The Cracking CD Release @ Media Club -- 05/25/11

Many familiar faces to the Vancouver music scene were at the Media Club last night for the CD release party, and homecoming, of Kenton Loewen's solo project, The Crackling. Loewen has played drums for a good number of local bands, most notably Dan Mangan, so it was no surprise to see a decent sized crowd (for a week day at the media club) out to support him.

First up was White Knife, playing their first ever show. Well, sort of, as the band consisted of Colin Cowan, Chris Kelly and Nick Fabin, formerly known as Analog Bell Service. The set was in the same vein as the last few times I've seen ABS, with the same style of infectious pop songs, crazy energy and good chemistry between the three. There was the usual "Sunglasses at Night" cover, slowing it down and giving it an almost creepy feel, and their own songs ranged in influence from 60s pop rock, to grunge, to straight up rock, but never felt disjointed. One of the highlights was a song that I didn't catch the name of, but started with a bit of an evil whisper/demonic voice from Colin, into slow and almost eerie vibe, before building to an absolutely explosive climax. They ended the set with an older ABS song, "Left The Park", featuring a "Mangan Moment" when Dan joined them for backup vocals, giving a bit of a Punk Mangan performance screaming out the lyrics.
I am not actually sure the reason for the name change of the band, perhaps it was because they streamlined to just three members, but I can't wait to hear what happens next.

Next up was Singing Adams, from the UK. Or rather, just the lead singer Steven Adams. He took the stage alone for a couple acoustic, folky songs before being joined first by Kenton on drums for a song, and then Colin on bass. The two of them played for the rest of the set, and if it's true that they had never met before the day of the show -- with only a half hour practice earlier in the day -- it was pretty impressive. They meshed together quite well, especially by the end; as the set went on, the songs grew in energy and intensity, and it was just fascinating to watch them become more and more comfortable with each other on stage. It ended up being a really fun set, and Adams had a really good stage presence, with more than a few of the songs being really catchy, like "Spit in the Sea".
For the last couple songs Gord Grdina joined them on stage, and they ended with a "Mangan Moment" of their own.

And seeing as most of his band was already on stage, this lead right into the "surprise" of the night (had you not seen it on twitter), a short set from Dan Mangan himself. He played a few songs from his upcoming album, Oh Fortune (due out September 27th) and pretty much blew away the entire room. The title track was pretty much what you'd expect from Dan, but "Post War Blues" was incredibly intense, and a lot more rocking and with more of an edge than anything on the last album, leading up to an absolutely insane ending. "Rows of Houses" was also a bit harder, and hearing them definitely had me eager for the new album.
After the last few times of seeing Dan in sold out, thousand-person-seated-venues it was amazing to watch him play in a venue like the Media Club, even for a few songs.

And with Kenton joking that it would be the only time Dan opened for him, it was time for The Crackling. Also playing with Gord and Colin (who had a really long night!), they had a very folk sound, with many songs following the formula of starting soft and working up to a big finish, but it was a formula that worked so well for them. Loewen had  a voice that went from the a low gravel  to heartfelt highs, sometimes within the same song, and a great charisma and presence on stage -- introducing each song with a story, or just generally joking around.
Highlights included the thematically dark "I Am Your Rogue/Ode to a Woman"; "Keep Me Drunk", which had the last "Mangan Moment", with not only Dan, but the entire crowd helping out on the backing vocals; and "Reticence", a perfect song to end the night on, with the finish seeing every member of the band going balls-out, resulting in a broken string or two.
I don't think there are many bands that would be able to successfully follow Dan Mangan, but Loewen and co. more than held their own, putting on a great set.

I am going to go ahead and call it now, there is a very strong chance that this show will end up on my best of the year list. Four (well, three and a half) great sets of music, and just an incredible vibe of friendship and community the whole night for a show that was just flat out fun.

setlist
The Three of You, A Joke, The Crackling, Of Deceit, I Am Your Rogue/Ode to the Woman, That's The Harm, Keep me Drunk (Dan), Geppetto, Reticence.

West Coast Pop! w/ We Are The City, Aidan Knight & Analog Bell Service @ Red Room -- 03/03/11

With no offence meant to all other artists in the West Coast Pop series, this was the show I was most looking forward to. I hadn't seen either Aidan Knight or We Are The City play live in too long, and add Analog Bell Service to the bill? Forget about it. There was no contest.

Three vested gentlemen hit the stage as Analog Bell Service kicked off the night. Early on they mentioning it was their last show as the band, but hinted that they would be evolving into something more, by playing some new songs for a different project. It was as set full of fun and energy, with all three members having great chemistry -- especially the joking/banter between Colin Cowan & Chris Kelly. Among the set was their usual cool, and kind of dark, cover of "Sunglasses At Night" and "I Guess", which they ended with, and somehow managed to top the energy of the rest of their set. I'm definitely sad that it was their last show, but I glad to have seen it, and I am intrigued to find out what comes next.

