Thursday, April 01, 2010
night goat
Let's start with some out of town news: the initial Sled Island line-up is out (with more bands to come later). The fest runs from June 30th-July 3rd in Calgary and it's always a great time. Four day passes are already on sale for $170 at the Sled Island website.
Parlour Steps, Lakefield, and Blank Cinema are at the Railway tonight.
The Idea of South and Ill & Bad play 1067 Granville St. on April 3rd. This one comes recommended by the lovely and talented Leah Abramson, whose word is good enough for me (and whose record you should check out if you haven't already).
The same night, Sleep Holiday, the Magician & the Gates of Love, and Shane Turner Overdrive play Little Mountain.
Also on Saturday, the Morning Benders play the Media Club.
Bleeder, Fuck No, Hari Legs, and Phonecalls play the Astoria on April 7th.
Buffalo Swans, Onward Voyageur, and Half Chinese play 121 Studios on April 9th.
Nomad, Ahna, and Stoned Eyes are at Pat's on the same night.
Fake Shark-Real Zombie, Minto, and Frances May are at the Biltmore on April 14th.
Blank Dogs, Cosmetics, Walter TV, and MT-40 play Reg's on April 16th.
Fuck Buttons are at the Biltmore on May 14th.
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros play the Commodore on May 31st.
The Buzzcocks play Venue the same night.
Delta Spirit play an early show at Venue on June 12th.
Jamie Lidell is at Venue on June 14th.
Coco Rosie plays the Vogue on June 28th.
And the Local Natives show on March 28th has been moved from the Media Club to Venue... and it's now an early show.
now playing: Saturday Looks Good to Me - Summer Doesn't Count (Unless You're Here With Me)
Saturday, June 27, 2009
die slow
We took it easy for a couple of hours before heading to the mainstage (at the Olympic Plaza instead of the sprawling Mewata Field this year) in time to see Liars. I thought they were a little ill-suited to the venue the last time I saw them on a big stage (opening for Radiohead), but they were pretty great last night in a place that, while smaller, was still pretty huge.
The Breeders were up next on the mainstage. I felt the same way about last night as I did about their performance at Sasquatch a year or so ago. The old material was awesome, but it sort of made the newer stuff they played seem boring by comparison. They were once again worth seeing though, if only for "Divine Hammer."
After a quick stop at our hotel, we made it down the block to the Marquee Room(a great little venue in the same building as an arthouse theatre) and caught Puberty's last few songs. The female fronted group played pretty straight up garage punk pretty well. Keith from Sex Negatives lent his sax skills to their last track.
Twin Crystals repped Vancouver and repped it well next. I'm a fan of Jesse's keyboard playing, but he rocked a guitar for their entire set, which meant they were even more intense than usual.
HEALTH headlined the Marquee and were absolutely awesome. They tore through a set that balanced out stuff from their s/t debut and new songs, presumably from the forthcoming Get Color. If you were into the first record, you'll be stoked on the next one, by the sounds of things
Friday, June 26, 2009
arthritis sux
Real quick update from my first night at Sled Island:
After grabbing some rather splendid BBQ, we made it to the Legion to catch Japanther. I guess I haven't really paid attention to their lyrics before, because I was sort of taken aback by how "positive" they were for a band with such a loud, fuzzy sound. I have to say that I was most impressed by their set closing cover of "Do You Wanna Dance."
Vancouver's current favourite sons, Japandroids were up next. The guys were in top form and it was sort of awesome to see an out of town crowd get so into them. As far as the internet tells me, it, indeed, is raining in Vancouver, and as of now, I don't give a fuck. Don't hold it against me, huh?
We split from the Legion and hit the Drum & Monkey to catch the Coathangers. I wasn't expecting a whole lot, having not heard them before, but it was definitely a pleasant surprise. If you're around Vancouver on Sunday, check them out with the always wonderful White Lung at the Astoria.
Monday, May 18, 2009
i never know how these things are supposed to go
Contest: Sled Island Pass Giveaway
This Friday marks the second edition of Damaged Goods where I got to pick the bands, and I'm psyched to announce that two of my local favourites, Fine Mist and Candles, are both going to perform.
