Recording: Peter Brötzmann and Heather Leigh

Artist: Peter Brötzmann and Heather Leigh

Songs: [two excerpts]

Recorded at Velvet Underground, May 27, 2016.

Peter Brötzmann and Heather Leigh - [excerpt 1]

Peter Brötzmann and Heather Leigh - [excerpt 2]

A slightly incongruous combination of performer, venue and crowd saw free sax legend Peter Brötzmann playing a midnight set at the recently-reopened Velvet Underground — probably something of a late night for his natural audience to be out and on their feet. It also contributed to some unwanted "rock show" dynamics, such as the dudes standing near the back of the crowd giving each other a loud play-by-play update for a good chunk of the set. But the updated sound system seemed pretty robust and the dynamic range of this duo moved into some blastingly-loud zones to cover that up. And though Brötzmann was probably the "name" draw here, it was really Heather Leigh's superb pedal steel work that gave the set most of its structure. Moving from driving distortion to doodlebugging drift, she created a context for Brötzmann to explore some machinegun blasts as well as mellower moments on sax and clarinet over an intense fifty minutes.

Recording: Doc Dunn + The Petit Range

Artist: Doc Dunn + The Petit Range

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at Velvet Underground, May 27, 2016.

Doc Dunn + The Petit Range - unknown

Opening things up for Peter Brötzmann and Heather Leigh, Matt "Doc" Dunn brought a stripped-down configuration of his Cosmic Range band, with his guitar and rhythm box augmented by Jonathan Adjemian (synth), Mike Smith (synth) and Brandon Valdivia (percussion). That lineup gave things a snaky/groovy vibe, with the quartet meditating upon a series of riffs in an unhurried manner.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Concert Listings Roundup #151

You can read more about why I'm doing listings here. Long story short: This curated and decidedly non-comprehensive list contains nothin' but shows that I am going to/would go to if I had more time.

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Gigs of the week:

Hooded Fang [Venus On Edge record release show!] (HSY / Germaphobes) / The Horseshoe Tavern 2016-06-03 (Friday) [FB event]

The Highest Order [Still Holding record release show!] (New Chance) / Comfort Zone 2016-06-04 (Saturday) [FB event]

Two fave local units celebrate long-awaited new albums this weekend, and each of them come with a solid night of celebrations. Hooded Fang's rhythmically-intense Venus on Edge sees the band pivot once again, bearing-down on the locked-in grooves, while Highest Order promise a whole bunch of special guest performances in their set, including Jennifer Castle, Andre Ethier, Josee Caron (of Partner), and the True Dance Crew.

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This week's noteworthy shows:

Tova Kardonne Quartet [Tova Kardonne/Ali Berkok/Luan Phung/Noah Sherman] / 120 Diner 2016-06-31 (Tuesday – early show, 6 to 7:30 p.m.!) [FB event]

The Grand Residency Vol. 1 (feat. Grand Analog / D-Sisive) / Rivoli 2016-06-31 (Tuesday) [FB event]

Music in St. James Park (feat. The Holy Gasp) / St. James Park 2016-06-02 (Thursday – free! outside! all-ages + family-friendly!) [FB event]

Veda Hille (John Southworth) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-02 (Thursday) [FB event]

Invocation presents (feat. Colleen / Picastro / Justin Small) / Ratio 2016-06-02 (Thursday) [FB event]

FRIGS (Blue Crime / Foam / Baby Cages) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-02 (Thursday) [FB event]

Electric Eclectics & Burn Down The Capital present (feat. Wolf Eyes / Nadja / Burden / Doom Tickler) / The Garrison 2016-06-03 (Friday) [FB event]

The Priddle Concern (M'Grasker) / Junction City Music Hall 2016-06-03 (Friday) [FB event]

Spectrum Music: The Tower of Babel / Alliance Française 2016-06-04 (Saturday) [FB event]

Invocation Presents (feat. Big|Brave / Fresh Snow / New Positions) / Soybomb 2016-06-04 (Saturday) [FB event]

Martha Farquhar-McDonnell [My Singing Bird album release!] (GREX) / Church of St. Andrew by-the-lake 2016-06-05 (Sunday – afternoon show @ 4 p.m.!) [FB event]

Nite Comfort 34 (feat. Aidan Baker / Whisper Room / Botanicals) / Handlebar 2016-06-05 (Sunday) [FB event]

Invocation presents (feat. Jon Porras / Sarah Davachi / Bodies That Matter / CJ Boyd) / Array Space Holy Oak 2016-06-05 (Sunday – note lineup changes + new venue!) [FB event]

Surplus [formerly Taste, album release!] (Ginla / Zoo Owl / Katie McBride) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-05 (Sunday) [FB event]

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Add these to your calendar:

Reminder: This post only contains this week's updates — the full listings can always be found over on the right-hand sidebar!

