We heard from multiple sources that Tall Tree Music Festival is a weekend you must experience at least once in your life. Well, now we can say for certain that they were correct. This was one of those weekends where everything went right, where everything just fell in our laps. Here’s how it went down:
We arrived in Port Renfrew early Saturday morning, to the warmest welcome we’ve had in a long time. There were many steps we had to follow to get our media passes, but we were met with many smiles and high fives along the way. While the 2 of us representing 987 were getting our credentials, the rest of the crew went to go find us a spot to camp. (Festival tip #987: show up earlier than the second day if you want to easily find a spot to camp). The camping areas were a bit of a free for all, which may sound like a bad thing, but we found it refreshing. Our friends were walking around the grounds looking lost, but within 5 minutes they had found new friends and started a search party for any open spots. Success! One of the best parts of the weekend, other than the stellar lineup, was the making of new friends. All our neighbours quickly became our besties, even if only for 3 days. Tents all set up with the bud light limes chilled to a crisp in the cooler. We were ready to take this weekend on.
Our first musical experience started with Vancouver local Dave Beckingham on one of the side stages. It was a great way to kick off the Saturday, as we were all getting a “chill vibe” from the festival, and Dave’s music really encompasses “chill vibes.” Recently back from a European tour through Belgium and Germany, playing hits off of his 2016 album, Just When the Light…strong start, Tall Tree.
Jon and Roy were next on our to-see list. This was one of the biggest throwbacks for me as “Little Bit of Love” was one of the first songs I learned on guitar and a spark for my songwriting days. Talk about nostalgia. Jon and Roy + crew seriously brought it. Touring to support their new album, The Road Ahead is Golden, Tall Tree was one of their last stops in North America, soon to hit Europe mid-July through August to bring the Europeans a little taste of their West Coast indie rock vibes. Catch Jon and Roy at the CBC outdoor stage on Wednesday July 12th (12pm-1pm) for the CBC Nooner series(free!).
Closing off the second night on the main stage were Easy Star All-Stars followed by Shapeshifter NZ. I’m not going to admit to anything, but I assume those who smoked a little something something had the times of their lives during the ESAS set. These guys have been rocking it since 1997, perhaps longer than some Tall Tree attendees have been on this planet. Their reggae covers ranging from Dub Side of the Moon to Radiodread were the perfect soundtracks to our first sunset of the weekend. Easy Star All-Star‘s latest album release hasn’t been since 2012, when they released “Thrillah,” a reimagined reggae version of Michael Jackson’s album “Thriller,” but that has not deterred them from touring ever since.
Now, Shapeshifter…let’s just say it wasn’t as chill. Not saying that’s a bad thing, though. The drums, the bass, the crowd wasted on good times. Their set was INTENSE to say the least, but holy smokes…I loved it! P Digs‘ vocals were haunting, layered over the rest of his New Zealand born bandmates (who met in Jazz School and formed this live drum and bass group back in 1999). Their newest album, Stars (released back in November 2016), will be a great addition to your summer soundtrack, if you have one. If you don’t, here’s where you start. The crew I was with couldn’t stop talking about their set for the rest of the weekend, rightfully so. I wouldn’t usually think that drum and bass was my kind of genre, but there really is a time and place. That was the time and that was the place. We danced so hard that next on our itinerary was bed.
Day 2’s hangover was brutal! (Yes, I got drunk the night before, sue me).
I did a little exploring before all the action started up again. Took in the “million dollar” view, as they call it, while listening to Layten Kramer and Caleb Hart from the outskirts of their respective stages. All this + a little food in my belly from one of the many amazing food carts, I was ready to rumble.
A day trip to the nearest lake was next on our agenda. Not many festivals I’ve been to have this option. A dip in cold water to help with the heat was necessary.
Back to the festival we went. The name of the next event was “Champagne and Floatie party” with Illvis Freshly. It was exactly what it sounds like. Floaties being tossed around while champagne was flowing and Illvis Freshly was dropping some Ill and Fresh funky hip hop beats. Nobody can get between me and my champagne!
