LUCIDMEDIA

Scenes from the Go Musical Festival

Written by Adam A. Donaldson Monday, 20 April 2009 10:39

First, I checked out the team-up of Ian Smith (The Miniatures) and Brad Germain (Marble Index), better known as Spirits, at the Children’s Museum on King St. It was an odd venue, but the po-mo (that’s post-modern) vibe suited the electro-dancey trip of this new outfit. Brad took a minute between songs to invite people to take nine steps closer to the stage, and then they thundered on into another one of their tunes, “Open the Door,” which I think sounds even better live; it’s just a fuller sound. As for the show itself, Ian kept things rather cool as Brad contorted and jived as if he were singing at some kind of revival meeting. I don’t know what it was, but it had great stage presence.

Next was Montreal’s Lief Vollebekk at the Boathouse down by Victoria Lake. It was standing room only, as one might imagine it would be given the excellent weather Saturday night. Lief was almost the antithesis of Spirits. As I come in it’s just a man, at a piano, with his back turned to the audience. Kind of jazzy, but really more folk inspired, Lief sits at the piano, singing away before breaking for the harmonica interlude. After a couple of songs on the piano, he gets up, takes centre stage amongst a clutter of instruments and picks up his guitar. He does a Dylan cover and then goes back to his stuff, creating a charming, laid back vibe.

Speaking of laid back, the lead singer of the Jing Bang show looked pretty at ease taking the stage next. With hands in his pockets, he follows the band’s lead and launched into some good old-fashioned rock. As opposed to Lief Vollebekk, this was just an explosion of sound. Imagine the Tea Party, and that way they had of always sounding bigger in person then they did on the radio. Still, a very cool set of original music and covers; they even did a version of “Wolf Like Me” that would give TV on the Radio a run for their money.

Back at Lucky’s Wings & Things, the Ascot Royals were reaching the halfway point of their set (and about a half hour closer to Last Call). The atmosphere was interesting, kind of school dance meets bowl-o-rama, but everybody there seemed to be having a good time, not the least of all the bands members. They blazed through their catalogue with so much showmanship and flare that you can really feel the good times from the audience. There were some covers too, including a take on Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” that even got the waitresses bobbing their heads to the music. The Brantford boys are players, but their jovial, just-here-for-a-good-time attitude is catchy.

Not to leave anyone dissatisfied, Go had a country quota to fill and Darin Yorston was there to deliver. Paradoxically fitting in amongst the speakeasy atmosphere of the Rum Runner, Yorston took it easy, playing on his guitar and taking a swig of his beer between songs. He’d fit perfectly somewhere between the classic 60s country and the outlaw country of the 70s; when you think of country music, you’re probably thinking about the kind of music Yorston make. I don’t know much from country, but what I did observe was that as Yorston brought down the music a notch, the crowd came down with him. By the end of the set, they were putty in his hand.

Finally, that brings us around to the 1 am hour and the Kitchener-Waterloo band Life in Vacuum. Naturally, at an hour when many are trying to wind down and take their rest, this band blew the doors off the Hive with an unbelievable wall of sound that, as of the first song, left no one doubting what kind of show they were at. That first song suffered from balance issues, as in all you could hear was the blasting guitar and maybe a little bit of drums. (Keep in mind: this is a five-piece band.) But sound issues fell aside, a better balance was struck and something more melodic broke out. Still loud? You better believe it. And as the last show of the evening, what better way to punctuate the conclusion of the third ever Go Festival. Now, on to next year.