Lukas Rossi in Ottawa, Ontario - Nov 24 and 25, 2006

I love Lukas Rossi. I loved him before I ever saw him or even knew who he was. Sounds weird? Well, not really when you know that I was with Barb when she called Lukas from SXSW and convinced him to go audition for Rockstar Supernova. I was so excited because I had someone to actually root for on the show.


Fast forward 8 months and the world knows that Lukas actually won the whole thing. I was really excited to be going to Ottawa to see him play.

He played to shows on Saturday. One was part of a larger show with Josh and Phil from the show. Lukas played with two members of his old band, Rise Electric, Jay and Dom. They'd rehearsed for the first time on Friday night, and it was a really great set which included a solo performance by Lukas of "Living On A Prayer" which he'd done on the show.

This photo was from that Friday night rehearsal. Lukas may be all rockstar in public, and was pretty much a spoiled brat at the VIP party, but in person he was amazingly nice. Much taller then I imagined, maybe 5'10", and very warm.

Of course, his actual quote upon seeing this photo was "I look like a crack whore....COOL!"

Ok Go - November 5, 2006 at Neumo's Crystal Ball Reading Room, Seattle

Ok Go are my favourite band. I don't think I've said that anywhere else on this rather long blog, so you know it's the truth. Sure I have many other bands I love and adore, but I love and adore none more then Ok Go.

The very first time I ever saw them was opening for The Vines at Richards On Richards. They totally stole the show with humour and music and yes, dancing. Damian Kulash, in surprizing marketing savvy, hung out after the show handing out stickers and selling CD's.

Fast forward a couple of years, and now they are brinked on NEXT BIG THING success. Unless you living in a cave, Ok Go has become famous for the dances. The Backyard Dance and the Treadmill Dance to be specific. Hell, even my MOM sent the video, so I don't need to see the actual statistics.

The show at Neumo's was an amazing. Damian Kulash has a real rapport with the audience, making everyone feel like they are part of a big party but never letting them forget that it's his show. After a rousing, accidently bassless version of "Here It Goes Again" he commented that they weren't going to play the "big hit" again then followed with a bit about Seattles music history and Kurt Cobain's status as music wealtiest dead rock star. When a woman in the audience yelled out that Kurt would have played the song again, Damian never missed a beat and shot back mischievously, "Weren't you listening to me bitch? I said we weren't playing the song again!" Then with boyish insincerity apologized for saying bitch and vowed to not say it again.


Never one to miss big moments in a show, Damian spent a couple of songs singing from the audience floor.

After one such jaunt, he was stopped in his tracks by the presence of young boy. "Dude! I have to say you are one seriously small dude. I'm not used to seeing little people at our shows." then he invited the boy onto the stage, where he put him on his shoulders and introduced him to the crowd!

That's an Ok Go Backyard Dance teeshirt the boy is wearing by the way.

Other highlights included a short acoustic set at the back of the room featuring "A Million Ways To Be Cruel" and an amazing punk rock cover of the Damned's "Neat Neat Neat!


When they came back fot the encore, Damian mentioned that it must have been a surprize to anyone who'd seen them before because he'd always expressed disdain for the encore. "I'm a fucking hypocrite!"

He mentioned at one of the shows I saw that that was one of the reasons they'd started doing a dance in the first place.

The first encore song was what I'm sure was a new song. The sound at that point was awful, so I can't really make a good judgement call at all. Maybe someone reading this can tell me more about it. The very last song was the "Do What You Want" which was exactly what the crowd wanted to do at that point. The insane jumping around by the crowd reminded me of the days of the springy Commodore floor except I don't think Neumo's have springs in their floors!

Last but not least, I can happily report that although they didn't bring the treadmills "We brought my backyard"! A still photo of THE backyard was the new backdrop to the infamous Backyard Dance which I can also happily say, still looks as fresh and as fun as the first time I saw it live at SXSW.
I'm also happy to report that Damian still puts the fans first by coming out after the show to meet the fans!
Here he is with Deb and Glen! I am so happy right now.

