Occupy music.

Likely everyone reading this is part of the 1%. And no matter how anyone feels about the movement, real change is necessary. I am not as educated on the matter as I would like to be, however I know a thing or two, but being a music blog, I will stick to music.

The idea for this post came to me from the first video, Fat Mike (Michael John Burkett) and Eric Melvin (Eric Scott Melvin) of NOFX.

The Occupy movement, aside from being necessary, reminds me, and likely others of all the great protest music out there, or rebel jams as Tom Morello puts it

This one is good, Tom Morello singing Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land“

Some good words from Jello Biafra, of the Dead Kennedy’s, numerous other musical projects, and spoken word at Occupy Melbourne. I agree with his last point, that was/is my feeling all along, to keep the movement going.

John Densmore of The Doors at Occupy L.A.

No doubt there is plenty of other great videos and resources, so click on related videos and the like, and seek them out!

Local show preview – November 23, Jon Davis with Ainsley McNeaney, Mangomango and surprise guest at Cabaret du Mile-End

This is my second post in what I hope to be a continuing series of local show previews (local being Montreal in this case!).

Jon Davis

This is show, featuring locals Jon Davis and Ainsley McNeaney is what I would call a big little show. Little show as in it is a local show, not a huge tour, and big as in it is at the Cabaret du Mile-End (5240, avenue du Parc). Happening this Wednesday, November 23. And from what I hear there may be some big shots there, to what extent I am not sure, but Pierre Marchand (Sarah McLachlan, Rufus Wainwright, Ron Sexsmith, etc.) may be there.

Ainsley McNeaney

I first saw Ainsley McNeaney back on July 20 at the well-known local venue Casa del Popola. Her set did not disappoint. She plays (and her six piece band — Ainsley included) a unique blend of ‘baroque’ pop. I am pretty sure I heard her music described as baroque pop somewhere, however it seems right, even if I do not know the genre well, aside from associating the term baroque with Baroque music.

I have not had the chance to hear Jon Davis yet, although I met him, and he is a cool guy. I do not know mangomango either, but based on a few pictures, they look like up-tempp music split between girl and guy vocals.

If I knew the surprise guest, I would spill the beans, or at least hint at it, but, alas I do not.

Tickets are only $10, and can be purchased through Ainsley’s Bandcamp page. They will be $15 at the door, IF there are any left!

Pop Montreal 2011 review + pictures!

Pop Montreal 2011 began two weeks ago tonight, so it is about time I am finally writing my review!

Part of the reason I am so slow in writing my review is that it was very hectic, being out to shows late every night, and working a day job, so I took some time to recover if you will. Okay, and there was procrastination in there too.

Rebekah Higgs at Pop Montreal 2011

This year marked the tenth anniversary of Pop Montreal, what started as a few friends putting on some shows. And it really culminated with the free Arcade Fire show where the free festival shows are held annually (recent years saw Stevie Wonder, Ben Harper, and just this past summer, The B-52s. Somewhere between 80 000 and 100 000 showed up for the Arcade Fire show. Of course many had to watch from surrounding screens, myself included, although I watched Kid Koala from the side of the giant stage. I did not pay too much attention to Karkwa, as I really do not know them, and only watched about 20 minutes of Arcade Fire on the screens, as I took off to see Rebekah Higgs, along with openers Dinah Thorpe and Mussaver at Cagibi.

Presently I am listening to Grass Widow‘s latest album, Past Time. Grass Widow being a great example of a pleasant discovery. I did not know them before the night before the show. They were the final opening band for The Raincoats. And the highlight of that show for me. The Raincoats were good, but I am not too into them, and not to be age-ist, but they are showing their age a bit. I of course do like a lot of aging musicians!

Ben Caplan at Pop Montreal 2011

My festival really started off with Charlotte Cornfield, a local indie/folk singer who I knew by name, but had never seen her perform. She played at the Ukranian Federation, a sit-down venue, kind of as it sounds, a theatre, but not a really old one with nice architecture, but instead kind of a dull church feel/meets hall space. Not bad for a mellow show though, although, seeing tUnE-yArDs there was not the best. Charlotte put on a nice set, she was happy to play there, as she said she saw Arcade Fire there a few years earlier at Pop Montreal! Next was Lindi Ortega, a bit more country/bluegrass, although a bit more of a commercial feel (oh, and not at all bad looking!) Not bad though!

