The Stogies are a band who would maybe probably rather burn out than fade away, but knowing their penchant for all things raucous and unbridled, they’d just light another one up anyways. I had the esteemed pleasure of hosting these 5 boys in my small apartment for two days during CMF. And what pleasurable chaps they were. What really blew me away about this rock ‘n’roll band with heavy classic rock and jam band elements, was that these quiet, and somewhat shy Halifax, N.S. boys really ripped on stage. A sweaty, psychedelic assault, if you will.
Canadian Music Fest
“Tinfoil”. “Vicious”. “Cordova”. “Screwed it Up”. “Ariel vs Lotus”. “Wake up to the Sun”. “Perfect Day to Disappear”. Chances are, if you’re a fan of Canadian rock music, you’ve heard a Limblifter tune or two. At a time where we’ve seen a strong resurgence of many CanRock bands of the 90s (Big Sugar, Big Wreck, Tea Party, Wide Mouth Mason, I Mother Earth, Treble Charger, Rusty) Vancouver, B.C. exports Limblifter, who formed in 1995, are too, at it again.
The show with probably the most buzz at Canadian Music Week might have been out of Scotland. Electro pop band CHVRCHES made their Canadian debut with a sold out show at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club on Wednesday, March 20. The band landed in America for the first time, played SXSW and promptly won the Inaugural Grulke Prize for Developing Non-U.S. Act. Of course, all of this was merely a warm up for Canadian Music Week, right?
My first night at Canadian Music Fest included one band that I knew I couldn’t miss. At midnight on Thursday, March 21 at The Great Hall, Wildlife were set to take the stage, and based on what I had heard of their album, I knew it was a show I wanted to check out. As it turned out, they were preceded by three acts that showed a lot of promise–Mo Kenny, Mad Ones, and PS I Love–so, I decided to start CMF this year by sticking with one venue.
Katie Rox might be best known as Katie B., the former lead singer of the rock band Jakalope, but she’s made a name for herself in the years since as a singer and songwriter, most recently releasing her country-influenced CD Pony Up in 2011.
JJ Shiplett is a cowboy who isn’t afraid to spend as much time calling bar patrons onto the dance floor as he is composing songs about achingly sincere loss.
Okay, so the weather outside may make it feel otherwise, but spring has sprung, at least as much as it’s going to spring for now, and that means one thing for me this week: the Canadian Music Festival.
Thirteen years. Unless I can’t count, I am pretty sure this will be my thirteenth year covering Canadian Music Week, or more specifically, what is now called Canadian Music Fest. (Yes, that does, indeed, make me feel old, but then again I’ve been doing this since I was 24, when I wasn’t so old at all.)
Since my time is short, as I’m getting ready to head out for the night, I wanted to pass on a few recommendations for tonight, the second night of the festival. You can find the full schedule for the full festival at www.canadianmusicfest.com/schedule/.
Last night was a fantastic dip into the waters of this year’s Canadian Music Fest, but it was pretty quick for me because of a few prior commitments.
To start the night I was actually at a film screening for my weekly review column, but once I was out I headed to the Rivoli to wait for Lindi Ortega to hit the stage.
The second night of Canadian Music Fest starts in just a few hours and once again I’ve compiled my latest picks of bands and artists worth checking out around the city.