aroubd the songwriting and guitar of Ryan Guildemond and have garnered quite a bit of attention from the young'uns, and have released three albums, the latest Eureka on the Last Gang label.

Jasmin Parkin gets things in order.

Jeremy Page gives the order.

Ryan rocks the quiff.

That's Guildemond's sister Molly at left.

The whole lot, including a mostly obscured Ali Siadat on drums.

Singalong action!

Bonus Ryan!

They're currently prepping for a trio of shows at Vancouver's Commodore Ballroom December 29-31.

Show reminder: Take Down Frosty and 3MD perform at The Rainbow.

Bluesfest: Nicole Atkins

2011-12-26T00:32:00.000-05:00

Nicole Atkins and The Black Sea are a Brooklyn-based combo with a serious jones for the cool-yet-sultry sounds of 1970s female singer-songwriters. I compared her to Stevie Nicks. Roy Orbison has also been cited as an influence. I can't disagree with that, but live the addition of guitarist Irina Yalkowsky changes the formula a bit: Yalkowsky definitely likes to stray from the straight and narrow when it comes to the slide.

Black and white tambourine action!

The sunny side of Atkins.

Iria slides!

Irina Yalkowsky and bassist Jeremy Kay. Along with drummer Ezra Oklan

Bassist Jeremy Kay. Well, mostly a microphone stand, but also Kay.

Drummer Ezra Oklan.

It was quite sunny.

Nicole goes acoustic!

Irina does not go acoustic.

Guitar action!

Bonus Jeremy!

Extra Ezra.

The whole lot!

It's all quiet on the Black Sea front right now.

Show reminder: USS, Fire and Neon and Zoo Legacy play Ritual.

Bluesfest: Thornetta Davis

2011-12-25T00:45:00.000-05:00

Detroit's Thornetta Davis first came to my attention as a backing singer for Big Chief (a post she's also filled with Kid Rock), but ever since her first album she's hewed more closely to traditional R&B and blues. She does it so well, who could complain?

Guitar action with Paul Carey!

Conga action with James “Jamalot” Anderson! (Also Davis's husband, as it happens.)

You can't say Paul doesn't enjoy his work.

"And now, the lady we've all been waiting for!" (Or words to that effect.)

I'm not sure who was manning the kit for her this go-around.

Thornetta Davis, at last!

Hmm ... I'm not sure tie-die is her thing.

Scarf-waving action!

Black and white blues action!

And a wee bit more Paul.

No word on recent activity.

Show reminder: It's Christmas, for Christ's sake! Although apparently there is Spagnog at Zaphod's ...

Almost there!

2011-12-24T12:13:00.000-05:00

I have a brief stretch off from work this Christmas, so once again it's off for some Christmas party action, this time at Babylon, with Uranium Comeback, The Male Nurse Band and electronic dance combo Silkken Laumann - there's a lineup you don't see every day.

First up, Male Nurse Band being their usual excellent self. They also showed off a couple of swell-sounding new tunes.

Male Nurse Band at Babylon, December 23, 2011

Davey sings!

Male Nurse Band at Babylon, December 23, 2011

Uranium Comeback were also great. Even better, I think I heard talk of an upcoming album!

Uranium Comeback at Babylon, December 23, 2011

They had Ian Manhire from The White Wires on hand to play bass and sing a cover of Protex's A Place In Your Heart.

Uranium Comeback at Babylon, December 23, 2011

I hadn't seen Silkken Laumann before, I was just aware that it was yet another musical outlet from the fertile musical mind of Raolf Klausener, Adam Saikaley and Pat Johnson. It's not too dissimilar from other stuff I've seen Adam do, but The Acorn it isn't. It's an electronic dance deal.

Silkken Laumann at Babylon, December 23, 2011

They also had Lidija from Roberta Bondar on stage to sing on one tune.

Silkken Laumann at Babylon, December 23, 2011

Things started around 11:30, and two hours later I was ready to call it a night, but Silkken Laumann were still playing. "We're just making this up as we go along!" said Rolf.

Show reminder: Communicating Circus, Mapitones, Stimulus, Static Revolt perform at The Rainbow.

Bluesfest: Amos The Transparent

2011-12-23T01:31:00.000-05:00

I am apparently fated to only see Amos The Transparent whenever they play Bluesfest. This is fortunate for two reasons: They seem to play it with some frequency, and they frequently need the stage space to accommodate their revolving membership.

Dan bows, Jonathan blurs!

Jonathan sings!

Dan gets his Jimmy Page on.

Tambourine action!

Violin action from one of the many supporting characters brought in to help out. Their lineup doubled to 10 for this gig.

Here's some more of the regular staff: Drummer Chris Wilson, guitarist Mark Hyne and bassist James Nicol.

The shouty bit!

Bass action!

Barefoot action!

Katie Sargent looks smashing.

Transparent action!

Mark frets!

Chris hits!

Lots of folks!

You can check my Flickr account for photos of out-of-focus cellists and the like if that's your fancy. In a fit of brilliant timing, their next show is tonight at Greenfields. They're also playing February 18 at Ritual for their album release show.

Show reminder: It's Christmas party time at Babylon with Silken Laumann, Uranium Comeback and The Male Nurse Band; XXXmas, Jon Creeden and Wooka Tribe rock 558 Gladstone Ave. At the Rainbow you'll find Wise, Young & King, Ellie May, The Glorious Moonrockets and Fantastic Flow; The Brothers Chaffey are doing a little fundraiser for the Ottawa food Bank at Irene's; Poorfolk and Kevin Hersak play the Downstairs Club at the Clocktower Pub.

