There is more music being recorded in Ottawa now than at any time in the city’s history.
There’s no ready proof of that statement, but the number of locally produced CDs that cross my desk has increased dramatically in the past decade, or since the Junos last came to Ottawa in 2003. “There are lot of great original acts in Ottawa, more than nine years ago, way more than 20 years ago,” says Rob Bennett, of the Bushpilots.
A characteristic of great art is universality, the ability of a piece of art to have meaning for people regardless of their distance from the person or place or ideal that inspired the artist. This comes to mind as I talk to Ottawa musician the Mighty Popo about his favourite painting in the National Gallery.
The gallery got together with the organizing committee for the 2012 Juno Awards - to be this week in Ottawa - and asked eight current nominees or winners from previous years to choose a favoured artwork in the gallery’s collection.
The nation’s capital is about to get crazy busy and bustling with events as the 2012 JUNO Awards and JUNO Fest take over Ottawa for 4 days filled with events and activities of all sorts. If you’re the type to get out of town to avoid the crowds, you better get a move on by Thursday afternoon because that’s when the majority of events will kick off in several venues across the city.
Here’s a quick look at some of my personal highlights for the weekend, and you can get more info by clicking on the posters below. Having said this, you can also check out the complete schedule of events by visiting the Ottawa Citizen’s band finder page
Austra, Azari & III and Arthur Oskan, all three JUNO nominees representing an array of Toronto electro, will also be performing Saturday night at Ritual Nightclub on Besserer St in downtown Ottawa. You can find the event details here.
Also on Saturday, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. only, there will be a JUNO Fan Fair at the St-Laurent Shopping Centre for those who want to meet the likes of Down With Webster, Mia Martina, Anjulie, Classified, Deadmau5, Kardinal Offishall, Simple Plan, Swollen Members, Jully Black and Neverest to name only some of the Canadian artists who will be there to meet the public and sign autographs. More details are available if you click here.
On the Occasion of the JUNOs, the Canadian Museum of Civilization is presenting a special exhibition called CELEBRATING THE JUNOS: Photographs and Album Artwork. There are two special displays: the first showcasing every JUNO Award winner for Recording Package of the Year (album cover art) since that category was introduced in 1975. The second presents both performance and candid photographs of JUNO Award nominated and winning artists,many of whom are now household names in Canada and the world. The exhibition runs from March 16 to April 9 2012.
Last but not least, the JUNO Awards ceremony will take place this Sunday, April 1st 2012 at Ottawa’s Scotiabank Place starting at 7:00 p.m. Hosted by MC William Shatner, the evening will feature performances by Blue Rodeo, City and Colour, Deadmau5, Feist, Hedley, Hey Rosetta!, Nickelback and a new ‘mixed tape’ featuring Alyssa Reid, Anjulie, Dragonette, JRDN, and Mia Martina! Tickets are still availalbe starting at $55 at http://ow.ly/9Doia. I’ll be in attendance myself as a seat-filler and am really looking forward to the experience! I’ll be waiving at the camera all smiles 
Enjoy what the JUNO Awards and JUNO Fest have to offer!
Last Saturday evening, I had the great pleasure of seeing Quebec singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt in the Grand Hall at the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau. Now, you have to understand that I’m biased because I simply LOVE this girl. She’s extremely talented, projects tons of positive energy, plays numerous instruments and she is a fantastic singer which, when performing live, distinguishes her from other plain-Jane artists that sound good once the editing and filters have been applied, but who can’t sing in front of a crowd.
All that to say, she’s excellent, but the venue’s accoustics and sound, not so much and that for an artist is very difficult to work with. The Museum’s Grand Hall is first and foremost an ehxibition space, not a concert hall. Therefore, Ariane Moffatt and her band had several technical issues for the first part of the show, and she often mentioned this throughout her performance, but the crowd hardly noticed the difference. Nonetheless, it was definitely a challenge for her to perform in a Museum exhibition.
She certainly attracts a wide range of people, from young children with their parents to straight-up seniors. As a result, the crowd was rather tame. Despite this, approximately 600 people showed up to see and hear Ariane Moffatt.
