Of Radio Shows and Band 'Research'...

To My Youngers,

I have recently gotten back into radio... that could mean so many things! well, okay maybe just a few things, but to dissect its actual intended meaning:

In university I hosted a radio show. Well actually I started out filling in for people who were sick/had exams or were in plays or whatever, then moved on to hosting a radio show with my friend R, then later on a movie soundtrack show with another friend, J. I kind of loved it. For someone who used to be afraid of speaking in front of large crowds of people radio was perfection (yes perfection). It was just me and my friend, two microphones a couple turn tables, a tape player and a CD machine (ok CD player, but tape player followed by CD player just sounded lame...). No audience. Not in the studio, likely not even on the other end of the radio. Perfection! Well until the day when a person we had never met called in and we realized that there actually were people listening on the other end of the line... actually that was a really weird feeling, that you are being heard by people you've never seen and will likely never meet...More importantly you might play a song that introduces them to their future favourite band! Screw being afraid of talking in front of people, the possibility of  introducing someone to new music far outweighed any fear. I was hooked.

At least until the end of university...

Once you get out into the real world its a little more difficult to get involved in radio. At least I thought it was... I later discovered that several people I knew had local radio shows, mostly on campus or community access radio, but I knew from experience that the fun part was the idea that even just one person you've never met might hear something you play and like it. If three people heard it, all the better, but I really couldn't (and still can't) fathom the idea of many more people than that hearing my voice on the radio (despite evidence to the contrary...)

So when S asked me if I would do a Canadian music segment for his weekly radio show/podcast I lept at the chance. Not only was I  excited to get back into radio, I was especially pumped to have an excuse to be up on Canadian Music. Alright, alright, I don't really need much of an excuse, but its nice to feel like there's a reason beyond "I just like it though...". Don't get me wrong, that is definitely enough of a reason for me, only sometimes, when people realize the depth of my love for it and the extent of my random can-con knowledge they seem a little weirded out by it. Tacking on "Well I do a weekly radio segment on Canadian bands..." takes the edge off a bit!

So this past week I went a bit bonkers with it. And my 'it' I mean research. And by 'research' I mean listening to a crap-tonn of bands on a crap-ton of websites and blogs, and mining the minds of friends and fellow music lovers for their current favourites.

And it was awesome.

Alright the computer-dazed-headache thing  wasn't so hot, but once the dust settled I was left with at least a handful (and at most an extensively annotated and very very long list...) of new-to-me bands to add to my listening list. And that most definitely is awesome. So I thought I would share a few with you!

First off, the tantalizingly-few-released-songs of Writers' Strike. Hailing from Halifax, this is the first band that has made me miss the Hali music scene since I moved away almost a year ago.  Plus you can download their music for free (or 'pay what you feel like' which always makes me actually want to pay for the music)! Text-book Indie, the kind of band you hear and think "I bet they're good live..." I am going to have to send some of my east coast friends on reconnaissance missions over the next few months... Looking forward to the eventual release of a full length album

Though my 'research' was geared towards Canadian music, the band I have not been able to stop listening to is from Iceland. Of Monsters and Men.  A little bit Arcade Fire, a little bit Library Voices, and a little bit Mumford and Sons, with maybe a dash of Phil Collins  (okay that might just be me, but seriously, just a liiiitle bit!) their back-and-forth vocals, storytelling lyrics and loverly selection of horns, guitar and la la las gets me right in the stomach. Plus they've got the awesome (though sometimes subtle) Icelandic accents that just make all of the lyrics seem trapped in some sort of netherworld between Europe and North America, like they're singing from a bubble atop the Atlantic Ocean... or Iceland. Either way I am very much enjoying it!

Also not Canadian but instead from Rhode Island, Math the Band. Cheeky, a little silly, and a lot like 8-bit video game music, these guys are far from sophisticated, but way too much fun to not love. I spent the last three days listening to them while editing K's extensively long film-preservation paper and they acted as both excellent background music, and an exceptional distraction. Odd combination, but you'll just have to trust me on that. Like B.A. Johnson and The Beta Band had some sort of nintendo-playing wiz kid, they walk the line between quirky and ridiculous in an entertaining and (usually) quite listenable manner.

So with the monster list I have awaiting further 'research' there are bound to be more of these types of posts in the next few months/weeks! If you've got any other bands you think I should check out, send em my way! Maybe I'll play them on the radio (well, only if they're Canadian, but I will listen to them either way)!

-E

Painted Paws

To My Youngers,

Sorry its been a while, I've been both fairly sick and fairly busy, and then I just got out of the habit... at any rate, I had a bit more time on my hands today so I thought I would catch up! Actually I should have had a bit of time on my hands yesterday as well, but things didn't go quite as planned...

I'm not really a cat person. I kind of used to hate cats, then strongly disliked them, and now its on more of a case by case basis (some I still really really can't stand, while El's two cats have won me over...) the point is though that I have never had cats before, nor had occasion to be around them much at all. I've had dog, sure, but there are some important differences. For example dogs don't really climb on tables and cats do. So when you have a dog you can leave a palate full of leftover (still wet) paint sitting on the kitchen table and there is nothing to worry about! you can go outside and hang up christmas lights and come back in and everything will look just as you left it... with cats? Yeah apparently its somewhat different. Little-blue-and-red-paw-prints-all-over-the-house kind of different...

So that took a while to clean up. As did the paws of said cat. Though I have to say I was impressed that no biting or scratching occurred over the forty five minutes we spent sitting on the bathroom floor with the cat wrapped firmly in a towel and me making every attempt to trip the paint-filed fur from his hooligan paws... I guess thats one of the reasons El's cats are actually alright... That and they sit on command. who knew?

-E

PS I also backdated one or two of the wrote-and-never-posted variety...

The Best Drum Kit in the World

To My Youngers,

So a few weeks ago I kinda really ripped into the band 'One Hundred Dollars' for being one of the most ineffective opening acts I had ever seen (aka super creepy, played for too long, would have been better on CD, etc...). To be honest (and I'm not sure if i said this at the time) but it kind of ruined the rest of the show for me. Alright, not stricktly speaking as it is practically impossible for anything to ruin an Elliott Brood show for me, but it was definitely the least fun I had ever had at an EB show... Now normally that would mean I would really try to never see said offending band again, but 'twas not to be so. Elliott Brood played in Montreal last night, and I could not resist, despite the opening act.

I was tempted to skip them (the opener, not the whole show) but I had hyped their creepyness so much to K and D that it would have just been mean to deprive them of their own experience... Then I realised that it was actually a win win situation- if they were horrible again I was not only prepared, but would enjoy seeing everyone else's reaction, and if they were great (or even just good!) I would be pleasantly surprised. The only way they could possibly disappoint me would be by being slightly better than barely passable. So I guess technically more of a win-win-lose situation (66/33 odds are better than 50/50...) So we went for the whole show. Good decision.

