Who was that masked man?

I'm starting to worry that I'm going to be wrapping up last year by the time next year rolls around, and not just because this latest update comes from Cafe DeKcuf around Halloween 2012. It also features a trio of bands that I've already seen again: Thought Project, Muffler Crunch and Monobrow, along with two top-notch touring combos, Castle and Witch Mountain.  

First on deck were mighty instrumental power trio Monobrow; Halloween was four days away, but people got duded up anyway. Their record release was four months away, so they treated the crowd to a few new tunes.



Sam rocks the low end.



Paul plays mysterious guitar.



The whole lot!



Bonus Beydoun!



Brian hits!



Fisheye action!



Extra Brian!



The end!



Photos of their Dominion release show to come ... hopefully this year ...

The simple things

I thought about heading over to Mavericks for something on the loud and rocking side with the Single Mothers, but something in me wanted a (relatively) quiet experience, and I figure that Colleen Green won't be making too many treks from her Los Angeles home to these parts, so it was off to Pressed.

Opening was Organ Eyes, who turn the volume up every once in awhile, along with the dreamy bits. They really make me think of The Vaselines these days.


Organ Eyes at Pressed, April 27, 2013

Silhouetted Cameron action!


Organ Eyes at Pressed, April 27, 2013

The whole lot!


Organ Eyes at Pressed, April 27, 2013

Colleen Green's musical tools are a handful of fuzz chords, a drum machine and a relentless avoidance of lyrical complexity.


Colleen Green at Pressed, April 27, 2013

Shady action!


Colleen Green at Pressed, April 27, 2013

She plays Toronto tonight.

Peaks and Valleys

There were a few good show on Friday night, but I trotted over to the House of Targ to ctch the debut performance of Bonnie Doon, a typically swell set from Voicemail and the first Ottawa appearance of Valley Boys, a band featuring a Brutal Knight, a School Jerk and a Vapid.

First up, Bonnie Doon, an all-woman group with a penchant for post-punk. They have two bass players who switch off on vocal duties. The guitar player also sang a tune, which meant two basses going at once; I liked that part quite a bit. Covered: The Misfits' Hollywood Babylon.


Bonnie Doon at House of Targ, April 26, 2013

And on the other side of the House of Targ's floor ...


Bonnie Doon at House of Targ, April 26, 2013

Next up, Voicemail. They appeared here recently playing with Peach Kelli Pop, and soon shall again opening for Deniz Tek of Radio Birdman fame, May 18 at the Dominion. They're keeping busy!


Voicemail at House of Targ, April 26, 2013

Singalong action! They introduced Rose Tattoo's Magnum Maid to the setlist for this outing.


Voicemail at House of Targ, April 26, 2013
 
Valley Boys finished things off with a killer set. You've seen a couple of these folks on the blog before: Matt Hitch with School Jerks and Chattering Class and Jon Sharron with Brutal Knights. Bassist Jimmy Vapid hails from his namesake band. Of drummer Kalle Malloy I know nothing.


Valley Boys at House of Targ, April 26, 2013

Boyish action!


Valley Boys at House of Targ, April 26, 2013

Their LPs were going fast after the show.

The skinny

Ultrathin finished off the last Ottawa edition of Bacon Fat on a high note, with a lot of jumping about and scuzzy punk rock.

Ready, set, go!



Percussive action with Brett!



Bassist Frags was playing with The Holy Cobras last time I saw them at Gabba Hey.



Mark takes a stand!



Shaun frets!



The whole lot!



Rhythm section action!



Extra Mark!



A little between-song banter.



The end!



They plan to tour the States and Canada in June.

Message sent

From H. De Heutz things led neatly into J'envoie; keyboardist Olivier Fairv=field barely had to move a step as he was joined by the rest of the experimental Hull quartet.

The whole lot! Olivier, drummer Pat Senecal, guitarist Pierluc Clement and a bassist who is new to me (which isn't hard to be, since I last saw the band play at Irene's in April 2006).



Keyboard action!



Pat hits!



Bass action!



Extra Pierluc!



The end!



Since then, they seem to have retreated to their usual enigmatic irregularity.

Initial impressions

All good things must come to an end, they say. Bacon Fat, Sylvain Lajoie's monthly night at hostel jail bar Mugshots certainly qualifies as a good thing, but alas Sylvain has left for Montreal so this October offering was its last hurrah in this burg. The beginning of the end started off with H. De Heutz (named, no doubt, for Hubert Aquin's mysterious counterspy), an experimental duo featuring Olivier Fairfield of J'envoie and Fet. Nat. and Nathan Medema of Kingdom Shore, also a J'envoie vet.

Nathan handles the bass.



Closeup action!



Olivier sings and tweaks.



Fisheye action!



Extra Olivier!



The end!



Their next show is at Raw Sugar with Hello Babies and Adam Saikaley, May 4.

Harvest time

Some bands you just know aren't going to get a huge draw. Such is the case with Harvest Breed's pleasant performance at Pressed in mid-October. The Montreal outfit isn't too well known in these parts (not even under its previous name, Jake & The Leprechauns). More to the point, there was loads of other stuff to do this Friday night.

Singalong action with C-Antoine Gosselin and Maxime Rouleau!



Over on the left are Marco Gosselin and Sylvain Lussier.



Keyboard action!



Faceoff action!



Gabriel Lemiuex-Maille drums.



The whole blurry lot!



They have some Quebec dates lined up, including one in Gatineau in October at Salle Jean-Desprez.

Brothers and bronies

Saturday night I headed back over to Mavericks for another helping of heavy metal - all local acts this time. The headliner was Loviatar, who have a new EP out, Druid's Curse. They were supported by Hellbros and Rainbow Pony Power, whose intruigingly un-metal name has been popping up on show posters for some time now.

They've got some runaway train music hooked up to some filthy lyrics.


Rainbow Pony Power at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

Also, I suspect they like Pantera.


Rainbow Pony Power at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

On to Hellbros, who rocked as usual, including a cover of Ace of Spades.


Hellbros at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

Bassist Stabatron has apparently decamped to Average Times full-time, and been replaced by Big Jeezus Truck's Matt Spag.


Hellbros at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

Loviatar then finished things off. All the sets were a little on the short side (there was an earlier show at Mavericks, and things only got underway at 11), but really sharp.


Loviatar at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

Also they like their lighting blue, which as a photographer is a decision I wholly support.


Loviatar at Mavericks, April 20, 2013

You can get Druid's Curse at their bandcamp.