Sunshine at Solstice

Alli Sunshine plays to the Solstice Cafe

The Solstice Cafe in downtown Victoria hosted Trevor Davies album release show Friday night, and for the 60 or so people that attended, they were treated to a nice coffee house experience. Unfortunately for Trevor though, due to some technical difficulties that really slowed down his set, it was the two opening acts that really stood out.

Alex Hicks started the night with a beautiful set. Hicks, a member of Raw Hunnie, had a super strong voice that really dominated the cafe. She played the guitar quite nicely, and apart from one little slip-up during a song, she played lights out. She seemed comfortable for the most part, her interaction with the crowd was decent. She has a phenomenal voice, and I'll keep an eye out for her in the future.

Next up was Alli Sunshine, and filling in for the Blue Sparrows was Trevor Davies' band mates, Bassist Phil Albert, and drummer Dave Klasen. Sunshine was the reason we were at the show, and she didn't disappoint. She is a very personable performer on the stage, and you get a real sense of her enthusiasm. Even with band members who had never played with her, and on a borrowed keyboard, she had the cafe's full attention. I was very happy to find that her voice was even better in person, and I'm really curious to see her with her own band now (especially with some guitar!).

Trevor Davies closed up the night at the cafe. As I mentioned earlier, they had some problems with their gear, and the set never really had a flow. Those difficulties shortened their set, and it was really too bad. I'm not sure if it was the difficulties, but I don't think their stuff is for me. Not to say it isn't good, because the crowd that Davies brought in last night certainly seemed like they got what they wanted. All in all, it was a great Friday night.

Lyme Aid 5 a great night out

Well I know it was a few days ago now, but I'm on Island Time here :) Victoria Events Centre was the stage for a great fundraiser helping support Jean-Luc Giroux, a Victoria local, and his battle with Lyme Disease. The bands and the venue were both fantastic, and it was a night that did not disappoint.

Ellisa Hartman started off the night with her super catchy tune "Smitten". It was a good crowd right from the get go, and Hartman made everyone realize in a hurry they had made a great choice for their night out. It was good to see her play, as the day before I helped Cyler Parent out on a photo shoot with Ellisa. She was just playing a few songs for the camera, but she was so awesome that I couldn't wait for the show! She is a great act to get out and see, and a fantastic way to start the night.

Next up was Christopher Arruda. I was extremely excited to see the man play live, and he exceeded my expectations in a big way. He played his keyboard the same way a mad scientist would concoct some sort of test tube Armageddon. He really commands attention and has a great voice. The show was only half over and I think we were ready to call it a winner.

Here is a surprise, Steph Macpherson was on the bill (We just can't seem to get enough of her!).  Katie Schaan and Vince Vaccaro accompanied her on stage, as well as Flugelhorn (I most certainly had to ask what type of horn it was) player known simply as Olivier.  It was yet another fantastic performance. I don't know what to say any more to be honest. Schaan and Macpherson were absolutely brilliant throughout the set, and Vaccaro added that perfect touch. It was the set of the night for sure.

A 50/50 winner was announced before Lindsay Bryan closed the evening with her set. In the true spirit of the fundraiser, the winner of the $58 dollars was kind enough to donate it back to the cause. A class act.

It was my first time really hearing about Lindsay Bryan. She has a great voice, and she had some great support on stage. She was funny and dropped a few F-bombs, which I always find humourous. I would have liked to see Lindsay play somewhere else in the line-up. Not to take anything away from the Victoria talent, but after a set like Macpherson's, you could really see the experience gap in Bryan's. Definitely a raw talent to keep an eye on.

It was obviously a very successful event. It showcased a lot of local talent, and raised some funds for a good cause. Another shining Example of local music doing good in the community.

Girls with Guitars 2 a success!

