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Artist Spotlight: Claire Morrison
There’s something about Manitoba; it’s not the largest Canadian province, nor the most populous, but something in the air or the water or the quality of the light seems to create a terroir ((That one’s for you, Eli!)) that informs and supports the growth of great musicians. Is it the long Winters, or the support of amazing organizations like Music Manitoba, or some other, less tangible factor? I don’t know, but somehow Manitobans seem to consistently delight me. I first heard Manitoban/Montrealler Claire Morrison at the Folk Music Ontario conference this past Autumn; I was part of a panel called Demo Derby, where artists bring a demo of a song and,…
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Artist Spotlight: Ozere
For the duration of my life, guitars have driven almost all of the music around me. Whether they be sensitive strummers or wailing rock gods, they’ve been sort-of inescapable. And as I’ve moved through different jobs as a music booker, I’ve found my ears got kind-of worn-out on the guitar; even great players rarely catch my interest. It often feels like the possibilities of the guitar have been explored, past the comfort of familiarity and straight on to dull repetition, especially in the Folk community. ((Sorry, dudes, it’s just… y’know. I still love a lot of guitar-playing acts; it just rarely gets me all excited to hear a new guitar-based…
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Folk Music Ontario Conference
The Folk Music Ontario Conference ((Formerly the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals!)) is an annual event that draws just under a thousand artists, presenters, and other music industry people to hang out together, jamming, learning, and talking music for four days every October. It’s always a highlight of the year, a chance for bookers, promoters, writers, and DJs to hear some of the best emerging touring acts in one place over one weekend in one hotel. This year, the conference takes place in Mississauga, Ontario. Secret Frequency founder and writer Candace Shaw will be in all of her usual haunts at the conference – wherever there’s good music or good…
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Ideas: A small-town musical roadshow
Ideas is a series talking about the communities, people, and ideas surrounding the music and culture industries. I love Ontario’s small towns; I grew up in one, a tiny village called Keene that, even today, is home to only about 500 people. I’ve got no illusions about small-town life – it can be stifling and tortuous, especially for a young woman with unusual tastes who doesn’t fit in. But there’s lots to be said for their sometimes-fading charms; heritage downtowns, odd little shops, idiosyncratic bits of architecture. They’re monuments to a time when our country was more sparsely populated but prosperous, when travel was slower, and when even a small…
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Artist Spotlight: Raging Asian Women
This weekend I headed down to Yonge-Dundas Square to catch a little of the Small World Music Festival. They had a terrific lineup, and one of my favourite live acts was playing – Raging Asian Women. Taiko drumming is a traditional Japanese form of performance where musicality and showmanship are both important, and RAW have it down. The first time I saw them was years ago, at a conference, and I’d had no idea what to expect. I’d seen and loved Taiko performances before, but nothing prepared me for the power of RAW. By the end of their performance, I had tears streaming down my face – not from sadness, but…
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Artist Spotlight: Euphonia
Over the weekend, I got an email from Richard Flohill, inviting myself and a handful of music-lovers out to Lula Lounge for a Monday night PWYC show. I hadn’t heard of the band, Euphonia, but the words Mozart-Mendelssohn-Haydn caught my eye, and Richard’s taste is pretty finely-honed, so I was in. I always feel a little sheepish admitting that I like Classical music; it’s sort-of the last frontier. People tend to react like you’re putting on airs, as if Classical music were a high-brow art form that only people from a certain generation and income bracket enjoy. But anyone paying any attention to music history can tell you that Classical…
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Artist Spotlight: Maracatu Mar Aberto
This past weekend was the Cabbagetown Festival, a community event with street vendors, a craft fair, lots of yard sales, food vendors, and music. ((Almost entirely awful cover bands, much to my dismay. But there were a couple of good acts – read on!)) Luckily enough for me, the whole thing took place right outside my door, so I spent most the two days strolling around, noshing on murtabek and roti, and meeting some of my neighbours. ((I even met a guy who has a bee hive in his back yard, who sold me a jar of Cabbagetown Gold – illegal bees make the best honey!)) Things were winding down…
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Artist Spotlight: Unbuttoned
Saturday was a beautiful day in Ol’Toronto, and I’d spent most of the afternoon in Riverside, catching an historical tour of the neighbourhood. ((Local history and old architecture are some of my favourite things.)) I decided to grab some Thai take-out on the way home, and explore some areas of town I hadn’t been through yet, and I meandered along, across the Don River Valley and into Regent Park. I’m endlessly curious about anything that looks like a free festival, so when I saw tents selling food and jewelry, I ducked down that street to check it out. I got a very friendly greeting at all of the booths I…
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Artist Spotlight: Aqua Alta / Jenn Grant
I know I already did one this week, but then this new stuff slid across my dashboard and it stopped me in my eternal scroll and I had to share it, so here we are. Two in one week. Except that this is actually two in one post, so three. Well, I make the rules, such as they are, so I guess I can break them. Aqua Alta is a new project by Jenn Grant, Charles Austin, and Graeme Campbell. So far, it’s barely more than a tease – a name, a one-pager website with no info or photos, and just three songs. The first two got my attention, but…
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Artist Spotlight: Lakes of Canada
I can’t remember where I first heard Lakes of Canada, but I feel as though in the last month or so, their name has come up a dozen or more times. Rousing, fun, intelligent, and skillful, I think they’d kill whether in an intimate bar or on a festival stage. This is the kind of band that can get a cross-generational audience up on their feet dancing as well as lining up at the merch table. Great harmonies and overall vocals, as well as a nice mix of instrumentation, make listening to their music a lovely experience. Add to that their really beautifully-crafted sound a slew of fun, watchable videos…