*insert 1 hour of bud light lime drinking here*
It may not be such a big surprise, but the act I was most excited for all weekend was Tokyo Police Club. (Honourable mention to Goldfish, who did an outstanding job preceding TPC). I worked a cross-canada tour with Tokyo Police Club back in 2014. 28 shows in 42 days to be exact. This was the show I was waiting for. The icing on the cake. The best way to top off an amazing weekend that I had just experienced. They played their new shit, their old shit, their good shit, their hype and chill shit. Everything. They had me feeling some things I wasn’t expecting to feel, even though I’ve seen them a million+ times. I was fortunate enough to get backstage post show, to play catch up and give them all high fives. Before we parted ways, I obviously had to get a few words from them on what THEY had just experienced. Graham Wright (keys) gave 987 his exclusive lowdown: “We’ve played at a lot of festivals, but very few of them have been on mountains and none of them have been on mountains this nice. Somebody at the airport told me this was a “hippie festival,” which doesn’t ordinarily bode well for well oiled professionals like us, but for once it was exactly the right kind of hippie festival. The highest compliment I can pay it is to say it was worthy of the beauty that surrounded it. My only complaint is that i didn’t see any eagles, which apparently was a possibility.” So there you have it. If you don’t believe me, believe Tokyo Police Club.
We give tall tree a 9.87/10. I would give it a 10/10 but it doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.
The Wailers…if you haven’t heard of them, well, it’s time for you to do some research. It may take you weeks to catch up on their history, but it will be weeks well spent.
We were very excited to cover our first show in Toronto, and we couldn’t have asked for a better kick off show!
The night started off with the communion of a thousand little birds arriving to the Phoenix Concert Theatre, ready to enjoy and share the energy of The Wailers.
Junior Marvin (lead guitar), Donald Kinsey (lead guitar), and Aston “Family Man” Barrett (bass) were still rocking the stage like it was 1979. What an honour to catch these 60+ year olds in action, as well as the rest of the band. The whole package really made a memorable night for the 1000+ concert-goers that night.
The sing-alongs were strong this night as we sang to forget about a hard day’s work with some tunes like Is this Love, Three Little Birds, One Love, and Buffalo Soldier. There were moments of pure happiness, where we were oblivious to anything else in the world, bliss. Musicians and the audience united in rhythm to become one heart.
Tears, Beers, Smiles, Screams, it was an emotional and unforgettable night.
If you’re trying to get me interested off the bat, turns out 80’s Las Vegas neon lights and a well groomed mustache will do the trick. First impressions are real, people, and this one had my eyes watering.
Where I would normally find such a boisterous backdrop confusing, I can’t actually remember if the palm tree kept flashing once lead singer Jason Couse stepped out and began the performance with “Studio City.” What could have been an overpowering stage was quickly rationalized when The Darcys stepped onto it.
Couse’s immersion in the beat combined with Wes Marskell smiling like a kid on Christmas got me on the bandwagon quick. Seemingly able to do it all, they interchanged between guitars, drums, and keyboard. Even a glow in the dark tambourine made a guest appearance. All this while boogieing around the stage, making eyes at each other, jostling plants out of the way, gliding from one hit to the next – the whole time holding us in their Hawaiian wonderland.
Their sound is original to the point that it’s instantly recognizable, but not so much that (like so many artists these days) it felt played out. I didn’t realize how amped up I was getting with each successive song – during the bridge of “Black Diamonds” I had to remind myself to glance around, checking on the crowd to make sure I wasn’t the only one bopping around ridiculously to their techno rock jams.
The Darcys have an apparent comfort on stage. It made me wonder whether this came from their 10 years honing their sound together, or just from their undeniable bromance. Either way, these two could sell their palm tree clad shtick to anyone watching them do their thing.
The show’s icing on the cake was served in the form of two covers (as if their original set wasn’t good enough). Giving the all-knowing crowd exactly what they were hollering for, we got a fitting Prince-gone-Darcys rendition of “Kiss.” Then, to sum up the night, came Foreigner’s “I Wanna Know What Love Is,” which felt like their perfect goodbye. As the crowd joined in with Couse, it suddenly felt like we were a drunken mob swaying with our arms around each other, singing a throw back tune. Then, as all the background beats fell away, leaving only Couse and his guitar, my final feeling was of being serenaded by the coolest guy in at my school.