Death may be your Santa Claus

2011-12-22T01:09:00.002-05:00

Was there once a time when there was basically zip going on around Christmas? My fuzzy memory seems to suggest the answer yes, but that doesn't seem to be the case nowadays. I even had to pick and choose last night, between Christmas shows at Zaphod's and Raw Sugar. I strapped on my cleats and headed for the former since it's been a while since I've seen either The Big Muffs or Hell Bros and Pretty Little Death Machine always rock the house.

Speaking of whom ...

Pretty Little Death Machine at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

Faceoff action!

Pretty Little Death Machine at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

The Big Muffs bring their own brand of heavy, particularly during the last part of the set.

Big Muffs at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

Also, they now have their own line of booty shorts ...

Big Muffs at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

As for Hell Bros, I think they're always great. I often wonder why their shows aren't packed, though last night the horrid weather provided an excuse ... the turnout wasn't too shabby, all things considered.

Hell Bros at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

Stabatronic action!

Hell Bros at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 21, 2011

And in the spirit of Christmas I also scored some free swag from PLDM and Hell Bros. Thanks, eh!

Show reminder: Bombed Out are reuniting for food bank benefit at the Legion on Kent St., along with Asile, Motivator, Pregnancy Scares, Shot Nerves and the debut of Rough House. The Elmdale hosts Irene from the Lowlands. The enigmatic Mr "E" performs at the Avant-Garde Bar.

Bluesfest: Ganga Giri

2011-12-21T01:35:00.000-05:00

Ever since Xavier Rudd blew the crowd away oh so many years ago, I think the powers-that-be at Bluesfest have keeping an eye open for another didjeridoo act. They've found a good one in Ganga Giri, who like Xavier hails from Australia. He blends in more world music and a electronic sounds and it all works quite well.

Toasting action with MC Jornick Joe Lick!

The man himself!

Violin action!

Percussive action with Yeshe Reiners!

Bonus tosting!

Ganga twists!

The whole lot!

Yeshe breaks out the mbira.

Dan Pearson - Acoustic & Electronic Drums

Singalong action!

Extra didjeridoo!

They got a pretty good response from the crowd.

Show reminder: Pretty Little Death Machine, Hell Bros and The Big Muffs perform at Zaphod's; there's a Very Kelpy Christmas at Raw Sugar with Andrew Vincent, Andy Swan and Eddie P & Reggie C.

Bluesfest: Braids

2011-12-20T01:52:00.000-05:00

Braids released their album Native Speaker in January and have been buried beneath a gigantic pile of buzz ever since. The album is a quite engaging concoction (nominated for the 2011 Polaris, among other things) and their live show was pretty good too.

Main brain Raphaelle Standell-Preston sings and plays guitar.

Taylor Smith frets.

Katie Lee handles the keys.

Austin Tufts prepares to hit.

Braided action!

Taylor turns the dial.

More Lee!

Raphaelle sings!

More Austin!

Katie sings!

The whole lot!

Austin sings!

Taylor hits!

I'm not sure what they're up to now, apart from posting photos on their Tumblr.

Show reminder: Josef Mieto and Katherine Amanda Giles perform at The Avant-Garde.

Bluesfest: Honey Island Swamp Band

2011-12-19T01:14:00.000-05:00

The Honey Island Swamp Ban formed in the wake of Hurrican Katrina. To be precise, the four members were New orleans residents who got together while in weather-induced exile in San Francisco. They returned to their hometown in 2007 with some California living under the belts and continue to purvey assorted varieties of bayou funk to the masses. Chris Mulé: guitar, vocals
Mandoli man Aaron Wilkinson says hello.

Chris Mulé frets.

Sometimes bassist Sam Price just needs that extra eye-wear.

.

Mandolin action!

Singalong action!

The whole lot! That's Trevor Brooks on Hammond B-3 and Garland Paul on drums.

Keyboard action!

Garland brushes up.

Swampy action!

They got some upcoming shows in Florida and thereabouts starting Dec. 28.

Show reminder: Videotape, Self Surgery and F Hood perform at Raw Sugar.

Bluesfest: Nick Jonas

2011-12-18T02:00:00.000-05:00

So, Nick Jonas! Best known, of course, as one-third of the Jonas Brothers (I'm assuming there are no non-performing brothers. Nick is a showbusiness veteran, having been on stage since he was about 7, including a number of big Broadway productions. Needless to say there was a number of young admirers parked in front of the Bluesfest main stage awaiting his appearance.

Nick rocks the Tele.

Guitar action with former New Power Generation man Sonny T.!

Bass action! Sorry, I don't know the player.

The crowd goes moderately wild.

Nick sings!

Time to get ride of the jacket (yes, there were squeals).

No offence to Jonas and Co., but I decided pretty early on that the Honey Island Swamp Band sounded more like my thing ...

Show reminder: The Dead Zone, Sad Guru, and Miss Polygamy play The Rainbow; the Elmdale hosts an all-ages Christmas concert with Jadea Kelly and David Gavan Baxter in the afternoon; later that night Dirty Little Secret takes the stage.

Bluesfest: Alyssa Reid

2011-12-17T02:03:00.000-05:00

Alyssa Reid, like Raghav, is heavily in the pop R&B style so beloved of reality show music contests, and there's no surprise in hearing that Ms. Reid was herself a contestant, on YTV's The Next Star.

The lady herself.

She's was certainly better dressed for the weather than The Twisters ...

Backup singer action!

Like most of these folks she has a talented but anonymous band of musicians backing her up (although a quick scan of YouTube suggests the drummer's name is Brendan, and he likes making up silly band names).

The whole lot!

Backup and bass action!

The other side of Alyssa.

Reaching out action!

Guitar action!

The end!

Then it was off to see Nick Jonas - boy, those are words I never thought I'd type ...

