G20 Protest and the problem with anarchy

This Post has nothing to do with music/art/culture (well, except for activism, which is a sort of culture), but I was there, and thought I should say a few words about what I saw and experienced.

anarchy (countable and uncountable; plural anarchies)

1. (uncountable) The state of a society being without authoritarians or a governing body.
2. (uncountable) Anarchism; the political theory that a community is best organized by the voluntary cooperation of individuals, rather than by a government, which is regarded as being coercive by nature.
3. (countable) A chaotic and confusing absence of any form of political authority or government.
4. confusion in general; disorder

This past weekend there was chaos in the streets of downtown Toronto. I was there for a large part of Saturday, but got out when things started to turn really ugly. For a more detailed account of how the protest march on Saturday turned from relatively quiet and peaceful to violent and absurd, see Zalina Alvi's post from earlier today.

You know, I wrote this whole thing about the protest and the aftermath of the violence caused in large part by a group known as the Black Bloc (read Zalina's post on why this is a group and not just a tactic), but now I'm thinking that I just don't know what to say. I saw some surprising things yesterday (including some rent-a-cops drive-by pepper spraying some completely innocent bystanders at Queen's Park). I have to admit, I was hoping for something interesting to happen, but I honestly didn't think it would. I've been to other demonstrations in Toronto (always as an observer - I'm not much for chants and flag waving) and nothing even close to this has ever happened. It's something I wasn't expecting. In fact, I think that most Torontonians weren't really expecting this much damage and chaos to occur, despite G20/G8's previous record for attracting these types of shit-disturbers.

But, to be completely honest, part of me would have been disappointed if everything had gone to plan and everyone had behaved like civilized human beings. Despite my passive leanings, I do find these G8/G20 meetings to be little more than planning sessions on how to best keep the poor poor and the rich rich. But I'm also not a complete idiot who thinks that destroying a few Starbuck's and throwing feces into an American Apparel shop will get any message across to "The Man" besides "I'm a twat." In fact, I know that that kind of wanton destruction only pulls focus away from the actual issues at hand.

I posted the definition of Anarchy because I think the so-called anarchists from yesterday (the Black Bloc people, as they've become known) really need to read it more carefully. By definition, there wasn't any anarchy yesterday - just a group of people taking advantage of a larger group of people to disobey the law and break things they don't own. In all likelihood the Black Bloc people aren't even from Toronto, so they don't care at all that it's us who will have to pick up the tab for their "political statement." I particularly want to point out the "political theory that a community is best organized by the voluntary cooperation of individuals, rather than by a government" part, because it's this concept that these people really don't seem to get. "The voluntary cooperation of individuals." I guess it's only the anarchists that matter in this situation, huh? It's not like there were thousands of people there who wanted their voices to be heard above the din of glass smashing and riot police beating their shields? Anyway, the whole thing turned out to be a mess, and no one got any message across at all. We all just got a bunch of headlines and a regrettable entry into the Toronto history books. This was a missed opportunity to have Toronto be seen as something other than the possessor of the world's second tallest free-standing phallic symbol. And that's not just the Black Bloc's fault.

I'm a little miffed that, despite stating that they knew about the Black Bloc group and their tactics, the 1 billion dollar security force did absolutely nothing to stop them from creating havoc in downtown Toronto. If they knew who these people were and what they were going to do, why didn't they do anything to prevent it? In fact, why didn't the protest leaders do anything to prevent it? There's no reason why this couldn't have been avoided. Certainly, in this social-media-savvy age, there are better ways to protest things than marching around a city, yelling at police officers who aren't listening to you anyway. Social pressure online, in many ways, can be more powerful than the physical presence of protesters. Maybe this is an avenue that future protests should look into.

The arrest count is over 600 for the week (I saw earlier that there was 224 arrest today - not sure what the official number is now). From what I've heard there has been no vandalism today (or at least, no where near the level of chaos as yesterday), so why so much aggression? And the photos pouring in from the boxed in protesters at Queen and Spadina from Sunday are chilling. No doubt, we will be left with a lot of questions in the days to come - and very few satisfying answers.

NXNE: Day 3

Ok, so I don't have much time to write, but I thought I should at least mention that last night's showcase was possibly the best I'd seen so far. First was Vancouver's Said The Whale at Yonge & Dundas Square. They were pretty solid, and if you ever wondered what that song is in that Sun Rype commercial, it's "The Light Is You" by Said The Whale. Good to know!