To add to the excitement, the fine folks at Sled Island have offered up a pair of festival passes to give out. You'll have to find your own way to Calgary for June 24th-27th, but I assure you, it's well worth it (even if you don't win freebies, it's worth buying a couple of passes and taking a road trip to Cowtown). I had a blast last year and judging by the initial line-up,this year should be the same. Also, in all honesty, I went purely for the music last year, and wasn't expecting much out of the city itself, but Calgary was a blast. We met a bunch of rad locals and also hooked up with friends from Vancouver. Speaking of the latter, Fine Mist, along with a bunch of other bands, will lead a strong Vancouver presence again this year.
So, since it's a tie-in with a show (and also because the prize is so sweet), this contest's going to run a little differently. You have to be in attendance on Friday to win (we'll pick the winner between Candles' and Fine Mist's sets). But, you can potentially enter twice. Anyone who pays cover on Friday will get an entry into the contest, but you can also email me (at quinn.omori AT gmail.com with the subject line "Sled Island Contest") anytime between now and 4:00pm on Friday the 22nd, and you'll get an additional entry into the draw. Make sense? Good.
And for a taste of Friday, click through to Popsheep to check out Fine Mist's "Stop or Start."
Regulars: May 18th-24th
Monday
Skinny Mondays @ the Biltmore: Girl Goes Electric, Falcao & Monashee, and Stefan Fratila
Again, not a live music night, but Ice Cream Social kicks off at its new location, Honey, tonight.
Tuesday
Boosh Tuesdays @ the Cobalt: MJ's birthday show with Needles & Pins and it's a fundraiser for Girls Rock Camp Vancouver
Wednesday
Fake Jazz Wednesday @ the Cobalt: Leviathans, Diadem, ATTN: Diamond Shoppers, Sara Good, with Andy Dixon DJing between sets.
Inept Wednesdays @ the Astoria: no live act
The Beehive @ Honey: back on May 27th
Thursday
Honey Lung Thursday @ Honey: Osk, Dichotomy, and War Hero
Friday
Damaged Goods @ the Astoria: Fine Mist and Candles
Far Away @ the Media Club: unknown
Saturday
Glory Days @ the Biltmore: Harlem Shakes
Night Shift @ the Astoria: Timecopz and Mode Moderne
No More Strangers @ Funky Winkerbean's: the SSRIs and Nihilist Party
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
the 15th
Yo La Tengo's "Freewheelin' Acoustic Q&A" show @ the Pumphouse
That girl is loving Basketball @ Broken City
Women @ Broken City
Okkervil River @ the Legion
Yo La Tengo plugged in @ Mewata Field
Tegan & Sara @ Mewata Field
Broken Social Scene @ Mewata Field
The RZA @ the Grand Theatre
Wire @ the Legion
Still Flyin' @ the Mewata Sidestage
Drive-By Truckers @ Mewata Field
Of Montreal @ Mewata Field
Wire @ Mewata Field
Bend Sinister @ the Legion
Human Milk @ the Legion
Sunday, June 29, 2008
you all want the lovely music to save your lives
Drive By-Truckers followed. I've heard a ton of good things about their live show. They didn't blow my mind, but I can see where they got the rep.
We took an ill-advised midday C-train trip and got lost when attempting to find a restaurant that no longer existed, so we didn't make it back to the field until Of Montreal. They were their usually entertaining selves, but mostly stuck to pretty new stuff, which was a touch disappointing.
Wire wasn't as good yesterday as they were on Friday night at the Legion. The crowd wasn't as amped, which might have been part of it, and they didn't seem to have as much energy either. Still great though.
Mogwai finished things up on the big stage. Honestly, the soundsystem didn't really do them justice. Mogwai shows are all about making your insides rattle, and they couldn't really reach that level of volume... though they tried.
From Mogwai I booked it over to Broken City to give Bend Sinister some hometown support, not that the guys needed it, as the crowd was pretty into them.
And from Broken City it was back to the Legion for the BSS/Spiral Stairs' collaboration entitled Human Milk. Honestly, the new songs they played weren't all that special, and Stephen Malkmus' former right hand man was a bit disappointing, but the set closing take on "It's All Gonna Break" was phenomenal. Great end to a great weekend.
Show announcements and photos and other catch up when I get back to Vancouver.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
12XU
Caught Yo La Tengo fully plugged in last night, they were way more Sonic Youth-like than I expected, but that's a good thing.
I really like Tegan and Sara, so I'm always down with seeing them. Actually, I should re-phrase. I really like If It Was You, but I'm still down to see them, even if they only rock "Living Room." They're Calgarians, so it was a homecoming show of sorts.
Chixdiggit played the sidestage. I didnt' know they still existed.
I had, perhaps, the best hot dog ever.