Show reminder: Dave Norris & Local Ivan and André M. Bluteau are at Club SAW; The Steve Adamyk Band release their much-lauded new album with Chinese Telephones and Party Knives at the Dominion Tavern; The Pack A.D., The Watter Brothers and Ornaments play Live Lounge; Grace Over Diamonds, Last Day Within, Doll, The Escape Mode, Plush Garden, Tomorrows Crisis, DefineD, Hellbound and Farewell Division jam into Ritual; The Hammerheads bring the funk to The Rainbow; it's Season's Beatings, Round 2 at Irene's with Frank & Florian's Video Dance Party, Manpower, Flying Fortress, HellBros and The Unknown Wrestler. The Elmdale hosts Ninety Pounds Of Ugly, Hillbilly Rocketship, and The Bank Robber’s Union. Social Butterfly flutters into the Avant-Garde.

Bluesfest: Raghav

2011-12-16T01:26:00.000-05:00

Sometimes , when you don't know what to see at Bluesfest, you can find yourself watching something you're surprised to enjoy. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen on this particular Saturday. Some folks may have flipped over the Eastern-flavoured nu-R&B of Raghav, but I wasn't oing to be one of themm. I took photos anyway, mind you, for those of you who like that kind of thing ...

First, some DJ action!

The man himself! Let the record show I had to take about a dozen photos to get one where he was standing sufficiently still for it to be in focus.

He also had a toaster on hand.

Planning action!

The whole lot!

I didn't need a whole lot of what he was laying down, so I headed off to see Alyssa Reid.

Show reminder: Joey Wright and Rolf Klausener perform at Raw Sugar Cafe; Abandon All Ships, A Game, Live The Story, We Were Sharks and Seek First His Kingdom play Mavericks, while Eamon McGrath and Ambassadors can be found upstairs at Cafe Dekcuf; St. Vincent and Cold Specks are at Ritual; The BushPilots fight hunger at The Rainbow; there's a Season's Beatings party at Irene's with Remi Royale, Covercraft, Street Meat, The Guggenheimer Quintet (a.k.a. former Polaris partners Pat Lawlor and Paul Hogan) and the Manadian Boys Choir. The Elmdale hosts Social Divide and Group Therapy. Amp'd do whatever the heck it is they do at the Avant-Garde.

Bluesfest: Todd Wolfe

2011-12-15T00:58:00.001-05:00

Todd Wolfe is a blues and rock guitarist influenced, like a lot of folks of his vintage, by work of Jimi Hendrix, Leslie West and Eric Clapton, as well as various British blues rockers. He's a career musician, and first gained wide notice playing guitar with Sheryl Crow and The Textones. For the last decade or so he's been mostly doing his own thing, and has produced a half-dozen albums of sturdy rock'n'roll.

The man himself.

Bassist Suavek Zaniesienko handles the low end.

Todd bends!

More Suavek.

Rocking action!

Todd sings!

Suavek sings!

I did try to get a decent picture of drummer Roger Voss ... oh well!

Resonator action!

He's keeping busy this month with a string of dates in Pennsylvania and New York.

Show reminder: There's heavy music upstaits and down, with Endemise, Accused Creation, Seeded Among Seven Hills and World Eater at Cafe DeKcuf and Devin Townsend Project, Today I Caught the Plague and Sonburst at Mavericks; the Elmdale hosts John Southworth & The South Seas, Glenn Nuotio and The Orienteers.

Bluesfest: The Twisters

2011-12-14T01:53:00.000-05:00

From the Resignators, we go to what must have been Bluesfest's hottest band. I don't mean musically, though The Twisters' swinging blues does have a certain sizzle. No, this band of Toronto troopers soldiered through their set in full dark suits on the exceptionally sunny stage.

The whole lot! David "Hurricane" Hoerl on vocals and harmonica, Chip Hart on drums, Brandon Isaak on guitar, and bassist Keith Picot.

Pinstripe action!

Keith rocks the standup bass.

Harmonica action!

And so on!

Chip hits!

Keih enjoys his moment in the sun.

And some final bending from Brandon.

Very capable, but perhaps a bit too traditional to tickle my ears.

Show reminder: Not music but music-related, Invisible Cinema presents KILL ALL REDNECK PRICKS!: A Documentary Film About A Band Named KARP. Also cinematic and music related, the Ottawa Rock Lottery film will be screened at The Mercury Lounge (Amos the Transparent will also play an acoustic set). Catalina performs at the Rainbow; the Elmdale Tavern hosts Mubarak Farah and The Airliner Blues Band , The Soul Shakers and Gin and Juice. The Diabolik Quartet is at The Avant-Garde Bar.

Bluesfest: The Resignators

2011-12-13T01:37:00.000-05:00

Bluesfest features all kinds of music these days, but they seem to have particular success with the crowds in branching out into reggae and ska. I like the ska, albeit not in the heroic doses usually consumed by the two-tone faithful, and I prefer the purist variety. So while Melbourne, Australia's The Resignators definitely won a few new fans on the Subway stage with their "psycho-ska" I was only mildly interested.

Guitar action with Steve!

Francis gets a grip.

Trumpeter Ted blows it.

Stacy works the keys.

Bruce on bass. An Australian named Bruce?!?

Brassy action with Jono and Ted.

Singing and skanking (and that's drummer Sharpy at back).

More Jono!

Dancin' Francis!

Steve frets!

Singing and strumming action!

Bonus Francis!

Sharpy hits!

Resigned action!

Extra Bruce.

The end!

Next stop, a quick trip to see The Twisters.

Show reminder: Rainbow Pony Power, Criticull and Pretty Little Death Machine rock The Rainbow; Myke Mazzei & The Mod Villains, Alanna “Little” George and Megan Jerome perform at The Elmdale.

