Thursday, 11 August 2011

Getting Down & Dirty At The Dirt Picnic!

Last Saturday at the Dirt Picnic, my plan had been to take pictures of all the bands (Anagram, Holy Cobras, The Ultimatemost High, Teenanger, us, and Ell V Gore) and then comment on their sets individually, as I have sometimes done before when the bill has been similarly rich. Unfortunately, the photos that I have of the show are by and large far too dark to use.

In fact, I really only got two decent photos the whole time: one of the boatyard beneath the patio, and another of Ell V Gore on the patio (displaying their saxophone player's fabulous gams):



After this, we go indoors and it gets dark. If you're interested in seeing some really good B&W shots of the show, get thee to Ivy Lovell's blog post haste. Here's a couple of shots she took of your hosts No No Zero in action:



Inside, it was hot, hot, hot. A light sprinkling of rain went down well between sweaty sets. It was Jordan's first show drumming with No No Zero so that was extra special for the band, and he delivered with a heavy hand (I mean that in the best possible way).

It was also our first time playing with (only) two of the other acts on the six-act bill - Ell V Gore and Holy Cobras. That was a thrill, and they both put on excellent high energy sets. I am a huge fan of Simone TB's drumming in particular, wow. And Holy Cobras played my favourite song of theirs, "He's Rubber, I'm Real" (I'd been hoping they would for weeks, but I didn't dare get too excited in case it didn't happen...).

And now, a couple of crappy iphone pictures to break up all this text:



For my part, I had a bunch of technical crap go wrong, which is always frustrating - first, the adapter for my theremin (debut with the band) was missing once I got to the venue so I couldn't play that. Then the Cheeseman-Miszczyk telephone microphone I was using, so dependable at practise, crapped out halfway through our set.

Oh well. The guys played fiercely, the night was a lot of fun, I got to see five great bands, some old friends, and drink a whole bunch of $3.50 screwdrivers because I didn't have to drive home afterwards. Thanks to Erin Hagen and James Ryan Halpenny for putting it all together. Finally, here's a pic Ivy took of Jon from Teenanger wearing one of our setlists:


Addendum: I forgot to add that I finally met Joe from Mechanical Forest Sound at the Dirt Picnic, and had a nice chat with him. He's got tunes up by Teenanger and Holy Cobras recorded live that night, and told me to expect an actual review proper some time next year maybe... (he works at a similar pace to myself)

Saturday, 6 August 2011

Friday, 22 July 2011

Still More Women With Axes!


A little bit of everything here for the axe fetishist...
























Wednesday, 20 July 2011

Dirt Picnic Primer!

Coming up in just over two weeks is the DIRT PICNIC, an all-afternoon/evening blow-out at the beautiful lakeside Legion Hall 344: DJs of all stripes til the fading light and then follow that up with a bunch of the best bands around. Don't believe me? Then take a look at these live videos from Youtube, showcasing the night's players...

Most of these clips are new or newish, but I'll start with an oldie cuz it's loud and I think I was at this show:

ANAGRAM


HOLY COBRAS


THE ULTIMATEMOST HIGH


TEENANGER


NO NO ZERO


ELL V GORE


Such a bill is guaranteed to THRILL. The hall's got a strong architectural foundation, no need to worry 'bout a "freak situation" -- the floor is made of wood (and that's good) and the affordable beer flows and there's BBQ too. I haven't even mentioned the finest patio on the shores of Lake Ontario.

$10. Tickets available now at Soundscapes.

The DIRT PICNIC begins at 3pm -
so make it there before 420, bad penny.

Tuesday, 28 June 2011

Dirt Picnic!


Announcing another No No Zero show, Saturday August 6th, this time as part of a special all-evening event called Dirt Picnic.

To quote the Facebook event page:

come see some bands on the best patio in the city.

seriously.

all-day djs, burgers, beers, babes, buds.

just a true blast.

rain or shine.

bands (starting at 8pm shaaarp)

(set times tba)

ANAGRAM
THE HOLY COBRAS (lp release show)
THE ULTIMATEMOST HIGH
TEENANGER
NO NO ZERO
ELL V GORE


afternoon DJs (3pm - 8pm)

MÜVA SOUNDSYSTEM ftg:

Old School Hip Hop:
FRO & STEWIE

Rap:
RPM & DAS

Dancehall & Reggae:
REDDA & GRATEFUL DREAD

House:
LAB ON THE FLY LIVE

& FOR END OF THE NIGHT-DIRT FINALE....
Dubstep:
MEOWMIX & BRAHOO

burgers/dogs/bbq in the afternoon.

$10

MAP:

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6051/5877977818_e1f54dde75_o.jpg

This should be our first gig with new drummer Jordan Ritchie (also in Ancestors) so it's a special show for the band. We haven't played this venue since September of 2009 and we had a BLAST the last time.

Come on out and enjoy the Dirt with us!