Review: Shad K in London, Ontario @ Call the Office

This is a repost from my blog Monday Through Monday.

photo by Thom Pilgrim

It's nights like these that get me excited about live music. Call the Office built it, and they came. By the hundreds.

As I rounded the corner of Clarence and York the sound hit me first. Dozens of chatting, arguing, whining and yelling concert goers snaked down York Street, in line to see London's prodigal son, Shad K. Each one of them sure they could talk, flirt, or threaten their way into the near capacity club.

I arrived minutes before Two Crown King took the stage. Their bio says they met while enrolled in Fanshawe's Music Industry Arts program. I wouldn't say these guys are entirely up my alley, but they were certainly entertaining. A formidable entity on stage; A combination of funk and hip hop (funk hop?) boasting 6 members, including a live drummer, keyboard player, guitar and bass in addition to the two lead men. The live drummer is definitely refreshing! (Who I might add is London's own, Pat Maloney, music programmer at Fanshawe) I'm down with the live dj + backing tracks, but these guys really can claim to being a "band".

Next up! Winnipeg's Grand Analog take the stage. A charismatic 3-piece, they managed to win over the audience with a mix of solid tracks, witty banter and maybe a few too many gimmicks. In between the spacey, delayed kazoo solos and cute girls being asked on stage to pour water on the lead man, Odario Williams, they spat out clear and thoughtful rhymes along to the fattest of bass lines.

Finally, after a short break which included much shoving to get back to the front, our main man Shad, was ready to start. Shad, clad in a Grooves Records t-shirt commanded the stage with just himself and a mic. He never needed the crutch of gimmicks or a big live band to keep the audience captivated. Dj TLO spun Shad's backing tracks plus some creations of his own. Familiar track after track, littered with London references kept the audience happy and proud, while the newer material garnered cheers and a heightened excitement for his new album, due to drop sometime this year on Black Box. As an encore, Shad invited Grand Analog back up on stage to close of the night with some freestyling. (I feel really white just typing that) I must say, Shad had the home turf advantage, reeling out references to most of the highschools in London only to win over the audience even more... if that's possible.

photo by Thom Pilgrim

photo by Thom Pilgrim

Overall, an amazing night. Great performances by all. Definitely worth the ticket price and we won't be seeing a show like that again for a long time. I think I can say, on behalf of all of London, come back soon, Old Prince.

Coming up in London (Ontario that is)

In addition to being an amazing band our friends in Olenka and the Autumn Lovers run the Open House Arts Collective and put on music (and other arts) shows in and around London, Ontario. One of them even contributes to the site, but she is ill at the moment (no, not with that). But I got an email about upcoming shows that they are happy about a little while ago and thought I should share:

If you're in, or around London these are the places to be (according to the experts).

Sat Nov 21: Sam Allen CD Release show @ Chaucer's Pub
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=173599208287&index=1

Sun Nov 22: Le Cyc @ The Arts Project
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=193956459601&index=1

Tue Nov 24: Our friends the Wooden Sky will be at Call the Office (not an open house show)
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=172489954652&ref=ts

Fri Nov 27: Olenka and the Autumn Lovers @ Call the Office
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=207661971367&index=1

Tue Dec 1: a new intriguing (monthly) night at Call the Office, Hoot! Night. Singer/songwriter's showcase
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=176217764507&index=1

Fri Dec 18: I just noticed this listing, the Constantines w/ Ladyhawk AND Julie Doiron will be at Call the Office! woo!
>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=177966783080&index=1

Free Show for Fanshawe Students on Fri. w/ Immaculate Machine, the Zolas & Chris Rayburn

Via Open House Arts Collective: Vancouver's Immaculate Machine are playing a free, all ages show at the Out Back Shack (Fanshawe College) with the Zolas and Chris Rayburn.

The show is completely free and all ages (with a Fanshawe Student ID). It doesn't get much better than that! (If you're waiting for the band to pay you to show up - you're in for a long wait.)

Immaculate Machine - Only Love You For Your Car

"It's Spencer's Birthday!", Said The Whale

On a sleepy Wednesday night, Vancouver's Said the Whale made a stop in London to distribute a healthy dose of infectious pop melodies laced with hook-filled harmonies in the basement of London Music Club. Cresting the pre-album buzz of their latest offering Islands Disappear – due Tuesday (October 13) – have been very busy in the tour van.

