3am Mixtapes: Episode One Hundred One: #SingItFwd

Each week on the 3am Mixtapes podcast, I will share with you the Top Six Songs of a certain subject. The topics can be as general as best 2015 songs. Some might be a little more... specific. Top Six Songs About Being Late. 

This week, not only am I talking about the upcoming #SingItFwdFinale, with the Top Six SingItFwd Performances but I am joined by half of the brains behind the operation, one third of the brains behind Hey Ocean!, and the whole brains behind his solo material, one of the hardest working musicians in Vancouver, David Vertesi.

Hear him talk about SingItFwd, the St James Music Academy, past years, this year's finale, what's next, and lots more. And a bunch of cool performances recorded live from previous years:

"Congo" by Bear Mountain w/ The St James Music Academy
"Bit By Bit" by Ryan Guldemond & Hannah Georgas w/ The St James Music Academy
"So Easily" by Kathryn Calder
"Summer Dress" by July Talk
"Resolutions" by Said the Whale w/ Shad
"Walking on Broken Glass" by Hey Ocean! w/ The St James Music Academy.

Any questions or comments or waffles or criticisms or suggestions for future themes are welcome!

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3am Mixtapes: Episode Seventy Nine: Robo-Songs

Each week on the 3am Mixtapes podcast, I will share with you the Top Six Songs of a certain subject. The topics can be as general as best banjo songs. Some might be a little more... specific. Top Six Songs About The Senses.

And, well, it finally happened. What we feared the most. The machines have risen up and overthrown humanity. So to appease out mechanical masters, this week is the Top Six Robotic Songs!

Turn these on:

"Robotic" by Hannah Georgas
"Robot Heart" by Hawksley Workman
"Electrolove" by Sidney York
"Is a Robot" by dEUS
"You're a Woman, I'm A Machine" by Death From Above 1979

"Robots" by Flight of the Conchords

Any questions or comments or waffles or criticisms or suggestions for future themes are welcome!

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CBC Music Festival @ Deer Lake Park -- 06/14/14

Last year the inaugural CBC Music Festival took place at Echo Beach far away in time in Toronto, but this year they decided to take the show to Vancouver -- or more specifically, Burnaby's Deer Lake Park. And a little bit of rain couldn't keep people away for a day included dozens of musicians and CBC personalities, from Radio 3's Grant Lawrence, to Radio 2's Tom Power and Rich Terfry (aka Buck 65, who also performed a DJ set), Radio 1's Jian Ghomeshi, and more.
The Irrelevant Show was also there to do a live taping, and the music was spread across two stages, the main stage by the lake and a smaller "garden" stage off to the side.


Some of the early music in the day included local up & coming Wake Owl and the winner of the CBC Music Searchlight competition for "best new band", Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk, but the first act that I caught was Vancouver's own Hannah Georgas on the main stage. The half-hour set ranged from "Shortie" which got people moving in the misty rain (one girl in the audience loudly proclaiming it was her jam) to the other end of the spectrum, the softer and touching "Ode to Mom". And as the set came to a close with "Waiting Game", Hannah's voice single-handedly beat back the clouds, and held off the precipitation for the majority of the day.


Next up on the main stage was the pride of Hamilton, with the well-earned reputation as one of the countries best live band, Arkells.
They teased their upcoming new album by leading off with a brand new song, "Come To Light", but aside from that and the slow-burning jam "Never Thought That This Would Happen" they stuck to older material.
"Oh, The Boss is Coming" had Max whip the crowd up with a singalong, and "Pulling Punches" featured an aces piano solo from Anthony Carone on keys.
And as is Arkells way, they slipped in some brief covers; a dash of Al Green in "Michigan Left", and part of Shad's "Rose Garden" during "Book Club" (specifically, the hook reminded Max of the weekend's weather: "There's gotta be some rain sometimes"). They invited a special guest on stage for a full-blown cover, Talking Head's "Psycho Killer" with Arkells fronted by Jian Ghomeshi.
Early on, lead singer Max Kerman mentioned it was their job, as an opening band, to pump the crowd up and that is exactly what they did, ending their explosive set with "Whistleblower"


The festival ran like clockwork, and almost immediately after Arkells ended, The Belle Game started on the Garden Stage. It was a change of pace from Arkells' high-tilt rock to their darker and moodier indiepop, but they still got people moving, starting off with the groovin' "Wasted Light".
The all-too short set included a new song, possibly called "Mess Around", which they have played a few times before and it has always amazed me, and of course Andrea Lo's powerful voice filled the park on songs like "River". They ended off as they usually do, getting people dancing with "Wait Up For You" building into a fantastic ending of duelling guitars.


Back again on the main stage, Searchlight winner Lauren Mann (who had "never played for this many people") was briefly out to perform her Searchlight winning song "I Lost Myself", before what was was essentially the debut of Dan Mangan + Blacksmith. Aside from a small UBC show, Dan hadn't played in his hometown in about a year and a half, and this was the unveiling of his new band, Blacksmith. The members were largely the same; the usual faces of Gord Grdina, Kenton Loewen, John Walsh, among others, but the new name signalled a new direction in his music, with the writing process being more collaborative.
And based on the new songs -- "Mouthpiece" and one I didn't catch the name of -- it is a great new direction. Both new songs were very intense, dense and layered, but still felt very "Mangan". It seemed like the natural progression for Dan, judging by the last couple albums.
While there were only couple brand new songs, the "new sound" was very much spread across their entire set, through the older songs. "Post-War Blues" started with a swell of instruments before the passionate song swelled to its explosive climax, and "Sold" was slowed to a calmer pace.
Part way through the set the band took a break for Dan to perform the heartbreaking "Basket" alone, and during the usual massive singalong to "Robots", he spotted a couple of girls with cardboard robot heads in the crowd and invited them on stage.
They wrapped up the set with "Rows of Houses" which built to a chaotic display that, once again, got me really excited about the sum of Dan Mangan + Blacksmith.


As his set wrapped up, Dan urged everyone to head over and see Chad VanGaalen, who was headlining the Garden Stage for the day. Of all the bands playing, I was most excited to see CVG, as I hadn't seen him live in a couple of years (and also I was interested to see how he would be in a big festival setting).
As Rich Terfry made his introduction, Chad played drums behind him before being joined by his two bandmates for the first song of the set, "Cut Off Your Hands" -- also the lead-off track to his new album Shrink Dust. "Where Are You?" was a little more bass-y than the album, and ended with CVG pulling out his saxophone for a jazz-influenced jam ending, before picking things up with a couple of more punk-ish songs. "Poisonous Heads" ending with Chad shushing the crowd and indicating for a bass solo... only for his bass player to decline and Chad take the bass and perform the solo himself.
Once again feeling way too short, he came to a close with "Hangman's Son" for yet another excellent set.


I could have left right there and it would have been a day to remember, but there were still a couple acts left. While I have have never really gotten in to Spoon, I had heard nothing but good things, so I made sure to stick around for them. And despite only knowing a couple songs -- "Don't You Evah" and the fun and bouncy "Underdog" -- they put on a very enjoyable set. Lead singer Britt Daniel had a great presence, and the whole band was incredibly tight. It definitely made me want to delve into their six-album history.

After a DJ set from Buck 65, Tegan & Sara took the stage, but I've never been much of a fan, and the rain had come back with a vengeance, so I decided to beat the inevitable rush of leaving traffic and take off early.