Nestled in the heart of Pemberton, on a farm at the base of Mount Currie, Rise and Shine Festival kicked off the summer season with a bang.
DJs, blue skies, great pals, camping and dancing pretty much sums up our experience. Doesn’t sound too bad, eh?
Not only did this one-day festival host some amazing local artists (Funk Hunters, SkiiTour, Average-Gypsy + many more) but it was also a great way to get over the recently cancelled Pemberton Fest (pour one out, RIP), which was set to happen across the road! To top it all off, all proceeds went to The Rise and Shine Foundation. We partied for a cause, so our hangovers were well worth it.
Admittedly, by the time we were #blessed by the presence of The Funk Hunters at 11pm, things were a bit blurry… Hydrating yourself with beer in 30-degree weather can do this to a man, but hey, these are signs of having a blast!
The only thing we were sad about is that it was only 1 day. We’ll see you there next year, 10/10.
The entrance to The Imperial is unassuming but holds some tell-tale theatre markers like a double wide lot, arched windows recalling a time when it held true to original intent, and a permanent awning, “Imperial” spelled out in bold gold lettering, with smokers huddling in conversational packs underneath. It’s a site of shared experiences and has been in both iterations, as theatre and venue. Everyone who saw Com Truise and Clark take the stage below the terracotta figures lining the walls of The Imperial connected to something. Something called dope IDM which mind-controlled the audience for the better part of two hours and change.
Com Truise opened the show with his trademark soaring synths and pulsing drums. Relying on tradition to form the skeletons of his song, Com Truise builds a musculature unlike anything that’s come before. With a set of screens splashing colours in the darkness behind his mixers, pedals, and drum machines, the attendees was treated to a taste of the 80s updated and remade for a modern audience. Comfortable and solid beats created a layer on top of which the flourishes of a talented artist took full hold. The crowd swayed to the soaring synths, pausing at intervals when Truise intended a moment of reflection and anticipation. In those moments, most eyes were held intently on his bobbing head, some were closed, belonging to swaying skulls, and others were glancing around, taking in the shadows of terracotta soldiers, the couple kissing in the corner, the friends eagerly discussing what’d just happened and predicting what’d come next. It wasn’t unilaterally responded to, but in a way, this is how Com Truise’s music is structured. Warm textures and soft harmonies elicit a state of mind, but how that mind relates to the scene depends on one’s company. What was clear about the set is that everyone got into it in their own way, sharing the space in the middle of a riff.
Then, Clark. The veteran of heady electronica has consistently delivered a tailored product, suited to particularities of the artist’s life, and has dabbled in hip-hop, folk, dance, and heavily abstracted electronic stuff that seems to defy classification. All these elements have found themselves explored in album format, like the folky “Iradelphic,” or the hip-hop influenced “Body Riddle,” but what has unified them is Clark’s intense dedication to a product which involves the ears throughout. I have never been bored by a Clark track, and while I prefer the more abstract stuff, the album this show was promoting, “Death Peak,” was the perfect material for the crowd. After a mostly slow and swaying set from Com Truise, Clark brought the heat, making bodies sweat as feet thumped and spines waved, arms wobbling in strange patterns as the music infected our bodies like an audio-physical virus. Symptoms include dancing and grins. Often shrouded in a cloudy haze of smoke, Clark kept tweaking and re-tweaking his settings, concerned entirely with the shifting landscape of sound and how to get it just right for our ears. There were moments of pause, of recollection, but mostly, the dude just got us moving. At the end of the night, people gathered underneath the Imperial awning, idled by the vans, smoking cigarettes and chatting with roadies, and the artists hung by the doors, backs against the wall, talking with fans. Their approachability made the night more special because it seemed like talking with peers, not holy men come from on high to disperse the gospel. My girlfriend even talked with Clark about veganism for a solid ten minutes, and I wasn’t sure who I was more jealous of.
