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An Interview with imy3
Past Tense host Ari spoke with imy3's Emily and Finn at P'tit Ours in the midst of their cross-continent tour, discussing their debut album imy2, ongoing tour, and future plans for the band.
Listen to hear secret song names, the myriad of terrific bands imy3 has played with across the continent, and about imy3's minimalist approach to making dynamic music.
Ari Boon is the host of Past Tense which airs Mondays at 10pm on CJLO 1690 AM.
“The Roots of The Kooks: How Luke Pritchard and Hugh Harris Transport Their Audience Back in Time”
If you were to take Morrissey’s crooning vocals infused with the rhythm of The Cure and The La’s’ piercing optimism, you’d be left with the nostalgic sound of The Kooks.
The British indie-rock band first charged into the music scene in 2006 when their debut album Inside In / Inside Out reached No. 2 on the UK charts. Through several proceeding records and over 1,400 live shows worldwide, the group’s members evolved - but in 2025, frontman Luke Pritchard and guitarist Hugh Harris remain the foundation of The Kooks.
Never/Know not only marked the band’s seventh studio album, but also a triumphant return to their roots. During the last 20 years, their music has evolved from acoustic melodies to quirky lyricism and even dipped into the more electronic side of Brit-Pop. The recent May 9th album Never/Know takes listeners back to the band's early days, and pledges itself to their authenticity and hope.
Montreal’s MTELUS was the gifted the pleasure of being the first stop on the North American leg of the All Over The World Tour that embarked on May 27th. Prior to the show, I had the pleasure of sitting down with The Kooks’ lead vocalist.
Pritchard, whose work on the band’s most recent record expanded to new lengths, spoke about their evolution through sound and the authenticity they’ve found in the creative process: “So you know, I produced it myself and that was a new challenge.” It was clear such a challenge truly fueled the chemistry that erupted within the group, both on the record and on stage. Prichard went on to say, “I just wanted to capture us as a band as much as I could, and leave in the kind of a bit of danger in terms of like, you know, it's not perfect, and it's not done highly meticulously on computers, you know, it's a recorded record…it was just about stripping everything back again.”
Going back to the basics with Never/Know left the group with more room to explore what had been waiting for them all those years ago. Their eccentric creativity, coupled with what Pritchard described as a “lightning bolt” new concept, left the band off to the races with creating this brand new, old, record.
Their return to the stage stood as a testament to The Kooks’ artistic discoveries, as they lit up the Montreal venue with powerful charisma and truthful presence.
To launch the night towards its trajectory, an eager audience was greeted by the lovely duo, lovelytheband. Lead vocalist Mitchy Collins and guitar and keyboardist Jordan Greenwald,
kicked off with a handful of softened, stripped-down tunes, including their rendition of The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside”. While Collins confessed that their acoustic set was the unfortunate result of their tour bus getting stopped at the border, the reward for their crises was an earnest, intimate moment shared with the audience. As they played their radio hit, “Broken”, Collins’ vocals echoed seamlessly against listeners’ unplanned singsong of the track's catchy hook, “I like that you’re broken, broken like me, maybe that makes me a fool.”
Soon after their departure, the stage re-lit with the roaring presence of Pritchard and Harris, alongside touring musicians Jonathan Harvey and Alexis Nuñez. Pritchard’s electric energy as he jumped up to the front of the stage shot the night into greatness as the audience erupted with matched excitement.
Such cheers and hollers soon became a harmony of sung-back choruses. “Ooh La” set the venue in a warm summer air while “Sunny Baby” rolled the windows down on the convertible that coasted through the blistering heat. The positivity Pritchard had spoken of during our conversation oozed from the group's performance, even amidst the more intimate tracks.
A keyboard was dragged on stage for Pritchard, who moved into “See Me Now” from their 2014 album, Listen. The piano ballad pulled at the heartstrings as childhood footage of the singer and his late father played in the background. Even through lyrics as vulnerable as, “If you could see me now, if you could see my smile, see your little boy, would you be proud?”, Prichard's hope stood strong.
