Mitski

ArtsFestivalsMusic

The final two days of Osheaga seemed promising. The lIne-up looked intriguing but would the performances be any good?

We started out day two still getting over last night’s epic Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Arcade Fire closing performances wondering if it could be topped. To answer that question: yes, yes it can be!

Mitski

I started off checking out Mitski who is known for her gyrating performances with a full 80s synth pop sound. I saw her at the smaller stage a few years ago and she was very impressive.

Now at the main stage, I realized I enjoyed her performance better last time. Maybe it was her being on the main stage that threw me off, or maybe it was the fact that I was surrounded by so many people who seem utterly distracted or detached from her music.

I wish more people at the main stages were more interested in seeing Mitski, but I guess they must have been waiting for some other performer. 

Photo by Chris Zacchia

Polo and Pan

How weird can French disco/techno can get? Well, if you let Polo and Pan show you the way, you’ll understand how much. I know the weird DJ man wearing a house coat showed me. It was a surprising to the end of the performance. Definitely something you should check out.

Photo by Chris Zacchia

Caribou

What can you say except Caribou may have stole the show at this years Osheaga, especially Saturday. They were one of my top highlights,

Caribou was everything I hoped they would be. I was looking forward to them playing Odessa but then I remembered how many other songs I loved and wanted to hear them play. I danced late into the evening with thousands of other people dancing around me. It was pretty crazy,

Khruangbin

Khruangbin were one of those surprising bands that sounded better than even their recordings. With elements of seventies funk, blue grass and country, Khruangbin is one eclectic romp through American music.

Blood Royal

How much noise could two people make. Well Royal Blood proved that two grown men could make a pretty impressive racket.

Great songs, powerful bass and the crowd went pretty crazy. This included an impressive mosh pit swarm, which I haven’t seen at Osheaga in quite a while.

Wet Leg

The highlight of my festival was seeing Wet Leg. They just plain rock. I had so much fun jibing to this 5-piece that still played to perfection with only four.

Cheers to the ladies that rock this good, great riffs and catchy tunes. They definitely put a smile on my face.

Idles

While most normal people were ending the night at Dua Lipa, people who like hearing British people swear were busy at the Idles show.

And boy did that man ever curse! But they put on one hell of a show.

Photo by Chris Zacchia

Dua Lipa

I don’t know much about Dua Lipa except that she is extremely popular, her stage was dangerously packed and, well, she ended the festival. It was most definitely one night to remember. 

Photo by Chris Zacchia
ArtsFestivalsMusic

Well, after a year-long hiatus, and last year’s semi-return, Osheaga has finally returned to full capacity with some pretty interesting acts, both local and from far away. Montreal band Arcade Fire will headline the opening night, filling in for Foo Fighters who had to cancel due to the unfortunate death of their drummer Taylor Hawkins.

To say that there has been a lot of drama in everyone’s life over the last two years would be an understatement! Here’s hoping that we can get back to doing what we love best in Montreal: listening to live outdoor music carefree. Hopefully Osheaga signals that return to normalcy.

To get you through the return of live outdoor music, here are some of the bands I recommend you check out:

Gus Dapperton

If you like the lo-fi sound of Mac Demarco then you will definitely like the tasty twisted direction that Gus Dapperton has taken it. A very interesting take and I would say worthy of seeing on the main stage.

Friday, 2:40pm, Mountain Stage

Arkells

I have a soft spot for bands from Hamilton and that most definitely includes Arkells. After watching them do an impressive Grey Cup half-time show in their hometown, I enthusiastically welcome the high energy rock of this band. And since this is Saturday and it’s slim pickings when it comes to rock, I am especially excited to see their performance.

Saturday, 5:45pm, River Stage

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Maps is one of my all time favourite songs and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs will always have that big aggressive pop sound that I enjoy. They are one of my headliner band picks because never disappoint in their live shows.

Friday, 7:45pm, Mountain Stage

Mitski

I saw Mitski for the first time a few years ago at Osheaga. I was captured by her reinvented renditioning of 80s pop sound and was enchanted to listen to more. Definitely will be a highlight performance for the Saturday crowd.

Saturday, 6:45pm, Mountain Stage

King Hannah

The best way to describe King Hannah is that they have hints of Americana and early 2000s minimalist-pop and some interesting drum arrangements that make for unique escapist songwriting. Big Big Baby is a great song where the vocals remind me of Neko Case, but are still unique. Enjoyable if you’re into slow tempo.

Friday July 29th, 4:40pm, Tree Stage

Caribou

For over 15 years Caribou has evolved form a minimalist low-fi electro acoustic set to where he is now. And no one would fault him for evolving, because I’ve enjoyed every step of the way. Andorra and Swim are two of my favourite albums. If you ‘re going to go out dancing on Saturday, then Caribou is the act to see!

Saturday, 9:45pm, Island Stage

IDLES

What are IDLES but a really good take on post punk and old punk but with a harsh talking method of yelling out street spittle. Very aggressive and very effective at giving off some really harrowing performances, definitely worth seeing what happens!

Sunday, 9:20pm, Green Stage

Featured Image from Osheaga 2019 by lamyazpixels

Osheaga 2022 runs July 29, 30 and 31. Tickets and info at osheaga.com

ArtsFestivalsMusic

So after a two year hiatus the full version of Osheaga is finally back! Yes there was a smaller version last fall and yes concerts have been back for a while, but this is still a big deal for Montreal music fans.