In all it was a fantastic festival -- I can't remember the last time I saw so many excellent sets in a row -- and I really hope CBC gets enough support to continue the festival every year, be it in Toronto, Vancouver, or if they decide to move it around the country.


setlists

Hannah Georgas
Robotic, Somebody, Shortie, Enemies, The Deep End, Ode To Mom, Waiting Game. 

Arkells
Come To Light; Ballad of Hugo Chavez; Michigan Left; Never Thought That This Would Happen; Book Club; Oh, The Boss is Coming!; Kiss Cam; Pulling Punches; Psycho Killer [Talking Heads cover]; Whistleblower.

The Belle Game
Wasted Light, Keeps Me Up At Night, Little Wars (Causing Your Trouble), [new song], River, Wait Up For You. 

Dan Mangan
Oh Fortune; About As Helpful As You Can Be Without Being Any Help At All; Mouthpiece; [new song]; Post-War Blues; Basket; Leaves, Trees, Forest; Robots; Sold; Rows of Houses.

Chad VanGaalen
Cut Off My Hands, Where Are You?, Burning Photographs, Poisonous Heads, Peace on the Rise, Hangman's Son.

3am Mixtapes: Episode Thirty Two: Breakups

Each week on the 3am Mixtapes podcast, I will share with you the Top Six Songs of a certain subject. The topics can be as general like top six Winnipeg bands. Some might be a little more... specific. Top Six Songs To Use as Your WWE Entrance Music.

Sixteen weeks ago, I did a Crush Mixtape, songs you might want to play for... someone. Eight weeks ago, it was the makeout podcast, for necking. So, to take things to take things to their logical (if cynical) conclusion, it's breakup songs. Yup, this week it is the Top Six Songs For the Broken Hearted!

Breaking hearts this week are:

"Marlaina Kamikaze" by The Zolas
"Anytime" by My Morning Jacket
"Love it Dissipates" by Mother Mother
"Holes in Your Coffin" by Phildel
"Mama's Boy" by Hannah Georgas
"Cheers Darlin'" by Damien Rice

Any questions or comments or waffles or criticisms or suggestions for future themes are welcome!

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Toque Sessions: Hannah Georgas & Ryan Guldemond @ CBC Vancouver -- 02/28/14

For a fifth year, the CBC Toque Sessions return to CBC Vancouver. The sessions are a series of free shows featuring some great local talent, running through the end of February, and are recorded for later broadcast of CBC Radio 2, and streaming on CBC Music.

The final toque session of this year was hosted by Radio 3's Grant Lawrence, and featured the musical union of Hannah Georgas and Ryan Guldemond. The two friends are frequent collaborators, and recently recorded a handful of songs for CBC Music titled the Love Motel Sessions, appropriately titled for a collection of songs about love recorded in a... "charming" motel.

They were joined onstage by Ryan's Mother Mother bandmate Ali Siadat on drums, for an intimate and spontaneous hour of music; partially due to the small and attentive crowd, partly due to Hannah returning from European tour the previous day, as Ryan admitted they hadn't rehearsed much but wanted to capture the moment live. He was also taking the opportunity of the intimate show to pontificating on life between songs; on doing what you want as opposed to what you should, why not to retell stories, and needing to point out the elephant in the room (and "make a piano out of its tusks"). Every time I've seen Ryan perform -- especially solo shows -- he is very weird enigmatic with seemingly stream-of-consciousness stage banter, but always interesting nonetheless.

They started off with Hannah's "Robotic" and "Fantasize" and traded off throughout the set. Ryan's songs were about various stages of love, from his own lovelorn "Academe", to Mother Mother's deceptively charming "Love It Dissipates". He also dazzled with his amazing guitar chops, effortlessly throwing in jazz or blues riffs to songs.
Hannah's amazing voice lent power to the simplified songs, hers going from the gorgeous and heartbreaking "Ode to Mom" to the vitriolic "Millions", that didn't lose an ounce of attitude when stripped down.
A cover of The Everly Brothers' "Bye Bye Love" wrapped up the set, but the pair was coaxed back on stage by Grant for one last song, a beautiful version of "I Melt With You" by Modern English.

One of my favourite things about the Toque Sessions is when they do more unique shows, more than just "here's a band, watch them play". Things like putting together two musicians that play off each other, and this was a perfect example of that. It was a captivating show and all three musicians on stage had great chemistry together, especially Hannah & Ryan.

setlist
Robotic, Fantasize, Academe. Love It Dissipates, Enemy, Happy, Ode to Mom, Millions, Alone And Sublime, I Go Hungry, Bye Bye Love [Everly Brothers cover]
(encore) I Melt With You [Modern English cover]

3am Mixtapes: Episode Fourteen: Famous People

Hey look, it's another episode of 3am Revelations' very own podcast!

Each week on 3am Mixtapes, I will present to you, in my dulcet tones, the Top Six Songs of a certain subject. The topics can be as general like Top Six Drinking Songs, or they can be as obscure and specific as Top Six Songs to Help Nurse a Hangover.

This week we take a look at songs written about people. Songs written about particular people. Songs written about, for, or in relation to specific people. The Top Six Songs Named for Famous People!
Whether they're about the person, written with them as a backdrop, or not about them at all, these are all songs named after people you might have heard of.

Featured on this week's podcast is:

"The National" by Hannah Georgas
"Meg White" by Ray Lamontagne
"Harrison Ford" by Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
"John Lennon" by Arkells
"Daft Punk is Playing at My House" by LCD Soundsystem
"What Would Jay-Z Do?" by Ben Lee

Any questions or comments or waffles or criticisms or suggestions for future themes are welcome!



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3am Mixtapes: Episode Six: Duets

Hey look, it's another episode of 3am Revelations' very own podcast!

Each week on 3am Mixtapes, I will present to you, in my dulcet tones, the Top Six Songs of a certain subject. The topics can be as broad and vague like Best Dancey Songs, or they can be as obscure and specific as Best Songs To Listen To While Slowly Descending Into Madness.

I always enjoy it when two singers I like come together to join voices. Or even being surprised unexpected pairings. So this week, with the Top Six Duets we see what happens as the results of their powers combined. And I don't just mean bands with two lead singers. I mean when someone drops in on another person's song to make a little bit of magic.

Featured on this week's podcast is:

"Where the Wild Roses Grow" by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds (featuring Kylie Minogue)
"Hangover Days" by Jason Collett (featuring Emily Haines)
"You & I" by Wilco (featuring Feist)
"Stop" by Buck 65 (featuring Hannah Georgas)
"Poor Young Things" by Peter Elkas & Joel Plaskett
"Cigarette Thin (or The Age of Asparagus)" by Jim Bryson & Jeremy Fisher

Any questions or comments or criticisms or suggestions for future themes are welcome!



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Vancouver Folk Music Festival Day Two @ Jericho Beach Park -- 07/20/13

The second day of the 26th Annual Vancouver Folk Music Festival was packed, so let's just get right to it.
(See day one here)

It was a day of seeing workshops, and started off with one called Songwriters' Café featuring a score of Canadian talent. Led by Justin Rutledge, who was joined by Miranda Mulholland on the violin, it also included Hannah Georgas, joined by her guitar player Rob Tornroos; Kathleen Edwards, joined by Jim Bryson; and Del Barber, joined by... no one.
The best thing about the workshops is the collaboration that can happen, and there was a touch of that here; Kathleen and Jim joined in on Hannah's song "Robotic", helping on vocals. There were also a couple of cover songs, Hannah covering "Bye Bye Love", and oft-covered song made famous by The Everly Brothers, and Edwards with a sultry version of Nirvana's "All Apologies". I was also very impressed by Del Barber, who I had only heard a little of before the weekend. His good storytelling convinced me to check out his full set later in the afternoon.