As a man whose dad passed away when he was just 3 years old, his recent fatherhood seems to have deeply influenced the nuances of his artistry: “I had this kind of, you know, epiphany of how much time I actually had with my dad. And that was quite joyous. It was emotional, but quite joyous.” In his performance, his hardship was evident, but the sense of promise Pritchard pulls out from deep within is what truly gives this show strength.
As he cheerily boogied his way through “Westside”, Pritchard reached down to pluck a rose from an audience member, which he slid under the strings of his guitar. The singer’s notion of the album, “refining the identity of what we are”, was captured in the nostalgic rhythms and acoustic strums that brought the audience back to the band's earlier work.
Time seemed to fly by with angsty alt-rock tracks like “Sweet Emotion” and "Compass Will Fracture,” and the audience ate up every last bite of this trip back down memory lane.
With “Junk of the Heart”, The Kooks’ set came to a close, but the audience was not ready to let go just yet. Their vibrating stomps and guttural rendition of the football chant “Olé, Olé", lured the band back for an encore, where the much-awaited hit, “Naive”, was sung.
By all accounts, the sound that emerged into success 20 years ago has stood the test of time. The chemistry that exudes from the music of the Kooks exemplifies the strength of the relationship between Luke Pritchard and Hugh Harris.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to Pritchard and his team for taking the time to dive deeper into his artistry and The Kook’s timeless career.
Make sure to follow along with the bands' upcoming tour dates, surely their time capsule journey is only just beginning.
Malcolm Todd Lights Up Le Studio TD
On a gloomy, rainy day in Montreal, Malcolm Todd lit up the Studio TD with the vibrant energy from his debut album, Malcolm Todd, bringing it to life just months after its April release. Before the show, I was wandering around in the city, near the venue, where about 6 people were already queuing at about 2 pm. Disregarding the weather, they were out there playing Uno and hanging out, waiting for the time to pass. I joined the queue with a friend, later on around 5 pm. After spending about two hours queuing in the rain, it was quickly forgotten once we got inside the venue. The energy was high, and anticipation was vibrating through the floor. The night got started off with opener Sophie Gray, a Toronto-based DJ. She kicked the night off with an hour-long set that matched the crowd’s energy and excitement. You could tell she was having a good time on stage, absorbing everyone’s energy in the room. Simultaneously, the crowd had as much fun, and the connection was electrifying. She also performed some of her original music, including a track named 'Fever' among others, which was just as impressive as the rest of her set. I immediately noted it on my phone to revisit after the show. When Malcolm finally strolled onto the stage with his band — four longtime best friends — the magnetic atmosphere overcame the crowd instantly, with fans singing his lyrics back to him like an echo of the deep connection he’s built with his audience over time with songs broadly described as bedroom pop, alternative and R&B. It was such a small show that he described it as
a redemption from last tour, “this is by far the smallest venue we are playing of this entire tour. It feels like the Sweet Boy Tour, since I didn’t come here last time”.
There’s something special about hearing music live, especially your favourite songs. It’s the only time you can feel the music like it’s flowing from the speakers through your body. The guitar riffs and beat drop in ‘Cheer Me On’ hit especially hard, and jazzier sounds like ‘Walk To Class’, making it feel like the song was coming to life right in front of us.
As a newly discovered favorite artist of mine, I was especially eager to see his show and experience some of my favorite tracks from the new record including ‘Harry Styles’, ‘Make Me a Better Man’, and ‘Walk to Class’ — as well as older tracks like ‘4 Me 4 Me’ and ‘Mr. Incorrect’, (I’ll stop the list here, but it could go on and on). Before performing the third track, ‘Who’s The Fool’ from his debut, he explained that he did not enjoy high school and considered getting a C more than enough, the track depicts how he strayed away from the scholarly path and instead, as the lyrics say, “[I] learned the guitar, through all of the noise” (‘Who’s the Fool’). I was definitely not let down by his incredible performance, live runs and vocals, and I can confidently say that he’s officially earned a spot in my top five live performances, which means a lot coming from an avid concert goer!