Setting the table for the main course was Thunder Bay's Jean-Paul De Roover. He's a one-man act that with loop pedal mojo, orchestrated a symphony of sounds and beats that created an interesting wall of sound. One part analog deejay, one part folk troubadour, Jean-Paul was an interesting and great start to the evening.

By the time Said The Whale were poised to take the stage, the Cellar Lounge was packed to the gills. They came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, nailing two songs before the crowd even had a chance to catch a breath. Ben Worcester and Tyler Bancroft’s unique harmonies lit up the dank recesses of the basement of the London Music Club. The shoulder-to-shoulder crowd were getting their fill.

The highlight of the night was about two-thirds of the way through their set when Bancroft announced that it was drummer, Spencer Schoening’s birthday. He produced a cake and encouraged the bar to sing along, a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday which climaxed with Spencer wearing the cake as a mask. The last three songs and encore were played with cake, icing and sweat impeding Spencer, but not stopping his thunderous beats.

One of the reasons to go see a band live is always the merch table. There are usually special deals and limited run, unique releases available. Along with the shirts and belt buckles, one could drop twenty dollars and leave with the newest album, Islands Disappear (which isn’t even in stores till next week), a 7” copy of The Magician, EP, as well both their EPs Howe Sounds and Taking Abalonia on one CD — an incredible fist full of value.

So, if Said The Whale comes to a venue anywhere within your grasp on this CBC Radio3 presented tour, you’d do yourself a huge favour to go see the show — Said The Whale is a true gem in Canadian musical crown. If you miss them, you have yourself to blame — you were warned.

Video: Owen Pallett Interview at LOLA fest

Via Open House London: Final Fantasy interview in London, Ontario during LOLA (London Ontario Live Arts festival).

Something caught my ear...

It was A Horse And His Boy.
From London, ON

This is like something I’ve heard before, yet like nothing I’ve heard before.

Throughout the course of a year, A Horse & His Boy (AHAHB) have evolved from a solo project to a five piece. At one time involving only samplers, the band has progressed into an impetuous presentation of heavy guitar, melodic basslines, and battling synths, with elaborate drum beats working through the chaos to hold the sound together. Fronted by two vocalists, one soft and harmonic, yet fierce at times inspired by a metal background, the other harsh and shameless with aggressive delivery, their contrasting tones work together to create a sound uniquely their own. Songs often reflect on recurring dreams and the past. While maintaining their originality, the group is equally influenced by post-punk, pop, jazz, and experimental genres.

A Horse And His Boy have just released their self-titled debut album, available at shows and at Grooves Records in London, and have just played LOLA Fest in London, ON. We’ll hear about LOLA Fest in the next couple of weeks.

More shows:
9/24/2009 10:00 PM at Sneaky Dee’s w/ Honest I’s & Maggie CrossToronto, Ontario L0G 1W0
10/3/2009 10:00 PM at East Village Arts Co-op
757 Dundas St., London, Ontario N6B 2P4
10/24/2009 8:00 PM at Call the Office with LIBRARY VOICES
216 York St., London, Ontario

www.myspace.com/ahahb

http://ahahb.com

Photo credits:

Adam Szymanski

Sara Froese

ENJOY!

Summary: Article One at Coastal Church

(Please excuse the poor quality cellphone photos)

The 2009 Juno-nominated band Article One, from London, Ontario, played a free concert in Vancouver August 12 as part of the Coastal Church REGeneration series of bands and speakers. They brought a high energy set to a beautiful venue, getting a whole crowd of 300+ people dancing and bobbing in between them uncomfortable pews.

My highlight of the show was definitely seeing Matt Piche's energetic (/frantic) fiddling. The bow looked just about snapped in half and strings were flying off in every direction as it seesawed to their brand of up-tempo pop rock. Now that's what I paid (well, $0) to see!

Below is a set list of that show.

Without You
Say
Searchlights
500
Blessed
I Am Free
If The World
No Time
Above All
Never
Mighty
All Because
Everlasting

Article One is composed of brothers Nathan (vox, guitar, keys) and Matt Piche (violin, vox), Dave DeSmit (drums, vox), and Nolan Verner (bass). Their name was inspired by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was prominently displayed when they attended the U2 Vertigo tour in 2005/6.

