Record Store Day 2013

The start of my Record Store Day 2013 was… interesting. I got up at a time that is beyond early for any reasonable person and made the trek into town to be in line at Ditch Records just before 6 am. Yes, there’s a 6 am now. When I got there I was greeted by about 15 crazy people already in line who managed to drag themselves out of bed before I did. Whatever happened to the days of there being only a couple of crazies who showed up early to pick over the releases? Speaking of crazies, upon arrival to wait in line I was also greeted by four dudes who appeared to have kept the party going all night long. I think one of them mentioned something about being on mushrooms… What I do remember is that one of them hugged me and whispered to me that he “thought I was really cool and had been meaning to talk to me for a long time now”. Did I mention I had never seen this guy before in my life? Yeah, way to be creepy dude.

The creepy dudes eventually decided to take the party elsewhere and I got to retreat into a state of putting my earbuds in and ignoring everyone until the store opened. All in all I got a pretty good haul of the RSD releases I had my eye on. I managed to pick up The Hold Steady 7″ (thanks Tyson for snagging that one for me!), a Cake 7″, some Punch Brothers, Calexico, Cut Copy, Foals, and Walk the Moon (who I always confuse with Half Moon Run, who I also love). The only thing I missed out on was a copy of The Last Waltz, but that one was a bit too pricey for me, so it’s probably for the best. Back to keeping my eye out for a second hand copy it is. After having absolutely no budget for records the first three months of 2013, it was nice to splurge on some things I really wanted. (My bank account might disagree with me there.)

After some brunch, and a quick run home for a midday nap on the couch, it was back to Ditch for the live music portion of the day. We showed up just in time to catch the last bit of the set by the Chantrelles. I hadn’t had the chance to see this local soul revival band yet, but had heard a lot about them. Boy, do they ever deserve all the praise they get. Having a band of seven fit into a small record store and sound great and not overly loud without losing any of the energy is quite the feat. I highly recommend seeing them live if you can.

We closed out Record Store Day with some browsing of all the used records the Ditch staff had put out for the day (“I guess this is the year I buy all the albums by the Talking Heads..”) and a set from Hawk and Steel. Much like their show we had just seen the previous weekend, the guys played a great set. Posted below for your perusal are some videos of their RSD set. Included are “Love That I Need” (which sounds a *little* bit like a Forestry song I like), a new song I don’t know the name of, and “Carol”. Enjoy!

 

 

[youtube http://youtu.be/rNaYFmVfx8I] [youtube http://youtu.be/9IUs5A827a4] [youtube http://youtu.be/QGRjQ0P8aVI]

Where You Can Find Me At Rifflandia 2012, the Thursday and Friday Edition

I put together a list like this last year and found it quite useful. It helped to get myself organized on which bands I wanted to see. Also, I have yet to make it through a year of Rifflandia without my phone battery dying at least one night, so this is a good way to tell friends where to find me when that happens again.

THURSDAY

Night Stages

8:30 Royal Canoe @ Alix Goolden – Royal Canoe put on one of the best shows I’ve been to this year. They have some really interesting music and their song “Bloodrush” is definitely one of my favourite tracks of 2012. Their music is pretty dancy so I don’t know how this is going to work at the Alix Goolden. Actually the whole lineup at the Alix Goolden on Thursday looks like it should have been in a different venue.

9:30 Data Romance @ Alix Goolden – I’m not too familiar with the duo of Data Romance, but I have heard a few projects that Ajay Bhattacharyya has drummed with. Based on that alone, I’m going to guess that Data Romance will be fantastic.

9:30 Northcote @ Metro Theatre – I had seen Northcote before, but when Matt Goud played a short set at the Acres of Lions house concert back in January I think the whole crowd fell in love with him. I’m not sure if Northcote will be with a full band or going the solo guitar route again, but it would be great to see the full band arrangement.

9:30 Portage and Main @ Wood Hall – Portage and Main were part of the Tracks On Tracks tour that the CBC put together earlier this summer. While I wasn’t able to join everyone on the train, I had the pleasure of seeing Portage and Main perform in a park in Toronto.

9:30 Bonehoof @ Victoria Events Centre – Bonehoof has been one busy band in the past year. The band consists of staff from the Fort Street Cafe and Ditch Records, two of my favourite places in Victoria, and they put on one great rock show. My band had the pleasure of performing before them at the Rock Of The Woods festival this year and I would definitely go see them again. The Thursday night 9:30pm slot seems like it’s going to be a tough choice. Bonehoof might just win for me.

10:30 The Matinee @ Wood Hall – Another band that was part of the CBC’s Tracks on Tracks this summer. I also got to see the Matinee play in a park in Toronto. A video of that afternoon can be found here.

11:30 Good For Grapes @ Wood Hall – I haven’t had the chance to see Good For Grapes yet, but so many of my friends have seen them perform in the past few months and not one of them has come back without a head over heels rave review for them.

11:30 Rich Aucoin @ Victoria Events Centre – People! You have three chances to see Rich Aucoin at Rifflandia this weekend. I would highly recommend that you not miss any of those chances. Hands down, Rich Aucoin has the best live act in Canada. I don’t know how his show is going to work in the Victoria Events Centre with all those tables in the way of the dance party that will surely break out, but I’m sure we’ll figure it out.

12:30 Austra @ Alix Goolden – I saw Austra last year after they made the shortlist for the 2011 Polaris Prize. I can’t say that I was a fan when I walked into that show, I mostly went to see what all the fuss was about, but they totally won me over. The ladies in Austra have some mighty fine pipes and their singing talent blew me away.

FRIDAY

Royal Athletic Park

3:00 The Xylopholks – Here’s what the bio on the Rifflandia website says: “The Xylopholks are a dynamic group of musicians who mostly play novelty ragtime music from the 1920′s (featuring the xylophone!). They do so while wearing furry animal costumes.” Sounds good and weird to me.

3:30 Brasstronaut – If you’ve read any of my old blog entries, you’d probably know that Brasstronaut is one of my favourite bands. I can’t wait to hang out with my friends again.

4:15 Rich Aucoin – Once again, DO NOT MISS RICH AUCOIN IF YOU HAVE THE CHANCE TO SEE HIM.

6:45 Macklemore and Ryan Lewis – I’m one of the whitest girls out there, and you could fill libraries with what I don’t know about hip hop. One of my friends is really into Macklemore though and has been talking him up for months. I’ve heard that a lot of his songs use a trumpet, so I’m sold.

7:30 The Flaming Lips – I’m guessing I don’t need to say anything about the Flaming Lips. They’re who I’m most looking forward to on Friday and I’m sure they’re who you’re most looking forward to as well.

Night Stages

8:30 The Wicks @ Metro Theatre – I first came across the Wicks at Rifllandia two years ago. I can’t believe I haven’t seen them since then and should probably fix that.

10:30 Snowblink @ Metro Theatre – Snowblink play some of the most beautiful music I’ve ever heard. If you’re looking for a time slot to just sit and chill out, this would be it.

10:30 The Chantrelles @ Victoria Events Centre – I’ve heard nothing but good things about this local band. And they have a horn section? Sold.

12:30 Fucked Up @ Sugar Night Club – It took me a long time to get into Fucked Up. I only just started to appreciate them with their last album David Comes To Life, and it’s a really good one. I’ve heard rumours that Fucked Up might break up after their next album, so I wouldn’t miss what could be one of your last chances to see them live. Plus, what better way to end an evening than by getting sweaty, sweaty hugs from Damian Abraham?