Just last year, at the oh-eight Hillside in fact, I recall meeting a friend of a friend and commenting on her concert tee. She was surprised by my awareness of the band and said she only had the shirt because she knew some of the members. Fast forward to this year's Saturday night of Hillside where that very band, The Arkells, were set to close things down in the Island Tent. Goes to show how big the past year has been for this Hamiltonian band. However they had their work cut out for them trying to follow the ridiculously energetic set by Woodhands who had just departed. Frankly I didn't see how they were going to live up to it, even having being thoroughly impressed with the Arkells last time they'd come around.
[Pictured: Love for the Arkells]
Blasting out of the gate with a raucous rendition of Deadlines they kept the energy going with the catchy Pullin' Punches. The handful of people who'd left after Woodhands (probably due to exhaustion or dehydration) had been replaced with at least as many again, cramming the tent. Security attempted to keep people off the picnic benches during Heart of the City but by the time they covered Smokey Robinson's Tears of a Clown with that Motown feel people were dancing and snapping wherever they could get two feet on the ground (or table in this case). After a new track, Country Boy(?), they broke into the awesome John Lennon. During this track they brought things to a pause just as in the recorded version, and held it as the rabid crowd went off, until finally bursting back in with a musical breakdown of epic proportions. The only way to follow that up was with Champagne Socialist and its mean harmonica. Predictably (though definitely not unwelcomed) they closed the set down with radio-hit, as well as rockin' track, Oh, The Boss is Coming! Leaving the stage the singer tossed the mic in the air, letting it crash to the ground while still on, meaning that throughout calls for an encore there was a reverberating hum of our own cheers back at us through the speakers. On the verge of exhaustion we lapped up Blueprint and though already hoarse and with sore hands we hollered and clapped as best as possible to show our appreciation for the show. Realizing my doubts were unfounded, I acknowledged that the Arkells turned out to be a perfect ending to a wild night!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Arkells Silence Doubts (Hillside '09)
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Hillside Guide
A few acts I'm making a point of catching - hopefully I'll see you at some of these!
Coeur de Pirate may be my most anticipated set of the festival, basically because I fell hard for Beatrice (don't tell my g/f) upon first hearing this lovely chanteuse and have yet to see her live. This lovely tattooed young lady sings glorious songs en francais over lilting piano. Added incentive is that she was a Polaris Prize long-lister.
Clues are a delightful band outta Montreal who's debut self-titled album recently dropped. Not only that but they are part of the third Pop Montreal showcase at Hillside - and those Pop Montrealers are no slackers.
Bruce Peninsula have released a most excellent album entitled A Mountain is a Mouth and I can't wait to see their stage adaptation.
Patrick Watson a beloved Canadian indie rock figure that I have never seen before. Therefore I can't speak for his live performances but based on recordings I'm intrigued and excited to try him out.
Timber Timbre aka Taylor Kirk has a buzz following him everywhere - enough to get swooped up by the Arts&Crafts label. Should be a soft, lovely show.
The aforementioned I am excited to see for the first time, whereas I can vouch for the following acts having taken them in before (check the links!).
Hey Rosetta! I won't even get into all the reasons why, but I love the poop outta these guys (and girl). As awesome as Into Your Lungs is - the live show blows it outta the water (in this case, Guelph Lake).
Final Fantasy. Violin. Loops. Pop. Amazing. A must-see!
Woodhands are a two-piece that bring the energy.
The Arkells from Hamilton put on a rockin' live show from my experience.
As always there will be plenty to see at this year's fest and I look forward to checking out a bunch of others in addition to this list including The Rural Alberta Advantage, Australia's The Grates, the token party-band for this year (besides Woodhands) - USS, Sunparlour Players, Silver Starling, Library Voices and the list goes on.
Okay, so I guess that hardly narrowed the list down.. you'll have to see what turns your crank.
I don't claim to be an expert - though can anyone really be an expert when it comes to music? It's all so subjective. Therefore in terms of Hillside Festival acts I would definitely encourage you to check the bands out for yourself. In addition to the above list I'll even provide a handy R3 playlist I created as a jumping off point. It is recently updated and features only Hillside 2009 bands; by clicking the currently playing artist you can access more music and info from that artist on their New Music Canada page.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Waking the Arkells
Having made the mini-commute up Highway 6 from Hamilton (okay so they're actually on tour..) the five-piece fireballs otherwise known as the Arkells were ready to rock Guelph's eBar. Bursting out of the gate with the album opener, Deadlines, they kept it rolling right into Pullin' Punches and they didn't stop there! Literally playing through a bunch of equipment malfunctions (broken strings, busted mics), and the drummer apparently keeping time despite a high fever - they didn't miss a beat. In fact, I can attest to his ailment as when I bumped into him immediately following the show he was so parched he literally couldn't even speak to order a bucket of water. The vocals were mixed a little low but seemed to be sung strongly. It seems that for a fairly young band their chops are sufficiently sharp as evidence in songs such as John Lennon and Abigail. Actually they played nearly all of their debut LP, Jackson Square, and most every song had an instrumental breakdown in it that gave the band a track-ly chance to showcase their skills; never letting the energy wane. The place was packed and I imagine everyone in there enjoyed the performance as much as I did - especially when they wrapped up with their breakout Oh, the Boss is Coming!
The later set of this double-headlining bill was The Waking Eyes. Admittedly they were just gravy on top of the solid meal of Arkells but we stuck around nonetheless (though this was not the case for a solid portion of attendees). It turned out to be an excellent decision since the 'peggers put on an excellently entertaining show. They couldn't match the Arkells energy but they eclipsed them on variation and diversity. Besides the drummer the rest of the guys seemed to play interchangeable rolls, from trumpet to harmonica to guitar n bass to keys - even swapping lead and backing vocals (every member, including the drummer, was mic-ed for vocals). This led to a wide-range of song-styles, all of which were worthwhile. I guess their mini-radio hit of yesteryear, Watch Your Money, is a thing of the past as they didn't whip it out. The latest single All Empires Fall got a live rendition, as did their upcoming release which was excellent (but I didn't catch the name of). It was a decent set and we all got a kick out of the second song of their two-song encore when they broke out =W=eezer's Undone, the Sweater Song - playing it fantastically, including every word of the lead-in banter.
