I Heart the Music: Your Online Source for Live Music Reviews and Interviews in Toronto!

Everybody was excited for CHARTattack’s CMF showcase on Thursday night at the Horseshoe, and for good reason. Whipping together some of the best raw talent that Canadian music has to offer, the night consisted of performances by Magneta Lane, Amos The Transparent, Green Go, Hollerado, The Besnard Lakes, Great Bloomers and Arietta. It was a palpable plethora of the many shades of the indie music scene and (luckily) they all basked in the bright light of victory that night.

Amos The Transparent took to the stage first (we missed openers Magneta Lane). Here is a mid-level indie band capturing the hearts of audiences everywhere, probably because they play with so much of it. Kicking off their set with “Catch and Release”, you couldn’t help but venture to the pit in want of becoming part of this 6-member musical family. Going back and forth between their traditionally slower, almost emo-pop sound, to lengthened bridges and intensified jam sessions, Amos’ live performance is filled with nice surprises; layers of sound, beautifully held harmonies, pan-band vocals, call and answer sequences with the crowd, and even friendly sing-a-longs onstage with friends as seen during the tail end of “Greater than Consequence”, creating one of those inexplicable, tingly concert moments.

I don’t even want to review Green Go. I just want you to go see them, and by the looks of the audience, so do they! This electro-pop dance party machine is meant for the stage. Even the most brooding of hippies awaiting The Besnard Lakes couldn’t help but bust a move – no matter how teeny it was. A decidedly awesome, pumped up mix (think Arcade Fire meets Talking Heads meets Fujiya and Miyagi), Green Go has excavated their own super sound through duet-styled vocals, tons of synth, commanding lyrics, undeniable creativity, and a full band behind ‘em- including a really, really tight drummer. Turning the mainstream into electro (even the haters) one audience at a time.

Hollerado came out like fire with front-man, Menno busting out the windmill and immediately declaring “I’m outta tune and I fucking love it!”.  Their energy un-chartable, the drum solos possibly un-re-creatable, the fist pumps from the audience definitely un-stoppable, Hollerado make a sledgehammer to the head feel like a walk in the park. With hard riffs, incredible pace, tons of sweat, they still manage to deliver catchy melodies which, coupled with their straightforward lyrics, make sing-alongs and clapping sequences possible. These guys define power pop. The only thing missing were the drunk, shirtless babes whipping their sweaty bras on stage. The album does not do justice to the spectacle that is Hollerado. Go see them. Oh yeah, and the lead singer horked on himself.

The Besnard Lakes were next on the bill. Not much to say that hasn’t already been said about them, however the crowd appeared to dwindle a bit once they hit the stage..??

**this is the point where our photographer’s camera died. Sorry!**

Great Bloomers are hard to pigeon-hole. Not your typical country, rock or even alt folk, but rather a little of each. Throw in the piano and some beautifully-crafted melodies, mix in the refreshing hooks and the 5-member harmonies, add a little orchestral twang, and a pinch of grit of and you’ve got a splendid musical salad perfect for those interested in feeling good while digesting. From songs of foot-stomping quality (“Speak of Trouble”) to sounds reminiscent of old Broken Social Scene (“This Aint You”) but with stronger vocals, Great Bloomers are a band you’ll want to see again and again. Even though the crowd thinned out before their set began, both the remaining fans and the band fed off of this more intimate, highly pleasurable atmosphere.

As reviewed by Brittany Smith

photography provided by Renee Rodenkirchen

Post-hardcore band Pierce The Veil stopped off in Toronto on the last leg of the Taste of Chaos Tour. These twenty-something guys consist of two brothers who are both musically talented and business-savvy having formed and cultivated the group themselves. Older brother Mike is a self-taught drummer and younger brother Vic has done most of the writing for the group. With the recent addition of Jaime Preciato on bass and Tony Perry on guitar, Pierce the Veil appear to be on the right track. With the hopes of garnering more exposure in Canada and taking time off to write their third album, these guys are set to explode!

iheartthemusic: Is this your first time in Canada?

Tony: We were here for Warped Tour.

Jaime: On Warped Tour we hit the major cities but we didn’t really get to see them because [the location] was always in a parking lot. This tour is cool because we get to see the actual venues and clubs and people.

iheartthemusic: What has been your favourite stop in Canada so far?

Vic: I think Edmonton was amazing, the crowd was nuts.

Mike: The crowd was awesome and it felt like we were at home there for some reason. So much love and it was fun.

Jaime: It was surprising because I don’t think any of us expected it to be the way it was. We were thinking that only 10 kids would know who we were, but it turned out to be the opposite. Very pleasantly surprised!

iheartthemusic: Let’s go back to the beginning. Vic and Mike, you guys started playing together a long time ago, right?

Vic: We didn’t start this band until a few years ago, but Mike and I have been playing since high school.

iheartthemusic: With your last record Tony and Jaime had not joined the band yet, so how has it been playing songs that you weren’t directly involved with?

