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What To Pack For Osheaga

July 29th, 2010 | By: Melody Lau

Not exactly what I had in mind when I said sun protection...

For those throwing clothes across their room right now, searching for the perfect outfit to wear to this weekend’s Osheaga festivities in Montreal, PAUSE. Read this list of essentials to bring with you, it should help you with your packing list. That perfect outfit though? Well that’s still your responsibility, go ahead and continue throwing clothes around. My room’s not looking so hot either…

1) How much do you love your hearing?
I mention this every time, folks. No matter where you are, indoors or out, you need to protect those ears of yours. BRING EARPLUGS. Forgot them? Swing by a drug store and pick up a pack.

2) The sun is not your friend. I repeat, NOT.
Sunburns are not fun. So to prevent yourself from looking like a lobster don’t forget to bring sunscreen and a hat.

3) CFF – Concert Friends Forever!
Let’s face it – it’s not fun going to a show alone let alone a festival. So make sure you have at least one buddy there with you at all times to prevent lonely crying sessions in the bush.

4) Say cheese!
Cameras – no, not the fancy ones that will get confiscated by security. Anything from a small digital camera to cheap disposable ones will do. Just so you can document all the great bands and maybe your friend who forgot to bring sunscreen and actually ends up looking like a lobster. I guarantee you there will be at least one person in your group who will forget.

5) Umbrella
No matter what the Weather Network says. Mother Nature is not kind.

Tags: festival, montreal, osheaga, what to pack
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Let’s Chat: Braids

July 23rd, 2010 | By: Carmel Garvez

Les Braids

Braids is composed of Raphaelle Standell-Preston, Austin Tufts, Katie Lee, and Taylor Smith. Friends from high school, this quartet laces together intricate dream-pop that flourishes with layers of gorgeous melodies and harmonies to create opuses like the nine-minute stunner “Lemonade”, which you can sample on the band’s MySpace (link below). The band recently relocated to Montreal, by way of Calgary, mostly for school which the band has now put on hold temporarily to focus on Braids. On a fine Saturday evening, we chat on the phone about their experiences touring, playing goth venues, and their aspirations to play with Celine Dion.

The Singing Lamb: I saw you a couple of weeks ago in a basement, and that (sort of) marked the end of your tour with GOBBLE GOBBLE. What was that like – touring with them?

Tufts: It was really, really fun. When you’re on the road, there are so many different relationships. And when you develop that relationship with somebody within the span of 2-3 weeks, like we did with Gobble Gobble, it’s nice because you actually get to know the people and have a few more intimate moments, whereas on the road, everything is so fleeting. So it’s a nice contrast to tour with really nice people like Gobble Gobble. They’re honestly some of the nicest people I’ve ever met.

Besides playing basements, what other strange venues have you played at? What was the weirdest?

Standell-Preston: On our last Canadian tour, we were playing in Saskatoon and we got put in this venue called Walkers Night Club. So we load into the venue through the back, and then we go down these really dark stairs and go into this room with this huge metal door and dirt floor and there were these chains in the corner. We were all like, “Holy Shit, what is this place?” Then we go into the main part of the room, and there were cages on either side of the stage. Like, Cages for creepy dancers. Also, there were two television screens, and they were playing this super creepy movie that was of high contrast. It was about people who would go around and rip out people’s hearts. So, we just went out to get food, and my grandparents came early. They were super petrified and they left. Since then, they’ve been kind of concerned about what kind of music I’m playing.

Is there a particular venue you wish to play?

Tufts: I don’t know. We come from Calgary, and there’s this venue there that’s in the shape of a horse saddle. It’s the hockey stadium and it kind of looks like a big Pringle. It’s probably the worst acoustic-sounding hockey stadium ever but it would be really funny to play there. Plus, it holds thirty thousand people. Raphaelle has seen Avril Lavigne and Coldplay there, and I saw Motley Crue.

Who would join you in your dream line-up?

Tufts: Raphaelle would put Celine Dion on our line-up. Quebec celebrates Celine Dion Day. It was quite an experience last week, it’s kind of ridiculous. Millions of fireworks and Celine Dion songs for forty-five minutes straight. Maybe our dream date would be on the island where they set off the fireworks, playing with Celine Dion. Maybe she’d sing over a Braids song. Or sing all of Raphaelle’s parts, and she would just sit there and have a kick out of it.

There is an obvious closeness between the four of you. I noticed that you huddle before playing; what goes on in that huddle?