Although she primarily sings in French, her latest album MA, has been composed in both official languages almost equally. True to the integral album, she performed MA in the same order the songs can be found on record à la Pink Floyd. Afterwards, she came back on stage to offer the public songs from her other albums to the delight of everyone in the room. All in all an amazing show despite the technical issues. Gatineau fans were definitely pleased by her performance and welcome her back in the region any time for a future visit!
Photos courtesy of Roch Campeau ©
Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan took over Ritual nightclub last week, marking the Chef's 2nd time in Ottawa in less than a year. The Staten Island rapper admitted an affinity for the North North - his record company, iceh20, just signed two Canadian artists (JD Era & Gangis Khan AKA Camoflauge) and has an new office in Toronto.
Canadian acts
We’ve moved into March and the past couple of days have actually been colder than they have been all winter. Naturally, most of us are tired of the never-ending season and look forward to milder days. Although March is a rather uncertain month when it comes to the weather, it’s still an exciting time ahead if you look at the variety of events scheduled to take place in and around the National Capital Region in the coming weeks.
Here’s a look at what’s to come in the days ahead…
A reminder that Plants and Animals will be at Ritual this Thursday, March 8 to perform songs from their latest album The End of That. Opening for the Montreal-based band is Thus:Owls. Tickets are on sale at Vertigo Records, The Record Shaap or online at www.ticketweb.ca. Event details available here.
Also on Thursday, there is a Biggie Smalls aka Notorious BIG tribute taking place at Babylon as of 11pm. Minimal details can be found on the poster below. For the hip-hop heads who want something to do before the weekend kicks off.
This Friday, March 9, Zaphod’s will be celebrating its 20th anniversary of existence with special live performances by Ottawa’s own Sound of Lions and Exeter . Tickets are only $10 and doors open at 9pm.
On Saturday March 10, Kapacity Entertainment presents the one and only Masta Ace live in concert at Ritual with special guests Marco Polo & Stricklin. The show includes local opening acts Brokenbridge, Stay and several more. Fore more information click on the poster below…
B.C. group Hey Ocean will be live at Ritual on March 15 as part of their cross-Canadian tour. The infectious party-pop trio combines sheer talent, charismatic songs, and offer an undeniably energetic live show, making them a must-see band. Check out event details here.
Friday, March 16, there will be an Open Mic at the Raw Sugar Cafe presented by Algonquin College Public Relations students to raise funds for the Shepherds of Good Hope. This is a great way to give back to the local community while having a good time Tickets are $10 and the acts start at 9pm.
On March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day for those who are Irish and also the ones who aren’t but celebrate for the fun of it. Many bars and restaurants in and around Ottawa will be offering specials and providing entertainment. Here are just two of the many St. Patrick’s Day related events taking place in the Capital.
Last but certainly not least, Ariane Moffatt will give a show at the Museum of Civilization in Gatineau on Saturday March 24 in front of hundreds of people. Ariane will perform songs off her latest album MA just recently released along with older material and classics from her repertoire. I’m convinced that this show will be beyond excellent! Tickets are still on sale here.
This is it for Eventful Capital until the week of March 25 for vacation reasons! Here’s to hoping there will be no more snow on the ground when I get back to the NCR! Until then, enjoy the events and activities you’ll partake in over the upcoming days and please share anything you feel is worth mentionning with fellow residents
The glory of the Canadian Tulip Festival is coming to your neighbourhood.
The people at the Canadian Tulip Festival have certainly have a good strategy this time.
They are abandoning the parks of the National Capital Commission and bringing the festival to the people. However, that doesn't mean the tulips are leaving Major's Hill Park or Dows Lake. Just the events around them will move to the neighbourhoods of Ottawa.
There’s a new skeleton of a sperm whale at the Canadian Museum of Nature, and its rib cage is so massive, so spacious, that one might suppose Jonah would be quite comfortable in there.
The male sperm whale topped 50 feet and 130,000 pounds, a fine example of “the largest toothed predator on the planet.” It’s the centrepiece of…
Shot a video of Sound of Lions in rehearsal on Sunday afternoon, and the results are below. The band has a characteristic sound that is broadly appealing, which means they have real potential to break out of the local scene onto bigger stages.
For now, they’re honing their act in intimate venues, such as Zaphod Beeblebrox on Friday, March 9, as part of the bar’s 20th annniversary lineup.
