This Book Is Broken book launch @ The Courthouse featuring:
Broken Social Scene (unannounced special guest)
Apostle of Hustle
Jason Collett
Happiness Project
Years
***No review due to being denied entry due to unforeseen circumstances.***
NxNE Day One (June 18, 2009):
Timber Timbre @ The Courthouse
The official NxNE schedule listed Zeus during this time slot, so I was surprised to show up and find out they had already played. Disappointed, I stuck around to check out one of the newest signings to the Arts & Crafts roster, Timber Timbre (a.k.a. Taylor Kirk). Playing to a surprisingly full room, Kirk strutted the plaintive and sparse ballads from his new self-titled disc. The set started off with birds chirping on loop pedals and the rest of the set felt like listening to someone on a deck up at the cottage. Kirk barely addressed the audience (or even looked up), but the introspective songs seemed to go over well as he got an enthusiastic round of applause at the end of the set.
Black Lips @ Yonge-Dundas Square
A wide cross-section of demographics were on hand at this free show to witness the Atlanta, Georgia quartet rock out. The blues-inspired boogie rock had many in the audience dancing and eventually led to a stage invasion by some (drunk?) female audience members who eventually started making out.
I missed it, but apparently King Khan joined them onstage at the end.
The Most Serene Republic @ The Courthouse
It's been three years since I had last seen TMSR; and in the ensuing time, the initial novelty of them being the first non-Broken Social Scene related group to sign to Arts & Crafts has visibly waned. Their 2007 album Population got lost in the shuffle of other A&C releases and the hype for the just-released ...And The Expanding Universe has been minimal from what I've seen. Their live show is still essentially the same however. They've streamlined their sound somewhat into a more conventional rock sound, but still feature the chaotic indie pop that have come to characterize their oeuvre. They have a dedicated following, but will continually be overshadowed by their iconic labelmates for the foreseeable future.
You Say Party! We Say Die! @ The El Mocambo
The notoriously slow streetcars (a recurring problem during the festival) prevented me from arriving until two-thirds through the set. However, from what I did see, the band were testing out new material from their upcoming album, XXXX (which is scheduled for release in late September). Singer Becky Ninkovic is still a consummate frontwoman, but like The Most Serene Republic, their sound is evolving into a more conventional sound than the frantic party anthems on their earlier recordings.
HEALTH @ The Horseshoe Tavern
The Los Angeles based experimental noise rockers are seeing their stock rise after opening a portion of dates on Nine Inch Nails' Lights In The Sky tour last year. It was evident that the residual effect of that is paying dividends as the Horseshoe was packed for their set and more than a few people were excited. A small-ish mosh pit - something I've never witnessed in my four years of covering this festival - developed over the first few songs and the communal energy continued throughout the set.
NxNE Day Two (June 19, 2009):
Brides @ The Music Gallery
It's a little strange to walk into a venue expecting a rock show and seeing the audience politely sitting in church pews. However, the avant-garde, experimental noise rock quickly filled the venue. As the set continued on, they enlisted additional help from their friends in attendance (including ex-Republic of Safety guitarist Johnny Dovercourt) to contribute to the cacophonous sonic assault (by the end there were at least 5 guitarists).
AIDS Wolf @ Sneaky Dee's
In what must have been a first in the history of the venue (Sneaky's is well-known for running behind schedule at the best of times), AIDS Wolf apparently went on slightly early.
Arriving about two-thirds into their set, I enjoyed what brief moments I could. Singer Chloe Lum was in the midsts of throwing herself around the stage as her bandmates created a sonic collage that pleased the packed audience.
Blood Ceremony @ The Reverb
Despite a thin turnout, the local doom-metal group had a few diehards throwing the goathorns and headbanging at the front throughout the set. Their Jethro Tull-inspired occult rock (complete with flute!) stood up on it's own, but undoubtedly, many of them were there to fawn over singer Alia O’Brien.
Change Of Heart @ The Horseshoe Tavern
Admittedly, this band was a little before my time and the decidedly older crowd proved as much. Guitarist Ian Blurton began the set by announcing that he was "scared shitless" for the band's first gig in nearly a decade. Despite the slightly older demographic, they were lustily cheered after every song and the appreciative crowd ate up every minute of the set. Even the self-admitted sub-par encore (a rarity for NxNE) was well received.
METZ @ The Silver Dollar
A non-stop sonic/experiemtnal assault (I'm running out of adjectives) that was undoubtedly one of the best of the entire festival. Relentless percussion and bass lines meshed surprisingly well with the angular guitar and howling vocals. This band is loud and fast, but the unconventional song structures set them apart from traditional hardcore acts.
HEALTH @ Bovine Sex Club
A secret show that was announced the previous night to those who attended their set at the Horseshoe. The Bovine was packed to capacity as Health played another set that had the crowd engaged and demanding more.
Members of Change of Heart strolled in about halfway through the set and I overheard Ian Blurton remark at the impressive array of effects pedals Health uses.
NxNE Day Three (June 20, 2009):
dd/mm/yyyy @ The Horseshoe Tavern
The local math/experimental quintet are quickly earning a sizable cult following and distinguishing themselves with tight shows and a percussion section that is far above many other local acts of this genre. They brought out a massive bouquet of red balloons on stage that obscured nearly half the stage, but played as if they hadn't noticed it. They quickly whipped the crowd up with tracks from their new album, Black Square. The set continued on a high note until the penultimate song when someone turned a pedal or the PA system too loud and the volume grew almost unbearable (even with earplugs) for the rest of the set.
The Zoobombs @ Velvet Underground
The insufferably hot venue was packed for the start of the set and the Japanese group did their best to reciprocate. However, an unecessary half-hour jam dissipated most of the initial energy in the room and had many people looking at their watches or leaving before the anti-climactic end.
C'mon @ Lee's Palace
The Bathurst streetcar ran into a traffic nightmare at College (which was closed for an unrelated festival) and I missed all but the final ten minutes of the set. However, from what I saw, Ian Blurton's main outfit (does this guy ever sleep?) rocked the Lee's stage thoroughly and only added to their status as one of the best live bands out there today.
Hot Panda @ The Horseshoe Tavern
An impossibly long lineup at Sneaky Dee's to see Crystal Antlers had me scrambling for an alternate venue. The most convenient choice was the Horseshoe and these young Albertan upstarts. From the few songs that I caught, I was most impressed with their stage presence and the ease with which they interacted with the audience. The songs are typical indie-synth pop that's nothing to write home about, but their congeniality could very well endear them a promising future.
The Lovely Feathers @ The Horseshoe Tavern
The Montreal quintet have just released their second album, Fantasy of The Lot, and shuttered most of the material from 2006's Hind Hind Legs. Given the 2 AM set time, the Horseshoe audience was in the process of thinning out, but those who stuck around were treated to a tight set of uptempo indie pop from one of Canada's more underrated live acts.
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