I was excited to finally get to see Mayhem perform live. I missed the last time they came to North America, and I was sure not to miss this one. I'm mostly a fan of their 1994 debut LP De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas as well as 1987's Deathcrush EP, and have intermittently paid attention to the albums released after those ones. Mayhem received something of a poor reputation in the black metal scene since the band reformed after founding guitarist and songwriter Euronymous' untimely demise at the hands of Varg Vikernes, as it was believed by many that this reformed group lacked the authenticity of the original and that they were simply cashing in on the group's new-found infamy. That didn't stop me from checking out releases such as Wolf's Lair Abyss and Grand Declaration of War, even though the latter album further irked black metallers with its forays into industrial sounds. It was going to be a good night.
Revenge opened the evening, and their blasting, grindcore-infused sound that defines Canadian-style black metal roused the crowd. Drummer James Read furiously pounded the drums like a madman, and blackened riffs replete with excessive pick scrapes filled the room. I am particularly fond of this band, and their set ought not be missed on this tour. Recommended.
I have to admit that Watain were always a band that I kind of slept on, but their live set was pretty good. They used some incredibly long intro and outro samples between their songs (as well as an incredibly long one that ended their set so that vocalist Erik Danielsson could come back and take a bow), which started off as charming but ended up being a little irritating. Their stage was replete with flags, strange axes, as well as skeletons. Between the songs, Mr. Danielsson reminded us all about how serious black metal was and that we as black metallers were at war with the poseurs. Very interesting. Their actual songs were actually pretty good, and it inspired me to actually go and listen to them at length. It also tickled that me that Erik gave a couple of good Tom Warrior-inspired "oouugh!!"s during a number of the songs. Good stuff.
Mayhem's set was fabulous. They opened with a sample of the intro track "Silvester Anfang" from Deathcrush, followed by that EP's title track. I knew already that this was going to be a good set. I was doubly pleased to finally see the one and only Attila Csihar in the flesh, as his signature ghastly croon is unique in the domain of heavy metal. Interestingly though, he chose to sing the songs that former vocalist Maniac sang on in the style of the original instead of his own. Their set was a broad sampling of songs recorded throughout their career ("To Daimonion" was nice to hear, especially since it was the one Maniac song where Attila did his signature groans), and they did not ignore the classics. Their renditions of "Chainsaw Gutsfuck" and "Pagan Fears" were great, though what was particularly great was when they performed "Freezing Moon". Attila sounded just as he did on the original recording, the instrumental performance was energetic, and the crowd was fully into the song. It was a wonderful atmosphere to behold. It was the highlight of the night, as well as the last number of months worth of shows. Well worth the price of entry.
--Sean Z. hosts the Sublime State Of Doom, only the heaviest and most brutal metal every Monday from 8 to 9 PM on CJLO. Photo by Antti Lumo.
Hosted by Danny Aubry
Stories by Celeste Lee, Emeline Vidal & Danny Aubry
Produced by Marilla Steuter-Martin
Hosted by Catlin Spencer
Stories by Catlin Spencer, Julian McKenzie & Patricia Petit Liang
Produced by Patricia Petit Liang
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.
Host: Sam Obrand
Stories by: Emeline Vidal
Produced by: Emeline Vidal
Hosted by Saturn De Los Angeles
Stories by Catlin Spencer, Julia Bryant and Tom Matukala
Produced by Tom Matukala
CJLO's News Director Marilla Steuter-Martin produced the latest version of GroundWire, the weekly news podcast program produced by members of the National Campus and Community Radio Association. The issue was presented by Marilla and CJLO's Saturn De Los Angeles (host of Shibuya Crossing, Wed 2-4pm). Features include Muslim perspectives on Charlie Hebdo attacks (a collaborative report between CJLO, CKUT, and CKUW); Women's perspectives on the Dalhousie dentistry scandal (CKDU) and accessibility in the Ottawa punk and DIY community. Check it out!
Hosted by: Celeste Lee
Stories by: Caitlin Spencer, Alexa Everett & Patricia Petit-Liang
Produced by: Emeline Vidal
Today at 5pm on Psychic City, Abby interviews paranormal investigator and founder of Ghost Hunters of Guelph, Wanda Hewer Jackson! Hewer Jackson is psychic medium and consultant for Ontario based tv program Paranormal Around the Region. Today's topics of conversation will range from personal experiences with the afterlife, deja vus and out of body experiences to hauntings, psychic attacks and ghostly visitors! Listeners are encouraged to post questions on the Psychic City Facebook Fanpage. Tune in! Because the truth (in various versions) is out there...
Hosted by: Danny Aubry
Stories by: Celeste Lee, Emeline Vidal & Danny Aubry
Produced by: Julia Bryant