Next up was Aidan Knight and his Friendly Friends. He played a good mix of songs from Versicolour and newer, starting off with, "Friendly Fires" with the rest of the band kicking in as it built up. He mentioned a few times, when chatting between songs with his charmingly-awkward banter, that he was happy to be there, playing with We Are The City and for everyone, and his enthusiasm shone through into his performance.
After another pair of new songs, the hauntingly beautiful "Margaret Downe" and another one which I didn't get the name of -- and so playing 'guess a new songs name', I dub it "Jean-Baptiste" -- he ended the set with the usual pairing of "Knitting Something Nice" and "Jasper". The former building to an intense ending and the latter is still incredibly fun to sing along to. And just about everyone else in the sold out Red Room seemed to think so, as well.
There was a bit of a technical issue, though, as I could hear a faint buzz throughout the set. It was not, however, terribly distracting and mostly just noticeable when Aidan was talking, or especially quiet parts. And it did not stop it from being the best show I've seen Aidan play yet.

setlist
Friendly Fires, Land's End, Altar Boys, North South East West, Margaret Downe, Jean Baptiste[?], Knitting Something Nice, Jasper.

And finally, it was time for We Are The City. It had been a while since I saw them live, back in October (which is weird, since I had seen them ten times in the ten months prior), so I was not only anxious to see them, but interested in seeing the new guitarist, Blake Enemark, for the first time. They hit the stage with the first two tracks off the new EP, High School, amping up the energy right off the bat.
Not that I was unsure, but any doubt I had about Blake were erased, especially after "Time Wasted", and both Cayne and Andy were as passionate as ever -- I always think Andy is going to tear right through the drums with the amount of intensity he puts into playing.
Half way through the set, there was an incredible moment where Cayne, after a little work and pleading, silenced nearly the whole song out room to play the beautiful "Angel In White". He didn't quite achieve perfect silence, but it was an impressive feat nonetheless. That was followed by "Dark/Warm Air" which is the bands first song to have Andy on vocals, and they "ended" with a crowd favourite, "Astronomers". But after some heavy encore chants they came back out for one more -- the only other song they knew with Blake -- "1987", which had Cayne on guitar.
Like Aidan, they too were visibly excited to be playing to a sold out crowd. There was one moment during "Beasts" where everyone was clapping and singing along, and when the crowd got louder than Cayne, there was a giant grin, a look of indescribable joy on his face. It was more than obvious that the three of them were more excited to be playing than the crowd was to be watching them.

And again, much like Aidan, it was probably the best show I have seen from the band. I first saw them a little over a year ago -- and have seen them many times since -- and it's been incredible to watch them progress as a band.

setlist
Get Happy, Happy New Year, There Are Very Tiny Beasts In The Ground, Time Wasted, That's It That's All, April, Angel In White, Dark/Warn Air, Astronomers.
[encore] 1987.

Analog Bell Service (w/ Tariq) @ Railway Club -- 09/10/10

I'm not sure how it happened, but it seems like forever since I had been to a show at the Railway Club. It's probably one of the better live venues we have, but perhaps because of it's size, you have to catch bands at just the right point to be able to see them there. Last night featured two Vancouver bands who will be no doubt moving to bigger venues soon enough. Both also had the CBC Radio 3 connection, with members being hosts and/or behind the scenes work.

While he wasn't first up for the night (that went to Aunts & Uncles, who we missed), Tariq was the first act we caught. He was joined by Brasstronaut-bandmate Brennan Saul, Colin Cowan & Chris Kelly (of Analog Bell Service) and Jody Glenham as his backing band. I'm not sure why, but when I first heard Tariq's solo material, I was a bit surprised that it had more of a folky, almost alt-country sound to it. But it really works well for him. There was especially one song that struck me, as it did last time I saw him play, called "Front Row Seat" which is a love song by way of concert seating. Which sounds awkward, but turns out really well written. He was also joined, at one point, by Brasstronaut trumpeteer Bryan Davies for a song. I think I liked the first time I saw him a little better, at Little Mountain Gallery, because there seemed to be more banter/joking that time, and the "encore" with Tariq playing in the midst of the crowd... but that kind of thing is a bit more difficult at the Railway.

And hitting the stage around 1am was Analog Bell Service. This was my third time seeing them in about as many months, and probably the best of the three. The other two they were openers, so this time they had more time to stretch their legs. Their energy was through the roof, as usual, as they burst through their poppy art-rock sound. I guess that is how you would describe it, they have a hard sound to peg down. Aside from the songs from their self titled album, they played some brand new stuff and a few covers, as they seem to like to do; "Sunglasses at Night" and "I Can See Clearly Now", both of which they've done before. They also threw in a really cool cover of Stevie Wonder's "Superstition", their sound giving the song a really unique twist. They also teased covering The Pixies at one point, I think, but it wasn't to be. The set was wrapped up with "I Guess", which they went completely all out for, somehow managing to raise the intensity. So much so that Chris Kelly even seemed to break his guitar somehow. Because of that, it didn't seem like there was going to be more, but the crowd brought them back for a for-reals-encore, which saw them pull their friend (and bandmate, or former bandmate, I am not sure) Chris Leitch for vocals on the last song, "There She Goes".