Speaking of U2, here's hoping that with their three-part harmony and strong violin presence, that Article One can break out of the mold that so many contemporary Christian rock bands tend to fall into -- the whole shimmery guitar build-up sound.

With two albums out (Self Titled & Colors and Sounds) and one on the way, these guys have toured Canada and the US extensively to promote their music, and had been on the road for more than 200 days in 2008. They've toured with Christian mega-band the Newsboys, and are going on tour through Canada from end of October through November to support another fellow 2009 Juno-nominated Canadian band Starfield.

Their latest album, Colors and Sounds, is available on iTunes, and from MapleMusic as well.

Find them on Twitter, Facebook, and Myspace.

Home County Folk Festival, a rousing success!

Home County Folk Festival, has been a part of Southwestern Ontario for 36 summers in London. Where other events have come and gone, Home County has continued to offer a weekend of FREE music and arts, taking over Victoria Park attracting upwards of 150,000 fans over the course of the weekend.

When the list of performers was released this year, the festival served notice that it was taking a step forward, looking to become a must-do event like for the next generation of artists and music fans. With 2009 Polaris Prize shortlist nominees Elliott Brood & Joel Plaskett; 2008 & 2009 (respectively) Juno nominated siblings Jill & Matthew Barber; perennial surfpunk faves, The Sadies; and, then Danny Michel, Home County is certain to be a dot Canadian Indie festival radar.

The concert highlights…
Joel Plaskett (solo) / Peter Elkas

The Aeolian Hall | 7.16.09
The festival kicked off at The Aeolian Hall. Having sold out a 9:00pm show quickly, a second, show was added. Peter Elkas took the stage for a short set and then Plaskett took over at 6:30 and 9:00pm solo – enlisting Elkas for help on many songs. Elkas took advantage of the hall’s grand piano and both he and Plaskett showcased one of Canada’s top ranked venues for acoustics. Plaskett’s night had no setlist, playing songs the audience’s called out. In the end, fans – many who paid to see both shows – were treated to four plus hours of music.

Jill Barber

Victoria Park - Mainstage | 7.17.09
The festival proper, got into gear Friday afternoon at the park. The crown jewel this year was the show closer on the first night. Juno nominated and ECMA award winning Jill Barber performed a free concert in the park’s bandshell. Barber’s music is a love note to a bygone era, and seeing her play the bandshell, under a starlit summer night was poetic. She encouraged dancing, and as one longtime festival going couple commented, "this is the most people we’ve ever seen dancing at the main stage". Barber delighted fans both young and old, and judging by lineup to meet her after the show and get a copy of the CD signed, had made many new fans.

The Sadies

The Aeolian Hall | 7.17.09
One of the troubles with festivals, is that often performers you want to see will be playing at the same time. Friday night pitted The Sadies – part of the late night series of shows at The Aeolian Hall – while Jill Barber was playing downtown. As any Sadies fan knows, they aim to please, and they do not leave the stage till the crowd has had their fill. With Barber’s set in the rearview mirror, there was plenty of the Sadies still to be had. Dallas, Travis and company treated a packed Aeolian Hall to the gamut of their material including their patented fretboard tradeoff. Their show brought an interesting juxtaposition of punk and energy in a hall that was constructed to house classical concerts. A real treat in the old lady.

Matthew Barber / Elliott Brood

The Aeolian Hall | 7.18.09
The elder Barber in the pair of musically (and visually) stunning siblings, also was part of the Home County late night concert series. Barber, now knee deep, working on the material of his fifth album, took the time to feature some of the new songs, as well as favourites from previous albums. Like his sister, he shares an ability for hilarious between-song conversation.

Elliott Brood batted clean up on the night, with their legendary energetic live show. They encouraged people to leave their seats and the resulting energy virally filled the hall. True to reputation, the Brood finished the night with their trademark ‘pan-core’ in which the band hands out dollar store baking sheets and wooden spoons, enlisting anyone who wishes to add to the ‘ambience’ of the song by banging on the cookware with the spoons. Where the night started with the gentle tones of Barber, it ended loud and spent with Elliott Brood.