The Yoko Casionos with Sloan- October 24, 2006 at the Commodore Ballroom

I've always been a big fan of The Yoko Casionos since the first time I saw them. It was totally exciting to see them play a big venue with their first major label release, "These Are The New Old Times".
Misty Reid of the Yoko Casionos

They were opening for Sloan who I've seen several times, so it was really all about the Yokos.
Patrick Pentland of Sloan

At the heart of The Yoko Casionos are the brother and sister team of Chad and Misty Reid, who just also happen to be twins.
Chad Reid of the Yoko Casionos

I've seen the Yokos many many times so it was no surpize to me to see the hometown crowd cheering them on wildly. I was singing along to everything like they were already the big stars I hope they become.
Juice of the Yoko Casionos

Sloan was promoting a new 30 SONG CD called "Never Hear The End Of It". Some of songs are only about a minute long, and many of them aren't true gems, so it's quite the risky move for their first studio album in almost 3 years. They did play my favourite new song called "Someone I Can Be True With".
Chris Murphy Of Sloan

The bad thing is when you have a new 30 song CD and you play even a 10 of the new songs, you end up missing out on a lot of material that your fans have come to love.

The best part was the encore when Yoko's Juice and Misty returned to the stage for Sloan's encore.
Misty And Jay Ferguson of Sloan

The Killers - October 11, 2006 : The Orpheum Vancouver

Thanks Sonia for the invite.
Tonight we went to see the Killers at the Orpheum. 8th row!!! Pretty sweet. This is only a few weeks after we did the Orpheum tour where we got to see every square inch of Vancouver's historic landmarks.

The San Franscisco band The Immigrants opened the show with a short set. The lead singer looked like a mix of My Chemical Romance and Richard Ashcroft of the Verve fame. The guitarist looked EXACTLY like V from V for Vendetta.

The Killers took the stage to Sam's Town and When You Were Young, and the crowd was going crazy including me and Sonia who were screaming like school girls.





In keeping with the cowboy theme of Sam's Town, the stage was dressed like a wild west saloon. Of course, this steel claw grasping the disco ball was a bit of an anomaly.

Sonia was really into the porn stache of Ronnie Vannuccci Jr and I can't say I blamed her.

The four song encore meant we could finally run screaming to the front of the stage where we could see Brandon's stubble. We're such girls, I know, but don't judge us.
Check out my Flickr site for more photos.

Matt Epp- September 18, 2006 at Rime

Just a small post following up on a guy I met last year during Western Canadian Music Week.

I met Matt Epp during one of Barb's busy days. She wanted to talk with him, but couldn't find the time, so we basically adopted him for the day. Fast forward a year, and Matt has a new album, Love In Such Strong Words, out now.

He's promoting it with a cross country tour and stopped by Vancouver for a gig at Rime.

Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre- Sept.8, 2006 : The Showbox in Seattle

I couldn't have been more excited to hear about this double bill in Seattle. I saw DiG! for the first time because of the Dandy Warhols but the movie is really about Brian Jonestown Massacre and Anton Newcombe. If you've seen it, then you know what a disfunctional human being Anton is, and although the movie ends with all sorts of bad feelings, they have apparently been worked out over the years.

We arrived early, and heard from some very friendly locals that the Dandy's and BJM all jammed during the encore the night before in Portland, so we were extra expectant.

I saw Brian Jonestown Massacre at SXSW this year, and he looked pretty good. This time he was almost unrecognizable. It's weird that some can deteriorate so badly in six months. It turned out we'd been standing almost right beside him before the show by the sound board, but I swear we didn't recognize him. Even after he got onto the stage, Glen and I looked at each in confusion.

The performance itself was amazing. It was almost a completely new band from Austin with some new cute young guys which only made Anton look worse by comparison.

I loved DiG! and all the BJM songs in small doses, but albums worth leave me cold so I wouldn't consider myself to be a fan. This show was like a best of show, with all the songs I love and no long extended jams.

Anton was very talkative, and chatty with the crowd. He never lost his temper, and even when having a girl removed from the front of the stage for bad behaviour, he made it clear to security, to not throw her out.