Christina Maria owning the stage during "Girls with Guitars 2"
Photo Courtesy: Cyler Parent (his cell phone :)

Well the night finally came, and it was a great hit!  Katie Schaan, Ellisa Hartman and Christina Maria (who sat down with Island SoapBox and an interview is coming shortly!) played beautiful sets.  Lucky Bar was the perfect venue with great sound and service.  Surge Ahead can definitely count this event as another success.

Katie Schaan opened the night.  With a good crowd from the get go, and more spilling in as the set went along.  For a crowd busy buying drinks and finding their friends, they seemed to pay attention to Schaan.  She had some good banter and recovered quickly from a broken string incident, going back stage and emerging with Christina Maria's feathered guitar (we're still not sure if Christina knows this).  Ellisa Hartman held the crowd over with some stand up comedy.

Luckily Ellisa stuck with her musical set and didn't take the stand-up any further when she took the stage next.  She's a really great act to listen to.  Her guitar playing was captivating and her voice is smooth.  The only thing we noticed was her slower stuff in the middle was so soothing it kind of tired us out.  There is no doubt that Hartman's talent will have her playing many shows in the future.

A woman who is playing a ton of shows right now, whether they be here or abroad is Christina Maria.  The Victoria crowd spilled out as the two local singer/songwriter's acts had finished up, which was probably the biggest mistake they could have made.  It's no knock to the other two acts, but Maria owned the Lucky Bar stage like we had not witnessed all night.  She may have had the smallest crowd, but she had the most people paying attention.  It was a pure "Rockstar" performance, super fun to watch and over before you know it.

The best news all night was from Surge Ahead's Richelle Newson, who said there is already a third "Girls with Guitars" planned early in the New Year.  They are doing a great job getting talented artists and great sponsors, and there is no reason to think that will change next time around.

You can check out some video of the concert over at Magmazing Music, run by my friend Adam Lee.

Island SoapBox Reviewlandia?

(Our view from beside the Fudge shop at Market Square)

Day 1

We took in our first Rifflandia experience at Market Square on Thursday evening.  It really was everything that we had hoped for.  A bit of shitty weather gave our first West Coast festival the right feel, the bands on stage didn't disappoint, and Rifflandabräu is terrific.

Sunday Buckets opened, and the crowd seemed to really enjoy them.  We headed to the beer tent upon entry (Beer Tent entrants 3 & 4, thank you very much ;), which was great for table selection, but all the tables we're behind the standing area where you could watch from.  So we listened emphatically to the first set, but didn't see much of the stage act.

I was really ramped up for Brasstronaut.  We found a spot beside the stage to take it in and set up shop. They were good, but I think I got myself too excited, as I found the show to lack the energy I thought these guys would bring.

(Brasstronaut in Market Square)

The energy I missed out on, Grand Analog brought tons of to the stage.  He has an old-school sound, I really enjoyed it.  You know a set is good when it's already over.

(K'naan headlined Thursday night at Market Square)

K'naan has had an interesting month, and after singing through the first two tunes of his set without much life, I was starting to worry.  That went away quick, as he really warmed up with the crowd, and gave everyone the headlining act they had come to see.

Current Swell was definitely my favourite surprise of the evening.  I didn't know anything about them, but they kicked off their set with some pretty wicked guitar riffs, and I was hooked right away.  They had a super cool vibe to them, that reminded me of several artists at points (The Tragically Hip and Sublime kept coming to mind).  I'll be seeing them again for sure.

Day 2

Friday evening brought 4 bands that were "must-see's" (personally speaking of course) and three different venues.  It was time to experience the uniqueness that is Rifflandia, and get to venue hopping.

(Treelines playing in The Victoria Events Centre)

The Victoria Events Centre was stop 1, for CBC Radio 3's Song of the Summer winners Treelines.  Playing in the always tough 7:30 timeslot, the boys put some asses in the seats!  I thought the crowd was great, the show was excellent with really good energy.  They truly are a lot of fun to watch.  Maybe it was the venues I was at afterwords, but I thought the sound quality could have been better.