Tony: At first it was kind of overwhelming. I mean, Vic explained everything that we were going to do and what we were up against, and Jaime and I had done smaller tours together but nothing like this. So Vic tried to explain how to take it seriously, like it was our job. We were practicing everyday and we weren’t used to that.

Jaime: It was definitely a different kind of vibe as far as starting a band, hanging out, writing songs and stuff like that since all of that stuff was already done. It’s cool to look back and see all the fun stuff, what with playing the shows, but now, starting to actually write the next album, which is going to be for Tony and I our first one, it’s kind of all coming back into place.

iheartthemusic: You must be pumped to write the next one then!

Jaime: Absolutely!

iheartthemusic: Vic, you have done most of the writing up to this point right?

Vic: Yeah, me and Mike just kind of jam at home. It’s going to be cool to see everyone contributing and I think it will be a nice change of pace for our band to move from an RV to a regular house again.

iheartthemusic: I know! You guys have been touring for the past few years!

Tony: As much as I stress out and get nervous before the shows, when I finally walk on the stage, that half hour makes everything you do worthwhile. It’s so much fun.

Mike: A lot of our fans have just actually become our friends now. I mean, we had no idea who they were before we started touring, and now we can get into every city and they can actually call us or email us and hang out like normal friends; that’s probably my favourite part.

iheartthemusic: They can call you, eh? Is there a communal phone that everyone uses?

Vic: [laughs] No, that’s a good idea though!

iheartthemusic: What has been highlights and lowlights of Taste of Chaos so far?

Vic: A lowlight was getting snowed in Rhode Island where Thursday was supposed to play. They set that date as the only day they were going to play Full Collapse all the way through and it got snowed in so we couldn’t get to the venue.

Jaime: A highlight was the first Canadian show in Vancouver because we had a signing afterwards and there were only two kids there; we were still stoked though. It was awesome! We thought that was the way Canada was going to be, and then the next day it was like 10 times the opposite.

Vic: Vancouver was a 19 and up show.

Jaime: It was a fun show because not a single person had any idea who we were, so it was awesome because those are the shows that we were used to before this band started.

iheartthemusic: Do you go into those shows with the mentality that you’ve got something to prove?

Jaime: I personally feel more comfortable playing those shows just because there are no expectations whatsoever. I had a lot of fun that show and that’s why it was a highlight, because every person was like “who are you?”

Vic: When the crowd puts out that vibe where it seems like they don’t like you or aren’t interested, then that’s when I feel like I can do whatever I want. You’ve got no one to impress.

Mike: I just kind of get in my own zone and don’t really care what happens.

iheartthemusic: What was a defining moment for you guys as a band?

Vic: I think the first time I saw a kid with a tattoo of our lyrics. No one had ever done that for any band I’ve ever been in. The fact that kids are feeling that connected to the lyrics and gaining a deeper connection to the band is pretty surreal.

Mike: I was super stoked when we were on Warped Tour and Kevin Lyman brought us on his bus to offer us this tour. We were on Warped Tour freaking out already, and then he offers us Taste and we were like shitting out pants.

iheartthemusic: Speaking of shit, I was speaking with Liam from Cancer Bats and apparently Vic and Liam are on the same pooping schedule?

Vic: [laughs] You guys don’t know this, but every time I am walking into the bathroom, Liam is walking in at the same time. It’s been like three times already. We talked about holding hands in stalls next to each other just to say that we did.

Jaime: Not only is that weird but that should never happen… ever.

iheartthemusic: Come on, it’s all about the band-on-band love!

Jaime: If I walked in and saw two guys holding hands, I would walk right out!

iheartthemusic: Vic and Mike have a side project going as well called Isles and Glaciers with members of an assortment of other bands. You just showcased for the first time during SXSW, how did that go?

Mike: Yeah, Vic and I had to ride with Bring Me The Horizon to Austin because we were playing there that same night. So we got to ride with them for 20 hours, which was interesting. Those guys are crazy, but cool guys. We played the AP party, which was outside underneath a huge tent and tons of kids lined up. Some of the songs are actually illegally out, so some of the kids were singing along. It was fun though. It was our first practice ever and it was on stage!

Vic: It went better than we thought it was going to. We thought it was going to be a disaster, but it was fun. We are hoping that the album for that will come out in the next few months so while we’re not touring we have new music with the Isles and Glaciers project. We also have a new video for this band coming out for “Chemical Kids, Mechanical Brides”, which is the first song on the last record.

iheartthemusic: Do you want to tell us about the concept behind that video?

Jaime: It’s an adult film in this RV! [laughs] We shot it in L.A. with the same director as the last video in a house and the house is meant to look like it’s alive. On our first video we had Vic acting and for this one we have two little kids. It was a little boy and a little girl and they were both awesome and trying to escape from the house. It’s a cool vibe, visually stunning.