One Hundred Dollars
To be fair, it would have been pretty difficult for them to get much worse, but One Hundred Dollars' performance was vastly superior to the last time I saw them! There were no scary eyes and pointing,  glares full of loathing, no horrible tension and sense of impending doom... I mean don't get me wrong, the lead singer still had her super creepy moments, but they were few and far between, and actually seemed to fit with the songs (as opposed to overshadow them like the darkness of everlasting night...). It felt like classic country instead of the jumble of conflicting and depressing visuals (and soundicals) of their previous performance. The lyrics fit nicely with the flowing and surprisingly upbeat music, the crowd sand along with most of the songs (we even seemed to learn a lot of new ones by then end!) and everyone benefited from the general sense of camaraderie resulting from this being the last date they would play with Elliott Brood. It didn't completely wipe out their last performance from my mind, but it was a good set and it created a mood the way an opening act should do. I would actually go see them again- hopefully they'll be even better the next time!


Elliott Brood
Now THIS is what I'm talkin' about!!! With the much much MUCH improved opening performance the crowd was in just the right kind of mood for the Brood boys. Enthusiastically joking, jumping and juggling (ok there wasn't any juggling- I just couldn't think of another 'j' word...) they blazed through  one of the best sets I've ever seen them play. With songs I havn't seen them play in years (President 35 was faaaaantastic), classy duds, and the best drum kit this side of anywhere (ok I might be a little biased, but c'mon, a birch bark and tree-cross-section kit? so appropriate...) they had the audience belting it out and dancing along with every song.  D even mentioned that this was practically the most enthusiastic she had ever seen a Montreal crowd (an impressive compliment, as many Montreal concert-goers will know).

Elliot Brood's strikingly appropriate and amazing drum kit

I suppose I should mention that K even got the opportunity to massively make fun of me when Mark Sasso walked in front of us and I turned bright red. Yes K and D could tell even in the dark, that's how bad it was. Now I just have to figure out a way to get back at her by making her be suddenly face to face with Library Voices...

-E

Lyrical Musings on Musical Classifications or "What it means to like country"

To My Youngers,

CBGB stands for Country, Bluegrass, Blues. Seriously now, who would have guessed that? I mean obviously if you're a CBGB fan you would almost certainly know it, but most people who have only a cursory knowledge of CBGBs as a former rock club in New York City (arguably THE former rock club in New York City), I think would be surprised to learn that name of the legendary local has nothing to do with Rock and everything to do with Country...

I used to be one of those people who likes "all kinds of music... except for country and rap." Which was complete bollocks because 1) People who say they like 'all kinds of music' are usually the same people who can't name three of their favourite bands, and I am most definitely NOT that kind of a people, 2) I actually do like some rap, particularly 80s era rap, and I'm not sure that this is the best example of 'rap' music as we define it nowadays, but The Fresh Prince of BelAir was one of the first songs I ever knew all of the lyrics to, and 3) I totally do like country. My teenage-self would hit me over the head with a two by four for even thinking of uttering that sentence, but it does not make it any less true. I actually love country music.

I don't really know when or how it happened, but it happened. Hard core. (Okay not THAT hard core, because I only like a very specific kind of country music (CBGB one might say...) and still have a very viscerally unpleasant reaction to pop country- you know, the my-girlfriends-stole-my-truck-and-ran-over-my-dog-on-the-way-to-go-marry-her-cousin kind of country... or the I-got-nothin-to-say-but-gee-don't-I-sound-real-perdy kind. no good. borderline offensively bad.)  And this is what I love: banjo music. Johnny Cash music. washboards and wagon trains and tumbleweeds music. Hells my current favourite band (Elliott Brood  of course) boasts two banjos a harmonica and a slide guitar and has more than one song about a wagon train (as does Graveyard Train, another current love- though they also play chains, washboard and stand-up bass...)

(I swear this will relate back in a moment so bare with me) I recently saw Dan Mangan in concert and have since fallen in love with his song Road Regrets, particularly one stanza which goes, and I quote: "and rob he likes his country tunes. it’s never been the lens that i see through. but i guess driving for a week or two puts words in your mouth. so find dodge and then get out of it. it’s about as country as i get"

 though arguable not 'country at all' the video for Road Regrets has 

numerous similarities to Elliott Brood's video for Second Son

It captures something about country that I have up till now had difficultly grasping- that it is a lens rather than just a sound. I may love the banjo and the hitting-objects-with-wooden-spoons, but its the storytelling that gets me, more specifically the way in which a country-song story is told (both lyrically and with the music...). Its the narrative and the music working together to create the imagery, to create the story, to create the world of the song... So despite my best intentions, it actually is the my-girlfriends-stole-my-truck-and-ran-over-my-dog-on-the-way-to-go-marry-her-cousin that I love. As long as its more about wagon trains and less about soap operas set in backwater Texas... 

Sorry sixteen-year-old-me, I just can't help it- I loves me a good yarn.

-E

Road Regrets by Dan Mangan
we’ll drive until the gas is gone. and then walk until our feet are torn. crawl until we feed the soil. film the whole thing. it’s all business in the left hand lane. drive there and then drive back again. escape can’t be the only way to escape. so i’ve gotten used to coffee sweats. still getting used to road regrets. hell, i took you up on all your threats to leave. it’s a shame, it’s a crying shame. and ain’t it always the way that takes you back to from where it is you came. and rob he likes his country tunes. it’s never been the lens that i see through. but i guess driving for a week or two puts words in your mouth. so find dodge and then get out of it. it’s about as country as i get. see you ain’t living until you’re living it. not dead ’till you die. but watch out for the paraphrase. for they will crown you then they will take your legs. see the cost is more than what you get paid. but do it anyway. it’s a shame, it’s a crying shame. and ain’t it always the way that takes you back to from where it is you came.

Timeless-ness

To my elders,

When one thinks of Timeless-ness, in a pop-culture, 20th and 21st century sort of way, one thinks of little black dresses, Coco Chanel, Audrey Hepburn, and general classy things. But I also think of music.

There are some bands and albums, and, according to E, genres, that sound like themselves more than the decade that produced them. Which is how Simon and Garfunkel have many a song that could have been produced by a low-fi folk duo of the past five years, pop punk has sounded the same for 20 years, Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yelstin sound like they are from the 60s, and Jimmy Eat World don't sound dated, even though I know I was listening to "Sweetness" in 9th grade. One of my friends looked like the singer and one of the weekend project movies my friends made featured a scene when a girl, trying to escape a serial killer, hears music, opens the door, sees said friend with a guitar singing "Sweetness," looks confused at the camera, shuts the door and continues her escape.

And its not just that the music isn't really that dated, but the lyrics managed to feel appropriate when I was 15, but they still feel the same now, when I'm (nearly) 25. I site:

The Middle:

Hey, don't write yourself off yet

It's only in your head you feel left out or looked down on.

Just try your best, try everything you can.