I then moved on to Lee's Palace, which promised to be a packed night with Wavves and Japandroids performing back to back. First up, though, was a band from Brooklyn, NY, Grooms. They were a little loose, and I'm not a huge fan of bands sporting the whole off-key-is-cool sort of vocal style. If you can't sing then get someone who can to join the group. Other than that they were ok.

The Happy Hollows from Los Angeles, CA, were up next, and boy did they shred the stage. The lead singer had a great Alanis Morissette circa Jagged Little Pill thing going on, and she could really rock a guitar. These guys were great. The crowd (which was steadily growing as Wavves' set grew nearer) really warmed to them. Definitely worth a listen.

Lo-fi/punk/noise-rockers (thanks, Wikipedia) Wavves were next, and Lee's was packed. With this band there is always the possibility of implosion. They managed to keep it together and provide a pretty entertaining show whilst belting out some standard punk-rock. The crowd loved them (as evidenced by the ever-growing mosh pit), and they seemed to enjoy the show as much as the audience.

Vancouver, BC's Japandroids were noted by AUX TV as one of the best bets for Friday night. This was one of the last shows the garage rockers will be having in Toronto for a while, so it was one to see. The duo were solid. I especially loved the wall of amps behind guitarist Brian King, and drummer David Prowse pulled off some terrific beats. It was really a great show.

My apologies to PS I Love You for not sticking around for your set. A girl needs her beauty sleep (especially after soaking up so much sweat from the hot-head head bangers surrounding her). Say hi to Gerrard Butler for me.

NXNE: Day 2

Day 2 saw me at the Horseshoe Tavern for the KEXP showcase.

I came in about halfway through Dinosaur Bones' set, so unfortunately I don't have a whole lot to say about them except that they're another local band, and I wrote down that I liked them better than the bands I saw last night. They fall pretty neatly into the indie rock category.

Next up was Philadelphia, PA, natives Free Energy. As the name suggests, they're a little bit hippie, a little bit rock and roll. But mostly just the hippie party. Most of the songs feature a very bouncy beat, exclusively major key super-happy-fun-times. I have to admit I was a little sick of all the positivity. I'm always looking for something with a little more bite to it - and boy did I get what I asked for...
Los Angeles, CA, all-girl band Warpaint was exactly what I was craving after the affable good intentions of Free Energy. They were moody, experimental, and completely spot-on. I was impressed with the extended instrument breaks and the sorrowful harmonies. This is the sort of thing that people go to big-box festivals for - the little "aha" moments that assure you it was a good idea to leave the cat home alone for one night. I'll be keeping my eye on this band for the future.

Next up was Elliott Brood, a local band that has been all around the world, but still finds time to play in Toronto all the time. I swear that every time I look at upcoming concert listings I see this band is playing somewhere in Toronto. It's great because the practice really shows in how good their performances are. Indie-Folk is always a fun genre, and it's clear that these guys have earned a good reputation for a reason. They had a solid rapport, both with each other and with the audience. They blended an array of different instruments seamlessly in order to create a full sound, hiding the fact that there was only three of them on stage. They're a worthy band to check out if ever you have the chance.

The Ghost is Dancing is yet another local indie-pop band. Think Broken Social Scene if they mated with The Flaming Lips. The show was full of energy and partial nudity. Also there was crowd surfing. It was fun, if a little loose. Mostly I just wondered why they were so damn familiar. I'm sure I've seen them perform before, but damned if I know where/when. Oh well, in the end I got to (unintentionally) grope the uber-hippie keyboardist's ass while he was crowd surfing, and bob my head to some catchy beats. If anyone finds my (possibly non-existent) memory of seeing them play before, please let me know.

The Junction (from Brampton? That doesn't sound right) closed the night with some solid indie-rocking. Sorry, I only stayed long enough to gather that I liked the sound, but would prefer to sink into an album before committing much open display of love.

FYI: There may not be a NXNE Day 3 post tomorrow as I will be at the Olympic Island concert, hanging out with Broken Social Scene and Pavement. I hear the guys from Beach House will be serving paninis and Timber Timbre will be performing "knock, knock" jokes. Wish you were there.

PS: WTF is up with cute, preppy guys ruining their manliness with prep-school sweaters tied loosely around their shoulders? I must have missed that fashion memo because I'm still in the school that believes that look is (and never was) in style. I've seen this look around, and I don't mean to pick on this random guy (nice ass, btw), but I am perplexed!

