Sorry for the delay on our WHIT post this week – we might’ve gone a wee bit overboard with the St. Patty’s Day celebrations. Nevertheless, here’s this weekend’s to-do list…
As Toronto slowly returns to their regular 9-5 lives after one hectic week of late nights, loud music and one too many beers (thanks CMW!), this local duo aren’t ready to let you get too comfortable just yet.
After years of live performances that have made unfamiliar party attendees eager for something to take home with them, Jay and Cass of 84.85 have dropped their Good Problems EP – a collection of new tracks that will have you wondering why you hadn’t been exposed to them earlier. With a blend of dark, bass heavy production and bravado-laced lyrics that could put your favorite MC to shame, it’s easy to see why that anticipation is justified. However, their live show is what’ll truly satisfy the non-believers. 84.85 make sure everyone within eye sight gets involved, and it’s hard not to, as their performance provides an intensity that’ll leave your shirt damp and your feet sore.
CMW day #3: you’re probably wondering how much more coffee your body can ingest, or how it’s possible that it’s STILL raining. But you’re not ready to give up. And TVD isn’t going to let you, so here’s our picks for this weekend’s jams…
Vancouver's Top Less Gay Love Tekno Party play twice this week for CMW
Canadian Music Week (or Fest – whichever you’re more used to calling it) is back in full swing this year. And while it might not bring the great weather and the occasional beer on a patio in between shows that its sibling festival, North By North East, might bring, it’s still something that we hold near and dear to our hearts. It takes dedication, character and some decent footwear to muster up the ability to party hop, wait in line and potentially freeze our hands off, but in the end it’s all worth it.
So since we here at TVD Toronto have taken it upon ourselves to let you know what’s really good on the weekends lately, we’ve decided to bring a bit more of an in depth break down, starting with tonight. Be sure to check out our Friday/Saturday/Sunday listings this weekend, too. Hit the jump for Thursday’s must-attend parties.
If you haven’t seen this Toronto treasure live yet, you are missing out!! The lady AOL Spinner calls, “…personal, full of complex emotions and mature themes… a breath of fresh air compared to so many callow R&B sentiments,” Exclaim!touted as a “stalwart soul-rock firebrand” and City On My Back describes as, “Otherworldly. Transcendental. Heart-melting. Hypnotizing. And Heavenly. This is the beginning of something the world needs to see.”
Saidah Baba Talibahis all that and more. Saidah’s show isn’t just a show, it’s an experience, something you just don’t see enough of these days.
Few times do you really get to see and experience the rise of an artist to a bigger and brighter stage. TVD knows first hand the amount of work The Rural Alberta Advantage have put into their craft, taking the well-deserved title of being a “buzz” band and making it worth their while. In a few years, the band went self-releasing their work to signing to a couple labels (Paper Bag in Canada, Saddle Creek in the US), putting together a North American Tour and even scheduling in a slot at some festival called Coachella.
Needless to say, the RAA’s hustle has paid off, with their new record, Departing, in stores today (March 1). We’d suggest heading over to their label’s website and placing an order. And if you’ve got the coin, how ’bout grabbing their limited edition vinyl bundle? It includes Departing as well as their previous record, Hometowns, pressed on 180gram blue and yellow vinyl, respectively.
Everyone loves to scour over the list of bands that are scheduled to play during SXSW. And every year there are quite a few band names that stand out and might make you chuckle. Here, TVD Austin’s Jessi Cape has compiled an amusing and categorized list of bands playing this year’s festival.
It’s baaaack: SXSW is upon us once again. The economy is (finally) on the up-and-up, folks have a few bucks to spare, and we all have some post-winter wiggles to get out which makes mid-March the most wonderful time of the year. Thankful for my new glasses, I finally had a chance to scour the (tiny font size of the) official list of SXSW 2011 Showcasing acts.
I must say that one of the best parts of the initial reveal is checking out the often bizarre, hilarious, super creative, and sometimes even downright nasty band names.
I recently had the pleasure of meeting Paul Corby of Corby’s Orbit – an open format radio show on CKLN 88.1 FM out of Toronto every Friday from 11 a.m. til 2 – when he interviewed good friend & tenfour publicity client Nick Teehan earlier this month before his show with The Jessica Stuart Few.
After hearing about Paul’s profile in Toronto’s music community and seeing first-hand his passion for and knowledge of good music of all kinds new and old, we thought he’d make perfect guest writer for TVD Toronto’s Black History Top Ten series.. and I was right.. Thanks Paul!
BlackHistory Month Top Ten
The virus of “best-ism” that is raging through blogs and journalism, especially since the recent turn of the decade can really only ever end in a trail of disagreeing and often disagreeable comments of “what-about’s” and “how-could-you-forgets.”
My reason for bringing my Black History Top Ten into the agonizing focus of public scrutiny is more for educational purposes. Black history on record speaks of a knowledge that is, at flashpoint moments, culturally advanced in a global sense. It bears study for its warnings, its influential powers of unification, and its unqualified equation of love with spiritual power. These ten records are all pivotal in the evolution of black people’s music, mostly for the good of the whole world, though some represent the end or the tipping point of the artist’s relevance, a pinnacle that could only lead to a slide. Yes, they are also often provocative, bewildering or severe. These are some of the ones that drastically altered my D.N.A.
Let’s count up and down. The list reads equally well backwards and forwards.
10) Abbey Lincoln’s Devil Got Your Tongue, Gitanes, 1992. With a voice almost frivolous in its freedom, the woman who was left out of the paternalistic mid-century American critics’ circle for her afro-radical and insistent relevance delivers a record of simple universal beauty. Sing-song choruses and profoundly healing lyrics on subjects of ancestry, race, the nature of music and spirit. “Dance before the mirror, reflecting holy fire.” Buy it when you see it and pay whatever they ask. Also: We Insist: Freedom. Now!
9) Burning Spear’s Marcus Garvey/Garvey’s Ghost, 1975/1976, Island. Echoing from hereditary depths of slavery and obscurity this cry of redemption rang from every shop and shebeen in Jamaica in the summer of ‘75 as Bob Marley began his conquest of the rest of the world. Horns that shout elephant, desiccated harmonies and Aston Barrett’s bass excavating low C’s while Winston Rodney calmly recalls the indignities and horrors of centuries: “We MUST pull it… With shackles around our necks.” Chilling. The “Ghost” dub version followed in 1976 with mesmerizing magnifications of the original’s murmurs. Also: Social Living.
Few budding artists are really willing to expose themselves to their fans. They wait patiently as they shine in the limelight and then discuss their rise to success. But JRDN (that’s Jordan for those unfamiliar) prefers to take a different route. With one smash single, ‘U Can Have It All‘ already under his belt, he decided to let his fanbase get a sneak peek into what really goes into becoming such a star. He’s released IAMJRDN, a short documentary shot beautifully by Melanie “eMCee” Chung. With short glimpses of our lovely city, a bit of studio work and describing what really made him want to get into this music thing, we get more of an appreciation for the hard work that an artist puts into his craft.
Keep your eyes on this guy. And bonus points if you can point out TVD’s Theresa in this vid somewhere (she’s in there a couple times!).
The best part? It’s free, in exchange for that little email address of yours. So head over to their download site and cop it before you miss out. TVD promises you’ll be happy.
Shaun Boothe’s Unauthorized Biography Series just wouldn’t be complete without paying respect to two of the most notorious Black Americans ever: Martin Luther King & Barack Obama. Another great piece by Toronto’s Mr Boothe, with visuals from his talented manager Lo Falconi. Shaun Boothe’s Unauthorized Biography of MLK & Barak Obama