I caught a bit of Reid Jamieson and his folky singer/songwriter fare, and later on in the day there was the Going Bi-Coastal workshop, with Charlottetown, PEI's Tim Chaisson and Mo Kenney from Waverley, Nova Scotia representing the east, and Vancouver's Hannah Georgas, and Victoria's Aidan Knight taking care of the west.
There was some nice collaborating in this workshop, Aidan and Hannah being familiar with each other at the folk fest, and Chaisson joined in a Mo Kenney song on his fiddle. Hannah also covered Sarah Harmer's "Coffee Stain" and as the workshop drew to an end, Aidan got everyone -- on stage and in the audience -- to join in to "Jasper", which was one of the highlights of the weekend, and Tim wrapped it up by pulling out his fiddle and evoking a good old fashioned east coast kitchen party.

From there it was off to Del Barber for his own set. Musically, he is a pretty good folk singer/songwriter with a bit of a country edge, but it's his charm and storytelling that put him above others. Introducing most songs with a story, and chatting with the crowd between -- and sometimes during -- songs. Even when he screwed up (something he would attribute to bad karma the next day) he covered effortlessly.
There was also a great song that was about Archie marrying Veronica (an even that happened in Archie comics a few years ago) which was my favourite of the set, and he ended with a cover of "Harvest Moon"
Del was one of my favourite "discoveries" of the festival, and I will have to make sure to catch him next time he is through Vancouver.

As the sun arced over Jericho Beach Park, I caught the first couple songs from The Wooden Sky, but they were having technical issues to start and the heat was starting to bear down, so it was off to the beer garden and catch Maria In The Shower in the background. I had heard a lot about the East Van band, but never seen them live. They put on a pretty fun set, and I'll have to catch them next time they put on a show.

Not long after that, the main stage started for the night, with Danny Michel and The Garifuna Collective. Danny recently went to Belize to record and be inspired, and he came back to Canada to do the festival circuit with them as his backing band. They traded off songs, with highlights being "Survivors Guilt" and the catchy "What Colour Are You?", and put on a very energetic and fun set.

And then, ending my day was Whitehorse. One of my most unexpectedly favourite shows of the year so far was when I saw them at the Commodore, so they were one of my most anticipated of the weekend.
Married couple Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland are excellent musicians separately, but when put together, something magic happens. With only the two of them on stage, they have an array of instruments and looping pedals at their command, crafting each song from scratch, building them up one by one. Starting with "Killing Time Is Murder", the duo wowed the crowd, especially with Melissa's voice and Luke's guitar skills.
Aside from their own songs, they did a couple covers; a little bit of George Thorogood's "Who Do You Love" slipped in to "Radiator Blues" and a JJ Cale's "Crazy Mama" in the middle of the set. They also played each other's songs as well, including Luke's deliciously bitter "Broken" and Melissa's "Passenger 49", starting soft and then exploding part way through.
After what seemed like not nearly enough time, they wrapped up with the intense "Jane". They definitely didn't disappoint.

That was all for day two (there were other performers after Whitehorse, but I had to leave early). Day three would feature a couple more workshops and solo shows, and another one of my favourite festival discoveries.

Vancouver Folk Music Festival Day One @ Jericho Beach Park -- 07/19/13

For its 36th year, the Vancouver Folk Music Festival took over the shores of Jericho Beach Park to put on one of the biggest festivals around. I missed last year's festival, but the lineup this year was too enticing to pass up. With three days and over sixty artists, there was a lot to take in.

One thing, though, was a new layout to the main stage, which I didn't really like. Almost the entire field was designated as a "sitting area" with tarps and blankets covering the ground, but if you wanted to stand up, dance, or groove to the music, you were pushed off to the sides of the stage, fenced off. I understand why they did it, as I assume the people on the blankets did not want people standing in front of them, but it seemed to punish people who wanted to get up and move.

Anyway, I arrived at the beach just in time for Hannah Georgas to take the main stage. The hometown hero (she may be originally from Newmarket, Ontario, but we have appropriated her for ourselves) had previously been at the festival as part of the Malahat Revue with Aidan Knight, Said the Whale, and Jeremy Fisher, but this year the flame haired singer took the main stage on opening night.
As usual, Hannah was full of energy and had a great presence, starting off with "Waiting Game" building up to "Robotic" and a set of songs focusing mostly on her new, self titled album. Other highlights were a cover of Jesus & Mary Chain's "Just Like Honey" and the incredibly danceable "Shortie". She had a little help from her friend and former touring partner, Kathleen Edwards, for vocals on "Enemies" and the final song of the set, "The Deep End", as they brought the set to a grand ending.
It's always a pleasure seeing Hannah perform, and watching her on the main stage at the folk fest was especially a treat.

Next up after Hannah was Hayden. Even though he's been around for a couple decades I never really got into the Toronto troubadour, and maybe for that reason I didn't really connect with his set. Watching the first few songs, he seemed to have a low energy -- both in his music and his between song banter -- and while his songs were well written, they were a little too slow and melancholy. Perhaps if I stayed longer it would have picked up, but I took the opportunity to explore the festival grounds; the bazaar and vendors, and especially the beer garden and food trucks.

I made it back to the main stage for the "tweener", a short, stripped down set from Aidan Knight. He warmed up the crowd with three songs, including "Margaret Downe", one of the most heartbreaking songs.
Another tweener later on the night was Mo Kenney, whose few songs included "Deja Vu" and the recent SOCAN Songwriting Prize winning "Sucker". I hadn't seen her live before, so it was a nice teaser for her full set later in the weekend.

One of the people I was most looking forward to of the festival was Kathleen Edwards, and she was out next joined by Jim Bryson and Colin Cripps. She kicked things off with "Asking for Flowers", completely capturing the crowd's attention as the sun set over the mountains. Edwards has a phenomenal stage presence and energy, and just owns the stage. Going from her heartbreaking songs to her hilarious stage banter -- at one point stopping mid-song to jokingly tease the guy in front sprawled over five spots -- she had the entire park's attention.
A few highlights of the set included older songs like "Hockey Skates" and "I Make The Dough, You Get The Glory", as well as Hannah Georgas returning to the stage to help out with vocals on "Comedian/Chameleon".
Near the end of the set, Bryson took leave for Edwards and Cripps to duet of Kris Kristofferson's "Help Me Make It Through The Night" after Kathleen told the crowd about their past relationship -- they were married for five years -- and that it was his first show with her again in quite a while.
Sadly, it was then time to wrap it up as they closed out the set with the raw emotion of "Change the Sheets", as Kathleen conducting Jim & Colin to a powerful finish.


That was it for me on the first night, with great sets from Hannah and Kathleen. The next day would start bright and early with workshops from everyone seen today -- Georgas, Edwards, Knight, and Kenney -- as well as a few surprise discoveries, and another big highlight: Whitehorse on the main stage at night.

Hannah Georgas with The Belle Game @ The Rio Theatre -- 04/26/13

It's been three years since the last time Hannah Georgas headlined her own show in Vancouver. Sure, the Ontario-born singer who now calls Vancouver home has played here plenty in the intervening time, but it's always been supporting someone else, part of a larger bill. But fresh off her recent Juno nominations -- and performance at the award ceremony -- Georgas returns home for a pair of sold out shows at the Rio Theatre, with The Belle Game along for the ride.


