Mid-April in the Capital City: From METZ and Jokers of the Scene to Fela Night and Moka Only

With another super eventful week behind us, it’s now time to take a look at some of the events scheduled to take place in our National Capital City in the days ahead. Once again, there’s no shortage of fun and interesting things happening around Ottawa-Gatineau.

This Monday, April 8, SAW Gallery presents the launch of the Talk Talk Speakers Series, free conferences meant to showcase contemporary artists and cultural innovators. The first speaker series will feature special guests Bayrol Jimenez and Omero Leyva, two Mexican artists who create unique drawings and paintings while bringing attention to cultural issues. Some of Jimenez’s work will be included in the National Gallery of Canada’s upcoming exhibition Sakahàn: International Indigenous Art. For more information, click on the event poster below. 

This Wednesday, April 10, ex-Swollen Members representative Moka Only will be giving a live performance at Ritual in an effort to promote his latest albums Airport 6 and Martian Xmas 2012. The Canadian underground hip hop artist will be performing alongside local artists Buck n’ Nice, Missing LinX, ODmE, En-V and Diamond and Cruz. For details on this event, simply click on the image below.  

Also on Wednesday, April 10, Spectrasonic presents METZ who’ll be stopping by Babylon as part of their US Spring Tour. The Toronto post-punk band will be performing live in Ottawa with opening acts The Soupcans, a Toronto garage/punk group and Ottawa hardcore group Pregnancy Scares. For details, click on the event poster.  

Starting this Thursday, April 11 and running until Sunday, April 14, the Ottawa Guild of Potters invites you to celebrate 40 years of pottery with the annual Pottery Sale and Exhibition. The event, taking place at the Shenkman Arts Centre, offers free admission to those attending. This is the perfect place to check out pottery and to purchase a piece that you can gift. If this interests you, you can grab more info by clicking on the event poster below

This Friday, April 12, the Canadian Museum of Civilization invites you to its second edition of Uncorked! a special night of wine-tasting in an enchanting decor. This installment of the Uncorked! series will feature Canadian wines. There may be a few tickets left, but the event will sell out so do hurry up if you plan on attending. You can get additional information by clicking on the below banner.

Electro music lovers will be happy to know that Jokers of the Scene, also referred to as JOTS, will be doing a live set at the Mercury Lounge this Friday, April 12 thanks to a collaboration between the venue and Indie Montreal. The Toronto duo, known for their tracks Baggy Bottom Boys and Revolting Joks is sure to bring the noise for a guaranteed night of non-stop dancing. Check out details by clicking on the event poster.

For the poster alone, the Grillz & Glam Welcome to the Jungle Edition seems like it’s got the potential to offer a pretty good night this Friday, April 12. Currently without a Facebook event page to boast its street cred, I can safely attest to the greatness that is this monthly party with beats brought to you by DJ Brains4brkfst and DJ NDN. 

Also this Friday, April 12, Dubsmack invites you to celebrate its 3-year anniversary with special guest Charlie Darker. The monthly dubstep and electro music night has gained popularity around the Capital City over the past years and has proven to be an event not to be missed by fans of the genre. Montreal-based DJ Charlie Darker will have the honor of doing a live set for Dubsmack’s birthday party. If you want in on the action, click on the poster below for more info.  

On Saturday, April 13, the Mercury Lounge invites you to Fela Night 2013, an annual tribute to Fela Kuti put on by the venue. The event includes a drumming circle from 7 to 10pm followed by a night of dancing to the sounds of DJs Elorious Cain and Trevor Walker who’ll be be spinning originals and remixes of Fela Kuti’s afrobeat music. For details on this event, just click on the poster below. 

Other worthwhile events happening this week around the National Capital Region include the Urban Legends Poetry Slam featuring Toronto spoken word artist Britta Badour. The slam takes place on Friday, April 12 in the pit of the Architectural Building at Carleton University.

