I love Kidstreet! Such creative beats and vocals! I had the luxury of seeing them perform at an after-hours a few years ago. Despite sound problems mulling their performance, what I had seen and heard was amazing enough. The potential was there and looming. The same thing had shown itself at The Drake. Expect to see more of them. Bigger shows, bigger stages, bigger dance parties.

I’ve heard nothing but good talk about Halifax’s Rich Aucoin and his fantastic live shows (or parties, if you will). So, I go to to the Drake and I’m very, very tired. Despite the mediocre turn-out on a cold Wednesday night, Rich Aucoin managed to get the crowd off of its heals and into a dancing and chanting frenzy. I cannot remember a time when a performer had managed to do this since I saw Think About Life many years ago. The majority of his songs were comprised of samples from famous Internet videos and collective chants, allowing the audience to get involved. It’s clear that this is what Rich Aucoin loves to do; he loves to make the audience happy. When the rainbow tent came out, so did the Silly String. That’s a mess all on its own, but, if you don’t mind picking off the little bits that are annoyingly stuck to your clothes, then go see Rich Aucoin. He’s quite the dude.

NOTE: This performance happened last month. Forgive my tardiness.

Everyone who knows me will say that I am always up for seeing bands/performers from Montreal, especially if they are new and potentially exciting.

I’ve seen the Silly Kissers before and found them entertaining. Dance-worthy? This is true. Although there’s nothing remarkably mentionable about their live show, their music has a vibe which can be identified by saying words like “sexy” and “adorable”. No portmanteaus here; just sexy and adorable. Aside from that, their sound has matured and has the ability to be reached to many, many more listeners.

Braids. Just, yeah. BRAIDS. I’m usually a patient person who waits for new, exciting talent to come along (as mentioned at the top of this posting). Braids are a best-friend collective, originally from Calgary, who now hail from Montreal. To keep things short, their set was so awe-inspiring that their sound managed to somewhat hypnotize the crowd, myself included. Not one word was spoken, especially for the final 15 minutes. The only thing I had wished for was that they play more and more.

More ‘n more ‘n more ‘n more.

The Luyas truly are awesome. Expect a new record soon. See them before they get picked up by a huge record label and are splurged around record stores for everyone to grab a hold of.

I can remember driving through Southern Greece and seeing Gypsies on the roadsides or hanging out in small towns. Occasionally, the sound of tempo-changing violin (or fiddle) and horns would spout about during the nightfall. I can also remember hearing similar music being played in the film ‘Everything Is Illuminated’. Both were just as settling to the mind, but therapeutic for a beating heart.

A Hawk and a Hacksaw started out a project by former Neutral Milk Hotel drummer Jeremy Barnes. The project grew into a duo consisting of himself on Percussion and Accordion and Heather Trost on Violin. A Tuba and a Trumpet/Flugelhorn were included in the mix and there you have this unique, Eastern-European sounding Mariachi-esque band hailing from New Mexico….and boy, do they have ideas.

Truth be told, I was only at The Drake to see Evening Hymns perform (video shot and edited by Kat Burns). Since their performance was AMAZING, as usual, I decided to stick around and see what the fuss was about for the headliner. Hawk/Hacksaw were beyond what anyone could describe as “brilliant.” Keeping a beat with my foot or hands to the sweet strings and beats was not an issue. A band like this doesn’t let up, and for many reasons they shouldn’t. Near the end of the night, they stepped away from their mics and played in the middle of the room. At Jeremy Barnes’ kind request, he asked for people not to clap their hands to the beat as it was throwing him off. Stomping feet — now THAT was fine.

What would have made the night perfect: if it were warmer, on the seaside or in the hills SOMEWHERE in Europe, having a nice beer sitting out by fire or candlelights….yeah , I’m dreaming.

This was a good show. I enjoyed it. Woodhands ruled.