North By Northeast

NXNE Review: Sleigh Bells, Autre Ne Veut, Low, June 18

Posted on by Paul in North By Northeast | Leave a comment

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The cool thing about festivals like NXNE is how you can hop around from genre to genre, experiencing music of all different types and textures within the same night (and sometimes even within the same venue). In keeping with this theme, my first night of NXNE closed out with two bands who could not be more different in terms of not just sound, but onstage presentation.  While Minnesota’s Low kept things fairly low key (pun intended), Brooklyn’s Sleigh Bells offered up a much flashier show.  Literally flashier, as the band had a serious light show going on for their late night set at Tattoo.

Yes, Sleigh Bells were the first of the “secret guests” of the festival, though how secret it is when it’s announced well ahead of time is questionable.  Never having seen the band before, and seeing as how I was in the general vicinity for Low’s set at The Horseshoe anyways, I figured it’d be worth a shot. And the band puts on a fairly entertaining show.  Alexis Krauss is an engaging frontwoman who knows how to work a crowd.

On my way to the ’Shoe an hour before Sleigh Bells’ set, I decided to pop in to Tattoo to see what Autre Ne Veut was about and I’ve got to say, despite their ability to get the crowd going, I wasn’t really that into it and so I left after about a song and a half.  I will admit that part of my lack of interest in the band was based on Arthur Ashin’s overalls and backwards  baseball cap combo.  I don’t really get the resurgence of overalls as of late.  Sorry, but it just makes me think of Color Me Badd or something.

As I entered The Horseshoe, Low was in the midst of playing “Holy Ghost,” following that up with “Monkey” off of 2005’s The Great Destroyer.  It occurred to me then that they just played back to back songs that were covered by Mavis Staples and Robert Plant respectively.  That definitely says something about the band’s pedigree as songwriters. They played a selection of songs from throughout their career during their brief set and made me regret missing the first part of the show.

NXNE Day 1: Foxtrott, Mexican Slang, Grand Splendid

Posted on by Ricky in Everything, North By Northeast | Leave a comment

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Alright, It’s NXNE time. First night of NXNE is always quiet and this was no exception. Let’s take a look at some acts that we saw.

Foxtrott (10 pm, Mod Club)

A solo project from Montreal, Foxtrott did not let the sparse crowd at the Mod Club affect her show. Accompanied by another female on the French Horns, the two played a prolific set that introduced the crowd to Foxtrott’s blend of nostalgic dark electronic arrangements that serve as a backdrop to Marie-Hélène L. Delorme’s powerful vocals. The addition of the French horn live added an extra hint of pizazz to the show. I’m a sucker for this type of music and Foxtrott was no exception.

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Mexican Slang (11 pm, Smiling Buddha)

Not sure why the Smiling Buddha is the home of so many shows this year, the sight lines in that place are horrible and I’m 6’1. The seeming destination for fans of the harder rock this year, I will admit I felt quite old walking into this place. Age issues aside, Toronto trio Mexican Slang played the exact type of rock that the tattooed youth of today have been concerning themselves with. Aggressive but catchy at the same time, Mexican Slang’s calling card in their psych-garage punk rock tunes is lead singer’s Annabelle Lee powerful voice. The set was over as quickly as it began, which left me wanting a bit more. I was only halfway through my beer. But I guess that’s how the old saying goes. This band has a song called Shit Destroyer. Need I say more?

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Grand Splendid (Midnight, Baltic Avenue)

My entire goals for NXNE is to start out far and gradually make my way home. Wednesday night was a success as my last stop was at the Laser palace aka Baltic Avenue to check out Montreal band Grand Splendid. Sounding a bit like Teenage Fanclub, the band displayed some smooth harmonies and hooks during their set, which had a heavy dose of poppy, happy guitar rock. The band started off the set playing to a pretty empty crowd but with each track, more and more people moved up front. Pretty good confirmation that Grand Splendid is off to a good festival start.

NXNE Q&A Preview: Tei-Shi

Posted on by Ricky in North By Northeast | Leave a comment

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As part of our NXNE coverage, we held a series of Q&A with some bands performing during the festival.

Tei-Shi is a Vancouver based R&B singer aiming to move your body when she plays the Wrongbar at 9 pm on Friday June 20th

Since this is such a twitter world, can you describe yourself in 140 characters or less?
The fairy from Zelda meets Pinky, from The Pinky and The Brain. Meets Daria.

Is this your first NXNE? If so, what are your expectations for it? If not, what did you learn from last time that’ll improve your experience this time?
This is indeed my first time at NXNE! I try to go into everything with little preconceived expectation, and I actually have no idea what NXNE will be like, but I’m definitely expecting to have a great time and be surrounded by some great music. If it’s anything like SXSW, it will be a little stressful and intense, but very fun and relaxed at the same time. This time I’ll only be playing two shows, versus six at SXSW, so I expect to maximize the fun and minimize the stress!

What other bands are you looking forward to seeing at NXNE?
I would love to see Tune-Yards, St. Vincent and Danny Brown.

What do you think is your greatest strengths? and also, what is your greatest weakness?
A big strength I would say, is that I have a very clear sense of self–I have a strong sense of who I am as a person. A big weakness would probably be that I can be pretty lazy when it comes to things I don’t want to do, so in those situations I tend to want things quickly without putting the time and thought into them. As a result I can be quite impulsive.

NXNE Q&A Preview: Gold Beach

Posted on by Ricky in North By Northeast | Leave a comment

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As part of our NXNE coverage, we held a series of Q&A with some bands performing during the festival.

Gold Beach is a solo act from one of my favorite American cities – Austin, Texas. They/He has a new album out and wants to soundtrack your summer.

Is this your first NXNE? If so, what are your expectations for it? If not, what did you learn from last time that’ll improve your experience this time?
Yes, this is the first time for NXNE this year and my expectations are very high. i’m excited about the overlap in the different arts at the festival. also excited to visit the Gardiner Museum. i’m sure it will come and go quickly.

What other bands are you looking forward to seeing at NXNE?
Definitely mutual benefit. also, kc accidental, dana falconbery. would love to catch a few hip hop shows as well, but i’m still exploring the various acts performing.

What do you think is your band’s greatest strengths? and also, what is your greatest weakness?
Strengths: sense of space, strong performances. evolving sound.
Weaknesses: sense of space, strong performances, evolving sound

What is the best merch your band has?
A t-rex head on our shirts! looks like THIS

What’s with all the bands with the word Beach in their names lately?
Beach house and who else? i don’t know..pretty sure our music sounds different.

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