On the heels of the release of their debut LP, Ritual Tradition Habit, Vancouver's The Belle Game started off the night with their rich and lush indie pop. The six piece launched right in to the first song on the album, the haunting "Ritual" before getting shoulders shimmying to "Wasted Light".

Their sound went from the upbeat and bouncy "Keeps Me Up At Night" to the sexy slow-jam of "Bruised to Ash", with Andrea Lo's powerful vocals being the focal point -- which was never more apparent than on "River", the small singer's voice filling the room. They wrapped up the set with "Sleep To Grow" and "Wait Up For You", both of which building to explosive endings, the fantastic guitar work of both Adam Nanji and Alex Andrew on display.

While the sound was a bit bass-heavy at the start, it evened out a couple songs in, and the band proved why they fit right in at a place like the Rio; their grand sound fits the theatre venue nicely, and I can't wait for the day they play a somewhere like the Vogue.

setlist
Ritual, Wasted Light, Keeps Me Up At Night, Blame Fiction, Bruised to Ash, River, Sleep to Grow, Wait Up For You.


Then, with throbbing bass and pulsing lights, Hannah Georgas took the stage with her backing band, starting off with "Elephant", the first track on her newest, self titled album. The set continued to focus on the new album, the poppy-rocker "Robotic" and the acerbic, unrequited-love-song "Somebody", leading into a cover of Jesus & Mary Chain's "Just Like Honey" -- though the vocals seemed a little low for just that song, Hannah's voice getting drowned out.

Midway through the set the band took a break and Hannah performed "The Beat Stuff" on her own, just her gorgeous voice and a guitar, before she was rejoined not only by the band, but also a surprise guest, Ryan Guldemond from Mother Mother out to do backup vocals on "Fantasize"

After a few more, including the super upbeat and danceable "Shortie", Hannah ended off the set with the heartfelt "Ode to Mom", and the last song on the album, "Waiting Game", with another guest out for backup vocals, this time rapper Shad.

But of course, there was the encore as Hannah came out alone and took a seat behind the keys for the absolutely gorgeous and heartbreaking "Shine" before she was joined by the band for "All I Need", a perfect song to wrap up the night with, starting soft and building to an intense grand finale.

With a great stage presence -- Hannah chatted and joked throughout the set -- and a fantastic voice backing up her gritty songs, "Gorgeous" Hannah Georgas put on one hell of a show, captivating the sold out theatre. She's come a long way since the first time I saw her, at the intimate St. James Hall, and it won't be long before she's selling out bigger and bigger venues. I just hope that we won't have to wait another three years for the next headlining show!

setlist
Elephant, Enemies, Robotic, Somebody, Just Like Honey [Jesus & Mary Chain cover], Thick Skin, Chit Chat, Lover's Breakdown, The Beat Stuff, Fantasize, Deep End, What You Do To Me, Shortie, Millions, Dancefloor, The National, Ode to Mom, Waiting Game.
(encore) Shine, All I Need.

Sing It Forward @ Vogue -- 01/10/13

A year (and change) ago, David Vertesi & Ambrosia Humphrey brought together nearly a dozen of the finest musicians from the local scene for the first Sing It Forward, an evening benefiting the kids of the St James Music Academy. It was such a huge success that they decided to do it again this year, with a lineup no less impressive.

Trimmed to eight from last year's eleven -- which made the pacing of the show much nicer -- each act played a short acoustic or stripped down set, with quick turnovers. There were also a few videos playing between sets, usually showing the bands either interacting or playing songs with the kids from the academy, showing their effort to support the kids went deeper than just playing at the show.

Starting off the night was Andy Huculiak and Cayne McKenzie, two thirds of We Are The City. They played a couple new songs, teasing their upcoming album, which were amazing. Dark and moody, but quite catchy; definitely had me excited to hear the full thing. They ended with "That's All" from their most recent EP, High School.

Victoria's Aidan Knight was up next with part of his band, Julia Wakal & Olivier Clements (jokingly dubbing themselves "The Aidan Knight Chamber Trio Orchestra"). They played mostly newer songs, from last year's Small Reveal, starting with "A Mirror" and then the contemplative "Master's Call", and then getting everyone to hum along to the end of "Magic Cupboards".

Next up was the combined forces of Hannah Georgas and Mother Mother's Ryan Guldemond. Starting with Hannah's "Enemies" and then Ryan's "I Go Hungry", they traded off songs, backing each other up. They also brought out some help, first Hannah bringing out Shad to sing backup on "Waiting Game" and they wrapped up their portion with all the kids from the St James Music Academy coming out to join in on (a slightly cleaned up version of) Mother Mother's "Bit By Bit"

The first half of the night ended with a secret surprise guest, none other than Dan Mangan. He played a couple songs, first flanked by Vertesi and Knight for a cover of David Bazan's "Strange Negotiations" and then the SJMA kids joining him for "Oh Fortune", the line "nice to have the kids around" being especially poignant and heartwarming.

After an intermission, the SJMA kids came back for a song of their own, and then slam poet  C.R. Avery took the stage. First showing off his unique harmonica beat boxing, then taking a seat at the keyboard for a song. For his last song, he was joined by Hey Ocean's Andrew Rasmussen on the keys for more of a spoken word number.

Shad was up next with one of the best moments of the night; he was joined by Vertesi and Andy & Cayne as his backing band for a great remix of We Are The City's "Happy New Year". They stayed to back him up for his own song, "Exile", and then he ended his set alone, with the spoken word soliloquy from the end of "Live Forever"

An acoustic Yukon Blonde was up next, joined by Matt Kelly on keys. Their usually high energy set was calmed down, but no less impressive, especially their stellar harmonies. They played some of their mellower songs, "Loyal Man" and one they said they don't get to play too often, "Guns".

And finally, wrapping up the night was Hey Ocean! After starting with "Big Blue Wave", they kept the collaborative spirit of the night going, with Shad and Avery joining them for "Vagabond", then as they went into a cover of Arcade Fire's "Sprawl II", The Aidan Knight Chamber Trio Orchestra jumped on stage to join them joined them. Finally, they invited not only the kids, but all the musicians of the night back on stage for a cover of Annie Lennox's "Walking On Broken Glass" for a huge, heartwarming ending.

I said on my blog post for the last one "It would be cliché to call it a magical night, but there is hardly any better description", and that rings true to this year as well. It was an amazing night, with everyone from the musicians to the venue donating their time and effort, so all the proceeds could go towards the SJMA, and I can only imagine what it must have been like for the kids themselves who were involved.

Mother Mother with Hannah Georgas @ Orpheum -- 12/19/12

Vancouver's Mother Mother had a pretty triumphant return home, ending their current tour with a sold out show at the beautiful Orpheum Theatre. I wasn't as enamoured with their new album, The Sticks, as I was with last year's Eureka, but they've always put on one hell of a live show -- as evidenced with their recent win at the CBC Radio 3 Bucky Awards for "Best Reason to Buy a Concert Ticket" (Best Live Act) -- and after I had somehow missed every other Vancouver show this year, there was no chance I was going to pass this up. Especially since another favourite, and another hometown hero, the gorgeous Hannah Georgas was their opening act. 