Carolyn Mark / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-09 (Thursday) [FB event]

Communism (Isla Craig / Marine Dreams) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-10 (Friday) [FB event]

Dundas West Fest (feat. The Dears / Neon Wave / Germaphobes / MATROX / Run With The Kittens / The Shuffle Demons / The Royal Crowns / Proof Of Ghosts / Stella Jurgen & The Jazz Plazma) / Lakeview Ave. Stage 2016-06-11 (Saturday – free music all day! all ages/family friendly! outside!) [FB event]

Audiopollination #43 (feat. Paul Newman/Maxwell McEachern/Laura Swankey / Diane Roblin/James Bailey/Arnd Jurgensen / Von Bark/Rob Cruickshank/HF / Mike Lynn/Olya Glotka) / Array Space 2016-06-11 (Saturday) [FB event]

Somewhere There's Second Sunday Series (feat. Renegade COBRA / Temporary Ensembles) / Array Space 2016-06-12 (Sunday) [FB event]

Blythwood Winds: Hogtown Roundup: Toronto Graffiti [feat. new works by Elisha Denburg, Jason Doell, and Bekah Simms] / Heliconian Hall 2016-06-12 (Sunday) [FB event]

Kaleidoscope (Conman / Creep Highway / Protruders [ex Kappa Chow]) / Ozzy's Palace 2016-06-14 (Tuesday) [FB event]

Luc Ex Assemblée [Ab Baars/Ingrid Laubrock/Luc Ex/Hamid Drake] / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-16 (Thursday) [FB event]

Afrofest 2016 Launch (feat. Amadou Kienou / Donné Roberts / Afrafranto) / Gladstone Hotel (Melody Bar) 2016-06-16 (Thursday – free! early!) [more info]

Thin Edge New Music Collective: Are You Ready Brother? [ showcasing the music of Russian-Canadian composer Nikolai Sergeevich Korndorf] / Array Space 2016-06-17 (Friday) [FB event]

Michael Feuerstack (Michelle McAdorey) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-18 (Saturday) [FB event]

NO FEST – Day 2 (feat. Speedy Ortiz / Greys / Vallens) / The Garrison 2016-06-18 (Saturday) [FB event]

GOMS (Pucumber Sasssquash Family Band / Prom Nite / The Evil Boys) / Faith/Void 2016-06-18 (Saturday) [FB event]

Christof Migone (Brodie West & Fleshtone Aura) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-06-18 (Saturday) [FB event]

Asiko Afrobeat Ensemble [Winners Never Quit release party!] (Orkestra Gatigo) / Lula Lounge 2016-06-23 (Thursday) [FB event]

Long Winter + It's Not U It's Me @ Luminato (feat. Dinamo Azari / Casey Mecija / Ceramic TL / Marie Davidson / Nautiluss / Bulkhead) / Hearn Generating Station 2016-06-23 (Thursday) [FB event]

Odonis Odonis [Post Plague release show!] (Prince Innocence / Scott Hardware) / Velvet Underground 2016-06-24 (Friday) [FB event]

Tim Darcy [member of Ought] (Baby Cages / Emma Healey) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-24 (Friday) [FB event]

TRAITRS [Rites & Ritual Pleasence Records album release!] (Poster Boy / YlangYlang / STÜKA) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-24 (Friday) [FB event]

Jerry Paper & Easy Feelings Unlimited (Jaunt / Dougie Poole / Ducks Unlimited [first show! members of Germaphobes/Blonde Elvis!]) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-27 (Monday) [FB event]

Somewhere There Presents (feat. Tatsuya Nakatani [solo percussion] / Ken Aldcroft/Rob Clutton/Tatsuya Nakatani / Horseman, Pass By) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-29 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Not Dead Yet (feat. Crazy Spirit / S.H.I.T. / V.C.R. / Prom Nite / Tashme) / Soybomb 2016-07-09 (Saturday) [FB event]

case/lang/veirs / The Danforth Music Hall 2016-08-16 (Tuesday) [FB event]

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Bandcamp corner:

• Hamilton's HAVN collective, who recently put out the ace Eucalyptus single/EP have issued another vital slice of local improvisation in the form of a new solo tape from Colin Fisher (Not The Wind, Not The Flag, etc. etc. etc.) featuring his work on just intonated lap steel & saxophone. The tapes are now out in the world, and you can also grab the music over at Bandcamp:

Recording: Brodie West & Fleshtone Aura

Artist: Brodie West & Fleshtone Aura

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded May 25, 2016 at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Wolf's Nacho Wednesdays).

Brodie West & Fleshtone Aura - [excerpt]

From now on, the late slot at The Tranzac on Wednesdays is being curated by Healing Power's Wolfgang — who will also have nacho platters on offer along with a variety of cool musics. On this first run of the night everything went quite swimmingly (although there's hopes yet that a promised earlier start time will be taken up as well).

Besides a rare preview of Doc Dunn singing some of the piano-based songs from his forthcoming Wolfking of T.O. opus, the night also featured an appearance from this occasional collaboration between Brodie West's saxophone and Andrew Zukerman's analog synth. The two played off each other in a variety of ways — in this stretch you can hear Zukerman's bubbling burbles doubling West's sax percolations, though at other times he added more abstract counterpoints. There was also their closing opus "Up and Down", which I will leave undescribed to increase the anticipation of future audiences.

Recording: Craig Dunsmuir and Dun-Dun Band

Artist: Craig Dunsmuir and Dun-Dun Band

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), May 24, 2016.

