Recording: Meridian

Artist: Meridian

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Yonge-Dundas Square (Intersection – Day 3), September 2, 2017.

Meridian - [excerpt]

In recent years, the Intersection Festival would normally consist of a paid concert, usually the night before the day-long extravaganza in Yonge-Dundas Square. This year, however, under the continued guidance of Burn Down The Capital's Tad Michalak the festival expanded to four events, including a pair of concerts at The Jam Factory. The day-long marathon in the concrete canyon of commerce remains at the festival's heart, though, exploring the frissons of experiencing strange and occasionally abrasive sounds competing with the city's mersh heartbeat.

Seated behind a table, Tim Feeney, Sarah Hennies, and Greg Stuart looked a bit like a trio of scientists who had called a press conference to share a new discovery, then decided to convey their findings through a series of toys and percussive instruments. Hailing from different American cities and occasionally convening to tour and play together, I was told afterwards that their emphasis is usually on close quietness, and this was the first time that the group had played with amplification. Even with microphones, their coke can, bells, shakers, bowed cymbals, tapped snare drum, baby clacker, springs, woodblock, rasp and so forth made for a low-key intervention against the larger background clatter of the square as greysky evening began to make the space feel weird and twilight-y.

[You can see some footage from this set over at Brandon Caswell Douglas' Intersection playlist.]