String Fling III @ Biltmore -- 01/28/15

For the third year running, members of Vancouver's Four on the Floor String Quartet have stepped into the spolight for a show called String Fling. The event sees the quartet -- who have backed up about 87% of all Vancouver bands -- front & centre for the night, to be joined by various local musicians to fuse indie rock with classical strings. Previous years have been at the Rio Theatre, but this year they took over the Biltmore Cabaret for two nights of stringy goodness.

The members of the quartet for the night were Michelle Faehrmann on cello, Elliott Vaughan on viola, and violinists Stephanie Chatman & Emily Bach, and they were occasionally joined by Sean Bayntun on piano. Each musician joining them had a quick set of a couple songs, with the quartet playing their own pieces between each set, usually of songs written by members.


After the quartet started the show, the first performer to join them was frequent collaborator, Dominique Fricot. He took stage with his acoustic guitar and a few heartfelt songs, the strings giving them added emotional weight, especially on "Strange Lady". He also got the crowd participating in a stomp-stomp-clap along to "Those Eyes", before proceeding to act as emcee the entire night, wine glass in hand.

Hannah Epperson was also no stranger to the quartet, being a rotating member herself. Normally a looper, she eschewed her pedal for the first show in a long while, as she had actual humans backing her this time. Her soft and beautiful voice lilted over the strings, and I really liked her second song, a brand new, heavy hitting song, which included Daniel Ruiz on drums (the first of his frequent appearances throughout the night).

The tone shifted a little as Dustin Bentall got up with a bit more of a rockin' sound. As much as the softer songs fit with the string quartet, I always like how seeing things a bit rougher sound. Which was pretty darn good in this case. His first song, "I Have Not Been Sleeping" was just him with the strings, but they were joined by Ruiz on drums again and Ryan Guldemond out on backing vocals for the title track to his latest album You Are An Island.

Wrapping up the first half of the evening was legendary bluesman Jim Byrnes, just putting on a clinic. He dazzled the crowd from his stool with one of his own songs, which he joked was one of the oldest of the night, and then a cover of what was definitely the oldest of the night, "Saint Louis Blues", originally recorded in 1914 by WC Handy. It would have been hard for anyone to directly follow that, so they took a brief intermission at that point.


After the intermission the quartet was accompanied by an interpretive dancer for their song, before it was time for Mother Mother Member Ryan Guldemond. In true Ryan fashion, he challenged the audience with a song about death and attending your own funeral (or not) in his first song "End of Me" and seemed genuinely humbled and honoured to be playing with the quartet, asking them questions and even engaging Elliott in a slight guitar/viola duel at the end of a song.

There was a few repeat acts from previous years, and the next performer Tonye Aganaba was one of them. With her guitar in hand, she jokingly assured the crowd that it was in fact working, after a bit of a technical glitch from last year. Her incredible, soulful voice filling the room for one of her own songs, as well as a powerful cover of Thom Yorke's "Black Swan".

And finally, Bend Sinister's Dan Moxon was the last to play. Taking a seat behind the piano, he played a couple of the band's slower ballady songs, ending with "Careless", but first playing an absolutely gorgeous rendition of "Don't Let Us Bring You Down" -- which may have ruined the song for me, since now I only ever want to hear it with strings.

But that wasn't quite the end, as the quartet was drawn back on stage for one last song, as they were once more joined by Dom Fricot, for a fun cover of INXS' "Never Tear Us Apart".


The only downside this year was the venue. I feel The Rio was a much better place for this kind of show, as while the Biltmore was seated, it was still more of a "club" venue than a "soft seater", and from where I was sitting I could hear incessant talking and chatter all throughout the night. It detracted a little from the show, especially when the quartet was playing beautiful instrumentals.
But that is hardly the musicians' fault, and aside from that it was a great night. String Fling has continually been one of the most unique events in Vancouver, giving these amazingly talented string players, who are usually backing up other bands or off in the wings, the chance to take centre stage and shine.

