Josh’s HPX @ Sled Island Recap
Day 1 – June 22
As Jonny flew home to tend to the HPX flock, I traveled west to Calgary to visit my sister and nephew. After spending a couple of days hanging out with them, it was time to start my Sled Island experience.
I already knew a few of the Sled staff, as Drew Marshall worked with HPX last year, and Josh McNorton and Paisley Sim attended the fest. Since I was in Calgary anyway, I decided to help them out! Wednesday started with me in the Sled office helping out with whatever was needed – moving delegate bags, getting ice, filling out venue posters, answering phones – I know what it’s like on the day your fest opens, and help is always welcome!
After finishing up in the office, I headed for a bite to eat at the Ship & Anchor where I stuck around for Trigger Effect before heading home to rest up for Thursday. For those in the know, yes, I’m sorry I didn’t go see Dum Dum Girls and Blonde Redhead. I get it. I missed a ridiculous show. I was determined not to make that mistake again.
Day 2 – June 23
Thursday’s workday started a little later than Wednesday, but as soon as I hit Sledquarters, I was back on the phones. Then suddenly keys were thrown at me and I was in a 15-passenger on my way to the airport! I fought through crazy Deerfoot traffic to arrive just a little late picking up Deer Tick – a phenomenal band featuring Halifax’s Rob Crowell (who just happens to be a Mellotone). Howlin’ Rain was waiting at the airport when I arrived, so I threw them all in the van and headed back to town!
Finishing up in the office, I headed back to the Ship and Anchor again to meet an old high school friend for dinner, and stuck around to check out Quivers – Halifax locals who are really making a name for themselves. Their set was great, and every song brought more and more people inside from the patio. Michael Rault followed Quivers and played a similar-styled garage/surf/punk rock. I stayed for a few tunes, but bailed to try to make the GOBBLE GOBBLE show at The Distillery. The walk was a bit further than expected, and I missed GG but arrived in time for a cold Pilsner, a phone charge from the Galaga machine, and Man Man – a band I’ll admit I knew very little about. They were wild and weird and altogether awesome. So glad I caught the show! After Man Man, I hit Dicken’s for Bison b.c. who were so heavy I felt my bones give in. The band was wild and insane and it was a festival highlight to see Sled Island Director Lindsay Shedden on stage screaming right along with the band!!
Day 3 – June 24
My Friday started with some lunch and a couple of beers at the Ship (I really loved it there…like a bigger, double-patioed Seahorse). Of course, I was also there to check out Gianna Lauren and Jon McKiel, two incredible Halifax artists. It was a bit of a maritime reunion at the Ship, as Gianna, Jon, and I were joined by Duzheknew (including COUSINS), Quivers, and Paul Henderson from SappyFest. Drinks were had and memories made…awwwww.
Leaving the Ship, I headed to the host hotel to work the artist hospitality suite. I arrived as Sleep and The Sword were just starting their supper. Some hilarious conversation that I can’t repeat here ensued, and then I manned the suite while Jason from Bison b.c. and Katie from C’mon stopped by for some eats and drinks. After shutting down the suite, I had the dreamlike experience of walking with Lee Ranaldo (OF F#*@IN SONIC YOUTH!!!) to Olympic Park. He talked about the residency that Sonic Youth did in Halifax many moons ago. Then he gave me his email (swoon). It was a little too much.
I headed side stage at Olympic Plaza for Sleep, who were every bit as sludgy, and stonery, and awesomey as you’d expect. Watching the crowd do the slow headband was sick. Following Sleep, I headed to The Gateway for Minus The Bear. This band was a highlight for me, and seeing them in a fairly intimate venue with WAY less people than they deserved allowed me to get right up close and rock out. You couldn’t get the grin off my face. I next headed to the Palomino for Red Fang. The bar was PACKED and the band destroyed. Straight-up awesome heavy rock’n’roll. I closed out the night at the #1 Legion – one of the coolest venues I attended – for Cursive. I’ve been a big fan of these guys for ages, so to finally see them made my night. Like it needed any more awesome things to be complete. God, I’m spoiled.