After Charlotte and Lindi, I ended up at an industrial loft space, that someone actually lives in! Ah, Pop Montreal! Good spot for the particular show! In this case it seems like it was Charlotte Cornfield who organised it with a few of her favourite bands, including Ben Caplan, and Donlands and Mortimer.

Dinah Thorpe at Pop Montreal 2011

The aforementioned Rebekah Higgs show was very nice, save for the curfew, which had Rebekah only doing a few songs lasting 20 minutes at the most! Dinah Thorpe from Toronto who played prior was very good, and another nice Pop find. As per her MySpace, she is “acoustic / alternative / electro.” Indeed a nice mix, and one song, from her latest album, 12, called “Song for Dolly.” Of course for Dolly Parton. Her album is called 12, as she created a song every month for 12 months, a 12 song cycle as she puts it. Montreal’s own Mussaver opened the show, think Joanna Newsom, however with an accordion!

What I liked about this year’s Pop was how there was no huge acts (aside from Arcade Fire, they have proved themselves musically, but they are more big in the underground circles), for example, last year Macy Gray played Pop Montreal. Although, that was a co-presentation with the big concert promoters here. Many small acts I knew, and many I did not. I saw many I knew, and many I did not, yet I still missed some I knew, and some I did not. For example, I missed Emma-Lee, who I knew somewhat, but had never seen her perform, and I missed Dominique Young Unique, who I read about checking out artists playing Pop. Think Lil Mama meets Nicki Minaj for a not so accurate comparison!

Kid Sister at Pop Montreal 2011!

Friday night I saw Kid Sister, it was a club set, so way too short, and she played at least a couple mixtape tracks, which were good, but I did not know too well. After a few songs she disappeared, leaving her DJ to entertain the crowd. She returned with the very crowd pleasing “Right Hand Hi!” I was happy to catch that one live. The club it was at was apparently voted #1 in Montreal in several categories by readers of the free weekly entertainment publication the Mirror. I also vote it well in not starting on time! Kid Sister started well over an hour late (as Pop publishes the set times for benefit of those Pop hopping from show to show). Before she went on I was able to catch about 20 minutes of Ohbijou, and missed Azealia Banks in the process.

Allie Hughes played O Patro Vys Saturday night as the last openers for the all-girl Weezer cover band Sheezer! She is presently working on her debut album. And I say it is one to look forward to, as she has a nice vocal range, hitting some high operatic like notes!

Before seeing Allie Hughes, and catching most of By Divine Right, I saw Laura Marling. I am not a huge fan, but she definitely impressed! Her voice definitely had the audience getting their socks blown off (as opener Alessi’s Ark put it!), despite her mellow folk!

The closing party was nice, with Think About Life playing their last show ever, a very energetic party-like show!

Merrill Garbus, tUnE-yArDs symposium at Pop Montreal 2011

The tUnE-yArDs set was of course nice, especially after having seen Merrill Garbus doing a symposium that afternoon, talking about her influences, that include being obsessed with singing styles from around the world (Korean Pansori for one), and applying them to her music. And looking to the future how she would like to evolve away from the looping pedal.

Pop Montreal 2011 teaser/CD haul

This is just a warm up post. As the title suggests, a teaser of what I have yet to write, and of the CD’s I picked up during Pop Montreal 2011. I had been posting plenty of updates on my Twitter during the festival, and took some notes, so, a full review will come shortly! (Mostly unrelated, but of note, this WordPress.com blog post: Prepare for National Novel Writing Month with the Post a Day Challenge. I am all about quality over quantity, however, with NaNoWriMo, it is all about writing writing writing, and editing later, as the writer is bound to have some quality within, or good stuff that can be edited later, versus sitting around thinking and generating very little content while (over?)thinking. Anyway…)

Pop Montreal 2011 CDs

All the discs I picked up (from top left clockwise), Lindi Ortega – Little Red Boots, Rebekah Higgs – Odd Fellowship, Ohbijou – Beacons, Dinah Thorpe – 12, Grass Widow – Past Time)

