It’s been a while since I saw Doldrums play live in their warehouse space, but they have really developed their sound since that show. They are a 3 piece in the current configuration of the band, made up synths, effects, sampler, and electronic / acoustic drums. Brothers Airick and Daniel work together to create a really unique vocal sound by harmonizing and using effects on one of the vocals.
Doldrums are doing something completely different than what is out there in electronic music today with the spacey atmospheric vocals and very bass heavy tribal / rave drum beats (in the live setting at least). Airick acts as a new age conductor leading his bandmates and the audience through a highly danceable, propulsive set. He keeps the other two members in check as he lays down the frantic samples and base rhythms.
Even though there is a lot of buzz around Doldrums, they definitely deliver on the hype with a fun danceable live set and energetic performance. I would go to see them in heartbeat when their next show pops up on the calendar. During their Wrongbar set for NXNE 2012 (one of a number of performances during the festival), they played a new track that fit very nicely in with the rest of the set which came in just under 30 mins.
In this edition of the music video picks, it is NXNE 2012 inspired. We have picked videos from bands who played / have some connection to the festival this year (except one vid but we had to throw it in since it is so good). Take a listen / view, and make sure to share and / or leave a comment since we love to hear from you. We hope you enjoy the tracks as much as us.
DZ Deathrays: The Mess Up - cool aussie rock.
Yamantaka / Sonic Titan: Hoshi Neko - the surprise band at Sneaky Dee’s last night.
Wu-tang Clan: Da Mystery of Chessboxin’- members of Wu-tang playing tonight.
HiFi Phantom: Geography- spacey lo-fi indie out of Toronto.
Kontravoid: Silent Visions - some nice dark electronic.
CFCF: Exercise # 3 (Building) - they didn’t play this year, but it’s new and had to share.
Thanks for watching this edition. We’ll be back again next Sunday to offer up some more videos for your eyes and ears, so pop back in again for more music vids and look back in the archives for older editions.
MPG (My Pet Genius) made their live return last night for NXNE 2012 at the Great Hall after 13 years and it was a triumphant gig for the band.
They kicked off there set with Anjelika In Jhericurl from “Might Strike Satellite” – watch the video for the track below which was directed by Christopher Mills.
The rest of the set saw them power through a number of new tracks from their upcoming double album, “Empire Of Light”. The three core members Dean Mannella, Evan Sue-Ping and Zach Kourous were joined on bass for the latter half of the show by a member of Bronx Cheerleader. From the live set they ran through last night, Empire Of Light will definitely be an epic album and we are looking forward to hearing it.
Even though the Your Pretend Boyfriend NXNE showcase was cancelled (see post with explanation here), I had to return some equipment I rented for the gig. At the rental place, I finally met Andrew Pulsifier (aka ARP 2600) who was prepping for the Silent Shout Synthbeque at Milk Glass Co. It was good to chat with Andrew while we drove to the venue to drop off the gear.
Music is the core of NXNE, but the parties and special events tend to be a highlight for some festival attendees.
I dropped by the Last Gang party on Queen (near Bathurst) and grabbed a bottle of Steamwhistle and some Pop Chips then checked out their merch selection. I grabbed the Boys Noize Oi Oi Oi Remix EP for $6 and they gave me a bag of free CDs, vinyl, and Pop Chips.
As some of our readers know, Culture Addicts is an artist run blog and I (Cameron) was scheduled to play a NXNE 2012 showcase for my music project Your Pretend Boyfriend on June 15 at the super cool bar, Unlovable with a few electronic / DJ / hip-hop artists. Unfortunately, things didn’t pan out as originally planned with the Toronto Police coming in an hour before the showcase and revoking the bar’s liquor license (great timing during NXNE) and things spiralled downwards from there. The venue made a decision to close until the suspension is lifted, which obviously knocked out all showcases for the evening. Bummer # 2 of the festival.
Even though we were unable to play and I had prepared for a couple months leading up to the showcase, three good things came out of the whole bad situation. Firstly, I met The Futureless who create dark, new wave music – and are both super nice guys, and I am liking their sound a lot. I am hoping we will have a chance to work together in the future. Check out their video below.
Second, even though we didn’t meet under the best of circumstances, Jamal from Unlovable is also really cool (great meeting him) and he will keep the bar going (it would be a loss for the city if it closed permanently). By the way, this is where the amazing Little Girls filmed the video for their track Daydream – watch it below.
Once the dust settled and I packed up all of my equipment, I was bummed out and didn’t check out any bands.
Are you wondering what happened to good thing # 3 that came out of the epic cancellation? This actually happened on Saturday June 16, so you will have to check that post as well to find out.
Thursday’s first stop was the Steam Whistle with Bonsound & Audio Blood Rooftop Riot! which featured performances by The Balconies, Les Breastfeeders, Sandman Viper Command, Mama Rosin, The Town Heroes, Ponctuation, and Hue. I grabbed a Vitamin Water (I’m a bit addicted) and Steamwhistle then checked out the bands, and caught up with old friends.
