[NXNE] 3am Revelations’ Thursday Recap

Kirk Hamilton of the music blog, 3am Revelations came all the way from Vancouver to Toronto – through CBC’s Tracks on Tracks – to experience the North By Northeast festivities last week. Read his daily recaps here as well as on his own blog!

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I had dubbed my second day of NXNE my “unplanned” day. I was just going to go with the flow, and see where the day took me. In the evening, this resulted in five shows, all in different venues, and all bands I hadn’t seen before.

First, though, was the Audio Blood Rooftop Riot party. They boasted free Steam Whistle and vitamin water —  and later on frozen treats to combat the blazing sun — with a number of the bands on their roster performing. The bands throughout the day were all pretty good; not too much that really caught my attention, but nothing that I didn’t like either. There was a two-piece that was pretty good, but since they never said their name, I still have no idea who they are, and Sandman Viper Command put on an energetic set. But it was Les Breastfeeders that I was impressed by most. The francophone rockers had a good energy and catchy songs, and had their set not been at 3am, I probably would have caught them again later in the night.

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[NXNE] 3am Revelations’ Wednesday Recap

Kirk Hamilton of the music blog, 3am Revelations came all the way from Vancouver to Toronto – through CBC’s Tracks on Tracks – to experience the North By Northeast festivities last week. Read his daily recaps here as well as on his own blog!

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My first time ever at North By North East started off last night, and it began with the ending of Tracks on Tracks. For those who haven’t been following along, Tracks on Tracks is a project put together by Vancouver’s Green Couch, with some help from CBC Radio 3 and VIA Rail. The event took ten bands from Vancouver to Toronto by train, with bands playing every night, some acoustic sets throughout the day, and even a few shows at stops along the way.

All the bands that were on the train — save the duo of Zach Gray and Adrian Glynn, who were last minute additions, played about a half hour each for a long, but amazing, night of spotlighting BC’s finest music.

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[NXNE] Action Bronson @ Drake Hotel – June 16, 2012

It’s hard to talk about an Action Bronson concert without it sounding like a work of fiction. Somehow everything he does seems truly unbelievable.

Saturday night he played a set in the Drake Underground, and even with the venues mid-sized status, Bronson instantly made it feel like a basement party. You’d hardly know there were people with popped collars just one floor up.

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[NXNE] Killer Mike @ Wrongbar – June 16, 2012

By the time Killer Mike stepped on stage at the Wrongbar Saturday night, it was impossible not to feel a sense of urgency. After all, even as a twelve-year veteran of the rap scene, this is Killer Mike’s Toronto debut.

Hailing from Atlanta, Killer Mike gained recognition for his affiliation with Outkast, and even won a grammy for his appearance in “The Whole World”. Sadly, he’s never been able to repeat that success on his own. After a slew of underappreciated releases, Mike shifted sounds to a synth heavy production by El-P, and judging by the crowd at the Wrongbar, everything is finally coming into place.

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