Steam Whistle Unsigned w/ JP Maurice, Rolla Olak, & Redbird @ Biltmore -- 04/03/14

The Steam Whistle Unsigned concert series was started by the Toronto microbrewery to promote local unsigned talent, and they have returned to Vancouver for the first show of the year. The ongoing concert series, which takes place in multiple cities across Canada, spotlights three local bands and partners with a charity that receives the proceeds of the show; this time it was Music Heals, an organization that promotes the healing power of music.

Starting off the night was a favourite around these parts, Redbird. It's been a while since any new music from the band, fronted by the lovely voiced Savannah Leigh Wellman, and recently she has been teasing a shift from her previous folksy-rock sound to what she described as "rock you can shake your hips to" -- or simply, Sex Rock. Which was a perfect description to the groovy jams of the new songs that made up the bulk of the set, like the sultry "Wandering One". Even the few old songs were bumped up a little, like "The West Wind" and the almost unrecognizable sexy bass groove given to "No Game".
My favourite of the set was the final song, which I didn't catch the name of; Savannah introduced it as a space rock song, and the slow beginning gradually swelled into a dizzying swirling of John Sponarski's amazing guitar and guest Andrew Rasmussen's keyboard for a great ending to the set. As someone that is maybe starting to think they are getting "over" the current folk movement, I really enjoyed the new sound, and I am very interested to hear the new album that Savannah teased.

Next up was Rolla Olak, who I have seen play a few times recently, ranging from solo to a full band. It's always the latter I enjoy more, and luckily that's exactly what this was, as Rolla was joined by his band (which included John Sponarski pulling double duty). His roots-y sound is a lot more upbeat and rocking with the full band, the energetic boot-stomping songs getting people moving. And while Rolla doesn't say much on stage, his passion is evident.
Part way through the set Savannah came out and helped sing on a slower jam, and as he was finishing up, Rolla got the weeknight crowd to sing along a little to a song called "It's Alright". He wrapped up with probably the best song of his set, a raging blues rocker where he was joined by Eric Larocque on harmonica.
Olak puts on a strong set, but I think is just missing that undefinable something to set him apart and above the others like him, to take him to that next level.

And finally, ending the night was JP Maurice. Joined by a stagefull of familiar faces, his nine-piece band included a host of local musicians; Stephanie Chatman on violin, Jer Breaks on guitar, Timmy "Boom Bap" Proznick on drums, Marcus Abramzik on bass, Andrew Rasmussen on keys, and a backing vocal trio of Alex Badger, Stephanie Mcmahon, and Savannah Wellman. There were a couple times when the nine-piece band felt a little too cumbersome, but the members rotated on and off stage, and for the most part they gelled well.
Starting off with a pair of songs that showcased the darker side of JP's pop-rock, "Poison Heart" and "Get Mad", the set was filled with raw emotions. Many of his songs are about love and/or loss, and the passion pours out of JP when her performs, leaving his heart on the stage every night.
Friend and collaborator David Newberry joined JP on stage for a song, "Pennies" and after the infinitely catchy "Mistake", JP and friends closed the set with the single from his most recent album The Arborist, "The Other One".
But even at a half past midnight, the remaining crowd cheered for more, and the band was back out for one final song, JP's cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams", which briefly morphed into "Teenage Dream" and back again.

Not only was this Unsigned show a great showcase for the local bands, but a great showcase of the local scene. Musicians were crossing bands the entire night, and even the crowd was filled with various members of other bands, there to watch. It's shows like this that show off the level of support that can exist in parts of the Vancouver music scene.

JP Maurice CD release @ Fanclub -- 09/27/13

The long awaited release of JP Maurice's new album The Arborist was last week, and so JP took to Fanclub for his CD release show. He brought along plenty of friends, both on- and off-stage, with four bands playing throughout the night, followed by a DJ set after from Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party.

Broken Down Suitcase started off the night. The rootsy, folk duo comprised of Ben Caldwell and Eric Larocque played an assortment of guitars, banjos, and mandolins, with only the stomp of Ben's boot providing percussion.
Their catchy and melodic songs were driven by some great harmonies between the two of them. Most of them were more laid back songs, but they also had a few rockers; one of which started by getting the crowd to clap along increasingly faster was probably the best of the set.

Next up was Chris Kelly. The Vancouver mainstay has finally released an album of his own solo material, and having missed his CD release show, I was just as (if not more) excited for his set. His backing band had some familiar faces including Nathan Shubert, Rob Butterfield, and former Analog Bell Service bandmate Colin Cowan.
Chris has a massive energy, bounding around the stage and hardly staying still for a minute. He even broke a string on his guitar on the very first song, "Money", and the energy only went up from there.
Highlights of the set included the mid-tempo rocker "Up Nights" and "It's Your Way", which starts off with soft female vocals before gradually bursting into a cacophonous ending. He also threw in a great cover of Carly Simon's "You're So Vain", before wrapping up the set with the infectious "Cold Feet".
The night probably could have ended there and I would have satisfied, but they were only half way done.

