Canadian singer-songwriter Terra Lightfoot is making a name for herself internationally as one of the rock talents to watch right now, her third album New Mistakesshowing off not only the power and versatility of her vocals, but also an array of chunky riffs to tie it all together.
Lightfoot, a multi-octave mezzo soprano singer, first started out as part of a country-folk group in her hometown of Hamilton, before picking up her signature Gibson SG and moving into heavier roots-rock territory. New Mistakes, however, introduces wonderful elements of soul and blues to form her strongest work to date.
“I think the songs tell the perfect story of where I’ve been and where I would like to go,” she explains. “And I don’t want to apologize for any of it – I’m proud of it, mistakes and all.”
If those mistakes are what led to this record, it’s hard to argue, and she’s certainly put in the hard yards to get here, backing her music up with some serious graft on tours around the world – including supporting none other than Canadian icon Gordon Lightfoot (no relation).
After releasing their debut single, ‘Johnny’. Basement Revolver from Hamilton, Ontario created with this first song encountered an unstoppable wave of support; managing to establish themselves with grassroots endorsements from sites such as DIY Magazine, Indie Shuffle, CBC and Exclaim! Magazine to name only a handful. respected tastemakers hailing ‘Johnny’ a “‘favourite song of the year’ contender” and another said they had a sound that was hard to forget once it took hold. They had stumbled across a sound that is capable of stripping listeners of inhibition, heavy hitting enough to leave a lasting impression on your mind.
The Hamilton trio moved their eyes towards the release of their debut EP, eventually accepting a record deal from Memphis Industries’ UK sub-label Fear Of Missing Out. The EP proved to be a grand success, eventually racking up over 600,000+ plays on Spotify and nearly 100,000 plays on SoundCloud. ‘Johnny’ and their second single ‘Words’ reached the higher echelon of the Hype Machine chart .
The night before his Harvest Picnic headlining set, Ryan Adams gave some hints that he was working on “a set list so dark for tomorrow it makes Love Is Hell sound like a Nintendo commercial.” The man kept his word, but no amount of advanced warning could have fully steeled the southern Ontario crowd for the onslaught of feels that poured forth from stage on Friday night (August 26th).
Walking on stage and taking his seat between the two acoustic guitars that he would switch back and forth between all evening, Ryan Adams introduced himself to the audience by simply stating: “I’m as excited about sad music as you are.”
Proving his point, he opened with Heartbreaker songs “Oh My Sweet Carolina” and “My Winding Wheel,” before delving deeper and darker into a one-man rendition of his Cardinals cut “If I Am a Stranger.”
As heavy as some of Adams‘ extensive song catalogue is, there are still moments of levity when he performs. Quick to joke and improvise, he’s comfortable and charming when bantering on stage, whether dedicating “GimmeSomething Good” to a Twitter troll or wondering “Why didn’t I just buy a mandolin?” out loud as he struggled to tune a guitar with a capo on the fifth fret for “Let it Ride” or simply praising Canadian weed and TV shows.
But his M.O. for the set was obvious the moment he lost himself in song, instantly transforming from a jovial stoner dude into the solemn singer-songwriter responsible for “Ashes and Fire,” “Why Do They Leave?,” “Tears of Gold” and “Damn, Sam (I Love a Woman that Rains),” which were each made all the more poignant by Adams‘ solo acoustic setup.
The stripped down nature of the show also served to showcase Adams‘ stunning vocals. Often buried beneath the buzz of a full-blown band, the simplicity of last night’s setup let his voice shine — rising, falling, breaking and twanging at precisely the right moments to pierce its way into the ears, then hearts of everyone in attendance. Jacksonville City Nights highlight “The End” was particularly striking. From its introduction as a story Adams wrote about his “beer-amid”-building father at a time when the pair were estranged (“I suspect he fucking hates this song”), to the refrains of strangled wails directed at his North Carolina hometown, to the final echoing repetition of the title phrase, the song sent chills through the crowd that were completely unrelated to the rapidly cooling night-time air.