And don't you worry what they tell themselves when you're away.

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.

Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

Hey, you know they're all the same.

You know you're doing better on your own, so don't buy in.

Live right now.

Yeah, just be yourself.

It doesn't matter if it's good enough for someone else.

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.

Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.

Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

Hey, don't write yourself off yet.

It's only in your head you feel left out or looked down on.

Just do your best, do everything you can.

And don't you worry what the bitter hearts are gonna say.

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.

Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.

Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

[Sidebar: this is the top comment on the website I found these lyrics on. Amazing.

"it sucks that some people really just don't understand how music works for some other people. this song is amazing. it really can help. music really does help. and you'll never really know unless you yourself have experienced it. and unless you've got experience, you've got no right to talk crap about the song and the people it's helped. right? yup"]

A Praise Chorus:

Are you gonna live your life wonderin' standing in the back lookin' around?

Are you gonna waste your time thinkin' how you've grown up or how you missed out?

Things are never gonna be the way you want.

Where's it gonna get you acting serious?

Things are never gonna be quite what you want.

Or even at 25, you gotta start sometime.

I'm on my feet, I'm on the floor, I'm good to go.

Now all I need is just to hear a song I know.

I wanna always feel like part of this was mine.

I wanna fall in love tonight.

Are you gonna live your life standing in the back looking around?

Are you gonna waste your time?

Gotta make a move or you'll miss out.

Someone's gonna ask you what it's all about.

Stick around nostalgia won't let you down.

Someone's gonna ask you what it's all about.

Whatcha gonna have to say for yourself?

I'm on my feet, I'm on the floor, I'm good to go.

Now all I need is just to hear a song I know.

I wanna always feel like part of this was mine.

I wanna fall in love tonight.

Crimson and clover, over and over.

Crimson and clover, over and over.

Our house in the middle of the street, why did we ever meet?

Started my rock 'n roll fantasy.

Don't don't, don't let's start, why did we ever part?

Kick start my rock 'n rollen heart.

I'm on my feet, I'm on the floor, I'm good to go.

So come on Davey, sing me somethin' that I know.

I wanna always feel like part of this was mine.

I wanna fall in love tonight.

Here tonight.

I wanna always feel like part of this was mine

I wanna fall in love tonight.

Now, I admit, I am a sucker for lyrics than name specific ages and bond to them while I am that age, but still. Pretty damn good.

-K

"We have reached a crossroads...

...the crossroads between 'Lame' and 'Awesome.' The sign pointing that way says 'Lame.' The sign pointing this way says 'Awesome.' I know which way I'm going...!"

To My Youngers,

K has been putting a plan into action the past few months- no not a secret plan to fight inflation- but a secret plan none the less. She has been conspiring to make me like all of her favourite bands. And it worked.

Tonight I went to see 'Said the Whale' and "Rah Rah'. Two of 'K's bands' that she has been putting on mixed cds since January. Two bands that I never knew existed a few months ago, and now feel like I've been listening to for forever. Even better she's gotten my roomate loving these bands as well! Always nice when you don't have to drag someone along, but can just tell them who is playing and they jump at the chance :o)

We had a great time. The show was awesome (see quote at the top. They weren't kiddin- they chose the awesome path) and of course it got me into the whole "Oh I love live music... live music... concerts... I love them so!" and the thinking, wondering about how there are people out there who possibly don't share that sentiment... I mean as I've said on many occasions- I get it academically speaking. I mean I don't like green peppers, they don't like concerts. Fine. There are reasons- your feet hurt, your voice goes hoarse, you're super tired the next day... (more on that in my next post!) but man is it worth it.  Its so much more than just listening to music in a room with a bunch of people you don't know- the vibe (not to sounds lame but yes, the vibe) at a good concert is such a rush. Everyone having a great time, singing along, dancing and jumping...  and seeing the band grinning from ear to ear ("The only thing I don't like about tonight is that my face hurts because I can't stop smiling! you guys are amazing!" observed Ben Worcester) having a fantastic time ("this is so short! I mean it went by so fast! ... that's a good thing by the way, it means we're having fun up here!" said Tyler Bancroft) just makes it even better. Like when we saw Karkwa at hillside and the lead singer could not stop giggling at the seventeen year olds rocking out in the front row- you could tell he thought it was hilarious. Or the look on the faces of Graveyard Train when our crowd started moshing and crazy-dancing- the next day they tweeted "Best show ever- we got the Canadians crowd surfing!" To know that its not just you, or even just the rest of the audience who is feeling that (again, please excuse the cheese) magical serendipitous feeling...

In other words its the whole experience. Sharing that time, that space, that experience with a roomful of other people you don't even know, but who you have at least one thing in common with... its golden. Simply golden.

-E

Tiny Chipmunks, Tiny Chipmunks Inside of My Heart

To My Youngers,

At Folkfest last Thursday night I had an experience which has become strangely familiar to me over the course of the past few months- that of falling completely in love with the band playing on stage. At times it is with a band I already adore (I am not sure that I am actually capable of explaining how much I feel about Elliot Brood...) or one I have never even heard of (hi Graveyard Train. Yes. You are crazy awesome.  Mostly Crazy. But also Awesome.) but it is a feeling that can be topped by very few things in life. Actually that statement is mostly assumption, as I am simply guessing that seeing your kid for the first time ought to feel better than falling in love with a band, but I would also not be surprised if it felt exactly the same... thats how much I love this feeling.

The most recent subject of my adoration (type two, the "never before heard of them" kind) is Punch Brothers. Its the mandolin, its the banjo, its the low voices, their olde tymey suits and their charming ways that combine to make a magical wonderfullness that makes me so excited that I sprinted from one end of the grounds to the complete opposite corner (in the middle of their set) to purchase a CD, then ran all the way back, missing only one song ( Rye Whiskey is a perfect example of a song of theirs that elicits such a response from/in me...).

And its not just an idea, its not just a feeling, its an actual physical response. I was trying to explain  to El what I meant by that and this was the best I could do- their songs make me feel like there are tiny chipmunks running around inside of my heart. Like their little tiny hands are kneeding the inside of my chest, hugging and tugging at my heart strings. Crawling around in there like its where they belong, like they always live there, only they don't let me know it unless they're really really happy. I don't know if that makes any sense at all, but its exactly what it feels like, and it feels both wonderful and super weird all at once. It came out of my mouth, this explanation, and it seemed the only and most perfect time I have ever described the feeling.  And its a feeling I've had before. Its a feeling I've had about music (about certain bands or certain songs) for quite a while. About Sam Roberts, about the White Stripes, about the Decemberists and the Shins, but recently very often about Elliot Brood, Old Man Leudecke, Dry River Caravan and Graveyard Train. And so I found myself suddenly wondering; how why and HOW did it take me so long to realize that I love adore and LOVE bluegrass music!?! 

