If you can sit through the first 7 minutes of this dialogue-free film, then you will be able to enjoy the agrarian charms of the Thai countryside. It is chock full of old-world (read: Song dynasty China) customs mingling with new-world (read: Japanese engineering) know-hows. Plus cross-dressers. Watch out for Ultraman-ish harvesters, ridiculously fireworks, and of course, rice.
ROM Theatre, Fri, Apr 25 6:30 PM
TIFF Bell Lightbox 2, Fri, Apr 25 6:30 PM
Tiff Bell Lightbox 4, Fri, May 2 4:30 PM
Doc of the Dead [2014, Alexandre Philippe]
George Romero, Simon Pegg, Bruce Campbell, Max Brooks, and creators of infamous series like The Walking Dead were all once zombies. Fine, they all once thought like zombies (… zombies don’t think). Some of them gave birth to the modern zombies (… and zombies don’t fuck). Others can’t stomach another’s take on zombies (… but zombies eat brains). Watch, and find out just how these zomb-pioneers turned millions into zombies on a city corner near you. Hint: BRAINZZZ.
Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, Sat, Apr 26 11:59 PM
Hart House Theatre, Sun, Apr 27 9:30 PM
Royal Cinema, Sat, May 3 9:45 PM
Shield and Spear [2014, Petter Ringbom]
Artists, musicians, designers, journalists, activists, and community workers do not operate the same way in South Africa as they do here. Just like the Civil Rights movement didn’t resolve the race issue, the end of Apartheid in 1994 didn’t elevate everyone to an equal footing. Art is already vulnerable due to its intangible nature. Throw politics into the mixture, then even a single oil painting can become explosive and divisive for 50 million people. Shield and Spear documents the confessions and the trials of those who are trying to rebuild South Africa, against rampant corruption and political manipulation, in the image of their ideals. It’s a surprisingly uplifting piece that deserves serious thoughts, while you sip imported espresso sarcastically on College St.
TIFF Bell Lightbox 3, Sun, Apr 27 7:00 PM
Scotiabank Theatre 4, Tue, Apr 29 1:30 PM
ROM Theatre, Fri, May 2 9:30 PM
As a die hard Pulp fan, you can only imagine my excitement when a Pulp documentary was announced. Similar in many ways to the LCD Soundsystem documentary, the film explores the time and space around Pulp’s homecoming (and potentially last) show, which of course, takes place in Sheffield. An ode to the city as much as it is to Pulp, we get testimonials from both city residents and traveling tourist about Pulp and how much the band meant to them. There are sweeping vistas of the mediocrity that is Sheffield and it doesn’t really strike you as a place to visit. These conversations are intertwined with the band’s account of key moments in Pulp history, from the beginning to the high that was Different Class and the ensuing drama afterwards. It was cool to see the other members (Candida talks!) of Pulp talk and there were definitely interesting stories shared.
As with most concert films, there was no shortage of live performance and it was nice to see the mixture of uncontrollable excitement and anxiousness of the fans before the show. I felt those same emotions three years ago when I was in Spain waiting for my Pulp show. A must watch for any fan and there’s no doubt you will leave with Common People stuck in your head.
Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, Sun, Apr 27 11:59 PM
TIFF Bell Lightbox 1, Mon, Apr 28 4:00 PM
Royal Cinema, Sun, May 4 7:00 PM
The evening started off with power pop band Team Spirit belting out an energetic set to a mostly sparse room. By the time Surfer Blood took the stage just after 10:30pm it was still only about half-full which was slightly disappointing. It was a Wednesday night though. They started their set by playing the instrumental “Neighbour Riffs” followed by frontman John Paul Pitts asking the crowd sarcastically “Are you guys having the time of your lives?”
Surfer Blood have had a rough time as of late mostly in dealing with Pitts’ highly publicized arrest for domestic battery last year. They’ve since bounced back with their latest album Pythons which wasproduced by Gil Norton (Pixies, Foo Fighters, Dashboard Confessional) and has received mostly favourable reviews. As well, Pitts spoke openly in an interview with Pitchfork earlier this year that attempted to set the record straight about his arrest and his issues with alcohol. It’s hard to have an opinion one way or another on Pitts but I will say his attempt at playing a rockstar on this night fell short. Despite being able to write catchy music fit to play on modern rock music stations and a strong voice, his live show was lacking. He was stone-faced with pursed lips the entire show including both times he left the stage and came down to the floor to awkwardly sing and pose for camera pictures. It made me uncomfortable.
The highlight for me was following their 50-minute set they returned to play a cover of Pavement’s “Box Elder” and the song that put them on the map “Swim”. A short and sometimes sweet University student-friendly rock show.
Toronto Urban Roots Fest (TURF) came out of nowhere earlier this year enshrouded by a haze of mystery. Initially, everyone was like who the hell was that, but as secrets revealed themselves, everyone went from curious to ecstatic as it finally dawned on people that we were finally getting a summer time music festival featuring some of our most beloved indie band.
What the hell is “urban roots” anyway? who cares. Lets take a look at 6 acts playing this thing next week.
Camera Obscura
The Scottish group recently released their fifth album – Desire Lines, recently and while it doesn’t necessarily break any new ground, their music is a pleasant summertime affair. I thought they would be put on a later slot, but I always over estimate a bands poularity.
She & Him
Zooey Deschanel has made an entire career out of being cute and quirky. It’s as if she took a look at two words in the dictionary and said “I’m going to dominate those words”. Underneath all those sun dresses, quirky mannerisms and hello giggles is an interesting voice. This voice has been harnessed by M. Ward to form She & Him, a power duo that has released three whole albums of vintage inspired folk-pop songs. Conveniently named Volume 3, She & Him’s third album came out earlier this year and they’ll be eager to show it off (everyone will just want them to play In The Sun). Just to fuck you up, here’s a picture of Zooey with and without bangs.
Joel Plaskett
Surely by now this man has been declared a national treasure. Joel Plaskett returns once again to Toronto to delight us with his lively music. Last time he was here, he played five nights at the Horseshoe so this time around it’ll be a bit different. What won’t be different will be the elation of his fans every time he regales them with one of the many hits he has provided over the past decade. He hasn’t released anything since Scrappy Happiness, so maybe this show is just to enhance his own personal brand, or he’s just here to visit family or something.
Dawes
Dawes was one of those bands whose name you couldn’t escape in Austin this year. They even joined John Fogerty on stage, and he called them ‘good ole boys’. Since this is a roots festival or sorts, it would only make sense that good ole boys with plaid shirts and beards would play this show. The LA quartet also recently opened for Bob Dylan.
Xavier Rudd
People freaking love Xavier Rudd. Who they are? I don’t know. I went to his show at Queen Elizabeth Theatre a few years ago and let me tell you, his fans are so fanatic that it’s almost cult like. It also reminds me of Christian rock for some reason. Perhaps best known for his extensive use of didgeridoos, Rudd’s on stage show is energetic and if you are one of those lost souls looking for a random cause to join to feel something, maybe you too might turn into one of those Xavier Rudd fans.
Belle and Sebastian
Basically one of my favorite bands ever, Belle & Sebastian are hitting the summer festival this year hard. This includes a headline slot at Pitchfork as well. It’s been three years since they have released an album but who cares? Their live show has progressively better over the years and I expect nothing less then a wonderfully delightful show to close off the first ever TURF. No better way to finish off a Sunday.