Day 4 – June 25
My last day at Sled Island started with a transit adventure that I’d rather not discuss. Let’s just say that my decision to get out of the cab and get on the LRT was the less expensive, but HOUR AND A HALF LONGER decision. My sister, who was finally able to come party with me, and I arrived at Olympic Plaza in time to see The Dandy Warhols setting up. We browsed the vendor market and had some incredible fish tacos, then grooved out to the Warhols. We took a beer break to meet some friends outside the Plaza, and then made it back for Of Montreal. Ok, let’s get this straight. I never got the appeal of this band. I thought it was a gimmick. Well, even if it is a gimmick, Of Montreal rules. The ENTIRE crowd was dancing and loving every moment of it. I’m converted.
We left Olympic Plaza and headed once more for the Legion, where I caught The Greenhornes, whose brand of rock kept toes tapping and people moving. Deer Tick was up next and the band did what they do best – kill it. The Legion was packed and quickly running out of beer, so after about 30 minutes, my posse headed to Local 522 to close out the night with Skratch Bastid. My sister wanted to dance – I thought, who better than Skratch? Almost on cue, we arrived to a repeated verse of “Halifax, Halifax, Halifax” and headed inside to check the dance floor. Needless to say, the place was bumpin’.And they served PBR. I was pretty damn happy.
My only Sled mistake was booking my flight home for 8:00 AM the next morning. How stupid. Hungover Josh just barely made his flight, and was in rough shape the whole way home. Sled Island, however, was worth that hangover times infinity. Much love goes out to Lindsay, Josh, Drew, Paisley, and the whole Sled Island team for showing me the ropes of their fantastic festival!!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Josh’s HPX @ NXNE 2011 Recap
Day 1 – June 15
Jonny and I arrived in Toronto on Wed, June 15th. After dropping off our bags, we headed to registration to pick up our passes and get the lay of the land. After realizing there were no conference panels scheduled for Wed, we took the afternoon easy. After a dinner meeting for sushi at The Drake Hotel, it was off to the NXNE Opening Party where the Mill Street and Sailor Jerry were flowing like water! Then it was off to the Rivoli where we caught The Paint Movement and Library Voices, both of whom were fantastic!
”
Library Voices
Day 2 – June 16
Thursday marked the start of the conference at NXNE, and Jonny and I both took in panels throughout the morning. There was some interesting stuff about federating the social web and how to engage fans beyond the “like” button. Jonny had some meetings scheduled in the afternoon, so I made my way to the XM Verge Rooftop Party featuring Washington, Dinosaur Bones, Zeus, and Hollerado. The party was great and featured a refreshing rainfall along with tons of great people from Halifax and away.
After getting dinner and waiting on the arrival of HPX Talent Director Steve, we headed off to Yonge Dundas Square for Descendents (!!!) – easily one of our festival highlights. We hit the beer tent just as “I’m The One” started and Jonny couldn’t stop smiling. Leaving YDS on a high note, we headed to The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern to catch Kingston, ON act PS, I Love You, followed by Montreal’s Suuns. Both bands had the crowd in a sweaty frenzy. It was hot in Toronto, and WAY hotter in the Horseshoe. Jonny and Steve stuck around for Montreal’s No Joy, while I headed to Wrongbar to catch Fucked Up. I gotta tell ya, Fucked Up can bring the party. People were stage diving left, right, and center and front man Damian Abraham took it all in stride, keeping the crowd under control while growling his face off. Great way to cap the night!!