Tufts: We usually do that before we get on stage. We like to get close before a show and remind ourselves of what we really value. We remind ourselves to really focus on time and being delicate. It’s nice to keep close and picking a moment to de-stress before you play, because soundchecks are often so hectic. And we find that just by touching each other–

Standell-Preston: Austin! You make it sound like we’re having an orgy!

Tufts: We’re not having an orgy! You know what I mean. It really helps to be close, I think.

How has the Montreal environment influenced your sound? What do you like about the Montreal music scene, in comparison to Calgary’s? How do they differ in terms of affecting you as a band?

Standell-Preston: I wouldn’t say that Montreal had a direct affect on the type of sound we have… It’s the fact that we moved out and started living on our own. We had our first practice space in our parents’ garages and I think that kind of freedom and responsibility definitely had an impact. I think we started writing songs that are a bit more reflective, in my mind, and a bit more personal. When you’re in Calgary and you’re working a job, and you know your parents are feeding you, things seem pretty easy. But when we moved out of that element, I think our music definitely started to take on our personal characteristics. I understand that [Montreal and Calgary] are two different places; I like to think of Canada as a whole. But the thing that I can point out is that there’s a lot more venues [in Montreal], especially DIY venues, which is really great. Apart from that, there’s maybe a larger all-ages scene. I know that in Calgary, they’re having quite a lot of difficulty with the all-ages scene.

And has your French improved since moving to La belle province?

Lee: Well, I learned French from ETS to grade seven. I was probably better at French then than I am now. But I guess so. I mean, I know how to greet. Raphaelle knows how to order her breakfast. Austin took French for a year, so he’s pretty good and Taylor has been in French Immersion since he was little. I’d like to get better at French this year for sure, now that we’re taking a year off school.

What does the future hold for Braids?

Tufts: Global Domination. We’re just going to tour a lot and support this album the best we can. We’re really lucky because we’ve been set up with a really wonderful group of people in the States and Canada, who are going to help us put out a record and help us book our tours and stuff like that. So touring lots and recording another record, because we really want to keep moving in a positive and new direction. And we’re really looking forward to exploring some new sounds. We’ve all been kind of obsessed with very well-crafted electronic music, but we all really like playing live instruments. We kind of want to learn how to incorporate a sense of electronic music into our live set-up and just keep evolving the sound and not define it as anything and put any limitations on it and just see how it forms.

Is going back to school an option?

Tufts: I think we all intend to go back to school. As of five minutes ago, Raphaelle decided to become a marine biologist. So, she might go to school for that someday. But you know, Raphaelle’s a pretty impulsive person and she wants to be Celine Dion someday, so wherever Celine Dion went to school, that’s were Raph’s going. But we all definitely have intentions to go back to school. We’re just going ride this out for as long as it’s really fun and as long as it’s sustainable…

And finally, if you were singing animal, what would you be?

Tufts: That’s funny because there are so many bands with animal names! But I feel like we would be a quartet of giraffes, because giraffes have no vocal chords and it’s really important to embrace silence once in a while.

For More,
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/braidsmusic

Don’t forget to catch Braids tonight at the Garrison, as part of Shamewave (also featuring Colleen and Paul, Shapes + Sizes and Nick Storring!)

Tags: braids, calgary, celine dion, garrison, montreal, shamewave
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Show Announcement

March 24th, 2010 | By: Guest Contributor

The competition for the title of best summer music festival in North America just got another contender.

The acts scheduled to play this year’s Osheaga Music Festival were announced this week, and in case you missed it, it’s pretty damn impressive. The two-day festival takes place on July 31st and August 1st in downtown Montreal, and boasts a lineup that includes Weezer, Pavement, Metric, The National, Stars, Deadmau5, The Cat Empire, Keane, The Black Keys, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Jimmy Cliff, The Gaslight Anthem, Beach House, Jamie Lidell, Robyn, Sarah Harmer, Blitzen Trapper, Bahamas, and more.

The most exciting part of this announcement? By popular demand, this year’s Osheaga will see the first Canadian performance by Montreal’s Arcade Fire since their Neon Bible tour in 2007. The hometown heroes will be headlining the festival’s first day, and if that doesn’t excite you, than you clearly haven’t seen the band’s Miroir Noir tour documentary or this before.

To recap: some amazing bands (including four of my ten all-time favourites, but I’m not going to tell you which ones), outdoors in beautiful Parc Jean-Drapeau, with reasonably-priced single day and weekend passes. Pre-sale tickets are already sold out, but you can head over to the Osheaga website for more information, or follow the festival on Twitter for the latest updates.