Bluesfest: Final Flash

2011-12-12T00:31:00.000-05:00

Sometimes a band just doesn't live up to its billing. Not to say that Final Flash was buried under a pile of superlatives, but the intriguing description of "psychedelic folk-rock" didn't match what my ears were hearing on the main stage. Then again I see another review tagged them as inspired by the British Invasion, so perhaps we're all just confused.

Guitarist Alexandre Girard works the doubleneck.

Keyboard action with Mathieu Bourret.

Drummer Maxime Hebert hits!

Bassist Andre Bendahan handles the low end.

More guitar! Also, that is some shirt ...

Singer Joey Chaperon Cyr frets a bit.

Gripping action!

More keyboard!

Flashy action!

The whole lot and their suitcase!

Mathieu sings!

Rhythm section action!

It was all okay, but after a little while I wandered off to check out some Australian ska.

Show reminder: Rusty Waters & The Broken Troubadours play the Rainbow.

Winter camping

2011-12-11T01:57:00.001-05:00

I popped over to Club SAW last night to check out Camp radio and Winchester Wam. It seems like a suprisingly long time since I've caught Chris Page, Scott Terry and Dave Draves in action - in fact it was May of last year during Kelp's 16th birthday celebrations. Since then Camp Radio has released their second LP Campista Socialista (featuring a gatefold pic from yours truly) and been raved about hither and yon. As for Winchester Warm, it's a duo featuring Matt and John from Poorfolk.

John sings! It's a more melancholy combo than Poorfolk.

Winchester Warm at Club SAW, December 10, 2011

Orienteers/That's The Spirit's Ben Wilson was on hand for some extra guitar for much of the set.

Winchester Warm at Club SAW, December 10, 2011

Camp Radio also put on a great set. It went by super-fast; I was genuinely wondering where the time went when Chris announced they were on their last two songs (barring the encore). I thought Dave and Scott's vocals sounded particularly good this time around.

Camp Radio at Club SAW, December 10, 2011

Chris sings!

Camp Radio at Club SAW, December 10, 2011

It was a good show, but somehow I doubt any of the photos will be ending up inside a gatefold anytime soon ...

Show reminder: The Midway State, Shawn Hook, Sharks & Ladders and The Riot Police play Mavericks; Scott Lee Mitchel & The Halos and Laurel Jackson & The Attractives perform at The Elmdale. Morgan Friend holds an XXXmas Party at Overkill with Max Cossette and Greg Langille.

Bluesfest: Brothers Chaffey

2011-12-10T01:37:00.000-05:00

After catching a health dose of The Beaties I went to see another super act, The Brothers Chaffey. They keep busy and have already appeared on ye olde blogge many times so I'll just head right to the photos.

Them brothers!

Keyboard action!

Rhythm section action with Dave MacDonald!

Curtis frets some.

Matt wrangles the microphone.

Brotherly action!

reflective action!

Singalong action!

Nick Diak hits ... I think!

Then I ran off to see Final Flash. The Brothrs Chaffey next perform at Irene's Dec. 23.

Show reminder: The Boogiemen and The Band Whose Name is a Symbol fight cancer at Irene's; Uncle Sean & the Shifty Drifters, The Tom Savage Trio, Ray Harris & the BSOB’s, and Lefty McRighty and the Sinister Six fight hunger at the Elmdale; Woodshed Orchestra and The Golden Seals play Raw Sugar; Hollerado, Uncle Bad Touch and Topanga rock Ritual; Camp Radio and Winchester Warm are at Club SAW; the Centretown Recording Alliance - featuring The Johnnies, Garaga, The Allrights, Thunderuncle, Shaker and Romps, Mnemonics and FindersKeepers - play Cafe Dekcuf; Cerebral Scrub, Go Die Scum, Annoize and Arsenal of Empties destroy David HasselHouse (295 Powell, that is). Rusty Water & The Broken Troubadors and Zalanboor perform at the Avant-Garde.

Bluesfest: The Beauties

2011-12-09T01:58:00.000-05:00

I knew nothing of Toronto roots rockers the Beauties, other than they were signed to Six Shooter records, a label whose products I find pleasant but not particularly striking. I'll have to update that opinion, because The Beauties played a really knockout set. They grew their audience quite a bit by holding the attention of folks on their way to someplace else, including some on the bike path outside the Bluesfest fence.

Here they come! At a run even!

Darin McConnell and Shawn Creamer share guitar and vocal duties, Jud Ruhl streams the lead guitar while Paul Phisterer and Derek Downham

The shadowy figure of porkpie aficionado and bar owner Shawn Creamer.

Darin McConnell, also on guitar and vocals.

Jud Ruhl on lead guitar.

Guitar action! You can just make out bassist Paul Phisterer and drummer Derek Downham.

Closeup Paul.

The view from the other side of the stage.

Jud works the frets.

Derek hits!

Singalong action!

Paul gets some guitar time.

Beautiful action!

A really excellent, and one of the festivals most pleasant surprises.

Show reminder: Albatros, We Fled Cairo, Currents and The Purple Ghosts play 446 Lisgar; Kyle Kinane, Evan Desmarais, Rob Mailloux and Chris Locke are at Cafe Dekcuf; the Elmdale hosts The Gertrudes and Charlotte Cornfield; the folks at Finish What You Started celebrate the season hardcore style with Sparrows, Tightrope, Fractures, Dead Weights and Sack Attack at Montgomery Legion Hall; Doll release their new CD at the Live Lounge with an assist from Muffler Crunch and A Darker Day; Silver Creek also have a CD release bash, at Mavericks; The Blood Red Truth, Placentophagia, and Deformatory perform at The Brass Monkey. Eddie Shaw and The Wolf Gang are at The Rainbow; Ross Neilsen & The Suffering Bastards roll into Irene's.

