Matt Mays Live in Edmonton Feb.21st 2019

Last Thursday night I went to the Matt Mays show at Have Mercy here in Edmonton. I bought a ticket to this show on a whim, thinking I haven't seen Matt Mays in concert since the time I saw him open for the Black Crowes back in 2008. And at that show Matt Mays blew the Crowes away. I haven't heard much about Matt Mays in years, so for him to be playing an acoustic show at cool intimate venue like Have Mercy really intrigued me. After buying my ticket I looked into what he had done recently only to discover that he had put out an album in 2017 called Once Upon A Hell Of A Time a great straight up rock n' roll album, and his first in 5 years. And then just late last year he put out an album called Twice Upon A Hell Of A Time, which is the same album but done acoustically. I picked up the latter album and really enjoyed it, so I was looking forward to seeing this show. And with only 120 tickets available, which sold out in no time, this was gonna be cool.

Opening the show was Adam Baldwin whom also is from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia just like Matt Mays. Adam also plays in Matt Mays band playing guitar and keyboards. Adam has an EP coming out at the end of March called No Rest For The Wicked. From his short 20-25 minute set he played, I'm thinking this will probably be a pretty good album. It is available for pre-order by clicking here.

Adam Baldwin.

After a short break, enough time to have a smoke, a piss and grab a beer Matt Mays and his band hit the small stage for their performance. While talking to people at the show I didn't realize the following Matt Mays has, everyone I talked to had seen Matt multiple times, and not just once or twice like myself, but 5, 8 and 10 times. So there were some real die hard fans at this show. And you could tell as he got a great round of applause when he started playing with most of the crowd singing along to all the tunes. I myself only have one of his albums that being his 2008 one Terminal Romance, which to me is a killer album. Actually I picked up his latest album Twice Upon A Hell Of A Time after I bought the ticket for this show. So I didn't know the songs like the rest of the audience, but what I didn't know I enjoyed, and the ones I did know like "Terminal Romance", "Cocaine Cowgirl", "Spoonful Of Sugar", "Queen Of Portland Street", "Tall Trees" and "City Of Lakes" sounded really good. I wasn't sure what to expect from this show but I was highly impressed. Matt comes across as a down to earth guy too, great back up band, good crowd, good beers and great venue and with Conway Twitty watching over your shoulder. All made for a fun night out. Good times!!!

Matt Mays.

Mean Jeans Live in Edmonton Feb.7th 2019

Two Thursday's I went to the Mean Jeans, Mandates, Real Sickies triple bill at The Buckingham. Fuck I am getting terrible at writing reviews in a timely fashion. Oh well, here is a quick synopsis of the show.

The main attraction to me for this show were the two opening bands that both are Alberta bands. The first band of the night were Edmonton punkers Real Sickies.

This would be my third time seeing the Real Sickies in concert. This band is full on give'r punk led by Ben Disaster on vocals. The energy and enthusiasm Ben performs with is addictive. What I noticed right away this time around was that there was only one guitarist with them, and, it was someone different from the last time I saw them which was just in December. Looks like both guitar players have left the band, for reasons unknown to me. But the new guy, and I believe his name was Alex, but I could be wrong, did an incredible job. Especially considering they only had two rehearsals together before this show. There 30 minute set was all older stuff this time around, and they kicked ass. As I say, Ben was full on, just love the energy he plays with. Another great show by the Real Sickies.

The Real Sickies.

Next up was Calgary band The Mandates. This would be my second time seeing them live. This is another band I just recently got in to thanks to my Brother. The Mandates have a cool 70's punk rock groove sound to them. There latest album Dead In The Face is fucking awesome, as is their live performance. I really like how the two guitarists Brady Kirchner and Matt Wickens share in vocal duties, and drummer Warren Moon is great and the bass player Jimmy James, well he's just got that cool look about him and lays down some cool bass to keep it all together. A very impressive set by the Mandates.

Mandates.

The headliner of the night was Mean Jeans out of Portland, Oregon. This show was a fly in with the band doing three dates in Alberta, Edmonton, Calgary and Medicine Hat. To be totally honest I knew very little about this three piece band which is made up of Billy Jeans on guitar, Jeans Wilder on drums and bass player Junior Jeans. The band play short punk rock songs in the vein of the Ramones. They opened their set with a song that I actually knew called "Croozin". They are a fun band that reminded me a bit of a lesser NOFX. Another song they did was "Steve Don't Party No More". They were entertaining but the show seemed to lose flow as the band were having amp problems with both the bass and guitar, so that took away from it. All and all I thought they were alright but nothing special. Still a very fun night which made for a long day of work on Friday. Good times!!!

Mean Jeans.

The Trews and Altameda Live in Edmonton Jan.31st 2019

Last Thursday my buddy Buzzard and I went to the Starlite Room for The Trews and Altameda double bill. The main reason we went to this show was for Altameda. This was the second of a two night stand for The Trews and Altameda.

