FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
Last weekend, I was in Ottawa for the All That Is Heavy II doomfest, a six-band shindig featuring Blood Ceremony, Iron Man and Revelation, to name a few. This was the second notable doom-metal festival in Canada over the past few years, after Montreal is Doomed in December 2010, which happened to be Pagan Altar’s North American debut. (That was quite the nite for me, too!) So, when are we gonna see one of these things in Toronto? Don’t hold your breath…
If the Bobby Liebling doc Last Days Here was a testament to a man hitting rock bottom due to drugs, once could say that Jay Bulger’s new doc, Beware of Mr. Baker, shows the heights one can ascend to while totally whacked out on smack. But unlike Liebling, who got by with a little help from his friends, Ginger Baker finds himself in the twilight of his life isolated and alone–in South Africa, no less. OK, so this probably isn’t a pro-drug PSA, either…
For the past four or five years, I’ve counted on Japanese spaced-out psych merchants Acid Mothers Temple coming through town in April. They always seem to take a trip over here right when spring starts to bloom. Well okay, so spring was a little late this year. Also of note: this gig wasn’t at the El Mocambo, their typical Toronto tour stop for as long as I can remember, but rather at The Garrison, down by Dundas and Ossington.
As a die-hard sports fan, I’m often disappointed by the musical selection at sporting events. For every time that a stadium DJ might play “Run to the Hills” or “Hit the Lights,” there are at least a couple hundred renditions of “Don’t Stop Believing,” “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” “Blitzkrieg Bop” and whatever Nickelback’s latest single happens to be at the moment. I can’t remember the last time any of these songs actually fired me up. And when a football player’s idea of a metal band is Free Reign, well, let’s just say that I was starting to believe that good music and the gridiron don’t mix. But that was before I became tuned in to the greatness of Vince Lombarrdi.
Although he came off as a coked-out space cadet on the two occasions I’ve seen him perform, and I’ve read many an interview where he clearly appears to be off his rocker, I can safely say that Bobby Liebling is not on drugs. Because I’ve seen him on drugs, in the Last Days Here documentary, and he looked a lot worse than he does now.
Canadian Music Week has always been the first weekend in March, and as such, I’ve adjusted/cleared my schedule accordingly for the past few years. But this year, they’ve decided to make a change, moving the event to the fourth weekend of the month. The official reasoning I’ve heard is they want to have it after SXSW, as if that would entice more bands to come up and play here. Hey, there are tons of amazing metal bands that just played SXSW–and I don’t see a single one on the bill for Canadian Music Week.
When they did the first edition of this event, a fundraiser for local college radio station CKCU, I remember thinking, “Damn, that’s a great lineup!” Featuring four of Southern Ontario’s finest–Electric Magma, Gypsy Chief Goliath, Blood Ceremony and Sons of OTIS–there was really no reason that show couldn’t have happened in Toronto, cept nobody had the initiative to book it. But when I saw the bill for the sequel this year… Well, let’s just say the organizers are kicking it up a notch, and I definitely plan on heading up to the nation’s capital for this one.
Y’know, whenever I’ve seen Maiden at the ACC in the spring or the fall, I’ve always been able to get floors, but I’ve had no such luck at the Molson Ampitheatre. I was up on the Live Nation website as soon as the clock struck 10 this morning, and as a result of my efforts, I’m stuck up in Section 302, Row L–and it’s still costing me more than I ever paid for floors indoors!
In case you missed the last episode of Days of our Black Sabbath, the band has pulled out of all but one of its upcoming European dates, citing Tony Iommi’s health issues. Meanwhile, drummer Bill Ward issued a public statement that he still wants to take part in the reunion, but is still waiting for a signable contract…
If Black Sabbath are the grandfathers of doom, Trouble would be one of its uncles (along with Candlemass, Saint Vitus and Witchfinder General). But while grandpa’s mad ravings have been grabbing headlines lately, what with the whole Bill Ward fiasco, Uncle Trouble has been through quite the shakeup himself. In fact, it seems that there’s not one, but two Troubles nowadays. Say what?