The third band of the night was Small Town Artillery, fronted by Tom from The Boom Booms. While his vocals drew immediate comparisons to the two bands, they were less reggae than The Boom Booms; more funk rock, with a bit of a mish-mash of other things thrown in. Their big sound was helped out for one song when they brought up a few members of Five Alarm Funk for a horn section, as well as Boom Boom Aaron.
Admittedly, I am not all that into The Boom Booms, and I didn't really get into the sound of Small Town Artillery either. It's by no means bad, just not "my thing". But they definitely had a great energy on stage and drew people onto the dance floor.

And finally, the man of the hour JP Maurice took the stage. His eleven piece band was wearing all white, and featured members of Willhorse and Broken Down Suitcase and Redbird, Andrew Rasmussen and Badgerchild and Stephanie Chatman, and even a few others. There were a few times where a band that large seemed maybe a little superfluous -- like they were just playing at the same time, not necessarily together -- but for the most part they created a big, rich sound.
He started off the set with "Poison Heart" and "Get Mad" from the new album, both showing the darker side of his alt-pop-rock. A lot of JP's songs are about love and/or loss, and he always has a strong passion and emotion on stage, and this night was no different.
Other highlights of the set included the ridiculously catchy "Mistake" & "Good Feeling", and a fiery blues-tinged rocker that I didn't catch the name of.
He wrapped up the set with his latest single, "The Other One", but of course was back out for one more; starting with a cover of "Young Offenders" by The Constantines and then segueing into "Night Eyes", his collaboration with Tough Lovers from last year's Peak Performance Project, pulling up Jamie Smail to help with vocals.

It was a solid CD release show, and a great night in music all around, with about five shows worth of talent filling the stage throughout the night.

Keloha Festival @ Waterfront Park -- 07/05 - 07/07/13

On the sunny shores of the Okanagan lake in Kelowna BC, the Keloha Festival celebrated its second year. And what a celebration it was. From local heroes like The Matinée and The Zolas, to national favourites like Arkells and The Trews, to international headliners Mutemath, Matt and Kim, and MGMT, the Keloha lineup was the one I was looking forward to most out of all the "local" festivals this summer.

Day one: Friday

I arrived in Kelowna Friday just in time to catch the last couple songs from Yukon Blonde (thanks to a lack of signs and getting blocked out by a body of water and a fence trying to get into the festival). The band sounded great in their hometown, and were definitely a great way to start things off.

After getting settled in and getting the lay of the land; checking out the Island Stage in the middle of a lagoon and the Sandbar Stage right on the beach, and all the vendors in between, it was time for The Trews to take the stage. The Antigonish rockers started with the high energy "The Power of Positive Drinking" and hardly slowed down. They had the hillside crowd singing and clapping along, especially to songs like "Not Ready To Go" and one of my favourites, "Poor Ol' Broken Hearted Me". As they are wont to do, they also had a couple covers slipped in to songs, like U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" in the middle of a new song "Lord, Keep Me In Mind".
After what seemed like not nearly enough time, they ended the set with "Hold Me In Your Arms" to thunderous applause, the crowd definitely revved up.

The night ended with Mutemath, who were the band I was most excited about. I hadn't seen them live in a few years, and was afraid I had hyped them up too much in my mind, but from the minute they hit the stage (and drummer Darren King wrapped his headphones around his head with electrical tape) and started into the title track of their most recent album Odd Soul, I knew I had been worrying for nothing.
The whole band had incredible energy, but especially lead singer Paul Meany. When not at the keyboard, or playing keytar, he would be right up at the barrier, leaning into the crowd singing. He even performed a few of his trademark "keyboard handstands".
Highlights of the set included the relatively-mellow & heartfelt "Noticed", and the explosive "Typical", as well as the grand finale, "Break The Same" which transitioned into "Quarantine" as an air mattress with lights around the side was thrown into the crowd, and Paul got on top to surf the crowd while singing. And as he got back on stage, they ended the set with another bombastic percussion breakdown, leaving the crowd spent and drained for a first night of Keloha that would be hard to top.

