Eventful Capital’s Weekly Picks: From Weaves and The New Pornographers to Propagandhi and the Ottawa Community Record Show

Toronto experimental indie band Weaves will be playing live at House of Targ this Tuesday, October 10as part of their Wide Open 2017 Tour . The Buzz Records signees, who were shortlisted for the 2017 Polaris Prize for their “Weaves (LP)”, will be sharing the stage with Ottawa beach punks Bonnie Doon and Ottawa psych garage band Organ Eyes.

If you’re into punk and hardcore, you’re going to wanna head over to Pressed Cafe this Wednesday, October 11 to check out Virginia hardcore rock n’rollers Fried Egg, New York mutant rockers Radiation Risks and Ottawa hardcore project DOXX.

Update: organizers have cancelled the show, citing reasons beyond their control. Brooklyn duo The Underachievers, made up of members Issa Dash and AK, will be performing live at Barrymores this Wednesday night as part of their The Renaissance Tour. The Beast Coast rappers, who are affiliated to the Pro Era crew, will be giving their third Ottawa show alongside Arizona rappers Injury Reserve, California hip hop trio Warm Brew, Ottawa hip hop aritst Drae and more.

French melodic anti-fascist punks 22 Long Riffs will be performing live at House of Targ this Thursday as part of their Revolution Fest Tour. For the occasion, the Saint-Brieuc natives will be sharing the stage with Ottawa-Gatineau skate punks Sidelines, Ottawa punks L’Animal Mechant and Ottawa anarcho-peace punk newcomers Dogma.

This Wednesday night at the Avant-Garde Bar, Return of the Funk will be bringing the funk live. A five-piece heavy hitting funk combo, Return of the Funk promises to deliver the funkiest of funk jams.

Kamancello, made up of Shahriyar Jamshidi on kamanche and Raphael Weinroth-Browne on cello, is an East-meets-West duo that blurs musical genre conventions and cultural boundaries with their highly evocative improvised performances. Having made waves with performances at Montreal’s Place des Arts and Toronto’s Tirgan Festival, Kamancello is poised to release their debut full-length album this Thursday evening at Pressed Cafe.

Canadian indie rockers The New Pornographers are back in Ottawa this Thursday, October 12 and this time around, they’ll be playing live at the Bronson Centre alongsideToronto indie pop band Born Ruffians.

Halloween is around the corner and there are already thematic events popping up around town. For example, there’s a family-friendly Halloween Roller Disco organized by the Ottawa Roller Derby this Friday in the Hull sector of Gatineau. It’s on Friday the 13th after all!

Toronto pop artist Scott Helman will be going head-to-head with Halifax pop musician Ria Mae in a live performance happening this Friday night at the Bronson Centre. The two singer-songwriters, who vow to break hearts, not bones, will also be joined by Quebec pop artist Jonathan Roy, who’ll be opening the show.

Halifax pop/rockers Alert The Medic will be making a return to Ottawa this Friday night in support of their latest album “Let Them Have Their Fun”. This time around, the guys will be playing at House of Targ with Ottawa pop project KEEK, Ottawa alt/rockers Hearts & Mines and Ottawa rockers Josephine Leone.

Award-winning Canadian musician, songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and author Rae Spoon is back in Ottawa this Friday, October 13. The experimental folk electronic project will be live at Pressed with Jewish-Canadian accordion player/singer-songwriter/novelist Geoff Berner.

Vancouver indie rockers The Pack A.D. are touching down at the 27 Club this Friday night as part of their Dollhouse Tour. For the occasion, they’ll be sharing the stage with Montreal powerpop/rockers Sick Things and Ottawa powerpop/punks No Fuss.

Slow Leaves is the project of JUNO Master Class songwriter Grant Davidson. You can catch the Winnipeg country rock project live at Irene’s Pub this Friday night with Ottawa’s Still Winter Hills, Graven and Catriona Sturton.

Sausage fans rejoice: for the second year in a row, Ottawa has its very own SausageFest. No, not that kind, get your minds out of the gutter.  On October 14 in the ByWard Market, local butchers and food retailers will serve a variety of samplers for $1 and there will be a sausage party happening at William Square.

This weekend the Freewheeling Craft Market is back at Makerspace North to present Fall For Indie. This two day craft pop-up will feature the best modern makers from the 613 & beyond as well as delicious food, workshops and other fun surprises. Come hungry and support local!

Winnipeg thrash/punks Propagandhi are hitting up the Bronson Centre this Saturday night as part of their Victory Lap Tour. The Epitath Recs signees will be playing live in support of their new album “Victory Lap” and they’ll be sharing the stage with Long Island punk rockers Iron Chic and Spanish punks G.A.S. Drummers.