Passion and enthusiasm filled up the room. People had hand-made signs to hold up during key moments of the show, they had prepared gifts — which led to him trying on a pink, fluffy bunny-eared hat, and my favourite: custom shirts. One of them reads “4 me 4 me” and the other “2 you 2 you”, worn by a couple, referencing the track ‘4 Me 4 Me’ from the Sweet Boy EP. While there were plenty of die-hard fans, it was also a night of introduction to Malcolm Todd for many. Talking to people around us, we found that lots were only somewhat familiar with his work, but came for the vibe and left absolutely wowed.
We shared a walk to the metro, filled with joy and a memorable night of unifying energy, leaving on a high that I will gladly be living off of for all of next week!
Carpe Diem, Moonman: A Review of Psychedelic Porn Crumpet's Newest Psychedelic Overload
Since the teaser of an EP they released on March 27th, I have been impatiently waiting for Psychedelic Porn Crumpets to release their seventh studio album, Carpe Diem, Moonman. It was finally released on May 15th, and it is every bit as good as I was expecting. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets’s Carpe Diem, Moonman remains true to the band’s reputation of combining brain-scratching guitar riffs and low-pitched screams with deep and profound lyrics that make you question society and the meaning of the universe. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are one of the defining bands from Australia’s psychedelic rock revival of the mid 2010s, contributing to the creation of a completely unique genre of psychedelic rock that also has so much musical range it almost can’t be confined to just one genre. While I would argue that their whole discography fits this description, this new album not only met the expectation of quality set by their previous albums, but completely surpassed it.
The album ranges from songs that make you want to throw yourself into a mosh pit and give yourself whiplash to softer tunes that make you want to close your eyes and sway with the melody. This variety of music within one album is not at all out of line with the band’s style, and the order of songs gives you a bit of back and forth between the two different energies. When listening to the album all the way through, I felt like I was having an existential crisis while falling into a kaleidoscope and loving every second of it.
The album starts off strong with “Another Reincarnation” followed by “March on for Pax Ramona”, both high-energy songs that I just know will be instigating wild mosh pits and crowd surfers at their shows. The lead singer, Jack McEwan, delivers the dramatic lyrics of the first song with his out-of-breath screaming, which is punctuated throughout “Another Reincarnation” by the way his voice shifts into a softer tone (but a higher pitch) at either the beginning or the end of a verse. The strident guitars, hard and fast bass, and of course, the rolling drums that bring it all together make it the perfect introduction to the rest of the album. Then, “March on for Pax Ramona” uses brain-scratching guitar riffs and thundering drums, creating intense instrumental buildups that abruptly fade into a background tempo when the lyrics come in. The verses are spoken rather than sung, McEwan’s voice fuses with a distorted echo, amplifying the sheer weirdness of the lyrics as they build into the explosive screaming of the chorus. I can already feel the flailing limbs that are going to hit me in the face during that song in concert.
The next song, “Qwik Maff”, is drastically toned down, featuring acoustic guitar and prominent keyboards. It follows the style of some of the more “chill” songs off their previous albums (e.g. “Coffee” from High Visceral, Pt. 2), with soft vocals and dreamy, almost ambient instrumentals. The album then picks back up on its original pace with “Weird World Awoke”, an energetic, fast-paced song that is simultaneously a headbanger as well as a powerful social critique. It makes you want to jump around and scream along, but also sit back and be consumed by the lyrics – or somehow both at the same time. This was the first song on the EP that dropped in March, and I have been obsessed with it since. Following this sensory overload, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets then return to their softer, dreamy sound with “As the Hummingbird Hovers” and “Scapegoat”, in which the vocals completely blend into the music leaving lots of space for the instrumental breaks to evoke a sort of floating surrealism.
