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We Just Wanna Have Some Fun, Down At The Rock And Roll Club

In the fast paced world we live in it is sometimes easy to miss things, no matter how wired-in we think we are. So this past Tuesday when Prince Palu realized that there was not only a NBA team called the Pelicans, but that they have been in existence for almost two years, he yelled out to no one in particular, "What's going on? Am I alone here?" How was it possible, he wondered out loud, that (A) he did not know that the New Orleans Hornets had changed their name and (B) that they didn't change it to the Satchmos? He would go on mumbling about information as currency and the greatness of Louis Armstrong until remembering that he has a responsibility to not leave you alone to find out about shows after the fact. Hopefully this list will prevent any musical pelicans, so to speak, for you this weekend.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Tonight over at L'Escogriffe (4467 St-Denis), Analogue Addiction is throwing a killer rock and roll party that also happens to be a benefit show for their friend Billi Deraspe who recently lost everything in a fire. Montreal garage icons Les Breastfeeders will be joined by the bluesy garage rock and soul of Loose Pistons, and post-punk weirdness of Vulgar, You!. All the money collected will be donated so you can feel like you are doing something good for someone else while the bands do something good for you. Good karma goes a long way in this world.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Any band that categorizes their sound as 'psychedelic grunge jazz' has got to be worth the $5 it will cost you to get into La Vitrola (4602 St-Laurent) tonight to find out if this is true or not. The band in question is the Montreal band Fleece who will be launching their debut LP Scavenger, which was recorded by CJLO's own Patrick McDowall, with the help of a couple other local bands. The ambient shoegazing of Cult Classic and the psychedelic space trip of Starchild Aquarius and The Machine should make this a groovy kind of love-in. To get the full effec,t I'd recommend that you bring a large wool afghan to wrap around yourself and sit crossed-legged against the wall on the riser just off to the right of the stage.

If you're in the need of a little more ruckus on a Friday night, then L'Esco has got what the doctor ordered, if in fact you're in need of more ruckus due to a medical condition. Dead Messenger and The Von Rebels present a no-frills, no-holds-barred brand of rock 'n' roll that will have you stomping into your weekend.

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Many years ago Stephen Malkmus of Pavement was famously photographed in a t-shirt with the slogan 'Fuck Art, Let's Dance', and on Saturday night there will be four bands at Bistro de Paris (4536 St-Denis) who will turn that t-shirt into a battle cry. It will also be the public and debaucherous birthday party for Lou Brassard aka Luis Bastard of The Shake Well Brothers, one of the four bands playing for the minuscule sum of $2. Joining in the celebration will be Count Ferrara, From Scratch, and The Strawberry Jam. From dirty rock 'n' roll to sludgy psychobilly, skronking ska to funky fusion, this night will have so many flavours that Baskin Robbins might be looking to take legal action.

Over at Casa del Popolo (4873 St-Laurent) there will be four bands who will go more of the 'Fuck Dance, Let's Art' approach. The stage will be filled with the jangley art-rock of The This Many Boyfriends Club, the vibrating pop-psychedelia of Two Year Carnival, the soundscapes of Archery Guild's sax player Huei Lin playing as his solo side project H U E I, and the Toronto/Ottawa cello and vocal duo of The Visit who have been described as "cinematic classical lyricism meets the virtuosic grit of the finest Metal traditions." Yeah, I don't know what the hell that means either, but you can click on their name and watch the youtube video and figure it out for yourself.

Down the street at Le Divan Orange (4234 St-Laurent) you will find the return of Santosh Lalonde's Gypsy-punk band Bad Uncle with equal doses of surf, metal, folk and science fiction. You haven't heard someone cover a Black Sabbath song until you've heard it squeezed through an accordion. Also taking part in bedlam that is sure to take place will be the deliciously named Street Meat, who also combine such divergent styles of music that it will almost seems blasphemous, and the Magic Crimea's JunkOye! Klezmer Band.

If you and your friends were more in the mood for going out and having a group of talented musicians create a cosmically charged soundtrack for your conversation, loaded with everything from Spaghetti Western themes, Kraut rock jams and reverb soaked experimentation, well, are you in luck! Jeunesse Cosmique is presenting La Nuit des Magiciens at La Passe (1214 de la Montagne). Featuring the curated sounds of Téléphone Maison, Hellenica, YlangYlang, Philippe Vandal, and Montagne Glacier. It all gets started at 9:00pm and is PWYC suggested $8.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

I don't know about you, but I tend to enjoy getting old timey on my Sunday evenings. With the dawn of another Monday mere hours away, it seems to make sense to let the weekend fade with the gentle pluck of a mandolin or twang of an acoustic guitar. If that is the case for you too, or just sounds like a good idea, you have two choices.

Your first options is the long running Bluegrass & Old Time Country Jam, which is in its 18th year of celebrating the legacy of Bill Monroe and his followers, at Montreal's best hole-in-the-wall Barfly (4062 St-Laurent).

If you would like to add a little bit more jazz to your twang, you could head over to Petit Campus (57 Prince-Arthur E.) to catch The Dustbowl Revival, the band that L.A. Weekly named "Best Live Band in L.A.". The Venice, California band combine the best of old-timey Appalachia-style string bands with the swinging sounds of New Orleans brass bands to come up with a sound that combines bluegrass, gospel, pre-war blues and swing. Grab a date and put on your dancing shoes.

--Prince Palu hosts The Go-Go Radio Magic Show, every Friday night from 6 to 8 PM. Tune in. Turn on. Freak OUT! Only on CJLO.