Craig Dunsmuir and Dun-Dun Band - unknown

After sharing some solo pieces for guitar and drumpad, Craig Dunsmuir called up his band to explore some further dynamics. Following closely on the repeating loops of Dunsmuir's guitar and Josh Cole's bass, Jay Anderson added rhythmic drumpad accents while on the outer wings Colin Fisher and Karen Ng had some room to snake their sax melodies around the musical latticework. Following on Dunsmuir's occasional commands, the group would segue from riff to riff over the course of a couple long pieces.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Craig Dunsmuir

Artist: Craig Dunsmuir

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), May 24, 2016.

Craig Dunsmuir - unknown

Since debuting his Dun-Dun band at Long Winter back in February, there's been a general sense of anticipation for more from Craig Dunsmuir. This two-fer at Colin Fisher's monthly hit the spot, not only in sharing more grooves from the full band, but also with a solo set showing the building blocks of his compositions. Assembled from looped guitar and drumpad patterns, there was a lot of satisfaction to be derived from these polyrhythmic miniatures, with infinitely-scalable grooves growing fractally from the simple starting points.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Alexandra Spence

Artist: Alexandra Spence + Diane Roblin / Alexandra Spence + Paul Newman

Songs: [excerpts from two sets]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination #42.2), May 22, 2016.

Alexandra Spence + Diane Roblin - [excerpt from first piece]

Alexandra Spence + Paul Newman - [second piece]

This Sydney-via-Vancouver sound artist and clarinet player has dropped in to Audiopollination before, but was the featured guest this time out. Not only did she sit in with Nilan Perera's large ensemble, she also played a pair of duets matched with local improvisers. Diane Roblin offered some rolling piano lines and subtle synthesizer accents while Paul Newman added some quiet sax warbles that mixed especially well with Spence's spare overtone playing, quietly filling the room as the muffled pops of informal long weekend fireworks shows filtered through from outside.

Recording: The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto

Artist: The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto

Songs: [two excerpts]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination #42.2), May 22, 2016.

The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto - [excerpt 1]

The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto - [excerpt 2, part 1]

The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto - [excerpt 2, part 2]

This large improvising ensemble was convened by Nilan Perera, who added some electric bass to an opening drone section but otherwise primarily conducted. Using some basic hand signs (and occasional vocal instruction) he built up series of loops and competing riffs that tended more toward sympathetic juxtapositions rather than abrasiveness. The members of the ensemble were: Heather Saumer, Bea Labikova, Alexandra Spence, Laura Swankey, Ilana Waniuk, Laura Bates, Aline Homzy and Sanaz Nakhjavani.

Recording: B-17

Artist: B-17

Song: Shall We, Sunshine^*

Recorded at The Silver Dollar Room, May 20, 2016.

B-17 - Shall We, Sunshine

Feeling a bit like an Optical Sounds reunion was taking place in the crowd, B-17 were in as ferocious/focused form as I've seen 'em — especially drummer Nick Kervin, who was leaning into the material with a vengeance. Celebrating the release of their Goodbye album, there was a razor-sharp take on album closer "Dropped" and a couple new songs to boot.

^* Thanks to the band for passing along the title to this one.

Recording: Prince Ness

Artist: Prince Ness

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Silver Dollar Room, May 20, 2016.

Prince Ness - unknown

I still can't come up with a better description for this group than "trebly naive jangle", but every time I see them I remember how much room there is to explore within those parameters. Within the songs' clean lines, there's always an appealing earworm or two, such as that high-on-the-neck four-note descending bass riff in this new one.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Glass Slipper

Artist: Glass Slipper

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Silver Dollar Room, May 20, 2016.

Glass Slipper - unknown

This was the first appearance in these parts from this NYC quartet, although there was a familiar face on stage (and an Optical Sounds extended family connection) with guitarist Andrew McGill, who used to play with Tess Parks. Offering up some Oh Sees style garage stomp and a hint of Parquet Courts, this crew managed to get the room onside (and heaving along) quite quickly.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Concert Listings Roundup #150

You can read more about why I'm doing listings here. Long story short: This curated and decidedly non-comprehensive list contains nothin' but shows that I am going to/would go to if I had more time.

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Gigs of the week:

Drone Therapy: National Drone Day at the Music Gallery (group drone feat. Castle If / Oriana Guerrero / Moyo Rainos Mutamba / Allison Cameron / Kat Estacio) / The Music Gallery's courtyard 2016-05-28 (Saturday – free/PWYC afternoon event! outside! mellow/healing!) [FB event]

The AMBiENT PiNG: Evening Drone (feat. dreamSTATE / Northumbria) / Ratio 2016-05-28 (Saturday – free! all ages! n.b. moved to the evening!) [FB event]

A celebration of drone music across Canada and beyond, Drone Day is a chance for DIY communities to create local events to feed into the all-pervasive world-drone. Drone zoners can celebrate at a couple cool events, including the much-anticipated Drone Therapy session at the Music Gallery (which offers "live drone with talking through therapeutic experiences, anecdotes, coping skills, and mental health issues in a casual, drop-in setting"). The evening sees a casual show at Ratio from the AMBiENT PiNG crew.