I am happy being someone who likes many different types of music (I would never say "I like all kind of music" cuz to me that's just something someone says if they don't really like music at all...) , but I always used to add the caveat "but not country, never country"- and that made me happy, I was ok with that as my definition of my sphere of music-liking. Except that it was never true. Big Wreck takes a lot from country, as did CCR, and The Lovin' Spoonful- all favourite bands of my youth. The first time I saw "Oh Brother Where Art Thou?" I did nothing but listen to the soundtrack for weeks... 'Jackson' by Johnny Cash has also been known to lodge itself into my skull and not let go... and don't even get me started on banjo- oh banjo! the most inexplicably sexy and wonderful instrument on the planet. 

So I'm giving up another part of who i thought I was, taking on yet another thing that the teenage me would have not only scoffed at, but quite possibly never-spoken-to-me-again over- I no longer hate country music. Pop Country- the Carrie Underwoods and the Kenny Chesneys of the world- is still safely outside of my sphere of like, but prog-bluegrass, death-country and alt-country? I likes em. There I said it. How can I not admit to liking that makes my tiny heart chipmunks so happy?

-E

Homes Dissapear

To My Youngers,

With the end of summer fast approaching (where did it GO?) I find myself getting preemptively nostalgic for all the fun-times, fun-friends, fun-weather, and fun-music I've been a part of this past few months (and mark my words it has been a lot of all of those things... living with El, visiting K, going to the cottage, roller derby, F's wedding, hillside, working with some fantastically awesome people, working some fantastically awesome shows (how did I get paid to watch John Foggerty and have a front row seat at the Canada Day fireworks?!?), and enjoying one of the most beautifully warm and sunny summers I've ever experienced). Most of the time I'm in it ("You're so in it right now, you're just so in it...") but the past few days I've definitely had some of those moments where I can't help but think  "I don't want it to all be over..."

Melodramatic sentiments aside, its gotten me thinking about how much I have really started to feel at home here, and what that means. Sure I think its a beautiful city, I love biking along the trails and walking along the paths. I love being close enough to Quebec to walk over from work and bike home at 2am and for French to sound as familiar as English. I love the weather and the green and the rivers... I love so many physical things about where I live, but so much of what has made me feel like I live here has been ephemeral- people, events, experiences. Much like in University, you construct a place out of everything it means to you, and when you try to hold on to that, or when you try to go back, its just not the same because the remnants of the physical things are all that is left. Everything changes around you (and though you may not feel like you're changing too, inevitably you are) and one day you wake up to discover that its all different- the place you thought you were building just doesn't exist any more.

A few days ago I happened upon the song False Creek Change by Said the Whale and was transfixed by how well it captures just this kind of thing- the inevitability:

False Creek changed in '86
the year Expo exploited her shore
It's been twenty two years laying down bricks
and there's no room for me here any more, any more
there's no room for me here anymore

I made my mark in '84
Born to the month of June
My home at the heart of Charleson Park
I never thought I'd be leaving so soon, so soon
Never thought I'd be leaving so soon

I've watched The Walls of Yaletown
growing up over my mountain view
My old horizon under the clouds
I'll be sad when I'm thinking of you
I'll be sad when I'm thinking of you

Now all the old men and their boats have gone
and I will be leaving too
My little red roof by the old duck pond
I'll be saying farewell to you
I'll be saying farewell to you

Sometimes its sad, sometimes it means that its time for you to go (sorry Halifax), but more often its a matter of realizing that you've already gone, more precisely its already gone ("It never occurred to me to think of space as the thing that was moving...") that it can never really exist again. It seems sad and final and depressing, but the thing is that you can't really miss it because it was never a real thing to start with. And if it was never really a real thing to start with the fact that it can never again be a real thing really makes no difference, right? Too much?

Alls I'm saying is that instead of spending my time being sad that the summer is ending and all of my ephemeral summer experiences are slowly fading away, I am going to spend my time enjoying them. Savoring every last second. Because they're not really the last seconds at all- they're just the seconds at the middle of the beginning- or at worst at the beginning of the middle...

-E

Stuck

To my elder and younger,

I know I am preaching to the choir on this, but ever had a song stuck in your head? Duh of course you have! Who hasn’t at one point or another.

But have you ever had JUST the chorus stuck in your head and then realize you don’t know any other lyrics other that the 15 seconds of chorus that repeat through out the song? I’m sure you have had this happen to you as well. In fact I’m sure most people who listen to the radio have this happen on a semi regular basis.

Well today I got the chorus to Biff Naked’s song “Lucky” stuck in my head. And get this completely out of nowhere! I did not hear it anywhere it just invaded my thoughts and got stuck.

I decided to remedy my ignorance at the lyrics and looked them up. And as such I will also share them with you.

LUCKY

It was a monday, when my lover told me,
"never pay the reaper with love only."
What could i say to you, except, "i love you."
And "i'd give my life for yours."

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.

The first time we made love, i... i wasn't sober.
(and you told me you loved me over and over!)
How could i ever love another, when i miss you every day...

Remember the time we made love in the roses?
(and you took my picture in all sorts of poses!)
How could i ever get over you, when i'd give my life for yours.

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.

My dear, It's time to say i thank god for you.
I thank god for you in each and every single way.
And, i know... i know.. i know.. i know...

It's time to let you know. time to let you know.
Time to let you know. time to sit here and say...

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.
We are the lucky ones, dear...

Remember the words of ram dass: "death is like taking off a tight shoe."

I'm guessing, that like me you ad no idea those were the rest of the lyrics to the song.

-A

Left a message for a friend sayin' 'Baby, how you been?'

To my elders,

Summer is almost over. Which, apparently, is the perfect time to gear up for fall tours, album releases, and general musical excitement.

The albums:

Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin. Releasing something like 26 songs. That may come close to doubling their catalogue. I don't even care if a bunch of them are off singles and EPs I already have. There are 26 of them.

Library Voices. New cd out one week from today. Which is crazy amazing. Because its been less than a year and a half since their first full length. Even better? That I am the fan girl that I am and ordered the pre-sale. Which, evidently, came with an instant free download. Of the entire album. Who has listened to it non-stop for the past 3 days? This guy. Or, you know, girl. Or whatever. I've already started to mess up the lyrics. "Virginia I don't wanna die" is NOT how the song goes. Is that how I sing it in my head? Yes. How does it actually go? "Regina I don't want to fight." Close? Kinda. Random word switches? Definitely. But is the album kinda freakin awesome? Yup.

Said the Whale. Who apparently have a bunch of songs longer than 3 minutes. Which is impressive. Although, I do quite like the ditties. The less-than-2-minutes-long songs that are just kinda adorable snippets. And they mean than a half hour set has like, a million songs. Which is pretty awesome.

The concerts:

September 22: Arcade Fire. Free. 'Nuff said.

October 26: Library Voices. At an uber tiny venue. You don't even understand how amazing this is.

