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!!

Easter Long Weekend Events in Ottawa

You’ve got the next 4 days off and are still undecided about what to do? Here are some options of where to go out this Easter long weekend around the nation’s capital.

Tonight, the place to be is Ritual nightclub for the Redbull Thre3style DJ Competition with DJs:

ACRO
SHUB
BRAINS4BRKFST
LUKIJO
JON DECK
SO NICE
DJ AK

The 7 above-mentioned DJs will get 15 minutes to showcase three different styles of music to prove that they are the best party rocker in Ottawa! A panel of judges will evaluate each DJ based on several predetermined criteria and they will announce the winner at the end of the night. Now I’ve been to this competition before and it’s so much fun. It’s always such a pleasure to support local DJs 🙂 Tonight, I’ll be rooting for DJ Shub from A Tribe Called Red, Jon Deck and So Nice! Best of luck to all contestants cause this is sure to be a tight competition!

If you like Reggaeton and want to shake off the week’s stress, head out to Studio SKYbar on Rideau St for I Love Reggaeton with DJ Santana and guests. Tickets are $10 and you can grab more details below.

This Friday, hit up Babylon for this month’s edition of Frenzy with special guest DJ Craze a 5-time world champion from Miami who’s been tour DJ for Kanye West and Yelawolf. Craze will be spinning alongside Ottawa-resident Iggy Smalls starting at 11 pm. More details available by clicking on the poster below.

Also this Friday, Ritual is hosting the CHUO Funding Drive Party featuring Bass Machines, DJ Noble, DJ Alive and Cong. The minimum donation to get in is $3 and all funds raised will go towards CHUO 89.1 FM, the University of Ottawa’s community radio station. Doors open at 10 pm and you can get more details by clicking on the poster below.

On Saturday at Babylon DNA and Droppin Science present Static featuring resident DJ Jon Deck and special guest Felix Cartal, a Canadian electronic music producer and DJ who recently released his fifth EP The Joker and Different Places. More info available by clicking the poster.

Then on Sunday, Mercury Lounge is where it happens with the Easter Sunday Jam with The Play On Players aka DJ Magnificent and DJ Illo. The gentlemen will be dropping beats to make you move , sing and remember the good ol’ days of soul music. Doors open at $10 and more info below.

If you’re looking for something more trendy and upscale for Sunday night, I recommend that you go to Bijou nightclub and lounge for DJ Colleen Shannon, coined the world’s sexiest female DJ who also happens to be Playboy Magainze’s 50th anniversary playmate. I hope that she can spin as great as she looks…! For more details check out the Facebook event page here.

Have yourself a fantastic long weekend ahead and enjoy all that Ottawa has to offer!

XO

Review: K-OS DJ Set @ Bijou, Rise Ashen & Flying Down Thunder @ Mercury Lounge and the JUNO Awards

This past weekend was all about the JUNOs in Ottawa and I was lucky to attend 3 very different events to partake in the celebrations.

First up was Canadian hip-hop artist K-OS who threw a DJ Set at Bijou Nightclub & Lounge, a new venue located on the corner of Bank and Slater that recently opened its doors. It was my first time at Bijou since the opening and it was also the first time I went out to hear K-OS spin records for a live crowd. The venue itself is small and intimate but decorated with taste and clean, which is somewhat difficult to come across when it comes to nightclubs and bars. I sometimes ask myself why the best music is often played in the grimiest of places, but not this time! Bijou proves to be an interesting place to go out for drinks and dancing if you like it a bit more upscale.

Prior to the main set,  Bijou resident and Ottawa DJ Kid SL got the crowd warmed up followed by Sebastien Grainger from Death From Above 1979  who kept the people moving until K-OS decided it was time for him to take over, which was around 1:00 am. That’s rather late, but considering the place was open until 4:00 am with extended license on the occasion of the JUNO weekend, then I guess it was acceptable. Having said this, the minute K-OS started his set, I knew the night could only get better. The man held it down and served the crowd classics one after the other: I was in hip-hop heaven! He’s definitely a great DJ for those who enjoy good old hip-hop, but others who would expect newer stuff and commercial tracks would’ve been disappointed. Thank you Bijou, K-OS was a great choice to bring out to celebrate the JUNOs in the nation’s capital!

Photo Courtesy of C. Trottier ©

Saturday night, although I wanted nothing more than to go party with The Weeknd at Studio SKYbar, I switched things up and headed to Mercury Lounge, renowned in Ottawa for being a major contributor to the arts sector and night-life scene in the national capital since its creation in 1996.

I was primarily there to see Rise Ashen & Flying Down Thunder, 2012 Juno nominees for Aboriginal Album of the Year, but also enjoyed hearing KASM and the Seed Organization who came all the way from Winnipeg to spin addictive and danceable tunes filled with reggae flavors and heavy-bass beats. I didn’t know who Rise Ashen & Flying Down Thunder were until last week when I read an Ottawa Citizen article on them and saw them perform their One Nation single during sound-check at the Canadian Museum of Civilization (they were scheduled to perform at a JUNOs launch private party the same night at the Museum). Combined, the newspaper article and sound-check run sparked my curiosity and I wanted to hear more hence why I headed to Mercury Lounge.