Tags: arcade fire, awesomeness, metric, montreal, osheaga, Pavement, stars, summer music festival, the black keys, the national, weezer
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The Singing Lamb Recommends…

December 3rd, 2009 | By: Melody Lau

Parlovr

You know when you’re writing your year-end lists and you look back on particular albums and are confused as to what year it came out but then it hits you that you had missed the bandwagon just by a few months as that record was actually from the previous year? There’s always one of those, if not two or three. For many people I’ve talked to, Parlovr was that band of this year.

I had purchased their self-titled LP a couple of months ago, gotten really excited and jazzed about it and was almost prepared to give it top mentions on my ‘Best of ‘09’ list when it hit me – this was a 2008 release. Fuck.

Timing aside, Montreal’s Parlovr was probably one of my most exciting discoveries of the year. The immediate draw of “Pen to the Paper” on the band’s debut album would be able to suck any listener in and keep them hooked. The trio’s power pop-rock anthems and quirky sing-along choruses are reminiscent of fellow Montreal bands The Lovely Feathers and Malajube. Lead singer Louis Jackson sings with a conviction that’s both intimidating and inviting at the same time. But if anything comes out of the band’s music most, it would be they’re sense of passion and fun.

Funny enough, I had just missed their performance at Pop Montreal by mere hours but I was luckily able to catch their set at the Garrison last Sunday as part of Wavelength. Why they weren’t put on the same bill as the band that followed, the aforementioned Lovely Feathers, God knows. But regardless, Parlovr delivered that exact same energy on record in their live performance, but maybe doubled the force. One cannot help but to be hit by a wave of loud, dancey pop tunes and begin to dance – and if you don’t dance watching them live, you’re rhythmically challenged.

Parlovr is definitely a band to watch in the new year as I can see this band continue to be discovered and noticed in the upcoming months, and before you know it, they’ll be that band you look back on a realized that you were two years behind. Oh year-end lists, how you make me feel slow.

***

For more Parlovr,

MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/parlourmontreal

Tags: montreal, parlovr
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Review : Les Handclaps, You Say Party! We Say Die! & Think About Life @ Festival de musique indépendante Diapason – November 7, 2009

November 8th, 2009 | By: Guest Contributor

Think About Life

The festival de musique indépendante Diapason (lovingly called the FMID) is a brand new music festival daringly mixing french pop artists, hip-hop acts and indie rockers for four days of musical fun. It’s not everyday that Laval hosts an event that stimulating for the music scene, because, well, there’s no music scene in Laval, just a lot of shopping centers (don’t listen to me, there are also beautiful country roads and a nice bicycle path on the south-east part of the island). I have to explain though, when you live in Montréal going to Laval, all the way north on the orange line, seems like the end of the world (and you have to pay to get back on the metro after that? What?). So the few dozens of courageous Montréalers were rewarded by cheap beer and extreme proximity to the stage. Oh, and the show was only 3$.

The venue, called le TRAC, is in the Montmorency CÉGEP. It’s a tiny seated venue with a stage the size of your double bed. It felt like we were all back in high school, waiting for the cool music kids to play a few ska songs on lunch break. The venue seats not more than 150 people and due to the distance and the fact that both headliners are playing a show tonight in Montreal (at Il Motore, with Immaculate Machine), a few hundred people showed up.

Openers Les Handclaps, self described as an electro-pop-yéyé band, warmed up the few attendees, which at this point were still sitting in their wooden chairs and not moving much (I have to admit we weren’t doing much moving either; too busy figuring out what the f was happening on that stage). I’ve been meaning to check them out for a while now, to see what all the hype was about, after hearing their single “Cacti are delicious fruit” (which does not make sense, by the way. Hear for yourself at MySpace) and I was a bit flabbergasted when the first song consisted of a drum beat and someone rapping. The band seemed to counteract the fact that the crowd wasn’t into it at all by having fun as a band on stage. Kudos to the guitarist for his rock star moves. It wasn’t Brendan Canning moves but they were entertaining nonetheless. The singer, Lorraine Muller, did her very best to get people dancing. She made the three people who responded to her attempts sing with her, screamed and danced around. They seemed like they were having a blast on stage, it’s a shame that it just didn’t translate past the monitors. Verdict: Les Handclaps are just another generic pop-rock band that likes cheesy rhymes and French pop. But if you’re into Chocolat, Orange Orange or Creature, you’ll like Les Handclaps. Their music must be nice for easy listening on a summer afternoon; it’s just that I’m sick of generic franco-pop bands.

MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/leshandclaps

The crowd was still comfortably sat when Vancouver’s You Say Party! We Say Die! came on stage (the stage set up included four giant glowing X’s, really nice!). They asked everyone to sit up and dance if they wanted to, which got very little reaction at first but after the first song everyone except the few straight faced hipsters started dancing. “Opportunity” from 2007’s Lose All Time finally got some kind of vibe going as the five members of the band tried dancing and jumping around without bumping in something/someone. Becky Ninkovic’s voice is stronger than before and it was very well displayed during XXXX’s new, slower, more heartfelt songs. They did a slower, more vocally focused version of “Monster” during which Ninkovic started walking through the crowd, looking at each of us in the eyes and smiling. At some point in the last song, she grabbed a drumstick and lightly tapped everyone on the head like it was her magic wand. Very endearing. Despite the horrible sound and awkwardness of the seating situation, the venue was great for actual contact with the bands. We could literally hear everyone breath and swallowed mouthfuls of cheap beer. YSP!’s set seemed too short and some of us started asking for “THE GAP! PLEASE PLAY THE GAP!” to which the singer’s reaction was “No! You guys! Think About life are coming, you should be glad!” Becky, you are adorable (but seriously I really wanted to scream my heart out and dance violently to “The Gap”).

MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/yousaypartywesaydie

Next up were Montréal’s own Think About Life. Do I even need to praise them for their entertainment abilities anymore? I think it’s a well known fact that a Think About Life show is guaranteed fun. Last night was no exception. Even with huge sound problems and not being able to hear themselves on stage, they turned the place into an all around dance floor. “Paul Cries” was interrupted when Von Pelt just couldn’t follow the beat because of the cacophony. The soundwoman came to the rescue and the song was played again. New drummer Greg successfully entertained the crowd while everyone was busy with monitors, wires and fancy technical words. The stage banter was the best as usual, Martin speaking french the entire time and making conversation with the front row. They performed the whole Family album and came back for one encore with the crowd chanting, in the true Think About Life show spirit, “Think About Life!” over and over. The stage unexpectedly doubled as a dance floor, leaving the band kind of confused. Bassist/Singer/Awesome dancer Caila Thompson-Hannant seemed pleasantly surprised when the bunch of 16-year-olds bumped into her bass to get on stage and dance their ass off. Speaking of Caila, I just want to acknowledge her killer dance move and all around awesomeness. That’s all.

So, Toronto, you definitely can’t miss them November 20^th at the Phoenix (with Little Girls).

MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/thinkaboutlife

Tags: festival de musique indépendante Diapason, fmid, les handclaps, montreal, think about life, you say party we say die
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Let’s Chat: Bell Orchestre

April 25th, 2009 | By: Melody Lau

Bell Orchestre

(Sitting in the Courthouse (57 Adelaide Street East))

The Singing Lamb: This is a really nice venue; have you been here before?

Pietro Amato: No! It’s a crazy club place; it reminds me of one of those places that would be in lower St. Laurent (in Montreal).

Kaveh Nabatian: It’s the first place I’ve ever played that had glowing tables.

Stefan Schneider: It’s kind of a cross between a beautiful, fancy hall and a dance club; it’s gorgeous.

Yeah, rarely do you see a disco ball hanging right beneath a chandelier.

Kaveh: There should be more of it.

Pietro: Have you been to the bathrooms? There are these lions and it’s fucking amazing! We should’ve done this interview in the bathrooms!

Kaveh: Too bad there’s no visual.

Do you guys like playing alternative venues like this?

Stefan: I definitely do; I love changing it up. Like, we played a series of six shows and in Ottawa we played a really nice church. We always like playing churches.

Kaveh: A beautiful old art deco hall in Montreal; we played a rock club last night. A couple of months ago we played a symphony orchestra hall.

Pietro: Quebec City, we played in a theatre company house. That was also really cool. It’s more fun for this band to play in places that are kind of conducive to getting people to listen to the music rather than being in a bar where they’re making a lot of noise and people are just there to drink and talk. So this kind of venue is nice where people kind of settle in. As long as it’s not the crowd that normally comes here…to dance.

Stefan: It looks like a venue that’s conducive to just sitting on the couch and talking loud. Yeah, it’s cool but I hope we have an attentive audience.

There’s a lot of couches on the floor…

Pietro: Yeah, there’s a lot but it’s a lounge.

Kaveh: I think the new record of music we’ve put out is like a listening experience. There are a couple of songs you can definitely dance to but in general, it’s more of a listening experience so I think it’s okay if there are couches. If you want to sit down, you can sit down and relax; close your eyes and listen to music if they want. Or lie down.