Mike: It’s kind of creepy.

Vic: I wanted zombies but that got shot down.

iheartthemusic: So when will that be out?

Vic: Soon. It will be on our MySpace.

iheartthemusic: Anything you want to add for your Canadian fans?

Vic: We just want everyone to know that we are really excited about Canada and want to come back. The first thing I am going to do when I go back [home] is tell everyone that I want to book more shows here.

Jaime: I was definitely pleasantly surprised and impressed by the kids here.

The video for “Chemical Kids, Mechanical Brides” is now out on the band’s MySpace. Be sure to check it out!

photography provided by Patrick Moore

On Thursday (March 5^th) iheartthemusic decided to venture into familiar territory and attend The Secret Valentine Tour show at The Mod Club. Why was it “familiar territory”, you ask? Well, it seemed like the same crowd that was at the Take Action Tour Toronto show a few weeks back was in full attendance at this one too. It was all ages, which became ever more apparent as we never had to wait for a drink at the bar! We arrived fairly early so as to get a chance to speak with the boys from The Cab, one of the bands performing that evening, and noticed that a lineup had already begun well before the show’s opening act was set to perform (don’t these kids have school?). As we walked into The Mod Club there were a few comments directed at us by the girls in line who appeared to be upset that we were getting in before them! I even believe b**** was yelled at us by a 14-year-old girl. It was an interesting way to start the night!

First up on stage was a band from Florida (which was a theme throughout the night) that go by the name of VersaEmerge. What I loved about this band was that it was headed by a female vocalist. You rarely see that in a rock/pop band and so this was a breath of fresh air! Sierra Kusterbeck is her name and she exhibits maturity well beyond her years (she is only 18!), which became evident when we sat down and chatted with her before the show. The girl can sing too! She commanded the attention of the audience and it was hard to look at anything else (let alone the other band members). VersaEmerge ended their set by adding “even though this is half the crowd we’ve played for, it’s the best we’ve ever seen!” Well thank you, but considering the venue was not even half full, I doubt it was the best!

Next up was There For Tomorrow, another Florida based band that consists of Maika Maile (vocals/guitar), Christian Climer (guitar/vocals), Christopher Kamrada (drums) and Jay Enriquez (bass). These boys started off by doing the sound check that they had missed earlier. I won’t use that against them, however, as I later found out that their absence  during sound check  was a result of wanting to go downtown. Having been their first time in Toronto, you have to love a band that takes the time to enjoy the city they are playing in! So after all the tuning was done I have to say they were pretty amazing and lead singer Maika’s voice was incredible. What really got the crowd going were the MANY references to the fact that Canadian girls are so beautiful. On numerous occasions Maika announced, “I like what I see pretty girls”, which either means that their publicist had prepared them well (considering the entire audience was female) or they truly do believe that Canadian girls are hot (and why wouldn’t they!). Either way, this is a band that I am going to keep on my radar as I anticipate we will be hearing more from them soon!

The Cab was next on the bill and I got the pleasure to sit down and chat with some of the members before the show. You may have already heard of them as their single “Bounce” was featured on an episode of The Hills in the fall. When the band first appeared on the stage I was a bit thrown off by the Michael Jackson glove that lead singer Alex was sporting during the entire set, however, they made up for it with their talent. This band went straight into it, there was no chatting with the crowd or telling them how amazing they were like the predecessors. They played their first few songs without even acknowledging the crowd, which I loved since, let’s face it, it’s all about the music anyway! They also incorporated different instruments into their performance, which you don’t normally see with this style of music. Keyboardist Alex (the heartthrob of the group) added a unique touch to their sound. There was one minor instrumental setback during their set when Ian’s guitar was out of tune, but singer Alex was able to cut the silence by singing an old tune from five years ago and engaging the crowd in the process. They invited Sierra from VersaEmerge on stage to sing with them at one point which was great and the combination of Alex and Sierra’s voices sounded amazing. One thing I noticed that lead singer Alex did that I have yet to see any other bands do was introduce and thank each individual member of the band while on stage. I also appreciated the N’Sync throwback that snuck into their set near the end. These boys have convinced me that they know how to put on a show and were definitely the highlight of the night.

Last but not least was We The Kings: the headliners for the evening. I actually didn’t catch their set as I was engaged in some interviews at the time, but managed to hear a bit. What I heard was great, although it was not all original material. I believe they played a cover of Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours.” I didn’t quite understand this; do they not have their own material? A source close to the tour informed me that that was typical of their performances, so I was a bit disappointed by that. After the show I was able to chat with them and they redeemed themselves in my books. They are really down to earth and truly enjoy what they are doing and all the support that they get from their fans (I still don’t understand the fee  they impose on fans who want to meet them after the show though). I will have to catch them next time they are in Toronto to garner a better understanding of what these guys are really like as performers.

photography courtesy of Jessie Lau

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