Sing It Forward @ Vogue -- 01/09/15

Now in its fourth year Sing It Forward (or #SingItFwd) has returned to the Vogue Theatre for yet another sold out show. The annual charity event, put on by David Vertesi and Ambrosia Humphrey Vertesi raises awareness, community connection, and much needed funds for Vancouver's Saint James Music Academy, and over the last three years they've has raised over $100,000 for the music school.
And aside from the show itself, each year the musicians playing will go to the SJMA, hang out with the kids, teach them things, and record some videos performing with the kids.

The evening was hosted by Tamara Stanners (of The Peak) and Cory Ashworth (formerly of the Peak) and featured some video interstitials -- including a great mockumentary about Jordan Klassen with the kids done by by Johnny Jansen. Each band got about 15 minutes, three songs a piece, and the evening went along at a nice clip; rarely did it drag or did people have to wait too long between sets. Some bands chose go to acoustic, or more stripped down sets, and others had a full band setup.


Bend Sinister kicked off the night with the SJMA kids joining them for "Fancy Pants", a super fun and upbeat songs from their new album, which included a few of the kids forming a horn section. The prog-pop band were an energetic opening for the show, and anthemic songs like "Things Will Get Better" filled the theatre.

Jordan Klassen and his band took the stage next. Jordan was, as usual, a barely contained ball of energy, opening with his newest song "Firing Squad". He went backwards from there, with "Go To Me" and a great version of an older song, "Call and Answer", exploding into an intense ending that was a little more raw & aggressive than I had seen from him in the past, which I liked.

Dear Rouge did a bit of a stripped down set, Danielle and Drew were joined only by their drummer on a drum pad, and the Four on the Floor string quartet. Their fun, dancey pop got the room moving, and they invited Jordan Klassen back on stage for a song they wrote together called "Your Ghost" before finishing off with their big single, "I Heard I Had".

Between bands, a very small girl from the SJMA came out to sing "Reflections" from Mulan, melting a lot of hearts in the venue.

Bear Mountain was definitely the most changed act of the night, from their regular sound. With an acoustic guitar in hand, Ian Bevis joked that they were nervously trying things out "sans laptops", and their normally upbeat and dancey songs like "Faded" were mellowed out a lot. But I really liked the acoustic interpretations, especially when they brought up all the kids to be a choir, mimicking the synths in "Congo", in what was one of my favourite performances of the night.

The surprise guest of the night Hannah Georgas closed out the first half of the show, joined only by Rob Tornroos on guitar. She played a couple songs, which felt all-too-short, her gorgeous voice soaring for "Enemies", followed by a cover of Rihanna's "Stay" that had many of the younger kids in the all-ages crowd singing along.

After an intermission, a few of the kids from the SJMA were back out for a little bit of bluegrass, and The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer blew up the energy for the second half of the show. The duo was joined by Jody "Miss Quincy" Peck, and proved that in a sold out, 1,200+ person venue, two guys sitting on stools can bring down the house. They played songs from their new album A Real Fine Mess, including "Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To" and the raucous "Act Your Age"

July Talk was the band I was most looking forward to, and of course ended up being my favourite of the night. Coming all the way from Toronto for the show, they played a full band set, and did not hold back. The entire band has an amazing stage presence, but especially lead singers Leah Fay and Peter Dreimanis. They're playful and outgoing and unfiltered, and that energy flows though their songs. "Guns + Ammunition" had the crowd singing (or whoo-hoo-oo'ing) along, and for "Paper Girl", they invited all the little kids on stage, Leah leading the kids in a giant dance party.

After a bit of a lull with everyone setting up his gear, k-os was out for some acoustic hip hop, with a band that included his old guitar teacher playing alongside him. Perched on a stool at the front of the stage, k-os focused on some older songs, the first three tracks from his sophomore album Joyful Rebellion. He was also the most interactive with the crowd, making sure everyone was warmed up before starting, and getting everyone to sing along to the "Man I Used To Be". At one point, he even stopping the band short just so the crowd could sing the chorus alone.

Hey Ocean!, as usual, wrapped things up. Joking that they were running out of old songs to play at the event, they promised a few newer songs, not even recorded yet. Starting off with "Loud Talker", a song that Vertesi recently released as a solo song, they then brought the SJMA kids out for their collaboration from last year, "Smile Like The Sun" before ending with another new song, "Sleepwalker".

