FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
They might not be in the Guinness Book of Records alongside Manowar and Motorhead, but Georgian “black doomed sludge thrash” nomads Jucifer have been blowing the roofs offa tiny clubs for years. Tonite, they make their annual trip to Toronto, where, for the second year in a row, they’ll be playing the Bovine Sex Club.
They say all things must come to pass, but lately, they’ve been passing like a 300-pounder with a spastic colon passes gas. First, there was the mysterious disappearance of StonerRock.com, the website that every heavy rock site aspired to be. Then, the off-again, on-again, off-the-air CKLN saga, which led to the end of Smokin’ Green and influenced my decision not to renew my domain. Accept tribute bands take note: as of August 26, 2011, TooHighToGetItRight.com will be up for grabs.
I’m not one to mince words, nor to give perfect-10s, but I gotta say, last nite’s gig at the Courthouse was the best show I’ve seen in Toronto this year. The rock-solid triple-bill held its own with a coupla festival gigs I’ve seen elsewhere–and in terms of quality over quantity, it definitely takes the cake.
There were five bands playing the Distillery that evening, and aside from the local death/grind group who took the stage at 9, they were all solid supporting acts for The Sword.
So, last weekend’s Sled Island festival was pretty solid. Sleep, The Sword, Dead Meadow, Bison B.C., Red Fang–I really can’t complain. Well, not about the lineup, anyways. But after defending Calgary as an affordable city to live in, I found out otherwise during my trip there last weekend…
When I saw you drag your tired, sorry-looking asses on stage last nite, I figured you guys were on tour. It looked like you’d been to Prince Edward Island and back. Correct me if I’m wrong, but from what I gather, the tour started last nite in Peterborough. I mean, the Pete’s the kinda place where you play a gig, drive home afterwards, and go to work the next day. If that’s what you actually did, I can sympathize, but I have a hard time believing you couldn’t grab a nap somewhere before a hometown show…
Any disappointment should be alleviated this evening with a solid double-dose of heaviness just offa Bathurst. NYC’s Tombs and Neurot recording artists A Storm of Light are playing Sneaky Dee’s, then I’m gonna head down the street to catch Macabre, my all-time favourite grind band, at the Hard Luck Bar.
Sled Island, a four-day, multi-venue fest, has been Calgary’s answer to NXNE since 2007. Seeing as the actual NXNE takes place the week beforehand, I’ve never had much interest in a lineup that often features many of the same bands as the Toronto event. But this year, while my initial impressions of the NXNE lineup are a little underwhelming, the Cowtown organizers have scored a major coup: they’re bringing Sleep to town for an exclusive Canadian performance, and just one of three gigs on the marijuananauts’ calendar this year.
As the owner and maintainer of TooHighToGetItRight.com, a site dedicated to the Southern Ontario stoner rock scene, I’ve seen a lotta bands come and go since 2007. Lately, it seems that there’s been a lot more going than there are coming, to the point where I might not renew my domain this year. But there are still some new bands breathing new life into the stagnant stoner scene. Here are a few to keep an eye on…
Tomorrow nite, Rhode Island sludge/doom duo The Body are playing, fresh from their appearance at Montreal’s Mountains of Might fest. The gig was supposed to be at The Garage (The Body’s in The Garage!) but being weary of Sunday nite noise complaints, they switched venues. Thing is, The Shop was already booked, so this one’s an early start. Doors at 5 pm, and the gig’s done by 9, unless you wanna stick around for whoever’s scheduled to go on afterwards…