Undivided. That was the attention Kristian Matsson aka Tallest Man on Earth commanded from the well-dressed folk/indie crowd this cold Saturday night. It was a sold out show and highly anticipated return from this unassumingly sweet Swedish singer/songwriter. His intense scrawl stopped even the peanut gallery from the back bar to have a listen.
It can be tough for any solo act to fill out a half drunk crowd on any night, not to mention at the Elmo. Nurses opened the night with an unmemorable set of yowls, tambourines, singalongs and tings that I could have personally lived without.
TMOE ran though his repetoire effortlessly with a powerful voice distinctly familiar to Dylan, Gutherie, Bon Iver, among others. As blatant a similarity to the similarities to the great folk songwriters from the past, TMOE still maintained his own unique European sound that make it his own. Highlights included his passionate “The Gardner”, “Honey won’t you let me in”, “King of Spain” and “Where do my bluebird fly”. Matsson has great energy and movement during his intricate fingerpicking interludes, bouncing back and forth around the stage and making mysterious eye contact with whatever random crowd-folk he’d come across.
What stunned me most was the silence throughout most of the the set. Granted, there were still a few balks and clinks from empties from the back bar, but overall the crowd was here to really listen to TMOE..and I mean listen. This included minimal use of flash photography and blurry cell phone snapshots, or even beer runs.The aggressive shushing and the odd “shut the fuck up” only further demonstrated the miliant attention the crowd demanded. This undivided attention only amplified his music, lyrics and stage presence.
TMOE even ended with a quiet love song, rather than a Dylan-esque power strum finale for his encore. It was a gutsy move, but it paid off in spades. The crowd stayed with him until the very end, uncovering how tall this little man’s music really is.
Check out J. Tillman (from the critically acclaimed Seattle band Fleet Foxes, self described as “Baroque harmonic pop jams”). He’s currently on tour promoting some of his solo folk work, performing at the Legendary Horseshoe Tavern tomorrow.
I’ve yet to hear much of his work, but from what I’ve heard he has taken a very delicate, melodic and lyrical direction. Check out some of his work:
Ever since coming across Reid Jamieson about 5 years ago, floored from his acoustic EP “Noise in my Chest,” I’ve been meaning to see him live. Ever since he moved to Vancouver, it has been tougher and tougher to catch him. I was lucky enough to hear about his return to Toronto last Wednesday.
Walking into the Rivoli, I was taken aback by the revamp of it’s typically drab (yet intimate) backspace. The space was transformed into a classic 1940s-inspired jazz bar, complete with tables w/white table cloths and candle lights. Not bad for a quick turnaround; enough so you didn’t care much about the plastic patio chairs and sticky floors from the previous weekend’s shenanigans.
Guelph folk darling Jessie Bell Smith kicked off the night with a solo set of gutteral roosty songs about old age homes, dead mice and drunken jagermeister. Bell has a commanding raspy twang with the potential of great dames Etta James, Janis and Emma Lou Harris,powerful enough to fill the room without a mic. I wished she opened our eyes more as she was belted out those raw alto notes to strengthen her already powerful connection to the audience during her set. She has a ton of potential – look out for her as she grows and returns backed by full band.
Coming straight off the heels of a successful tour with CBC’s Vinyl Cafewith Stewart McLean, Reid Jamieson came onto the stage to a warm and comforting crowd of close friends and family, including a few folks the Skydiggers. His elation and emotion came through very strongly, as if he was putting on a special show in his own living room. Jamieson was very professional and polite in his demenour, playing songs from his albums The Unavoidable Truth, The Presley Sessions, and his new EP, Courting Juniper, coming out this month.
Jessie Bell Smith came onstage to sing Paperback Fantasy, one the highlights of the night. Unfortunately he did not play any of his evocative and intimately private songs from his Noise in My Chest release, but it had been over 5 years since its release.
Although he started polite and professional off the gates, Jamieson loosened up to become his alter-elvis ego for his set of Elvis songs, and closing with a fun cover of Natural Woman. Looking forward to hearing his next album of (presumably) knee-shaking heartbreak tunes and sweet love songs – something for which I can never seem to get enough.
My favourite summer indie/folk festival of the year,Hillside Festival,have announced the performer list for their1-day winter event. Hillside Inside is celebrating its 3rd year, giving concert goers a winter music festival to boost them through the dark and gloomy winter months… and hold them over till the full 3-day festival in July.
This year’s event is held on Saturday, February 6th, 2010 at the Sleeman Centre in Downtown Guelph. Tickets on sale Nov 7th, 2009.
