This extremely late post is my fault. Who decided to put the "Save post" button so close to the "Pulish post" buttom? Anyhow, enjoy!
Last night I was able to catch Sonic's most recent band of the month for October, Zerbin. The band is made up of 5 members and took to the stage at about 11pm. Even though it was a Wednesday, I thought that the Pawnshop would eventually fill out as it usually does when the night carries on. This time however the venue stayed relatively..."spacious". Only the front of the stage had audience memebrs, while the back only had the empty booths and bartenders hanging around.
The band was actually good live. I didn't mean for that to come out as condescening, but...it did.... And that's only because there's no other way to put it; I like their radio single quite a bit, but thought that that would be it. For me they were reminiscient of Coldplay, while my concert buddy thought they were borderline Snow Patrol-clones. For me it's hard to say I really like a band when I can so easily compare them to others. Even though they did in fact play a really good set, and the singer, Jason Zerbin (yup, you guessed it, the band is named after him), has a great vocal range, I just didn't "feel" anything. I wouldn't be opposed to seeing them or listening to their album once more for a clearer idea, but I just wasn't drawn into it as much as I have been with other local acts. But then again my concert buddy just near fell in love when he saw them perform, so between the two of us there was no middle ground. Make your own decision! Since the band is homegrown they play around the city quite often. Right now they just set off for the Eastern side of the country, but I would definitely suggest checking them out when they set their sights back home!
Monday, October 24, 2011
Monday, October 17, 2011
Break in the Road
Look what I just found on Facebook and since I couldn't figure out how to "Share" to this blog...I just decided to ...share...on this blog!
As far as I can tell it'll be a mix of different artists showcasing some skills. Skills which I'm not completely 100% on...However I can gurarantee "Michael Rault DJ" will be there! As should you!
Friday, October 14, 2011
ATAA Street Team Showcase
The ATAA (or Arts Touring Alliance of Alberta, for long) has put together it's first ever artist showcase, and will be showing off (get it?) this upcoming Thursday, Oct 20. The coolest part about this showcase? It's free!
The night will feature amazing local artists Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, 100 mile house, Scenic Route to Alaska, and Fast Moving Mountains. Those of you who follow this blog religiously (I hope you exist, otherwise this might be embarrassing), will know that 2/4 of those groups are counted in my favourites bands. (MBF, and SRtA). I've also been trying to find a way to see 100 mile house band after hearing only great things about them, and Fast Moving Mountains should be the cherry on the free show supporting a great organization.
Follow this link to join their Facebook group; the first 50 people to join, and send them a tweet @albertashowcase explaining why they should get chosen to go will get in the doors! After 50...well...I think that you might just get left out in the windy and damp outdoors.
The night will feature amazing local artists Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, 100 mile house, Scenic Route to Alaska, and Fast Moving Mountains. Those of you who follow this blog religiously (I hope you exist, otherwise this might be embarrassing), will know that 2/4 of those groups are counted in my favourites bands. (MBF, and SRtA). I've also been trying to find a way to see 100 mile house band after hearing only great things about them, and Fast Moving Mountains should be the cherry on the free show supporting a great organization.
Follow this link to join their Facebook group; the first 50 people to join, and send them a tweet @albertashowcase explaining why they should get chosen to go will get in the doors! After 50...well...I think that you might just get left out in the windy and damp outdoors.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Secret House Concert Pictures
Finally added pictures of the secret house concert with Library Voices and Dinosaur Bones from last month! They're on Picasa, but if I did it correctly you should only be able to view them if you use this link!
PS. Hope to see you at the Collective West/Snailhouse/Zachary Lucky show tonight at Haven Social Club on Stony Plain Rd. :)
PS. Hope to see you at the Collective West/Snailhouse/Zachary Lucky show tonight at Haven Social Club on Stony Plain Rd. :)
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Edmonton Music Awards - Update for 2012
The Edmonton Music Awards recognize local artists from the city and surrounding area based on works released from the year past. There will be some updates to nomination categories for the coming year as follows (quoted from an EMA email):
"A couple months ago we asked 'What award categories would you like to see included in the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards'?
Thanks to the overwhelming amount of suggestions and feedback we received from the many Edmonton and area music supporters, we are excited to share the list of award categories for the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards
Album Of The Year
Single Of The Year
Group Of The Year
Male Artist Of The Year
Female Artists Of The Year
Pop Album Of The Year
Rap/Hip Hop Album Of The Year
Country Album Of The Year
Roots/Folk Album Of The Year
Rock Album Of The Year
Metal Album Of The Year
Blues Album Of The Year
Jazz Album Of The Year
R&B/Soul Album Of The Year
Music Video Of The Year
Artist To Watch*
People’s Choice*
*Winner determined by online voting
Who was eligible for an EMA?Any artists from the Edmonton area, including St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Leduc, Stony Spruce Grove & Stony Plain (maximum 100km radius). The eligibility period for the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards is between January 1, 2011 and December 31st, 2011. This means that the artist's product (single, album, or video) must have been released to the general public within this time frame. The 'Release date' for EMA eligibility purposes is defined as the date of the first shipment to retail, radio or the date of first online transaction. Proof of transaction or shipment may be requested. The only exception is the category for Artist To Watch. This category is reserved for artist with plans on releasing new material in 2012. Artists from outside the area, who recorded their releases in Edmonton, will also be considered.
Do artists have to submit to be considered?YES! If you are an artist who is eligible for a 2012 Edmonton Music Award and would like to be considered, please see the submission guidelines on EdmontonMusicAwards.comEdmonton Music Awards"
"A couple months ago we asked 'What award categories would you like to see included in the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards'?