Fucked Up
Day 3 – June 17
The morning started with an early breakfast with the nice folks at CIMA and the lovely Ro Cemm, who writes for The Line Of Best Fit – a great blog in the UK. Ro attended HPX last year and it was great to see him again. Following a quick respite, Jonny headed for some meetings while I ventured down the the Kelp Records/Line Of Best Fit BBQ where I got to chat with Ro again, while watching Slow Down, Molasses and Shuyler Jansen. Both acts were great, and the BBQ had a great backyard chill vibe. I left to meet Jonny and Steve at the Jagermeister & Exclaim! BBQ Bash where we also met up with Waye Mason, HPX Chair of the Board. The party was fantastic, and capped off by an acoustic set from bouncing souls (!!). This was another highlight for me as they covered The Misfits and Hot Water Music (more on this to come) during their set!
Following the BBQ, we headed back to YDS to catch Land of Talk and Stars. The crowd was huge at YDS and everyone seemed to be really enjoying both bands. I thought both bands had a great set, and really enjoyed the atmosphere in the square (from the beer garden…haha). We hit Lee’s Palace in time for Cults after just missing the Dum Dum Girls. I’m sure Cults set wasn’t lost on everyone, but I just couldn’t get into it, so while Steve bounced to check out Swervedriver, I headed to the Horseshoe for Off! featuring punk legend and former Circle Jerks and Black Flag member Keith Morris. Off! had the entire bar in moshpit madness, and I’ll admit I took my chances on a stage dive or two, ripping my jeans in the process. Rock and roll.
Day 4 – June 18
The day started off slow for everyone but Jonny, as he was a meeting machine all week. Toronto saved its hottest day for Saturday, and by noon, Steve and I were at the Hyatt Regency’s 17th floor outdoor pool lounging with some other lucky souls – like the team from Evenko (who were super awesome, btw). Then, while sipping our coffees (beers) we got a visit from Evan Dando (Lemonheads; overall awesome) and Michael Hollett (NXNE President). It was a little surreal hanging out in a pool with Evan Dando, but I took it in stride and we exchanged contacts…he mentioned he’d love to get out to Halifax. Commence finger crossing!!
After finally coming in from the pool and getting some dinner, Jonny and I headed over to the Velvet Underground for the HPX @ NXNE Showcase. There was an intimate crowd of lovely Halifax locals and Hali ex-pats who came out to show their support. Dance Movie started the night and I was super impressed. I had been listening to them for a while, but my first live experience was great!! Plus, lead Tara Thorne has a BITCHIN’ guitar. Next up was Glory Glory, who proved once again why they’re one of the best indie/alternative rock bands in Halifax. They punctuated their set with a few new tunes, and one killer Bowie cover that they played just for me…or just because I demanded it. The amazing Jon McKiel and Cousins rounded out the HPX showcase and I’m sure people were blown away – I, however, missed their sets as I selfishly went to check out Hot Water Music (who played the REAL version of the song bouncing souls covered the day before!). Next to Descendents, this was my highlight. I’ve been a big fan for a long time and the set was unreal – more moshpit madness that left me sweaty and gross.
”
Hot Water Music
I sat through a traffic nightmare on my way to meet up with Jonny and Steve at The Great Hall to see Chad VanGaalen. Kate Gobes, our Volunteer Coordinator last year, and a NXNE Coordinator this year, met us at the door and escorted us to some awesome seats in the upper balcony. VanGaalen was not what I expected at all – admittedly, I had never really listened to him. But the crowd was pumped and he fully delivered. He won me over for sure.
”
Chad VanGaalen
We followed up that set with sets by One Hundred Dollars and Wildlife at the Horseshoe Tavern. I thought both bands were pretty good, but it was hard to top the incredible high I was on from HWM. We finally called it a night (2:30 AM), bumped into the lovely Team Evenko on the way home, got some street pizza, and walked through a drunken throng of people to hit the hotel. Sleep couldn’t come soon enough. Sunday began with a hungover breakfast with Jonny, Steve, and Waye, and then I hit the Pearson for my flight at 1:00 – next stop, Calgary and Sled Island!!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HPX at SXSW 2011
Austin, TX
Day One
Boarding a flight for Austin and the unknown was more than a little exciting yesterday- albeit exhausting- considering I had just gotten back from Canada Music Week in Toronto the night before.