Despite the fact that they went on so late (Tariq started at almost midnight, ABS just after 1am), it was still a damn good show, and I will definitely be seeing either of them next time I have the chance.

PS: I don't know who made the poster for the show, but I love the Python-ness of it.

Brasstronaut (w/ Analog Bell Service) @ The China Cloud -- 08/13/10

Two great Vancouver bands teamed up for a show that took place at The China Cloud, which I had never even heard of before. It was a strange, nondescript door right on Main, near-ish to Hastings. It is apparently used as a jam space for a few bands, and is a really neat little place. Except for the fact that it didn't have much, or any, ventilation or airflow, causing it to get really hot and sweaty and stinky very fast. Especially when you have a room full of people shoulder to shoulder, dancing.

Which is exactly what the case was for Analog Bell Service! They had an insanely hyper energy, and despite some early technical difficulties -- blamed on it being Friday the 13th (even though it was after midnight at that point) -- they put on a pretty great show. Aside from their own songs, they also slipped in "I Can See Clearly Now" and a bit of "Sunglasses at Night". They closed their set out with "I Guess", which has been stuck in my head all day, but just before that was another cover, this time Dan Mangan's Road Regrets, turning it into an up tempo, almost punk rock-ish sound, which was pretty crazy and worked surprisingly well for the song.

Finally around 1:30, Brasstronaut hit the stage to play. They were as fantastic as usual, but I only managed to hear half their set, if that. The mugginess of the room was beginning to get to me, combined with the fact that I had to be at work seven hours from when they started playing meant I had to duck out after about half an hour or so. But I did manage to hear "Hearts Trompet", which is my favourite of theirs; it was superb live, and well worth the sleep deprivation. I even managed to catch the next song, "Lo Hi Hopes", as I stood outside on the street, next to my car, hearing them as clear as if I were in the room. Even though it wasn't the usual lineup -- Colin Cowan of ABS was subbing on the stand-up bass -- they sounded as good as ever, and I really hope I'll get to see them again soon. The worst feeling in the world is leaving a [good] show early, and I really hated to do so for Brasstronaut, whose album is one of my favourites so far this year.

Run With The Heard (w/ The Zolas & Analog Bell Service) -- 06/30/2010

Every year the Vancouver International Jazz Fest sees almost two thousand of bands descend upon the city for various shows over a two week span. A lot of the shows are not really "jazz", but just great music, and this night was part of the event.

The first band was Analog Bell Service, who I wasn't overly familiar with, outside the odd song I had heard on CBC Radio 3 (and speaking of which, the band included R3 personality Chris Kelly). They immediately won me over by the first song, a cover of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now". I've always said bands need to do more awesome covers live, and not only did they do that, but also Corey Hart's "Sunglasses At Night" later in the set, which was just fantastic. The rest of the set consisted of new material for the band, and the band had an insanely high energy and enthusiasm. Their poppy art-rock was spacey at times, flat out rocking at times, but always interesting and captured the crowds attention. They said that this may be their only show for the summer, but hopefully I'll be able to catch them again sometime soon.

At this point, the stage was rushed with fangirls, as The Zolas were up next. Their set was a nice length, considering they were not headlining. Starting with "You're Too Cool" -- which got a pop for mentioning the Biltmore, and had most of the crowd singing along -- they hit most of the songs from their album, Tic Toc Tic. But also thew in a new song, "Guest", which I have seen live a few times now and get stuck in my head after each time. As high energy as Analog Bell Service was, The Zolas managed to ramp up the intensity, with Zach especially being a ball of energy, and just oozing charisma on stage. At one point the band had flowers thrown on stage (no garments of clothing, though) and he mentioned they had some cookies baked for them earlier (though he didn't want to share).
Near the end of the set, for the end of "Queen of Relax" (I believe) they actually took the keyboard, while Tom was playing, and carried it into the front of the crowd to finish the song there. At that point, they just decided to stay, with Henry joining them in the crowd, as they had one more song left. The set ended as Zolas sets usually do, with "Cab Driver", a song that always, somehow, manages to top the rest of their set, energy-wise.

The final act of the night was Run With The Heard, who are, according to their website, a "multi genre electro acoustic audio visual band from Vancouver". They started out playing some almost psychedelic rock riffs, but then once the guy got on vocals and started... rapping... things went strange. The rest of the set was a strange combination of rock, dance beats and rapping that never quite seemed to come together. At the beginning, the crowd seemed completely apathetic, but a few seemed to warm up and dance after a couple songs. Though the crowd started to thin, so it was clear people were there more to see The Zolas. There was one cool thing, though, even if I didn't see it for myself; they had a banjo out for one of their songs, but apparently the "banjo" was actually a Guitar Hero controller modified to replicate the sound.

correction: I have just been informed, by Alex from Run With The Heard that "There in fact was a banjo being played live, it and the guitar and vocals are run through FX and chops that are controlled by the guitar hero midi controller and a nintendo power glove. I know its hard to understand wtf is going on especially if you aren't up close."
Ok, that sounds pretty cool.

Despite the... questionable choice to follow The Zolas (and Analog Bell Service) with that, it was a pretty great night of music.