Some mother's son

Next up were Toronto's Permanent Bastards. They are a very lively act, with lots of shaking about and a good, rough-hewn sound that's somewhere in the vicinity of Spencer P. Jones, David Picco, Bruce Springsteen, but twisted up with gunk rock.

First, let's start with some real Bastards: Guitarists Sean Cepeda and Simon Paik split lead vocal duties, while Jeff Mota mans the drums.



Regular bassist Duncan Spence had to skip this show for surgical reasons; this is his fill-in Chris Cresswell of The Flatliners.



Sean sings!



Faceoff action!



Chris sings!



The whole lot!



Sean rocks the semi-hollow.



Guitar action!



More faceoff action!



Simon shouts!



I'm depressed to report this is my best photo of Jeff.



Sean shouts!



Simon removes a few more layers of finish from his Telecaster.



More guitar!



More Chris!



Strap assistance action!



The end!



Easy to see why they've been winning raves for their live show.

• Show reminder: As mentioned yesterday, Dead Weights are at Cafe DeKcuf with Currents and Tightrope; Tungda Browne, The Mudplots, Eugene and the Eugenics, Dog Park Radio and The Watters Brothers crowd into The Rainbow. Kim Koren and The Doc Weiss Band are at the Elmdale.

Chills and thrills

If you wanted proof that nippy weather doesn't stop people from going to shows, you wanted to be at Cafe DeKcuf last night where a heft crowd turned out to see Dead Weights, Toronto's Permanent Bastards, Hamilton and The Mnemonics. All four bands seem to like the guitars squalling, so it was a good fit all round.

First up, Dead Weights. They feature various members of I Refuse, Wooka Tribe and acoustic punk rocker Jon Creeden. I only caught the last song but I detect a definite Jawbreaker influence (and not for the last time last night).


Dead Weights at Cafe DeKcuf, January 14, 2011

Next up were Toronto's Permanent Bastards, or at least three-quarters of them. Their bassist took a powder a couple of days ago, forcing them to recruit Chris from The Flatliners so they could bring their Drive Like Jehu-meets-Bruce Springsteen tunes to town, along with a cover of Hot Snakes Braintrust.


Permanent Bastards at Cafe DeKcuf, January 14, 2011

Hamilton also played a killer set. The band features veterans of Antennas, Alaskan and New Teeth, among others. They certainly zipped through it. I doubt any of the songs clock in over two minutes.


Hamilton at Cafe DeKcuf, January 14, 2011

The least noisy band of the evening was The Mnemonics - and that's saying something, considering the band's three guitar attack.


The Mnemonics at Cafe DeKcuf, January 14, 2011

A great show, though I'm really jonesing for the return of my still defunct flash.

• Show reminder: Dave Norris and Local Ivan with opener Erin Saoirse Adair roll into the Elmdale house. Hilotrons and Mike Essoudry and The Mashed Potato Mashers will be making Babylon party central. Early Transcendentals, Adam Saikaley, Shane Whitbread, and Lipstick Lesbian will be making strange noises at the Avant-Garde Bar; Lil Blues Pill and The Big Chill hit The Rainbow.