Day Two: Saturday

The second day started with a couple Vancouver bands on the Sandbar Stage. Rococode started off the day and were followed by Dear Rouge. Both put on strong sets, despite the early afternoon heat draining everyone's energy (okay, maybe just a certain blogger's energy) and both had a good, dancing-on-the-beach vibe.
(Dear Rouge would later put on an absolute rager at Doc Willoughby's with The Zolas as part of the After Party series)

Over on the Island Stage, Malibu Knights had a pretty generic rock sound, while Fields of Green tore it up for their hometown crowd; their high energy prog-rock sound continuing to grow and amaze me. I caught a bit of Gold and Youth but their dark and synthy sound would be better suited to a dimly lit and smokey venue, not a bright and sunny day.
I also was able to squeeze in a few songs from Shad on the beach stage, "Rose Garden" and "Ya, I Get It", where Shad jumped into the front of the crowd, before his DJ's laptop crashed, and he got the crowd to provide the percussion for the next song.

But I had to leave his set early to go catch The Zolas back at the Island Stage. The crowd was gathering and started to groove as they kicked off with "In Heaven" and "Knot In My Heart", the opening tracks to their most recent album Ancient Mars. As usual, the band had a strong stage presence and energy, especially Zach Gray, who is like a pot simmering over, always ready to erupt.
Most of the set focused on the new album, including the quirky "Observatory", but they also tossed in a couple older songs, like the fiery "Marlaina Kamikaze" and the passionate "You're Too Cool", which ended off the set.

Another one of the main bands I was there to see were up next, Arkells. Even though they had been at a festival the previous night in Toronto, they were advised not to miss this show, thanks to the setting alone, and they made sure to point out it was definitely worth it.
"On Paper" started off the set, with the band's energy through the roof, as usual. They are a fantastic and tight live band, and lead singer Max Kerman has an amazing and effortless stage presence. Highlights included "Oh, The Boss is Coming", which got the crowd yelling along, and they also dug into a little Motown that they save for special occasions with a cover of Jackson 5's "I Want You Back".
They wrapped up the set with one of my favourites, "John Lennon", and the raucous "Whistleblower".

Australia's Atlas Genius was up next, but while they were starting to amass a bigger crowd who were getting the dance party started, I thought their set felt a little flat. It was a pretty upbeat rock sound, and they were certainly very fine musicians, but a lot of the songs sounded pretty much the same and I just couldn't get into it.

And finally, wrapping up the second night was Matt and Kim. I had heard they were good live, but I had no idea just how nuts Matt Johnson on keys (and the odd sample, like the explosion he used to punctuate things) and Kim Schifino on drums (sometimes literally standing atop the drums to play, or clap, or "shake her booty") would be. They came right out with an incredible energy and fantastically likeable personalities to whip the crowd into a frenzy. They weren't just playing for the crowd, they wanted to party with them.
From throwing out balloons, to getting everyone to simultaneously jump, to Kim running atop the crowd to dance while people held her upright, both musicians were full of raw enthusiasm, which was absolutely contagious.
I wasn't too familiar with their music -- only recognizing the bouncy "Cameras" and "Daylight" -- which ended the set, but they definitely put on an amazing show and I wouldn't hesitate to see them again.

Day Three: Sunday

Unfortunately, I had to head back to reality early on Sunday, meaning I would miss MGMT, but I did manage to catch a few local favourites before departing.

I got there just in time for Maurice to take the Island Stage, joined by a couple familiar faces, including Andrew Rasmussen on keys and Stephanie Chatman on violin. Starting off the set with "Get Mad", JP has an effortless stage presence and fills his songs with raw emotion, and highlights included the undeniably catchy "Mistake" and the best song that deals with the repercussions of a threesome, "Robin".

Wake Owl was up next, and I'm not sure if it was where I was perched on the hill, but the sound wasn't too great; their rich and lush orchestral sound didn't seem to translate very well. They played some songs off their Wild Country EP, the eponymous song being a highlight, and a few new ones which were a bit more upbeat and jaunty.

At that point, The Matinée was supposed to be taking the Sandbar Stage on the beach, but they had a little bit of highway trouble and were still on their way, so they swapped with Saskatchewan grunge band One Bad Son who were pretty much an average and generic grunge band.

But The Matinée did manage to get there just in time for their new set on the Island Stage, and despite the ten hours of travel they had just endured, they still put on one heck of a set. Starting off, as they usually do, with "L'absinthe", they put boots to the ground and kicked things into high gear. They got people clapping along to "Sweet Water", which also featured a great banjo solo from Matt Rose, threw in their cover of Zeppelin's "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp", and wrapped it up with "The Road", with its top-notch percussion breakdown.


And with that, I had to head back. I was disappointed to leave, but not too sad of missing the rest of the day, as they were mostly artists I had seen or didn't have too much interest in, and the weekend was already packed with enough memorable moments to last a dozen festivals over.