Also on Friday, April 12, Kitchen Party invites you to the Rochester Pub & Eatery for a night of music with DJs Hobo & Sweetcheeks and special guest DJ Meterman from Spins & Needles. The trio will be taking care of the tunes, ensuring that you dance to a mix of funk, soul, disco, hip hop and electro.

This Saturday, April 13 on the Quebec side, the Petit Chicago presents a live performance by VioleTT Pi, a downright colorful singer-songwriter from Granby who’s touring across the province in an effort to promote his debut album eV.

As for the EDM scene, Leon Bolier will be doing a live set at Era as part of the weekly Privé series. The Dutch DJ is known for mixing anything from EDM, Trance, Progressive, Techno, Tech House, Minimal, Neo Trance, House, and Tech Trance styles.

So that’s about it for this week’s event suggestions in and around Ottawa-Gatineau. This should be enough to keep you busy wether you choose to attend a show, a conference or an art exhibition. Be sure to check back in next week for more event ideas taking place in our eventful capital!

April in the Capital: Rahzel, Paul Van Dyk, Kid Koala and Fela Kuti Tribute

With the JUNOs gone since last week, the capital region returned to its regular pace but doesn’t lack interesting upcoming events nonetheless. There’s all sorts of things happening depending on your tastes and interests.

First off, the one and only Rahzel will be at Babylon this Wednesday, April 11 on the occasion of his  I Love Canada Tour. The legendary beatboxer formerly of The Roots will be in Ottawa and opening the night will be up and coming duo of Elap and Johnny Bravo followed by veterans of the scene, Stay and Crack Moses. Tickets are $15 dollars at the door and you can get more info by clicking on the poster below.

 

Also on Wednesday is the International Day of Pink Gala, a free event taking place at the University of Ottawa, meant to gather funds for Jer’s Vision and raise awareness on bullying and how to put an end to it. The evening will include a silent auction and special performances by students from De La Salle High School, speeches by Stephanie Wheeler and the Netherlands ambassador Wim Geerts. Award recipients include Rick Mercer from CBC’s Rick Mercer Report and the late Jack Layton, who’s award will be accepted by Olivia Chow. You can get the full details by visiting the event’s Facebook page.

 

If you’re looking for some pottery to gift or simply for yourself, check out  the Ottawa Guild of Potters exhibition and art sale this Thursday, April 12 through Sunday, April 15 at the Shenkman Arts Centre in Orleans. Over 40 artist-potters will be displaying one of a kind decorative and functional clay sculptures. More details are available on the Ottawa Guild of Potters website and on the poster below.

 

Then, to kick off the weekend, Barrymore’s Music Hall presents Paul Van Dyk this Friday, April 13 on the occasion of the Evolution World Tour 2012. This internationally renowned electronic dance DJ who has won many awards namely a Grammy will stop in Ottawa to perform tracks from his long-spanning career along with tracks from his 6th album Evolution. More information can be found on the poster below.

 

Also on Friday, Toxic Twins and Top Of The World present Grillz and Glam at Babylon with DJs NDN and Brains4breakfast starting at 11pm. More info below.

 

To my greatest delight, Kid Koala aka Eric San is back in Ottawa for a weekend of fun to present his Space Cadet Earphones Experience Tour. The Canadian DJ and turntablist will be at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum this Friday, April 13 through Sunday, April 15 to offer an immersive audio-visual and interactive experience to an eclectic and curious public. According to Kid Koala “it’s a headphone concert, gallery, science fair and it’s fun for the whole family”. A Space Gallery accompanies the show complete with interactive Music Spaceship Console, a Space Cadet Soundtrack Cassette Jukebox, and original etch boards from the Space Cadet graphic novel.

“Audiences surrender to the comfort of inflatable “space pods” wired for open air wireless headphones, through which most of the concert’s music is transmitted.” Because the music was written almost as lullabies the layers are really nuanced and subtle.” The feeling during the concert is that you’re having this communal experience with people around you, but everyone is having a personal, unique headphone experience.” Check out the video below to get a feel for the experience and get more details on the event including time and ticket information here.

