Toronto - Last nght, Hot Chip visited Toronto for the second time this year. If you read my review on their show here in April, you will know that I really enjoyed myself at the last show. For those not in the know, Hot Chip is an electro band that excels in making cool music for you to dance to. Go to their myspace page, or hype machine, to find a bunch of tunes by them.

This time around, Hot Chip played the Kool Haus, a venue that has a much larger capacity then the Phoenix. One of the surprises of the night was how empty the venue was. I kind of expected a sold out show, that was not the case. Tokyo Police Club and Weezer playing the ACC a few blocks down probably stole a good chunk of people. The venue was roughly about 2/3 full, which was great, more space to dance. I think, to truly enjoy an electronic act live, you have to go in with the mindset that you are gonna bust a move at the first sign of a bass line. Otherwise, you are there just head bobbin or something, wondering if you should be dancing, then thinking its awkward that you just started dancing after standing around for so long, then you become self conscious, and you retreat to your regular head bobbin mode. No F’N Fun.

Hot Chip took the stage at 10:15, to a decent ovation. A simple hello from the singer and they immediately launched in the Caribbean vibes of “One More Thought”. This time around, Hot Chip had a drummer, I am not sure if they had one at the Phoenix. This definitely gave the live versions of their songs some variation. The band pretty much played all the hits over the next hour and a half, including another incredible rendition of “Over and Over”. It even prompted my friend Nick to say “That was the best live song I have ever heard”. He’s a bigger music snob then me, so take it for what it’s worth. “Over and Over” is incredible live. Its got a killer beat, sing-a-long qualities and just a great buildup. You know as soon as the song starts people are just waiting to hit the massive chorus line, but Hot Chip takes their time getting there and by the time the drums kick in for the “over and over and over” chorus, people are ready to explode. Simply awesome. That song was a highlight last time they were here, and that did not differ this time around.

One of the best things Hot Chip did last night was have a good mix of kickass dance tunes, followed by slower numbers. This is good for resting/catching your breath. For every “Ready for the Floor”, you would get a followup “Wrestlers” or something. Good tactics.

I thought the sound was a bit muffled for awhile and the bass wasn’t nearly as loud as it should be. Those would be my complaints for the night. There was no “Colours” though, which was a mild disappointment for some I guess.

After a cover of “Nothing Compares 2 U”, Hot Chip left the stage, leaving the crowd happy, sweaty and exhausted. That’s a sign of a good show.

4.5/5

Here is kinda what I am talking about with Over and Over

 

 Hot Chip - Boys From School: Play Now

Toronto - The first week of October is known for a few things..mainly, the start of the NHL season, which results in many fantasy hockey drafts, and the start of MLB playoffs. Why do I keep making sport references in a blog whose demographics clearly do not care about sports? I have not a bloody clue. For music fans, the first week of October also means Pop Montreal, the annual music festival that celebrates both French and English music. This year marks the sixth time that Pop Montreal has occurred.

So if you are heading to Montreal this week, here are some of my suggestions for today and tommorrow. I don’t tread in the Canadian Indie Pop waters as much as Wade does, so he’ll probably know better acts to see. Hopefully he’ll provide a list too.

Hot Chip (Wednesday, Metropolis, 9:15) - Hot Chip is awesome live. Review of Toronto’s show will be up shortly. Not really a Pop Montreal band per say, but they are still awesome.

Dirty Chinese Thieves(Thursday, L’Escogriffe, 1:00 am) - I don’t even know anything about these guys, but they have ‘Chinese’ in their band name. That can’t be that bad.

The Chinese Stars(Thursday, Le Divan Orange, 2:00 am) - Ditto.

Why are these bands with the words ‘Chinese’ in them playing so late? probably so you can go grab yourself some Chinese food after. Do they have 24 hour noodle shops in Montreal? I don’t really know.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds(Thursday, Metropolis, 9:15) - If you don’t have tickets to this show, you probably aren’t getting in. Fresh off the successes of Grinderman and Dig Lazarus Dig, Nick Cave is strangely, riding a wave of momentum about 10-12 albums into his career.

Ahh sweet Northern Soul. There’s such an abundance of great songs from that it seems like I come across a song I deem as my new favorite on a bi-weekly basis. As I was driving home yesterday I tuned into the local ‘Superhits’ station 650 CISL and heard a gem of a song called ‘Soulful Strut’ by 60’s soul and jazz instrumental ensemble Young Holt Unlimited. The tune was stuck in my head the entire evening so I had to investigate further. Turns out this was a very popular song back in the day, hitting #3 on 1968’s Hot 100 and subsequently re-recorded (with vocals) by quite a few artists, some notable (Dusty Springfield) and others not so much (Joss Stone). I’ve posted 4 different versions at the break for your soulful strutting pleasure.

» Read the rest of the entry..

Three albums in and it feels like The Legends are still trying to define their sound. Being tied to a leading indie pop label isn’t doing them any favors either as it seems to be limiting them to sound poppy whilst trying to incorporate different styles like 80’s electro or shoegazey feedback. Their latest single ‘Seconds Away’ seems to be yet another victim of their attempts at ‘innovation’.

Now I’ve never been one to poo-poo an entire album based on hearing one song, but from what I’ve read on the press release for the single, I don’t expect Johan and Co. to reproduce the success they had with 2004’s ‘Up Against the Legends’:

“Right now Johan is in the famous Summersound studios together with a large number of distortion pedals and broken amplifiers to record a fourth The Legends album.”

 

 The Legends - Seconds Away: Play Now

Toronto - Welcome to MP3UK, a new series on the Panic Manual which will focus on bands I have discovered thru the now defunct MP3UK group on Efnet that I was a part of back in the late 90s. GEEK ALERT!. Anyways, that group was instrumental in forming the music taste that I have today and so I think it is time to start writing about some of the bands that we all listened to back in the day.

You might know Marion as the Miami Heat power forward with an ugly jump shot and five-cat roto godliness, but some folks still know Marion as a not really successful britpop band from the mid nineties. I turned to my friend Alli to help me describe them, since she is the one who probably introduced me to the band and here is the conversation:

[14:36] r: how would you describe Marion’s music
[14:36] alli: uh
[14:36] alli: awesome?

I would say that Marion sounds a bit like the Smiths, a bit like the Cure. Melody based pop music that sounds kinda sad/dramatic. Riding some hype (and Morrissey’s praise) The band actually hit #10 on the UK charts with their debut LP “This World and Body”. Singles like “Violent Men”, “Sleep” and “Toys For Boys” were released, but without much success. After the second album “The Program” (produced by Johnny Marr) failed to chart, Marion pretty much disappeared. In 2006, the band reunited and is now touring with Puressence, but no new releases as of yet.

 

 Marion - Sparkle: Play Now

I’ll keep this short. The Polaris Music Prize is announced on Monday. My prediction goes to Plants And Animals. Why? Because they don’t give a shit.

And if they don’t win, then I’m giving it to Holy Fuck. Why? Because they don’t give a shit either.

Discuss.