The first sign of SXSW was in the Newark airport where our gate was full of musician types. Sitting next to me on the plane was a German couple with their newborn baby (usually a bad sign). Both work in the record business and gave me some great tips on surviving SXSW.
Landing in Austin was great as the warm air hit us right away. We got in a cab and zipped off to the Austin Motel; our home away from home for the next week. The Austin Motel used to be a rent-by-the-hour dive back in the day but has been redone and exudes character from the rooms all the way to the staff. You can actually check out what all the rooms look like (thats right they’re themed) on the website
www.austinmotel.com. Pay special attention to their iconic sign.
Ditching our bags and splashing water on our faces we were off to get our passes and see some tunes. The pass pickup is in an airport-style hanger with a MASSIVE winding queue but luckily we were late and there was no lineup. Passes in hand we headed to the British Embassy (all of the bars in Austin have been renamed for the sponsor attached). I don’t recall the name of the band but I did not like them…pop with backing tracks.
Next we went to the M For Montreal showcase with a great lineup of bands and the night really got started. First up was Grimes from Montreal – she played HPX 2010 but I, of course, didn’t see her being busy running the Fest and all. She was awesome, very cool with just enough weird to keep my attention and the crowd wanted an encore. Funny I had to travel all the way to Texas to see a band that played HPX last year but that’s the way it goes sometimes!
Up next was a band I tried to see in Toronto last week but missed – Esben and the Witch. Noisy, avant guard, UK pop trio who absolutely rammed the venue and were a major highlight for me. Following Esben was a fun New Jersey band called Delicate Steve who sounded like African Guitar Summit meets Graceland instrumentals. Final band of the night at M For Montreal was Diamond Rings who I have been looking forward to checking out ever since I fell in love with his record. He had some sound issues but the performance shone through and he set the whole place on fire.
Wandering down the street to Emos, an outdoor\indoor venue, we got in just in time to grab a tall boy of Lone Star and catch the first chord of Florida band Surfer Blood. They were awesome and the audience loved it. Singer seemed to lose his voice mid way through the set which forced them to stop a bit early but all in all it was so great.
With our first night in Austin a success we decided to cap it off with a late night Taco. Now I know what you’re thinking – late night taco and success don’t seem to go hand in hand. But let me tell you the brisket taco we had for $3 was the perfect end to a great night and I feel great this morning because of it.
All of this gets me stoked for the HPX Showcase on Sat night at Paradise Cafe (Canada House) featuring 7 awesome bands. Today we’re off to the Canada Blast BBQ and a slew of other events. I’ll post again tomorrow with another update! Off to Day 2!
- Jonny
Day Two
Day two began with an earlier-than-I-wanted wake up followed by an awesome cup of coffee from the cafe next door to the motel. Peering into the back lot of the cafe we say a big stage with huge PA, beer tent and merch area being set up; which goes to show you that any and every location during SXSW can be a stage.
I walked the 3 miles to the convention center to check out the trade show and meet the Canadian Blast folks for a discussion with other international festivals. Thousands of exhibitors showcasing their products was a bit overwhelming but neat to see.
After meeting with cool festival presenters from around the globe I started to feel hungry and, as luck would have it, the Canadian Blast BBQ was about to start. I arrived and the smell of bbq was everywhere along with a wicked stage and tent set up to showcase some great Canadian bands.
First up was Imaginary Cities from Winnipeg who were super duper great and playing with a full band which was nice as I thought they’re usually a duo. Next to hit the stage was Diamond Rings who played a much better set than the night before thanks to the great sound. Loads of stuff happening for just one guy and well worth seeing again. Kingston, Ontario’s PS I Love You were up next and I like them more now than when I first saw them at NXNE and they are super nice guys who seemed stoked about HPX.