As usual we at FTB aren’t going to preview the Dua Lipas or Arcade Fires of the world since you know who they are already. Here is some lesser known talent to put on your radar if you’re planning to attend any or all of the three days of fun in the sun this weekend.

This comes with the standard disclaimer: This list is completely biased, unsystematically researched and only meant to inspire you to do your own digging about who’s playing.

Boy Golden

The show I’m the most curious about is Canadian alt rock/country singer, spiritual advisor and mullet enthusiast Boy Golden. His online promotion flirts with the line between cult leader and musician in a very tongue in cheek way and his songs are perfect to listen to on a warm summer day.

His latest album The Church of Better Daze seems to be attracting many converts to his ministry and on Sunday at 2 pm on the Mountain Stage you can check it out for yourself.

Les Louanges

The last time the Fest was in full swing I randomly stumbled into a set by an artist I’d never heard before and was immediately hooked on the warm fuzzy sounds coming from the stage . A short check of the program later, I figured out it was Quebec native Les Louanges.

He’s back again this year on the Tree Stage, Friday night at 7:45 pm. I’ll be checking out his set again, but this time not by chance.

Mitski

Speaking of Osheaga veterans, Mitski is also performing in back-to-back (with a covid hiatus) years. Last time I was super impressed by her energy and stage presence.

Back in February she released her latest album Laurel Hell and I’m excited to hear the new tracks live. She’ll be on the Mountain Stage, Saturday at 6:35 pm.

Idles

My “I don’t really know them but let’s give it a shot” pick this year is British rock band Idles. When I’m trying to decide who to check out for a festival I usually steer towards live performances as the best method of assessment.

I happened to land on the one below and was completely blown away. The energy from this band is just amazing and they didn’t even have a crowd to feed off of for this performance. They’ll be playing the Green Stage, Sunday at 9:20pm.

Les Street Monkeys

The latest Indie sensation is a Cambodian fusion band out of Montreal with tunes that have been inspired by… nah I can’t keep this up. Les Street Monkeys is a restaurant in Verdun and they’re the food truck I’m most excited to try now that Grumman ’78 is no more.

The part about being Cambodian was true and their menu looks pretty awesome. They’ll be playing the food truck area all weekend long.

Osheaga 2022 runs July 29, 30 and 31. Tickets and info at osheaga.com

More previews tomorrow and full coverage this weekend on FTB

FestivalsMusic

Osheaga‘s back this weekend for 3 full days of music, art, food and fun in what is likely to be very hot sun. The lineup this year is as impressive as ever with some very big names sure to draw big crowds.

Here at FTB though we try not to focus on any of those big names. It just seems a little silly to preview what you already know.

Instead we’ll be talking about the hidden gems playing earlier in the day when you might be more inclined to wander aimlessly and get to know a new artist. Here’s who I’m most looking forward to getting to know, feel free to check out their full lineup and form your own opinion.

Stay hydrated my friends!

Disclaimer: This list is totally biased to what I’m into at the moment so don’t tell me I missed someone or it’s in some way wrong.

Teke::Teke

I’ve always had a soft spot for surf rock bands, especially when they list Takeshi Terauchi as their biggest influence. If you don’t know who he is I advise you to do a quick little google search.

It also doesn’t hurt that Teke::Teke are from good ol’Montreal and what would Osheaga be like without a little hometown bias in the preview.

Give them a listen and you’ll see they’ve got the old surf rock vibe but with some twists. There’s a lot of modern elements as well as some traditional Japanese instruments mixed in for good measure.

grandson

While I’m not super familiar with grandson, his track Apologize keeps showing up everywhere and I’m curious to get to know a little more about him. He’s a relatively young artist and starting to get chart-level success so this might be a “I remember when” situation where you get to catch someone before they really blow up.

Mallrat

I’ve always found it funny that “fashionably late” even applies to concerts in Montreal. If you’re like me and actually make it to places at the correct time you can check out Mallrat bright and early at the crack of 1 pm on Sunday.

I know, what an ungodly hour to be awake, and on a Sunday no less! But it will be well worth it. At just 20 years old, this Australia singer/rapper is already starting to make waves, best to get on the boat early.

St. Paul & The Broken Bones

The elevator pitch for why St.Paul & The Broken Bones is on this list, the dude can sing like it’s nobody’s business. A whole lot of soul, a little bit of funk and a superb horn section have me curious to see what the live version of the tracks I’ve heard will sound like.

Mitski

Ok so Mitski is definitely not a lesser known artist but she’s on in the afternoon so it might still count. Besides, this is my list and I’ll do what I want!

She’s the winner of the “Osheaga Artist I’ve Been Listening to Most Lately Award” and as the winner of this completely arbitrary prize she wins a spot on this list.

Mac DeMarco

In this case I have no excuse, it’s super duper duper breaking the rules to put Mac DeMarco on the list. So he’ll go at the bottom and I won’t dwell on it for long but I had to since the “hipster Jimmy Buffet” is absolutely nuts live, don’t forget to go see him, who knows what craziness he’ll get up to.

You might even get to hear his tone deaf drummer sing classic rock songs like he did last summer at Lollapalooza. Like who does that?!?