The workshop highlights…
A common facet of folk festivals that makes them so attractive is the workshops, song circles or ‘singers in the round’. Artists are put together, who don’t normally share a stage, given a theme, and then encouraged to approach that theme in song. Home County did not disappoint in this respect.

Truth & Beauty hosted Jill Barber who was flanked by The Good Lovelies and Emma-Lee put five women on the stage, each with a wonderful voice in their own right, while they explored songs that did not necessarily lie, as Good Lovelies said, but certainly were beautiful.

The Art of Song Production was led by Danny Michel. The Sadies and Matt Barber filled out the workshop stage. The session had a decidedly more electric sound ranging somewhere between electric Dylan and Folsom Prison Cash. It was exciting to see the artists interact so fluidly.

Heartaches and Hardknocks appropriately had Matt Barber leading, Luke Nares and Fraser. A late add to the workshop, was Elliott Brood. While both Barber and the Brood were well known, Nares and Fraser were fresh faces. Fraser had a very Timber Timbre feel to his songs, and Nares’ self proclaimed mellow-choly softened the energy quite nicely.

The highlight of You’re Never Too Old to be a Fool in Love hosted Jory Nash was the tossup between Nash’s story telling and the very unique sound and stage presence of Little Miss Higgins. Danny Michel and Jill Barber also in this workshop proved that love was a topic that transcended age, and served up a gamut of song inspiration.

The epilogue…
In the end, the festival ran from Thursday night till Sunday evening, and it was an epic success no matter how you look at it – It had so much for everyone. The fans that have been attending this from year one, all the way up to the new fans attracted by the next generation of music that played such a large part of the weekend, had more than their share of things to do and see this weekend. You couldn’t do it all, but you certainly could think about how great next year is going to be, before this year’s festival had even completed.

For a pictorial recap of the weekend, see my pictorial recap here.

Olenka and the Autumn Lovers at NXNE

The motivation for starting NXEW was something like this: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver (and their surrounding suburbs) are the places where Canada's professional music press is concentrated. These cities (and their suburban areas) may well have 1/4 of Canada's population but that means that 3/4 of Canada's population is not being well covered by the music press.

Early validation of this idea came from Olenka and the Autumn Lovers out of London, Ontario whose fusion of Eastern European folk and indie rock sensibilities brought them quickly onto the radar at NXEW. They have appeared on our Podcast 3 times now and are firmly in the top 40 of our shadow Polaris voting.

As if that wasn't enough London's Open House Arts Collective (with which Olenka & Co. are affliated) then cranked out a CD Sampler that clearly demonstrates that there are several other amazingly talented bands sitting under the national music press radar in London.

(As an added bonus for NxEW Paterson Hodgson of Olenka and the Autumn Lovers, State Bird of Idaho and sometimes others is a occasional contributor to this site.)

So all of this led me to take a pass on Jason Collett at the Horseshoe and run down to Bread and Circus' in Kensington Market to catch Olenka and the Autumn Lovers live for the first time: They didn't disappoint. Any day now the national press will wake up and notice them and wonder where they came from and how they managed to get out a full length and two EPs (2 more EPs if you count Olenka's solo work) without them noticing. As I said at the start - the Canadian music scene is 4x the size that the national press previously thought: there will be many surprises for them along the way.

Olenka and the Autumn Lovers - Iron Pump



Olenka and the Autumn Lovers - Soldiers Waltz

Download a CD Sampler from London's Open House Arts Collective

The Open House Arts Collective in London Ontario does some amazing work. In addition to being the home of Olenka and the Autumn Lovers and Oh Fest and putting on other live shows and art and music events, they now have a small music label (the Open House Recording Company). And the Open House Recording Company has just released it's very first compilation album.

Ideally they'd like you to buy it. But more than that they would like for you to hear it.

So, here's the deal, you can have it, for free and if you like it buy a physical copy for 6.50 (5.00 + 1.50 shipping) or at least go see the artists that you like when they come through on tour.

Download the disk at http://www.sendspace.com/file/jc2tj6. You can also find out more about the Open House Arts Collective, their events and record label at openhouseartscollective.com, on Myspace at www.myspace.com/openhouseartscollective.com and/or follow them on Twitter at twitter.com/openhouselondon.