After picking up my sweet new Treelines T-shirt, it was up to Metro Studio for Steph Macpherson.  We walked in roughly halfway through what I believe was her first song (she introduced herself at the end of it), and took the first two seats we spotted.  I didn't get to see much of the stage behind her because of the stack, but otherwise it was great.  It was the first time seeing her live that she had a band behind her, so that was nice to see.  A stand-up bass is a quick way of impressing me.  I just love those damn things.  I don't need to say it, but I will anyway, Steph was awesome like always.

(Steph Macpherson with a band at Metro Studio)

Onto Alix Goolden Hall, right around the corner from Metro Studio.  We got in for the majority of The Whitsundays.  Not my cup of tea... :)

The reason we had made the trip to this Cathedral of sound was for the next two acts, and boy oh boy were they good.

(The Wooden Sky on stage at Alix Goolden Hall

The Wooden Sky killed it.  People were eating it up, including me.  The sound quality in that building is excellent, and you're basically sitting on stage with the band.  I really enjoyed watching all the different instruments played.  I've liked this group for a while now, and to hear them telling the story of first coming to Victoria way back to play Ocean Island Backpackers Inn, to see them in Alix Goolden killing a crowd like that was really cool.

(Great Lake Swimmers on stage at Alix Goolden Hall)

After an act like that, having the Great Lake Swimmers come on was just way too awesome.  Again the sound in that building is incredible, so when you put a group like this on stage, you can't lose.  It was a captivating set, Tony Dekker held the stage solo for a song (for http://www.swimdrinkfishmusic.com/ and all that it stands for), and the room felt very attentive. The venue is super intimate, and Great Lake Swimmers, along with all the acts, really used that well.

Oh, and I was also super excited to buy "Lost Channels" on vinyl.  Apart from a Gordon Lightfoot album, and "A night with John Denver", this is my first LP purchase.  

How many of you are listening to records these days, and what are your favourites?

Day 3

Well I've noticed something about the acts I like, they all seem to be playing all ages venues.  I think this means something about what I'm listening to.  It also means that I'm never the shortest person :)

That being said, I was really looking forward to Pawnshop Diamond, so back to Alix Goolden for me. Thinking back on the sound quality from the evening earlier made this choice even easier.  I may have forgot my camera, but at least that meant I could just listen.  And what a treat that was.  Another band that exceeded my expectations.   My only wish was they could have played more!

Reid Jamieson was up next.  Dude can sing, I will say that!  He played a really fun set, he set up his songs with humour well, and had the crowd following his stories with smiles.  He's getting married next weekend, and was fortunate enough to have his wife-to-be sing a few songs along with him.  She made some jokes as well, and they seemed to share the moment quite well.

Hayley Sales was up next.  Armed with nothing more than a busted Ukelele at times, Sales had her voice bellowing through every nook and cranny in that place.  It was a super impressive vocal performance, and along with her surfy acoustic guitar, there were plenty of heads bobbing along.  She got the crowd involved as well (the hall sounds really great with audience clapping, stomping or singing, I really can't stress how good it sounds in there enough!).  In fact, everyone enjoyed it so much, she earned the first encore I've witnessed at the festival.  One last catchy tune, a standing ovation, a successful set.

That was it for me on day 3.  With my partner in crime at work, and having to work myself in the morning, I thought this was a great "quit while you're ahead moment".

Well Sunday evening just didn't work out for me.  After sending a co-worker off with some beers after the shift, the relaxing confines of home were too much.  Looking forward to next year now!
I really think the festival was done great.  With all the extra's available, like Artlandia and Winlandia, not to mention the free acoustic sets, it looks like this festival is just going to get stronger and stronger.  The Rifflandia organizers know what's up, can't wait to see what they do next year.

A Farm Boy’s First Folk Fest Experience.

