PrettyInScarlett

Once again far too busy to look anything up beforehand... so M and I headed to see Laura Moody on Friday completely fresh. Wow!  A very cosy audience at the Old Cinema Launderette were treated to Laura's super songs and very funky cello playing (slide cello, anyone!). Just happened to pick up a copy of the latest NARC magazine to find... an article about Laura Moody! She is one very original and talented musician, from contemporary music with Elysian Quartet and The Gogmagogs to Meredith Monk emsemble.  The songs we heard in her 1-hour set mixed genres, effects (vocal and instrumental), structures and funny stories (including tales of Stockhausen in a helicopter ) for a very memorable evening. Some of the most original music (no typical song structures here) I've heard since I first saw The PepTides ... Cello as harp, drum, ukulele, funky tunings - all here. George the cello is very versatile... Most of the songs were taken from current album Acrobats , with a...

The onset of winter's bitter evenings heralded The PepTides ' last show of 2012 at Irene's Pub on Saturday, 26th November. Interestingly, M and I arrived about 9pm to be told that the pub was at maximum capacity; by 9.45 or so there were about 10 people in this line. 4 or 5 of us were let in about this time, and to my eyes, the pub was about 60% full. To me, a full pub is one reminiscent of London's Circle line at rush hour; on Saturday there was definitely standing room for another 50 people. I imagine that capacity regulations are somehow linked to the alcohol licence but for the lineup still waiting outside at 10.30pm, well, organisation could have been better.   We heard some of The Pelts' support set from the bar -  seemed to be listenable, danceable fun music but not so memorable. Not so the main set. From their introductions, this was the last live show in the current format - with an EP based on Stuart McLean's The Vinyl Cafe just out and a new ...

After last year's inaugural event (which I wasn't able to attend), the organisers behind Feverfest clearly have expansion in mind. This year's event, last Friday and Saturday (22nd and 23rd June) was co-hosted by Irene's Pub and Clocktower (Glebe) with indoor and outdoor stages. M and I spent an excellent Saturday afternoon relaxing in the shade at Clocktower. This year, I was enticed to go because The PepTides were playing but enjoyed most of the bands I saw. The lunch slot had been awarded t0 Loon Choir whom I hadn't encountered before, but were pretty good. We were not as impressed by Zoo Legacy ; their vocal sound in particular seemed either retro (if you like them) or dated (if you don't). During these sets more people were arriving, but the indoor stage was still pretty quiet when Ty Hall played his set. Just going on his unplugged set, I heard interesting lyrics in a singer-songwriter style, but having listened to some songs on his website , his re...

What better way to spend a Saturday than listening to The PepTides at Irene's Pub ? Somewhat shamefully, Saturday 18th was our first trip to Irene's, which turns out to be a very cosy pub and live music venue. Extra plus points for having Waupoos cider on tap! Plus proper pint glasses! Savoured my first pint of Waupoos sat at the bar whilst DJ Memetic played a set. At that point I was sat quite far from the stage but didn't find Memetic's set any better than OK.  Second pint time and The PepTides came onstage. At this point I will own up to having forgot my camera (oops), however ' ThatOttawaGuy ' has a whole host of photos. There were perhaps 120-150 people squeezed in for a fantastic show. Having seen this band 5 times (I think), the FTHHHI part of the set list is like enjoying a favourite record but finding something new every time. M reckoned that some of the FTHHHI songs had been slightly amended to make something of a long medley..  presumably to mak...

Two very contrasting concerts to continue December's music madness. First, another U Ottawa School of Music concert, 'Piano Duets and Duos' on 7th December. 17 performers under the direction of Frédéric Lacroix presented a variety of well-known and lesser known pieces arranged for four, six, eight and twelve hands on 1 or 2 pianos. Whilst Rheinberger's transcriptions of J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations were the headline pieces, I preferred some of the other pieces, such as Rachmaninoff's Romance and the comedy of Lacroix's arrangement Für Malcolm in homage to Beethoven's Für Elise . A fun festive treat for the  appreciative crowd in Tabaret Hall.  Having missed their last few shows (including the 360 show at the Elmdale that won Best Live Show 2011 in Ottawa Xpress ), it was interesting to see The PepTides again and in a different venue. Whilst atmospheric, the stage area at Mercury Lounge seemed a bit cramped. In the support slot, the excellent D...

Ottawa chamber festival Music and Beyond starts today with a highly anticipated event featuring renowned Canadian actor Christopher Plummer. Sadly, I'm not going, as I only have  a 'standard' pass. Not to complain, though, as there are 72 concerts on offer between today and 17th July!  I am covering Music and Beyond as official 'reader-blogger' for the Ottawa Citizen. Their reader-blogger page, The Festival Goer , features blogs from JazzFest, BluesFest and Music and Beyond, with ChamberFest and Folk Festival still to come. My posts are under 'MusicBeyondBlogger'. As an aside, M and I plan to attend The PepTides ' next Ottawa show tomorrow (8th July) at the Elmdale House Tavern. 

First big music festival of the summer (and my first full summer in Ottawa) and a meditation on the steel city on the Don, Sheffield. The previous time I saw Robert Plant , in Sheffield way back in 2002, it was in a packed-out university venue. Not a shade on the crowd gathered in Confederation Park on 23rd June, though. According to a fellow attendee, this was maybe the biggest crowd ever at JazzFest?! Due credit to support act Bahamas - new to me but the band, with frontperson Afie Jurvanen, payed a good mix and received more than a polite response from the ever-growing audience, and not just for a few lines of Led Zeppelin.  Thunder and lightning added to the atmosphere as Robert Plant and the Band of Joy (including Grammy winner Patty Griffin) took the stage with a 'jazz time' take on Black Dog. The majority of the set comprised songs from recent albums Band of Joy and Raising Sand, with the combined vocals of Plant and Griffin and talents of the Band creating a captivati...