Just don’t fall asleep!

Pietro: I love falling asleep at classical music concerts; it’s my favourite thing. I go to see the fucking symphony orchestra and I fall asleep. And at the end I go, “Did I just waste thirty bucks?” and then I’m like, “No, I had a great time. Made me have some really good dreams!”

Stefan: Yeah, I don’t really fall asleep in those chairs. If there were pillows and mattresses at the symphony orchestra, I would go all the time.

Do you like it when people sleep at your shows?

Pietro: Well yeah!

Kaveh: Generally, it’s just people who are tripping out to the music and lying down. Standing up can get tiring for an hour and a half. It’s definitely visual; there’s lots going on onstage but you can shut your eyes and it’s very evocative.

Stefan: Yeah, one of my favourite things to do is to fall asleep to really loud music, blasting out of my stereo systems. It’s kind of like an experience at one of our shows. That’s a dream.

Is there anywhere you dream of playing one day?

Pietro: Yeah, many. Especially tall ships; I think a tour on a tall ship would be really fun.

Kaveh: Spaceships.

Pietro: Yeah, if we could tour on a spaceship and tour around different planets that would be really fun.

Stefan: I was thinking of an underwater tour of the ocean. We’ll be playing music for the schools of fish.

Kaveh: You should jam with the dolphins! But on a more concrete level, for me, just to play in places where people don’t often play. Like, we played the Baltic’s last year and that was really amazing and not a lot of bands play there so we got to go to an anarchist squat and beautiful theatres and all sorts of different stuff. I’d like to do similar like that in Latin America.

Pietro: Dawson City would be fun.

Kaveh: Yeah, or Mexico! I think we’d like to play in small towns in Mexico. Yeah, just to get away from the whole hipster rock and roll kind of thing.

Stefan: And prisons; we’d seriously like to play in them. We’re actually working on doing that in the near future.

Many people describe your music as “cinematic”. Do you feel like your music would make for good soundtrack music? Would you ever score a film?

Kaveh: I think we’d love to do it but the thing is the music as it is right now moves a lot, really quickly and the reality is that movies don’t move as quickly as our music. So I think movies have tried to put our stuff on it and it just doesn’t work because moods change. Like, Sigur Ros does really good movie music because it’s really, really slow-moving but I think if we were given a movie we would do a good job scoring, we’d just have to change the way we perform.

Stefan: That said, I think when people listen to our music, they get a lot of images and I think that’s why people say it’s cinematic.

Pietro: There’s no singer to tell you what the song is about so it lets your imagination run a bit more and you can get into the bubble of the music.

If you could describe your new album as a movie, how would you describe it?

Kaveh: I think it’ll work well with cinema that has layers. Movies where they don’t tell you what to think, kind of like our music – it doesn’t have a singer to tell you what to think. Movies are more of a poetic, metaphoric imagery that I think our music shows so I think, I don’t know, the Mirror by Tchaikovsky or a movie about the end of the world or the beginning of the world.

Stefan: Not a narrative or anything like that.

Kaveh: Yeah, it wouldn’t work well with a Juno-type of movie. Like, American-hipster, indie…

Stefan: Hey, it could. It could be called American Hipster!

Let’s talk about the new album. Do you feel like it’s a continuation of the first album or a completely different chapter?

Pietro: I think it’s a continuation but also an evolution. The music has evolved and we’ve all evolved. Well, since the first record came out, it’s been five years? We recorded the first record in ’03, so definitely the music has changed but it still the same people that are involved in creating it so in that sense its a continuation and an evolution.

Stefan: We’ve all evolved musically since then, we’re all doing various things so as time passes, it will have naturally evolved.

Kaveh: It’s also a little more of a subtler record. It’s not as bombastic as the first record. The louder, more bombastic moments are chosen more carefully and there are these subtle build ups and subtleties everywhere.

And finally, if you were a singing animal, what would you be?

Kaveh: (at Pietro) He would be a lone moose.

Pietro: I would.

Stefan: With no one else.

Kaveh: (at Stefan) What would you be? An octopus?

Stefan: Let me finish that DVD, Planet Earth and I’ll probably have a few animals to be. Because every time I watch it, there are these new amazing animals. There’s this one climate where all the animals are just mini, like the deer are just 30 cm high…

Kaveh: Does this really exist?

Stefan: Yeah, dude it’s amazing! And the deer’s calves are the size of kittens and they’re little baby dear and all the trees are little! I feel like I’m one of those.

Kaveh: I don’t believe you.