All the shows/artists I saw (bold denotes Canadian artists):

Charlotte Cornfield
Lindi Ortega
Donlands and Mortimer (most)
Ben Caplan
Charlotte Cornfield
Kid Koala
Karkwa (mostly indirectly)
Arcade Fire (about the first 30 minutes, indirectly on screens)
Mussaver (most)
Dinah Thorpe
Rebekah Higgs
Pat Jordache (most)
Tune-Yards
Ohbijou (first 30 minutes)
Kid Sister
Alessi’s Ark
Laura Marling
By Divine Right (last 15 minutes)
Allie Hughes
Sheezer
Hannis Brown
Mensch
Grass Widow
The Raincoats
Think About Life

So, in the coming days, once I finish writing it, my Pop Montreal 2011 post will be a review and thoughts…

Follow me on Twitter for Pop Montreal updates!

I hope to write a blog entry tonight, regardless, follow me on Twitter, for Pop Montreal updates and insights!

@tmmblog

So far I have seen Charlotte Cornfield twice, Lindi Ortega, Ben Caplan, Kid Koala, Rebekah Higgs, Dinah Thorpe, and Arcade Fire to name a few! Many more to come, including some pics and perhaps video!

Shortest blog post ever (for me anyway).

Pop Montreal 2011 preview (September 21 – 25)

I am not too great at previews, Sean over at Said the Gramophone is, but I will try.

Slowly but surely as I heard more and more bands announced, this years Pop Montreal has quite a diverse lineup with plenty of well known, and lesser known acts. Apologies on the formatting, as I do not have enough text, and I wanted to get the pics in!

After reading this blog post, head on over to Pop Montreal for official times and information regarding the concerts. And for Montrealers, the latest Montreal Mirror has a handy pull out day by day schedule of music listings. Or view it online. And on the official Pop Montreal users can build their own personalised schedule.

(Bold in the next two signifies Canadian acts.)

A few of the shows I am personally really looking forward to include tUnE-yArDs, Rebekah Higgs, Ohbijou (new album, Metal Meets hits stores September 27, I might get to buy it before the official release!), Kid Sister, Laura Marling, and Q-Bert. I am also very much looking forward to local Montrealer Charlotte Cornfield (who has two sets on opening Wednesday, one opening for Philémon Chante, and later that evening as part of the Let Your Hair Down Showcase!), Kid Koala (opening for the giant free Arcade Fire show), the giant free Arcade Fire show(!), Krista Muir, Samiam (who I just saw were playing a few minutes ago!), Real McKenzies (Awesome Scottish influenced Celtic punk!), and The Planet Smashers. Oh, and in the course of writing this blog post I see in the official Pop Montreal program Maylee Todd is playing Saturday night set as L’Esco (basically a small semi-basement bar/venue). No word online, so I will not hold my breath! She rules by the way! And I got to know her from Pop Montreal last year! I also see that the Sarah Blackwood (from psychobilly act The Creepshow) set for the Stomp Records BBQ is at 4PM, before local rockabilly act The Hellbound Hepcats! And although I really do not know his solo work, Liam Finn is playing the fest too.

Also a few acts I know little to nothing about, and in many cases am just going by their pictures (press photos are indeed important!), that I would like to see include Lindi Ortega, Cherry Chapstick (another Montreal act!), Megan Bonnell, Marques Toliver, Vilify (Montreal again!), Natale (from Paris, booming pop vocals and insect-like acrobatic dancing apparently!), UN (514 represent!), D-sisive, Molly Sweeney (Montreal!), Dinah Thorpe, Emma-Lee, Caroline Keating (Montreal), Old n’ Weird, Shaydakiss (Montreal) and Azelia Banks (both opening for Kid Sister), Frankie Rose, Dominique Young Unique, Anna Rose, Yuck, Gianna Lauren, Alessi’s Ark (London, according to Pop, folk songs that make you want to cycle down an English country road!), Allie Hughes, Sheezer, and The Raincoats.