But that wasn't quite it. They still had one more tradition, and that was to bring everyone back out on stage -- all the kids, all the musicians, everyone -- for one last cover song. This year was Queen's "Somebody To Love", and while everyone had their turns singing, they were smart in giving Dan Moxon most of the vocals as he just channelled the spirit of Freddie Mercury. I even saw other musicians on stage react with astonished awe when he nailed that impossibly high note at the end.


Like previous years, everyone from the musicians to the venue donated their time and effort, so all the proceeds could go towards the SJMA. And each year, there is something just a little bit special in the air. Maybe it's the community spirit, or all the talent under one roof, but it is one of the most unique nights in Vancouver. And this year was no different.

If you missed it (first of all, what's wrong with you?!) they were streaming the entire thing and have it archived to view by donation over at Circlework.tv. Or you can find recordings from previous years up on their Bandcamp, where I can only assume you'll be able to find this year's soon enough.

Bend Sinister & Gay Nineties @ Imperial -- 12/27/14

Just when you were getting sick of holiday parties, along comes "Relax, It's Not Another Christmas Party, Party!" A trio of Vancouver favourites teamed up for a show to benefit the Blanket BC Society for one last show of the year (in my calendar, anyway).

And it was a show that I was especially excited for, as not only are Bend Sinister one of the first "Vancouver Indie" bands I really got into years ago, but Gay Nineties are also one of my favourite [relatively] newer local bands.


Unfortunately I missed the first band of the night, The Tourist Company, who recently placed third in the Peak Performance Project (in fact, all three band this night had gone through the competition), getting there shortly before Gay Nineties hit the stage.

They were teasing their new EP, Liberal Guilt, which is out in a couple of weeks (but was on the merch table for people to pick up early) and started off with the appropriately named first track, "Intro", a slow burning build that burst into "Hold Your Fire".
The set ranged from sultry slow jams to high energy rockers; from the "shoop shoops" of "Good Times" to the driving pulse of "Turn Me On", they blended sounds from the last six or seven decades, but never in a way that felt derivative. Their sound is both familiar and fresh, taking those older influences and creating something new and interesting. The entire band also has a great stage presence, but especially frontman Parker Bossley, who has an effortless charm, looking like he would be ready to rock venues of every size.
Aside from their own songs, they slipped in their usual cover of Tom Petty's "American Girl" and the set drew to a close in the most explosive way, a psychedelic segue into their smash hit "Letterman".


Bend Sinister was out not long after, starting off with the aptly named "Thunder and Lightning" before launching into the incendiary "Hot Blooded Man" for a set that spanned just about their entire career. From their self titled 2007 EP to this year's new album and everything in between, songs ranged from the comparatively soft and slow "Through The Week" to the uplifting anthem "Things Will Get Better" to the absolutely balls-out rockers "Teacher".
Dan Moxon's voice went from raw intensity to soaring bursts as he pounded away on the keyboard with a huge energy, and the rest of the band were no slouches either. Especially Matt Rhode, who is one of the most fun bass players to watch live, the complete opposite of the cliché "bored bass face".

Part way through the set they brought out special guest Kristy-Lee Audette on trumpet to help with a few songs from the new album Animals, including the jaunty and ridiculously catchy "Fancy Pants", and my favourite from the new album, "I Got Love" a furious and almost gospel-esque song featuring a phenomenal breakdown. Other highlights included the haunting "Black Magic Woman", and an old favourite "Time Breaks Down".

The main set came to a close with the first track off Animals, the eight minute long "Best Of You" which twists and turns that pretty much encapsulates every aspect of their sound. And of course they were back out for an encore, the low-tempo "Don't Let Us Bring You Down" and then finally ending the night by inviting everyone from Gay Nineties and Kristy back on stage for a fun cover of Dan's favourite piano man, Elton John's Bennie and the Jets.

I always love when bands do that, end the night by inviting everyone back on stage for a cover that everyone can play or sing along to. It just makes the show seem more fun.