If the lineup is even a fraction as good as this next year -- and if they keep the "After Party" series going, with smaller bands playing in small local venues -- I will be back to the Okanagan in a heartbeat.

Peak Performance Project Showcase #3 @ Red Room -- 10/04/12

The Peak Performance Project is a multi-year contest in which The Peak, along with Music BC, picks 20 BC musicians/bands a year and makes them stars. Past winners are We Are The City, Kyprios, and Current Swell with a ton of great bands and artists included as well.

Part one of the project was a rock & roll boot camp where they went on a week long retreat to get lectures and advice from industry pros to help them refine their craft. Phase two is a series of shows at The Red Room, four artists a night for five weeks, each playing a 45 minute set. The bands are rated by a panel of judges, which will go toward their final score in the project, and they've also been tasked to learn a "Classic Canadian Cover" to play during their set. I always love hearing bands play cover songs, and I am definitely looking forward to see who each act chooses (and, as in the past, I am going to keep a running tally on how many Arcade Fire, Neil Young or Leonard Cohen songs we get).

For both the first and second showcases, the sound at the Red Room hadn't been the greatest, but for this night it was very OFF. It was through no fault of the bands; as I understand it, the mixing board fried before the show, so there was a scramble to get things up and running. But it still took a little away from the whole night. For one thing, a lot of the banter or talking between songs was either too loud or muffled (or somehow both), and there were feedback problems the whole night. 

Alexandria Maillot: One of this year's returning artists, Alexandria was in the first year of the Project, but wasn't eligible to return until now due to age restrictions (which were not in place the first year). She has an amazingly strong and soulful voice with a sound that bounced from poppy to soulful with a hint of folk at times. Her cover was "The Weight" from The Band, which was not a bold choice, but she covered it well.
She ended with what was my favourite of the set, the song featured on The Peak "Take Me Home", a jaunty and upbeat piano driven tune.
She has a great talent, but is still young, and I think she just needs to "finds her sound" so to speak.

Dear Rouge: With canned music and red lights bathing the stage, the duo of Danielle and Drew McTaggart came out with their band and launched into an electronic-tinged pop-rock set. It was very dancey and high energy, with Danielle hardly staying still, dancing up a storm while singing.
Their cover was another familiar choice with The Guess Who's "No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature", a perfectly good cover, even though the harmonies didn't really come across. Part way through the set, most of the band left except for Danielle who was then joined by Indiana Avent on violin for a slower, acoustic song, which was good but felt wildly out of place in the set.
The band is still pretty new, and I think they have the most untapped potential out of everyone I've seen so far. With a bit more experience I have no doubt that they could win the competition... if they reapply next year.
(And, on a purely superficial note, I think they could have picked a better name. "Dear Rouge" looks nice on paper, but just sounds awkward when said aloud. It doesn't roll off the tongue, coming out more like "Deer Ooge")

Facts: Next up was the groovy synthy pop of Facts. They took the stage wearing matching white and the lights went down for a crazy light show, lasers beaming out into the crowd. They were also joined by PPP veteran Garth Covernton (41st & Home) on drums. Right off the bat, I found the vocals were a bit overprocessed and muddy. Not sure if that was their sound, or due to the aforementioned audio problems, but that, combined with the similarity of the set, made it seem to drag a little towards the end; they were definitely not bad, but it got a bit repetitive.
For their cover they chose "Ice Cream" from Sarah McLachlan, though to be honest, I didn't even realise until after the set. I am not overly familiar with the song, and with the low VOCALS between songs I didn't hear its introduction. They also threw in a cover of Joanna Newsom's "Peach, Plum, Pear", and were joined at one point by Evan Konrad (aka Bed of Stars).
It wasn't a bad set by any means, but I got the impression that they could have done a lot better.

Maurice: Yet another returning act to the project, JP Maurice and company wrapped up the night. While the other three this night I didn't know too well, I was already a fan of Maurice's alt-pop sound, so I was looking forward to his set.
Starting with "Get Mad", JP wasted no time playing to the crowd, going right up to the edge of the stage. For the undeniably infectious "Mistake" he was joined by Stephanie Chatman on violin and his cover was "Woodstock" from yet another renowned Canadian, Joni Mitchell.
After his version of TLGLTP's "Robin" -- the catchiest song about a threesome you'll hear -- he brought out a few members of Tough Lovers and Evan Konrad was back out for their Bootcamp Co-Write song, "Night Eyes".
I don't know if it was the best set I've seen Maurice play -- the sound issues were probably a factor -- but JP is a fantastic songwriter, his songs, and live performances, always exuding raw emotion. And are damn catchy. I really hope he makes the top five, and won't be surprised if he does.