PS I Love You is almost here...

This Friday, PS I Love You is making its way to Ottawa for what should be an amped-up show at Maverick's. The Kingston duo of Benjamin Nelson and Paul Saulnier have announced a small tour that includes Canadian and US dates. It is also worth noting that Saulnier was voted the 99th Greatest Guitarist of all time by SPIN Magazine. We can expect quite a few new songs off their full-length 'Death Dreams' release through Paper Bag Records, including (hopefully) one of my favourites 'First Contact'. If that song doesn't get you excited for this show I'm not sure what will. Their timely release of the music video for 'Princess Towers' last month sets the tone for these shows, which can be watched below. From what I have heard from Toronto-based openers Army Girls, this should be a great night start to finish.

Check out The A.V. Club's interview with frontman Paul Saulnier, it's a good one.

'4in1' Ottawa Park Acoustic Sessions

Fevers @ Dundonald Park

What: Photogmusic Presents: '4in1' Ottawa Park Acoustic Sessions
Where: Dundonald Park, Centretown
Who:

- Avid Napper
- Scary Bear Soundtrack
- Jenna Tenn-Yuk
- Del Bel + Lisa Bozikovic Jessica Ruano
- Fevers
- Eriksen



Ok, so this whole thing is new to me. I've decided to snub the man and take on this project because I love music and want to write about it. As I walked to Dundonald Park in Centretown I realize that I am actually doing this. It's happening. I didn't really know what to expect, but it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon on the May long weekend.

Needless to say, my mind was a little bit blown. All the performers had a unique story to tell and did a terrific job at doing so. Here's how it went down.

Avid Napper, Gloria of Scary Bear Soundtrack's side project, came up and played a couple Springsteen covers. This was a great start as I became slightly more familiar/comfortable with my surroundings, and because who honestly doesn't like the Boss?

Scary Bear Soundtrack then came up and played a few politically/socially charged tunes that piqued my interest. I had seen the new 'Asian Fetishist' video a few days before and I was thoroughly impressed with their adaptation in a live acoustic setting. Gloria has a simple but engaging voice, and the harmonies were sick.

Jenna Tenn-Yuk came up and began with her 'Jamasian' poem. Let me just pause here and say that the only exposure I'd had to spoken work was a few Leonard Cohen pieces, so I'm no expert. I am a sucker for stories though, whether in song, movie, or as it turns out, poetry. She blended some poems with songs, covering Austra and playing originals. I was impressed how seamlessly the poetry and song blended together, something I can say I had never experienced before.

Jessica Ruano gave me a second, more forceful dose of spoken word. She was the designated 'time killer' since Del Bel and Lisa Bozikovic had to run for sound check. Wow. Jessica touched on themes I think we all experience at different points in our lives - particularly powerlessness, but also strength to recover from our our times of weakness. She kicked ass.

My most anticipated act came up, Fevers. This electronic/pop group formed last year has really been making a name for themselves. They impressed me by playing perfect acoustic versions of non-acoustic songs, Passion is Dead & Radiohead's Idioteque. Previously, I was convinced that Idioteque was a non-coverable song as it is extremely experimental and unapologetically complex. I was dead wrong. Colin beautifully adapted Thom Yorke's mutant vocal powers into a version that was very accessible to anyone listening. Something that stood out to me during their set was that I never felt as though one vocalist was more dominant than the other. Colin and Sarah are a highly effective duo, similar to the dynamic of the band 'Of Monsters & Men'. I spoke to them briefly after the show and they were very down-to-earth and obviously enjoying every minute of their musical endeavours.

Eriksen rounded things off playing a set of originals. His songs provided a nice end to what was a perfect Sunday afternoon.

I look forward to seeing Fevers play @ Babylon this Friday the 25th, and hope to see the other performers around Ottawa in the future.

Check out photos of the event on Photogmusic's blog:

Photos of 4in1 Acoustic Sessions in a Park #2 [May 20, 2012]

Starting things off - What I'm about

Hello. My name is Matias. 

So I've decided to take on this new project to create a website and blog about the Ottawa music scene. What do I really mean by this? Well to be completely honest it gives me a great excuse to: 

a) go to a lot of shows, 

b) meet lots of new people involved with live music and arts in Ottawa, 

c) use my supposed writing skills in a way that doesn't include Political Science jargon, and 

d) help showcase some of Ottawa's local talent as well as acts who have decided to not forget about this nice little city between Toronto and Montreal. 

I'm also starting this because I have lived in Ottawa for a while now (previously grew up in London, ON) and honestly believe that there is a thriving music scene here - and, while not necessarily recognized as such across Canada - I believe it should be documented and spread. What I do know is that in cities like Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, there are countless websites, blogs, groups, boards, and small armies that help create a rich and undying environment for music-loving folk. 

I think that us in Ottawa have that same passion, but then again we don't have millions of people from which to create our small armies... Let me just say this - I hate when people say that "Ottawa is great, but it's a government town". Part of me wants to say 'shut it' when that is said, and the other part sympathizes with this perceived inferiority complex to the music scenes of bigger cities in Canada - and world. 

Well I'm here to say that is all bullshit. Ottawa has some great venues, radio stations, music stores, studios, and a hell of a lot of musical talent waiting to be thrust upon the world. My self-appointed job will be to join the other ambitious and established bloggers in Ottawa such as Apt613, Photogmusic, Spotlight Ottawa and Byward of Mouth, to help bring the music community together - a spot for musicians, fans, venue owners, or anyone who enjoys busting their eardrums on a week night to access information on the Ottawa music scene. 

So here it goes. The website will be online this week sometime, as I'm putting the finishing touches on it and making sure it's good to go. I hope to be able to run into people at shows, maybe even share a beer. Until then, feel free to get in touch with me at ottawashowbox@gmail.com.