Thanks to the overwhelming amount of suggestions and feedback we received from the many Edmonton and area music supporters, we are excited to share the list of award categories for the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards
Album Of The Year
Single Of The Year
Group Of The Year
Male Artist Of The Year
Female Artists Of The Year
Pop Album Of The Year
Rap/Hip Hop Album Of The Year
Country Album Of The Year
Roots/Folk Album Of The Year
Rock Album Of The Year
Metal Album Of The Year
Blues Album Of The Year
Jazz Album Of The Year
R&B/Soul Album Of The Year
Music Video Of The Year
Artist To Watch*
People’s Choice*
*Winner determined by online voting
Who was eligible for an EMA?Any artists from the Edmonton area, including St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Leduc, Stony Spruce Grove & Stony Plain (maximum 100km radius). The eligibility period for the 2012 Edmonton Music Awards is between January 1, 2011 and December 31st, 2011. This means that the artist's product (single, album, or video) must have been released to the general public within this time frame. The 'Release date' for EMA eligibility purposes is defined as the date of the first shipment to retail, radio or the date of first online transaction. Proof of transaction or shipment may be requested. The only exception is the category for Artist To Watch. This category is reserved for artist with plans on releasing new material in 2012. Artists from outside the area, who recorded their releases in Edmonton, will also be considered.
Do artists have to submit to be considered?YES! If you are an artist who is eligible for a 2012 Edmonton Music Award and would like to be considered, please see the submission guidelines on EdmontonMusicAwards.comEdmonton Music Awards"
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Venturing to the Deep Dark Woods
I'm not quite sure how to describe the Saskatoon based band, The Deep Dark Woods...They're not just folk, they're not just country, they're not just "alternative", and they're not just typical. I had never actually heard this band before, but had heard good things from quite a few different people. They had recently been in Edmonton in August to perform at Folk Fest, which I was unfortunately out of the country for. But this was the perfect opportunity to see them, and see a new venue at the Royal Alberta Musuem.
I had never had the chance, or even known that the museum had a facility to accommodate music, but the band fit the venue just right. It was a smaller theatre within the museum, that fits 417 people (yes, I went to their website to check...), with three seating sections and a stage that easily held two different 6 piece bands.
It took longer than usual to have the opening band start, about 1 1/2 hour after doors opened. I hadn't been to this venue before, but it seemed like everyone was just starting to get a bit impatient with how long it was taking, especially since it was 1/2 that we were made to wait in the foyer after doors opened, but before we could actually get into the theatre.
I had never had the chance, or even known that the museum had a facility to accommodate music, but the band fit the venue just right. It was a smaller theatre within the museum, that fits 417 people (yes, I went to their website to check...), with three seating sections and a stage that easily held two different 6 piece bands.
It took longer than usual to have the opening band start, about 1 1/2 hour after doors opened. I hadn't been to this venue before, but it seemed like everyone was just starting to get a bit impatient with how long it was taking, especially since it was 1/2 that we were made to wait in the foyer after doors opened, but before we could actually get into the theatre.
Hollerado meets our mayor
When it was announced shortly after Sonic Boom 2011 (Sept 04), that Hollerado would be making a stop in Edmonton, during their upcoming "Meet the Mayor" tour, I already knew that I would be going to see them no matter the venue/cost. Well little did I know that they would choose to perform at Wunderbar, one of the smaller venues in Edmonton, for an intimate group of about 90 people. The event was going to be done "Wunderbar style" as well; this means that it would be on a "first come first served" basis (if you weren't one of the first 90 people through the door, well...hopefully you'd be around next time they toured...)
I was pretty nervous and thought that there would be a massive line for a band that's been creating a following during the past year. Lots of radio play for their songs "Americanarama", and "Juliette" along with their spot at Sonic Boom was finally starting to get them widely recognized out here in Western Canada.
The owner of the bar was only going to open the doors at 8pm, and keep the doors open until the venue reached capacity (which isn't hard for such a place). While we came far too early (I arrived at 6, and until about 7:30 there wasn't much more than a handful of people waiting), this gave us the chance to see the band pull up in their over-graffitied, full of character van, and unload their equipment. Once it was closer to doors-open the band even came around to the line up and talked to the crowd for a while. They even brought along a friends pair of corgi dogs. This brings about another reason, besides talent and stage presence, of why I count this band as one of my favourites: their down-to-eath personalities. Even though they are starting to get more and more fans, they're still as humble as ever, and are willing to have a chat with you instead of sitting alone in the venue drinking and keeping to themselves. All 4 members were helping to sell merch, as well as signing any t-shirts, CDs or vinyls that fans were interested in.
I was pretty nervous and thought that there would be a massive line for a band that's been creating a following during the past year. Lots of radio play for their songs "Americanarama", and "Juliette" along with their spot at Sonic Boom was finally starting to get them widely recognized out here in Western Canada.
The owner of the bar was only going to open the doors at 8pm, and keep the doors open until the venue reached capacity (which isn't hard for such a place). While we came far too early (I arrived at 6, and until about 7:30 there wasn't much more than a handful of people waiting), this gave us the chance to see the band pull up in their over-graffitied, full of character van, and unload their equipment. Once it was closer to doors-open the band even came around to the line up and talked to the crowd for a while. They even brought along a friends pair of corgi dogs. This brings about another reason, besides talent and stage presence, of why I count this band as one of my favourites: their down-to-eath personalities. Even though they are starting to get more and more fans, they're still as humble as ever, and are willing to have a chat with you instead of sitting alone in the venue drinking and keeping to themselves. All 4 members were helping to sell merch, as well as signing any t-shirts, CDs or vinyls that fans were interested in.
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