Stefan: No! When we get back to Montreal, I’ll show you. I’d be a baby dear. I’d be one of the calves; I’ll be, like 7 cm tall.

Kaveh: What would I be?

Stefan: Some sort of orang-utan.

Pietro: Generally, we’re all monkeys in Bell Orchestre, but we’re all different kinds.

Stefan: You’d be a jungle animal of some sort. So yeah, an orang-utan.

For more Bell Orchestre
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/bellorchestre
Website: http://www.bellorchestre.com/

Tags: arts and crafts records, bell orchestre, interview, montreal
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Tu frenches tu? (Part deux)

March 23rd, 2009 | By: Guest Contributor

Lila dit ca (Copyright Roy Patrick)

Bonjour! Are you addicted to Malajube’s new album yet? You can watch them perform five songs offLabyrinthes, including the single “Les collemboles” on the bande a part website. While you’re there check out Duchess Says’ session as well! Dumas is finally back with a new and, may I add, magnificent album:Rouge. You can listen to “Quelque part”, “Le son de vos voix” and “Un train dans la nuit” on his MySpace. For this blog, I decided to go all thematic on you guys. These are the current contestants for the 13th edition of Les Francouvertes, a contest for indie French-speaking bands that takes place every year at Lion D’or. I handpicked la creme de la creme for your listening pleasures.

Lila dit ca

Lila dit ca is a book by the mysterious Chimo. Just like the author of the book, these guys are fine masters of their art. Every harmony, every lyric and tiny sound is there for a reason which is, in my opinion, what makes the greatest songs. It takes you back to the sole pleasure of listening to music, getting lost in the guitar riffs and cymbal thumping. They’ve been compared to the Velvet Underground and Black Lips. A very enjoyable and addictive band, listen without moderation. No but seriously, click the link; you’ll be glad you did.

MySpace: www.myspace.com/liladitca

Lac Estion

What started as a temporary La Raisin Secte side project became an EP and the EP became an album. Lac Estion’s music was meant to be a Christmas present for a girl guitarist PA Brochet (also of Le Roi Poisson) he was pretty fond of. Unfortunately, the girl dumped him because he spent more time working on the EP than with her. We were left with this collection of airy guitar driven songs sprinkled with a dash of bitterness. Lac Estion is by far the best thing that ever got out of a bad break-up. Think Bon Iver and Broken Social Scene’s handsome French lovechild. They are launching their very first record, called Affranchi, tomorrow at Divan Orange. More information on their MySpace.

MySpace: www.myspace.com/lacestion

On a cree un monstre

This pop/rock trio began “creating the monster” back in 2006 in Montreal via Sorel. They recorded their first EP with the help of music master Renaud Bastien (Malajube, Coeur de Pirate) back in 2008. Their song “Dorval”, a hate letter to Dorval airport (Oh Dorval I hate you/An airplane takes off and takes my heart with it), was a favorite on college radios and the demo landed a well deserved 26th position in the 2008 CISM (Universite de Montreal radio) top 50. They mix catchy vocal harmonies, fantastic melodies and danceable rhythms perfectly, resulting in instant hit songs for wise ears.

MySpace: www.myspace.com/onacreeunmonstre

Peppertree

You know when it’s -35C, there’s 20cm of snow at your doorstep and you lost all the love you had for Canada? Well, I think I got the solution. Peppertree made me dance like a 4 year old at Christmas while I was shoveling snow this winter. I would describe it as heart warming pop/rock coated with sugar. The song “Insecte” takes you back to Radiohead’s OK Computer with its beautiful arrangements. The vocals are often used as an additional instrument much like Malajube do, except you can actually hear Peppertree’s lyrics, which is a good thing. I think Peppertree might as well be my Malajube. Oh and they also sing in English.

MySpace: www.myspace.com/pptree
Where you can download several songs for free: http://www.peppertree.ws

Les Francouvertes’ finals will be held at Club Soda on April 27th. Lac Estion and Peppertree are still in the race. 2008′s winners, La Patere Rose, released their first record last week; you can hear 3 songs on MySpace. Have a good week lovelies!

Zut Alors,
Christine

Tags: french, lac estion, lila dit ca, montreal, on a cree un monstre, peppertree
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That Sounds Familiar…

February 2nd, 2009 | By: Guest Contributor

Regina Spektor

Ever since Soviet Kitsch was released worldwide, Regina Spektor has been shedding her veil of obscurity and gaining popularity everywhere.