After jumping between these two distinct sounds in the album, “Incubator (V2000)” brings the two together with its harsh, raw guitar, drums and screaming chorus along with some twinkling keyboard and acoustic guitar sprinkled in, making it sound both dreamy and fierce at the same time. It is followed by “Winter in Parachutes”, a gentle acoustic song good for swaying and daydreaming. The next track, “Out the Universe Pours”, exemplifies the range of this album once more. The heavy, grating intensity of the electric and percussive, in tandem with the light, floaty sound of the acoustic, seemingly pulls your mind into a different dimension. The album ends with “Concrete & Cola”, a six-minute song with an intro that gives the impression that it will turn into one of their more intense songs, but deceivingly ends up being a smooth, peaceful tune that ends with about 40 seconds of cute chirping bird noises. This closing track makes for a wholesome outro to Carpe Diem, Moonman, especially in contrast to the album’s harsh beginning.
To attempt to sum it up, Carpe Diem, Moonman is a complete trip of an album. With its musical and emotional range and the way that it moves between completely different energies throughout the album, Carpe Diem, Moonman has something for everyone. If you’re the type of person who likes to analyze lyrics and look for deeper meanings and social criticism, this is definitely the album for you. If you just like to blast music and get lost in your own head, this album does that too. I highly recommend this album for anyone who is a fan of indie and/or psychedelic rock. Or just anyone who will listen to me, really.
Oshra is the host of On The Right Track, an electronic music exposition every Sunday 10-11pm
High Notes and Hip-Hop: The O CANADABIS Tour 2025 Blazes Through Place Bell
Cypress Hill’s O CANADABIS 2025 Tour came to Place Bell on May 20th, featuring The Pharcyde and De La Soul. Each of these groups are extremely important in Hip-Hop history, redefining the genre and inspiring future generations of artists.
The Pharcyde was the first group to perform, my personal favourite of the trio. Their 1995 album Labcabincalifornia, produced by J Dilla, is a summer staple, with appealing melodies and sharp lyrics. J Dilla's influence on the album cannot be understated, with his album Donuts maintaining cult classic status to this day. The current members of The Pharcyde are Fatlip (Derrick Stewart) and Slimkid3 (Tre Hardson). The Pharcyde brought a uniquely West Coast flavour to the burgeoning alternative hip hop movement. Their music was introspective yet humorous, funky yet emotionally raw. Their breakout hit "Passin' Me By" is still one of hip hop's most enduring songs about heartbreak. At most concerts, the opening acts are lesser known than the main act, but The Pharcyde defied this stereotype with audience members singing and dancing along to their most iconic songs.
De La Soul helped redefine hip hop in the late '80s and early '90s. Established in Long Island, New York, their 1989 debut, 3 Feet High and Rising, was produced by Prince Paul. Their debut album broke from the dominant hard-edged sound of the time, offering a more playful, surreal, and sample-heavy style. With skits, layered references, and themes of peace and individuality, they pioneered what became known as alternative hip-hop. The performance by Posdnuos (Kelvin Mercer) and Maseo (Vincent Mason) was emblematic of classic hip-hop, engaging the crowd but also surprising newer listeners with their ingenuity.
The final group was Cypress Hill, who started their set with an energetic performance by DJ Lord on vinyl. From California, Cypress Hill’s self-titled 1991 debut album established them as the first Latino American hip hop group to go platinum. Their 1993 album Black Sunday also went platinum and contains the majority of their most popular songs. Alongside DJ Lord, the band officially includes B-Real (Louis Freese), Sen Dog (Senen Reyes), DJ Muggs (Lawrence Muggerud), Eric Bobo, and Mellow Man Ace (Ulpiano Sergio Reyes). They introduced a dark, hazy sound marked by DJ Muggs’ hypnotic beats and B-Real’s nasal delivery. They're known for fusing rap with rock and for their relentless advocacy of cannabis legalization, making them early mainstream voices for marijuana culture in hip hop.