There is no way I will be able to catch them all, but I will try and catch a fair bit, all of what I really want to see, and hopefully some of the ones I would like to see barring any personal scheduling conflicts, and definitely catch some artists that are new to me.

tUnE-yArDs

So knowing what I know, a few I would recommend include tUnE-yArDs. I have only heard some of her stuff, and I saw her performing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, but she, Merrill Garbus et. al., definitely have an innovative sound.

Laura Marling

Laura Marling and her blend of UK folk should prove to be awesome, her third record, A Creature I Don’t Know, came out on Monday. Hopefully I can pick it up at the show!

DJ Qbert

Q-Bert is a legendary DJ, thus making him big in hip hop, since hip hop, that is to say rapping, emerged from the DJ, the disc jockey. His turntablism skills are crazy good! I see quite a fair amount of shows, but I do not get to see proper DJ/scratching shows often at all.

A few locals I can highly recommend include Charlotte Cornfield (folk/rock), Krista Muir (multi-talented, ukelele playing and then some!), Kid Koala (speaking of turntablism!), and the ever impressive some 15 plus years on, The Planet Smashers (ska extraordinaire!).

I have not heard them yet, but hope to check out Montreal’s own electro dur UN. Just by Pop Montreals description: “Toronto’s weirdo pop princess”, Allie Hughes sounds like a great bet! Frankie Rose of Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls, and the Vivian Girls fame, enough said!

Another artists I just listened to, Dominique Young Unique, is a young female MC from Florida. Upon hearing and watching “Show My Ass“, I was reminded of Rye Rye, although no doubt they differ quite a bit, Rye Rye coming from the Baltimore scene and being a M.I.A. protégée.

Cannot say as I know them, but given their history, having formed in the U.K. in 1977, I might just have to check out The Raincoats.

Of course Pop Montreal is far from just music, it is Film Pop, Art Pop, and more! Last year Feist’s film Look at What the Light Did Now had a screening, and this year PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake will have a screening. Also there is Bloodied But Unbowed: The Birth of Vancouver Punk Rock 1977-82.

And among the symposiums, there is Voices on Voices, which, to steal Pop Montreal’s description, is “a workshop/discussion on writing and arrangement with Merrill Garbus, aka tUnE-YaRds.” Very nice. And The Raincoats – Adventures, which as you may have guessed, is about The Raincoats!

Allie Hughes

Charlotte Cornfield

Dominique Young Unique

Bookmark this page, and come back, as I will continue adding links to the artists’ official websites while I check them out.

Who or what are you looking forward to at Pop Montreal? Do not be shy, comment, and plug your blog (if you have one), it may just end up on my blogroll! It might also influence me to go see a certain show! Les commentaires en français sont également les bienvenus. Heck, since this is the digital age, any language will do, even binary or hex code (okay, perhaps a tad too geeky).

The Tower of Song Tour preview, featuring Alysha Brillinger and Kristen Bussandri

Since I will not be able to catch this show (unless I can make it towards the end (I am volunteering at Pop Montreal, and have to get my ‘training’ — I volunteered last year, so I should be able to get the hang of it! By the way, it is not too late to volunteer!)), I am giving it some publicity over here in order to generate some additional buzz!

I am only familiar with both singer-songwriters from hearing their audio online, and sounds like it would make for a good show. So to steal from their bios, as I do not know too much about them, “Alysha Brillinger’s blues and reggae influenced songs combine her funky guitar playing and unique voice to create a fresh new organic vibe of music.” I find she has a bit of a jazzy delivery as well. Check out her song “Better Soon” below (I actually hear a bit of Bob Dylan’s “Lay Lady Lay” in the melody. She is presently signed to Lava/Universal Republic, and is a native of Kitchener it would seem. Hence the tour (see below) doing their respective hometowns, and Toronto in between!

The first time I heard Kristen Bussandri, a local (Montrealer), who has split her time between New York City and here in Montreal, I thought sultry, and lo and behold, in her bio: “Kristen Bussandri is a long-legged sultry brunette who will stop you in your tracks with her timeless pop songwriting and heartbreaking vocals that transcend genres, embracing everything from intimate acoustic ballads to gritty R&B to rock with uncompromising sophistication and depth.” In July, she just released her debut EP, Diamonds to Dust. It can be heard and purchased online, just head on over to her official website, kristenbussandri.com. Embedded below, a live rendition of her song “If You Don’t Love Me You’re Wrong.”