Hannah Georgas -- also a recent Bucky Award winner, for "Hottest Pipes" (best vocals) -- was joined by a backing band of some familiar faces; Luke Renshaw (Jets Overhead), Rob Tornroos (Elias & In Medias Res), and Andrew Rasmussen (Hey Ocean). She focused mostly on her new, self-titled album, starting off the set with the lead track, "Elephant", the offering a little more electro-pop than her debut. Her fantastic voice still drove the songs, though, as witnessed on "Robotic" and her sharp (and sometimes acerbic) songwriting is still intact, with "Somebody", a unrequited love song.
My favourite of the set was also my favourite from the new album, "Millions" an upbeat and rocking song, and after the beautiful "Ode to Mom", she wrapped up her set with "Waiting Game" 
It's always great seeing Hannah -- even for a short opening spot -- but it seems like forever since I've seen her do a proper show of her own, so hopefully she'll be back sometime soon for a full show. 

setlist
Elephant, Enemies, Robotic, Chit Chat, Lovers Breakdown, Fantasize, Millions, Somebody, Ode to Mom, Waiting Game. 


The stage filled with smoke as Mother Mother took the stage, back lit to show only silhouettes against the smoke. Most of the set, actually, was deep in the fog with lights blazing through from the back of the stage, making the band occasionally hard to see (from my seats, anyway), but that didn't slow them down any. 
The five-piece is so incredibly tight and full of energy, with their off-beat indie-pop-rock full of quirky, occasionally tongue-in-cheek and usually dark songs, relying on the great harmonies between Jasmin Parkins and Ryan & Molly Guldemond, each with their own unique voice, somehow managing to blend together so well. Started off the set with the title track from the new album The Sticks, the band bounced from songs like the soft and haunting "Ghosting" to the almost hip-hop-sounding "Verbatim" from their debut album, to more bouncy songs like "My Baby Don't Dance", to their chaotic single "The Stand" that had everyone singing along, yelling "Everybody's fucked and they don't even know". 
Other highlights included my favourite song of theirs, the frantic and infectious "Hayloft", and "Little Pistol", where Ryan got serious for a moment, dedicating the song to the Amanda Todds of the world; everyone whose flame had been snuffed out too soon, a genuinely touching moment.
After a little over an hour, they brought the set to an end with "Let's Fall In Love" before coming back for the encore with Hannah to help on vocals for "Love It Dissipates", and finally ending the night with Ryan strapping on the banjo for the destructive "Wrecking Ball".

As you would expect from a venue like the Orpheum, the sound was excellent the whole night, and the sold out crowd was more than excited for the show. It was quite the homecoming for the band, wrapping up their tour with a bang, and proved why they are worthy for being the "Best Reason to Buy a Concert Ticket".

setlist
The Sticks, Body of Years, The Stand, Business Man, Verbatim, The Cry Forum, Infinitesimal, Ghosting, Hayloft, Simply Simple, Bit by Bit, Little Pistol, Dread in My Heart, My Baby Don't Dance, O My Heart, Let's Fall in Love. 
[encore] Love It Dissipates, Wrecking Ball. 

Canada Day with Sam Roberts Band, Hannah Georgas and the Peak Performance Project Top 20 -- 07/01/12

For the second year in a row, the Peak Performance Project kicked off in Surrey on Canada Day, with each one of the top twenty playing back to back (to back to back...) shows. At the Cloverdale Millennium Amphitheatre, The Peak set up side by side stages for each band to play 20 minute alternating sets.
And if that wasn't good enough, the main stage was running music all day, including a Bon Jovi tribute band, and culminating with Hannah Georgas and Sam Roberts Band. And all of this for free.

Since there was so much to see, I'll try to keep all the PeakPP bands brief.

beekeeper. The trio started off the whole day, a little nervous to start, but eased into it. As usual, they had a great energy, and did an excellent job of showing off all their talents -- including Brandi's opera voice. I would love to see them in the top five, but I worry their complex sound may be too "weird" or inaccessible for people. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how boot camp shapes them.

Redgy Blackout. One of the returning artists, they're back for their second year in a row. I was impressed by their upbeat, folk-pop sound last year, and they still have a great energy with catchy songs. I'm looking forward to see how they shape up after a second year of boot camp.

T. Nile. I had heard a lot about Tamara Nile before her inclusion in the project, but not a lot of songs from her. She was also a little nervous (as were many throughout the day) with a false start to one of her songs, but has a nice voice and is a solid musician; though I am not sure that I really find anything overly compelling about her, nothing that made her stand out from all the other folk-y singer/songwriters. I hope to be proven wrong during their showcase concert series in September, though.

The River & The Road. A folk band with a bit of a blues-rock streak (they even introduced one of their songs as a "folk gangster ballad") they put on a solid set and were all strong musicians, but again, I was not too sure what made them stand out. I liked them, but they were overshadowed even by some of the other acts later in the day. They also had a couple songs with the ever-increasing "singer playing a floor tom", which seems to be used more and more these days.

Ali Milner. One of my favourites going in, Ali is no stranger to music competitions, coming in third on CBC's Cover Me Canada last year. But her own songs are strong as well, both catchy and touching, and her amazing voice carries them so well. Ali had a bubbly, nervous energy between songs, but while playing was completely composed, and wrapped up with a Neil Young cover. I am hoping this will be the first year a female cracks the top three, and I am hoping it's Ali.

Mike Edel. A folky singer/songwriter, Edel is a good musician with strong songwriting, songs that start soft and then built to an intense ending. Surrounding himself with some good musicians, including Kiana Brasset on violin, he was another act that I liked, but maybe needs a bit more of an edge to pull away from the rest of the top twenty bands.

Dominique Fricot. Another returning artist (he was in the first year with his band The Painted Birds), the tallest man in Vancouver music is back this year as a solo act. With a backing band of Katie Schaan (Ciseaux) and Mike Young & Peter Lemon (The Matinee) his songs are earnest and heartfelt, with a bit of a 90s vibe to them. He also had a good stage presence, and Fricot is another one I wouldn't be surprised to see make the top five.

Jordan Klassen. Along with Fricot, Klassen has the slight advantage of a song already in rotation on The Peak, but that won't necessarily give either of them any edge. Klassen -- joined by a large band including keys, strings, and more -- filled the area with the rises and falls of his big, sweeping songs. He and his friends had a great stage presence and energy, with their obvious enthusiasm infectious. I would not be surprised at all to see him make the top three.

Maurice. Another returning act, and another one I ended up being very impressed by last year, JP has a knack of not only crafting heartfelt songs, but pouring out raw emotion while playing. And beyond that, the songs are ridiculously catchy. He's good a strong stage presence, too; even the technical difficulties of an "exploding" microphone mid-song didn't phase him. Maurice is another artist that I would like to see make the top five.

Headwater. I hadn't heard too much from the band before their set, but they ended up being one of my favourites of the day with their badass-roots-rock sound. The four-piece was joined Pat Steward (Odds) on drums and they had a great energy throughout the set, with their guitar player jumping all over, even off the amps a few times (he and Devon of beekeeper should have a rock-star-leap-off). I am definitely looking forward to seeing more from them in the competition.

The Fugitives. Another sort-of return, as Adrian Glynn was in the first year as a solo artist. On the surface they were a folk band, but they are harder to classify than that; with elements of Brendan McLeod's spoken word poetry included, they may be best described as "folk hop", and were an interesting sound I am interested to hear more from. They also had a bet running on their facebook page leading up to the event, resulting in Adrian covering Nelly's "Ride Wit Me" on the balalaika. Which was as hilarious as it sounds.

Alexandria Maillot. She was another returning artist, having been in the first year but ineligible to compete until now after they put an age requirement in place. She had a strong voice, and an upbeat, poppy sound, and while I always like a band with a keytar, I wasn't as engaged by her set as I was with the rest of the bands that day.