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This week's noteworthy shows:

Dun-Dun Band [Craig Dunsmuir/Josh Cole/Mike Smith/Karen Ng/Jay Anderson/Blake Howard/Colin Fisher] (Craig Dunsmuir [solo]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-24 (Tuesday) [FB event]

TorQ Percussion Quartet: Conversations / 918 Bathurst 2016-05-24 (Tuesday) [FB event]

B------ Broadcast (feat. PyPy / The Blind Shake) / The Garrison 2016-05-24 (Tuesday – free!) [FB event]

Xu Shaoyang (Not the Wind, Not the Flag / Ye Xuan) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-05-25 (Wednesday) [FB event]

21C Music Festival: Kronos Quartet with Special Guest Tanya Tagaq / Koerner Hall 2016-05-25 (Wednesday) [more info]

Wolf's Nacho Wednesdays (feat. Brodie West & Fleshtone Aura) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-25 (Wednesday – 9:30 p.m. start!) [FB event]

Union Suit (Property / Fake Humans) / Holy Oak Café 2016-05-26 (Thursday) [FB event]

Emergents IV (feat. Kiri Koto Ensemble / Boomwhackers) / The Music Gallery 2016-05-26 (Thursday) [FB event]

Burn Down The Capital presents (feat. Fet.nat / Several Futures / Retired) / Double Double Land 2016-05-26 (Thursday) [FB event]

The $5 Rap Show: 6th Anniversary (feat. More Or Les / Wordburglar / Swamp Thing / Advice & Champa) / Handlebar 2016-05-26 (Thursday) [FB event]

Peter Brötzmann/Heather Leigh / The Velvet Underground 2016-05-27 (Friday) [FB event]

Ought (Palm / The Lonely Parade) / The Horseshoe Tavern 2016-05-27 (Friday) [FB event]

By Divine Right [Speak And Spell U.S. release party!] (Beams) / Buddies in Bad Times 2016-05-27 (Friday) [FB event]

The Ryan Driver Quintet [feat. Tania Gill as Ryan Driver] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-27 (Friday) [FB event]

Shotgun Jimmie (Canyon Carvers / LUKA) / Monarch Tavern 2016-05-28 (Saturday) [FB event]

Wavelength 701: 21C Festival (feat. Jherek Bischoff / Dawn Of Midi / The Visit) / Koerner Hall 2016-05-28 (Saturday) [FB event]

Big Easy Nights presents Night Time Sounds (feat. Moonwood / Mune / Bicyclops) / Duffy's Tavern 2016-05-28 (Saturday) [FB event]

Octopus Curls [Allison Cameron/Stephen Parkinson/Nicole Rampersaud] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-29 (Sunday)

ΔTENT with Jason Doell / Canadian Music Centre 2016-05-29 (Sunday – early!) [FB event]

Michael Herring Quartet [Sundays in May residency!] / The Rex Hotel 2016-05-29 (Sunday – PWYC!) [FB event]

Wire Circus / The Emmet Ray 2016-05-29 (Sunday) [FB event]

Scroll Downers (Worst Gift / Bile Sister) / Double Double Land 2016-05-29 (Sunday) [FB event]

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Add these to your calendar:

Reminder: This post only contains this week's updates — the full listings can always be found over on the right-hand sidebar!

The Numerators (Baby Labour / Trim Hogs) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-06 (Monday) [FB event]

Track Could Bend #15 (feat. Cetacea / KASHKA / Swankey/O'Reilly/Furlong) / Dundas Video 2016-06-07 (Tuesday – PWYC!) [FB event]

Burn Down The Capital (feat. Nick Millevoi's Desertion / Steve Kado / zhang) / Ratio 2016-06-09 (Thursday) [FB event]

Burn Down The Capital (feat. Jooklo Duo with Colin Fisher / CCMC / Cory Latkovich & Robert Grieve) / Ratio 2016-06-13 (Monday) [FB event]

Venetian Snares (Joanne Pollock / Bad Channels) / Velvet Underground 2016-06-16 (Thursday) [FB event]

Papermaps (Beams / The Nursery) / Junction City Music Hall 2016-06-17 (Friday) [FB event]

Toddler (James Irwin / LCON) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-19 (Sunday – early show! 6 to 8:30 p.m.!) [FB event]

Queer Songbook Orchestra: One For the Ages / Buddies In Bad Times Theatre 2016-06-19 (Sunday) [FB event]

Joanne Pollock (Witch Prophet / Castle If) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-21 (Tuesday) [FB event]

100 EYES Presents (feat. HUMANITIES / Telecomo / Childs / The 300 Club 2016-06-22 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Invocation presents (feat. Nite Jewel / New Chance / Tenderness) / The Garrison 2016-07-08 (Friday) [FB event]

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Album corner:

• Besides occasional shows as a part of Kith & Kin, you don't get so many chances to hear one of the most beautiful voices in this city. That's been rectified with the release of an album of solo vocal material from Martha Farquhar-McDonnell. (There'll also be a celebration for this album's release at the lovely Church of St. Andrew by-the-lake out on the Island, on Sunday, June 5th.)
• If you prefer to sample your forthcoming albums the old fashioned way, tune into The Night Shift (CJRU 1280AM) on Wednesday night for a first listen to The Highest Order's new album, Still Holding. (There's other opportunities in cities across the country too — more info here.)

Recording: The Mean

Artist: The Mean

Song: The Prisoner

Recorded at The Piston, May 19, 2016.

The Mean - The Prisoner

Fronted by Babs Vermeulen, this new-ish trio (synth/drum machine/guit/bass) covered a sonic terrain that extended from death disco to a sort of aggressive new-wave that was well-epitomized by a cover of Bowie's "Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)". This track, which leaned more on the keybs, pushed things into an intriguing Raincoats-gone-synth-goth zone.

