The Liquor Store

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Summer is heating up both literally and figuratively in Montreal and we’ve got some outdoors and in-person events this week. Let’s get started:

ShazamFest is Back This Weekend

ShazamFest is truly one of Quebec’s most unique festivals. It’s eco-friendly, happens in the Easten Townships and offers a mix of music, circus, burlesque, dance, wrestling and more.

Last year’s event was also unique in that it was scaled back (as were so many of our cultural events). This year, they’re offering a “nearly-normal, safe-but-just-as-quirky 15.5th edition” done in collaboration with the Estrie Public Health Department.

The talent roster is full of acts from across Quebec.

Politically-charged rap artist Sarahmée, Montreal’s neo-disco glam squad Barry Paquin Roberg and pioneering rocker Frank Custeau all headline, DJ Tony Montreal (accompanied by the legendary Alain Vinet of Cirque du Soleil fame) joins the lineup for the first time this year and the Canadian Redneck Beard, Moustache & Mullet Contest and Clowns Without Borders are back by popular demand.

ShazamFest XV.V runs July 9–11 at 2722 Way’s Mills, Barnston West, QC J0B 1C0. Tickets, info and full lineup at ShazamFest.com

Piknic Électronik is Back at Parc Jean-Drapeau

While large events like Osheaga won’t return this year, Parc Jean-Drapeau will see quite a bit of music and dancing this summer. Piknic Électronik returned last Saturday and will run on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the summer.

Last year, the event was only online and called Piknic at Home, this year’s event is in-person, though will follow Public Health guidelines, meaning audiences are limited and see performances on multiple stages. Each day, they will also be admitted in two groups: one can enjoy shows in the afternoon sun from noon-5pm and the other can Piknic in the evening from 6-10pm.

Tickets are sold in pairs, with each given a designated spot. Masks are required elsewhere on the site.

It’s also chock-full of local, Canadian and Quebec talent. This weekend features Paolo Rocco, Syla, Laced and more.

For tickets and the (still developing) Piknic Électronik schedule, please visit PikNicElectronik.com

The Liquor Store Play Cabaret Lion D’Or…For Real This Time

It was only a few months ago that Montreal-based seven-piece The Liquor Store were playing a virtual show at Cabaret Lion d’Or (virtual for the audience, that is, the band was actually there). Now, with Quebec Public Health restrictions loosened, they will be playing the venue again, this time with an in-person audience.

The band also recently released a music video for the song MOPHO, the first single from their upcoming second album Colossus. Give it a look and listen below before catching this band live:

Indie Montréal presents The Liquor Store @ Cabaret Lion d’Or, 1676 rue Ontario Est, Saturday, July 10, 8-10pm (doors 7:30pm). Tickets available through ThePointOfSale.com

If you know of an event that you feel should be covered, please contact arts@forgetthebox.net or music@forgetthebox.net

No promises but we’ll do our best

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We seem to be getting more live art and music (virtually, of course) as the weeks go by and the weather gets nicer. This week we’ve got a couple of live events and a band formed during the pandemic’s first single release.

Let’s get started:

BIG BANG & The Aussenwelt Collective Stream Virtual Nuit Blanche Performances as Part of Art Souterrain

This Saturday night is Nuit Blanche, the showcase event of the annual Montréal en lumière Festival. Unlike every other year, though, the Metro won’t be open all night, museums and galleries won’t be receiving throngs of people in the wee hours of the morning and crowds of people won’t be packing the Quartier des Spectacles to enjoy tir sur glace or a ride on the winter Ferris wheel…because of, well, the cufrew.

Nuit Blanche will still be happening virtually and one of its most popular attractions is back: Art Souterrain. The installation part, featuring art in Montreal’s underground city, will still be happening as of April 10th, but tomorrow night, they will be streaming performances from the Aussenwelt Collective and Stéphanie Décourteille’s BIG BANG dance formation live.

Violet Hébert and Joseph Blais will provide the musical accompanyment for these three performances. Here’s a promo video to give you an idea of what it might look like:

Art Souterrain, the Aussenwelt Collective and BIG BANG will stream an evening of multidisciplinary performances Saturday, March 13, beginning at 8pm, on the Art Souterrain YouTube Channel

The Liquor Store Play Cabaret Lion d’Or Virtually

If you thought to yourself “Wouldn’t it be nice to catch a Big Band playing Cabaret Lion d’Or again?” well, this Sunday you can, virtually, of course.

The Big Band in question is The Liquor Store and they will be performing at the aforementioned very stylish venue on Ontario East as part of Indie Montreal’s Les dimanches couvre-fun series. It’s a chance to catch not only the music part of going to a show, but the venue part as well, without leaving home or watching an old video.