Inspired by the steampunk aesthetic, Jardin Mécanique is a theatrical music trio that merges sound, theatre and visual arts. The Quebec project will be performing live at the Petit Chicago this Saturday night with Outaouais indie folk rockers Bonhomme Sept Heures.

Mixture 100% locale is an open space concept show happening at La Nouvelle Scène Gilles Desjardins from 6:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. this Saturday, October 14 that’ll feature live sets by Ottawa-Gatineau musicians and bands. During this 100% local event, you’ll have the opportunity to see Mehdi Cayenne, Laurence Nerbonne, Louis-Philippe Robillard, Kimya, FET.NAT, Outside I’m a Giant, Francis Faubert, Geneviève RB & Alain Barbeau, and Hey, Wow!

This Saturday night at the NAC, Forward Music Group will be celebrating its 10th anniversary with a special show featuring live performances by Michael Feuerstack, Gianna Lauren, Paper Beat Scissors, and Dan Misha Goldman. This event is part of a series of shows presented in various venues across the country celebrating Forward Music Group’s 10th birthday.

CHUO 89.1 FM, CKCU 93.1 FM & Birdman Sound present the 17th Ottawa Community Record Show this Sunday, October 15 at St. Anthony’s Hall. This is the place to go to find LPs & CDs and dig for rare music gems from every genre. Tons of killer some filler. A must for music collectors!

At this beautiful Saint Brigid’s Centre for the Arts this Sunday evening, Coco Love Alcorn will be giving a live performance as part of her Invitation To Sing Tour. The Owen Sound based artist will be playing tunes off of her latest album “Wonderland” alongside special guests Big Soul Project.

Eventful Capital’s Weekly Picks: From Ontario Scene and Bleak Life Fest To Hilotrons and Non Phixion

Another blog post, another week filled with events happening in Canada’s national capital. If you’re in Ottawa-Gatineau this week and have time to check out some stuff out, there’s so much happening you might have a hard time choosing! Take a look at Eventful Capital’s weekly picks below for a glimpse into the number of events happening in and around the National Capital Region in the coming days.

This year, the NAC is paying homage to Ontario arts for its last special series shining the spotlight on a Canadian region. Ontario Scene is officially being held from April 29 to May 10 and as part of this, Eventful Capital has selected a few noteworthy events that stand out from the bunch and that feature local artists. For starters, this Tuesday night at Mavericks, there will be a live show featuring Toronto rock artist Danko Jones, Burlington rock band Say Yes and Ottawa rock group Eagleson.   

All the way from Tokyo, Japan, indie punk band Zoobombs will be performing live at House of Targ this Tuesday night and they’ll be sharing the stage with local rock n’ rollers Glorious Moonrockets. $5 for two bands who are guaranteed to give a kick ass show? The price is right 🙂

As part of Ontario Scene, check out VideOntario: Outward Manifestons, an evening of short films featuring some of the province’s best filmmakers. The event, being held this Wednesday at SAW Video, will begin at around 7:30 pm and present a program curated by Scott McGovern, program director at Guelph’s Ed Video Media Arts Centre.

This Wednesday night at the Petit Chicago, the Virée Blues Boréale presents Martin Hury Blues Combo live in concert. The Argentenian blues artist will be performing live starting at around 8:30 pm so if you’re a fan of blues, be sure to check it out. 

Halifax rock band Alert The Medic is returning to Ottawa this Wednesday night to perform live at Zaphods. The 4-piece will be sharing the stage with Ottawa indie rock band The Gallop (a favorite of mine) and Ottawa alternative rock group The Stringers.

Starting this Thursday, April 30,SAW Gallery presents Michael DeForge: All Dogs Are Dogs, an expansive presentation of the artist’s work that marks his first major survey exhibition. Originally from Ottawa and currently based in Toronto, DeForge has produced an idiosyncratic body of work that has established him as a generation-defining voice in alternative comics. Moving across disciplines, All Dogs Are Dogs brings to life a hallucinatory world of degenerate creatures caught in existential quagmires. The exhibition comprises large-scale drawings and sculptures, prints, graphic novels, a limited-edition chapbook and a comic-strip mural commission on SAW’s façade and is being presented until June 27, 2015.

The hardcore and punk fans won’t want to miss Bleak Life Fest 2 happening over 3 days this weekend. The second edition of this new underground festival will be taking place at House of Targ as well as a couple of other venues and feature bands such as Occult Burial, Blanks 77 (first Canadian show in 15 years!), Stranger, Abyssed, Instinct of Survival, Torment, Parasytes, Durs Coeurs, Mueco, and Chloroform among others. Sure to be a ragin’ good time!

If your thing is more indie pop, be sure to head to Zaphod on Thursday night to catch Toronto electro pop band Brave Shores, Vancouver indie pop singer-songwriter and musician David Vertesi of Hey Ocean and Ottawa indie electro rock group Those Gulls.