Specifically during the performance by Cypress Hill, the entire Place Bell stadium smelled like cannabis, with the band continuously chanting, “get high with us”. Each member had a personal joint, and many audience members brought their own and would light them alongside the band. The Place Bell security attempted to discourage the patrons from smoking inside the venue, but the affirmations of the band overruled their attempts.
Although Cypress Hill, De La Soul, and The Pharcyde didn’t collaborate much during their early careers, their presence together on the O CANADABIS 2025 Tour felt anything but random. All three groups emerged in the late '80s and early '90s as boundary-pushers who expanded what hip hop could sound like—and who it could be for. While rap was dominating radio waves, these artists took a unique path, embracing introspection, humour, and social commentary.
Together, these groups challenged the genre’s conventions—lyrically, musically, and culturally. They were unafraid to be weird, playful, or philosophical. They made space for outcasts and misfits, and their success helped prove there was an audience hungry for something different. On stage, that legacy is still alive. Their Laval performances weren’t just a throwback; they were a powerful reminder that hip hop’s most enduring innovators are often the ones who never quite fit the mould in the first place.
YWHW Nailgun Brings Perfectly Orchestrated Chaos to L'Escogriffe
YHWH Nailgun hit Montreal this Wednesday night as one of their last stops on the Healing Chariot Tour. After touring the UK, US and Canada, they’ve evidently gained momentum. The four-man experimental rock group have found their groove, bestowing as much of a musical experience as one of performance. YHWH (pronounced Yahweh) has a certified fresh noise; their first album, 45 Pounds, draws from various aspects of punk and progressive rock with synth and avant-garde sounds, and they erratically create a distinctive and affective sound. Made up of Zack Borzone on vocals, Saguiv Rosenstock on guitar, Jack Tobias on synth and electronics and Sam Pickard on drums, each bringing a crucial and equally enriching role. With the use of a rototom drum, allowing for a quick change in pitch, Pickard adeptly creates highly precise and sharp sounds, resonant of progressive rock rhythms but generationally evolved. Notes of industrial come in with haunting screeches and atmospheric synths, rising and falling.
They’ve cultivated a strong rapport with silence and tension, both through their music and performance. The quick pauses and moments of breath are quite notable in their music and even more tangible when versed live. Throughout the set, with thick air and a swaying mosh pit, in the times in between songs, Borzone stands silently staring down the crowd. His eyes dart from person to person, and his presence holds everyone’s attention in the room as a typically unconventional silence falls into normality. Somehow, one of the most intimate and effective crowd interactions I’ve witnessed, with little to no words directly spoken. As the sonic experience settles in these withheld spaces, slowly but surely, a rising synth reappears; “Animal Death Already Breathing” opens with an almost medieval, soldier chant-esque melody. With that first drum hit, we’re brought right back into the grinding, all-encompassing noise.
The already lively crowd was riled up even further with the band's performance, giving each song their all, coming back stronger with each pause. YHWH Nailgun seems to be bigger than the music itself. With their sound being all at once technical and raw, reminiscent of past influence yet uniquely futuristic in practice, there’s a certain universality to their music. They’ve somehow managed to hit every mark, and in tandem with their presence and identity, an interaction with them, whether streamed online or heard live, is surely unforgettable.
SHEBAD Shines at Blue Dog
With their debut album Music is the Answer, Guelph-based music and art project SHEBAD lay bare their identity, sonically and as a collective. The LP flutters across the worlds of indie neo-soul and experimental R&B, carried along by intricate jazz melodies and intimate, pensive lyrics. They explore themes of human connection, love, community, and spirituality, establishing a clear philosophy in the process - one that can be inferred from the album's title itself, as well as the opening track ‘Love is the Message’. The album left me with a warm first impression of SHEBAD, and I was excited to see their show when I learned they were coming to Montreal.