Speaking of an old video, for now, here is the same band playing in a different venue before all the lockdowns:

Indie Montreal presents The Liquor Store Live from Cabaret Lion d’Or as part of Les dimanches couvre-fun, Sunday, March 14th at 8pm. Tickets available through ThePointOfSale.com

Scarlet Wives Debut Single Dream Funeral

When two musicians have their tour plans scrapped due to a pandemic and then have their rhythm guitarist and drummer drop out, they could just sit at home and wait or form a new band with a new drummer and write and record music. Alice (vocals, guitar) and Mike (bass) chose the latter when they formed Scarlet Wives with Zenab (drums).

They also joined up with three other musicians and sound engineers to form Lack Haüs records. Scarlet Wives’ first single is also the label’s first. Called Dream Funeral, it was released March 5th and the next one is due out in April.

They describe the song as “a heavy-hitting dose of fairy grunge” but you really should just give it a listen at one of the links below or check out this teaser video (*** WARNING: Video may trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy):

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Scarlet Wives (@scarletwives)

Scarlet Wives’ first track Dream Funeral is available on (and subsequent tracks will be available on) Amazon Music, Bandcamp and most major platforms

Featured Image: Scarlet Wives

If you know of an event that you feel should be covered, please contact arts@forgetthebox.net or music@forgetthebox.net

No promises but we’ll do our best

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As the summer of festivals rolls on, this week we will preview the 37th Annual Montreal Jazzfest with the focus being on what to go see if you don’t really care about jazz music. Fact is most people who go to this festival are looking for a nice night out of the house as much as anything else.

With that in mind this preview has a few rules:

  1. All shows must appeal to a variety of different musical tastes.
  2. All shows must appeal to people who only have a passing interest in music.
  3. All shows must be free!

The Hot Sardines

At first I was going to do an entire Jazzfest preview without any performances that would actually fall into the category of jazz but then I heard the Hot Sardines and decided this should top my list of what to do tonight. This New York based ensemble has a very dance-able up tempo swing sound and killer horn section that would get you out of your seat if you had one.

But seeing as how they’re playing one of the big outdoor stages on a beautiful long weekend evening you should be warned: you won’t have a place to sit. Get there early if you want a spot up front or do what I do and hang in the back for a little extra breathing/dancing room.

This show is perfect for the “I have no clue about music but I’m in the mood to pretend I know how to swing dance” crowd.

The Hot Sardines play The Rio Tinto Stage (Corner of Ste. Catherine and Jeanne Mance), Thursday, June 30th, 8:00pm and 10:00pm, free.

The Eagle Rock Gospel Singers

By combining modern day gospel music, indie rock, powerful vocal harmonies and upbeat catchy music the Eagle Rock Gospel Singers are a solid choice to entertain those heading down to the fest on Canada Day. Sidenote: Happy Canada Day everyone!

Their music has a very warm and accessible feel and you certainly don’t have to know the tunes beforehand to get into them.

The Eagle Rock Gospel Singers play The Rio Tinto Stage (Corner of Ste. Catherine and Jeanne Mance), Friday, July 1st, 8:00pm and 10:00pm, free.

Kalmunity Vibe Collective

On either Friday or Saturday night you can catch a free indoor show (I had no idea they did that, did you?) by local arts collective Kalmunity Vibe Collective. This ensemble of over 50 singers and musicians combines RnB, hip-hop, spoken word, afrobeat, funk, reggae, soul, jazz, electronic and more into an improvised jam session.

This show certainly falls into the “combining different styles of music” category which is perfect for a big group of people heading down. No two shows are the same so if you like what you hear there’s no rule against going to both performances. The showtimes are a bit late but who cares, it’s a long weekend!

Kalmunity Vibe Collective play Savoy du Métropolis, 59 Ste. Catherine St. East, Friday, July 1st, 11:59pm and Saturday July 2nd 11:59pm, free.

The Liquor Store

Also representing the local scene in a big way at this year’s fest is The Liquor Store whose fusion of jazz, funk and hip hop is the perfect mix of the classic jazz sound with more modern styles. Think of it this way, both baby boomers and millennials will find something they like about this show.

They’re playing four times between next Sunday and next Friday so check the schedule, pick a show and head on down. Bring grandma, bring your kid, bring your hipster buddy who spends way too much time talking about gentrification. They’ll all have a good time.

The Liquor Store play Savoy du Métropolis, 59 Ste. Catherine St. East, Sunday, July 3rd, 11:59pm and Monday July 4th 11:59pm, as well as Valet de Carreau Bar – Casino de Montréal, 1 Casino Ave. Thursday July 7th, 11:00pm and Friday July 8th, 11:00pm, all shows are free.

* The full schedule of the festival is available at montrealjazzfest.com

* Featured image: tourisme-montreal.org

Know a band or an artist that should be featured in Shows This Week? Maybe a show FTB should cover, too? Let us know at music@forgetthebox.net. We can’t be everywhere and can’t write about everything, but we do our best!