Recording: Processor

Artist: Processor

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Piston, May 19, 2016.

Processor - unknown

The Piston remains a very nice-sounding room, and turned out to be a good spot to listen in on this pairing of Lorenz Peter (synth, drum machine) and Melissa Joakim (bass) — especially with the subs pushing out some low-end vibrations. Their short-ish set tackled three pieces; the middle one menaced with a thrumming drumbeat while this closer leaned a bit more abstract. This works okay as a field recording, but this is really best as body-envelopment music experienced in situ.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Toblerone Boys

Artist: Toblerone Boys

Song: [last section]

Recorded at The Piston, May 19, 2016.

Toblerone Boys - [last section]

This mad scientist funk laboratory with potions crafted from smashed beakers and broken equipment made one of its infrequent appearances at this gig, beaming strange rays into the forebrains of the assembled crowd, creating a new lurching army of the night.

Recording: Xavier Charles + Éric Normand

Artist: Xavier Charles + Éric Normand

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Ratio (Somewhere There Presents), May 12, 2016.

Xavier Charles + Éric Normand - [excerpt]

Instead of stacking three takes on one musical practice, this night from Somewhere There mixed together Heather Saumer and Doug Tielli's folk songs with Suhashini Arulanandam and Ilana Waniuk's quiet violin duets (including Luigi Nono's "Hay que Caminar" and a new piece by Nick Storring) with the visiting headliners' electroacoustic explorations. Éric Normand's bass was used as a noise-generator rather than a melodic tool, and a means of interfacing with a snare drum and some other small percussive objects while Xavier Charles' clarinet ranged from clicks and slow-motion scrapes to fluttering rumbles. Expert-level stuff here, disciplined but freely exploratory, and "noisy" without being loudly abrasive.

Recording: Heather Saumer + Doug Tielli

Artist: Heather Saumer + Doug Tielli

Songs: The Forlorn Stranger + The Forsaken Mermaid

Recorded at Ratio (Somewhere There Presents), May 12, 2016.

Heather Saumer + Doug Tielli - The Forlorn Stranger

Heather Saumer + Doug Tielli - The Forsaken Mermaid

"Forlorn & Forsaken" would be an excellent name for a folk duo, although in this case Heather Saumer and Doug Tielli seemed to be having too much fun to qualify for the moniker even as they dipped into some darker material from that ace songwriter Trad. Arr. (plus the likes of Hank Williams and Carla Bley). Each with their trombone and accentuated by autoharp, guitar and singing saw, the pair took turns singing — a revelation especially from Saumer. Casual and intimate, all this set was lacking was a veranda and a porch swing.

Concert Listings Roundup #149

You can read more about why I'm doing listings here. Long story short: This curated and decidedly non-comprehensive list contains nothin' but shows that I am going to/would go to if I had more time.

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Gig of the week:

B-17 [Goodbye record release show!] (Prince Ness / Glass Slipper / Sissy Boy) / The Silver Dollar Room 2016-05-20 (Friday) [FB event]

It blows my mind a little to consider that B-17 have been a going concern for five years now, time which has seen the band stropping their sound to razor-sharpness and perfecting their high-energy stage presence (to say nothing of adding some NYC glam to their Stooge-y wah-roars). The pace of releases from local label Optical Sounds has showed down a bit, but the energy in the music they've released — including B-17's brand-new first full-length — hasn't waned. Only time can write a song that's really really real, or so they say.

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This week's noteworthy shows:

Michael Keith & Saab Narayan / Holy Oak Café 2016-05-17 (Tuesday) [FB event]

Iderdown (Dirty Inputs / organdrum) / Smiling Buddha 2016-05-17 (Tuesday) [FB event]

coexisDance: The Handbook of Imperfect Yoga Book Launch (feat dance + music by Chris Adriaanse/Zoë Alexis-Abrams/Eve Brown/Rod Campbell/Tania Gill/Brenda Joy Lem/Bea Labikova/Tilman Lewis/Mike Lynn/Rob Piilonen/Raphael Roter/Andy Yue) / The Tranzac 2016-05-18 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Lab Coast (Century Palm / Dorothea Paas) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-05-18 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Whimm (Homebody / Poster Boy / Lizzy Boredom) / The Silver Dollar Room 2016-05-18 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Josh Cole / Colin Fisher / Brandon Valdivia / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-18 (Wednesday) [FB event]

Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan: Higgs Ocean: New Music For Gamelan / The Music Gallery 2016-05-19 (Friday) [more info]

Tomi Räisänen: a Portrait (feat. junctQín keyboard collective with Rob MacDonald and Heidi Saario) / Heliconian Hall 2016-05-19 (Thursday) [FB event]

Peach Kelli Pop (Twist / Bueller) / Smiling Buddha 2016-05-19 (Thursday) [FB event]

Kid Congo Powers (Meanwood / Alpha Strategy) / The Silver Dollar Room 2016-05-19 (Thursday) [FB event]

Surinam (Participation / Shahman / Zwarun) / The 300 Club 2016-05-19 (Thursday) [FB event]

Blues (Blunt Chunks) / Gladstone Hotel 2016-05-19 (Thursday – free!) [FB event]