When I first got to Blue Dog, there was already a growing crowd outside the venue and on the floor. Earlier that day, I met up with SHEBAD’s co-founders Claire Voy and Ciccio Spagnolo to chat about their album, tour life, and more. The duo touched on their approach to live shows, saying that they saw them as opportunities to showcase other layers of their sound that may not translate to listeners in their recorded material. With that conversation fresh in mind and the buzzing energy from the crowd spreading to me, my anticipation grew as I waited for their set to start.
What ensued was a captivating performance filled with a mixture of energy swings and brilliant musicianship. Throughout the night, I was impressed by how SHEBAD connected with us in the crowd, forging new, shared atmospheres at different points in the show. Slower songs like ‘Time Takes Time’ and ‘Love is the Message’, played towards the start of the set, created an intimate mood; their soulful feels made it impossible not to sway to, and be carried along by, the music. Claire’s vocals struck me in these moments as they maintained the same evocative, powerful quality that drew me in when I first heard the group’s music.
They upped the ante when they wanted, using both their artistry and audience engagement to do so. An electric violin solo by Olivia, who also provided backup vocals, was case in point - it lit up the room, raising the overall tempo. Additionally, the other band members would regularly rotate instruments throughout the night, a testament to their skill and cohesion. Between songs, bassist would become keyboardist, who would in turn take their turn at the saxophone, and so on. What resulted were more textured and genre-fluid versions of their songs - it wasn’t just showing off without a purpose. Groovier, more upbeat cuts like ‘Black Walnut’ became even more potent, almost coming alive, which could be felt as the crowd’s dance intensity increased synchronously for these songs. I was seeing, and viscerally feeling, exactly what Claire and Ciccio meant when they explained the new elements that their live performance brings to their music. The night crescendoed towards the end when Claire announced that their drummer, Emmett, “had something to say”. Emmett then went on to deliver a gritty rap verse rife with passion and energy, an energy that was contagious as it sent the room into a frenzy. The verse revealed yet another layer to their collective’s sound and capabilities.
Overall, the show was an immersive journey through the sonic universe of SHEBAD. If you’re a lover of neo-soul, alternative r&b, and honestly just… good music and nice sounds, I highly recommend checking out their album “Music is the Answer” whenever you can.
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Peter Hook Interview - May 19, 2025
That's right, CJLO's got you for an exclusive interview with Peter Hook. Station Manager Lisa can confirm that there's nothing blue about this Monday. Some sneak peaks from the interview include Hooky's latest obsession with the Silver Jews, advice for bands just starting out and what its like to revisit New Order's Get Ready in time for the tour.
Big fan yourself? Make sure to check out Peter Hook and the Light this Thursday, May 22 at MTelus where they will be performing Get Ready in its entirety and a celebration of the best bits from New Order and Joy Division.
Tickets onsale now with Blue Skies Turn Black
Listen to full interview on CJLO's Soundcloud Page
Machinehead, In Flames, Lacuna Coil and Unearth bring an intense and devoted crowd to MTELUS
Machinehead, In Flames, Lacuna Coil and Unearth took over MTELUS on April 27th, 2025. Machinehead is a groove thrash metal band hailing from Oakland, California. Formed in 1991 by vocalist Rob Flynn, they’ve been growing in popularity ever since, quickly taking over the thrash metal scene after their debut album Burn My Eyes hit commercial and critical success straight out of the gate. Their sound has evolved over the years, with each album being different from the last, and even a 1999 foray into nu-metal. They’re a band that’s never strayed away from politics, with anti-war lyrics, public condemnation of the racism in metal, and even what appears to be a Keffiyeh in their official band photo.
Even before the show started at six, a crowd was lining up to get inside MTelus. I was cutting it close, and was anxious to be inside before the first band. Even at this hour, there was a line for In Flames merch. They’re a band that’s hugely popular in Quebec, a province known for being a fan of the melodeath genre of metal. Even more people were waiting on the floor, minutes away from the beginning of Unearth’s set. There was a buzz and energy to the crowd, many older fans in their thirties and forties, as well as some newer fans, and even a few kids. You don’t always have large crowds for the opening band, so it was nice to see the numbers early on.