Toronto’s Hue was on stage when I arrived, who are a pretty straight up pop / rock band. Even though the venue had a last minute change to College Street above a computer store, AB and Bonsound pulled it off & it was great to be outside in the sun having drinks with friends / listening to live music.
Next up was a pleasant surprise - The Town Heroes who are a two piece (guitar & drums) from Halifax, NS. They kicked off their set with the infectious Slag Heap (watch the video below), and they continued on with a high energy indie rock set. Very enjoyable.
We finished off our drinks and headed to party # 2 via a walk through Kensington Market to the NXNeOne Kegger hosted by the super nice Eric Alper. It was great to catch up with friends and have some beer, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and a veggie dog. There were also performances by members of Dearly Beloved, Die Mannequin, Secret Broadcast and Gloryhound. This is what NXNE day parties are all about.
I quickly remembered why beer is NOT my drink of choice, and I was out of commission for the reminder of the evening. Bummer.
Bleached is the Los Angeles based duo of sisters Jessica and Jennifer Clavin, who are both ex-Mika Miko. They make retro bent pop-punk music that really draws on the 60′s twang. The band has released a few 7″ singles to date but we can expect more from them in the future.
As a pre-NXNE warm up, we sent 15 questions to Bleached via email to find out a bit more about them, and they responded with some awesome answers – thanks Jennifer & Jessica! All of the questions were answered by Jennifer except the first couple which included Jessica. Let’s get on with it….
Please introduce yourself / yourselves.
We are Jessica and Jennifer Clavin from Bleached.
What was the first album you ever bought?
Jen: The Slits – “In The Beginning”
Jess: Velvet Underground – “white light white heat”
When and what made you first pick up an instrument and when did decide you wanted to be in a band?
Our dad had a bunch of guitars laying around the house. Jess decided she wanted to play bass so she got one for christmas in like 7th grade. And then in like 9th grade I decided to start playing one of my dads super heavy home made guitars. We would go to show every weekend and I remember watching this girl band and thinking “wait why aren’t we in a band?”.
What are the best and worst parts of being in a band with your sibling?
We get along really well and get each other really well so it’s super easy and we don’t fight. Fortunately there is no worst part.
You will be playing the Bruise Cruise for NXNE on June 16th. Bruise or cruise – which applies better to Bleached and why? I thought it was booze cruise.
Jennifer is a NXNE veteran. Did you play at Lee Palace for NXNE 2010 with Cold Cave? How was it touring with Wes and co.?
Yeah NXNE was fun I think 2 years ago. Also I remember we did this really funny/weird dj set where we just all sat in chairs and stared with no expressions. Wes and I dated so it was fun being in a band with my boyfriend. And also playing a completely different style music was nice. But it’s funny because we are both inspired by most of the same music.
While playing with Mika Miko, Jessica said, “If we had to choose to be better live or recorded, we’d go with live.” Do you still hold the same opinion for Bleached? No! That’s so funny because we all used to say that. But I feel like it’s totally equal now. I want to put on a good entertaining performance but I also want our songs to be perfect to my expectations when we record.
You just came off a European mini-tour where you played the Primavera Festival. What was your favourite band at Primavera?
Omg that was our best most fun show so far. My favorite band was Veronica Falls. Best current band ever!!
Any festival tips as we head into festival season?
Sunblock, water!, Psychedelics, and a hairbrush.
Jennifer, you recently tweeted that you were seriously thinking of moving to Belgium. What made you love it so much? It was so beautiful with the cobblestone roads, vintage clothing shops, the best espresso I have ever had, and really awesome people. It seemed really peaceful there.
On your blog (http://hellobleached.tumblr.com/), I was noticing some Metallica and Black Flag. If you could choose one, which would it be and why?
Omg this is hard. I grew up obsessing over Black Flag, I even have a tattoo. But Metallica is so epic and perfect that I kinda feel like the album Ride the Lightning may be the soundtrack to our lives right now. Mika Miko both did covers of Black Flag and Metallica too.
How did you hook up with Molly Schoit who directed the video for Searching Through The Past?
She did a video for our old band and she is a friend of ours. She is amazing! We are lucky we got to work with her again.
What’s your favourite live venue that you have played? What do you love about it? Silencio in Paris. It’s designed by David Lynch and so amazing and creepy looking. It wasn’t like your typical venue and I like playing weird places. Like a boat!
One last question, why should people care about Bleached?
Because we love what we are doing and hope it makes other people happy too. <3 Bleached NXNE 2012 Showcases
It’s been a while since I saw Doldrums play live in their warehouse space, but they have really developed their sound since that show. They are a 3 piece in the current configuration of the band, made up synths, effects, sampler, and electronic / acoustic drums. Brothers Airick and Daniel work together to create a really unique vocal sound by harmonizing and using effects on one of the vocals.
In this edition of the music video picks, it is NXNE 2012 inspired. We have picked videos from bands who played / have some connection to the festival this year (except one vid but we had to throw it in since it is so good). Take a listen / view, and make sure to share and / or leave a comment since we love to hear from you. We hope you enjoy the tracks as much as us.
Even though the Your Pretend Boyfriend NXNE showcase was cancelled (see post with explanation 