Ani DiFranco has written hundreds of songs, played thousands of shows, captured the imaginations of legions of followers, and jammed with folkies, orchestras, rappers, rock and roll hall-of-famers, jazz musicians, poets, pop superstars, storytellers and a martial arts legend. She’s “fixed up a few old buildings” and minimized her carbon footprint before it was trendy – from installing a geothermal heating and cooling system in the renovated church that her label calls home to using organic inks on all the t-shirts she sells.
A musician of incredible velocity, Hawksley Workman is at the top of his game when he has the solitude and serenity to write and record his music in atomic bursts, focused into monastic postures, accessing grace and brilliance in fluid, sweeping motions. With his increasing rock triumphs, growing fan communities and formidable body mass, Workman has evolved from the slight, pin-striped oddball with a critically-acclaimed diamond voice, to the panoramic, guitar-punishing superstar with no performance limits.
Owen Pallett’s live violin-looping project was named Final Fantasy, in tribute to the melodramatic videogame series. His sophomore album He Poos Clouds, written and arranged for string quartet, is a satirical song cycle based on the eight schools of magic of Dungeons and Dragons. The Village Voice praised it as having “the best lyrics of the year”. Final Fantasy was awarded the inaugural Polaris Prize for best Canadian full length album.
A native of Syracuse, New York, Martin Sexton grew up in the 80’s, uninterested in the sounds of the day, and fuelled his dreams on the timeless sounds of classic rock and roll. Sexton eventually migrated to Boston, where he began to build his following singing on the streets of Harvard Square and gradually working his way through the scene. His 1992 collection of self-produced demo recordings, In The Journey, was recorded on an old 8-track in a friend’s attic. He managed to sell 20,000 copies out of his guitar case busking. John Mayer raves that Sexton is “The best live performer I have ever seen”.
Since the age of three, Basia has been sitting on piano stools and trying to hammer things out. It started with her piano-teacher mum, but along the way Basia’s picked up guitar, autoharp, banjo, ukulele, sax and flute. In high-school her instrument was the upright bass a lone girl among “eight-foot-tall guys, goofing off with the tubas”. There’s a sense of play that still suffuses her music, jostling under the songs of regret and love, want and joy. When her brother began in his teens to play drums with punk bands, Basia would be there with her Demerara voice, joining happily in the jam. When she left for university in London, Ontario, musicians began to drop by her downtown apartment. Many nights were spent with these classically-trained friends, laughing and singing, and together they made a glad, bright noise.
Afie Jurvanen, aka Bahamas, spent two weeks in the winter of 2008 making his debut album, Pink Strat. It is named after his childhood guitar, which he still plays. In addition, he plays bass, drums, piano, various percussion, organ, slide, acoustic, and nylon string guitars on the album, and is joined by his friends from zeus, The Great Lake Swimmers, and Feist on a few of the tracks.
Woodhands is dirty electronic music. “We are interested in emotional, sweaty dance floors. We want to make you cry while you’re having sex, and it’ll be the best damn sex of your life. And you’ll be dancing”.
Woodhands started in a basement in Montreal, moved to Europe, and is now making love to Toronto and its environs.
Vancouver-based Delhi 2 Dublin is a group of five musicians who mash up electronica and world music, keeping it heavy on the Bhangra, Celtic and Dub flavours. Fusing tabla, fiddle, dhol, Punjabi vocals, and electric sitar with scorching electronic beats – ranging from reggae to drum and base – the crew takes listeners on a wild ride through global sounds and synchronicities.
Reid Jameson w/Jessy Bell Smith
Rivoli
10.28.09
Doors at 7pm (show at 8pm)
Tickets $7 at the door
Reid Jamieson, a talented Canadian singer/songwriter is returning to Toronto. Originally from Toronto and now based in Vancouver, I was wisked away by his achingly sweet songbird voice and heart break music on his “Noise in My Chest” acoustic EP. His follow up alt-country album, “The Unavoidable Truth” was supported by a full band and Canadian talent including Sarah Harmer and Bob Egan, garnering critical acclaim in the Canadian folk/country circuit. Reid also released “The Presley Sessions”, a set of Elvis covers (with a Reid Jamieson touch) in honour of the 30th anniversary of Elvis’ passing. He is currently on tour with CBC’s Vinyl Cafe and making a stop here in Toronto at the Rivoli on Wednesday Oct 28th.
Over the past couple years I’ve been following Dan Mangan. So far it’s been a great story for this Vancouver singer/songwriter, whose recent sophomore release “Nice, Nice, Very Nice” in August with Criminal Records has caught some big attention from CbcRadio3 and the indie folk music community. I remember being among a handful of people at NXNE last year, or even catching his free show at the Annex Room with IndieCan, where a small cult-ish Toronto group yearned for him to belt out “Robots” or “Not What You Think It Is.”
