Current State of Rock

Have you heard about the new fight for a new year? Drummer for the Black Keys, Patrick Carney, seems to be opening up a can of worms with Nickleback fans saying that the Canadian band is the cause for the decline of rock and roll music. ""Rock and roll is dying because people became OK with Nickelback being the biggest band in the world." True, the genre has been in a decline for the past little while, but there's no recreating bands like the Beatles, or the Who. I, for one, don't think that rock is in a downward sprial at all, but is definitely taking giant leaps in a different direction than before.

Take a read through the article from an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine. Carney does seem to go on and on bashing Nickleback, but I think he makes some good points. The world has seem to just accept this quartet that just recreates the same song, but with different words. Settling just doesn't seem acceptable when it comes to music, or art, for that matter. If there is no motivation to keep progressing, then where would we ever be with music now?

Oh hey 2012

Are you ready to say goodbye to the year that was 2011? Well...you don't really have a choice. I wish I could have held on just a little longer; it was the year of the most concerts, shows, events for me thus far. But all good things must end. Now I'm just hoping that 2012 will be able to compare...

Maybe I should've posted the following just before last year (weird to say that isn't it?) was over, but I decided to postpone, so that I could also put up a portion of Sonic's annual year-in-review songlist created by Rick Lee.

We'll start with mine:

What are you doing New Year's Eve?

Zooey Deschanel, the dark haired actress that everyone is smitten with, has been growing as a recording artist for a while now, especially with her duo She & Him. This has nothing to do with She & Him.

Zooey recently recording a song, "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" with co-star (in the backwards love-story, 500 Days of Summer) Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I'm a huge fan of JGL, ever since his 3rd Rock from the Sun days, but I, for one, had no idea that JGL could sing  (it seems like everyone can at least try their luck at it nowadays). I'll be honest, being at work right now with a flash player that willl never work, I haven't heard the song just yet. So really, I wanted you to hear this first (sure...there are people around the world who could hear it too, but let's not think about them).

Enjoy!

Michael Rault says goodbye to Edmonton

Yes, it's been said before, doesn't make the news any better though: Michael Rault will be leaving Edmonton for the French pastures of Montreal, along with his sister, this coming January. His last show will be at the ARTery this Saturday (a New Year's plan for those late planners and procrastinators). Sandra Sperounes wrote this article in the Edmonton Journal just minutes ago, and maybe Rault is right: "Maybe you have to go away for awhile to build up the mystique about you.” Only time will tell.

Sheepdogs...well..I Don't Know

Yesterday I was lucky enough to be able to go to Sonic for one of their intermittent "Sonic Sessions", where a band, usually playing a venue later on that night, will come and perform in their "Listener Lounge" for about 40 audience members. The room is tight, the fans are eager, and the band usually sounds great for such a small space.

This time, however, the buzz band, the Sheepdogs, had no notes, riffs, or raspy vocals for us to enjoy. Not quite clear exactly why the band, out of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan was not able to play (something to do with "all the promotion around the night's show....they weren't allowed to play prior...or something to that effect), but it was disappointing, to say the least. I'm not sure about other people who attended, but I was there since I didn't get tickets to their sold-out show at the Starlite Room later on that evening. I was there to hear them play. Sure, they signed the free EP vinyl that they gave away (named "Five Easy Pieces"), and sure they did a longer than normal interview with one of the DJ personalities that regularly hosts the Sonic Sessions. But really, for an up and coming band, no matter how talked about they are, it was not the best first impression. Tons of major bands and artists have played in the lounge before, and yes, I know they're restricted by their record label, but doesn't mean that it doesn't irk me (for lack of a more appropriate word). I hope this really was the fault of the label, and has nothing to do with a stereotypical "Rock Star" status that tends to appear when a new band reaches fame so quickly.

Farewell 2011 & Michael Rault

So you've been patiently awaiting to hear this announcement...since a few minutes ago. Well here goes the big news that you may or may not already know: Michael Rault will be moving away from Edmonton, and setting up camp out east in Montreal. It's bittersweet to see such a great artist move away from their hometown, much like Christian Hansen & the Autistics a few months ago. It's amazing to see bands and musicians grow and develop over the years, but still a bit sad that I won't get to see them every other week, or see them walking down the street. I'm so glad that MR will be able to hopefully get his sound out to more and more people and am already excited for his first time back playing in Edmonton.

