A lot of people were out to check out a new Calgary supergroup at the Slice, Jan. 21.
Gold, a supergroup of sorts including members of Shematoma, Women, the Yukas and Extra Happy Ghost,” played an upbeat set of dreamy, delay ridden, jangly indie pop-rock music to an enthusiastic audience.
The two girls harmonized beautifully and hauntingly as they traded delay heavy guitar riffs, giving them a neo Go-Gos or Bangles type of ’80s pop sound. But their songs had enough of a diverse sound to keep the show interesting.
Their vocal harmonies were simply mesmerizing. Redrum Triumph, aka Kelsey Jesperson and Steve Foord played a relaxed set of original folk/ pop combining an array of mandolin and guitar with Jesperson’s cello and violin.
They also opened for Shred Kelly the night before. I wasn’t able to stick around for Reuben Bullock, who closed the show.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 January 2012 12:17 )
Shred Kelly bring brand new sound back to Lethbridge
Wednesday, 25 January 2012 12:05
Richard Amery
Shred Kelly packed the house and the Owl Acoustic Lounge Dance floor with a brand new sound and a trumpet, Jan. 20.
I caught the second half of their show, during which they showed they have moved away from their more traditional bluegrass/ upbeat folk roots to a more of a high octane indie-rock sound.
Keyboardist/ accordionist Sage McBride was singing as I stepped in. Coupled with some blasting ska tinged trumpet playing, McBride’s voice helped give the band a No Doubt with a banjo sound.
Their unstoppable beat and big bass kept the joint hopping. And they saved their crowd favourites from the end of their show. They had the audience singing along with “I Hate Work” and cheering during “Tornado,” as they whirled across the dance floor.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 January 2012 12:11 )
The Utilities blend influences while Daydream Johnny bring the rock
Wednesday, 25 January 2012 11:45
Richard Amery
It was indie rock night at the Slice, Jan. 20 with Michael Granzow, the Utilities, Medicine Hat trio The Daydream Junkies and Jesse Northey and the Dandelions. Granzow, who most people know from the Record Holder, started off with a sedate set of originals indie-folk including most of the new Record Holders’ EP “To Sea.” He had a Weakerthans’ John K Samson thing going on throughout his set.
The Utilities were up next. This Lethbridge/ Ponoka band impressed me on my first exposure to them as I thought they were going to be another very similar sounding Said the Whale style ambient indie pop band. But they were so much more. The dual Stratocaster powered band brought together a blend of influences including a little funk, a touch of alt-country, a little Weakerthans alterna-rock, a smattering of Dave Matthews folk pop and a lot of indie folk pop. There was lots of jumping around in place, time tempo change, guitar exchanges and a variety of different styles being explored. At one point they segued into Beck’s “Devil’s Haircut” mid song, though they added a little more funk to it.
Medicine Hat’s Daydream Johnny added a much need burst of energy to a fairly mellow night. The energetic trio supplied a healthy dose of slapback echo filled, snarling late ’60s garage rock.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 January 2012 12:04 )
Harry Manx provides a musical brain massage
Wednesday, 25 January 2012 11:36
Richard Amery
Going to see Harry Manx is like having your brain massaged for a solid two hours including a break. That’s what a full house at the Geomatic Attic, experienced Thursday, Jan. 19.
The Salt Spring Island bluesman played a really, really, really laid back show of original music as he played a variety of unusual instruments. He began his show with a slow song to set the laid back tone for the night on his signature instrument— the two layered, 20 string east Indian instrument, the Mohan Veena, which had a hypnotic drone. He managed to make all of his other instruments drone in that East Indian style as well as he tapped out the rhythm on a couple electronic drum pads.
He alternated instruments almost every song incorporating a six string banjo, his cigar box guitar on which he had strung a couple bass strings and a couple of other guitars on which he was playing his unique over the fretboard slide. He didn’t say much in between songs other than to crack a few soft spoken jokes about banjos and the difficulty of tuning a Mohan Veena and to chuckle “here’s another cheerful song about death.”
He proved to be an affable host and was every bit the one man band as his fingers fleetly flew over the strings of his odd assortment of instruments.
His second set proved to be more of the same. One of the laid back highlights, Tijuana, not only blended the music of the east and west, but also the south. A lot of the second set included songs he wrote with Kevin Breit, with whom he has recorded three CDs. He switched to yet another guitar— a National Steel guitar, and quipped he always wanted a “shiny’ guitar when he was 13 and finally got one when he was 56. He wound down his night by playing and exotic version of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire.”
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 January 2012 11:45 )
Naked Ear not afraid to experiment
Wednesday, 25 January 2012 11:31
Richard Amery
The Naked Ear were back at the Slice on Wednesday, Jan. 18 to play some experimental jazz. Gordon Leigh and the Naked Ear were interesting as always combining jazz with stream of consciousness poetry. They added guitar, bass groove and lot of of percussion for a hypnotically groovy set of experimental jazz fusion. An interesting one was “The roots begin in Africa.” They were happy to play a request for “Cold is in the box.” They also used a variety of weird instruments like an Ax-Synth and an exotic African thumb piano called the kimbali for extra percussion.