Metalcore band Unearth, from Boston, Massachusetts, was up first. Unearth opened with “My Will Be Done” off of their 2008 album, The March. Their set was loud, fast, with mosh pits and fans chanting the lyrics. Their brand of metalcore involves rapid-fire riffs with metallic guitar sweeps and chunky breakdowns. They played mostly older songs, with a Black Sabbath riff inserted into “This Lying World”, from their second album, The Oncoming Storm. They also played some more recent ones, and the title track from their new album, The Wretched; The Ruinous. The set was bouncy, high energy, and ended on a great note, with “The Great Dividers” as the closing track, a personal favourite.
Next up was Lacuna Coil. They’re a band with strong aesthetics, wearing corpse paint and elaborate, gothic costumes. It was a lot of fun to dance along to, and the band members seemed to be having fun as well, with lead vocalists Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro singing along to each other’s parts. There was an obvious playfulness and chemistry that resonated through the whole group. The crowd was into it as well, moshing harder than the music called for, with many fans singing the lyrics.
For myself and many other attendees, In Flames were the reason they were there. With the merch line wrapping around the staircase since opening and more In Flames t-shirts than any other type, their popularity in Montreal can’t be overstated. The crowd was dense and energetic, with a group of us waiting on the floor after Lacuna Coil to secure good spots. Today’s In Flames has a solid lineup, with superstar Chris Broderick from Megadeth on guitar, Tanner Wayne on Drums, Dillinger Escape Plan’s Liam Wilson on Bass, and OG members Bjorn Gelotte on guitar and frontman Anders Friden. They were all looking in good spirits and interacting with the crowd, and the lighting was imposing. The set itself was incredible, with thirteen tracks, including many that they rarely play live, some from older tracks, as well as newer songs, and ending with the iconic closing track “My Sweet Shadow”. Their sound was bright, cyber and metallic, and Anders’ voice was the best it has sounded in years. Anders also seemed in a great mood the whole time, joking around with the crowd; it’s clear he’s at ease as a performer. He also took a moment to talk about how crazy the world was, though saying he didn’t want to get political, but that we all need to love and respect each other. An important message in times like these. I just hope In Flames comes back as a headliner soon.
Headlining the night was Machinehead. They’re a four-piece band, with frontman Rob Flynn acting both as vocalist and guitarist. They had a designed visual setup, with spotlights and visuals, different ones for each of the albums. They played one track from almost all of the albums, as well as three from their 2025 release, UNATØNED. The newer tracks feature a different vocal style, with fast–spoken lyrics rather than singing, and shorter track lengths. Their sound is crystal clear, and all the members have a real mastery of their instruments. It was popular with the crowd, which was moshing and singing along nonstop, with the floor remaining packed until the end of the encore song, “Halo”. Frontman Rob Flynn brought hype to the floor, throwing full beers into the crowd (that people actually managed to catch) and telling us that we were the wild ones drinking on a Monday night (it was actually a Sunday, but hey). In all regards, besides knowing the day, Machine Head 100% delivered.
Prison Affair's Egg-Punk Criminals at Le Ritz
Barcelona’s Prison Affair are one of the leading names in the internet-oriented microgenre called egg-punk. Both they and the bands that get grouped in with them are known for short, rapid, abrasive and immediately catchy lo-fi music, often with unintelligibly crunched vocals and cheap keyboard hooks. Their musical identity is then tied near exclusively to the recorded format, as it is impossible to achieve the budget-analog sound in the live setting. After a last-minute Facebook marketplace scramble to grab tickets, I was excited to see what kind of energy they’d bring to the stage.
