The Morning After the LOVE?!project – Moondata LABproject #38

Posted on February 15, 2009

As some of you may know as per my preview from last Thursday, last night marked the return of the Moondata LABprojects to the planks of O Patro Vys. It has been almost two years since LABproject 37, and honestly, I think everyone in the room last night felt it had been WAY too long. Like I’ve said before, this musical event used to be a monthly thing, and barely had I discovered it, had they stopped the magic from happening. The people in charge of making it happen have been busy with other things since then, and so have I. What I mean by that is that musical tastes evolve, and god knows I’ve been exposed to a boatload of live music since then, so loss of interest was definitely a possibility.
Like so many things in life, first times can be awkward. First kisses, first dates, first… you know. Firsts rarely live up to our expectations. Moondata LABprojects are the musical equivalent of one-night-stands: they can be fantastic, but they are a tricky thing to pull off. Sticking with the idea of one-night-stands, it’s like being eternally single. It’s constantly new and exciting, but it also means starting over from scratch every time, which is a lot of work with a narrow margin for success. The odds of this project being a flop are much higher than it being the superb even that it actually is.

By now you must be wondering about the results? Well let me tell you it was a hot February evening at O Patro Vys last night: a steamy and playful session with lots on impassioned sweaty moments. I mean, panties almost came off! All joking aside, the music was floaty and intense. The songs are mainly improvised in a way that keeps more along the avenues of jazz improvisation than psychedelic-hippie jams. The music develops in definite shapes and structures which then becomes illuminated with the personal touches of its musicians. Though some of their players come from a rock background, these projects exits the realm of simple rock bands and tickles the fancy of fans with more demanding musical tastes.
The players were all very strong musicians with an excellent sense for listening to each other, which seems self-evident, but believe me, isn’t always the case with this sort of thing. The musicians were either excellently trained or amazingly talented because the whole thing was flawless. The members had a great synchronicity and complemented each others sounds perfectly. The drummers O’Neill and Barr played off each other nicely, and in one song especially, they lead the music into a powerful intensity, which they actually managed to sustain. In fact, intensity is probably the word of the night for me. The music had a dreamy way of taking you elsewhere… anyway, it took me far far away from the reality of stupid Valentine’s day.
The only thing that I felt could have been better were the visuals. I’ve seen much better at these events and thought that last night’s were pretty average. Not that it was bad per say, I’ve just seen better. The event was very successful and the bar was pretty full, which should definitely be taken as a sign of people’s interest for this sort of thing. In a world of musical repeats where you go to shows and hear the same songs you paid for on the album already, it’s fun and exciting to indulge your ears into something fresh and experimental. This is a fabulous and mainly untapped market that I think could gain to be exploited with the myriad of musical talents we have here in Montreal. Kudos to the project and here’s to more of them in the near future.

Photo by SarahBrideau.com

The LOVE?!project @ O Patro Vys – Saturday, February 14th

Posted on February 12, 2009

If you’re like me and you’re single for yet another Valentine’s day, you’re probably looking for something to do this weekend. My recommendation is to do something that will be exciting and fun enough to occupy your mental space and effectively make you forget about this discriminatory holiday. When I was told about Moondata Productions‘s LABprojects returning to the stage, I honestly couldn’t possibly have been more excited; this is just so much better than having a date take you out to a romantic dinner and offer you roses and chocolates. You heard me ladies, better than chocolate! Those concerts have probably offered me some of the most surprising musical moments ever. They’re just so special and interesting that I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be to forget about all of my past love disasters. Keep reading for more info.

If you’re still reading, you’re probably wondering what all the fuss is about, right? Basically, it used to be a monthly thing. Moondata would round up some of Montreal’s most talented musicians and get them together for a one night affair accompanied by a superbly artful visual show. How ironic that it would come back for a surprise “one night stand” performance?!

This time around, the project will feature Andrew Barr (Land Of Talk / The Slip) on drums, Liam O’Neill (Zeroes) on drums, Sarah Pagé on harp, Andrew King on trumpet, Mishka Sein (Patrick Watson) on bass, Vid Cousins (Moondata) on guitar/electronics, Matt Lederman (Moondata) on guitar/electronics, Ouananiche on visuals as well as other special guests. Past editions of LABprojects have featured the contributions of Jorane, Patrick Watson, Land of Talk singer Elizabeth Powell, Amon Tobin and John Labelle.

The doors open at 8:30 PM and the show starts at 10 PM, but get there early because the place will fill up quick; these shows have been known to sell out. Tickets are $8 and will be on sale at the door.

Photo by SarahBrideau.com

Timber Timbre @ Il Motore – February 7th

Posted on February 8, 2009

A couple weeks ago I was co-hosting The Craig Norris Hour on CBC Radio 3, and in one of the last segments of the show, Craig asked me if I had ever heard Timber Timbre, which I hadn’t. Craig then said that I should check them out immediately and that they were an amazing band. As luck would have it, thy were in town last night so I decided to check them out. It was also a great opportunity to check out the latest musical venue Il Motore, which has recently opened up for business after a much delayed start.

Had I not been a determined individual, I probably wouldn’t have found the cute bar located on Jean-Talon. Since they’re still pretty low budget, there’s no visible sign announcing their presence in the quiet neighbourhood. When I walked in I was surprised to find that it’s actually a really great spot for Montreal’s growing need for Indie music concert hosting. Other than the fact that the bartender kicked me out of an empty seat at the bar because “there was someone sitting there” (go figure, apparently middle-school rules still apply in some places), I’d probably go as far as to say that Il Motore is a much better venue than Casa or Divan, and more intimate than Sala. It also promises to be a great summer venue since the front has garage doors that will let in some fresh air for a place that promises to be packed more often than not. Keep reading to find out what the music was like.

The show started with a surprise opening act: Snowblink, a recent San Francisco transplant to the Toronto music scene (or so I heard at the merch table). The two-member band delivered an enchanting first set. The lady singer has a fantastic and graceful voice that reminds me of Feist a bit. In my opinion, their style also promises to fit right into the Toronto music scene as it shares some of its best qualities. This is definitely an artist for which you should keep an eye out.

As for Timber Timbre, I must say that my pal Craig was entirely right. What a unique discovery it was for me. The stage was very dimly lit, resembling the warm feeling of candlelight, which was perfectly fit for his somber and almost gloomy style (though not so great for taking pictures). This morning, I’m still trying to figure out what his style reminds me of, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. I want to say the feel of it sort of reminds me of Tori Amos’s Choirgirl Hotel, but that’s not quite it. There’s definitely some old-south bluesy influences in there somewhere, but somehow, that doesn’t quite describe it either. For me, it evoked grainy desaturated images of creepy Indie movies that take place in a woodsy town perched in the middle of nowhere. I feel that it’d be great music to load my iPod with for a long walk by myself in the woods. One thing is for sure their soft but very dark sounds are highly interesting and quite unique.

Taylor Kirk was accompanied on stage by a wonderful violinist and a steel guitar player (who is also a member of Ferriswheel about whom I blogged a few weeks ago). Timber Timbre’s new album is to be officially launched next week in Toronto I believe. It’s definitely a band to discover. In fact, I loved it so much that I just HAD to buy the record. So far I’ve listened to it three times back to back.

Photos by SarahBrideau.com