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The Burning Hell @ Black Sheep Inn (Wakefield) Nov 1

Bambi Blue — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 18:04:46 +0000

Taking its name from a religious tract, The Burning Hell has been slithering around in the muck in one form or another since the dawn of the millennium. Fronted by the moderately agoraphobic songwriter and occasional history teacher Mathias Kom on electric ukulele, The Burning Hell currently features between one and twelve people, depending on the night.

The variable lineup promises a very different show every time: sometimes loud, sometimes quiet, sometimes rock, sometimes roll. Always folk, never anti. Quirky? Maybe. Cute? Never.

The latest Burning Hell album, Happy Birthday, celebrates the beauty of age, the joys of decay, the possibility of dating after death, and the inevitable repetition of mistakes. Combining happy little melodies and depressing Old World fatalism, the music of The Burning Hell is sure to make you smile and want to give up.

Upcoming shows:
18 Sep 2008 20:00 The Montreal House Peterborough, Ontario
10 Oct 2008 20:00 Aufsturz Berlin
13 Oct 2008 20:00 Nancy Jazz Pulsations Festival Nancy
14 Oct 2008 21:00 Le Sirius Lyon
16 Oct 2008 20:00 Mistral Palace Valence
17 Oct 2008 20:00 De Nieuwe Anita Amsterdam
19 Oct 2008 15:00 DB’s Utrecht
28 Oct 2008 20:00 West Germany Berlin
31 Oct 2008 20:00 The Montreal House Halloween Party Peterborough, Ontario
1 Nov 2008 21:00 The Black Sheep Inn Wakefield, Quebec
11 Nov 2008 20:00 Gus’ Pub Halifax, Nova Scotia
12 Nov 2008 20:00 Struts Sackville, New Brunswick
13 Nov 2008 21:00 Baba’s Charlottetown, Prince Edward
15 Nov 2008 21:00 Grumpy’s Montreal, Quebec
5 Dec 2008 20:00 The Montreal House – Goodbye Show! Peterborough, Ontario

Jane Vain & the Dark Matter @ The Horseshoe Tavern (Toronto) July 26 & 29

Bambi Blue — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:14:28 +0000

From somewhere beneath the swelling strings and synths, the angular guitars and pulsating beats, cleaves the voice of Jamie Fooks of Jane Vain & the Dark Matter. In early 2003, Fooks started writing songs by her self in her basement apartment, to deal with the remaining demons of a reckless adolescence. Somewhat deterred by an open mic night that ended in tears, Fooks was encouraged to continue performing by the support of friends, and the interest of current guitar player Dillon Whitfield (of Raccoon). With the addition of Whitfield’s haphazard guitar playing, the foundation of Jane Vain & the Dark Matter was laid.

The duo played a string of shows, accompanied by only drums beats and bass, programmed by Fooks. These shows attracted attention from fans, promoters and other musicians.

Now, accompanied live by a rhythm section, (Shawn Dicey of Ox on drums, Markus Lake of The Incandescence on bass) Jane Vain & the Dark Matter have released their first full length, Love Is Where The Smoke Is, on Edmonton’s Rectangle Records, and are embarking on another national tour in support of their record. The record features contributions by local musicians Mark Hamilton, Foon Yap, and Annalea Sordi of Woodpigeon, Jesse Locke of SIDS, and Matt Flegel of The Cape May. Inherent in the music is a kinetic energy, as if Jane Vain & the Dark Matter are aiming for anxious chaos, but achieving a careful clarity.