The three-band event marked the first sold-out show at Le Ritz I’d been to in years. Le Ritz is one of my favourite venues in the city as it lends itself well to three kinds of shows. Touring bands who have not made it big yet, touring bands who used to be famous and have dwindling careers, and bands whose music is too wild to ever sell enough tickets to fill a larger room. A sold-out Ritz show warps these conceptions, but I believe Prison Affair are a solid third type.
I stepped into the show just before the first opener, local band Faze, stepped out onstage. A trombone, glistening in the room's purple and red overhead lighting, suggested something dire to come. Faze are a hardcore four-piece who use wildly delayed vocal shouting over their cacophonous riffing to seep the listener in hot auditory quicksand. The frontman swings his arms around the stage while beaming looks of total panic into the audience. The experience created is one of sinking in a silo. A man kneels overhead, screaming down at you that the freak accident causing you to fall will historically be known as your fault, and that there’s nothing you can do about this. His voice echoing down through the thin steel walls are your last thought before your lungs fill with grain. The tightly packed crowd at first had little movement, which was likely an energy conservation strategy, preparing for two later sets from more established acts. Faze deserved a pit, however, and one was created amidst the frontman finally picking up that trombone and blasting dissonant frequencies into the delayed microphone. The solo evoked witnessing a tragedy while too intoxicated to have any idea how to react. The people were flailing.
Our local Puffer, another name in the egg-punk world, had the shortest set of the night. Their particular brand of screaming and thrashing was more tightly contained. The kind of subdued energy that exploded out of the frontman in short hip thrusts to the sky during his wholly unintelligible screaming pelted the audience with instances of pure rage. The band’s egg-punk ethos transforms onstage into just a hyper-energetic thrash-fest of stupid catchy riffing that makes people bounce as much as mosh. The pit really got going during this time, and despite the packed room, the pit was respected and given ample space to move around. It was around this time that a typical mosh criminal appeared. A bearded man decided to play the role of the knuckle-pusher. The knuckle-pusher will superman you across the pit with the full force of his fist. It’s less than a punch in damage, but it will leave you breathless as you fly to the other side, trying to make sure your balance is kept. There were many victims. As Puffer ended their 15-minute set with their song “Suffering”, I was starting to get fed up with the bearded criminal.
When the trio of Spanish finally had their turn, everybody was ready to unleash the energy they’d been saving for the headliners. The band began dramatically tuning their instruments while bestial gurgling poured from their mouths. The sound of the bass alone could have cut me in half, and I would grow to regret my decision not to bring earplugs. The band didn’t take any breaks for most of their set. An uninterrupted onslaught of short banger after shorter banger persisted. The band’s setlist material ceased to matter at a certain point, as the vocals turned into growling mush and the riffs changed up so often it was nauseating. They followed Puffer’s suit and delivered the shortest headlining act I’ve ever seen, which was exactly what was needed after two other high-velocity performances in the furnace that was quickly becoming of Le Ritz. I was thrown, tossed, punched and spun in the sea of exploding limbs. Balloons were blasted in upward spirals by rapid forehead-butting. One balloon met a muted end as it was launched directly into the disco ball. It felt profound. Somebody, maybe the band themselves, threw a prop jail cell into the pit. The bars were trashed by the mob, bashing into random, unseen hands like a scared sparrow in a glass maze. Every bar was removed from the cell, and whoever brought the prop certainly had no reason to take it home. Eventually, everyone in the room forgot it was Monday. The knuckle-pusher got me with an elbow to the hip, which temporarily dropped me to my knees. The crowd’s protective barrier saved my life and many others that night, stopping the pit once just to allow somebody to tie their shoes. On the subject of shoes, the knuckle-pusher found somebody’s lost left one on the ground during the band’s only pause, and held it up high to return it to its owner. I was briefly sympathetic to this character, and it is not for me to say if this good deed balances out a night of lung-busting strangers. My opinions on him may have finally been sorted, however, when I found myself part of his human shield as he landed back-to-the-floor in the final moments of the band’s final track played. Maybe it was important to have a criminal at a Prison Affair concert.
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