Fans of indie garage music should be nowhere else but at Club SAW this Thursday night for the Next Wave: Ottawa Music Spotlight event presented as part of Ontario Scene. The free show will feature three exciting bands from Ottawa’s independent music scene namely The Yips, Roberta Bondar and Bonnie Doon. There’s no poster, so for details just click on the shoe will you?

For those of you who enjoy hardcore, there’s another noteworthy show happening at Club SAW this Friday, May 1. It’ll feature live sets by post hardcore band Capsize, Hamilton pop-punk/hardcore group Rarity, Ottawa screamo boys Daisy and Ottawa metalcore project Earthworks.

Canadian country singer-songwriter Brea Lawrenson will be having her CD Release party for #Brealieve at Algonquin Commons Theatre this Friday night. For the occasion, the independent artist will be sharing the stage with special guest Adrienne Taylor.

Toronto easy rock band Blimp Rock will be releasing their second album “Sophomore Slump” and giving a show for the occasion at Raw Sugar Cafe this Friday, May 1. The 4-piece will be sharing the stage with Ottawa alternative folk group Winchester Warm for an intimate evening of live music. Oh and there’s gonna be a PowerPoint presentation?

Local favorites Hilotrons will be having a vinyl release show at the Blacksheep Inn in Wakefield this Friday and to celebrate the experimental electro funk dance group be joined by special guests Theaternia and The Dark Plains, which is an interesting choice of opener given the fact that there’s a post rock band. To add to the senses, there will also be visual projections courtesy of Hard Science.

Also this Friday night, local bands Prett Melberts and Grand Theft Ottawa are having a Double CD Release party at the Rainbow Bistro. The punk/grunge and progressive funk/rock n’roll groups will be sharing the stage with Ottawa folk rock band Hello Hello and Ottawa alternative garage rock trio Elementals.

The 613 Night Market is back by popular demand! This Saturday at the Ottawa Convention Centre, immerse yourself with the ultimate street-food and shopping experience featuring the capital city’s bad-ass chefs, talented creators, crazy artists and daring entrepreneurs.

This Saturday, Wall Space Gallery presents new works by visual artist Stefan Thompson. The vernissage will be held from 7-9 pm and the exhibition will be on display until May 24 for those who can’t make it to the launch.

Fryquency, the pay-what-you-can series that exhibits emerging and experimental Canadian music, is hosting a show at Mugshots this Saturday night. The night of live music will feature performances by Toronto band Baby Cages, Ottawa noise project Eraserheads and Calgary ambient psych duo Fever Feel. What’s more, all ages are now welcome.

For the hip-hop heads out there, top-notch Canadian rapper and new host of Q Shad will be performing live at the Bronson Centre this Saturday night as part of Ontario Scene. The show will also feature local Ottawa indie hip-hop group Zoo Legacy, Akwesasne hip-hop band Story Tellers and Ottawa rap legend Jesse Dangerously.

Ottawa alternative folk singer-songwriter and guitar player Cody Allen will be releasing his fourth album on May 5 and to mark the news, he’s having a release party at Irene’s Pub this Saturday night with local indie folk rock 5-piece Miss Polygamy.

The irresistible Mackenzie Rhythm Section will be performing live at the Petit Chicago in the Hull sector of Gatineau this Saturday night. The local funk, soul and rock n’ roll band who’s gaining a reputation for its excellent live shows, is sure to perform songs off of its upcoming new album and get you dancing from start to finish in the process.

Non Phixion are embarking on a special 20th anniversary tour that is taking the NYC hardcore hip-hop group to Ottawa as part of a mega reunion with all original members. The guys will be making a stop in the capital this Saturday night and for the occasion, they’ll be sharing the stage with Ottawa hip-hop heavyweights Flight Distance, rising local hip-hop duo Buck N’ Nice, as well as locals Aspects and M.I.M.E.

This Sunday May 4, Spectrasonic and the Ottawa Bluesfest present Dublin folk rock band The Waterboys live at the Bronson Centre. For the occasion, the group will also perform with Woodstock folk rock multi-instrumentalist Connor Kennedy and Minstrel.

Indie drone/noise/folk group Six Organs of Admittance will be giving a live show in the capital city this Sunday night. Joining them on stage will be Hartford indie noise/rock artist Elisa Ambrogio.

Eventful Capital’s Weekly Picks: From Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings to Winchester Warm and the aVibe Festival

If you’re in the National Capital Region this week and have time to check out some events, there’s no shortage of things to do. Take a look at Eventful Capital’s weekly picks below for a glimpse into the number of events happening in and around Ottawa-Gatineau in the days ahead. This week, I’m keeping it short and sweet, so be sure to click on the event posters below for more info and all the down-low. Catch you around town!