ON THE SAMLER

Davita G - Sleep is Nothing
The Lava Lamps Band - Unimaginable
A Horse and His Boy - Sidewalks
the State Bird of Idaho - A Condition of Body and Mind
For Love or Money - the Weight of the World
Aaron Lozynksy - Almost Done
Bryan Pole - Curse of the Sleeping Bear
The Late Miss Mary Kingsley - 1906
The Whipping Wind - Tidal Wave
Handsome Dan and His Gallimaufry - The Man Called Noon (Main Theme)
The Samuel Musical - Would You Love Me
Olenka & the Autumn Lovers - the Decline

Upcoming Shows (Toronto and London, On)

Toronto City Sonic at NXNE: Woodhands, Fucked Up, Lioness, D'Urbs, more @ the Drake the Drake Hotel - June 18

Toronto Yukon Blonde - The Paint Movement - Familia. @ The Media Club! Sunday, June 14 @ 10 p.m.

Toronto NXNE/TWM Present - Hank & Lily, Nightwood, Speaking Tongues Saturday, June 20 @8:30 pm

Toronto NXNE/TWM Present-Mille Monarques, Wildlife, Rah Rah, Yellow Wood,Flotilla, The So So Glos & TBA June 18 8:30 pm

London Pick A Piper/Still Life Still/A Horse & His Boy/Ace Kinkaid on Friday, June 26 at 10:15 pm

Toronto Will Currie and the Country French at NXNE the Reverb 10 pm Saturday, June 20

Rock Plaza Central play In-Store at Grooves Records

Just home from an in-store with Rock Central Plaza at Grooves Records (downtown London) where the band paced through a short, intimate set for a smattering of music fans. The gang vocals, trumpet, banjo, and mandolin lent a warm, familiar sound to the store. The cozy setting produced a chance for the audience to interact with the band, and even suggest songs they'd like to hear. All-in-all I can't think of a better way to get acquainted with that band.

They're playing tonight at Call The Office and have t-shirts, CDs and very limited edition vinyl with them. If you have the chance, catch them live, you'll not be disappointed.

Discover Dinosaur Bones in London Tonight

Archeology can be time consuming and monotonousness. Quite the opposite is true of new Toronto band Dinosaur Bones. The indie rock quintet released a self-titled EP last year and have been gaining momentum ever since. Their four-track EP comes in at a cool 18 minutes but their mature sound has drawn accolades from the Canadian music press, and for good reason.

In offering only a morsel of recorded music, Dinosaur Bones ran the risk of coming up short. Instead, the band effectively displays a wide range of talents in a short time, which has left fans and skeptics alike begging for more. Dinosaur Bones' bassist, Branko Scekic says, “with the EP we just wanted to get something down and out. It was a good starting point and learning experience.”

Dinosaur Bones' frontman, Ben Fox writes the music and lyrics. “Ben's got a good way with words. He knows how to write without being too blunt,” Scekic explains. The lyrics border on socio-political at times, but Scekic insists that though “Ben is a politically aware guy,” they're “not trying to change the world, just write good songs.”

With all of the buzz surrounding Dinosaur Bones' EP, and their live show, the band has found its niche around the 416 area code. Scekic expressed his gratitude for the positive response the band has received not just in Toronto, but around Ontario. “Out of town, the response has been good. People have been opening and welcoming,” he says.

One of the band's goals for the 2009 is to tour more extensively. Thankfully, the band members are all good friends, with Ben and Branko having met way back in high school.

Things can get awfully tight while touring so the boys' solid relationships with one another really help with the band dynamics. “You have to be in good standing if you're going to live in a van for weeks on end. Its important to be close with your band and to be able to communicate,” Scekic says.

Dinosaur Bones also plans to release their first full-length album this fall. “The songs are still varied and eclectic but we have developed a more unified sound,” Scekic says of the upcoming LP.

Londoners will finally get a chance to see Dinosaur Bones when they play Call the Office for the first time tonight. The show will provide a glimpse into the future, as the live set will include unreleased songs from their upcoming album.