But WAIT. THERE'S MORE. Before moving away, Michael Rault will be having one last hurrah, playing along with another favourite of mine, Scenic Route to Alaska, on New Year's Eve at the ARTery. Tickets are on sale now through YEGlive, and if you're interested, which...well...let's not play around here, I know you are, I would get them ASAP. The ARTery is a very small venue, and I can see these bands being crazy fun to ring in the new year with! (I'm not so bad either).

Priceless laugher and price-less music

For the longest time, about 1/2  a month!, I haven't had much to say. The end of November was not stellar for shows/concerts and I just wasn't feeling inspired to write any non-concert entries! But now, oh boy, let me tell you, I ...have quite a bit to tell you!

First off lets start with the more dire, urgent and pressing matters that you must attend to immidiately! Comedian Demetri Martin is coming to Canada, and more specifically the Winspear Centre in Edmonton, as part of his "Telling Jokes in Cold Places 2012" tour. I'm not sure if you've been able (or so fortunate) as to see Martin before or to even see his Comedy Network show/youtube shorts, but if you haven't you MUST! Tickets for his January 5th show in Edmonton just went on sale today at 10am. Visit http://www.winspearcentre.com/ to purchase! (Martin often tells jokes to the light strum of his acoustic guitar, so...it *could* be considered concert-like...with hilarious outcomes).

Next up to the stage (and technically even more crucial right now) is Acres of Lions. The Victoria, B.C band is dishing out the Christmas presents early this year and playing an absolutely FREE show at Filthy McNasty's this Saturday. Straight from the lions' mouth,  it'll be an early show (doors at 4pm), and no minors allowed.  If you're hanging around the house doing nothing this Saturday, or enjoy a FREE show as much as...me, then I'll see you there! I mentioned it's free right? You can sample them on CBC Radio 3.

I have one other special surprise for you....But am giving a whole, entire post for it. Stay tuned.

Yer Fall

Even though the weather outside is frightful (literally), there's no reason not to curl up with a blanket, cup of tea and a Hey Rosetta! concert! (Except, maybe, don't bring your blanket and tea....theatres tend to frown on that...)

Tuesday night the 7 piece indie rock/folk band from Newfoundland brought along the Aussie band, the Jezebels. When the 2 guys-2 girl band took to the stage I immediately assumed I wouldn't like them (mostly due to the fact that the lead singer, Hayley Mary, was wearing what looked eerily similar to a leather onesie. Not to judge a book by it's cover...but I definitely did. However after one song they had me convinced that they were something on the special side. Mary's voice is hard to describe, but can be compared to Karen O from the Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's. She definitely has a huge vocal range that impressed me. After their set I found out that they are one of the most popular bands in Australia right now, selling out something like 20,000 capacity stadiums...! Funny that here they're opening the Myer Horowitz for a homegrown band...But I suppose you have to start somewhere! They bring a funny sort of energy to the stage, with Mary's slightly awkward dancing, and the bands dry, but easy and appreciative banter. I can see them getting popular here in Canada, especially with a song like Easy to Love. One of the few times I sincerely enjoyed an opening band (well, one that I hadn't heard of beforehand anyway!).

Hey Rosetta! took to the stage at about 9.30 and played about a 1.5 hour set. I'll get the one complaint I had out of the way (which will make me sound much older than I am, I'm sure): after the 2nd song the audience was all on it's feet. Granted it was encouraged by HR's lead singer, but when I see a show at a theatre or the like I don't want/expect to be standing around, especially when listening to slow folk (for the most part, they do have a few fast paced songs, yes, but for me the majority of it is not music I would be getting up to dance to). I tried to stick to my guns for the first couple of songs, but when you're the only person left sitting in a theatre, vision becomes a little obscured (which it shouldn't be when you're in the first few rows). Anyhow, it didn't affect the music obviously, but definitely changed the concert experience for me.

HR played a set including Red Heart, Seeds, and an encore that including David Bowie/Mott the Hoople cover medley. The crowd was obviously enjoying it, with what seemed like a tonne of ex-Newfoundlanders (and biggest fans) making up the audience. One of the most important things at a concert can be who else is attending, and how the audience creates an energy and buzz. The vibe was great at the show with so many people mouthing along to Tim Baker's vocals. This would be the 2nd time I was able to see HR, after seeing them open for the Tragically Hip in summer, and each time the band's layering of instruments has left me impressed. I especially loved watching the string section change instruments for different songs, and even during songs sometimes.