Walking in late at the Rivoli on Friday (unfortunately missing the County French), I was initially taken back by the number of people there. Mangan and his band had been having a rough day: they performed a gig in Peterborough the previous night, a CBCRadio taping during the day and an early evening promo show at Criminal Records just a few hours before hitting the stage.
Mangan played a blend of new and old tracks, this time bringing a full band of horns, pianos and string players along with him. He was quick to pick the crowd with his upbeat, clap and foot stomping “I’m Sold”. The 3 hours of sleep did not hinder; it only added a bit more ash and whisky to his already passionate deep and raspy voice.
Unfortunately he wasn’t able to stay in control of the crowd soon after. It wasn’t his fault though, since most of his music is downtempo and without drums…and Mangan frequently use of pregnant pauses. It really takes an attentive and intimate crowd to feel the full effect of his music. Unfortunately this wasn’t in the cards this evening in this apparent industry folks and hyped hipster show.
The back bar noise (usually drowned by the drums/electric guitars) overpowered Mangan and foiled any attempt of emotional connection to the music. Beautiful songs like “The Indie Queens Are Waiting”, which include soft female vocals by Veda Hille, was butchered and lost any sensibility when all you can hear are details on Lucy’s drunken stupor last night. It was also clear they weren’t listening at all – during a few dramatic pauses mid-song, folks in the back clapped, thinking the song was over. This is worse than newbies at Roy Thompson Hall who clap between every movement in a symphony or opera, since they’re only guilty of innocent ignorance on classical music ettiquette. In this case, the knobs in the back had no respect or care over the show; they clapped while continuing their banter about their work week and how bad the Leafs. It’s just a classic case of stardom, and perhaps why many singer/songwriters become cynical or complacent feeling that no one is really listening. Bummer.
The turning point of the show was when a righteous audience member dutifully yelled “SHUT THE FUCK UP” after yet another ruined pause during “Basket”.
The peanut bar did subside (post yell) for the back half of the set — and this is where Mangan started to showcase what he was all about; highlights included “Tina’s Glorious Comeback”, “Pine for Cedars” and “So Much for Everyone”. I was hoping to hear “Unnatural Progression”, but in retrospect this was probably for the best in the event of being butchered by the bastards in the back!
The crowd favourite, “Robots“, ended his set and had the crowd singing, “Robots need love too. They want to be loved by You. They want to be loved by you”. Mangan also brought his “1980’s awesome” plastic robot and encouraging him to be crowd surfed during the tune. This was the only case where a full capacity crowd was a benefit, although it was not to outweigh the loud obnoxious peanut gallery for most of the set.
Let’s hope next time the crowd can appreciate the music more than the hipster hype.
Dan Mangan from Vancouver has been recording a sophomore album to his first release, Post Cards and Daydreaming. He’s got a deep, raspy powerful voice accompanied by stripped down acoutic guitar that’ll make anyone stop to to listen.
Although he was a bit rusty being in the studio vs. relentessly on tour and playing folk festivals up the guitar hole, he put on a decent set at the Wreck Room on the corner of Bloor and Spadina. It was part of IndieCan Radio, a local indie music radio/podcast that puts on a free weekly show showcasing indie artists.
What a way to spark up a freezing Wednesday night. A trio East Coast artists put on a show at the Horseshoe, showcasing great breadth of music and talent emerging from the East. Opening the set was Oh No Forest Fires, a firey indie punk band, with as much ragged bounce as it’s lead singer’s hairdo. Although I only caught the last 2 tracks of their set, I could tell they could’ve gone all night.
Following up was Museum Pieces. Although they had a few technical issues and temperamental front man right out of the gates, they put in a decent set. Essences of Northern Lights and prog rock shimmered through, but overall I had trouble deciphering variance between songs, to a point where everything simply melding into one. Their rolling instrumental proggy sequences that never climaxed, and with mediocre on-stage performance, the band had trouble connecting to and engaging with audience. We never really got past their name, let alone their live set.
The Earnest East coasters roots rock band Hey Rosetta! headlined the night with an high energy set promoting their newest album produced with Hawksley Workman, Into Your Lungs. Yet again the kids from Halifax New Foundland delivered a foot stomping, hand clapping show stopping set. With a handful of devote fans leading the way, highlights included “New Goodbye”, “Handshake the Gangster”, and ‘oldies’ “Another Pilot” and “Simplest Thing”.
I just can’t seem to get enough of this band – Each song works like chapters in harmony with one another. Each musician is equally gifted in their own way and you can hear elements of classical training adding in depth, intricacy and sheer genious when it’s all stitched together. HR! on stage presence is strong and you can see their love and passion for the music and stage. It’s a brand of earnest musicians that love what they do and don’t let the their new found success and hype go into their lungs.