Scekic is excited about the band's first gig in the Forest City. “We've only heard good things about Call the Office. It's always fun for us when we get to play a new city. We're stoked to get out there,” he says.

Dinosaur Bones will share the stage with The Junction, Nick Harris, and The Bad Ideas.
Doors open at 9pm tonight, May 22nd.
Tickets are $5 at the door.

As published in The Gazette May 22nd.

Adam Szymanski

John Doe and The Sadies @ Call the Office

London becomes a very different city this time of year. The flowers are in full bloom, the sun is shining, and most of the university and college kids have all gone home. The same can be said of Call the Office. Earlier in the week Shout Out Out Out put on a serious dance party that got plenty of young bums shaking. On Friday, Call the Office offered quite the change of pace with a throwback country show from John Doe and the Sadies which brought out the local crowd, with plenty of friendly faces from local indie radio station 94.9 CHRW.

The way the set took shape, it seemed like two shows in one. First the Sadies played rockabilly induced honky tonk. Country hooks gave way to extended guitar jams that were absolutely ferocious. Double guitar riffs were flying at breakneck speed, leaving no doubt that the Sadies sure know how to handle a guitar, let alone Dallas and Travis Good's bang-on lyrics and tone. The first portion of the set had an unmistakable punk flavour, ironic considering ex-punk rock god John Doe hadn't even taken the stage.

John Doe took centre stage looking dapper in a charcoal grey suit and a freshly cut hairdo. His musical contributions matched his throwback demeanor as he belted nostalgic country track after track. The pinnacle of the night's longing for a romantic love long passed was the song, “Husband and Wives” which Jon Doe sung with all the conviction of a longtime country singer who knows a thing or two about love. The older crowd could definitely relate and brought John Doe and the Sadies out for a well-received encore.

John Doe thanked opening band Young Rival (one of my favs) for putting on an excellent opening show as they so often do. They've opened for big names at CTO including the Von Bondies, where they stole the show. From the big name American band If you haven't heard of Hamilton's Young Rival be sure to check out their tunes because Young Rival's sound is as infectious as the swine flu.

See you at the shows,
Adam Szymanski

Olenka and the Autumn Lovers on Tour!

The Autumn Lovers are going on tour.  All the way from London, Ontario, at a venue near you! 

May 1: Toronto, ON The Rivoli

May 7: Kingston, ON The Mansion

May 9: Fredericton, NB The Capitol 

May 10: Charlottetown, PEI The Ampersand Cafe (early, all ages)

May 10: Charlottetown, PEI Baba’s Lounge

May 11: Sydney, NS St. Pat’s Church (early, all ages)

May 11: Sydney, NS Bunker’s

May 12: Halifax, NS House Show

May 13: Halifax, NS Eye Level Art Gallery

May 14: Moncton, NB C’Mon Inn

May 15: Sackville, NB George’s Fabulous Roadhouse

May 16: Saint John, NB House Show

May 17: Trois Rivieres, PQ Le Charlot

May 19: Ottawa, ON Avante-Garde Bar

You can find more info for each show at our myspace or our "official" website ... ooooh aaaah, how professional. You can follow us on twitter through the Open House Arts Collective we'll send you breaking news about the swine flu. 

Also... thanks to R.O.B. down there (one post below) for that amazing review! 

London's Oh! Fest is Oh-So-Good

London's Oh! Fest takes place this weekend at multiple live music venues around the city. The festival is put on the by Open House Arts Collectiv, London's own arts collective. Great Canadian acts will be playing all weekend long, including CHRW Local Album of the Year winner, Olenka and the Autumn Lovers, who kicked off the festivities last night with a stellar performance we've come to expect from London's folk ambassadors.

Tonight (Saturday May 25) at The Black Shire Pub more exciting Canadian bands are strutting their stuff. New-age disco outfit Lioness highlights the show opened by The Ghost is Dancing and A Horse and His Boy. Lioness combines shopped and screwed disco with experimental synths to put together a sound worth hearing live. Their most popular track, a bona fide club hit, “You're My heart” is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Lioness.

The Ghost is Dancing combines an alt-rock sensibility, with some great hooks. This band is so catchy you'll want to sing along and with the perfectly placed chanting interludes. A mystical quality emanates The Ghost is Dancing's sound that will surely draw the audience into their live set tonight. London's own A Horse and His Boy will open with their ambient sound and distorted lyrics.

