It embiggens us all

Next up, the fuzzy, Pacific-Northwest loving sounds of The Big Muffs!

The shocking bit with Forest!



The shouty bit with Adam and Jeremy!



Extra Adam!



Tony's behind there somewhere ...



More Adam!



And so on!



Extra Jeremy!



The whole lot!



Rhythm section action!



Extra Tony!



Faceoff action!



They played a gig in early April at the Brass Monkey, no doubt more fuzz is plotted for the rest of 2012.

• Show reminder: Bahamas and The Weather Station perform at Mavericks; upstairs at Cafe DeKcuf you'll find Koffin Kats, Brain Damage and The Scally Cap Brats; Jack Pine & The Fire, The Tequila Mockingbird Orchesta and Three Little Birds flock together at Zaphod's; the Elmdale hosts Joe Bones and Kevin Logue. Celery Troff, Charming Ruins and The Glorious Moonrockets rock the Avant-Garde.

Death may be your Santa Claus

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.

Underfoot

The first time I saw The Big Muffs was in July 2009; I'd skipped out on Bluesfest to see a bill with The Zebrassieres, Babblegoons and Hellbros. The Big Muffs were the only band of which I knew nothing, and it seemed like they were keeping a low profile both before and after this show. Come 2010 it seemed they were playing out a bit more and I was glad to catch them again at Zaphod's on yet another eclectic bill, this time with Those Gulls and Street Meat.

Leonard Epp rocks the '70s 'stache.



Forest Yake keeps lookin' at me.



Epp sings!



Forest is ready for his closeup.



Adam Wollinger frets.



Tony Cabellero hits!



The whole lot!



Leonard rocks the Jazzmaster.



Neck-waggling action!



A shouty bit!



Forest at his most fisheyed.



Guitar action!



More Tony!



An actual Bigmuff!



The band's next show is February 11 at Live Lounge, where they'll be releasing their new CD  supporting the CD release of Down In Ashes. Their own disc should drop in April.

• Show reminder: Winchester Warm and Andy Swan are at Raw Sugar Cafe; Paramedics, The Paint Movement and The Love Machine play Babylon; The Bilble Allstars, LittleFoot LongFoot and The Sins Sisters get raunchy at The Clocktower; Klovenhoofs, ex-Shikasta folks The Mercy Now and Gilmer Ditch bring the noise to The Dominion. The Elmdale House hosts Thread and Cornflower Blue; Billy Lyte plays the Avant-Garde Bar.

Word on the street

The show schedule is getting a little sparse as winter truly descends on Ottawa (except for the weather, which seems to think it's still November ... where did I put that umbrella?) but at least the switch over to 2011 gives bands an excuse to put on year's-end shows. This gig at Zaphod's last night was a bit peculiar ... you had the big fuzzy rock of The Big Muffs, the indie-rock of Those Gulls and the electro-rap of Street Meat. One of these things is not like the other.

The Big Muffs sound a lot harder-riffing than when I saw them a year ago. I could definitely see them a bill with a band like Torche. They also have a new drummer.


The Big Muffs at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 29, 2010

I saw Those Gulls back in April; they were a four-piece with a violinist then. There was no violin in evidence this time around and they were sounding like a cross between Bailter Space and Eric's Trip.


Those Gulls at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 29, 2010

I picked up Street Meat's debut CD a little while ago. The band features Lee from Daiquiri, but instead of guitar he's playing drums behind a couple of lady toasters. Sort of a strange end to the night, but less mysterious given that there is a room-mate connection with Gulls bassist Pierce.


Street Meat at Zaphod Beeblebrox, December 29, 2010

Well, it was different from what I usually go see ....

• Show reminder: Slyde, We Surrender and Aerith are at Mavericks.

A piece of pi

The Zebrassieres were followed by The Bigmuffs, a band I had never heard of and haven't heard much of since (apart from a Facebook exchange with singer Leonard Epp). That's too bad: I like bands with spacey guitar, I like the singer from The New Bomb Turks, and I like big fuzzy rock, but I don't often hear all three combined.

Leonard Epp does most of the singing.



Tony Caballero Luke Prins drums some.



The whole lot, with Adam Wollinger on guitar.



Bassist Forest Yake wanders over.



Singalong action!



And so on!



Microphone-strangling action!



Staring action!



Bending action!



A fun set (though as a sidenote I can really tell from the Flickr set that I was still getting used to the narrower photos my Nikon takes)

Saved for a rainy day

What wonderful weather to go and see a show ... inside. As I was making my way home from the gym around 4 p.m. I could tell the wind whipping things around boded ill, and with nothing of tremendous appeal happening down at Bluesfest I decided to wait for the show at Mavericks. The place was a little empty when I arrived, but as the minutes clicked down to the show there was a sudden inrush of people

Zebrassieres kicked things off with some of their energetic garage-pop. Apparently Farfisa toucher Sarah is headed back to Calgary in August; but the current lineup still has a couple of shows to go - one in Wakefield and one at 854 Bronson at the end of July.


Zebrassieres, Mavericks, July 17, 2009

Next up were The Bigmuffs, a heavy and somewhat quirky band with a lead singer whose voice reminded me of The New Bomb Turks. There was some interesting space rock lead guitar and a lot of heavily distorted chords.


The Bigmuffs, Mavericks, July 17, 2009

I can't recall if I've mentioned Mihijlo of Beach Blankets' sideline in rap. As it turns out Babble Goons, the hip hop foursome of which he is a member, was the third act on the bill, and kicked it out in fine style. They were down a man, so Enoch Resonance of Syllable Sekt filled out the lineup (though you can't really see him in either photo).


Babble Goons, Mavericks, July 17, 2009

DJ Grusm donned a mask for the big show finish.


Babble Goons, Mavericks, July 17, 2009

Hellbros finished things off with a typically fierce yet funny set of hardcore metal. They always attract a dedicated coterie of fans, but I'm perplexed as to why they aren't bigger locally - and not-so-locally, come to that.


Hellbros, Mavericks, July 17, 2009

It was a really fun and varied evening - and best of all, dry (except for all the drinking going on).

• Show reminder: Red Light Saints and Keyotone perform tonight at Mavericks; Bloodshot Bill brings his shiny new CD to the Elmdale House; The Brandon Paris Band and Epyllion play Zaphod's; The Hammerheads get funky at The Rainbow.
• I never thought I'd see the day: Le Nombre are returning for an Ottawa show - they're slated to play The Dominion Sept. 19.