Portage & Main. It shouldn't be a surprise that they were another one of my favourites going in, and their short set just cemented that opinion. With Matt Kelly on keys, they pulled out all the stops for their set, transitioning seamlessly from one song to the next and getting the crowd to sing along. I am positive they won over a lot of people with their short set, and I would be very surprised if they don't make the top three.

Tough Lovers. They were a last minute replacement to one of the bands that had to drop out. With a bit more of a straight ahead rock sound, the band had a good energy, but were another one that I didn't really think stood out. Given the level of talent in this year's Project, it'll take more than just being "a good band" to win over some ear holes. Like the others, I am interested to see how bootcamp will shape them, and what their Showcase in September will sound like.

It was at this point where a hard decision had to be made; finish the rest of the top 20 bands, or saunter over to the main stage. As much as I wanted to see the last few bands, few can resist the allure of gorgeous Hannah Georgas. She was joined by some familiar faces, her backing band consisted of Andrew Braun, Robbie Driscoll, Rob Tornroos, and Tim Proznick.
Hannah teased her upcoming album with a handful of new songs, which sounded great, and definitely made the wait until October harder. There were a few familiar songs as well, including the older, and emotional "The National", and "Dancefloor", which got the crowd moving in the mud. She ended with "The Deep End" which -- for reasons only known to the sound guy -- was extremely heavy on bass, almost drowning out the ukulele and vocals.

And, as a random aside, the camera men on stage filming them for the big screen were very intrusive and distracting, at some points standing right behind Andrew, or next to Hannah, practically holding the camera in her face.

And finally, I can't think of many better ways to celebrate Canada Day than with Sam Roberts Band. Adorned in a Canadian Tuxedo (denim on denim), Sam took the stage with his band and launched into "I Feel You", and played for over an hour. From the high energy "Detroit '67" to the calmer "Without a Map", the set spanned Roberts' four albums, with lots of familiar songs; getting people singing along to "Hard Road" and asking "Where Have All The Good People Gone?"
Ended with the insane energy of "Them Kids", but was out for a couple more before the fireworks, including "Don't Walk Away Eileen"

Not only were Sam Roberts Band and Hannah Georgas as great as to be expected, but the day was a great start to the Peak Performance Project. I am sad I wasn't able to catch all the bands -- I hope to familiarise myself with those I missed soon -- and there were more than a few that I am interested in seeing after they go through music-bootcamp.

Kathleen Edwards w/ Hannah Georgas @ Commodore -- 04/06/12

The first (and as of last week, only) time I had seen Kathleen Edwards was during the Olympic festivities two years ago, and while I had liked her music prior, it was her after seeing her live show when I really started being a fan. So after two long years, I wasn't going to miss the chance to see her again. And then having Gorgeous Hannah Georgas as both her opening act and on backup vocals, well, that was just the proverbial icing on the musical cake.

For her opening set, Hannah Georgas was only backed by Ted Gowan on guitar and keys, and a drum machine. The set was a little softer and more subdued, just being the two of them, but Hannah still had a great energy. She teased her forthcoming album with almost an entire set of new songs, and I can't wait to hear them with a full band. One of the ones that caught my attention most, after the soft  an gorgeous "Shine", was a higher energy song, "Fantasize" (according to the setlist).
After an all-too-short set, she brought it to an end by inviting Kathleen Edwards and Jim Bryson out to assist with backup vocals and ukulele, respectively, for "Deep End"

setlist
Elephant, Somebody, Chit Chat, Waiting, Enemies, Millions, Shine, Fantasize, Deep end.

Not long after, Kathleen Edwards hit the stage with a band that included Hannah on backup vocals and Jim Bryson on guitar and keys. She kicked off with the opener of her new album Voyageur, "Empty Threat" for an hour and a half set that spanned all four albums. Some of the highlights included "Goodnight California" seeing Kathleen break out the violin and built into an amazing jam ending, and "In State" which gave Bryson a chance to show off his chops, rocking out so hard his glasses literally flew off his face. 

Mid-way through the set, the band took a rest, leaving Kathleen alone for the soft "Hockey Skates", before they came back out with a beautiful cover of The Flaming Lips' "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate". They ramped the energy back up with "Sidecar" and "Back To You" before ended with the main set with the heartbreaking breakup song, "Change the Sheets".
But of course back out, ending off the night with the older "6 O'Clock News" and a couple more, with Kathleen adding how deeply grateful she was to be playing for a packed Commodore.
Edwards has a great energy and presence on stage, with a great gift of connecting with the crowd. Her banter and stories between songs are funny, yet the songs are so personal that you almost can't help but be moved, as she is just dripping with raw emotion at times.

While there were a couple songs I missed from the setlist, that I was hoping to hear, it was still a great show from a couple of Canada's best female singer/songwriters.

setlist

Empty Threat, Chameleon/Comedian, Asking for Flowers, House Full of Empty Rooms, Goodnight California, In State, 12 Bellevue, Hockey Skates, Feel Yourself Disintegrate [Flaming Lips cover], Going To Hell, Sidecar, Back to You, A Soft Place to Land, Change The Sheets.

(encore) 6 O'Clock News, For The Record, September Girls.

One Night Stand IV @ Media Club -- 12/31/11

For the fourth year in a row (and my third in attendance), some of Vancouver's finest musicians came together to ring in the new year with nearly three hours of great covers. The night saw many familiar faces from the last couple years, as well as some new additions to the one-off band, which rotated members throughout the night, seeing people on and off stage and everyone getting at least one song of their own -- even those who are not usually front and centre.

This year, the One Night Stand band consisted of Johnny Andrews (Rococode) Andrew Braun (Rococode, Hannah Georgas) Peter Carruthers (Siskiyou) Robbie Driscoll (Hannah Georgas) Hannah Georgas herself, Brian Healy (Elias) Tariq Hussain (Brasstronaut) Ali Milner, Jasmin Parkin (Mother Mother) Laura Smith (Rococode) Rob Tornroos (Elias), "plus surprise guests"

Starting at 10, they played three sets of covers, at the top of each hour, with the obligatory midnight countdown and free champagne.



Set One
Ready To Start (Arcade Fire) - Andrew Braun
Take On Me (A Ha) - Ali Milner
Rolling in the Deep (Adele) - Laura Smith
Suffragette City (David Bowie) - Brian Healy
Dreams (Fleetwood Mac) - Ali Milner
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (The Band) - Brasstronaut
Be My Baby (The Ronettes) - Jasmin Parkin
Born To Run (Bruce Springsteen) - Peter Carruthers
Common People (Pulp) - Tariq Hussain

They kicked off the night, appropriately enough, with Arcade Fire's "Ready To Start" and Braun on vocals (perhaps Rococode covering "Rococo" would have been too obvious) and from there Ali Milner did a great "Take On Me" and Laura Smith crushed the vocals for "Rolling in the Deep". Tariq brought out Brasstronaut band-mates Edo and Sam for a sing along toThe Band and in a rare vocal appearance, Carruthers took centre stage for "Born To Run". The first set wrapped up with a pretty cool cover of "Common People" (almost as good as Shatner's) from Tariq.

