Photo courtesy Tsar Kasim on Flickr.
Okay, before I get to part one (i.e. May and June) of the summer music preview, permit me a quick indulgence:
SLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!
Ahem. So, where were we? About to discuss the next two months of live music in the nation’s capital – two months that, just coincidentally, happen to include a FREE concert by the most iconic Canadian indie rock band of the past 25 years? Yeah, I think that was where we were. Allons-y!
May 10-11: London, Ontario’s Raised By Swans can count Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan among their fans – their songs can be heard in his 2008 flick Adoration, while the band themselves make an appearance in the recently-released Chloe. (Exotica sequel, anyone?) Catch the Swans May 10th at Zaphod Beeblebrox and the 11th at the Black Sheep Inn.
May 13-15: Ottawa record label Kelp Records turns 16 and celebrates with three nights of music at venues around the city. We’ll have more on this shindig in a coming post, so stay tuned.
May 14: Does anyone else get the feeling Sudbury-born singer-songwriter Kate Maki really likes playing the Black Sheep Inn? She always seems to be on the schedule there – not, of course, that I’m complaining.
May 17-18: Australia’s Xavier Rudd is in town for a two-night stint at the Bronson Centre.
May 31: Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra play Maverick’s. at the Mayfair Theatre.
June 3: Recently-formed trio Daniel, Fred, Julie (as in Julie Doiron, y’all) are in Wakefield for a night of dreamy indie folk.
June 11-13: Westfest! I’m not sure what it says that I’m looking forward to their Saturday lineup (which along with Sloan also boasts Will Currie and the Country French and former Ottawans The Balconies) more than any single day at Bluesfest. Aside from that I’m a total miserly cheapo, that is.
June 12-13: Doesn’t the Black Sheep Inn just feel like it was built specifically for Justin Rutledge? The Toronto alt-country singer plays two shows up the road in Quebec to support his new album The Early Widows.
June 16: The Besnard Lake Lodge in northern Saskatchewan, according to its website, prides itself on being one of the region’s “finest fishing lodges.” Similarly, Montreal’s Besnard Lakes are one of their region”s finest indie bands. Something in the water, perhaps? The band brings their atmospheric rock to Zaphod’s alongside Arts & Crafters Young Galaxy.
June 17: Calgary’s Jane Vain takes her Emily Haines-ish sounds to the Black Sheep Inn.
June 19: Ketch Harbour Wolves debut tunes from their new album Anachronisms at Zaphod’s.
June 24: Anecdote time: I last saw Ted Leo and the Pharmacists five years ago in London, Ontario. By the end of the show, the only part of Ted Leo’s shirt not covered in sweat was a small nickel-sized patch above his sternum. That should tell you either (a) Ted Leo has a potential glandular problem, or (b) Ted Leo kind of leaves everything on the stage, to corrupt a common sports cliche. (Hint: it’s the latter one.) You can catch Leo and his pill dispensers at Zaphod’s on the 24th. Or, if you feel like something a bit smoother, there’s also the Ottawa Jazz Festival, which kicks off the same day.
So, dear readers, are there any artists we haven’t mentioned who deserve a shout-out? Maybe there’s a good hip-hop show in town? Or some twangy country? Drop us a line in the comment section.