In addition to the classics that have been tugging at fans’ heartstrings for years, there were a few unexpected but welcome surprises, like a cover of Alice in Chains’ “Nutshell” and a rarely — if ever (Adams couldn’t quite recall) — played “Sweet Illusions,” from the Cardinals’ Cold Roses, which was prefaced by what turned out to be a totally unnecessary “Sorry if I fuck it up.”
The show eventually ended on a familiar note for anyone who’s seen the guy live before — after curfew, and with “Come Pick Me Up” because, as Adams put it, we’re masochists.
It’s not our fault he makes pain sound so goddamn beautiful.
Ryan Adams performs as the opening night headliner of the 2016 Greenbelt Harvest Picnic in Hamilton, Ontario
The debut EP from Canadian trio Basement Revolver a new band from Hamilton Ontario. The Canadian’s have been teasing the release via a series of ever improving tracks and earlier this week they shared another snippet of the record in the shape of new single, Lake, Steel, Oil.
Whilst the bands previous output had already shown they could do energetic, and somewhat introspective indie-pop; on Lake, Steel, Oil they showcase a completely different side to their music. With nods to the likes of Lanterns On The Lake or Waxahatchee’s more recent output, it’s a gentle swell of musical ideas. Building around a lone guitar line and pulsing bass-line, eventually singer, Chrisy Hern’s vocal enters with a heartbroken tone reminiscent of Alvvay’s Molly Rankin, joined latterly by echoing, grandiose percussion. Dramatic and expansive, without ever falling into clichéd “here’s our big song” territory, it’s far better than a band so new to this musical game have any right to be. Another string in the band’s bow, and one that suggests there’s far more to Basement Revolver than they’re currently letting on, a very exciting prospect indeed.
Hamilton, Ontario’s Basement Revolver plays introspective and emotional indie rock music, reminiscent of The Pixies and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The drone of the city haunts frontwoman Chrisy Hurn: stories woven with factory skylines and gritty streets are sung in a voice pure as water, flowing down high escarpment walls. The heavy lines of bass/synth player Nimal Agalawatte and drummer Brandon Munro are bedrock for Hurn’s ethereal and immediate guitar work. Developed songcraft and infectious rhythms will have you following Basement Revolver into feelings you never knew you had.
Basement Revolver has shared the stage with We Are The City, Highs, Dave Monks and Evening Hymns, among others. They are set to release their debut EP this week in July of 2016.
The Dirty Nil’s Luke Bentham once said that his whole life has been spent trying to capture the essence of a photo of The Stooges he saw as a kid. In it, Iggy Pop is about to dive into the crowd while the rest of the band pounds their instruments in front of an endless wall of amps. That pretty much says it all about The Dirty Nil. Were this any other era of rock, the band would be the most famous band on the planet. They’ve got a style that could easily translate to any time period, any audience, and any venue. After years of skating by on singles and EPs, the hard-touring and outrageously likeable Canucks finally dropped their long-awaited debut, Higher Power, and it blows the fuckin’ lid off of everything else you might have heard this week.
The Arkells hail from Hamilton in Canada they have been together since 2008, Arkells met in school. They are a critically acclaimed rock n roll band, known for their classic songwriting, electric live shows, and workman like touring ethic.
Jackson Square, the band’s first full length LP was released in 2008 to critical and commercial acclaim, garnering the Juno Award for New Group Of The Year in 2010. In 2011, they released Michigan Left, a collection of blue-eyed soul, sing-a-long anthems. In 2012 they won the Juno Award For Group Of The Year, and the CBC Music award for Best Live Band.
Arkells have toured with acts such as Metric, The Tragically Hip, Tokyo Police Club, British Sea Power, Anti-Flag, The Black Crowes.
Their new album, High Noon, was written in Hamilton and produced by Tony Hoffer (Beck, The Kooks, M83). These collection of songs are the band’s most unabashed effort yet – politically charged, heart on your sleeve lyrics combined with adventurously modern and throwback production stylings.
The Fat Angel Sings 