NXNE: Day 1

NXNE Day 1

So it being a Wednesday, I decided to take it easy, store up some energy for the coming days (well, the NXNE schedule helped – there really wasn't much going on last night). After taking a while to figure out how the NXNE website schedule worked, I saw some promising acts playing at the CN Tower. Unfortunately, as I learned when I went to the Royal Hyatt to pick up my wristband, that was an invite-only show. I'm not sure why it was featured on the festival schedule with no explanation if it wasn't really open to the public. Strike one, NXNE.

Plan B was to stick close to home and hit up The Mod Club, which was featuring only three bands for 102.1 The Edge's opening showcase. For a weak lineup on a Wednesday night, the attendance was accordingly low. That's one of the sad things about big festivals like this one. Bands can come from halfway around the world to play to an almost empty house. On the off chance that they'll play before or after a more heavily anticipated act, chances are they'll probably be forgotten once the shuffle and bustle of the festival has beaten the sensibility out of every gung-ho concert goers brains. Out of this show, however, only one of the bands wasn't from Toronto, so the other two will have many more opportunities to pull some emotion out of a typically stoic Toronto crowd.

Opening act Ko was one of those lucky Torontonians, although, if you read his bio on the NXNE website, he's been all around the US and Canada, smoking pot and living alternately on the streets and in various rehab facilities. His story lends him some street cred, and he certainly had the largest group of fans last night. It may have been the glamorous 'life on the streets with drugs' biography, or the gruff natural charm he exuded as he strode across the stage, but those who were there to see him were very glad to do so. They jumped and screamed and many of them filmed the whole thing (for future YouTube posts, no doubt). The music was hip-hop, somewhat reminiscent of Matisyahu (although I guess not the reggae part?). The show was surprisingly rock-like, with a guitarist, bassist, and drummer all backing Ko's acoustic guitar and samples. The drummer would play over a sampled beat, which made the whole thing very beat heavy, but the focus was pretty clearly on Ko's lyrics. The last song of the night, “Capable,” had some line about everybody getting high (always a crowd pleaser, just ask Bob Dylan) and one brave soul actually did light up, only to be promptly chastened by a security guard (really, with a crowd of about 30 people, how did you not think you would be noticed?).

Band #2, The Blue Van, was from Copenhagen, Denmark. As the Edge MC noted, these guys know how to party. From the very first song it was clear that these four guys were going to “give it” the whole performance. The bassist in particular went to great lengths to get the skeptical Ko crowd into hand clap mode by grinding his bass, jumping onto unstable-looking amps, and routinely yelling “Woooo!” in a manner usually reserved for 2 a.m. drunk girls hanging out at the Entertainment District. It sort of worked (we are nothing if not polite to foreign visitors). I think the crowd was gradually won over by The Blue Van's relentless garage rock. I liked the extended instrumental solos in particular because they sort-of veered from formula. With a band like this (who cite The Raconteuers and JET as contemporaries) it's hard for them to set themselves apart from every other band out there that sounds exactly the same (of which there are many), so it's good to have something besides excellent rock chops to stand out. The use of an organ on some songs gave me a positive prog-rocky vibe that I enjoyed, but unfortunately there didn't seem to be a whole lot of innovation from The Blue Van. With so many groups experimenting with different instruments/sounds while still working within the garage rock milue, the ones that stick within formula seem quaintly outdated.

(As an aside, who the hell chooses the music for in-between sets at The Mod Club? I've never heard so much Shaggy in my life. And a hip-hop cover of “The First Cut is the Deepest” by Cat Stevens [this sounded like a cover of the Sheryl Crow version, which is what makes it bad]? Who the fuck heard that song and said, “Add a beat and some melodramatic, monotone vocals and that shit is golden!” I also heard “Red Red Wine” and “Baby I Love Your Way” play twice before being cut off another goddamned Shaggy tune. Honestly, it's no wonder why The Mod Club isn't a more popular concert venue.)

I'm going to preface my review of the last band of the night, Still Life Still, by admitting that I didn't stay for the whole set. It was late, I've been sick all week, and I'm pretty sure I got the gist of it during the first half hour. Still Life Still is a young Toronto band signed to indie label juggernauts (sounds like and oxymoron, but not these days!) Arts and Crafts. Is it just me, or does Arts and Crafts have a type? They're like the guys that will only date tall, blue-eyed blonds, only make that a medium-height, black-rimmed glasses wearing “amazing girl” with long, artfully wavy brown hair (incidentally, that's kinda what I look like, sans the “Amazing Girl” mystique). In any case, Arts and Crafts seem to only sign bands that sound a lot like the biggest band on their roster (both literally and figuratively), Broken Social Scene. Still Life Still isn't an exception to this rule, unfortunately. Like Young Galaxy before them, they have that muffled big-band sound complete with duelling guitars, synthesizers, and obscured lyrics. This was partly a technical problem, but I couldn't tell what the two lead singers were saying. The songs were pleasantly poppy, and their performance was full of energy (although not as much as The Blue Van on before them – hard to top, really). There was a song called “T-Shirt” that I really enjoyed, and a few others that had great melodic hooks. This seems like the type of band that may require more close (read: with the aid of headphones) listening to get into.