Upcoming shows:
24 Jul 2008 20:00 The Apollo Thunder Bay, Ontario
26 Jul 2008 20:00 The Horseshoe Tavern Toronto, Ontario
27 Jul 2008 20:00 Alex P. Keaton London, Ontario
29 Jul 2008 20:00 The Horseshoe Tavern Toronto, Ontario
30 Jul 2008 20:00 Zaphod Beeblebrox Ottawa, Ontario
31 Jul 2008 20:00 The Jupiter Room-Pop Montreal Music Series Montreal, Quebec
7 Aug 2008 21:00 O’Hanlons Regina, Saskatchewan
8 Aug 2008 21:00 Amigos Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
9 Aug 2008 21:00 New City Likwid Lounge Edmonton, Alberta
15-17 Aug 2008 20:00 Salmon Arm Roots and Blues festival. Salmon Arm, British Columbia
20 Aug 2008 21:00 The Biltmore Cabaret Vancouver, British Columbia
11 Sep 2008 21:00 Broken City Calgary, Alberta

Forest City Lovers: Delightfully engaging

Bambi Blue — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:38:54 +0000

Forest City Lovers – Scared of Time

In the heart of Canada’s largest city, Forest City Lovers — Kat Burns (vocals/guitar/piano), Kyle Donnelly (bass/guitar/vocals), Mika Posen (violin/piano/vocals) and a string of drummers — have strived to tame the urban wilderness and add some melody to the chaos.

Forest City Lovers, burst onto Toronto’s music scene with the release of their 2006 album, The Sun and the Wind. Released independently with the help of some talented friends, The Sun and the Wind a ten song journey through landscapes of cities and summer days, was a breath of fresh air and exposed the talent of emerging songwriter Kat Burns. Chart called the record “delightfully engaging” while Exclaim proclaimed Burns “enigmatic and subtly inventive.”

While touring in support of their debut record, Forest City Lovers developed into a cohesive and complete unit. With their new collaborative approach the band headed back in the studio to record twelve new songs.

With the help of their dear friends, previous drummer Jamie Bunton and Heather Kirby (Ohbijou), the band hunkered down for nine-months at their fledgling studio, Kirby’s Dreamland, in Toronto.

These sessions birthed Haunting Moon Sinking which straddles the line between heartbreakingly beautiful and intimately powerful. Forest City Lovers’ new album explores themes of love and life with lush and poignant orchestration. With members of Ohbijou, Snailhouse, Hylozoists, the Pill and other Toronto talents filling out chorused vocals and swelling string arrangements, Haunting Moon Sinking steps into a natural progression from the band’s previous effort.

The songs of Forest City Lovers are catchy, yet fragile, and hope to melt your heart, or at least make it beat.

10 Jul 2008 20:00 The Apollo Thunder Bay, Ontario
12 Jul 2008 20:00 Rock Island Lodge Wawa, Ontario

Marie-Josée Houle in profile: Yes, accordion can be sexy

Bambi Blue — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:31:17 +0000

Click to listen to Marie-Josée Houle’s “Blase D’La Vie” marie-josee-houle-blase-dla-vie

Marie-Josée Houle was born in Val d‘Or, Quebec and raised in Edmonton, Alberta and celebrates her dual cultural roots through music. She sings and writes fluently in both English and French, she brings the Townships to the Prairies and beyond. This lady scores major points with me personally for having been classically trained on the accordion at age five. But, like yours truly, her musical history is as varied as her hair colour. In 2000, she took up the electric bass and saxophone in order to form two very eclectic projects in Edmonton: “Pangina”, an all-girl punk band and “The Elevators”, a post-modern muzak band. Her reconnection with the accordion coincided with a move to Ottawa in 2003 and culminated in the world music collaboration known as “Casadore.” The success of that project – including a performance at the 2005 Ottawa Folk Music Festival – served as a springboard for her solo work.

Her solo debut, Our Lady of Broken Souls, was released in March of 2007 to much critical acclaim, including a nomination for Best Folk Album of 2007 by the Ottawa Xpress alongside local folk sensations Jim Bryson and Andrea Simms Karp. The album charted and received solid airplay on local college and community radio stations across the country.

Take this paragraph break to go pick up her album at CD Baby but make sure you come back and read all about her upcoming concert dates!

(Back? See, that was painless.)

Right now Marie-Josée is busy with her many musical and artistic endeavours, performing and recording with a multitude of musicians, working with theatre groups and filmmakers.