Sunday night will also be a can't-miss evening at Chaucer's Pub. Singer-songwriter Laura Barrett headlines alongside The Burning Hell, one of Canada's most intriguing bands at the moment. Justin wrote a full feature on them a while back, be sure to check it out.

See you all at Oh! Fest,

Adam Szymanski

You Should Know: Olenka and the Autumn Lovers

Olenka and the Autumn Lovers are a collective out of London, Ontario with most members coming out of the Open House Arts Collective (Producers of, amoung other things the Oh! Fest.) Fronted by Polish singer/songwriter Olenka Krakus the band mixes eastern European influences with North American folk to create a style all their own. From It's Not the Band I Hate It's Their Fans

"The last time that I saw this band, I was completely taken in by their uplifting sound, as well as Olenka Krakus' captivating vocal charms. They've been back a few times, but until now, I had been unable to catch their live show again. In the interim, they've continued to impress new audiences on a regular basis and, as I predicted, the buzz surrounding them is starting to grow."

I really don't need to say alot about the band though as there is a ton of media for you to check out so you can decide for yourself what you think. For more info on Olenka and the Autumn Lovers check out their Facebook, Myspace, or Web Site (there are also some tour dates farther down the page.)

First you can check out an entire show of theirs recorded at Aeolian Hall, London, ON on June 15, 2008 at CBC Radio 2's Concerts on Demand. People have also put a ton of stuff on YouTube including this CD Release party.

P1: Olenka and the Autumn Lovers CD Release



The rest of this is here: Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6.

You can also see them, starting tomorrow night in Toronto at
9 Apr 2009 8:00 PM - The Rivoli - Megan Hamilton CD Release show - Toronto, ON

Oh! Fest:
24 Apr 2009 8:00 PM - Oh! Fest - London, ON

May Tour:
7 May 2009 8:00 PM - Cafe Dekcuf - Ottawa, ON
8 May 2009 8:00 PM - not yet confirmed - Montreal, QC
9 May 2009 8:00 PM - The Capital - Fredericton, NB
10 May 2009 8:00 PM - The Ampersand (6-8p), Baba’s (evening) - Charlottetown, PEI
11 May 2009 8:00 PM - Sydney, NS
12 May 2009 8:00 PM - not yet confirmed - Halifax, NS or Sackville, NB
13 May 2009 8:00 PM - not yet confirmed - Halifax, NS or Sackville, NB
14 May 2009 8:00 PM - The Paramount - Moncton, NB
15 May 2009 8:00 PM - not yet confirmed - St. Andrews, NB

LOLA Concert Series in London Thursday!

The actual LOLA festival isn't for months, but the folks in charge are busy bringing us great concerts to keep us going until then....

London Ontario Live Arts and Museum London present....

Muskox, Canaille, and Not the Wind Not the Flag
Thursday, April 2nd at Museum London
8:30PM
$10 advance / $12 at the door

Advance tickets are available at Grooves Records downtown and at Infosource, in the University Community Centre at UWO.

Check out the Facebook event!

Hope to see you there....

London: Another one bites the dust...

Today marks the last day that the Alex P. Keaton will be open.

This afternoon, they are holding a garage sale, so this is your last opportunity to grab a piece of history and say goodbye. It begins at 4:30pm roughly and will go a few hours at least.

As a loyal patron of the Alex P. Keaton, I am both saddened that it is closing and frustrated that we lost another music venue in London.

London's Oh! Release First Compilation TODAY!

London's Open House Arts Collective has been extremely busy for the past few months putting together their first (of hopefully many more to come) compilation.

The disc features tracks by 12 different acts in the Forest City such as Olenka and the Autumn Lovers, the Lava Lamps, and many more who have made their mark on the London scene.

The compilation is only 5 dollars and went on sale this afternoon at the London Indie Media Fair. It's also available at Grooves Records and shows put on by the oh! collective.

It received much praise from London arts guru James Reaney in today's issue of the London Free Press.

Keep your eye out for this collective as they bring more great music to the city in April for the first ever oh! fest, as well as other great shows around town in the meantime.