 

Another weekend event  is the Fela Kuti Tribute at Mercury Lounge celebrating Afrobeat, a complex fusion of Jazz, Funk, psychedelic rock, and traditional West African chants and rhythms. Afrobeat also borrows heavily from the native “tinker pan” African-style percussion.

Friday, April 13: Drumming circle from 7 to10:30 p.m. Followed by Ottawa magnificent D.J. Lance Baptiste, spinning Fela Afro-beat; originals and remixes. With Jesse M. on congas, Docta Lee on djembe, and Mario on trumpet. Saturday, April 14: Live music by the Ottawa Folklore Centre Jazz Band Afrobeat Project. Followed by Ottawa legendary D.J. Trevor Walker, spinning originals and remixes of Fela. More details available on the Mercury Lounge website.

And, to close off this week’s post, my favorites A Tribe Called Red will be throwing down a much-anticipated Electric Pow Wow at Babylon this Saturday April 14 following the release of their first album available for free download here! Please do yourself a favor and get this if you support Canadian music and local Ottawa talent. See you all on the dance floor!

I hope you enjoy this week’s selection and that you take advantage of the many events taking place in the national capital throughout the next few days. Stay tuned for more next week including the announcement of the 2012 Bluesfest line-up being unveiled April 24!!

A Week of Music: Tiken Jah Fakoly, YACHT, Great Bloomers and More…!

Winterlude may be over and the canal closed for the rest of the season, but that doesn’t mean you have to give in to the winter blues. Get ready Ottawa because this will be another week packed with events for the National Capital Region!

First off, I found out last week that singer and musician Tiken Jah Fakoly will be in Ottawa at the Shenkman Arts Centre of Orleans this Wednesday, February 22. The African Bob Marley was scheduled to perform at the same venue last year, but the show was cancelled the day before for reasons I can’t recall. So, when I realized the Ivory Coast artist would be back, there was no question about it, I most definitely have to attend! Tiken Jah is just one of those artists that speaks from the heart and isn’t afraid to point the finger at the rampant injustice present all over modern Africa. It’s feel good music with a social conscience I just can’t wait to travel back to the Motherland with him through an evening of music. Tiken Jah Fakoly performs this Wednesday night at 8:00 pm and tickets are still on sale as I type this. If you love African reggae and want to see this legend in the flesh, visit the Shenkman Arts Centre website for more info.

Also on Wednesday night, the electronic group YACHT will be at Ritual with Silkken Laumann and Jeffrey Jerusalem. YACHT describes itself as a band, belief system, and business conducted by Jona Bechtolt and Claire L. Evans of Los Angeles, California, Marfa, Texas and Portland, Oregon, USA which embraces eclectic but playful blend of electronics, accoustic percussions and noises of all sorts. I’ve never seen them live, but apparently their show at Ritual 2 years ago was very entertaining! Check out the event details here.

On Thursday, the Up and Up Concert Series present Drumhand at Babylon starting at 9pm. Drumhand is a Toronto power-house of rhythms from hot climates complimented by the melodic spirit of of New Orleans’ style jazz horns. The group was in Ottawa last winter as part of the Ottawa Jazz Fest’s Winter line-up. Now they’re back in town on a tour supported by the Ontario Arts Council. Click on the poster below for details.

If you want to check out some indie folk roots rock this weekend, Spectrasonic and punkottawa.com present The Wooden Sky and Great Bloomers this Friday February 24 at Ritual. These  two bands from Toronto will be in Ottawa playing live sets from their albums entitled “Every Child a Daughter, Every Moon A Sun” and ’Speak Of Trouble’. For further information on the event please visit the event page here.

Great Bloomers

Here are more events taking place around the city this weekend…! Click on the poster for event details and enjoy the next few days!