We got their early as we were there for Altameda. This would be my ninth time seeing them in concert and third time in the month of January alone. So ya, you could say I am huge fan of this Edmonton band. And they did not disappoint, scaled back down to a four piece band as they had two extra musicians for the St. Albert show, this is how I like to see them. They rocked the hell out to a full place, lots of people there to catch Altameda opening. The band have been on the road with The Trews for a couple weeks now having started the tour in Victoria with them and going as far as Regina with them. Altameda are currently on the road promoting their new album Time Hasn't Changed You, which is a kick ass rock album. They played mostly new stuff during their 45 minute opening set. Even doing a Bob Dylan cover "The Man In Me" which sounded incredible. They have a great mix of a classic rock band sound without sounding dated. A mix of The Band, Tom Petty, Ryan Adams, and I even hear a little hint of Wilco in some of their new songs. This band blows me away every time I see them and just keep getting better. A band to watch for in 2019.

Altameda.

I stuck around for a bit of the Antigonish, Nova Scotia band The Trews set, this would be my third time seeing them in concert, having seen The Trews open for Big Sugar in 2003 and Robert Plant in 2005. I have to say, I'm just not a fan of them. They aren't terrible by any means, just a good meat and potatoes kind of rock n' roll band. Nothing spectacular but nothing that really sticks out for me. Looked to me like the crowd had thinned out a bit as well after Altameda. I left myself after about a half hour, I had seen and heard enough.

A big thank you goes out to Troy for guest list, much appreciated! Good times!!!

The Trews.

T-shirt.

Loudon Wainwright III Live in St. Albert Jan. 25th 2019

On Friday Char, Buzzard and I made our way to St. Albert's Arden Theatre for the second weekend in a row, this time to see American folk singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III in concert. I have wanted to see Loudon in concert for a lot of years, so I was excited about this show.

Well after his 75 minute show I left very disappointed. Loudon looked good and his quite spry at 72 years old, and can still sing and play a decent guitar. But the bummer and frustration of this show was that his song choices weren't very good, I knew very few of the songs he played. And he did way too much talking. From telling stories, which I am fine with, but the stories were long and then he also read a long excerpt from a book he put out a couple years ago called Liner Notes Loudon Wainwright III On Parents & Children, Exes & Excess, Death & Decay, & a Few of My Other Favorite Things. I certainly did come to see Loudon read from a book. I'm sure it's an interesting read but I'll read it on my time thanks! He was really promoting his book and a Netflix show he has called Loudon Wainwright III: Surviving Twin which he reflects upon his relationship with his Dad in a night of songs and stories. Loudon's father worked for Life magazine for years. So ya, Loudon had to read one of his Father's articles too. Way too much talking through out the whole performance. I wanted to just yell at one point "play some fucking music", but I didn't. I'm sure I wasn't the only one thinking that either. With 26 albums out his choice of tunes weren't good. I did like one song I hadn't heard before called "The Wainwrights Go To Alaska", that was a good one with his sense of humour all over that song. I'd be surprised if he did over ten songs. All and all a very disappointing show. Not good times!!!

Loudon Wainwright III

Altameda at Blackbyrd Myoozik Jan.19th 2019

Last Saturday I went to my local record shop Blackbyrd here in Edmonton to catch Altameda perform an acoustic set in celebration of the release of their new album Time Hasn't Changed You. This was a free show by RSVP only, and not only did we get to see Altameda, but there was also free beer courtesy of local craft brewers Bent Stick Brewing.

There was a good turn out for the show, which saw Troy Snaterse and drummer Erik Grice who was playing guitar this time play a four song set at the store. It's too bad though that they had PA problems through out, with the speakers crackling and buzzing. You could see Troy was getting frustrated with the situation but both Troy and Erik soldiered on. I believe they would have played longer had they not had the sound problems. They played a couple new songs "Time Hasn't Changed Me" and "Bowling Green". To end the set they unplugged from the amp and mic and just did a truly unplugged song. That song being a cover song by Big Star called "Thirteen", which sounded amazing. Good times!!!

Joey Landreth Trio and Altameda Live in St.Albert Jan.18th 2019

Last Friday my buddy Buzzard, Char and I made our way to St. Albert's Arden Theatre for the Altameda and Joey Landreth double bill. The main reason for checking out this show was seeing Altameda who actually are from St. Albert a suburb of Edmonton. So this was kind of a hometown show for the guys.

Altameda were opening the show, and this would be their first show of promoting their new album Time Hasn't Changed You, which is officially released this Friday January 25th on Pheremone Recordings. I've been a huge fan of this local band from the first time I saw them live a couple years ago as part of a Record Store Day after party. This would be my seventh time seeing Altameda in concert. The show was sold out and the place was packed for openers Altameda.

The first thing I noticed about the band when they hit the stage was that there were six of them on stage, as normally they are a four piece band and the boys were dressed sharp, have to look good I guess playing a theatre in your hometown. The extra two musicians for this show were Paul Arnusch on percussion and Darrek Anderon on steel guitar, who both added a new dimension to the tunes. Then of course you have the meat of the band which is Troy Snaterse on guitar and vocals, Erik Grice on drums and vocals, Matthew Kraus on keys and Todd Andrews on bass.