Set Two
Under Pressure (Queen) - 
You Make My Dreams (Hall & Oates) - Ali Milner
She Drives Me Crazy (Fine Young Cannibals) - Hannah Georgas
Gold Guns Girls (Metric) - Jasmin Parkin
I Might Be Wrong (Radiohead) - Laura Smith
Solsbury Hill (Peter Gabriel) - Brian Healy
Single Ladies (Beyoncé) - Smith/Milner/Parkin/Georgas

The second set [apparently] started with "Under Pressure", which I was a little crushed to learn I had missed, due to the photobooth being in the back room this year as opposed to next to the stage. The rest of the set was focused on the lovely ladies of One Night Stand, which was by no means a bad thing. Hannah took over for a great cover of one of my favourite songs from when I was a youngin', Fine Young Cannibals' "She Drives Me Crazy" and Jasmin Parkin's "Gold Guns Girls" was one of the more interesting covers to hear, by virtue of the fact that Mother Mother and Metric are fairly similar bands.
They capped off the set -- and the year -- with all four ladies; Smith, Milner, Parkin and Georgas, informing everyone that if you liked it, you should have put a ring on it.

Set Three
With Or Without You (U2) - Rob Tornroos
Live and Let Die (Paul McCartney & Wings) - Andrew Braun
Lust For Life (Iggy Pop) - Brian Healy
Dancing On My Own (Robyn) - Smith/Georgas
Use Me (Bill Withers) - Tariq Hussain
Once in a Lifetime (Talking Heads) - Robbie Driscoll
In My Place (Coldplay) - Rob Tornroos
Gz and Hustlas (Snoop Dogg) - Hannah Georgas
Say It Ain't So (Weezer) - Andrew Braun
Like A Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan) - Everyone

The first song of the year, the traditional slow dance song, saw Elias' Robbie T belting out "With or Without You", before a great sing along to "Live and Let Die" lead by Braun. Two big highlight of the night came close together, the first being Robbie Dee -- normally in the background of various bands -- channelling Taking Heads and proving he is a pretty damn energetic frontman in his own right, and the second was Gorgeous Gangsta' Hannah Georgas throwning down some Snoop Dog, which had to be seen to be believed.
And as with previous years, they ended the night with everyone coming back on stage for a giant sing along, with most of the room joining in for "Like a Rolling Stone".

I think one of the best things about this event is always how much fun is had in the room. Starting on stage, it's blatantly obvious how much the people love doing this; love playing some of their favourite songs with some of their favourite people, and that enthusiasm definitely bleeds into the crowd. Hopefully they'll keep it going for years to come -- and seeing as they always sell out well in advance, hopefully next year they can get an even bigger venue!

Summer Live w/ The New Pornographers, Neko Case & Hannah Georgas @ Stanley Park -- 07/09/11

All year the city of Vancouver has been celebrating its 125th year, and this weekend is one of the events I have been looking forward to most: Summer Live; a weekend of free shows in Stanley Park, showcasing Vancouver talent. The first night, which I had to miss, had Mother Mother headlining, but with the lineup they had for the second night, I knew nothing was going to keep me from it.

There was music happening nearly all day, but I showed up at 6, just in time to see the gorgeous Hannah Georgas. The sound for the whole event wasn't really that great, but Hannah seemed to have the worst least good sound. The drums especially seemed a little loud throughout the set, but that aside, it was quite enjoyable. Joined, as usual, by Andrew Braun & Johnny Andrews of Rococode and Robbie Driscoll of everyone (seriously, if I had a nickel for every time I've seen him play with a different band...), she started off with “Chit Chat”, and a few more from This Is Good before a couple new songs, mentioning a new album in the works, which I am eagerly anticipating. “Your Ghost” and "All I Need", off The Beat Stuff EP, were definite highlights of the set, and she ended, after wishing Vancouver a happy birthday, with "The Deep End".

setlist
Chit Chat, Bang Bang You're Dead!, Lovers Breakdown, Thick Skin, Dancefloor, [new song], [new song], The Beat Stuff, Let's Talk, Your Ghost, The National, All I Need, The Deep End.

Next up was the person I was most anticipating for the day, Neko Case. It had been over two years since I last saw her live (not counting shows with The New Pornographers), so saying I was just a little excited is an understatement. She started, and ended, for that matter, with songs I didn't recognize, but the bulk of her set was off her last two albums Middle Cyclone and Fox Confessor Brings The Flood, with a few new ones thrown in. The new songs sounded great, and her voice was, as usual, simply amazing. From lulling the crowd with the softer songs like "That Teenage Feeling" to knocking people over with sheer power on songs like "People Got A Lotta Nerve", her voice in unparalleled. Another thing that makes Case so enjoyable live is her great banter and sense of humour on stage, especially between her and backup vocalist Kelly Hogan.
They, too, had some technical difficulties, but it is always incredible seeing Neko Case live, and I just hope it's not another two years before I get to see her again.

setlist
[mystery song], Maybe Sparrow, People Got A Lotta Nerve, Fever, The Pharaohs, Hold On Hold On, That Teenage Feeling, Middle Cyclone, [new song], Margaret vs. Pauline, [new song], Vengeance is Sleeping, I'm An Animal, I Wish I Was The Moon, Red Tide, [new song], This Tornado Loves You, [mystery song].

After Case I rushed over to the second stage to catch the last bit of The Zolas. As I got closer, I could hear the shrieks of the crowd, and Zach introduce a song as “about sex... or the lack thereof...” and I rounded the corner just in time for “Body Ash”. I only caught four songs, but they were as good as I've seen them; Zach especially seemed to have more energy than usual, bounding around stage. They “ended” with “Pyramid Scheme” -- which I don't think I had ever seen live, so I was happy to hear it -- before coming back (they acknowledged the faux pas of doing an encore while not the headliner, saying Said The Whale insisted) with “You're Too Cool”, which ended with a crowd sing-a-long.

(partial) setlist
Body Ash, These Days, Pyramid Scheme.
(encore) You're Too Cool.

At that point I made the executive decision to head back over to the main stage for The New Pornographers, and miss Said The Whale. Even though I have had bad luck with STW shows this year, I had still seen them thrice since I last saw The New Pornos. Plus... it's The New Pornographers!
They kicked off the set mentioning that Kathryn Calder was running late -- Case threatened to ground her, “With [her] grounding stick” -- so they started off with a couple older ones until Calder arrived. (To be fair, it was kind of insane getting to Stanley Park). From there they played for over an hour, hitting songs from all their albums, with loads of singing along.
Highlights of the set were "Adventures In Solitude" (despite the crowd's terrible offbeat clapping) and especially “Testament To Youth In Verse”, one of my favourites; though it just wasn't the same without Dan Bejar. In fact, I was a little disappointed that Bejar wasn't there at all, but of course it was still a great show regardless. They ended with one of my favourite songs of ever, “The Bleeding Heart Show”, which was an absolutely perfect way to cap off the day.

setlist
The Slow Descent into Alcoholism, All For Swinging You Around, Challengers, Moves, Sweet Talk Sweet Talk, Use It, Adventures in Solitude, Crash Years, All The Old Showstoppers, What Turns Up In The Dark, The Laws Have Changed, Testament to Youth in Verse, Your Hands (Together), Mass Romantic, Sing Me Spanish Techno, The Bleeding Heart Show.

It was a fantastic day of music, and I am now convinced that Hannah Georgas and Neko Case need to tour together... but I have to admit, it did end on a little bit of a sour note. During The New Pornographers final song, I could see something thrown on stage – looked like a water bottle – which just reminded me of the video of Case snapping when a CD was thrown on stage at a show.
After the song the set was done and nothing was said, but after the usual cheering, there ended up being no encore. I chalked it up to curfew, but according to Chris Coburn of The Peak, who was emceeing, there was no encore because Case did not want to go back out due to the thrown object. Which, good. Artists should not have to deal with that kind of crap, and as much as I wanted an encore, I fully support them in not going back out.