BSS were woman-less, which is always kind of a downer, they also played some songs from their various solo joints, which, frankly, was also kind of a downer. But we had to take off early anyhow, to catch...
The RZA! He was in a tiny room packed with, as one would expect, hardcore Wu fans. And, while I'm the first to admit that when I'm jonesing for a Wu solo record, his aren't the first that come to mind, his live show was awesome.
Caught the tail end of Secret Machines, who I loved instrumentally, but could take or leave when the vocals kick in, but we were at the Legion for one reason only: Wire.
When I saw the Cure last month, all I wanted to hear were old songs. When they did play new songs, I hoped they would change my mind, but all I could think about was how fast they would end the stuff from the latter half of their catalogue and get to "Killing an Arab" (and etc). But while Pink Flag and Chairs Missing are two of my absolute favourite records, Wire's new material stands up well alongside their "classics." They look their age, for sure, but they sound incredible, and they're still making songs that are better than what 99.9% of "young" bands are putting out.
CL from the National Shield/Octoberman was hanging around after the show, and while neither of his outfits are particularly Wire-esque, you get a bit of a sense of just how influential the group was by his admission that "everything I try to do on guitar is from that band."
I don't think tonight can top yesterday, but we're sure as hell going to try.
Hope the weekend's going strong in Vancouver. Between the Cons/amillionthingsonfriday/the ER, it's a great few days for shows.
Friday, June 27, 2008
the damage is done
I decided that I'm going to do all the recap stuff for Sled Island on the fly, and I'll just upload some photos when I get home, so if you're killing time at work today (*high five, Neil), this one is for you.
After 11 hours of driving and zero sleep the night before, we picked up our passes, checked in, and ripped back to the Pumphouse Theatre as fast as we could for the Yo La Tengo "Freewheelin' Retrospective Q&A."
I like YLT quite a bit, but I'm not a die hard fan. Last night's show (that they've been doing on and off for awhile), was a treat though. The band took questions from the crowd (and even turned the rather boring ones into entertaining anecdotes) and then performed songs that tied in to their answers.
Highlights included a wild version of "For the Turnstiles" where Ira laid some echo-y distortion on his acoustic and whipped out a noisy solo that would've made Neil proud, "Let's Save Tony Orlando's House," "Mr. Tough," and also an awesome version of "Damage" ("we don't play this one very often").
I also can't stress how fun the Q&A part of the evening was, and I'm usually a bit lukewarm on those types of things.
If you have the slightest interest in the band and can see them do this show, definitely do it.
From YLT, we headed over to Broken City and caught Women. Maybe it was the hometown audience, but they were even better than at Hoko's. I can't say enough good things about this band. Check out their album as soon as you can.
We stuck around at Broken City and gave Basketball a little hometown love. Cam (ex-Hot Loins, Music Waste, Vic Square) lent them a hand on percussion. I know I rave about them all the time, but the Calgary crowd was loving them, and when we were leaving I overheard a guy say "see, that's why Vancouver's music scene is so much better than ours."
We tried to see Crookers at Hi-Fi, but it was slammed, so I caught Elliot Brood (who was ok) and then a bit of Okkervil River at the Legion before completely crashing.
Not a bad first night.
Today: mystery bands>BSS>Deerhunter>the RZA>WIRE(!!!)
Oh, and while I usually don't list Seattle shows (other than festival), Matt won't let me get away without letting you know that the Jesus and fuckin' Mary Chain are in Seattle (at the Showbox) on July 16th.
If I can somehow swing MBV this summer, it'll make all my post-punk dreams come true.
I have to go drink some rye or eat beef or something Albertan now.
night goat
Let's start with some out of town news: the initial Sled Island line-up is out (with more bands to come later). The fest runs from June 30th-July 3rd in Calgary and it's always a great time. Four day passes are already on sale for $170 at the Sled Island website.
Parlour Steps, Lakefield, and Blank Cinema are at the Railway tonight.
The Idea of South and Ill & Bad play 1067 Granville St. on April 3rd. This one comes recommended by the lovely and talented Leah Abramson, whose word is good enough for me (and whose record you should check out if you haven't already).
The same night, Sleep Holiday, the Magician & the Gates of Love, and Shane Turner Overdrive play Little Mountain.
Also on Saturday, the Morning Benders play the Media Club.
Bleeder, Fuck No, Hari Legs, and Phonecalls play the Astoria on April 7th.