Toblerone Boys (Processor / The Mean / James Wyatt Crosby) / The Piston 2016-05-19 (Thursday – PWYC!) [FB event]

Special Costello (Lido Pimienta / Budi) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-05-19 (Thursday) [FB event]

Wavelength 700: WL x Manifesto (feat. Pavilion / Wilde / Language Arts / Obuxum / pHoenix Pagliacci / Loji) / The Garrison 2016-05-20 (Friday) [FB event]

For Attawapiskat (feat. Del Bel, Drago Dit Dragon, Ruby Cikada, Ruby Randall) / Monarch Tavern 2016-05-20 (Friday) [FB event]

Ronley Teper's Lipliners / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2016-05-20 (Friday)

Nancy Pants (TV Sets / Human Bodies) / Handlebar 2016-05-21 (Saturday) [FB event]

Audiopollination #42.2 (feat. The Lady Hedonism Consort of Toronto [Ilana Waniuk/Laura Bates/Aline Homzy/Sanaz Nakhjavani/Heather Segger/Nicole Rampersaud/Bea Labikova/Alexandra Spence/Laura Swankey/Zoe Alexis-Abrams/Nilan Perera] / Alexandra Spence/Diane Roblin / Alexandra Spence/Paul Newman) / Array Space 2016-05-22 (Sunday) [FB event]

Music Between Friends (feat. Brave Radar / LOOM / Blunt Chunks) / Handlebar 2016-05-22 (Sunday) [FB event]

Michael Herring Quartet [Sundays in May residency!] / The Rex Hotel 2016-05-22 (Sunday – PWYC!) [FB event]

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Add these to your calendar:

Reminder: This post only contains this week's updates — the full listings can always be found over on the right-hand sidebar!

By Divine Right [Speak And Spell U.S. release party!] (Beams) / Buddies in Bad Times 2016-05-27 (Friday) [FB event]

Wavelength 701: 21C Festival (feat. Jherek Bischoff / Dawn Of Midi / The Visit) / Koerner Hall 2016-05-28 (Saturday) [FB event]

Wire Circus / The Emmet Ray 2016-05-29 (Sunday) [FB event]

Scroll Downers (Worst Gift / Bile Sister) / Double Double Land 2016-05-29 (Sunday) [FB event]

Invocation Presents (feat. Big|Brave / Fresh Snow / New Positions) / Soybomb 2016-06-04 (Saturday) [FB event]

The Highest Order [Still Holding record release show!] (New Chance) / Comfort Zone 2016-06-04 (Saturday) [FB event]

Wavelength 702 (feat. Thor & Friends / Völur / Echo Beach) / Monarch Tavern 2016-06-12 (Sunday) [FB event]

Dories (Bart / Doffing / Luge) / Smiling Buddha 2016-06-14 (Tuesday) [FB event]

Tuns (Only Yours / kiwi jr.) / The Garrison 2016-06-15 (Wednesday) [FB event]

NO FEST: Free Day Party (feat. Casper Skulls / Pet Sun / PONY) / The Garrison (front room) 2016-06-18 (Saturday – day show! free!) [FB event]

Music Gallery Departures Series (feat. The Out Louds / Mette Rasmussen/Tashi Dorji/Tyler Damon / Michael Keith/Saab Narayan) / Array Space 2016-06-18 (Saturday) [FB event]

Music Gallery Departures Series (feat. Endangered Blood / The Mike Smith Company / Body Help) / Burdock Music Hall 2016-06-28 (Tuesday) [FB event]

Nhapitapi / Burdock Music Hall 2016-07-23 (Saturday) [FB event]

Freak Heat Waves (New Fries / Cindy Lee / Hellier Ulysses) / The Garrison 2016-08-05 (Friday) [FB event]

Recording: MATROX

Artist: MATROX

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at Anchored Social Club (Feast In The East 5 Year Anniversary – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

MATROX - unknown

Congratulations are due to Tad Michalak, Katie Jensen & Neil Rankin for their dedication in shepherding the Feast in The East series to its fifth anniversary. Providing a local option for east-end residents and a too-rare chance for the rest of us to fill in the terra incognita on the other side of the Don, FitE is a pretty unique event with its mix of food, art and music. Recently operating from Anchored Social Club (a converted Leslieville garage that will soon be lost to east-end condofication), this celebration (which came complete with a beautiful cookbook and tape compilation) required two nights to bring back some past faves that served as a de facto series "best of". I missed the Friday show, but Saturday night was complete with four bands that I'm always happy to see.

Closing out the night, these robot entertainment units urged the crowd to commemorate the number five in a tune that also saw a guest appearance from a mysterious space mystic.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Blonde Elvis

Artist: Blonde Elvis

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at Anchored Social Club (Feast In The East 5 Year Anniversary – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Blonde Elvis - unknown

Congratulations are due to Tad Michalak, Katie Jensen & Neil Rankin for their dedication in shepherding the Feast in The East series to its fifth anniversary. Providing a local option for east-end residents and a too-rare chance for the rest of us to fill in the terra incognita on the other side of the Don, FitE is a pretty unique event with its mix of food, art and music. Recently operating from Anchored Social Club (a converted Leslieville garage that will soon be lost to east-end condofication), this celebration (which came complete with a beautiful cookbook and tape compilation) required two nights to bring back some past faves that served as a de facto series "best of". I missed the Friday show, but Saturday night was complete with four bands that I'm always happy to see.