Funniest moment? Well, to me, that was when he offered a drink from a cup to the guitarist, who wouldn't take a drink until Anton took a drink first. Anton followed this with the classic, "I Chinese, I play joke, I make pee pee in your Coke".

Ironic moment? When Anton earnestly thanked all the black people in the crowd for keeping it real. Um, that would be the two security guards??

The Dandy Warhols took the stage and the house was completely packed. So many people, I'm sure it was oversold.

They opened with one of my favourite songs, Godless. They had no trumpet player, which the song really missed, but it was a great crowd pleaser. Zia looked amazingly hot with some sexy new hair and a glamourous new look.

Peter, looked sullen as usual, and sorry, not photos because I was on the other side of the stage. Fathead played his drums in the middle front of the stage. That's twice now this year I've seen that set up, so I guess it's a trend.

My problem with the last couple times I've seen the Dandy's is that don't seem to be having much fun when they play anymore. The first time I saw them five years ago, it was like being at a party but now a smile rarely passes across Courtney's face. Only Zia really ever seems to be having any fun.

This show was better with momentum of having the BJM open, Courtney went on and on towards the end about what an amazing genius Anton was, and how lucky we were to have seen such an amazing show. HOWEVER, the awaited special guest appearance didn't occur this night.

Now it says on the set list that they closed with Country Leaver from 13 Tales From Urban Bohemia, but I swear it was a song I'd never heard before. I'll have to look into that later but for now I'll just say the last song was a crazy barn burner that shook the house down.

World Party - August 9, 2006 at Richards on Richards and something about Rockstar Supernova

I've always loved World Party . I have many awesome memories of driving up to Kelowna with Private Revolution blaring out the cassette deck while Glen pretended to put up with my singing.

Glen surprized me with tickets on the day of show and I was really excited. Of course I we couldn't leave until AFTER the results show of Rockstar Supernova.

Karl Wallinger is pretty much World Party, but he was touring with a 7 piece band! (As an aiside, I only took a couple of photos and yes they actually are different!)


They opened with my favourite song, Message In A Box, and closed the show with my second favourite song, Ship Of Fools but somewhere in the middle of the set an onstage collision took out the bass and effectively put a stop to any of the momentum that had been building. Thankfully, Karl is very chatty and during the long pauses of attempted repairs, told some interesting stories. In one story he told of his first trip to BC where they were playing a festival with Midnight Oil. There plane landed late, and they got on the bus and drove two hours and when they got to the hotel, they crashed. In the morning when he awoke he went to the window and opened the curtains and was greeted with a sparkling vista of trees, mountains and a lake and he said his first thought was that it was a photo.


Anyway, it was still an okay show and I was happy to hear all those songs, and to see so many people there.


Back to Rockstar Supernova. I loved Rockstar INXS too, so I can safely say I'm not just watching for Barb's sake. When I was at SXSW Barb was trying to get one of her artists to Vancouver to audition for Rockstar. That artist turned out to be one of the top contenders, Lukas Rossi. He and Dilana are my two favourites so when I saw this, I had to share it with everyone.