The duo hopped on stage around midnight, and although they didn’t take the JUNO Award for Best Aboriginal Album of the Year (Murray Porter did) they consoled themselves by offering a fantastic performance to the receptive crowd in attendance. They performed their main track One Nation along with many other excellent songs from their album, which shares the same title. B-boys and B-girls alike were breaking it down front and center as everyone seemed to have a a good time jamming to the unique sounds of Rise Ashen and Flying Down Thunder. Thanks to the guys for such an engaging and energetic performance and thanks to Mercury Lounge and APTN for organizing a very successful JUNOfest event!

Last but certainly not least, the culmination of all of JUNOfest and other related events lead to the JUNO Awards show, which took place at Ottawa’s Scotiabank Place this Sunday at 8:00 p.m. As a volunteer seat-filler, I had to arrive quite early for logistical reasons. Around 7:30 pm, I was finally seated in the 200-level (sadly I wasn’t sitting next to an artist like I had hoped for) and watched the show with great interest! It was so exciting to not only be at a awards ceremony, but to also experience it in person as opposed to watching it on TV as I normally do. It was interesting to witness some of the behind-the-scenes and to enjoy seeing so much Canadian talent under one roof.

And the madness begins! Volunteer seat-fillers in the Main Lobby waiting to check-in...!

Although only 7 award categories were announced live (the majority of awards had been given out the night before at a JUNOS gala), this gave the crowd a good balance between the awards announcements, William Shatner’s so-called humorous skits and the artists performances. The Toronto Sun has it just about right when it wrote that this year’s JUNO Awards were “just plain weird from the presence of 81-year-old hambone host William “I wanna rock!!” Shatner (and the absence of major international celebrities) to the bizarre comedy bits and inexplicable award choices, this year’s event easily ranks as one of the weirdest JUNO nights in recent memory”.

Despite finding the performances somewhat ordinary, at the end of the day, my highlights were definitely to see Kardinal Offishall and Classified announce the winner of Songwriter of the Year, City & Colour performing The Grand Optimist, K’Naan who dropped a verse with Simple Plan and almost fell off stage (!), Feist for being all-around cute and awesome and deadmau5 with Lights for the grand finale! All in all the main stage was fantastic, the lighting was great and the special effects were sort of impressive for a Canadian awards show! And now that the madness is all over and that everyone has gone back home, Ottawa will get back to its regular old self, but here’s to hoping we keep some of that fun JUNO spirit alive!

The 2012 JUNO Awards and JUNO Fest Take Over Ottawa!

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!

Event Review: Ariane Moffatt at the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau

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 ©

Much More March: Events All-Over for the Month Ahead

March is just around the corner in the National Capital Region and so are plenty of events to keep you busy and entertained. The month ahead will certainly be nothing short of amazing.

To kick things off, Steve Aoki and Datsik will be at the Ottawa Civic Centre Salon this Thursday, March 1 on the occasion of the 2012 Dim Mak’s Deadmeat Tour. This promises to be a heavy night of bass for fans of dubstep, house and electro alike. Check out the event poster below and click for event details…Ottawa, can you truly represent your city?

 

Also this Thursday March 1, on the hip-hop side of things, Kapacity Entertainment presents the one and only Raekwon “the Chef” of the Wu Tang Clan at Ritual Nightclub. This is not his first time performing in the Nation’s Capital and tickets are still on sale and available online and at all locations. If you’re a true fan of classic hip-hop and the whole Wu Tang fam, please do yourself yourself a favor and check out Raekwon especially if you’ve never seen him live before. The man does NOT disappoint. More details if you click on the poster below…

 

 

Between March 1 and March 4, the city of Gatineau is hosting its annual book fair called the Salon du Livre de l’Outaouais (SLO). Taking place at the Gatineau Congress Centre in Vieux-Hull, this event is the place to be for book lovers, writers, and publishing houses. The annual gathering offers much more than books for sale. Check out the full event program on the SLO website.

 

Kicking off as I type these words, VerseFest, a world of poetry in Ottawa, runs from February 28 to March 4 at various locations around the city. If you love writing and reading poetry, this is definitely for you! You can find the entire programming on the VerseFest official website.

 

 

This Saturday, the March Edition of Static features DJ extraordinaire DROP THE LIME at Babylon. DROP THE LIME is not just a DJ. He offers a full on one-man music performance: he sings, he DJs, and all out performs for every crowd he plays in front of. Ottawa is definitely in for a treat! Check out the event details on the poster below!

 

Also this Saturday is the grand opening of Bijou, the newest night club and lounge to hit Canada’s National Capital,  with DJs Sean Perry and Kid SL. For the official opening, the masterminds behind Bijou promise:

– The sexiest and most fashionable staff in Ottawa
-A selection of over 20 cocktails and 20 martinis
-A vast and exclusive champagne, scotch, cognac and whiskey selection
-The best music and DJ’s in the region
-The most exclusive playground in the city

Let’s see if this new venue is as hot and unique as it claims to be…!

 

After poetry galore, the Bijou opening and DROP THE LIME, comes the Montreal-Indie rock band Plants and Animals who will be performing live at Ritual on March 8 with Thus:Owls, a Swedish Indie band. If you enjoy indie alternative music, you should definitely come out for this line-up. The main act, Plants and Animals, will be performing songs off their latest team effort The End of That.  Check out event details here.

 

 

This ought to keep you all busy for the week and weekend ahead! Much More March events will be announced next week….Stay tuned and enjoy whatever events you’ll be partaking in over the next couple of days!

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!