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We Just Wanna Have Some Fun, Down at the Rock and Roll Club
There are so many things that seem to have no reasonable answers. For example, why was Lower Canada called lower when it was clearly north of so-called Upper Canada? Or why was the 2010 remake of the Karate Kid set in Beijing with Mr. Han teaching kung-fu to Tre Parker? And for the love of all that is good and just in the universe, why did Zayn have to leave? While all these questions leave Prince Palu with much to ponder and rant about—and in the case of Zayn, shed a tear—none of them are as confusing to him as the young men and women who live in a city with such tremendous live musical offers as Montreal and yet they don't take advantage of it. Here are a few of his suggestions for what is happening this weekend.
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Tonight the 15th Anniversary of everybody's favourite semi-subterranean bar, L'Escogriffe (4467 St-Denis), continues with a great triple bill presented by Analogue Addiction with the electro-folk- psychédélique yéyé of Il Danse avec Les Genoux, the low-fi bluesy garage-rock with pop melodies of Tang Soleil, and the post-punk of the vowel challenged Trstss. If you've never been to an Analogue Addiction show you really need to correct that. They have become one of the best party throwing agencies in town. It is never dull at one of their events and you get to give some love to L'Esco for a decade and a half of debaucherous memories. $6 admission, doors at 9:00.
Another great venue looking for some love tonight is Le Divan Orange (4234 St-Laurent). The venue will be holding their third Levée de Son event to help raise funds in their fight against the ongoing noise complaint legal battle they are in with a neighbour. I mean seriously, who moves into an apartment above an existing music venue and then complains about noise? Anyway, Qualité Motel and their brand of electro-funk will join forces with the time-traveling electronica wizard Robert Robert in a fight against ridiculousness. Admission is $15.
If you were looking to get a little bit more involved and have a burning desire to show off your MC skills, then you need to check out the weekly happening that takes place every Thursday at Le Bleury-Bar à Vinyle (2109 Bleury) where live hip hop band Urban Science host Le Cypher, a hip hop soul jam session. The night will include DJ Andy Couchman spinning hip hop and old school funk all night long, a performance by the incredible beatboxer X-WAM at 9:00 and the jam session from 10:45 until closing. Boom J's Cuisine will also be there providing mouth-water Jamaican food. $4 at the door with $1 coat check.
If none of these options are loud, screechy and scary enough for you, then you might want to take a look-see at what is going down at Bar le "RITZ" PDB (179 Jean-Talon W.) where the stage will be filled with the industrial strength hardcore sounds that you need. Utah's Cult Leader and New Jersey's Old Wounds have joined forces and are touring together to frighten the elders and bring joy to the metal kids. Joining them will be a couple of home-grown ambassadors of crustcore, Dark Circles and Wrong Hands. If you are unsure of what any of this means, just to give you a little bit more understanding of where these dudes are coming from, Old Wounds have a song called "The Sharpest Knife for the Blackest Heart", and that pretty much sums up the sound that will be flowing onto the street up on Jean Talon tonight. Doors are at 8:00.
Friday, March 27, 2015
Very excited about the show being put on by Montreal Psych Fest at L'Esco on Friday with three great local purveyors of trippy music in vastly different ways. The heavy and spacey psychedelic of Uubbuurruu, the folk-noir-psych of Birds of Paradise, and the Syd Barrett-esque bedroom recordings of Trepanated Heads. Visuals will be done by Pink Veil. And in addition to the great music coming from the stage, DJ Tinsoldierman will provide an excellent blend of tunes before, in-between and after the bands. Doors at 9:00. $7 admission.
With the brilliant concept of collecting and performing songs about gangsters in the 1920s and 1930s from all over the world, Orkestar Kriminal is one of the most unique bands you are ever going to hear. While they are all lovely people individually, they do take on a sort of "gang of tough punks" reputation when playing these songs. With a whole slew of new songs added to the repertoire, they are launching their debut LP, Tummel (which means chaos in Yiddish), at Divan Orange. Joining them in the festivities will be none other than Mister Lantosh Lalonde with yet another musical project, Bella Morta Duo, which "draws from Astor Piazzola as much as it does from Motorhead." Sounds pretty amazing! You can buy tickets online or at the door for $10. Doors open at 8:30, show starts at 9:30.