Buffalo Swans, Onward Voyageur, and Half Chinese play 121 Studios on April 9th.
Nomad, Ahna, and Stoned Eyes are at Pat's on the same night.
Fake Shark-Real Zombie, Minto, and Frances May are at the Biltmore on April 14th.
Blank Dogs, Cosmetics, Walter TV, and MT-40 play Reg's on April 16th.
Fuck Buttons are at the Biltmore on May 14th.
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros play the Commodore on May 31st.
The Buzzcocks play Venue the same night.
Delta Spirit play an early show at Venue on June 12th.
Jamie Lidell is at Venue on June 14th.
Coco Rosie plays the Vogue on June 28th.
And the Local Natives show on March 28th has been moved from the Media Club to Venue... and it's now an early show.
now playing: Saturday Looks Good to Me - Summer Doesn't Count (Unless You're Here With Me)
Labels: show announcements, sled island
Saturday, June 27, 2009
die slow
I started off yesterday by catching (or I guess "attempting to catch" is more correct) Monotonix at Tubby Dog (aka the best hot dog place, this side of Japadog). It took us a little longer than expected to saunter our way down there, so unsurprisingly, the rather tiny "venue" was packed to overflowing when we arrived. One thing about hearing Monotonix while not being able to see them is that you quickly notice that they're much better performers than they are a band. Speaking to the former though, they made sure all the people stuck outside didn't go home disappointed by dragging all their gear out onto the sidewalk to hammer out a few riffs. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've seen anyone dive off of a mailbox to crowd surf.
We took it easy for a couple of hours before heading to the mainstage (at the Olympic Plaza instead of the sprawling Mewata Field this year) in time to see Liars. I thought they were a little ill-suited to the venue the last time I saw them on a big stage (opening for Radiohead), but they were pretty great last night in a place that, while smaller, was still pretty huge.
The Breeders were up next on the mainstage. I felt the same way about last night as I did about their performance at Sasquatch a year or so ago. The old material was awesome, but it sort of made the newer stuff they played seem boring by comparison. They were once again worth seeing though, if only for "Divine Hammer."
After a quick stop at our hotel, we made it down the block to the Marquee Room(a great little venue in the same building as an arthouse theatre) and caught Puberty's last few songs. The female fronted group played pretty straight up garage punk pretty well. Keith from Sex Negatives lent his sax skills to their last track.
Twin Crystals repped Vancouver and repped it well next. I'm a fan of Jesse's keyboard playing, but he rocked a guitar for their entire set, which meant they were even more intense than usual.
HEALTH headlined the Marquee and were absolutely awesome. They tore through a set that balanced out stuff from their s/t debut and new songs, presumably from the forthcoming Get Color. If you were into the first record, you'll be stoked on the next one, by the sounds of things
Labels: breeders, health, liars, monotonix, puberty, show recaps, sled island, twin crystals
Friday, June 26, 2009
arthritis sux
So does 10-hour drive induced back pain, but I digress...
Real quick update from my first night at Sled Island:
After grabbing some rather splendid BBQ, we made it to the Legion to catch Japanther. I guess I haven't really paid attention to their lyrics before, because I was sort of taken aback by how "positive" they were for a band with such a loud, fuzzy sound. I have to say that I was most impressed by their set closing cover of "Do You Wanna Dance."
Vancouver's current favourite sons, Japandroids were up next. The guys were in top form and it was sort of awesome to see an out of town crowd get so into them. As far as the internet tells me, it, indeed, is raining in Vancouver, and as of now, I don't give a fuck. Don't hold it against me, huh?
We split from the Legion and hit the Drum & Monkey to catch the Coathangers. I wasn't expecting a whole lot, having not heard them before, but it was definitely a pleasant surprise. If you're around Vancouver on Sunday, check them out with the always wonderful White Lung at the Astoria.
Labels: coathangers, japandroids, japanther, show recaps, sled island
Monday, May 18, 2009
i never know how these things are supposed to go
Contest: Sled Island Pass Giveaway
This Friday marks the second edition of Damaged Goods where I got to pick the bands, and I'm psyched to announce that two of my local favourites, Fine Mist and Candles, are both going to perform.
To add to the excitement, the fine folks at Sled Island have offered up a pair of festival passes to give out. You'll have to find your own way to Calgary for June 24th-27th, but I assure you, it's well worth it (even if you don't win freebies, it's worth buying a couple of passes and taking a road trip to Cowtown). I had a blast last year and judging by the initial line-up,this year should be the same. Also, in all honesty, I went purely for the music last year, and wasn't expecting much out of the city itself, but Calgary was a blast. We met a bunch of rad locals and also hooked up with friends from Vancouver. Speaking of the latter, Fine Mist, along with a bunch of other bands, will lead a strong Vancouver presence again this year.