Basically, check their stuff out. As mentioned, Clark’s released a new album, “Death Peak,” and it’s a compelling listen well worth your time. Com Truise, for his part, is scheduled to release his new album, “Iteration,” next month, and if the show was any indication, your ears should thank him now.
Out here in the Lower Mainland we breed a ton of talented bands and musicians. There are way too many to give shouts to, but if we had a gun to our blog and were forced to pick a local fave, Gob would take the cake. Sounds like a joke, but it ain’t. Listen to “I Hear You Calling” and tell me I’m wrong.
Tied amongst a few others, for a very close second: The Zolas.
I first met Zach Gray (vocals/guitar/v good looks) at a house party back in 2009. When I say met, I mean I admired him from a distance (I usually leave that part out of the story). He had come straight from the studio with The Zolas’ first album, Tic Toc Tic, in hand. This was around the age where I saw these local bands as gods, so believe me when I tell you that the feeling I got when we all heard a sneak peak of their debut-album-to-come, was pure ecstasy. I’ve been addicted ever since and seek no help – the first step is admitting it.
The core of the band consists of Zach and Tom Dobrzanski (piano/v good looks also) but they have other musicians supporting them on the back line while performing live and recording.
I’ve seen The Zolas more times than I have fingers and yet I still find myself at all of their live sets. They performed at The Vogue Theatre, early April, to close their Canadian Spring tour and let me tell you…it was definitely in the top Zolas performances I’ve ever seen. This could be because I love each and every track off their newest album, Swooner. Or because they played some old faves that I haven’t heard live in years. Perhaps, more likely, because I had the perfect amount of alcohol as to not black out but still drunkenly sway to the beat of the ever-beating drum. We’ll call it a combo. We were fortunate enough to be able to photograph the set for the blog, so thanks Live Nation 🙂
Swooner, released just over a year ago, is well worth the listen from top to bottom. It may even inspire you to catch them open for Two Door Cinema Club on April 18th at The Orpheum. From the catchy upbeat synth pop tunes like Molotov Girls and the title track Swooner, all the way the stripped down Why Do I Wait (When I Know You’ve Got A Lover).
ICYMI. Here’s the official video for Said the Whale‘s single, Step Into The Darkness. Their 5th studio album ‘as long as your eyes are wide‘ is due March 31st, and if you’ve heard the two released singles, you’ll know this album is going to be the s**t.
CDs and Vinyls and Swag, oh my! – pre-order your physical copies hereto have their CD in all your cars and vinyl on all your turntables!
Said the Whale at The Vogue Theatre on April 29th is not a show to miss. See you there!
Australia has given the world some pretty rad acts over the years, including 987’s all time favourite band, Men at Work. We’ve only heard their 1981 hit ‘Down Under,’ but still it has earned them the top spot in our hearts, and on our music blog…but I digress.
Heaps Good Friends. Remember the name. This new Aussie group consists of Emma Fradd (vocals/guitar) and Nick O’Connor (bass/synths/production/drums), friends of 9 years. Thank you Torin, our ears in Melbourne, for the discovery.
They haven’t performed live yet and have only a few songs out, so now is the time to catch the wave before your friends do—that’s right, we’re calling it now, expect big things coming from Heaps Good Friends. They’re working on a live set as we speak, so be ready.
You might think it’ll be long before this peanut brittle pop duo comes to Canada all the way from Australia but there’s a link: Emma Fradd lived in Canada for 6 years. Indeed, they are globetrotters. The two live 1601km apart (Australia’s a wide place u know). Mikhail Din has been corresponding with the group. Fradd stated, ‘We have to find time and money for flights, but we’re having heaps good fun: our heads are way in the game.’ Sounds like the key ingredients to the prescient 987.
A couple months ago Yellow Days, a very impressive 17 year old out of England, dropped this amazing EP “Harmless Melodies”. It’s dreamy and synthy and jazzy and reminiscent of King Krule. He released a bonus track last week which is fire too. Favourites are “Gap In the Clouds”, “Your Hand Holding Mine” and “A Little While”.
Last week Cold War Kids announced their 6th studio album, L.A. Divine, set to release on April 7th, 2017. Here’s the first single release, Love is Mystical.