The three city micro-tour starts in Montreal Wednesday night (September 14), and the next two nights are Toronto and Kitchener, Ontario, respectively. Head on over to Dukits.com, which seems to be a crowdsourcing (as they say) meets a deal of the day site, for advance ticket, and show information. As of this writing there is only a couple of hours left to get Toronto and Kitchener tickets at a reduced rate, so hurry!

And individually they will be doing shows in the future (I reckon!), so check out their official websites: AlyshaBrillinger.com and KristenBussandri.com.

Osheaga Saturday (day 2) review (July 30, 2011)

I started off my Warped Tour review saying how I am a Warped Tour veteran, well, I can start this off saying I am an Osheaga newbie. This was my first time going.

Osheaga 2011 early on with The 222s starting the day on one of the main stages.

Similar to Warped Tour, there are always bands/artists to see at any given time, although not nearly as many as at Warped Tour. That is okay in this case, where quality over quantity rings true.

My friend and I entered a little late, but not late, as we were able to catch a fair amount of The 222s, veteran Montreal glam punks. I cannot say as I know them well, at all! However they sounded good, perhaps not as good as their heyday (since I do not know them that well).

Quite a number of people do enter late, since the schedule is made before hand. At Warped Tour one has to enter the grounds to see when bands are playing (the schedule is made early the day of the event). Toronto’s The Midway State played next to a decent crowd, many of whom were from Toronto!

The Midway State at Osheaga July 30, 2011

[Edit: It would seem I Forgot to hit update (had a duplicate of the first pic for a little shy of a day!)]

Next was Oh Land, the Danish chanteuse, now on her second release (Oh Land), also her North American breakthrough. We watched her entire set. She provided quite the stage presence with what she was wearing!

Oh Land at Osheaga July 30, 2011

And for the most part the show was quite enjoyable, although it felt lacking a little. I noticed during her rendition of “Son of a Gun”, it did not quite feel like it had the zest of the recorded version. I did like how it started, with the percussionist playing the electronic drum, slowly raising either the volume or pitch, till it was obvious as to the song about to be performed! Do not get me wrong, I still very much enjoyed her, as I have listened to her debut a few times, and it makes for a good listen. I think her career can certainly be a promising one. “White Nights” and “Voodoo” were a couple of other songs that were very enjoyable live! On a sidenote, prior to the set starting, as they were still finishing soundcheck (there is only so much time between acts on each stage), they really tested the woofers, we were close by, and it literally shaked our insides! Luckily they were not on full during the set, as more than earplugs would have been necessary!

The day could not have been any nicer, sunny, with the sun hiding behind the clouds briefly now and then providing some well needed respite from the excess heat. And for those not familiar with Osheaga, one of the side stages is the “Tree Stage”, so literally it is among the trees, which provided a nice shaded venue to see performances!

Three Canadian acts were playing at almost the exact time slot, Montreal’s Braids, Newmarket’s Tokyo Police Club, and Vancouver’s Mother Mother. We saw a decent chunk of Braids, and then moved over to the Tree Stage to see Mother Mother.

Montreal's Braids at Osheaga July 30, 2011

Braids’ performance was very good, knowing them beforehand helps, otherwise their style is quite a switch from typical rock band music. They are labelled as art rock, or experimental rock on Wikipedia for the primary two genres. They seemed to be having a little technical difficulties with a monitor, and kept playing, or extending the song. At that moment we headed to see Mother Mother. They performed their big hit “O My Heart”, and ended with a nice song primarily featuring the two girl singers (Molly Guldemond and Jasmin Parkin) harmonising most of the song, with Ryan Guldemond jumping in here and there, quite nice!

Aside from hanging out, which I am sure many people do for most of the day, we saw the John Butler Trio before watching the entire Sia set, which was very impressive in every way! Musically very great, playing numerous songs from her latest, We Are Born, and other good ones, including “Breathe Me”, and “Soon We’ll Be Found”. The latter even had Sia doing hand mimicking similarly to the excellent music video (see picture below). Sia took the time to allow the crowd time to heckle her, of course it was good-natured, but very entertaining!