So, since it's a tie-in with a show (and also because the prize is so sweet), this contest's going to run a little differently. You have to be in attendance on Friday to win (we'll pick the winner between Candles' and Fine Mist's sets). But, you can potentially enter twice. Anyone who pays cover on Friday will get an entry into the contest, but you can also email me (at quinn.omori AT gmail.com with the subject line "Sled Island Contest") anytime between now and 4:00pm on Friday the 22nd, and you'll get an additional entry into the draw. Make sense? Good.
And for a taste of Friday, click through to Popsheep to check out Fine Mist's "Stop or Start."
Regulars: May 18th-24th
Monday
Skinny Mondays @ the Biltmore: Girl Goes Electric, Falcao & Monashee, and Stefan Fratila
Again, not a live music night, but Ice Cream Social kicks off at its new location, Honey, tonight.
Tuesday
Boosh Tuesdays @ the Cobalt: MJ's birthday show with Needles & Pins and it's a fundraiser for Girls Rock Camp Vancouver
Wednesday
Fake Jazz Wednesday @ the Cobalt: Leviathans, Diadem, ATTN: Diamond Shoppers, Sara Good, with Andy Dixon DJing between sets.
Inept Wednesdays @ the Astoria: no live act
The Beehive @ Honey: back on May 27th
Thursday
Honey Lung Thursday @ Honey: Osk, Dichotomy, and War Hero
Friday
Damaged Goods @ the Astoria: Fine Mist and Candles
Far Away @ the Media Club: unknown
Saturday
Glory Days @ the Biltmore: Harlem Shakes
Night Shift @ the Astoria: Timecopz and Mode Moderne
No More Strangers @ Funky Winkerbean's: the SSRIs and Nihilist Party
Labels: candles, contests, fine mist, sled island, weekly listings
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
the 15th
In a continuing (lack of) effort to be days behind on everything, here are some pics from Sled Island:
Yo La Tengo's "Freewheelin' Acoustic Q&A" show @ the Pumphouse
That girl is loving Basketball @ Broken City
Women @ Broken City
Okkervil River @ the Legion
Yo La Tengo plugged in @ Mewata Field
Tegan & Sara @ Mewata Field
Broken Social Scene @ Mewata Field
The RZA @ the Grand Theatre
Wire @ the Legion
Still Flyin' @ the Mewata Sidestage
Drive-By Truckers @ Mewata Field
Of Montreal @ Mewata Field
Wire @ Mewata Field
Bend Sinister @ the Legion
Human Milk @ the Legion
Labels: sled island
Sunday, June 29, 2008
you all want the lovely music to save your lives
Started the last day of Sled Island with Still Flyin' at the mainstage. I'm not huge on the uber-happy giant pop groups, but they were pretty good.
Drive By-Truckers followed. I've heard a ton of good things about their live show. They didn't blow my mind, but I can see where they got the rep.
We took an ill-advised midday C-train trip and got lost when attempting to find a restaurant that no longer existed, so we didn't make it back to the field until Of Montreal. They were their usually entertaining selves, but mostly stuck to pretty new stuff, which was a touch disappointing.
Wire wasn't as good yesterday as they were on Friday night at the Legion. The crowd wasn't as amped, which might have been part of it, and they didn't seem to have as much energy either. Still great though.
Mogwai finished things up on the big stage. Honestly, the soundsystem didn't really do them justice. Mogwai shows are all about making your insides rattle, and they couldn't really reach that level of volume... though they tried.
From Mogwai I booked it over to Broken City to give Bend Sinister some hometown support, not that the guys needed it, as the crowd was pretty into them.
And from Broken City it was back to the Legion for the BSS/Spiral Stairs' collaboration entitled Human Milk. Honestly, the new songs they played weren't all that special, and Stephen Malkmus' former right hand man was a bit disappointing, but the set closing take on "It's All Gonna Break" was phenomenal. Great end to a great weekend.
Show announcements and photos and other catch up when I get back to Vancouver.
Labels: bend sinister, broken social scene, drive by truckers, mogwai, sled island, spiral stairs, still flyin, wire
Saturday, June 28, 2008
12XU
I'm running late, and I have to book it to the mainstage to interview Women, so I'll keep it brief (PS: Jon, that's where I'll be all day... my phone is out of juice though).