Ok, I can't remember who else is coming ATM, but there are a lot. Partially because Pop Montreal always leads to a lot. But its more than that. This is totally the Fall of Music.

Wait, that makes it sound like Music is falling. And yet, Autumn of Music doesn't have quite the same ring to it...

-K

Classifications of Systems

To My Youngers,

K once asked me how I would classify (aka organize) music if I could do it exactly the way I wanted... At the time I said by imaginary environments (like Elliot Brood would go in the 'saloon town' category and 'Portland' would expand to include all bands that sound like they should live near The Shins or The Decemberists...). I would still most certainly keep that as a type of classification, but I would also add another: weather.

Today was grey and cloudy- not quite raining, just that kind of sitting-in-a-mopey-cloud kind of day that makes you feel melancholia (though not sad) and spacey (though not slow) and (for me at least) buzzy with creativity... the kind of weather that always makes me want to listen to music and paint. Today my band of choice was The Decemberists. All of The Decemberists. Every CD, every EP, all in a row, all day long. (Even The Tain, a thirteen minute epic of story-telling genius). And it was awesome.

[sidebar: I absolutely love listening to The Decemberists and so much of that is because they always make me feel like making things- painting, drawing, sewing, building... and in such a way that I actually do make things! Today it was a big painting of a whale with a living room in its belly. Tomorrow? Who knows- but its a great feeling to have and even better to know all I have to do to bring it on is whip out a certain discography...]

So in the category of cloudy (but not rainy), cool (but not cold), and laid-back (but not sluggish) kin-o-days I put forth The Decemberists, entry number one. Add to the list as you see fit.

-E

Adorable Love Songs Make Adorable Ukulele Songs

To My Youngers,

 So I've recently taken up the ukulele- and by "taken up" I mean I can play two songs on it, one of which I can only sometimes sing and play at the same time... None the less, I have devoted some actual time to it, and have been rather pleased with the results. Not only does Uke let you play and sing simultaneously (this is rather difficult on a melodica...) it is also small (aka very portable), plucky (aka always super happy sounding), and adorable (aka ADORABLE). Which makes it perfect for playing adorable songs...

Now K and I have had a few lengthy conversations about adorable love songs and their innate awesomeness, but its something that is surprisingly difficult to explain to some people... I don't mean cute like flying bunnies with pink bonnets on, I mean adorable. Okay, that didn't help explain at all. I may have found the root of my problem... so:

adjective /əˈdôrəbəl/ 

Inspiring great affection; delightful; charming. Behaving in a child-like or naive way.

I think the key here is the combination of charming and naive. One might even say charmingly naive... its not about being cutesy, or cute in pretty much any way, but about being earnest in a way that is not annoying but is still coming from such a place of absolute honesty (naivite) that you can't help but smile... In songs this also usually comes across in the music- simple melodies, plucky happy sounding instruments, joyful whistling or 'doo doo doo' ing, likely some hand claps...

Alright alright, maybe that is not really helping at all... Just watch this. This is what I mean, this is adorable...

I have found my next song to whistle while I work.... and learn to play on my ukulale

-E

Hillside 2011

To my elders,

Hillside. A Folk Festival. Full of Hippies and vegetarian food and camping (which I hate. Like hate. but deal with for Hillside) and volunteering and using porta potties, and did I mention the camping? in a acre square with over a THOUSAND other volunteers? Yup. Its that kind of festival. And Its The Hillside Way.

Hillside volunteering started, for me, as a way of going for the weekend after the passes were sold out because my friend and I were, well, semi-stalking The Acorn. aka went to every show within driving distance. For like, a year. So when they announced they were playing Hillside, what did we do? Volunteer. For a festival neither of us had been to, on an island in a town over an hour away from where we lived. But then we went and it frickin rocked, and we went back. 2 more times together, bringing another of our friends with us, and then, this year, when both friends were on different continents, I dragged E with me. And when I say dragged, I mean it went something like:

me: hey E, wanna come to Hillside with me? my friends ar-

E: Heck Yes. Iwill double check with work. But Definitely.

I had a lot of convincing to do, obviously. O.o

And about an hour into our first day volunteering E decided to come back next year with me. And my friends. Because we need to find out if our 6 person tent can actually fit 6 people.

Hillside is always an interesting festival. The band line ups and weird and random and Amazing, and somehow they are like a haven for the random. Hence Graveyard Train. (hehe horror-country) I once went to a workshop with Owen Pallett (back when he was in his last summer of going by Final Fantasy), some random blue grass band and Buffy St. Marie. And Owen Pallett covered a Buffy St. Marie song from the 70s and she sang the backup on her own song. Craziness.

But workshops were apparently the theme of the weekend. And OMG they were particularly good this year. Like, jamming together smoothly and bands who had never heard or heard of one another, discovering it along with the audience with many a "uh... this song is in G. So, ya, play... you know, whatever you can." Or in the Karkwa-Graveyard Train spirit "Its just G, A, and D for most of the song..." "Its ok, we'll pick it up, just play." Which sounds rude written down, but was actually said in a very "Don't worry dude, it will be Epic" sort of way. And it was.

And I think E said everything that needs to be said about Graveyard Train. But I want to add that they are a Man Band. (read: must be said in a falsely low voice while making a clenched fist to emphasize the point)

Relive our experience via the surprisingly good quality videos taken by E's camera. Yes, there is one where you can hear E say "This is Awesome!"

-K

Death Country, Chains, and Group Wonderment

To My Youngers,

I am in love.

Not with a person. That too normal, too plain. I am in love with six (or it it seven?) persons- though I suppose perhaps more accurately I am in love with their band...

I tend to get a little excited about music (understatement? yes. super-excited? more accurate). If you know me at all (or have, like, ever read this blog) you would not be at all surprised by that statement. You might, however, be surprised to know that, of my experiences of falling in love with bands, the sudden, immediate, 'holy crap who the hell is this?' ones are surprisingly few. Now I suppose this makes sense as you don't often go to see a band live unless you've at least hear of them, but the magic of music festivals lies exactly in creating such opportunities for discovery and love-falling-in. In seeing bands perform whom you've never heard of and would otherwise have never been exposed to. I've written before about the first time I saw Arcade Fire, the 'ummmmm who is this? because they kind of freakin rock... ' vibe and how that was the first and only time I've ever seen that happen to a whole field-full of people at exactly the same time... well that story must now be amended, for I have once again been privileged to be a part of a room-full (or in this case tent-full) of people simultaneously falling in love with a band. And that band is Graveyard Train.

They classify themselves as 'horror-country' (strikingly similar to the self-moniker of 'death-country' used by one of my all-time favourites Elliot Brood) and are a crazy-awesome mix of a tumble-weed-covered-frontier-town-saloon crossed with chain-gang-running-from-a-pack-of-zombies. K and I spent the weekend discussing the awesomeness of their man-choir voices and their amazing choice of instruments (steel guitar, slide guitar, banjo, stand-up bass and chains. yes chains. played with a hammer.) and going to see them as many times as possible (three times in three days was almost not enough!) but the part that stands out most for me was the first twenty seconds of the first song I ever heard them play.