Redheaded stranger

2011-12-08T00:34:00.000-05:00

I'm a huge Neko Case fan, so naturally I went to see her perform last night at Bronson Centre. This was a no-photography event, so I'm just going to decorate it with a shot from her Bluesfest set two years ago. I's not like she's changed much.

She does like the zip-up athletic sweaters, doesn't she? This show was kicked off by Lucy Wainwright Roche. Lucy is off course half-sibling to Rufus and Martha, and the daughter of Suzzy Roche of Roches fame. She gets her talent from both sides of the family and there was plenty on display. She likes to introduce her songs and is quite amusing, regaling Ottawa with tales of brotherly postcards, dates that ended up in the ER and other song-inspiring moments.
As for Case, she was in great form and quite ebullient. In addition to the folks she had with her at her Bluesfest set, she was joined by John Covertino of Calexico on drums - oh, and Kelly Hogan was on hand this time as well. The band previewed three new songs slated for the next album and they all sounded good. The show hit a few rough patches, but all together it was 90 minutes of great sounds.

Show reminder: Bat Sabbath (Cancer Bats playing Black Sabbath, that is), The Comeback Kids, Hunter City Madness and Texas With A Dollar Sign rock Mavericks; Tanya Davis and Sarah Hallman perform at The Elmdale Tavern; Molly Sweeney and Kristen Bussandri play at Raw Sugar.

Bluesfest: New Teeth

2011-12-07T02:06:00.000-05:00

Holy cats! Will I finish posting my Bluesfets photos before the year is over? It just might be possible, because here we are on the final Saturday (and the final Sunday was, if you'll recall, cut suddenly short). On the other hand, it was a busy Saturday, starting with an early show from edy indie rockers New Teeth.

Matt Gilmour rocks the low end.

Lucas Mackenzie sings!

Clapping action!

Will Staunton sings!

The whole lot!

There goes another string.

Rhythm section inaction!

More Matt!

Back to the Godin!

Singalong action!

Then it was off to check out The Beauties.

Show reminder: Neko Case sings at the Bronson Centre. Paper Lions and The Donna Litas play Raw Sugar Cafe; Melissa Payne performs at the Rainbow.

Bluesfest: Blue Rodeo

2011-12-06T01:42:00.000-05:00

As everyone knows, Blue Rodeo have become Bluesfest tradition. Although I know they've missed a year or two, it seems like they've always been on the bill. Perhaps that's why I never bothered to check them out for more than a song or two - they'll be here next year, right? Anyway, after a decade of avoiding them (even passing on some tickets to a show at Scotiabank Place I'd won in a raffle), I finally caught something close to a full set. Of course, several thousand did the same, so the few photos I took are from some distance away ...

Blue action!

I said they were far away, right?

On the other hand, the telephoto on my point-and-shoot is quite good for such a compact bit of gear.

More in the monitors, please!

And, er, that's it. No word of activity from the band as a whole of late, but no doubt they'll be out on the road again sooon ... might another Bluesfest appearance lurk in their future?!?

Show reminder: The Sheepdogs and Monster Truck roll into Ritual for a predictably sold-out show. Things go bleep at Zaphod's as Encephalon brings the techno; Morgan Cameron Ross and Amanda Cottreau play the Elmdale Tavern. Social Butterfly flits into the Rainbow.

Bluesfest: Danny Michel Y Los Hombres Malos

2011-12-05T00:47:00.000-05:00

I've seen Danny Michel a couple of times. He's got a lot of fans in this town, but I can't say I've ever found him more than likeable despite his evident skill as a guitarist and songwriter. Oh well! The few songs I caught at the National Bank Stage, before heading off to see Blue Rodeo, were pleasant enough. Unfortunately I can't find any information about his band, Los Hombres Malos.

The hombre on bass.

The hombre on drums.

Danny works the technology.

The hombre on Banjo.

Danny is illuminated.

Malos action!

Closeup action!

The banjo player was quite active.

The crowd goes wild!

He's got a trio of dates in Waterloo, T.O. and London starting Dec. 15.

Show reminder: Feist and Bry Webb play NAC Southam Hall; Hellbound is at The Rainbow.

Tea and stars

2011-12-04T12:34:00.001-05:00

I can it's been 25 years since I started really listening to music, because all the stuff I liked in my teenage years is being reissued in anniversary packages (hello, Jesus and Mary Chain) or is being reconfigured by new young artists. Such is the case with NWOCNW (New Wave of Canadian New Wave, that is) performer Katie Stelmanis, whose Austra project graced the stage at Ritual last night. She was joined by Tasseomancy, twin sisters who also perform in Austra, and Young Galaxy.

First up, Tasseomancy, which is centred around Sari and Romy Lightman. The slightly gothic pair once performed as Ghost Bees, but have added a little more oompth with a drummer and keyboardist. I thought they sounded really good, though Sari described it as a "bit of a shit-show" due to acoustic guitar problems. Anyway, here's Sari and their drummer.

Tasseomancy at Ritual, December 3, 2011

And Romy and their keyboardist.

Tasseomancy at Ritual, December 3, 2011

Young Galaxy played next, and I must say the dance thing is really working for them. The crowd was super enthused and the band was hot.

Young Galaxy at Ritual, December 3, 2011

Drummer Andrea Silver.

Young Galaxy at Ritual, December 3, 2011

Austra wrapped things up with a superb performance. This was the last show of their current tour so understandably things are pretty finely honed at this point in the game. Stelmanis and the Lightman's voices intertwine beautifully, and they get super support from keyboardist Ryan Wonsiak, Stelmanis' old Galaxy mate Maya Potepski and former Spiral Beach bassist Dorian Wolfe.

Austra at Ritual, December 3, 2011

Sari sings some.