So, overall day 1 was pretty slow. We'll see how days 2 and 3 treat me. I haven't yet decided where I'm going tonight, but I'm sure it'll be full of hits and misses (like most NXNE showcases). Look for my review of tonight's shows tomorrow.

NXNE and other news

The North By Northeast Music Festival is upon us again, and for the first time in years I'm actually going to see some of the acts! The last time that I made it out to NXNE I was supplied with a press lanyard and the wide-eyed enthusiasm of a newbie journalist. Since then my cynicism has grown and my tolerance for late night rock-n-roll parties has sadly diminished. Despite my natural want for a decent night's sleep I've decided to gung-ho this year's festival and see as many performances as I can with a wristband. That's right, I'll have to wait in line with the rest of the plebs. I'll also be checking out this week's major event - the Olympic Island show taking place this Saturday with Broken Social Scene, Beach House, and headliners Pavement. While I never got into Pavement during my disaffected youth, I hear that this show will be one to remember so I'm looking forward to it. I hope to write daily reviews for My Pet Vulture on everything I see for the next five days, so look for something tomorrow on whatever I get up to tonight.

In other news, I've started a podcast with one of my best friends, Zalina Alvi. It's called Love This Movie, Hate This Film and it's hosted over on her site. Ever had a friend who just couldn't see sense when it came to movies? Like, they watch a lot, but they just don't seem to get how one film is good and another is most definitely not? Well, that's Zalina and because we're such good friends we can tear each other a new one without causing any permanent damage (a scrape here, a chunk of missing hair there, nothing a little concealer can't handle). There are two up so far so if you haven't already, you should really check them out.

This summer will be packed with concerts (I've already been to three I haven't had the chance to review here - The Weakerthans, My Brightest Diamond, and The National - but a piece on The National is forthcoming, so stay tuned!). I've got Blitzen Trapper, Arcade Fire, and Dirty Projectors all lined up for later this summer, so hopefully one or all of those will warrant a post. I've also got some non-music themed posts planned - another thing to stay on the edge of your seat for. It'll be a good summer, promise.

Don't Mind A Bit Of Sugar: A review of Sigur Rós frontman's solo album and show

After witnessing a truly magnificent live performance by Jónsi in Toronto a couple of weeks ago, I just had to share my thoughts on one of the greatest things to ever come out of Iceland.

Jónsi (nee Jón Þór Birgisson) is one-forth of the the post-rock band Sigur Rós. They're one of those bands who, while very popular in certain circles, are still relatively unknown to most people. That could have something to do with their “foreign language” status, but what some people don't realize is that they've very likely already heard some Sigur Rós. What made that scene in The Life Aquatic so poignant and beautiful? Sigur Rós' “Starálfur,” that's what. Their music has also been featured in episodes of CSI (pick one version, I think they've played in all three). It's just that kind of music – ambient yet cinematic. With one long sustained note they can create a whole atmosphere within which your imagination is invited to run wild. That's Sigur Rós.

Jónsi is different. Where Sigur Rós is slow, deliberate, and contemplative, Jónsi is light and unabashedly exuberant. Where Sigur Rós mostly sticks to Icelandic or Vonlenska (aka Hopelandic, a gibberish language invented by Jónsi to go along with some Sigur Rós' tunes), Go, Jónsi's first solo record is mostly sung in English. Sigur Rós = 13 minute swooning epics. Go = maxes out at 5:21.

Go is a very different album from most Sigur Rós works. It's upbeat and focuses more on the vocals than on swooning instrumental breaks (though only a little bit more). Sigur Rós albums invite their listeners to lie on the floor and stare at the ceiling for hours while they contemplate how everything in the world is made up of carbon, or some equally psychedelic shit like that – or at least that's how I feel when I listen to Ágætis Byrjun.

I don't mean to linger on the differences between the two, I just want to explain the shock I had when, after having become used to hearing a certain sound from an artist, I got blind-sided by something so different, but just as exciting.