If you are looking for a more futuristic sound for your Friday night, then Blue Skies Turn Black have got what you are looking for up at their home base of Bar le "RITZ" PDB where they will present a night of shoegazing ambient bliss with Etiquette, Programm, and Year of Glad.
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Obviously the big ticket this weekend is the Will Butler two-night stand at Bar le "RITZ" PDB. Both nights have been sold out for a while, so if you don't already have a ticket you are S.O.L. Fortunately for you there is a great show happening at Katacombes (1635 St-Laurent) that is not sold out yet. New-wave, disco-funketeers Choses Sauvages are launching their latest EP, Japanese Jazz, for the incredible price of PWYC! They are also encouraging people to go to their Bandcamp and take the EP for free! These fellas just want you to get lost in the groove and have a good time, so why not return the favor and grab your friends and head down to the corner of Ontario and St-Laurent and boogie like your hair is on fire. And just because they are letting you get in for free and take the album for free doesn't mean that you have to. Throw them a few bones and thank them for the music. Joining them will be the no-wave punks Crabe and the minimalist-ambient duo Osismi. If you've never seen Choses Sauvages before, trust me, they will make you forget all about missing Will Butler.
If you are looking for something to do during the day this weekend, might I point you in the direction of Phonopolis Records (207 Bernard W.) and their Signs of Spring Sale with 20% off everything in the store, excluding concert tickets, Saturday and Sunday. And while you are in the neighbourhood, pop next door to Drawn & Quarterly and treat yourself to a new book or comic. Support independent record and book stores!
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Recently I had a thought that it was unfair of me to seemingly always end the weekend with a more subdued, folky vibe, as if that was what everybody wants. Maybe you prefer to say goodbye to the weekend kicking and screaming. Well if you are the type of person who will not go quietly into the dying of the weekend light, then here are a few shows for you.
First up is the return of the Vancouver's Celtic punk legends The Real Mackenzies at Katacombes with fellow Vancity punks Isotopes, the self-proclaimed World's Greatest Baseball Punk Band, and local punk band Boids. If your need to slam dance away the on-coming Monday morning blues can't be fulfilled at this show, I don't know how to help you. $15 plus service fees at the door (WTF? Since when are there service fees at the door?) and the show begins at 8:30.
The second non-bluegrass or old-timey country show on Sunday that I will tell you about is the one being presented by Suoni Per Il Popolo at Casa del Popolo (4873 St-Laurent). This show is exactly what you'd expect from the good people at Suoni, strange experimental rock that can get really loud and also get really mellow. Headliners The Ukiah Drag hail from the same swampy part of Florida that birthed Merchandise, but now are based out of Providence, RI and are finishing up their tour in support of their latest release, In The Reapers. Opening the night will be a couple of local bands that will fit in quite nicely, No.Negative and Dead Beat Poet Society. Doors are at 8:00 with a $6-10 sliding scale cover (WTF!? What is it about this Sunday that no one is willing to just say, "this is what the ticket costs"?)
Now of course there is always the Old Time Country & Bluegrass Jam at Barfly (4062 St-Laurent) if you are more like me and want to wind the weekend down with a little twang.
--Prince Palu hosts The Go-Go Radio Magic Show, every Friday night from 6 to 8pm. Tune in. Turn on. Freak OUT! Only on CJLO.
March 26th, 2015
Hosted by: Sam Obrand
Stories by:Emeline Vidal, Tom Matukala, Julian McKenzie
Produced by: Emeline Vidal
Filmmaker Ara Ball on Champions of the Local Scene: 6pm tonight
Tonight on Champions of the Local scene: local filmmaker Ara Ball will be talking with Host of 'Psychic City' Abby about his latest film Le Pedophile which premiered at this year's SXSW! The two will dicuss Montreal's underground film scene, recent and upcoming projects and how a trip to India changed Ara's life. All this at 6pm sharp!
March 25th 2015
Hosted By Saturn De Los Angeles
Stories By Catlin Spencer, Celeste Lee , and Tom Matukala
Produced by Tom Matukala
March 24th, 2015
Hosted by: Celeste Lee
Stories by: Caitlin Spencer, Patricia Petit-Liang, Alexa Everett
Produced by: Emeline Vidal
Tomorrow at 9 am: Festival International du Film sur L'Art founder René Rozon interview on At The Movies Extra! Plus- FIFA Contest!