My only minor quibble with the set was that there were a couple times where the backing vocals felt a bit too loud, the harmonies overpowering  Dan's main vocals, but that wasn't nearly enough to ruin a fantastic set. Bend Sinister puts on such an amazing and high energy show, and I don't think I will ever get tired of seeing them leave it all on stage.
Combined with a great set from Gay Nineties, who I like more and more every time I see them, and it was a pretty strong musical ending to the year.


setlist
Thunder and Lightning, Hot Blooded Man, Don't You Know, Man of Faith and Virtue, We Know Better, Fancy Pants, I Got Love, Better Things To Do, Teacher, Black Magic Woman, Through The Week, It Will Never End, Things Will Get Better, Time Breaks Down, Best of You. 
(encore) Don't Let Us Bring You Down, Bennie & The Jets [Elton John cover].

Bend Sinister w/ Dominique Fricot @ Performance Works -- 02/23/13

For eight years now, Vancouver Coastal Jazz has been putting on the Winterruption festival on Granville Island, a celebration filled with food and performance and arts and dance and music. This year, one of the featured shows was one of the first Vancouver "indie" bands I got into, Bend Sinister. And joining them was another Peak Performance Project veteran.
Performance Works was busy early as just as many people were there to see Dominique Fricot, who had an all star band of of familiar faces backing him up: Hilary Grist on backup vocals (and keys for a couple songs), Mike Young on bass, Niko Friesen on drums, and members of the Four on the Floor String Quartet for a few songs.

With a full band, Dom's singer/songwriter sound was rich and grandiose, especially the few songs that included strings. He played some familiar, like the catchy "Burn And Start Over" as well as a few new songs throughout the set, including one called "Mother's Day", a funky and soulful tune.

At the end of the set we got the rare opening-act-encore as Dom came back for one last song, joined by his string section for the title track to his latest EP If Baby Could Walk. 

 Fricot is full of charisma and charm on stage, with a good sense of humour when bantering with the crowd, and his songs are full of emotion. But while he is definitely talented, I still think he just needs a bit more of an edge -- some extra kick -- to really set him apart.

setlist
Seashore, Those Eyes, Burn and Start Over, Mother's Day, East Coast Girls, Time is Limited, Haunted by Love, Strange Lady, Our Last Song, Out of the Scenery.
(encore) If Baby Could Walk.

It wasn't long after that when the night was kicked into high gear, with the psychedelic prog-rock-pop of Bend Sinister as they exploded with energy right off the bat with "She Don't Give it Up", the first song from the new album Small Fame. They hardly let up throughout the set with great intensity from all four members; Dan Moxon is a monster on the keys, and he was flanked by guitarist Joseph Blood and Matt Rhode on bass, both of which had rock star energy with their power stances, standing on or straddling the amps, and engaging the crowd to join in.

Highlights from the set included Jason Dana's insane drumming on "CT", the anthemic and uplifting "Things Will Get Better", and the great combo of "Hot Blooded Man" and "Black Magic Woman", an explosive rocker followed by a more sultry jam, complimenting each other perfectly.

After a cover of Billie Joel's "Movin Out" before ending the main set with the older favourite "Time Breaks Down". But of course, they were back out for a few more, including their regular cover of Supertramp's "The Logical Song" -- a band who they've drawn comparisons to -- and finishing it off with the huge and epic "Quest For Love", Moxon's showing off the raw power of his voice for a perfect ending to the set.

 As mentioned above, Bend Sinister is one of the first local bands I really got into, and they still remain a favourite. Their songs are amazingly catchy and there are not many other bands that can match their energy and intensity on stage.

setlist
She Don't Give it Up, Man of Faith and Virtue, CT, Jimmy Brown, Got You On My Mind, One Shot, Don't You Know, Don't Let Us Bring You Down, Things Will Get Better, Dr. Lee, Hot Blooded Man, Black Magic Woman, Movin Out [Billie Joel cover], Time Breaks Down.
(encore) We Know Better, The Logical Song [Supertramp cover], Quest for Love.