At Hillside there are main-stage and side-stage performances, but there are also workshops where bands who have never met, and often never even heard of each other, get together and jam. The regular performances are usually pretty durn awesome,  but the jam sessions are where the unexpected, unprecedented, and totally magical become common place. We had just gone to see Karkwa who were amaaaazing (and will soon have their whole own blogpost I'm sure...) and they were playing a workshop later on that evening in one of the tents, so we headed on over. It turned out they were going to be jamming with a band from Australia (Australian meets Quebequois was to be a theme for the weekend) who looked like they had just stepped off of a wagon train. I was already pretty excited when I saw the banjo and the steel guitar, but nothing could have prepared me for the music...

They came on stage. They picked up their instruments ("Is that guy holding a chain!?!" "Which guy?" "The one in the dirty tank-top, suspenders, and work-pant cut-offs..."). The lead singer tipped his hat. They started singing. Holy. Shit.

We were hit by the wall of sound of five men (manly men. dirty men. men men) stretched out in a line across the stage, belting out harmonies the likes of which have not seen the light of day since 1879. We stood stunned. The whole tent stood stunned. There was a stunned silence, literally. (Well not quite literally as there was the music... but other than the music there was a stunned silence.) Eight seconds, nine seconds... I turned to K, she was looking back at me; "Who the fuck are these guys!?!" We looked around. Everyone looked around. We were all turning to the side and saying the exact same thing...

Twelve seconds... a murmur sweeps the tent...

Fifteen seconds... everyone's head starts to move up and down. shoulders shrugging in rhythm...

Eighteen seconds... feet tapping, hands clapping...

Twenty seconds... I am in love.

It got even better as the song went on. It got even better with each song. Karkwa joined in and it got even better and better. After they were finished I speed-walked to the merch tent and straight up to the table, picked up their CD and handed it to the girl behind the counter: "I need this one." I was sad when it was over, but super excited that I would get to watch them again the next day, and again the day after that... Even more excited when the same experience was repeated two more times, with the slight modification of a growing crowd at the front of those of us already-converted, and a diminishing crowd of first-timers sitting in-behind, wondering at why we were all so excited (until they experienced their own first-twenty-seconds and joined the ranks of the initiated).

Its a pretty magical thing to be a part of an amazing concert and even more so one where so many people are seeing a band for the first time and falling in love with them. Scratch that, its DAMN FINE. It a damn fine thing to have such a wonderful group experience- and to get to have it again and again three days in a row.

Thank you Hillside. Thank you Graveyard Train. Thank you tent-people with whom I got to share this! Now disperse and spread the word... music is a wonderful thing.

-E

Geek-tastic Crushes

To My Youngers,

I kind of adore geeks. Nerds. Whatever.

I don't necessarily mean the kind that wear glasses and read comic books (though those two things do also happen to be characteristics of some of the geeks I enjoy...), I don't necessarily mean the kind that are super smart (though again it doesn't hurt...), but I do mean, definitely necessarily, the kind who get very excited about things.

Not all things. They don't have to, y'know, love everything in existence to an untold and all consuming level (in fact that would be a little disturbing and more than a little annoying). But they do have to really love the things they love. And why does that make someone a geek? Well I guess strictly speaking it doesn't, except for when the things that they love are geeky. Then obviously that makes them a geek... seems pretty self evident. Actually scratch that. I would argue that being a geek is really actually a product of loving something so completely, so all-consumingly that your excitedness is absolutely baffling to most people around you... Back to that in a minute.

Aaaaaaaaaaaanyways. I am reminded of my fixation with geeks (re-reminded?) due to many recent events, only some of which I am about to mention, but the closest one being once again staying up till the wee hours watching old vlogbrothers videos.... specifically the John ones. Because I kind of totally love John Green. In fact I'm not really sure how everyone doesn't love John Green... maybe they've never heard of him? That would be a good reason. Pretty much the only good reason I can think of... ;o) He writes things that just make everything in the world seem kind of beautifully awesome. He gets upset about things that should be gotten upset about and happy about things that are silly or wonderful or weird enough to be the best things to be happy about, and as F Scott Fizgerrald says in the Great Gatsby, he has "an extraordinary gift for hope." An excitedness about life, or at least lots of things in life, that comes through in pretty much everything he says, and perhaps even more so how he says it. Watching him talk about stuff (really just anything, any stuff at all) makes me feel excited about all  of the things I get excited about. Excited about making things and creating and springboarding things or ideas or drawings or just happiness, out into the world just because I can. Just because I'm alive and I can. And why not? What better reason is there to share things that make you happy? Because you can. Best reason of all.

So this brings me back to geekdom. Sometimes I find it difficult to reconcile the common geek-thing of loving things that really don't "matter"(like movies or comic books or music...) with feeling like life really ought to matter. Because surely it wouldn't exist without mattering of some kind...? Surely mattering is the reason for the existence of life. Of everything... Mattering in some way. In some way. In some way. right? So why not in that way?

Why not in the loving of something so completely that it makes you happy just experiencing it? In being filled with joy at watching The Decemberists perform The Mariner's Revenge Song, or excitedly looking forward to the new Batman comic, or the remake of Evil Dead... In discussing Catcher in the Rye or Lord OTR (Yes Lord OTR, not LOTR or Lord of the Rings- long story, but rest assured its a geeky one...), in only being able to talk in excited-high-voice when trying to explain why you love a painting or a line from Sorkin or something David Tennant said on the radio... surely loving is reason enough? Is 'mattering' enough?

They say 'All you need is love.' and I think that its true, but I think we don't usually fully understand what exactly that means. All you need is love, love is all you need, but not just that romantic-partnership-sex-n-marriage kind of thing. The love of friends, of pets, of favourite books and pickles and banjo playing. Of the scientific method, the big bang, the large hadron collider... The love of silly things and sunny days, comic books, and great novels, and bike rides.

And geeks.

Love is all you need, so love what you love as fully as you can and don't worry about the rest. It'll sort itself out.

-E

The Accidental Loving of Something Well Known Somewhere Else

To My Youngers,

I'm not hipster (ok I do have a few pairs of neon nylons and a collection of fake raybans but really, who doesn't?) but I'm not the biggest fan of popular music. Sure I like Lady Gaga (again, who doesn't?), but most of the bands I absolutely love are either too small/local to be well known or were big decades ago (some decades before I was born...). I could go on for years and years about the fantastic amazingness of Elliot Brood, The Decemberists, Old Man Leudecke, CCR, Queen, or Zeus, but nine times out of ten the person I'm talking to has either never heard of them, or has the vague sense that their 'dad used to listen to that band when he was a teenager.' This doesn't bother me, in fact I kind of enjoy having these bands kind of to myself (though I much more enjoy introducing someone to one of them and having it become one of their favourite bands...!) but I even more enjoy having the experience of finding out that one of my bands is actually a favourite of millions of other people- just not the people I'm usually around!