I have to say that one of my favourite parts of the show may have even been when the Jezebels helped set off a confetti machine during the last few songs and encore. However, it wasn't just any old confetti machine, my friends. No, no, this one was particularly Canadian: the "confetti" was made up of red, yellow, and orange maple leafs. This touch of the season completed the perfect ending to the "Yer Fall" tour.

Dan Mangan and his man-gang

Dan Mangan and his Man-Gang (clever words from opening band, The Daredevil Chrisopher Wright) shook the walls of McDougall United Church last night. I have been waiting for a great band to play here for quite a few years, since I've heard it's one of the best places in the city for acoustics and sound. It definitely didn't dissapoint.

After waiting outside for about 45 minutes (one of the only downsides to the show), we grabbed a spot on the 2nd level, or balcony of the church. It's hard to say that there's a bad spot for seating in the venue since every seat is a few inches above the rows ahead. However there are a few pews that are partially tucked behind pillars...which apparently called for people to start sitting on the floor, and stairs and partially blocking my view of the stage.

The show started around 8 with The Crackling as the opening band. I've talked a bit about this band before, after having seen them open for Mangan last November. Why they'd be opening for the same band you might ask? Well Kenton Loewen, lead guitarist and vocalist for The Crackling actually plays drums in Mangan's band....with the rest of the 4 piece Crackling also belonging to Dan Mangan's band. So since there is such an overlap (with everyone, except Mangan, playing in both bands), it only makes sense to have them opening for his set. What made even more sense and was a nice surprise is when Mangan came out to play drums for the set, and completed the parralel-universe................


The Crackling played a very short set of 4-5 songs before the 2nd opening band, The Daredevil Christopher Wright (yes, that's a band name!), came out on stage. The set was done entirely acoustically with two guitars, and appearances from the xylophone, drums and...wait for it...the recorder. I personally thought they ceased to exist after Grade 6. The singers voice immediately caught my attention, but I can't pinpoint why. I don't wanna say he had a soft voice, because it still held a lot of power to it, but it was just so...flowly and melodic. Which...sounds...much more lame than I meant it to...But I feel like you understand me.

TDCW played a longer set for about 45mins-1hour. As I mentioned above the acoustics in this venue were always talked about to be amazing. And from the first note of the Crackling and especially during the softer harmonies of TDCW, it was easy to see why everyone raves about McDougall. The sound was crystal clear, and even on the 2nd balcony still sounded like we were sitting in an intimate room with each band. 


Dan Mangan and co. came out at about 10pm, and I thought he'd only end up playing about an hour. Max. Boy, did he prove me wrong. When the show ended almost an hour and 45 minutes later, I couldn't see one person that wasn't on their feet. He played his "classics" (they feel like they should be) like "Road Regrets", "The Indie Queens Are Waiting", along with the majority of his new album Oh Fortune. Some songs he played with his backing band, and some were completely solo and done acoustically. I'd have to wrack my brain to think of something terrible to say about a set that seems so full of ...life. That sounds sarcastic, especially with ellipses...but really it's just me that can't think of anything else to say! Of course the encore included "Robots", Mangan's classic sing-a-long. Each and every time I've been lucky enough to be around for this song it's been just as powerful as the last time. This most recent time had Dan jump down from the stage with his guitar and a microphone, and standing on two of the church pews. Everyone was standing, clapping and singing along to "Robots need love too/They wanna be loved by you", and gave such a sense of...belonging. Along with his charismatic wit, and easy going banter, Mangan's shows  are seem to always be full of good-natured, homegrown Canadiana. 

Wasting Light

Oh...was it Halloween? I was too busy hanging out with the Cage the Elephant, Foo Fighters, and Sam Roberts to notice any vampires, ghouls, or witches. My bad.

Friday morning, bright and early at 6am, the weekend started (even though work came in between for a few hours), when I got to take in Sonic's 7th annual Halloweenie roast. I never knew breakfast could be so magical until they decided to make it a can of pop, full-size chocolate bar, and hot dog. All for the low low price of free.

That night was to be the "greatest rock show in the city of the year": Foo Fighters. They took to the stage at about 9pm, just after Cage the Elephant played an energetic set, and Mariachi El Bronx played Edmonton for the first time ever.

M.E.B was good...for a mariachi rock band...The guitar was amazing (there were 3 of them after all), along with a violin, drum kit, and two trupets. However the singing did nothing to impress me. I actually enjoy their intrumental songs a bit more. The singing wasn't awful by any means...it just didn't seem right with that type of music.