I had to leave before Jenn Grant and Buck 65 played but I needed to get across town to the Green Mesquite BBQ (you can never have too much) for the Horseshoe Tavern Party. It was a small event by invite only for friends of the Horseshoe in Toronto and was a nice respite from the industry-heavy downtown. Caught up with ex-HPX Talent Director and current booker for Lee’s Palace, Ben Pearlman, and a number of new friends from Aux.tv.
From there it was back downtown to start the night showcases off. First up was Stubb’s BBQ and I was there to see J. Roddy Walston and the Business but stumbled onto a 2000-person outdoor concert venue that was playing host to Duran Duran later on in the night. I saw a few tunes by a UK band called Yuck who were really cool followed by James Blake who blew my mind. Very ethereal ambient pop with distinct vocals and amazing musicians made this an unexpected highlight of the night for me and about 2000 other people. Before I realized that J. Roddy was playing indoors in-between sets I caught all of Smith Westerns who started off a bit weak but built to a high of southern indie rock. Finally I got to see J. Roddy who was recommended to me by Robby Crowell from Deertick and liked it a lot. Think early Black Keys with good groove.
From Stubb’s I ran up to Emo’s to try and catch Black Lips but it was full up and I got turned away from the first venue since arriving (not too bad). Steve Lutwick, HPX Talent Director, who had taken 2 planes and a greyhound bus to get to Austin, finally got to town so I set my plans aside in favor of rolling with him.
Steve and I went to see an incredibly noisy show by A Place to Bury Strangers in a very packed basement club. Very loud, very noisy, very interesting. We had a choice to make from there and it was whether to go and see Low or to catch The Antlers and we opted for The Antlers and am I glad we did as they were a highlight of the trip so far. Following the Antlers were The Dodos who were also amazing.
It’s 2am on 6th street in Austin and everything is now shut down with tens of thousands of music fans pouring out onto the street which is a sight to see. We went to our favorite taco stand from the night before and got a quick bite before trying to hail a cab…impossible feat with that many people trying to get home.
After a long walk and a nightcap we hit the sack and Day 2 officially drew to a close. Day 3 is now upon us and we are trying to make a plan. 5 hours sleep and sore feet could make for an interesting day but awesome nonetheless.
- Jonny
Day Three and Four
Yesterday I had a few early meetings and left my motel at 10am and didn’t get back to 2am hence the combination update. I’ve now seen so many bands that my brain is a little fried – I know I will be forgetting something but here goes.
Day Three
We started Day 3 off with our usual strong cup of coffee next door at Joe’s; who happen to have an outdoor stage set up with some amazing bands playing. We were told by the coffee slinger in the most serious way that at 8pm that night Jack White would be playing with Wanda Jackson. We downed our coffees and booted it down to the Billions Agency day party and although we weren’t on the VIP list we got a great view of the stage. Being St Paddy’s day and all we decided to go for cans of Guinness instead of the Lone Star we had been drinking. Owen Pallet was up first and blew me away. I missed him at HPX in ’09 and was glad I saw this show. Up next was Black Joe Lewis who was great and had the crowd dancing away.
From there we went to the Northern Ireland party and saw Matrimony and got to eat some traditional Irish food. Then the following awesomeness happened:
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
Retribution Gospel Choir
Black Lips
The Oh Sees
A Place to Bury Strangers
Pretty good day, don’t you think?
Day Four
Early out the door we had a few meetings but that didn’t keep us from the tunes. Here’s what our day looked like musically:
Naked and Famous
Twin Shadow
Foster the People
Esben and the Witch…2nd time we saw them.
Braids
Friendly Fires
Times New Viking
Apex Manor
Telekinesis
American Music Club
Yuck!
Ariel Pink
The Appleseed Cast
Words cannot describe how awesome these bands were so please take a minute and check em out. Today is the HPX Showcase at the Paradise Cafe so I’ll be busy but it will be incredible to show off some fantastic Nova Scotian talent. A longer update will be coming tomorrow!
- Jonny