A Jack ‘n’ Jill for Dan ‘n’ Joy
Canadian Corps Headquarters, Toronto, Saturday June 27th, 2009
feat. Conconquidore Truidore, Uum (GRFNKL), Village, You Left Saving the Planet, People of Canada
Up some stairs, you can almost see a hundred Grandpas slow dancing with their Grandma-ed sweethearts, wishing they could baby-boom all over again. Brown wood, brown wood, and some different shades of brown wood are there to support your dancing feet, your wallflower back, and your trophies of times long gone. Queen Elizabeth is mounted on the far wall above the small scalene-triangular stage. She looks young, and you look twice, but she’s unattainable, and almost worth all the fuss.
Mr and Mrs Peorgie are the small town bartenders. They hold firm ground when it comes to venue rules, but are quite adorable in some familiar way. Compliments may go unreturned but have a way of opening their ears. A life lesson?
The sound-guy of the evening, whose name (GET BACK HERE YOU NAME!) escapes me, was truly there for us performers. Let’s call him ‘Sun’ for now. (It was short and homonymous like that.) Sun joined us in our jokes and catered to our wishes during setup. During the “Wall of Sound” performance of You Left Saving the Planet he rocked out on his control module. He was IN the band and the mixer was his axe. Enthusiasm. Following the Conconquidore Truidore set, Sun made it known that he appreciated the challenge of the instrumental mix ‘n’ match-mish-mash, and apologized on behalf of all the sound guys who ever abandoned their post over the years, leaving poor Conconquidore Truidore feed-backing their own excrement on stage. He even offered to fix up the jembes when that day/night comes. *Sigh*... A sound guy who loves being your sound-guy.....
Sun? Are you reading this? Even though your name’s not Sun you should contact us and we’ll hire you.
In the meantime, if in fact he can always be found at the CC Headquarters, he’s all yours!
R.A.C. (of Conconquidore Truidore and Village)
FOR A FREE CD-R SAMPLER OF THE EVENING BANDS CONTACT REELCOD@GMAIL.COM
Holy Joe's- Thursday April 9th 2009, Toronto
feat. Generic Rock - Jeremiah - Village - Career
The top floor of the Big Bop Building can be quite a worthy place for a show like yours. Coloured Christmas lights aglow, and couches that don't beg you to keep your boots off beckon you to relive the true garage band experience, only live, and with minimal oil stains. A door hidden near the entrance opens to a curling fire-escape, perfect for the between-set refreshment. Imagine the potential if you rented the room out for a night: all of your people, couches, coloured lights and outdoor space. Yes, there is a lot of potential, yet to be realized, but progress is impeded by the constant reminder of rules to be followed. ID Checks, and Bag Searches, a "Fire Escape Only- No Smoking- Not Even Staff" sign on the once-open wonder-door, and believe it or not, Noise Restrictions. The final band of the evening, Career, during their debut live-performance, were cut off after beginning their 4th or 5th freak-jam. Horns a' blazin', riff's a rippin', then all of a sudden, "Fuck this, no way!" from the mouths of the great circuit-breakers, then Sound OFF..Lights ON.
Granted, it was late, it was loud, and there was a noticeable lack of Rabid-Growl vocals in the set, so it probably wasn't suiting Holy Joseph's ear-taste. Buttttt, that don't make it right. Sadly, we were wrong to assume that in the sleazy atmosphere of the Big Bop we could just be ourselves, informal and unshaven. Too many frowning, folded-arm staff give off the impression that bands and fans are an inconvenience.
Other than that, the sound guys were totally competent and helpful (in the early eve at least), the room was big enough for our fan/friend of a friend-base, and the couches and the coloured lights were nice.
R.A.C.
the audience. The musical acts were different, heartfelt, and supportive of one another. We sold this and traded that between us, making connections and new collaborations. Selfishly, it was wonderful to have all of the land to ourselves. We could just wander and wander and pass only the recognizable faces, polite and attractive. Slowly learning names, and every now and then saying "Didn't we used to know eachother?" and "What? How do you know them?"
Music and fire burned all night as 50 or so of us gathered ‘round the bonfire. The Milky Way fixed everyone's neck issues. Calling us, “Up Up Up! Don't stare down there! Stare up here! Star-Stare Now!”
"We are so small among the stars, So big against the sky!!!!!!"
The only part that hurts me now is the instant-nostalgia which hit as soon as a strip mall came into view. Fuck you strip malls. I can't believe that people still watch your show. It's poorly written, poorly acted, and the colour's all off. City's have their strengths too, because humans can work so well together, but countrysides loosen up the mind, and clear the senses of the city clogs. In the country it is easy to be all-present. No traffic, billboards, or cops to ignore. Everything is worth experiencing. In an empty field entertainment is in abundance. It's a sensory feast. When eyes can see horizons the imagination does yoga!!! Stretchin' and twistin' and lickin' its own! When people get dirty and bug bitten they relax more. Lifeforce = Deciding which bugs to kill and which bugs to spare. Lifeforce = Redefining Edibility. After awhile people begin to look like animals again. They lose the urban strut and take on new organic rhythms as they walk over the unleveled terrain. They will stay up later to better understand the Moon. The Sun melts their alarm clocks, and cooks them up a circadian breakfast. So many of the people we met there came from toronto. I am happy that when I see them in the streets they will look to me like displaced wildlife.