Oh...Cage the Elephant. I wonder if they'll ever get any of the recognition from concert goers like they deserve. I haven't been able to see them headline a show just yet, but I feel like that would make the night go a lot differently. This time, it was like deja vu, reminding me of when they opened for the Black Keys earlier in the year. The arena wasn't very full when they started their set, and even the people who were there didn't see too into it. Granted they are quite an intense band, especially singer Matt Schultz, but that should only add to the whole experience...right?! Since when did it become the norm to only want a band to come out, say nothing, play some songs that sound just like they do on the radio or album, and walk away, again saying nothing? I love the energey that CtE puts into each show, and the fact that Schultz is willing to get up there and scream, and almost always be so near to tearing his shirt off in angst.

Foo Fighters to the stage on schedule and played for 2.5 hours. I don't have much to say, since they are a well-tuned machine and know exactly what/how/when to say things to a doe-eyed audience. They played classics like "Monkey Wrench", "All my life", "Best of you", "This is a call" etc, and ended their 45 minute encore with "Everlong". The only complaint I could think of would be that they didn't play ENOUGH of songs I personally wanted to hear like "D.O.A" or "For all the cows", but you can't win em all can you. Their extros to some songs were quite heavy and long, and depending on the person could've rocked your world, or been a lullaby. I was glad to get my money's worth for an expensive ticket, but didn't expect any less from this generation's greatest living musician, Dave Grohl. It would've just seemed odd if they played an hour and left without a few witty comments and banter.

Stay tuned for part II of this post for Halloween weekend: Sam Roberts. I thought you'd appreciate a double feature. Well...I hope. It'll be up in a jiff! (Time me for a jiff. I'll beat it)

PS - NOV04. For those waiting and holding their breaths for the Sam Roberts post....keep holding on. It'll be up tomorrow. Yes. Its after my latest post....Shhh.

Zerbin

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!

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!

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.

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. :)

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"

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.

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.

Christian Hansen's Farewell

It's not all that often that original, creative and talented musicians come from hard work and persistance. Nowadays it seems like some of the biggest money makers are formed, and produced by some bigger company. And it's especially tough to find such amazing artists in a city like Edmonton. Not to say that it doesn't happen, just take a look at Christian Hansen and the Autistics. They were one of Sonic's only lasting Bands-of-the-Month, and their rising populartiy is taking them to Toronto. Well, Christian and his wife, Molly Flood, who plays keyboards etc in the group. Two of the bands original members are unfortunately no longer part of the move, and current drummer, Doug Organ, and bassist, Doug Hoyer, will also be staying in Edmonton. Once they're settled they'll be trying to immediately find a new drummer and bassist to round out their quartet, as well as releasing sophmore album "Dance Floor Deathcore", and two new music videos (one of which yours truly is in!).
 If you'd like to read a bit more about the band's move, and an interview with Christian Hansen, click here.

It's tough to see a group like Christian Hansen & the Autistics leave Edmonton, but hope for them creating bigger and better things in Eastern Canada is the only thing pulling me through.

Photo changes

For all those Through Music... loyalists out there (let me delude myself for a minute), you might notice a minor change when it comes to the pictures I post. I used to have a few recent show pics up, towards the bottom of the homepage. I've realized this is too difficult to keep up to date, and since I already upload the entire show-of-the-time's pictures on my Picasa album...it's just more work!

So, now instead of feeling constantly guilty for not updating those few pictures, I've just decided to do away with that section altogether. Now you can spend your nights and days looking at the pictures on the Picasa link, on the right hand of the screen! Happy viewing!

Featuring: Said the Whale, Pearl Jam, and the Wet Secrets

First and foremost, I just want you to know that the title of this post is NOT one show (but wouldn't that have been cool...and yet...the strangest thing ever?).

Wednesday night was supposed to be my only concert this week, part of the trying-to-cut-back plan. You'll find out in a minute how that plan went spiraling out of control over the following few days.
Anyway, Wednesday night came, and with it the early show featuring Said the Whale and guests, Sarah Lowe and Rah Rah. Unfortunately I didn't get the chance to see Sarah Lowe at all, but was able to catch the last few Rah Rah songs. This band out of Regina (seems like a great surge of talent coming out of this Saskatchewan city lately) were great, considering I had no idea what I should have been expected. They were more danceable than StW, and came with their own inflatable silver balloons that circulated throughout the outstretched hands of the crowd. There were quite a few of them on stage, and hopefully they'll one day make their way back through the city, so I have a proper chance to see their full set.