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

Day two of CMW for iheartthemusic saw us at the Opera House to review the completely sold-out show featuring Saukrates, Woodhands and headliner K-OS.  CBC radio were taping the concert live so the entire event had huge buzz and the excitement was rampant throughout the building.

Toronto hip-hop and R&B artist Saukrates opened the show and definitely set the tone of the evening.  He came out backed up by a live band and we especially have to give props to his guitarist who was just wicked onstage.  It’s always great when a band backs a hip-hop artist because it just takes this genre of music to a whole new level.  A master lyricist and performer, Saukrates was really versatile and sang R&B ballads, rapped and even ended with a harder, grittier, rock infused song where yes.. he head banged with his awesome dreadlocked mane. It was impressive to watch an artist rev up a hip-hop crowd, then bring them down to create an intimate, emotional space and then finish things off with really high energy. It was a true testament to both Saukrates’ experience and ability to connect with his audience.

Next came Woodhands’ Dan Werb and Paul Banwatt who played numbers from Heart Attack and their new album Remorsecapade. This performance was highly anticipated and definitely ended up being the highlight of the night; these guys were just unbelievable! Woodhands had wicked momentum and boundless energy; it was kind of like Girl Talk fused with jungle percussion and Werb’s distinct punk/hip hop vocals and utter craziness were only made even more magical accompanied by a frenetic driving bass and our favourite instrument: the keytar. Melanie Todd accompanied them for two songs, which were a lighter, cuter version of what Woodhands are known for. During the concert, the scene changed from a just a live show to an all out Ibiza style electro rave. Woodhands’ sound is so current, postmodern and totally rare to the Toronto music scene and only left us wanting more.

Headliner and seasoned pro K-OS restored order and closed the show with classic hits and new numbers from his albums like “Bounce”, “Heaven Only Knows” and “Sunday Morning”.  Also backed by a full band and DJ, K-OS freestyled, did some old school beat boxing, sang, played acoustic guitar and harmonica and did a wicked song over Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” that made for an awesome marriage of Hip Hop and Rock and Roll. Anyone who has seen K-OS live knows that the man has stage presence and swagger.

All told, Opera House was on fire last Thursday.  People were chanting lyrics, dancing and even the occasional joint was lit up—much to the dismay of Opera House security. It was really a great show…definitely one of CMW’s best this year. 

As reviewed by Victoria Kuketz

photography provided by  Mike Palmer

I want to get soapy with you! This is not some weird sexual innuendo, but rather the opening lines to Peter Chapman’s aka Peter Project’s latest EP Fresh. Cleanliness or “freshness” is the theme of the album, which is not only provided through the packaging; the album is in fact a bar of soap in the form of an iPod with a download card embedded within, but he makes use of nods to staying clean throughout the album. From song titles such as “Rubbing Garbage” to comparisons to germs and war such as on “The Quest for extreme personal freshness” Peter uses analogies to push this theme even further (and get you to stay clean in the process). Actually, this obsession with cleanliness is probably the only consistent thing on the album.

The album encompasses many musical genres/styles/sounds, which clearly supports the generation of add’ers who are constantly on the lookout for the latest single and have the attention span to match. Chapman supports those individuals by providing an album made up entirely of singles; each song independent of the other with no real cohesiveness throughout. Although the EP is comprised of a mere five songs, you are left feeling satisfied, or at least for the few seconds in between listening to songs on your iPod. Is it a play on our digital generation perhaps? Maybe, but either way it makes for unique packaging that clearly won’t go to waste!

It is hard to figure this EP out since it jumps so much from song to song. As far as being worth purchasing? It is hard to say. Much like the nature of the album, jumping from one song to the next without any sense of cohesiveness is sadly where we are headed these days with downloading becoming so accessible, so perhaps he has it right. If this speaks to you or if you are into gimmicky packaging (or a new bar of soap) then check out this album. One thing is for sure, you will stay clean in the process!

To write about K’naan involves delving into a life story of violence, corruption and racism, all the while trying to find one’s identity. Much of his music involves sharing the story of his life growing up in war torn Somalia, moving to America and finding a home in Canada. Regarded as much a political artist as a progressive one, K’naan has been able to transcend borders and boundaries and deliver to his audience music that is both universally appealing and yet pushes the boundaries of what’s happening in the world right now. It came as no surprise when he was recently not only nominated for the Polaris Music Prize, but was the only hip hop artist to make the shortlist . iheartthemusic were able to briefly speak with him before the award ceremony about his latest release Troubadour.

iheartthemusic: Troubadour is such a complex album and I know that you were actually able to record it in Kingston, Jamaica at Bob Marley’s home studio. Can you tell us what that was like?

K’naan: I still can’t find good words for that. It was amazing. I mean we had very much; we got a distinct priviledge that wasn’t given to anyone else. The family actually gave me a key to the house and we spent three/four months there recording it. It ‘s just everything that  you would think it would be.

iheartthemusic: And how did that affect your recording process?

K’naan: I can never really tell because you don’t know what it would be like otherwise. It would be like being asked what if your name was something else; you just don’t know the options. I just think it must have done something. It was amazing.

iheartthemusic: This is your second time being nominated for the Polaris Music Prize, what is it like the second time around?

K’naan: You are used to losing! [laughs]

iheartthemusic: That may change tonight!

K’naan: Cool, you never know! It’s not like a losing thing because its they go through so many albums, you become the top no matter what.

iheartthemusic: What has the response been like overseas with this album?

K’naan: A lot of cool things have been happening. We recently did a performance in South Africa which was pretty remarkable. We played sold out shows in Paris as well. The album wasn’t even out and we recently had sold out shows in Europe with everyone singing the words. It is kind of cool in that way.

photography provided by Sara Collaton

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