2007 saw her play the main stage of WestFest, play Toronto’s Nuit Blanche, embark on her first successful cross-country tour, and recently share a stage with other celebrated female Ottawa artists like Kellylee Evans and Kathleen Edwards for a live recorded performance for a CBC Radio 1 broadcast.

As 2007 brought her international shows in England and Norway, she aspires to continue to transport the streets and cafés of Paris to the clubs, theatres and festivals of Canada and beyond.

In this video: Tebo interviews accordion player Marie-Josee Houle on ‘The Rocks’

Upcoming Shows:
7 Jun 2008 13:00 Lisa Poushinsky’s Famous Round Barn Party Russell, ON
4 Jul 2008 20:00 w/ Guelph’s Meredith Grant Rasputin Folk Café Ottawa, ON
5 Jul 2008 20:00 w/ Michael Reinhart The St-Ambroise Montreal, ON
6 Jul 2008 19:00 Gladstone Hotel Toronto, ON
7 Jul 2008 20:00 w/ Ginger St. James Pepperjacks Hamilton, ON
8 Jul 2008 20:00 The Spill Peterborough, ON
9 Jul 2008 21:00 Alex P. Keaton London, ON
10 Jul 2008 21:00 w/ Ginger St. James Blue Moon Lounge Burlington, ON
12 Jul 2008 20:00 Loplops Sault Sainte Marie
13 Jul 2008 21:00 The Apollo Thunder Bay, ON
15 Jul 2008 20:00 Lady of the Lake Brandon, MB
16 Jul 2008 21:00 Bushwakkers Regina, SK
18 Jul 2008 21:00 Café Vivant Saskatoon, SK

The Perpetrators: Blues for people who hate blues

Bambi Blue — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 17:57:29 +0000

Once a not-so-well-kept secret in their hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba – where they acted as house band for visiting blues legends Hubert Sumlin, Louisiana Red, Paul “Wine” Jones and others – The Perpetrators kicked things up a notch in 2006. A European tour capped off a Juno nomination and a win at the Western Canadian Music Awards. 2007 saw the band continue to expand and grow with the release their third album, Tow Truck – an uncompromising expression of their varied musical influences that never loses sight of their blues roots – followed by the recording of a soon-to-be-released live album and a very successful second European tour which including the recording of live radio specials in Germany and Belgium.

“Blues for people who hate blues,” they distill rock ‘n’ roll, punk and country into their heady house-rockin’ punch. Give them a stage, any stage and they’ll put on the best show they can for whoever’s there. Each one is a seasoned pro on their instrument of choice but, never afraid to take chances, the boys are fond of switching it up in an on-stage game of musical chairs. To quote a much used and abused cliche, The Perpetrators have to be seen to be believed.

Buy their albums!

Now… go see them!

28 Mar 2008 21:00 The Bristol Place London, ON
29 Mar 2008 20:00 The Horseshoe Tavern Support for Luke Doucet’s CD Release Toronto, ON
30 Mar 2008 20:00 The Boathouse Kitchener, ON
4 Apr 2008 22:00 The Bristol Place London, ON
8 Apr 2008 22:00 Pepper Jack Cafe Hamilton, ON
10 Apr 2008 20:00 The Dakota Tavern Toronto, ON
11 Apr 2008 21:00 Loplops Sault Ste. Marie, ON
12 Apr 2008 21:00 The Apollo Thunder Bay, ON
18 Apr 2008 02:00 Ryerson Elementary School Winnipeg, MB
19 Apr 2008 22:00 Brunkild Bar & Grill Brunkild, MB
9 May 2008 20:00 Ozzy’s Winnipeg, MB
10 May 2008 20:00 Ozzy’s Winnipeg, MB
18 May 2008 20:00 Private Party Vancouver, BC
18 May 2008 20:00 Private Party Vancouver, BC
24 May 2008 22:00 Lydia’s Pub Saskatoon, SK
8 Aug 2008 20:00 Trout Forest Music Festival Earfalls, ON
9 Aug 2008 20:00 Trout Forest Music Festival Earfalls, ON
10 Aug 2008 20:00 Trout Forest Music Festival Earfalls, ON

Bambi Blue