The awesome Sia at Osheaga July 30, 2011

Shirtless Lupe Fiasco way in the distance at Osheaga July 30, 2011!

On the main stage a nice long set (just shy of an hour) from Lupe Fiasco made way for Death From Above 1979. One of DFA1979′s reunion shows this year, and it did not disappoint! I did leave before the set was over to go see UK up and comer Anna Calvi.

Anna Calvi’s set started late due to a late running sound check, and a technical issue. The crowd was a bit sparse for her set. It was on the tree stage, and likely not too many people know her around here yet. And she ended her set a little early. Being that it was the first time I saw her, I cannot draw comparisons, yet I enjoyed what I heard. She plays fairly dark indie rock. She did not seem too thrilled, maybe because of the smaller crowd.

Anna Calvi and her band at Osheaga July 30, 2011

Yet, for acts like her, Osheaga is a good venue to introduce lesser known acts. On the other hand, I think Janelle Monae, who played Friday should have played a proper headlining show, as she does have a big cult fanbase. I cannot say as I know the numbers around here, but likely they are up there (when I first tried to purchase her debut disc it was sold out!).

My (Osheaga) day came to a close checking out Ratatat, Bright Eyes, and then Elvis Costello and the Imposters. Ratatat of course have collaborated with Kid Cudi, most notably on “Pursuit of Happiness”. Kid Cudi having cancelled his Friday Osheaga set with illness, apparently due to overworking. What I saw of Elvis Costello impressed. I was fairly tired by that point, but did enjoy him, despite now knowing his work too well.

I then headed over to La Ronde, Montreal’s amusement park, to see the last day of the fireworks, which were a Beatles tribute. It was a good display, featuring audio montages from each member’s song book, and a nice brief grand finale!

And for the first ever Too Much Music top tip (Top Gear ripoff), avoid the metro on a Saturday night post Osheaga! Likely true any day after Osheaga, however Saturday La Ronde and Osheaga leaving at the same time, equalled masses of people trying to leave the island on the metro! I took the shuttle bus back to La Ronde and took the pedestrian path on the Jacque Cartier bridge to get back to the city!

Lissie, Montreal May 31, 2011 (Théâtre Corona)

After having seen her at the Apple Store the night before, I was certainly ready to see Lissie’s proper show.

Ash Koley opened. Ash Koley is named after the lead vocalist, Ashley Koley, however they are a duo, also consisting of Phil Deschambault. Their set was very minimal, consisting of Ash on lead vocals, and Phil was backing vocals, guitar and a pedal that replicated a bass drum. They are fairly poppy, melodic, with a long list of influences that they draw on. They included a medley of some of their influences. They hail from Winnipeg.

Their set lasted around 40 minutes as Ash said as they were commencing their set. Along with the poppy music they had a good stage presence, talking with the audience, and making jokes on each other’s expense. All in all a good set.

Lissie took to the stage to very much appreciation from the fairly small crowd. Not too small, but there definitely could have been more people. Which goes to show, how great artists do not get the publicity they deserve.

Her setup was the same as at the Apple Store, Lissie on guitar, swapping between two Fender Telecaster Thinline between songs, as the stage manager (or touring manager, whatever he is called) tunes the one not in use between songs. Presumably to tune them a specific way. My musical knowledge is not deep enough (yet) to recognise the different guitar tunings. Also like yesterday she had another guitarist, and the drummer/bassist. I thought perhaps the drummer, or bassist just did not make the Apple store, but that seems to be their regular setup! I had the chance to see the drum setup closer this time, and he plays a mini snare with a pedal along with having a bass drum, and hi-hat with a tambourine mounted on top.

Her set composed of pretty much all songs from Catching a Tiger, and a few from her EP Why You Runnin’, including the Hank Williams cover of “Wedding Bells”. She also did a two song encore consisting of the awesome ballad to the Mississippi, “Oh Mississippi”, and a terrific job along with her band covering Kid Cudi’s “Pursuit of Happiness”, which had the drummer/bassist kicking out a hip hop beat while playing bass! As he did (minus the hip hop beat) on almost all songs performed.