The band sounded great in this awesome venue, though I have to admit I prefer when it's just the four of them, but like I say, the two extra did add a new dimension to some of the older tunes. It was nice to hear them play some new tunes, though I have heard a few of them already as the band has had this album Time Hasn't Changed You in the can for almost a year, but got signed to Pheremone Recordings and had to hold off on releasing it for a while. The new songs like the single "Losing Sleep" sounded amazing as did "Rolling Back To You". The song which is kind of the album title song but not "Time Hasn't Changed Me" was great too. Songs played from their first album Dirty Rain played were "Borrowed Suit, Secondhand Dress", "Burning Down", "I Saw A Ghost Last Night" and the title song "Dirty Rain" all sounded amazing. The band put on a great performance and the crowd seemed to be eating it up. Watch for this band on tour out in western Canada here in the next couple of weeks opening for The Trews. Expect big things from Altameda this year. If you are a fan of roots rock in the likes of Ryan Adams, Petty, Wilco and such, this is band well worth looking into.

Altameda.

The new Altameda album.

Headlining the evening was the Joey Landreth Trio. Joey is one of the two brothers that make up the Bros. Landreth Band out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. I heard good things about them so was interested in seeing Joey Landreth in concert.

To start the show the band came out on stage and there were four members, what the hell, I thought it was a trio, not sure if it's a running joke or not, but it threw me for a loop. And Joey's brother David was in the band playing bass, so it was actually the Bros. Landreth, confused yet? I was! Anyways, I thought they were alright, Joey can play a pretty damn good blues style guitar and has a good voice, but it felt like he was holding back on the guitar. I would love to have just heard him rip it the fuck up, but it never did happen. There just wasn't anything that grabbed my attention. They were good but not great. Would I go see him again, probably not. Good times!!!

Joey Landreth Trio.

In concert news...Altameda will be playing two shows here in Edmonton at The Starlite Room opening for The Trews on Wednesday January 30th and Thursday January 31st.

Dan Bern Live in Edmonton Jan.13th 2019

Last Sunday my buddy Buzzard and I went to the Dan Bern concert at the Almanac. This would be my second time seeing Dan Bern in concert. This show at the intimate venue was sold out, and if you are not there early it's some hard to get a decent seat. Doors were to open at7pm, so we got there right at 7 but the venue had to have opened earlier as the place was already packed, so getting a good seat was not going to happen.

Opening the show was a gentleman by the name of Dan Smith a local musician, I had never heard of him before. Dan is a singer songwriter that plays roots based music. I thought he was alright playing mostly original songs, but did play two Townes Van Zandt covers. I thought his set was about 15 minutes too long as I found myself starting to get bored. Didn't help that he was sitting on a stool through is whole set which made it hard to see him unless you were sitting right at the front in which we were not. I would say he has a bright future with his music.

Headlining the evening was American singer/songwriter Dan Bern. After having seen him 11 months ago I had to go again, I enjoyed the show so much last February. Again Dan played to a sold out venue. Dan had a lot of great stories to tell and songs to play, but it seemed this time he did more talking then last time. The stories are great and usually funny, but the show started with him tuning his guitar and getting the sound person trying to get it just right for him. While this was happening he was telling stories but it was about 10 minutes before he finally got a song started. Lots of sound issues through out the show.

Once the songs got going it was a lot of laughs and sing a longs, it surprised me how well the whole audience knew the songs singing along. But then Dan likes to get everyone involved in his live shows. he had the crowd singing along to a song about Barry Bonds (baseball player) homerun totals over the course of his career. Big sing along to the Johnny Cash song "One Piece At A Time" in which Dan told a great story about touring for four months and only playing this song on all his driving between dates until he finally knew the song inside out.

Another big sing along was to his song "Jerusalem", a great song and it was cool to hear everyone sing this one out loud. Dan also played a new Tiger Woods song, this would be the second song he has written about Tiger Woods, and just as funny as his first one. Other songs played were "Black Tornado","Talkin' Canadian Blues", "Chelsea Hotel" and "God Said No".

Dan also told the audience about playing the American and Canadian anthems a few days before in Saskatoon at the Saskatoon Blades hockey game. I'm not sure what is ties are to the hockey team but this is the second time seeing him wearing a Blades wear, last time a t-shirt this time a cap, and doing the anthems at the game. Pretty cool considering they are a junior team that mostly Canadians only know about. His story was quite funny about learning the Canadian anthem and then come show time realizing that shit I'm not so sure I know the American anther's words after having studied all week learning the Canadian one.

It was only weeks after the Edmonton show last year that Dan Bern had an incident with a snow blower trying to unjam it, where he lost a couple of finger tips on his left hand in the accident, serious shit when you make your living playing guitar. Luckily he is back playing and sounding great.

Dan closed out the show with the Canadian national anthem in which the whole audience sang along with him. Good times!!!