Austra at Ritual, December 3, 2011

A lovely show, though I could have done without the coatcheck lineup.

Show reminder: It's Day 2 of Jimmy George's reunion run at the Elmdale.

Bluesfest: Big Sam's Funky Nation

2011-12-03T01:41:00.001-05:00

A few days ago we rehashed the performance by Jamie McLean, with special guest Big Sam - now here's Big Sam's own combo, Funky Nation, rocking a crowd of youngsters mostly there to catch Subway Stage headliners Mac Miller - and doing quite a good job of it.

Andrew Baham sets aside the trumpet for a little while.

Big Sam! And Jamie McLean, too.

Chocolate MILK, and Cookie Monster!

Working up a sweat ...

Everybody air guitar!

Dancing action!

Guitar action! I'm not sure who the Tele-wielder is, but I don't think it's regular Funky National Andrew Block.

This is, however, bassist Eric Vogel.

More Milk!

The crowd goes wild!

Andrew plays some actual trumpet!

Trombone action!

Big Sam's keeping busy in December with some New Orleans shows as well as a shows in Chicago, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio.

Show reminder: My Tiny Circus and Megan Jerome perform at The Atomic Rooster; The Redmond Barry's, Moonsocket and Marine Dreams are at Raw Sugar Cafe; Good2Go and The Cutmen do it for the kids at Irene's; Austra, Young Galaxy and Tasseomancy play Ritual; Huddle and The Gallop rush into Zaphod Beeblebrox; there's R&B action at The Rainbow with The Boogiemen, Rocket Rached & The Fat City 8 and Roller Coaster. Jimmy George play a 20th reunion show at The Elmdale (the first of two nights, due to popular demand).

Bluesfest: James Harman with Monkeyjunk

2011-12-02T01:48:00.000-05:00

You may recall Monkeyjunk played a set on Bluesfest's second day, thanks to stupendous followup coverage in September. Well, here they are again, this time in support of harmonica giant James Harman.

Matt Sobb focusses his thoughts.

The man himself!

Harmonica action!

James sings!

Standup action!

Matt hits!

And of course Tony D.

The full Harman.

He also looks good in black and white!

The ubiquitous David Maxwell puts in an appearance (as did the Texas Horns, but I couldn't get a good picture of them).

A real treat for Bluesfest's original crowd.

Show reminder: The Mercy Now, Djanguar and The Ditch will rock Yogi's Meatlocker; We Came As Romans, Sleeping With Sirens, Attila, For All I Am and Lions Lions perform at Babylon; Fevers, Distractor and Dreamphone are at Cafe Dekcuf; Pretty Little Death Machine, unleash their new CD at Live Lounge with The Cowards, Animal Confession and Celery Troff. Pia Ashley is at Zaphod's. The Mud Boys perform at Irene's; The Elmdale hosts Breaking The Fourth, Claudia, Defy All, Maps, Partizen, Pia Ashley (again?), Sad Guru, The Mosquitos and Vox Populi. The Franky Rousseau Large Band fills up the Avant-Garde Bar.

Bluesfest: Hannah Georgas

2011-12-01T01:55:00.001-05:00

Hannah Georgas certainly has done well for herself in the last year or so; she drew a good crowd to her set at the National Bank Stage. I confess I wasn't struck by her set, but a few months later I found myself listening to her latest CD at my sister's place out in Nelson, B.C. and being quite impressed. Should have listened closer, I guess!

I think her keyboardist is rocking the Arcade Fire look.

They're all very professional looking.

Closeup action!

Clapping action!

Everybody sing!

Korg-ish action!

The whole lot!

More guitar!

The crowd goes wild!

She'll be back in town at The Bronson Centre February 9, 2012.

Show reminder: Karkwa, Parlovr and I Spell It Nature play Ritual.

The spice of life

2011-11-30T02:00:00.000-05:00

You know whenever King Khan or Bloodshot Bill is in town you're in for a good show. Add local rockers The Polymorphines to the bill, and how can you miss? Well, a few people did miss out, but for a Tuesday show on a day with nonstop rain the turnout was pretty good.

The Polymorphines had a bumpy set due to some technical difficulties - that bass would just not stay plugged in - but you know everything doesn't have to go right for their scrappy brand of rock to work. And now, some singalong action!

The Polymorphines at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Tough-sounding as usual!

The Polymorphines at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Bloodshot Bill then went on stage for a short, all-request set.

Bloodshot Bill at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Finally the Tandoori Knights rocked the joint with their tremelo-abusing rockabilly garage, complete with some standup bass courtesy of Nadeem Khan, perhaps best known for his part in Orlando combo Big Jef Special and drums from Josh Johnson, ex-Spinns, and a one-man band himself under the Pinche Gringo name. King Khan and Bloodshot Bill are old pals and obviously work well together; folks may recall them horsing around at a wild Irene's show back in 2006.

Khan and Bloodshot!

Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Nadeem works the crowd!

Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

They had some ladies from the audience up on stage to sing along for the encore, which finished with Nadeem Khan jumping into the audience.

Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

A killer show all round.

Show reminder: Kathryn Calder and Himalayan Bear play the Raw Sugar Cafe; Pretty Little Death Machine, Hunter Walks and The Dead Zone rock The Rainbow.

Bluesfest: Jamie McLean

2011-11-29T01:48:00.001-05:00

The Dirty Dozen Brass Band has been a round a while. In fact it started up in 1977, meaning some of its current members were probably in short pants at the time. Jamie McLean is a veteran of the combo, and certainly can't have been out of junior high at the time, unless he's remarkably well-preserved. He's a blues-rocker whose toured with Drive-By Truckers.

Mars attacks! Ben Mars, that is.

Jamie tunes up!

Fellow DDBB vet Big Sam (also of Treme fame) horns in.

