Unsilent night

For the last few years the Centretown Recording Alliance - i.e., folks from The Centretown Cripplers, Allrights and sundry - offshoots and their friends have thrown a seasonal shindig with a heap of bands. This year they rolled into Gabba Hey. The weather was about as uncooperative as it could get, but a few dozen people showed up to catch the action. I got there a bit late to see Thunderuncle start things off.

Patrick Shanks was up, singing about sumo wrestlers and beating up giraffes.



And so on!



Next up were Neck, who I've seen a bunch of of late - third show in two months, or something like that. They like their matching duds!



Johhny rocks the low end.



The whole lot!



Kevin hits!



Singalong action!



Santa action!



More Centretown action after the jump!

Friends, Romans, countrymen

New Jersey rockers Titus Andronicus have been making waves on the indie punk rock scene for several years now, but I confess I haven't been blow away by what I've heard on record. They did, however, sound like a band who would be much more impressive live - and so it proved to be! They're on tour now with Brooklyn pals The So So Glos, and made a stop at Mavericks Wednesday night.

Finderskeepers took the stage early (it was an early show, to accommodate the sleeping needs of "government punks"). The last (and first) time I saw them perform was at the first Ottawa Explosion, almost two years ago. I can't recall if they were quite so blurty.


Finderskeepers at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

Jon hits! They covered Dag Nasty's Under Your Influence.


Finderskeepers at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

The So So Glos had a bit of road trip trouble and unfortunately had to truncate their set (they also shaved off a minute or two having it out with a heckler who yelled "Shut up and play!" at them). They put on a great set though, aided by longtime band pal and producer Adam Reich of Titus Andronicus.


The So So Glos at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

And on our right ....


The So So Glos at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

As for Titus Andronicus, they like their rock both brainy and brawny (they made me think of The Hold Steady a bit in that regard), with much personal reflection. They started things off with more of an indie rock feel, then moved on to some more hardcore stylings that really had the crowd moshing.


Titus Andronicus at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

Eric sings! He got up front to play guitar and sing lead on The Dog later on.


Titus Andronicus at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

They had some fun with covers, starting with Neil Young's Powderfinger (Young must be the artist I've heard covered the most live); they finished the show by having some of The So So Glos back onstage for a version of Joan Jett's I Love Rock'N'Roll, which merged into The Beastie Boys' No Sleep till Brooklyn, and ended up with Billy Bragg's To Have And Have Not.


Titus Andronicus at Mavericks, May 1, 2013

They play Toronto tonight.

You can be replaced

I have a shocking secret to reveal - some members of The Centretown Recording Alliance cicrcle which has produced such bands as The Centretown Cripplers, Finders Keepers, The Mnemonics and The Allrights are fans of The Replacements. Incredible, eh? Anyway, here we are, back for Punk Rock Covers night No. 5 at the Montgomery Legion Hall with Chris Cook, Matthew Banoub, John Sproull and Hidden Cameras bassist John Hynes, performing some of the Twin Cities' finest slabs of rock.

John and David!



John hits!



Bass action with John!



Chris sings!



Replacement action!



More David!



Extra Chris and John!



Double the hits!



The whole flashy lot!



Faceoff action!



I missed The Mnemonics' Ottawa Explosion gig, but if you're in Toronto you can catch them at 3030 Dundas West this Friday for some Craft Beer Week-related (and likely heavily influenced, if you know what I mean) music.

• Show Reminder; The Aves and Revolver rock Zaphod's; Brasstronaut, Utidur and Phantom Shores perform at Mavericks; the Elmdale hosts Belle Plaine and Bobby Dove.

Crippling end

After the Paul Collins Beat show I split for British Columbia for a family get-together. The first show I saw upon returning was also the last for Centretown Cripplers. The slightly amorphous band of guitar slingers and drum-bangers have since fostered The Johnnies (who recently had their debut show) and The Mnemonics.

On the right side of the stage, going from left to right, Dave, Matt, Devin and Brendan.



On the left, Mel, Dave again and Chris Cook.



And at the back, drummer Jamie.



If Chris's shirt says they're dead, they must really be goners.



Twisting action!



Singalong action!



Shouty Matt! He's currently performing in The Middens.