Adding to her aresenal arsenal of covers, she performed again the old song I mentioned from the Apple Store show. It being Maxine Nightingale’s “Right Back Where We Started From”. As she described it, it is one she has heard in the Moline airport among other places. Her version is a tad more up-tempo than the original, adding a bit more kick. Another great cover!

Lissie seemed happy to be playing Montreal, even with the smaller crowd. She hinted next time once we tell our friends and family she can fill the place! I am sure she would have preferred a bigger crowd, but she said how it was almost nicer with fewer people, In that it was a more personal/intimate show.

With that in mind, Lissie very much seemed to enjoy interacting with the crowd. Ranging from stories about the songs, or reacting to random ‘I love you Lissie’s, and having the band jam while she tied her shoe. The bassist started playing “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang (which ‘borrows’ from Chic’s “Good Times”), the guitarist jumped in, and Lissie started rapping with the “I said a hip, hop, a hippie to the hippie to the hip hip hop, you don’t stop”!

All in all a great show. Which, to steal from Eminem, had me lost in the music, the moment. I own it, I’ll never let it go.

Sarah McLachlan March 24, 2011 Montreal concert review

I was looking forward to seeing Sarah McLachlan for the first time ever. Little did I know what I was in for.

I understood that Melissa McClelland was the opening act. So I was very surprised when “Awakenings” started to play, and Sarah took to the stage. I do know Melissa McClelland a little, however not enough to recognise her right away. As it turned out, it was Sarah McLachlan featuring Melissa McClelland (I did recognise her after a few minutes). Also featured was Butterfly Boucher and Luke Doucet among the band. It made for quite the spectacle!

The venue was Théâtre Saint-Denis, it was built in 1915. The setting felt very theatrical, in the musical sense, and right from get go, with Sarah and friends performing, the style of show with no opening act made sense.

Sarah, who cancelled a show in London March 18, still has some lingering laryngitis. I did not notice it in her voice until she brought it to our attention. And although I like a lot of commercial music, even with laryngitis Sarah can outsing many of them! She also mentioned because of the laryngitis, her register is a little shortened, so if she makes a funny face, as she said, she would be struggling to get around some notes. I did notice after she said, some higher notes were a little difficult for her, as with some sustained notes likely.

Given the format of the show, it gave Sarah plenty of time to talk with the audience, who was showing her plenty of love! That included a couple of question and answer sessions. Sarah would pull questions at random out of a top hat that were written by audience members, and answer them on the spot. Also, with all the accomplished band members, they were able to do a few of their own songs. Butterfly Boucher started with a couple after only three songs from Sarah, I am sure she would have been doing this format all tour long, but especially good at this time to let Sarah rest her voice! Even still, Sarah would sing backup for Butterfly, and Melissa when she did a few songs.

Following the opening of “Awakenings”, Sarah and her band played “Building a Mystery”. And throughout the entire set list, practically all her hits were played, a veritable greatest hits without a doubt, and then some!

Instrumentation was fairly standard, going from very rich full songs, often with three guitars, to acoustic ones. Sarah playing guitar as well numerous times. And of course piano! Luke Doucet, Melissa McClelland’s husband was another guitarist, and Butterfly Boucher was on bass.

A couple notable highlights for me, first of all when Sarah played “World on Fire”, after a very nice introduction to the song. The song being about how we are so fortunate living the way we do, we have so so much, when there are huge amounts of people with nothing, or next to nothing (see the vide below). We take so much for granted. Although the song is performed as a full band, I feel it would be great acoustic, Sarah alone, to focus as much attention as possible on the song. Also “Adia”, very impressive, I can only imagine had Sarah’s voice been 100 percent.

It seemed as the show progressed late into the second set (there was an approximate 20 minute intermission to give the band a chance to rest) that Sarah’s voice was getting worse. She even hinted at it herself in a positive, playful manner: “you may have gotten the best of me!” I was actually kind of feeling like the show should end soon so she does not strain her voice too much. Following “Possession”, to close the show (pre-encore), Sarah and the performers received a standing ovation. They came back out for a two song encore (“Angel” and “Ice Cream”), and received another standing ovation after that! Very well deserved.