NXNE: Kanae's Artist Pick: Emma HIll and Her Gentlemen Callers

Friday and Saturday are usually the days when it becomes so difficult to decide which performers to check out during NXNE. Some people run across the city; others stay in one venue for the whole night. It depends on which venues you are headed to, but I prefer the latter as I can make sure I don't waste my time while standing in line forever, just to get inside a venue- which actually happened to me last year. If a venue has a whole line-up of great artists, why should you have to hop from one show to another?

When I saw the line-up for Saturday, June 18th at Sneaky Dees, I leapt up from my couch. The Audio blood &White Girls record had such a special line-up put together; it included the Whale Tooths, The Balconies, Brett Caswell &a  the Marquee Rose, and much more. If you wanna check out Toronto's talented pop rock bands, this is definitely where you should go. 

Be sure to be there early enough to check out the folk singer and song writer, Emma Hill and her Gentlemen Callers from Portland (starting at 8 p.m). With the recent release of thier new album, "Meet me at the Moon", which is just filled with emotion-triggering tracks, that also echo with her calming and heartwarming voice. So calming, in fact, it feels like it takes you somewhere familiar. When I first listened to a tune from the album "The Keeper", I instantly remembered a relationship I had while ago. It felt as if I time-travelled back to that period of my life, where I recalled a deep pain in my heart. You can click here to check out more tracks from the album via Bandcamp. She is also performing on Wednesday, June 15th, at the Central for an acoustic set. I hope you can make it to either night and explore her music.

  

NXNE:June 13-19th: Kanae's Artist Picks: Black Light White Light

It is only a week away from Toronto's indie music/film festival, North By North East (NXNE).  I scored my 5 day-wristband (only $50), got extra days off from work, and I am ready to check out as many performances as possible. There are tonnes of artists to discover this year, I hope you are all ready.  I will do my best to help you plan your nights, so stay tuned for all the coverage.

My first artist pick of NXNE is Black Light White Light. This trio from Denmark is going to be performing at The Boat on Thursday,  June 16th.

If you are a big fan of psychedelic, bohemian 60s' rock - like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club or the Black Angels - Black Light White Light is the next band for you to check out. With the domestic success of their debut album, "Directors Cut", the trio is expanding their territories to the North America, while recording a new album in Los Angeles, set for release later this year and a US tour is in the works. This is such an amazing opportunity to check out the trio in a small, intimate venue before they conquer North America with their minor-key plaintive verses.

Here is a song from their debut EP,  "Directors Cut", called Higher than Low. The hauling distorted guitar riff in the intro is captivating - and warrants the endless repeat of this track. Enjoy!!!

The Artful Vandelays won the Paragon Revival Band Competition

I am so thrilled to announce that my fellow writer, Bryen Shi's band, The Artful Vandelays won the Paragon Revival Band Competition on June 3rd. As I have previously mentioned how much I adore the band,  I'm not going to tell you that again. Instead, I will leave you with three videos from the night. Enjoy and once again, congratulations boys!!!


This song is called " Past the Atmosphere"



Another song from the performance, called " Silent Language"



At Last, here is the 3rd video, " Tenterhooks"