After a few months away from performing, it was perhaps not too surprising to see Blonde Elvis return with a re-jigged lineup that saw Tom Avis as the night's sole synth player as well as former guest Paul Elrichman on second guitar and Mike Duffield behind the drum kit. There were a couple interestingly-subtle rearrangements of older songs alongside a couple new ones (like this one) in the set — as well as, of course, the usual allotment of bon mots from singer/guitarist Jesse Laderoute.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Germaphobes

Artist: Germaphobes

Song: Heavenly Hash

Recorded at Anchored Social Club (Feast In The East 5 Year Anniversary – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Germaphobes - Heavenly Hash

Congratulations are due to Tad Michalak, Katie Jensen & Neil Rankin for their dedication in shepherding the Feast in The East series to its fifth anniversary. Providing a local option for east-end residents and a too-rare chance for the rest of us to fill in the terra incognita on the other side of the Don, FitE is a pretty unique event with its mix of food, art and music. Recently operating from Anchored Social Club (a converted Leslieville garage that will soon be lost to east-end condofication), this celebration (which came complete with a beautiful cookbook and tape compilation) required two nights to bring back some past faves that served as a de facto series "best of". I missed the Friday show, but Saturday night was complete with four bands that I'm always happy to see.

This rousing set-closer was also the big finale for last summer's Heat Shuts Off Overnight — though the lyrical reference to Feast in the East was added for this occasion. A sweaty dance-off of a set with the crowd packed into a converted DIY space, I found myself flashing back to seeing Gay at Oz Studios, so presumably this will also be the stuff that memories are made of.

Recording: Castle If

Artist: Castle If

Song: Polygon

Recorded at Anchored Social Club (Feast In The East 5 Year Anniversary – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Castle If - Polygon

Congratulations are due to Tad Michalak, Katie Jensen & Neil Rankin for their dedication in shepherding the Feast in The East series to its fifth anniversary. Providing a local option for east-end residents and a too-rare chance for the rest of us to fill in the terra incognita on the other side of the Don, FitE is a pretty unique event with its mix of food, art and music. Recently operating from Anchored Social Club (a converted Leslieville garage that will soon be lost to east-end condofication), this celebration (which came complete with a beautiful cookbook and tape compilation) required two nights to bring back some past faves that served as a de facto series "best of". I missed the Friday show, but Saturday night was complete with four bands that I'm always happy to see.

It'd been a while since I saw Jess Forrest playing a "pop" set rather than undertaking some drone explorations, so this was satisfying even if things were on the shorter side. The set also hewed towards instrumental endeavours, except for this bit of sample'n'hold vocoder pop, which was also Forrest's entry on the FitE tape comp.

Recording: Retired

Artist: Retired

Song: Turncoat/Medical Jargon

Recorded at Toronto Public Library – Parkdale Branch (SHHHHH – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Retired - Turncoat/Medical Jargon

So many things I like here, wrapped up in one package. Not only was this a celebration of an awesome new initiative from the Toronto Public Library where anyone with a library card can borrow a musical instrument, it was celebrated with a couple shows in the program's home branch. I didn't make it out on the Friday where the event's co-organizer Kyle Knapp played a quieter show with his Deliluh project, alongside solo efforts from Dorothea Paas and Dave from Soupcans (a new solo endeavour called Stucco). But Sunday afternoon (a free!, all ages!, afternoon! show — which for me is like seeing a row of cherries come up on the slot machine) moved things down to the Parkdale library's mysterious basement — home, it turns out, to an auditorium that awesomely looks like it was last redecorated c. 1985. This show got pretty loud, though apparently the bunker-like building is soundproofed enough that that didn't disturb the patrons above. I would love to see more shows like this — the mind reels at the possibilities of the communities that could be brought together in this space.

Really excellent work here from this jazzcore quartet. My understanding is that there's a couple new members in the fold (and a fresh album to boot), but this was a really together performance that saw heavy drone undertones being pushed along by Cyril Penny's out-jazz percussion.

[Retired will be playing as part of a tasty Burn Down The Capital bill at Double Double Land on Thursday, May 26, along with Fet.nat and Several Futures feat. Slime.)]

Recording: New Positions

Artist: New Positions

Song: [excerpt, in three parts]

Recorded at Toronto Public Library – Parkdale Branch (SHHHH – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

New Positions - [excerpt, part 1]

New Positions - [excerpt, part 2]

New Positions - [excerpt, part 3]

So many things I like here, wrapped up in one package. Not only was this a celebration of an awesome new initiative from the Toronto Public Library where anyone with a library card can borrow a musical instrument, it was celebrated with a couple shows in the program's home branch. I didn't make it out on the Friday where the event's co-organizer Kyle Knapp played a quieter show with his Deliluh project, alongside solo efforts from Dorothea Paas and Dave from Soupcans (a new solo endeavour called Stucco). But Sunday afternoon (a free!, all ages!, afternoon! show — which for me is like seeing a row of cherries come up on the slot machine) moved things down to the Parkdale library's mysterious basement — home, it turns out, to an auditorium that awesomely looks like it was last redecorated c. 1985. This show got pretty loud, though apparently the bunker-like building is soundproofed enough that that didn't disturb the patrons above. I would love to see more shows like this — the mind reels at the possibilities of the communities that could be brought together in this space.