Brian Griffin mans the drums.

Jamie sings!

Run around!

The whole lot!

N'Awlins action!

Everybody bend!

Extra Mars!

Sam's a bit of a ham.

Rhythm section action!

More guitar!

The whole lot again (minus Big Sam, off to prep for his own band's performance on the Subway Stage).

Sweaty action!

Yes, that will do nicely!

Then it was off to see a bit of the hotly tipped Hanah Georgas.

Show reminder: Tandoori Knights — King Khan and Bloodshot Bill, that is — and The Polymorphines rock Zaphod Beeblebrox; Armortones, Paul "Laffy" Lafreniere and Stereo Tease play The Rainbow; Robert Farrell is at the Elmdale.Prog-folkers Raleigh perform at the Avant-Garde Bar.

Bluesfest: LA-33

2011-11-28T01:26:00.000-05:00

I've said it before and I'll say it again: If you want bang for your buck at Bluesfest, check out the world music acts. The fact that billy Talent, Tim Robbins and The Tea Party were the other acts on offer made the decision a bit easier for me (not that there's anything wrong with those folks, mind). As for LA-33, they hail from Bogota, Colombia but apparently groove on the Latin sounds of New York circa the 1970s.

Yes, there will be cowbell.

And there's a lot of them!

Brassy action!

Salsa time!

Now that's stage dancing.

And so on!

The band's official lineup numbers 11, and don't even ask me to say who's who.

Kick it!

Getting on down action!

Ragga action!

A lot of good singers in this combo!

Shakin' action!

Guiro action!

The whole lot!

A pretty fine set.

Show reminder: Ghostface Killah, Flight Distance and O.G. Hindu Kush hip hop to Ritual.

Bluesfest: Girls With Guitars

2011-11-27T01:32:00.000-05:00

Anter some of Rev. Peyton and Co's enthusiastic American interpretation, I went over to the Hard Rock stage to see Girls With Guitars. Although the name of the tour annoys me slightly (I thought I might be over-sensitive, but apparently I wasn't the only one who found it goofy), who can't argue with the talent on display. The women in question are Cassie Taylor - seen sharing a stage with dad Otis at previous Bluesfests - Dani Wilde and axewoman Samantha Fish.

When I got there Cassie Taylor was doing some Dusty Springfield on the piano.

Bristol's Wilde leans to the blues-rocking side of the dial.

Cassie is looking very serious!

I like Dani's earrings!

More Cassie!

Girl action!

Who the drummer is, I know not.

Kansas's Samantha Fish gets in the game.

Fender action!

And so on!

Samantha bends!

Samantha sings!

Next stop, the National Bank stage for some LA-33.

Show reminder: Dancing with Paris, Longshot, End of Crisis, Equalizer, Wolves in Stride, Against All Odds and Among the Many play Club SA; Whiskey Bent, Hellbound, Slumlord and The Mudplots rock the house (David Hasslehouse, that is) at 295 Powell. Beyond Creation perform at The Rainbow; the Elmdale hosts Cornflower Blue and Derek Jones.

Bluesfest: Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band

2011-11-26T01:56:00.000-05:00

So I went to one washboard-toting combo (that is, Rosie Ledet and The Zydeco Playboys) to another: Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band. Peyton's Bid Damn Band is in fact not as damn big as The Playobys, as it only has three members total, and leans toward old-timey music, as opposed to The Playboys' zydeco. In fact it's just Peyton, his wife Breezy and drummer Aaron Persinger.

The Reverend! And his slide!

His beard is remarkably well behaved.

Breesy and the aforementioned washboard!

Hollerin' action, plus Aaron!

Aaron hits!

Breezy catches some rays.

Extra Aaron!

Percussive action!

Grimacing action!

The whole stompin' lot!

A rambunctious bit of entertainment.

Show reminder: There's more punkitude at the Kent St. Legion with Striver, Gerbia, Bruce Boris, Shot Nerves and It's Asshole Time; Shahman unleash their new 7-incher with Big Dick and We Fled Cairo at 446 Lisgar. Studebaker John rolls into The Rainbow for part of its 27th anniversary celebrations. First To Three, The Bigmuffs and Live On Brighton rock Mavericks; BA Johnson and Wax Mannequin party it up at Irene's; Rocket Rached and the Fat City 8 salute the might of the Mo at The Elmdale - all for a good cause of course! Mike Dubue is doing something at The Overkill Bar beneath The Mercury Lounge ... I think. Behind Sapphire, The Elwins and Acres of Lions perform at The Avant-Garde Bar.

Overbite

2011-11-25T01:57:00.002-05:00

I just realized I was so darn tired yesterday (the aftereffects of a couple of hours in the dentist's chair, I suspect) that I plum forgot to blog that day and tell everyone about the swell shows happening that night. I hope someone else alerted the great Ottawa public to the Ganglians show at Raw Sugar; Red Fang didn't need much extra promo judging by the hefty turnout at Mavericks last night. They had a couple of entirely appropriate local combos to open things.

First up, Loviatar, recently see sharing a stage with Monobrow and The Uncooperatives at The Dominion. By a strange coincidence, that was around our Thanksgiving, and this show was around the U.S. Thanksgiving. Loviatar don't have anything really Thanksgiving-related in their repertoire, so the audience had to settle for being pummelled by tunes about dragons and suchlike.

Loviatar at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

Shane works some feedback.

Loviatar at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

Collider where on stage next. I don't think I've heard much about these local sludgelords before now. Their super-low-end crunch invites comparison to heavy construction gear and comes packaged with some extra-raspy vocals for good measure.

Collider at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

There was much 'stache action at Mavericks.