Tomorrow at 9 am on a special edition of At The Movies Extra with Iconic Sounds- the team will interview Mr. René Rozon, founder of Festival International du Film sur l'Art. They will discuss the history of ART-FIFA, what is special about this year's edition, and make some festival picks. They will also discuss the festival's residency at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and play some samples of the soundtracks that are in store for festival goers. CJLO is pleased to collaborate with FIFA on a contest to win tickets. Listeners are encouraged to text CJLO (514-848-7471) their name for a chance to win a pair of tickets that are redeemable for the films of their choice in the festival, many of which are being screened at Concordia University. For more information on programming, please consult www.artfifa.com.
The 33rd edition of the FIFA International Festival of Films on Art - from March 19 to 29, presents 243 films from twenty-nine countries. Fourteen cultural venues from Montreal come together to offer a journey into the heart of international artistic creation. The FIFA invites you to participate in the largest cultural event of it’s kind in the world to discover films on subjects as varied as music, contemporary art, dance, architecture, cinema and literature to name a few and some special events as well.
CJLO is pleased to participate in the screening of ENTRE CIEL ET TERRE, QUAND LE HIP-HOP DEVIENT ART:
March 26 – Society for Arts and Technology [SAT] – in French at 8pm.
For a second consecutive year, the FIFA and the SAT offer a festive evening to Montreal dance lovers. The documentary Entre ciel et terre, quand le hip-hop devient art is presented simultaneously on six screens, as part of an evening hosted by Ddimplz with DJ Victorious and performances in contemporary and street dance by H2O Let Your Art Flow and Forêt Noire.
CJLO is pleased to give away one set of tickets to this innovative event. To win tickets to this special event, text CJLO- 514-848-7471- your name and HIP HOP ART.
Winners will be contacted Mar 26 by noon.
The Lazarus Effect barely worth $5 DVD bin
When Jesus brought Lazarus back to life, everyone called it a miracle. Leave it to the cool, hip, nerdy medical researchers (Mark Duplass and Olivia Wilde) to start playing god and all hell breaks loose, including the fact that they should not be playing god according to the chair board. Science and religion are the two common motifs used in horror films, so why should The Lazarus Effect not use them to their advantage. This supernatural horror film directed by David Gelb (Jiro Dreams of Sushi) and produced from the team behind The Purge and Paranormal Activities. It has an all star talented cast which includes who include Mark Duplass (The Mindy Project), Olivia Wilde (Drinking Buddies), Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino (Community), Evan Peters (American Horror Story, X-Men: Days of Futures Past) and Sarah Bolger (The Tudors).
Frank (Duplass) and Zoey (Wilde) play the hip rockstar medical researchers under a grant from the university that use their time to invent a serum code named Lazarus. The serum allows the trial patent to be revived from the dead for a couple of weeks in order to run medical tests on the subjects. Niko (Glover) and Clay (Peters) play the two interns that provide both comedic relief to the group. Where Peter's shines and thrives as the wacky crazy Clay, Glover's Niko is more subdue from his role on Community. The test subjects at first are animals, with their first success being a German Shepard. You know the old saying when the dead are dead, you should just leave them alone. In theory this is true, but it is not the case in horror films. Frank and Zoey adopt the German Shepard who acts out of character, which allows Clay makes a Cujo reference, another horror film based on a rabid St. Bernard. Let's just say some freak lab accident rushes the need to go from animal tests subjects to human tests subjects. All hell breaks lose and no one is safe. For further spoilers not limited to character death scenes please view the trailer that contains almost the entire plot of the movie.
David Gleb plays this horror movie safe using the same troupes as in any science and religion horror films. The Purge and Paranormal Activities brought something new to the genre of horror films known as found footage. The Purge blends both found and live action footage, which is a element to showcase the hell breaking loose in The Lazarus Effect. For the audience member who wants logic to go along side of the science, you will be disappointed. If you are looking for a horror films that plays it safe with an all star cast of actors and actress that were looking for work, than The Lazarus Effect might be worth a rental or the 5 $ DVD bin.
3 Rockstar Medical researchers/ 5 Jesus miracles
At The Movies: The Breakfast Club is 30: Tues at 8am! Plus: The Golden Ticket Award winners list
The Breakfast Club was released 30 years ago this year! Tune into a special episode of At The Movies with Iconic Sounds, this Tuesday at 8-9 am to hear the classic's review from our team's point of view. Does this film hold up 30 years later? Do the character archetypes of a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal translate for teenagers today? Tune in to find out!