The whole lot, plus jumping action!



Jamie vs. UFOs!



Rhythm section action!



Guitar action!



There was much string-breaking from Chris.



Tambourine action!



Matt sings!



Dance party!



Jumps, kicks, shouts!



Guest-bass action from Colin Majid of Garaga!



And some last minute Cook action!



The end! Really! If you're so inclined you can actually see some of these folks performing tonight in The Allrights at Irene's, allong with Remi Royale and the ever-entertaining B.A. Johnston.

• Show reminder: Right By Midnight, Orchard Thieves and Beware The Leopard are at Zaphod's; J-W Jones Blues Band holds forth at The Rainbow; there's fundraising action at the Elmdale House for the fight against prostate cancer with Quicksand. Mannequin is at the Avant-Garde Bar.

Beginnings and ends

It's time for i(heart)music's annual music festival, which this year is a three-day affair at Mavericks. It was evenly divided between a couple of great Ottawa performers and a couple of great not-from-Ottawa bands.

The Centretown Cripplers started things off - and also finished things off in a sense since it was their last show. They went out with a typically chaotic show highlighted by Chris Cook's repeated string-breaking - good thing there were a lot of Telecasters in the house to borrow.


The Centretown Cripplers at Mavericks, August 26, 2010

The last (and first) time I saw Giant Hand was also his first show, opening for Immaculate Machine and The Hi Lo Trons in the basement of End Hits. Since then he's garnered quite a bit of critical acclaim, thanks to his unvarnished songwriting and penetrating voice. Since that March 2008 gig he's acquired an electric guitar and made some use of looping in a very fine set.


Giant Hand at Mavericks, August 26, 2010

Gramercy Riffs' sound echoes the days of Richard and Linda Thompson, Lee Hazelwood and Barbara Sinatra and Fleetwood Mac thanks to the dual vocals of Lee Hanlon and Mara Pellerin, though it has plenty of modern kick (and is mostly duet free - Lee and Mara trade of singing duties on a song-by-song basis). Incidentally, Daniel Banoub, brother of The Cripplers' Dave - you may recall him playing with the band at the pre-Cook wedding gig at the Montgomery Legion Hall plays bass in the St. John's combo.


Gramercy Riffs at Mavericks, August 26, 2010

By the time Parlovr got on stage the audience - never all that large to begin with, I'm sad to report - had shrunk to about a dozen, but they still got a super-active show from a band that would probably give 150% no matter the size of the crowd. The trio has a huge sound thanks to the cunning deployment of an octave pedal and loads of energy to go along with their choruses.


Parlovr at Mavericks, August 26, 2010

The festival continues tonight at Mavericks with performances by Amos the Transparent, The Darcys, Old Crowns and Oceans.

• Show reminder: Sarah Blackwood, The Mudplots and Jersey Hurtt are at Cafe Dekcuf; Zachary Lucky, The Bravest Ghost and A.R. Coleman are at Raw Sugar; Alaska Army Band, Weak Size Fish and The Weeds play the Rainbow Bistro; The Beat Project gets funky at Irene's.

Where is there

The Centretown Cripplers returned things to the small'n'sweaty red room. This was the compact version of the band, with one Banoub, one Wells, two Cooks (now that they're married), one Sturk and a Harrison.

First, some shady introduction courtesy of Ian Manhire.



Shouty Matt action!



Matt'n'Dave (plus Mel at back, handling the drums in the absence of Jamie Warren.



Dave climbs, Devin basses.



Running about!



Guitar-waving action ... you really need the fisheye for this room.



I knew I had to take a decent photo of Brendan sooner or later.




Mel "Stickbuster" Sturk prepares to hit.




Devin rocks the low end.




Chris sings!



Shadowy action!



Back-to-back action!



They've recently released their new album, There's Nothing Good About Where You Live, though so far far it's only online (as far as I can tell). They're playing August 26 at Mavericks.

• Show reminder: Hard Charger, Excommunicated, The Donner Party and Masterblaster commit acts of aural violence at 443 Kent St.; The Isosceles Project and The Killing Field play The Cajun Attic; Bad Fate and The Ascot Royals perform at Zaphod's; Australian roots musician Toby Beard and Kim Churchill are at The Rainbow.