I had two such experiences this week:

I am currently working on a show that has all Canadian music playing right up until it starts. Its not the same music every day, and I am quite the fan of Canadian music, so I tend to be able to sing along with most of the songs. The other day one came on that I loved right from the first or second bar. It took many 'yes reeeeeally's from my friend to convince me that, not only had he also no idea at all who it was, but that they were in fact singing in French. There are a few french/Quebecquois band I like (Couer de Pirate  not least amongst them!) but this band sounded like an anglophone indie band, one I not only liked, but liked enough that I was completely confused as to why I did not already own all of their music.

With some help from the fancy iphone app of another friend we were able to acertain that this band was in fact karkwa... who won the Polaris Prize last year. Who are one of the top indie bands in Quebec. Who played in Paris with the Arcade Fire and out-reviewed them... even though none of the three of us had ever heard them, there were thousands of people out there in the world who already adored them. I love it when that happens! When you happen upon a new band and find that they're only unknown where you are, that somewhere else they're huge, or at least well enough known and respected to win the biggest music prize in Canada... I got their album online. I am listening to it right now. For the fourth straight time in a row. So new favourite band, check.

The second such experience was having the chance to see John Fogerty perform live. I was talking to a co-worker just as he got started and she actually said 'yeah, I don't know who that is... I mean maybe I would recognize some of the songs if I heard them..." !?! for serious? ok, ok, I've spent most of my life trying to explain to people my age why CCR is so incredibly awesome, and how I wouldn't even be very sad to miss other music if they were the only band I could ever listen to for the rest of my life... but it still floors me when someone doesn't know that they wrote 'Proud Mary' (The first time I heard the Tina Turner version I literally cringed. I mean visibly. I shuddered. I've gotten used to it- kinda- over time, but I still hear Fogerty singing over Tina every time...) or Suzie Q. Who doesn't know Suzie Q? And Born on the Bayou? Apparently lots of people don't. But none of them were rockin' out at bluesfest yesterday.

I didn't get to see too much of the show (though I got to hear all of it!) but the part I did spend out in the crowd was amazing. As a kid listening to CCR I never thought that I would actually get to see them (well one of them anyways) perform live. Like Queen or ABBA I just always kind of assumed that they were long dead and gone just like the rest of my growing-up bands (though having said that I did get to watch an hour long Paul McCartney sound check a few years back and had a similar 'this is soooo weird' feeling). So getting to, not only watch and listen to Fogerty perform, but be surrounded by truckloads of people who were just as into it, just as excited about it, just as 'Oh my god, Its John Fogerty!!!' as I was was pretty 'effin awesome.

Sometimes its nice to feel like you like bands that are just yours... but sometimes its nice to really feel like you're tapping into something that's already there, sharing the awesomeness of the music with an already existing community of like-minded and like-excited folk. This week I've been diggin' that second kind of sometimes.

-E

Its OK to Not Like Things

To My Youngers,

I recently (aka like an hour ago) stumbled upon a very short and very silly song that perfectly sums up something I struggled with for a loooong time. No, not anything so serious as depression or anorexia or something, I'm talking about not-liking-things.

Listen to 'Its OK to not like things!' Though I should warn you, its terribly addictive...

This may sound like a weird problem to have, but throughout my childhood I felt compelled to at least sorta like pretty much everything I came across. From music to movies to people. Doesn't sound so bad, but the problem is that when you like everything its hard to tell what you actually like... what you love, whats really important to you. And that's kinda, well, important!

I don't remember exactly when it happened, but at some point during high school I started to be ok with disliking things, and a whole new world opened up to me. No longer did I have to force myself to like chemistry class (all other sciences are so much better!) or be friends with the annoying guy from drama (just because other friends are friends with him... whatever, he was annoying!) or to enjoy the first half of Catcher in the Rye (I liked the second half, but man, first half Holden is an arsehole!!!)! I started to have opinions more often, I started to get into friendly arguments with people who disagreed with me, and best of all I developed a few arch nemesises (nemesi?)- and yes they do exist in real life and they are just as entertaining as in comics ;o)

Its not even just the disliking that makes things more fun/better/awesomer its loving disliking them- like  The Empire Strikes Back, green peppers, and Vin Diesel (to name a few)! It gives me the opportunity to argue with people without hurting anyone's feelings or making them actually upset! Arguing sans consequence. Mostly anyways. the trick is to stay away from hating things, and only let yourself go so far as to have a strong strong dislike. That way you don't let the evil in, only the fun!

See for yourself how much fun it can be and not-like something today!

-E

What You Love Begets What You Love

To My Youngers,

My roommate has a great philosophy of home decorating: If you love everything in a room, it will all go together just because you love it all. And it works! It works for lots of reasons that I could pick apart and logic-ize, but I choose to focus on the less tangible reason for its utter success: Things you love love to be around other things you love. And not just in your abode, in life in general.

There are many things I adore. Not all things (though I realize it might seem that way after reading all these blogposts ;o) but there are certainly a few faithful go-to things which stay with me, which offer me solace and comfort and joy, things which define me. The colour turquoise, murder mysteries, existential artwork, beards, music, mapping (oh mapping…)- I could go on listing them off, but that would be a whole post in and of itself! The important bit is that many, if not most, of the things I adore have very little in common outside of the fact that I love them. Usually.

Every once in a while (or more often if I’m really paying attention) several of the things intersect, creating a fairly magical and incredibly satisfying moment of collusion. A moment when you can just feel one of those invisible puzzle pieces click into place. When the universe seems to be saying ‘Yeah, I know you exist, you thought I forgot about you but you were wrong!”

Sometimes its easily explained away- maybe you forgot that thing one was the original inspiration for your interest in thing two, maybe they both came from thing three, some long-lost original connection (maybe you saw a roller derby movie and wanted to go to roller derby and then just happened to be in a certain place at a certain time when there was an awesome roller derby double header happening)... But sometimes its two things that exist in different spheres, that came from different original universes who just suddenly decided to get together for a little party, just for you.

I recently started listening to Collider by Sam Roberts Band (there is a whole sidebar here about listening to a CD vs listening to a CD, but I’ll save that for another time- suffice it to say that the italicized version is more… involved ).  As often happens, the realization of which song was my favourite arrived via unending-in-head-singing (complete with skipped verses, messed up lyrics, and stuck-in-a-loop guitar solos). This usually also means that I have no idea of the title of said song  (despite spending days and days with it) and eventually results in the inevitable ‘Oh thats what its called!”

So I had that experience with this one- stuck in my head on repeat, driving my roommate crazy with my incessant whistling, keeping myself up at night until finally it was playing on the computer and I happened to glance at the ‘track playing’ bar.

Without a Map.