A Special Guest post for Island SoapBox by Cody Lobreau.

Growing up on the farm we only had access to radio stations that played the top 40, rock and classic rock/oldies and country music. Since I found top 40 music to be the music equivalent of Bud Light Lime (total crap), I became a rock fan at an early age. Over the years, several of my friends told me about the Winnipeg Folk Festival, stating that it’s the best musical experience they ever go to, kind of like their equivalent of a religious experience. They would go each and every year. If the weather was horrible, they would still go and just tough it out, even if it means their tent was soaked through with rain water, it was part of the Folk Fest experience. Last summer, after hearing about all the great musical acts my friend Pat saw at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, I decided it was finally time to visit my first one.

Waiting for the 2010 edition was the hardest part, waiting a whole year for the Folk Fest to begin was hard, mainly because I was unemployed (and still am), and it was supposed to be the highlight of the summer. Well on July 7th it was time to head to Bird’s Hill Provincial Park and finally experience my first Folk Festival. This marked the first time I drove solo to Winnipeg in several years, and on the way to Birds Hill Park I managed to get lost twice, almost got in an accident once, and ignored five phone calls from family (as they were worried that I got into an accident because I was ignoring their calls).

The experience at the Winnipeg Folk Festival was like nothing I have ever seen before. I had the pleasure of going to festival d’été in Quebec City a few years ago, see dozens of acts, and be surrounded by hundreds of thousands of people, but Folk Fest was much more insane of a festival. For four days I was cut off from reality, surrounded by thousands of people ranging from hipsters, hippies, to retired business men, all there to soak up the sun and see live music. I felt somewhat out of place as I was a farm boy and not used to seeing this sort of mix of people, but very quickly I realized that everyone is welcome here, even if you aren’t a folk music fan.

Over the four days of “folking on”, I managed to see John K. Samson 4 times (either performing on several stages, or just simply appearing on stage being a jokester). Frankly, I think four times to see John K. Samson perform (or any act really) in a long weekend is a bit too much, but either way it was a memory I will never forget. During a Manitoban music workshop with himself, Del Barber, The Duhks and several other artists, Samson was being his usual hilarious self when he borrowed Greg MacPherson’s electric guitar to perform his song “The Heart of the Continent”, throughout the song he would randomly stop and start over, this was because he was not used to seeing “the dots” on a guitar.

I used Winnipeg Folk Fest as an excuse to see musicians I saw in Quebec City at Festival d’été (United Steelworkers of Montreal, Weakerthans and Rock Plaza Central), but of course I needed to discover new music. One such act was Rural Alberta Advantage. I knew OF RAA’s music but didn’t know that was their music. So I was delightfully pleased with their performance and bought their CD. Another act was Quebec’s Mauvais Sort from Quebec City. I’ve seen several Franco-folk acts in my day at sugar shacks, at various events and whatnot, and usually I would be bored by the act (as most of them are all too similar in style of music), but not Mauvais Sort. Their music was upbeat, very fun to dance to, and just overall much better than the usual Cabane à sucre music I’m used to in Manitoba.

As this was my first time visiting a Folk Festival, I wanted to be a bit clever (or I guess cheesy) and have a few t-shirts made up specifically for the event. Thankfully the shirts arrived just in time for Folk Fest or else I would’ve had to stick with wearing my trusty Winnipeg Jets t-shirt (very unoriginal – I saw five other people with the exact same shirt). One shirt was a simple green shirt that said “Vive la poutine!” (translates to long live poutine!) This was a crowd hit! I had a few dozen people walk up to me commenting on the shirt, I’ve even had a few francophones start up conversations all because of the shirt. However, my Burton Cummings’ themed t-shirt (with his face) that has the words “Clap for the Stacheman” got absolutely no attention, I guess either it’s unoriginal or nobody there knew who Burton Cummings was (very doubtful).