I've read some reviews criticizing the album for its sugary disposition, but, really, that's what the album is about. It's up-beat and happy – there are kids making out, people tying strings to clouds, and boys climbing endless trees. A little sugar isn't for everyone, and it isn't usually for me either, but when it comes wrapped up in such a musically sophisticated package I can't help but love it.

While the album is great on its own, the stage show was on a completely different level. I've never seen a Sigur Rós performance before, but I've heard that it's much like this one was – entrancing. The audience treated the break-neck drumming and staccato vocal samplings as though it was something to revere, staring at the stage in rapt attention. There were a couple of people who got into the more danceable tracks, jumping around and really getting into it (I couldn't help bobbing up and down during “Animal Arithmetic”), but for the most part people were just trying to keep their eyes and ears open, taking in everything they could.

London's 59 Productions were contracted to create the stage show for this tour. They worked for months on this project, combining the massive structure that served as part of a ruined building (specifically, a burnt down taxidermy shop), projections, light, and, as their website says, “magic” to create a theatrical experience for Jónsi's audience. They took elements from the album (nature and animals play a large part in both the album and the stage show) and fused them with the music to create a loose storyline that unveiled itself throughout the show.

I really have to single out the projections/set design as the thing that most distinguishes this tour from others I've seen. It is a grand stage show without any of the emotional distance that larger bands in larger venues force upon their audiences. The attention to detail and creativity displayed in each song segment elevated the experience, and got me wondering why more musicians don't incorporate more visual elements into their live shows.

The animations for “Kolnidur” were particularly striking. It started with an owl alighting on the limb of a tree seen just beyond the ruined building at the back of the stage. A wolf gradually strode into view at the left of the stage. The songs natural intensity became twofold when paired with the dramatic chase scene playing out between the wolf and a deer, which culminated at the exact moment that song had its own climax when the wolf pounced and was met by the antlers of a buck. The animals were beautifully rendered in black and white, resembling sketches in a flip-book.

I've often spoken about how during the couple times I've seen the Toronto band Holy Fuck perform live I was impressed by their ability to piece the tracks together onstage using various electronics and items that in any other context wouldn't be considered an instrument (it's like watching a rube goldberg machine only with casiotones and film reels in place of marbles and dominoes). The Jónsi performance had the same feel to it. At one point the band huddled together in a circle in the middle of the stage for a little xylophone jam session. The whole concert had the satisfying feel of witnessing several high calibre artists just gelling. þorvaldur þorvaldsson on drums was a marvel to watch (I especially loved the “found” percussion instruments he used, which included a briefcase as a bass drum). Everybody was on the same page, and the energy was high (despite them having already been on the road for a month).

And, of course, ask anyone who's seen him live and they'll tell you that the most impressive aspects of the performance was Jónsi's immaculate voice. His soaring falsetto never wavered or showed any signs of wear. Even without the fascinating visuals and crashing instrumentals his voice alone would have made the concert.

So it turns out that I had a lot to say about Jónsi. I really enjoy the album, and I enjoyed the live show even more. More concerts should be like this one. I would definitely recommend checking out a Jónsi or Sigur Rós show in the future if you haven't already. Hopefully they can stay in small-ish venues as well – always the best way to see any band live. Until they decide to come back I'll just be here with my headphones on, contemplating the structural makeup of the universe.

***

Paste has an interesting article this month on Jónsi. It goes into some of the background of how the album got made. Nothing super-enlightening, which is unfortunate, but it's still cool to know how Nico Muhly (the excellent contemporary classical music composer who worked on Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest, and has some credits with the great Philip Glass as well) got involved with the project, and what his contributions meant to the finished product.

I'd recommend checking out 59 Productions' website for some excellent behind-the-scenes video on the making of Jónsi's Go tour. You can also see some live performance footage here, although I haven't found anything yet that compared to actually seeing the album performed live.

Twilight Eclipse soundtrack ensnares more popular indie bands (and Beck)

Since I've already sort of reviewed the New Moon Soundtrack, I figure I should mention that the list of bands to appear on the The Twilight Saga: Eclipse soundtrack was released this past week. There's no Thom Yorke this time, but the roster of indie bands willing to put the loyalty of their hipster fans to the test include Beck teamed up with Bat For Lashes, Metric (yay, sort of Can-con), The Dead Weather, Vampire Weekend (apparently taking their name a little too seriously these days), and a slumming Howard Shore. Click through to the Pitchfork piece for the full track listing. Hopefully one of these artists will be able to sneak in a few sparkly vampire/beautiful werewolf jokes to make the next album slightly more self-aware. Not counting on it, though.