Now maybe I subconsciously knew there was some reference to mapping in the song (despite completely falsely singing any such references prior to my discovery of the title of the song), maybe I just like songs about maps because I love mapping, but I choose to believe that its just one of those things.

Nice one universe.

-E

Participatory Rock

To My Youngers,

Elliot Brood. Seriously. So Good.

They make banjo sexy.  Combine now-time rock with olde-time sound. And lets not even talk about the experience of closing your eyes and seeing tumble weeds roll by a saloon full of bandits and bathtub whiskey, poker games and a player piano... Lets talk about audience participation.

You go to a concert and you expect people to sing along, you expect people to dance, and jump around and rush the stage (okay maybe not that last one, but as with a surprising number of shows I've been to a few overly enthusiastic souls jumped up on stage and ran around in gleeful delight, much to the entertainment of the boys in the band...). All of those things are excellent, all of those things are what I love about concerts, but Elliot Brood takes it a step further: they pass out pots and pans and wooden spoons. And you hit them. You hit them in time to the music. You hit them hard, and loud, and with great amounts of enthusiasm. And it is awesome.

Now I admit I can get a little overly enthusiastic, but give me a pan and a wooden spoon and Elliot Brood and you are putting your life in your hands. I almost hit K in the face, and my spoon flew out of my hand on at least two occasions. My once-flat pan turned into a now-rounded bowl. My sock-feet got full of splinters and my ears were ringing with wood-on-metal and banjos and drums and foot-petal bass... So. Much. Fun.

I love Elliot Brood's music, I love their enthusiasm, and their unconventional sexiness, and their ability to time-travel, but most of all I love how I feel when I listen to their music; like I'm a part of it. Like its all around me. Like I'm home.

Also like I'm five years old and playing drums on the patio furniture with a paddle I found in the shed. Rock on.

-E

The Live-Music Experience

To My Youngers,

I feel like those who say that live music is not worthwhile have just never been to the right kind of concert… Because there are bad ones- concerts I mean- there are those at which the musicians just don’t seem to want to be there, those where the audience is too cool to sing along, and those which, worst of all, have so little substance that even the most adamant fan of live music feels had….

But then there are the right concerts. The ones where everyone is bopping with all of their heart(s). Where you become temporary-best-friends with the dude beside you because you both got super excited about the same song. Where the guy with the guitar stomps around stage shaking his head to the music, not because he thinks it looks cool (which is good, because it looks like pretty much the antithesis of cool), but because he is having such a good time that he just can’t help it. Someone who has never been to one of these concerts, someone who has never had this kind of experience, how can we expect them to understand? And how can we not do everything in our power to help them have said wonderful, magical, ‘right concert’ experience?

Actually, I should pause here and mention that the difficulty with this is that these ‘right’ concerts are not the same concerts for everyone. Therein lies the rub. For one person their ‘right’ concert might be Goldfinger at a giant outdoor festival complete with a mosh pit full of people with safety-pins through their faces.  For someone else it might be Sarah Slean in a little tiny pub where people sit on the floor because there aren’t enough chairs. Heck, one person could count both of those experiences as the right kind of concert for them (I should know, those were two of my favourite concerts ever…)! Its difficult to pinpoint what makes a concert ‘right’ but over the years I have come to believe that they all have the flowing things in common:

1) Enthusiasm! From the audience and from the performers. Of course enthusiasm on both parts is the best case scenario, but a not-so-great band can get energy from an awesome audience and end up having a killer show, as can a so-so audience take their cue from an amazingly into-it band and turn into the most participatory group of people ever… Some bands may be known for being energetic and enthusiastic on stage- but audiences can also have a rep! Which bring us to-

2) Venue! Certain places have reputations for having great audiences, and certain others have the knack for attracting kill-joys. Anywhere where the audience regularly seems to be more interested in what they look like than the music onstage is to be avoided at all costs.  My absolute, bar none, favourite venue is The Kee, in Bala. Its in the middle of cottage country so everyone is relaxed and chill. Concert-goers arrive dressed in sweatpants and flip flops, their skin rosy with sunburn and hair in the laziest wind-styled do. Plus it’s a boathouse. The whole place is over the water, so when everyone gets a rockin’ the walls and floor rock right along with you. Too awesome.

3) Familiarity! This one is not so hard and fast, but knowing most or at least some of the songs is almost always important to your concert-going experience. Study-up! Listen to the CD a few times in the weeks approaching the performance. Have your friend put some of the band’s stuff on your ipod. Being familiar with the music always makes the experience more enjoyable… Having said that, one of the most captivating concerts I ever went to was the first time I saw Arcade Fire. I had never heard of them (nor had anyone else at the time. It was early days- pre-Funeral- they were still selling their EP in plastic envelopes with a hand-printed placemat as the liner notes…), and I didn’t know any of their songs. But by the end of the second number I was dancing and singing along (albeit just making vague tuneful noises rather than actual words), absolutely captivated by their performance. A band can definitely sweep you off your feet without you knowing any of their music- Its just more likely to happen if you go into it with a few lyrics in your back pocket!

4) Good Company! Pick your concert-going partners wisely my friends… Don’t choose someone who only listens to Eminem if you’re going to see Elliot Brood. Contrary-wise a Cuff The Duke fan might not be the right person with whom to attend a Less Than Jake soirée… Try to find someone who is as enthusiastic about the band you’re about to see as you are. This goes both ways- going to a concert with a super-fan when you only kind of like the band is not any more fun than going to see your favourite group with someone who only likes their latest single… If its an obscure band or you just don’t know anyone who knows who they are, think about who they remind you of- who do you know who likes similar sounding bands? Maybe they’ll end up with a new favourite artist! Finally, as a last resort, ask someone who finds your love of the applicable band to be entertaining (note: finds it entertaining, not annoying, stupid or embarrassing!)- who will enjoy poking fun at you all night (as you are busy singing your heart out) and who will come away having had a good time without making you feel like too much of an idiot.

5) The Right Band! This is one of the most important yet most variable factors. What you need is a band (or performer!) who makes music that makes you feel something extremely muchly. Makes you feel super happy, or super creative, or super energetic, or super pumped… even super melancholia (Oh Decemberists, how your sea shanties make my heart weep…).  A reputation for being awesome live never hurts, and is possible regardless of genre (I have never known Arcade Fire, Sam Roberts, Elliot Brood, AC/DC, Paul McCartney, The Decemberists, or Great Big Sea, to disappoint!).  The right band makes for the right concert almost every time…

As a final thought, be open to any of these factors occurring out of the blue and you will find yourself having way more ‘right’ concert experiences. If you suddenly realize that you love a country-esque band, don’t shy away from going to see them just because you ‘don’t like country!’ Tastes change over time. Your perfect high school concert might totally beat-up your perfect university concert if they met in a bar, but it doesn’t mean you can’t love them both equally!

Spread the love, man. Spread the love.

-E