Also, At The Movies handed out its own prestigious cinema awards recently: The Golden Ticket Awards...
Here is the recap of the winners!
The Golden Ticket Awards
Best Picture (Drama): Boyhood
Monday, March 23rd, 2015
Hosted by: Danny Aubry
Stories by: Emeline Vidal, Danny Aubry & Julia Bryant
Produced by: Julia Bryant
Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly
Interscope / Aftermath / Top Dawg 2015
Feel so good inside myself Don't want to move
Feel so good inside myself Don't need to move
As I grow up I'm growing down. And when I'm lost,
I know I will be found.
--Sly and the Family Stone, There's a Riot Goin' On
The first time I ever heard Kendrick, or was even aware of him, was at a Fader Fort party in New York City for CMJ. This must have been 2010. I was very drunk at the time (damn open bars) and I cannot say I recall much of what I saw. I was more excited to see Wavves play. Several years later, during one of my five-hour drives from Montreal to Toronto, I put on good kid m.A.A.d city with relatively little expectation. I listened to it at least twice in that one drive, and I was actually disappointed when I reached Toronto because I had to turn the record off. It's an awesome feeling, listening to a record for the first time and just knowing you've experienced something truly special. There are few musical experiences I can equate that to. That record has since gone platinum and established Kendrick as hip hop's Golden Child.
A lot has happened since then, in hip hop, in music, and the world. But To Pimp a Butterfly is not about hip hop, or the world at large. To Pimp a Butterfly is about what it means to be black in America. It's almost impossible to write anything coherent about this record so I will not attempt that, and I suppose this is an accurate reflection of the record itself. While his previous records, including his debut Section 8.0, explored broad sonic structures and lyrical themes within a consistent production style, To Pimp a Butterfly feels insular and contained within itself, despite its profound sense of chaos.
Hip hop has become the vessel for Kendrick's message, instead of its central component. The record has a conversational tone that's directly engaging and remarkably absorbing. Musically it's all over the place, taking inspiration from recent Flying Lotus records, Miles Davis' freak-out opus Bitches Brew, and the insularity and pulsating tension of There's a Riot Goin' On. The weirdness of the record recalls early Outkast records, with The Love Below already frequently mentioned as a touchstone for the record.
While its predecessor was stacked with massive singles fit for clubs and parties, To Pimp a Butterfly has not one single I can imagine nearing the top of the Billboard charts or Taylor Swift singing along too. That's not to say there aren't standout tracks. "King Kunta", "U", "For Sale-Interlude", and especially "How Much a Dollar Cost" are stunning and haunting. Previously released singles, including the polarizing "I" take on a new life and meaning within the context of the record. "I" sparked an interesting conversation with how people, minorities in particular, perceive themselves through the adjusted lens of North American society. In the context of the record it becomes an affirming, self-reflective and hopeful moment in an album enveloped in confusion, weariness, and darkness.
At the start of this write-up are the opening lyrics to Sly and the Family Stone's landmark 1971 release, There's a Riot Goin' On. That record was a direct response to Marvin Gaye's equally seminal What's Going On. The DNA of those records are all over To Pimp a Butterfly. At the time, Sly Stone had fallen into a deep depression and hard drugs. Receding into his mind, he delivered a record that reflected the tension, murkiness and sense of deflation felt by an entire generation left dazed by unrealized promises of equality, the blistering aftermath of a failed war and broken economy. Sound vaguely familiar?
Kendrick did not, however, completely retreat into his mind like Sly. Instead he went in and looked out, moving forward to create something that serves as a proclamation and a reflection of the increasingly worrisome reality we live in. It's always framed in the context of his experiences, making it more stinging and deeply affecting in the process. This reaches a climax in the devastating final track "Mortal Man", where Kendrick has a 'conversation' with Tupac. It's impossible to listen to without having a chill run down your spine. Rarely does a musician of this caliber and stature give this much of themselves so openly, honestly and bravely. Kendrick leaves us with more questions than answers, which creates a vacuum that demands to be filled with thoughtful discourse. The conversation has already begun and one thing is clear: we'll be lucky to receive another record like this any time soon.
Rating: 5/5
Best For: I don't even know, man.
--Kenny Chatoor is a regular magazine contributor and former CJLO radio DJ currently living in Ontario, "Yeah, things are good, there's definitely nothing like CJLO in Toronto though, which is a bummer."
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