Get Your Heart On @ Sitka -- 02/14/11

To be honest, usually I just let Valentine's Day slip by unnoticed. But thanks to David Vertesi and Vancouver Is Awesome, I had a destination for the night: Sitka Surf and Skate Shop (of all places). Vertesi had organized a free Valentine's Day show -- what with his album being titled Cardiography and all -- that was a who's who of Vancouver talent. With ten acts on the poster, and a couple surprises, it was a packed night. Each played a few acoustic songs, mostly love songs, with a few covers thrown in for good measure.
(And since there were so many, with short sets, I'll [try to] do short blurbs for each)

Starting off the night was Katie Schaan, out with her ukulele. Her strong voice (more or less) silenced the crowd right off the bat, as she played a song written specifically for VDay. She also called up Thom Kolb for a cover of "In Your Eyes", which they had not only done live before, and was one of the special duet videos for VIA (see them all here).

This led straight into 41st & Home, as Thom stayed on stage, with Katie, and recruited David Vertesi and Adaline to help on backup vocals on his song about Steveston. Adaline, who was not on the bill but pulled out of the crowd, was convinced to play a song, one that had an interesting crowd participation aspect. Instead of just clapping along, she had everyone jingle their keys. Then Thom popped back with his banjo for one more song.

Next up was Steph Macpherson. She opened with a cover of The Magnetic Fields' "Book of Love", before snagging Katie and third great voice, Redbird's Savannah Leigh out to help with vocals on "Best Of You". Katie stayed on stage for Steph's last song, "Summer Salute".

Following the trend of lovely ladies with great voices was Ali Milner. She took the keys for a set consisting of a duet with Vertesi (already the heardest working guy that night) and a cover of "Heard It Through The Grapevine" that had many people singing along.

Treelines, represented by Matt Lockhart, was next. He started off with a "cover" of their song "Calendar" before a proper cover, introduced as "Neil Fucking Diamond!", getting everyone to sing along to "Sweet Caroline", flubbed lyrics and all. He ended with the new VDay song "When I Get Grown", which you can download for free from their website.

Laura Smith and Andrew Braun of Rococode followed and they seemed to play the shortest set. I had only seen them once before, so an acoustic set was interesting, and pretty cool. The songs were no less catchy than with the full band, and I am still eagerly anticipating recorded material from them.

David Vertesi needed no introduction, as he had already been on stage several times throughout the night. Dan Klenner helped out on keytar for "Gentlemen Say". At the show Friday, I mentioned I was vaguely disappointed a certain someone wasn't out to help with backup vocals... so I was thrilled when he pulled surprise guest on stage for "Mountainside". David (and the loud cheers) then convinced Hannah Georgas to play a song of her own, and she complied, singing "The Deep End"

Up next was Shad, laying down rhymes over some back tracks. Ashleigh Ball and Hannah Georgas were out to help out for "Rose Garden", and he ended with some a capella rapping. To be honest, I hadn't heard too much of him outside the singles on the radio, but he was quite impressive live.

Follow that was one of the best band names ever, Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party. Their first song had Ali Milner on organ and some strings, which the most "elaborate" setup of the night. The next couple songs were more stripped down, though, with guitar and keytar. Oh, and there were sparkles eveywhere.

And the night drew to an end with Hey Ocean!, Vertesi back on stage with Ashleigh Ball. "Beatboxer (Who Broke My Heart)" segued into Beck's "Where It's At" and the whole night was brought to an end with another cover, The Ronettes' "Be My Baby". By the end of it, the stage was full of some of the nights performers and the whole crowd was singing along.

By the end of the night, the store was absolutely packed to the door with people, and the atmosphere was more like a group of friends getting together to have some fun -- which is pretty much what it was. I don't how feasible it would be to plan this type of thing every Valentine's Day... but a great night full of awesome talent and covers and collaborations would certainly be a great way to celebrate again next year.

Dan Mangan w/ Hannah Georgas, The Zolas and David Vertesi @ Massey Theatre -- 02/11/11

Last night was a benefit concert that featured probably the single best lineup of artists I have seen in quite some time. Each of the four acts I would, without hesitation, go see individually, so to have them all put together was pretty great.
The show was for 65_RedRoses, helping raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis. In between sets there were speakers out to talk about Eva Markvoort, the movie, and to inform those at the show about CF and being an organ donor.

We were a few minutes late, so missed the first couple songs from David Vertesi. He was on stage alone, but we caught him in time to introduce the other member of the band that night: his trusty keytar. Both that and the opening lines of "Gentlemen Say" got some laughs & applause. He also played a Hey Ocean! tune, "Jolene", and "Mountainside" brought his set to a close. Even solo, he was smooth as ever on stage, and judging by the reaction, I wouldn't be surprised if he gained more than a few new fans after the show.
I was slightly disappointed, though, that Hannah Georgas didn't pop out to do backup on the songs she sang for on the album, but wasn't really expecting it to happen, it just would have been a nice bonus.

I had never seen The Zolas in a soft seat theatre type venue, so it was pretty interesting to see them in that setting. In fact same could be said about the first three acts of the night.
They kicking off their set with the new(ish) song "Guest", and were their usual high energy selves -- especially Zach, jumping around the stage, singing the end bit of "Marlena Kamikaze" to Tom, and generally being a ball of energy. Midway through the set, Zach mused on how strange it was to have the crowd not chatting while the band was playing, and jokingly encouraging everyone to yell over them -- but missed a golden opportunity by not playing "No Talking" next. "Cab Driver" was as dynamic as always, and they played another new song, "Strange Girl" before finishing it off with "You're Too Cool". Interestingly enough, this is probably the first time I've seen them play where they did not start with that song, and end with "Cab Driver".

Not counting One Night Stands and Malahats, it had been way too long since the last time I saw Hannah Georgas, so I think I was most excited to see her set that night. She was backed buy her usual accomplice Robbie Driscoll, as well as Andrew Braun of Rococode and the set started off with "All I Need" -- which is a great opener, starting soft and building to an intense climax. From there she mostly played off of This Is Good, going from the high energy "Chit Chat" to soft and contemplative "Lovers Breakdown" to the almost haunting "Thick Skin", showing off the range of her songwriting, and vocal talents. She is also completely at home on stage, with the words just flowing out of her effortlessly.
I guess it was because they had so much to get through in the evening, Hannah's set was only about half an hour, meaning there were a few songs I would have liked to hear that weren't played. So while it was still a great set, it kind of made me want to see her live again even more.

And finally -- after an intermission and the short film A Wish Where The Wind Once Blew -- Dan Mangan was up. He started on stage alone, with an older song, "Unnatural Progression", before the full band was out for "Sold". And they were out in fine form, with drummer Kenton Loewen and guitarist Gord Grdina taking over Veda Hille's part in "The Indie Queens Are Waiting", even with the appropriate falsetto. Dan was joking around a few times too, bantering with the fans, sometimes even during a song. I think I've said it before, but his stage manner reminds me of Joel Plaskett; the effortless transitions between talking, joking, stories and songs.
There were a few new songs in the set as well, one called (I think) "Post War Blues" and "Rows of Houses" (re-titled "Rose of Houses" for the night). Both of which were a bit more punched-up, and if they are any indication of the new album, I am very intrigued.
After an emotionally charged "Basket", the set came to an end with "Robots" and the usual sing-along, with Dan inviting everyone from the opening bands and 65 Red Roses out on stage.

I kind of wish they had a bit more time for the night, as any curfewed show with four acts is bound to be rushed, but it was still an excellent assortment of local talent out to support a good cause.