The Rockstar Supernova Drinking Game

1. NAVARROS NOT WEARING A SHIRT=1 DRINK
2. BROOKE HAS HER FAKIES JUST POPPING OUT OF HER SHIRT=1 DRINK
3. SOMEONE SAYS "BRO OR BROTHER"=1 DRINK
4. ONE OF THE GUYS ON THE PANEL MAKES A "THIS SUCKS FACE"=1 DRINK
5. TOMMY MUGS FOR THE CAMERA=1/2 DRINK (COME ON NOW)
6. THE METAL SIGN IS GIVEN=NO DRINKS (WE DO WANT YOU TO SEE THE END OF THE EPISODE)
7. SOMEONE SAYS "DUDE"=1 DRINK
8. SOMEONE SAYS "DUDE" TO A CHICK=2 DRINKS
9. THE "GOTH HOBBIT" SNEERS=1 DRINK
10. SOMEONE SAYS IT'S AN HONOR TO JUST BE HERE=1 DRINK
11. SOMEONE SAYS THAT "THEY ARE THE RIGHT PERSON FOR THE BAND"=1 DRINK
12. THE PHRASE "SONG SELECTION" IS SAID=A THIMBLE OF A DRINK
13. JASON NEWSTEAD LOOKS LIKE HE'S IN PAIN (MENTALLY OR PHYSICALLY)=1 DRINK
14. JASON GETS UP AND SCREAMS "I WAS IN MOTHER FUCKIN METALLICA, WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING HERE? FUCK THIS" AND STORMS OFF THE SHOW=10 DRINKS
15. AIR GUITAR OR DRUMS IS PLAYED BE EITHER CONTESTANT OR BAND=1 DRINK
16. THEY ANNOUNCE PHIL'S REAL LAST NAME IS "BURNETT"=10 DRINKS
17. NAVARRO SAYS "THAT WAS INSANE" OR SOMETHING WITH "AWESOME"
OR "SICK"=1 DRINK
18. ANY OF THE GUYS ON THE PANEL MENTIONS THEIR PREVIOUS BANDS=1 DRINK
19. ANY CONTESTANT CALLS ANYONE ON THE PANEL A "HERO", "ROLE MODEL" OR "INSPIRATION"=2 DRINKS
20. SAME AS ABOVE BUT SAYS "YOU TOO GILBY"=5 DRINKS

FYI - You'll usually be wasted by the first 10 minutes, so play at your own risk.

Another Non Concert Post

What Can I say, it's been a dry summer concert wise. Stay tuned for The Detroit Cobras, The Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre.

For now, it's the annual HSBC Celebration Of Light fireworks festival.

It was 9:45 when we decided to check out the fireworks. Thankfully we had the presence of mind to try out the patio by Bridges on Granville Island. We we were sitting on the railing right as the fireworks started. The music was being played at Bridges so it was a pretty amazing place to watch.

Happy Canada Day!

While walking home on Canada Day, this was the view by my house. I loved how light it was even thoug it was almost 11:00pm.

Alejandro Escovedo -June 22, 2006 Irving Plaza, New York

Like it wasn't enough that Marah played that night, I also got Alejandro Escovedo, who I think is absolutley amazing. If you don't know his story, he has a long rich musical history which nearly came to an end in 2003 when liver damage caused by Hepatitis C nearly killed him.

Now with restored health, and a new album, The Boxing Mirror, he's looking great and reflecting on his new lease on life. Thursday's show was my second this year, and although it was great, I really liked the messy crowded feel of the Austin show more. At that show, he talked a lot. I felt like I was witnessing something like a revival show. The stage was absolutely packed with people and I was almost poked with the cellist bow several times. I thought someone was falling into the crowd for sure.

This show opened with my favourite song, Put You Down which you should download right now if you've never heard it. (Get the version from Disc 2 of "With These Hands") It sounds like a love song, but it's a love song to booze (I think). Lyrics are here, if you want to decide for yourself. Anyway, it was almost halfway through the show before he said a single word and although he was still the same amazing man, funny, and thoughtful, it felt like he was a bit tired of telling the stories. Of course, the music is where it matters, and although you can't tell from these photos, he had his full band of 8 with the two cellists, and the violinist, something you don't get from the usual rock show.

And of course he totally rocked this Steel Gray satin suit with the blue lace shirt.
To check out his story, See this great PopMatters interview and to hear more of his music, check out his MySpace site.

Marah - June 22, 2006 at Irving Plaza in New York City

Marah and Alejandro Escovedo. I've mentioned them both as being favourites of mine on this very blog, and both are highly underrated. I mean, critically, they are everyone's favourites, but they should be selling tons of records. They should be taking over the world right now.

I was totally blown away to find out they were playing a double bill in New York while I was there. (I am so lucky)
Dave Bielanko

Marah has always blown everyone away with their live performances, and this one was probably my favourite of the three I've seen.

After a touching moment where Serge acknowledged the happiest recent event of their lives, the birth of Shiloh Pitt-Jolie, he brought the show into the crowd.
Serge Bielanko

Check them out MySpace or at www.marah-usa.com