Concert Reviews

Presented by Evenko and Greenland Productions

Photo by Greg Cristman

Photo by Alexander Schneider

Nils Frahm is one of those artists that most don't know about, and if you do, then you are probably a major devotee! I was reminded of this phenomenon this past Saturday during M for Montreal. Nils has played in Montreal a handful of times, including sold out shows at Mutek. I tried to catch his set the last time earlier this year, but, alas, it was sold out. I was thrilled to be able to see him, at Metropolis no less, where his minimalist ambient sound was fully enhanced with their incredible sound system.

PARTY LIKE IT'S 1699, BUT IN THE FUTURE OF ITS PAST!

OHara and Hua Li at the SATosphere for Le Pop D'époque's Party Like It's 1699, and M for Montreal, November 19th, 2014

This night was a full sensory experience. If you have never been to the dome at the SAT, that is step one in the sensory immersion. It is as it sounds, a giant domed room at the top of the SAT building. It is outfitted by teams of projectors and a top notch surround sound system. This performance utilized every inch of the space, in an almost overwhelming, yet fully-engaging feast at every level.

Presented by Extensive Enterprise

Well, well, well. Another autumn rolls around and you Montreal metal fans generally know what that means: The Black Dahlia Murder returns. This time around, the crazy fellows co-headlined a set with Suicide Silence, supported by openers Chelsea Grin and Alterbeast at Club Soda on October 7th. Unleash the Miasma and let your veins jolt back to life (pushing the fluids of the damned and all that song reference jazz).

Presented by Indie Montreal

Has anyone out there heard of Indie Montreal yet? It is a great local organization that promotes indie bands from all over Canada. On October 30th I went to their showcase at La Sala Rossa with headliners Royal Canoe supported by The Elwins and APigeon.

Presented by POP Montreal, Cult MTL, and the Montreal International Jazz Festival

As an avid fan of biographies and autobiographies about some of the world's most interesting people (Martin Luther King, Sidney Poitier, Winston Churchill, to name a few), one can only imagine my joy when I found out that I had secured some tickets to the Ronnie Spector show at The Rialto Theatre on September 19, 2014. Ronnie Spector was billed as part of the 2014 edition of POP Montreal, and that news was in all the papers, both mainstream and local.