Other projects have kept this pairing on the down-low for awhile, so I was pleased to hear from Neil Rankin that he and C. Jude were getting back together to reactivate New Positions. From radio static-scapes to industrial beat knife-fights, they've tackled a fair range of sounds (and issued a kick-ass tape a couple years back). Rankin didn't bring his sax or boombox this time out, focusing on staggering bass lurches while Jude similarly added some guitar noise. You can hear some distorted vocals here, and later on the doom-y drum-machine pulses would drive things to a conclusion. Looks like the boys are back in town.

[New Positions will be opening things up at what should be a fantastic/loud Invocation show alongside BIG|BRAVE and Fresh Snow, Saturday, June 4th at Soybomb.]

Recording: Blue Light

Artist: Blue Light

Song: [second section]

Recorded at Toronto Public Library – Parkdale Branch (SHHHH – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Blue Light - [second section]

So many things I like here, wrapped up in one package. Not only was this a celebration of an awesome new initiative from the Toronto Public Library where anyone with a library card can borrow a musical instrument, it was celebrated with a couple shows in the program's home branch. I didn't make it out on the Friday where the event's co-organizer Kyle Knapp played a quieter show with his Deliluh project, alongside solo efforts from Dorothea Paas and Dave from Soupcans (a new solo endeavour called Stucco). But Sunday afternoon (a free!, all ages!, afternoon! show — which for me is like seeing a row of cherries come up on the slot machine) moved things down to the Parkdale library's mysterious basement — home, it turns out, to an auditorium that awesomely looks like it was last redecorated c. 1985. This show got pretty loud, though apparently the bunker-like building is soundproofed enough that that didn't disturb the patrons above. I would love to see more shows like this — the mind reels at the possibilities of the communities that could be brought together in this space.

Ami Spears has worked in several projects, from beloved drone-rockers Ostrich Tuning to ambient/noise duo Schønsee (to say nothing of her recently-ended stint in Crosss and recently-begun stint in Surinam). This solo outing saw her shape sounds from her (beloved, semi-broken) keyboard with a few pedals, mixing minimalist ambient repetition with crunchy noise granulation. This middle section's creamy tones was at the more relaxing end of the spectrum — quite beautiful stuff.

Recording: Kapali Carsi

Artist: Kapali Carsi

Song: [excerpt from first piece]

Recorded at Toronto Public Library – Parkdale Branch (SHHHH – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

Kapali Carsi - [excerpt from first piece]

So many things I like here, wrapped up in one package. Not only was this a celebration of an awesome new initiative from the Toronto Public Library where anyone with a library card can borrow a musical instrument, it was celebrated with a couple shows in the program's home branch. I didn't make it out on the Friday where the event's co-organizer Kyle Knapp played a quieter show with his Deliluh project, alongside solo efforts from Dorothea Paas and Dave from Soupcans (a new solo endeavour called Stucco). But Sunday afternoon (a free!, all ages!, afternoon! show — which for me is like seeing a row of cherries come up on the slot machine) moved things down to the Parkdale library's mysterious basement — home, it turns out, to an auditorium that awesomely looks like it was last redecorated c. 1985. This show got pretty loud, though apparently the bunker-like building is soundproofed enough that that didn't disturb the patrons above. I would love to see more shows like this — the mind reels at the possibilities of the communities that could be brought together in this space.

This solo bass noise/drone project from Kevin Hainey has been around for more than a decade, running parallel to his work on the recently-shuttered Inyrdisk label. Despite putting out more than a half-dozen releases from the project, ranging from harsh noise to meditative rumbles, this was his first time presenting it live in performance. Crouched and turned away from the audience, Hainey tapped and flicked at the strings of the bass sitting on top of his amp as he shaped the sounds through amp and pedal knob-twisting.

Recording: The GGS New Music Ensemble

Artist: The GGS New Music Ensemble

Songs: Gran Turismo [composer: Andrew Norman] + Dérive II [excerpt] [composer: Pierre Boulez]

Recorded at The Royal Conservatory of Music's Conservatory Theatre, May 5, 2016.

The GGS New Music Ensemble - Gran Turismo

The GGS New Music Ensemble - Dérive II [excerpt]

Under the leadership of Brian Current, the Glenn Gould School's New Music Ensemble continues to thrive, challenging young musicians to tackle intricate works. That was especially evident in the presentation of the sprawling "Derive II", which took up more than half of the programme. "The elementary phenomena of pulsation and repetition are often blurred," the notes mentioned — they seemed to be at a pain to find fancy ways of saying "this has a lot of notes". That fact made this fully satisfying as a technical exercise, in watching the students (plus the inestimable Wesley Shen on piano) hang on to the raft as they shot the rapids, so to speak.

Things were somewhat less frenzied earlier on with Ana Sokolović's Carl Stalling-meets-John Cage "…and I need a room to receive five thousand people with raised glasses", which included some fun extra-musical dramatic flourishes like a twirling conductor and a series of players popping up in their chairs like figures in a Whac-A-Mole game. Andrew Norman's videogame-inspired opener saw eight violin players arranged in a crescent in a piece which spacialized the sound quite nicely in the room, with musical phrases being passed down the line in a musical car chase.