Her songs have appeared in shows like CSI: NY, Criminal Minds, Weeds, and Grey’s Anatomy. Her song “Fidelity” was also used in the trailer for 27 Dresses, and even a JC Penny commercial was graced with the voice of Ms. Spektor.

One cannot help but be taken with her unique vocal style, quirky song lyrics, and admirable piano skills…not to mention the fact that she is positively adorable.

But recently, Spektor sound-alikes have also been growing in popularity as fast as her sound has.

In fact, there has been much controversy and dispute over whether Spektor was the voice behind a song in a recent Rice Krispies commercial. The song was not actually not her, but a composition created specifically for the commercial. A friend of mine also thought that a song in a recent Macbook Air commercial was Spektor, but after consulting the Internet, conceded that it was “New Soul” by Yael Naim.

But going beyond television ads, there are some artists who could almost replace Spektor in case of laryngitis, and only die-hard fans would notice.

Caroline Keating is a Montreal-based artist whose likeness to Regina is eerie at times. Her pronunciations and her voice sometimes sound almost completely like Spektor. She has a totally vintage look, and her bouncy/catchy music and use of piano are also reminiscent of Spektor.

If I had heard Keating before Spektor, I think I would have been nuts for her; she’s very talented and her music is bouncy and intriguing. However, hearing her after years of Spektor-love distracts from her talent; the music is almost too similar. However, her work is still worth a listen; some of her songs are truly unique, and one has to admire the talent it took to create each piece. Plus, if you feel like being more hipster than your friends, while still listening to something Regina Spektor-ish, this girl has got it.

Another Montreal-based singer, Beatrice Martin of coeur de pirate, has also been compared to Spektor in the past. While it is true that her use of piano is very reminiscent of Spektor, and their voices do sound similar at times, Martin differs in some key ways.

For starters, if one saw Martin walking down the road with her tattooed arms and long blonde hair, one would be more inclined to think that she was in a rock band or maybe the rebellious background dancer for the Pussycat Dolls, instead of an accomplished pianist.

Besides not looking the part, she also has an ensemble behind her while performing; violin, guitar, bass, drums, and the alto sax. This gives her music a more varied sound, although she cannot boast self-proficiency like Spektor and Keating.

Call me crazy, but I think that the fact that coeur de pirate’s music is entirely in French also adds a lot to the sound; it’s beautiful to listen to, and just using another language changes Martin’s sound and sets her further from Spektor.

I have to say that I am a bigger fan of Martin than Keating; her sound is similar to Spektor’s, but it is also distinctly different.

So what’s the final verdict? Regina Spektor and her music are one of a kind. No sound-alike can quite match her vocals or has that certain…soviet kitsch. (please pardon the pun)

However, the music that she inspires is often beautiful as well. As long as the artist can really find a way to separate themselves from Spektor, she is a great inspiration for creation.

Keep it real kids,
Cashlyn

Tags: caroline keating, coeur de pirate, french, montreal, regina spektor
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Tu frenches tu? (Part 1)

February 1st, 2009 | By: Guest Contributor

Pas Chic Chic

It’s time to french it up, people. Here’s a first glimpse at what Montreal’s french independent music scene has to offer.

Pas Chic Chic

The band came together in 2005, reuniting members from various mythical Montreal bands such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Fly Pan Am. Their 2008 debut album Au Contraire was nominated for the Polaris Music Prize (won by Caribou) but unfortunately did not make the short list. Pas Chic Chic’s music combines shoegaze and French pop; let’s say Serge Gainsbourg meets Blonde Redhead in a sketchy corner of Montreal. It’s poppy enough to make you dance and has enough depth to make you want to listen to the album three times a day. (MySpace)

Pas chic chic will play a show at El Mocambo in Toronto for Canadian Music Week on March 12th along with fellow Montrealers Radio Radio, Duchess Says, We Are Wolves and Malajube.

Karkwa

If you like Malajube you will fall in love with Karkwa. If Malajube annoys the crap out of you with their non-sense lyrics and pre-teen vocals, you will fall even more for Karkwa. It’s a win-win situation, really. They have three albums out, their second album, Les tremblements s’immobilisent launched them into the Quebec music scene and made them local favorites. Their heart-wrenching alternative rock and brilliant song writing are complimented by great melodies, which make this band nearly perfect. Rarely do male fronted bands move me like Karkwa have. They evoke that warm feeling you get when you fall in love or cuddle a puppy. But don’t be mistaken, they are a rock band. (Come on, click the link. I strongly recommend “La Facade”. You can also go here to stream their albums for free!)