Caught Yo La Tengo fully plugged in last night, they were way more Sonic Youth-like than I expected, but that's a good thing.
I really like Tegan and Sara, so I'm always down with seeing them. Actually, I should re-phrase. I really like If It Was You, but I'm still down to see them, even if they only rock "Living Room." They're Calgarians, so it was a homecoming show of sorts.
Chixdiggit played the sidestage. I didnt' know they still existed.
I had, perhaps, the best hot dog ever.
BSS were woman-less, which is always kind of a downer, they also played some songs from their various solo joints, which, frankly, was also kind of a downer. But we had to take off early anyhow, to catch...
The RZA! He was in a tiny room packed with, as one would expect, hardcore Wu fans. And, while I'm the first to admit that when I'm jonesing for a Wu solo record, his aren't the first that come to mind, his live show was awesome.
Caught the tail end of Secret Machines, who I loved instrumentally, but could take or leave when the vocals kick in, but we were at the Legion for one reason only: Wire.
When I saw the Cure last month, all I wanted to hear were old songs. When they did play new songs, I hoped they would change my mind, but all I could think about was how fast they would end the stuff from the latter half of their catalogue and get to "Killing an Arab" (and etc). But while Pink Flag and Chairs Missing are two of my absolute favourite records, Wire's new material stands up well alongside their "classics." They look their age, for sure, but they sound incredible, and they're still making songs that are better than what 99.9% of "young" bands are putting out.
CL from the National Shield/Octoberman was hanging around after the show, and while neither of his outfits are particularly Wire-esque, you get a bit of a sense of just how influential the group was by his admission that "everything I try to do on guitar is from that band."
I don't think tonight can top yesterday, but we're sure as hell going to try.
Hope the weekend's going strong in Vancouver. Between the Cons/amillionthingsonfriday/the ER, it's a great few days for shows.
Labels: broken social scene, chixdiggit, secret machines, sled island, tegan and sara, the rza, wire, yo la tengo
Friday, June 27, 2008
the damage is done
Hello from Calgary.
I decided that I'm going to do all the recap stuff for Sled Island on the fly, and I'll just upload some photos when I get home, so if you're killing time at work today (*high five, Neil), this one is for you.
After 11 hours of driving and zero sleep the night before, we picked up our passes, checked in, and ripped back to the Pumphouse Theatre as fast as we could for the Yo La Tengo "Freewheelin' Retrospective Q&A."
I like YLT quite a bit, but I'm not a die hard fan. Last night's show (that they've been doing on and off for awhile), was a treat though. The band took questions from the crowd (and even turned the rather boring ones into entertaining anecdotes) and then performed songs that tied in to their answers.
Highlights included a wild version of "For the Turnstiles" where Ira laid some echo-y distortion on his acoustic and whipped out a noisy solo that would've made Neil proud, "Let's Save Tony Orlando's House," "Mr. Tough," and also an awesome version of "Damage" ("we don't play this one very often").
I also can't stress how fun the Q&A part of the evening was, and I'm usually a bit lukewarm on those types of things.
If you have the slightest interest in the band and can see them do this show, definitely do it.
From YLT, we headed over to Broken City and caught Women. Maybe it was the hometown audience, but they were even better than at Hoko's. I can't say enough good things about this band. Check out their album as soon as you can.
We stuck around at Broken City and gave Basketball a little hometown love. Cam (ex-Hot Loins, Music Waste, Vic Square) lent them a hand on percussion. I know I rave about them all the time, but the Calgary crowd was loving them, and when we were leaving I overheard a guy say "see, that's why Vancouver's music scene is so much better than ours."
We tried to see Crookers at Hi-Fi, but it was slammed, so I caught Elliot Brood (who was ok) and then a bit of Okkervil River at the Legion before completely crashing.
Not a bad first night.
Today: mystery bands>BSS>Deerhunter>the RZA>WIRE(!!!)
Oh, and while I usually don't list Seattle shows (other than festival), Matt won't let me get away without letting you know that the Jesus and fuckin' Mary Chain are in Seattle (at the Showbox) on July 16th.
If I can somehow swing MBV this summer, it'll make all my post-punk dreams come true.
I have to go drink some rye or eat beef or something Albertan now.
Labels: basketball, elliott brood, okkervil river, sled island, women, yo la tengo