Looking back a month later, I have to say that out of the hundreds of concerts that this farm boy has gone to over the past decade (starting with The Guess Who in Brandon, Manitoba in 2000) to now, Winnipeg Folk Festival ranks as one of the top two events alongside Festival d’été in Quebec City. Those experiences make me look back and reminisce about the great times I had, the great friends I hung out with, and how I was cut off from society for an entire “long” weekend! I have already thought about going again next year, possibly as a volunteer, but it depends if Festival d’été is during the same week again.

I say that if you have the chance to check out your local folk festivals, check them out! Buy some souvenirs, make some new friends and you will be looking back on the experience, the concerts, and the fun times for several years to come! It’s also crazy to discover what you can find at Winnipeg Folk Festival, such as discovering that other members of your own family once frequented the festival 25+ years earlier and had the same great experience!

Cheers and check me out at http://www.twitter.com/cdnmusic

Thanks very much to Cody for sharing his experience with Island SoapBox.  I hope you all enjoy the read as much as I did!

Vaccaro preaches it softly at St. Ann's

(The Chapel at St. Ann's Academy in Victoria, BC)

Well that was one of the coolest sets I have witnessed.  Vince Vaccaro played to a capacity crowd in the chapel at St. Ann's Academy in Victoria, BC.

Now, in my typical fashion, I didn't bother grabbing a program when I got to the BC Day celebrations.  I lied on the grass outside, listened to a wonderful set by Ellisa Hartman, and was just generally enjoying life.  I noticed people with programs, but thought "why would I need one of those".  The next set was announced, and it wasn't Vince.  Alright now I need help.  Luckily, and with some assistance from some very friendly volunteers, I made my way into the back of the chapel about 20 minutes into the set.

It was fantastic.  Armed with nothing more than an acoustic guitar and the microphone, Vince kept the rooms attention the entire time.  Using the mic only when needed, the rooms natural acoustics were perfect.  Even during Little Candle, the room seemed to bounce his foot stomping perfectly through its walls.

It was fun to watch people watching the set.  With the environment being what it was, it seemed people were more focused on the performance, but reserved in their behaviour.  Some heads bobbed here and there, and I saw a mouth or two moving, but most just watched and listened.

In the 40 minutes I saw, Vaccaro played some stuff from his album, as well as some new stuff.  It was great to hear it all in such a raw form.  There is one thing that stands out through all of it though, and that is just how talented this guy is.  I mean he had the room glued, and mostly wasn't even using a microphone.   A class act, playing a free set to celebrate the province.  Happy BC Day everyone, now send Vince a thank you ;)

Visit his main page and listen to his new single Catch a Fire here.
If you dig it, vote for it on the Zone 91.3 Modern Rock Inbox here.

Malahat Revue stop in Victoria

(Photo Courtesy: Jonathan Taggart www.jonathantaggart.com)

I did not realize that Hannah Georgas, Aidan Knight, Jeremy Fisher and Said the Whale would play the entire evening together.  What a pleasant surprise.  Even better was how well they played together.  You would think the 8 musicians on stage play together on a regular basis.  The music was great, all members in sync with each other, their interaction with the crowd and each other was good, they were funny, never leaving any "gaps" in the performance.  Spending this much time together riding from show to show, the chemisty was clearly visable on the stage.  It was obvious that they were just having a great time, and that feeling seemed to spread through Sugar Nightclub. 

It didn't seem to matter who's song they were playing, the crowd ate it all up.  Both halves of the set were great, the 2nd half having a bit more energy.  The crowd really fed off of that, and the 2nd half seemed to fly by.  Live shows are always great, but I haven't witnessed a show that good in a long while.  It was just a perfect storm on stage.

You don't often get to see 8 musicians share the stage, nevermind the collection of talent that has gathered for this Malahat Revue Tour.  The opportunity to see such great Canadian artists collaborating was a ton of fun, and for those of you who have the chance to catch this tour still, I strongly suggest you do it!