Misteur Valaire

Simply put, Misteur Valaire are a beloved super group of musical geniuses. Their music isn’t something you describe, it’s something you experience. It’s a mix of electronic, jazz, rock and an acid trip. They’ve made their albums available as free downloads on their website. They played M for Montreal and are renowned, legendary even, for their explosive live performances. (MySpace) And free music! What’s better than free music?

Alright, so while you anxiously (not really) await part 2 of this series of frenched up blogs, go listen to these and tell me what you think: Le roi poisson, Lac estion and El Motor. May your ears be pleased!

Zut Alors,
Christine

Tags: french, karkwa, m for montreal, misteur valaire, montreal, pas chic chic
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Godspeed

October 10th, 2008 | By: Melody Lau

Jenny Lewis

And so the turkey weekend begins. As you read this, I will have already cracked open a can of Nestea, on the train to Montreal. But thank the lord for Wi-Fi on the train, as I will be able to catch up on some serious listening.

To start off, I really have to listen to Ms. Jenny Lewis’ latest release, Acid Tongue. Funny enough, I also had a delayed start on her previous record, Rabbit Fur Coat. I immediately fell in love with that one, but from the looks of some reviews I’ve read recently about Acid Tongue, I don’t know if I’ll have the same luck this time around. Oh well, I’ll just have to see for myself, won’t I? After all, I ended up loving Mother Mother’s new record, O My Heart, even after reading terrible reviews on it. But quickly back on the subject of Jenny Lewis, as I noticed today, she just so happens to be gracing the cover of this season’s Under the Radar – and as always, looking gorgeous as ever! Gosh, can she ever look bad?

Another band that I’ll most likely be listening to on the train would be Department of Eagles. I remember hearing about them and checking out their track, “No One Does it Like You” about a month ago and loving it. But since then, I forgot about them. Then, I started to see their name everywhere on Pitchfork and Stereogum lately, what with their appearance on Conan O’Brien and stuff, so I’ve decided to dig them up yet again. And I’ve got to say, they are amazing. If you haven’t checked them out yet, do it! I’d especially suggest them to fans of Grizzly Bear since both bands share members… but I’m pretty sure fans already knew that. Check out their recent little rooftop appearance at Pitchfork!

So since I’ll be in Montreal, I thought I’d give a quick, tiny list of French bands to check out (most of which was originally suggested by our soon-to-be MTL correspondent, Christine). Pay attention and take note as some of these bands are totally worth listening to: Camille, Malajube, Karkwa, Dumas, and The Hot Springs.

In addition to those five, I was brought to the attention of a girl named Coeur de Pirate a couple of months ago. She played Osheaga, but due to ridiculous schedule constraints, I missed her. Here’s a simple summary of her music though – Regina Spektor. There. When I first paid a visit to her MySpace, my initial reaction was, “Holy shit that is a French Regina Spektor – literally!!” Don’t believe me? See for yourself.

Back to Toronto news though…

Sonic Boom is on a roll when it comes to in-stores lately. Last week, the ever-amazing Chad Vangaalen played a sweet, short set there and coming up on Tuesday (as I mentioned already) will be Toronto’s very own Lioness. To add on to the joy, Torontonians will be treated to a free performance by Memphis’ Jay Reatard on Thursday October 16th (7 pm). Though he’s had his share of problems with the city, it’s good to see him back. Hopefully the in-store will be a peaceful, joyous one. Let’s make beautiful music, not war.

For those who read my old blog, you would know that I’m a huge fan of the online series, Nirvana the Band the Show. So just a heads-up that an alternative ending for their 6th episode was put up recently, which will help segway into the 7th episode beautifully. At first, I didn’t like the new ending, but come to think of it now, it’s so much more fitting to the show’s humour and light-heartedness. Anyway, go watch the show… now. For more goodness, an exciting interview with Matt and Jay will be posted on the Singing Lamb sometime next week, as I will be writing it up on the train. Yeah, I’ve got lots of work to do on the train – but most of which will probably just start with an ‘s’ and end with ‘leeping’.

Looking for some December fun? Well Sarah Slean just announced that she and “friends” will be hosting their Annual Holiday Show at Harbourfront’s Enwave Theatre on Friday December 19th. Sounds enticingly good.

For now, I shall bid you a good weekend. I will continue to make daily posts, regardless of how hungover I may get! Because you guys mean that much to me! Hope Torontonians don’t rock out too much without me.

Musically,
Melody

Tags: coeur de pirate, department of eagles, in store, jay reatard, jenny lewis, montreal, nirvana the band the show, sarah slean, sonic boom
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