Collider at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

I am guessing that a lot of people were introduced to Red Fang's heavy metal thunder by their fab low-budget videos (a new one is in rough cut, I hear), and the Portland Quartet back it up live with some hairy-man West Coast metal, a la Bison B.C. and High on Fire.

Red Fang at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

Take that, cymbals!

Red Fang at Mavericks, November 24, 2011

A dynamite set; I would have bought both albums if is didn't own them already ...

Show reminder: Speaking of The Uncooperatives, they rock the Legion on Kent St. with Abyssed and Barrow Wight tonight; Hey Rosetta!, The Jezabels and Ivan & Alyosha perform a sold-out show at Bronson Centre Theatre; Ship Shapes, Caitlin Dolan, The MudPlots and Mike & The Valentine play the Clocktower; there's more anniversary action at The Rainbow with J.W. Jones; there's more hard rock at Mavericks tonight, as Kill City release their new CD with support from Monobrow and In Heat. The Reverb Syndicate play Irene's; Zeus and The Skeletones Four are at Zaphod's. There will also be some hardrocking courtesy of some Rottaway vets in The Black Stone Hearts at The Brass Monkey, along with Pretty Little Death Machine and Stereo Tease.

Bluesfest: Rosie Ledet and The Zydeco Playboys

2011-11-23T01:52:00.000-05:00

Off to the hard rock stage to see Rosie Ledet; according to her biography she picked up her love of zydeco and future husband at the same Boozoo Chavis show when she was in her teens. (You may recall Boozoo Chavis was scheduled to play Bluesfest back in 2001, but died soon after that year's lineup was announced.) Anyway, adjectives like "sultry" and "brassy" seem to follow Ledet around, and she gave a brisk and forceful performance.

Rosie gives it a squeeze. At right is scrub boarder Maclom Walker and bassist Pernell Babineaux.

Closeup action!

Malcom cleans up!

Percy Walker Jr. (I think?) mans the traps.

Extra (possibly?) Percy!

Whole lotta Rosie!

Accordion action!

Guitar action with Andre Nizzari!

Zydeco action!

That's just how it is ...

Bonus Pernell!

And so on!

She's got a few New England dates at the start of December, than heads off to the West Coast in January.

Show reminder: Close Your Eyes, Lower Than Atlantis, S3X and The Gillingham Fire Demonstration perform at Mavericks; the League of Rock meets at Zaphod's, for all you over-30 band seekers ...; Garrett Mason & Keith Hallet help The Rainbow celebrate its 27th anniversary. Landslider, Yanis Khamsi, Carry Yourself and Good Young Catcher play the Avante-Garde.

Bluesfest: Cancer Bats

2011-11-22T01:59:00.000-05:00

From the blues of Al Wood and Co. we go to something that's a bit more black and blue: The thrshy punk sounds of Cancer Bats. Bit first, a message from our sponsors.

"Please don't kill one another."

Having been appropriately warned by Johnny from the Bear, who was doing the introductions, the audience could now appreciate the Cancer Bat experience with only some light maiming being the result. I'm going to start with this blurry photo of jumping bassist Jaye R. Schwarzer, because that's how most of my photos turned out: Blurry Cancer Bats members leaping out of the frame.

A rare photo of singer Liam Cormier standing kind of still.

Headbanging action!

Scott Middleton frets!

I think that's some audience headbanging in the lower left of the frame. Or maybe my thumb. The drummer is Mike Peters.

Cancerous action!

Batty action!

Liam stands on something!

Jaye sings!

More headbanging!

The crowd goes wild!

Scott's under there somewhere.

Gesticulating action!

Good work, mosh pit!

More Mike!

The end! Or at least, the point where I rushed off to listen to some zydeco.

The batty bunch will be back in town December 8 for a show as Bat Sabbath playing, yes, a Black Sabbath set at Mavericks.

Show reminder: Michou, Current Swell and The Strain perform at Mavericks; Signs of Chaos and My Shadow rock The Rainbow; the intriguingly named Golden Bulldozer plays the Elmdale with Spare Change.

Ottawa Bluesfest: Al Wood and The Woodsmen

2011-11-21T01:51:00.000-05:00

To my admittedly poorly attuned ears, Al Wood and The Woodsmen are all about those Chicago blues, harmonica division. And they do a pretty good job of keeping the spirit of Big Walter, Little Walter and Sonny Boy Williamson alive.

Rhythm section action with bassist Jason Jaknunas and drummer Simon Meilleur.

Guitar action with the well-coiffed Lindsay Pugh.

Al Wood works the harp.

Al sings!

The sunny side of the stage!

Extra Simon!

And let us not forget the final Woodsman, Marty Sobb (who was kept busy this Bluesfest, as usual).

Extra Al!

Hollowbody action!

More rhythm!

More Al.

Some bending involved.

And so on!

Lap steel action!

The crowd goes wild!

Al will be hosting the Irene's All Star Blues Jam on Dec. 15, and will be joined by the Woodsmen for a Jan. 15 show at The Atomic Rooster.

Bluesfest: Murder Plans

2011-11-20T01:30:00.000-05:00

My Thursday started with The Murder Plans. That's a very good way to start things! I've enjoyed everything they've done so far, and this set was no exception.

Michael Simon handles the low end.

As you can see from Connor McGuire, they had already worked up a sweat.

Faceoff-and-videographer action with Joel Jacques!

The whole lot, including drummer Nicholas Descarie.

Closeup action!

Nicholas hits!

Michael moves it.

Extra Joel!

Murderous action!

Nicholas brushes up.

Michael takes centre stage.

Singalong action!

Gripping action!

Then it was off to see Al Wood and The Woodsmen.

Show reminder: The Bam Bams rock The Manx. Clementine, Llynn Kellmann and J.F. Robitaille perform at Raw Sugar. The Johnny Cash Music is at The Elmdale.