Hey all, just trying to spread the word for a very little known, but very outstanding music festival that features some pretty proggy bands (all of which are unfortunately too obscure to be included on PA, though some would be shoe-ins). Although these bands are extremely unknown they clearly fall into mostly progressive genres and would no doubt appeal to many here on the 'chives, so for those of you living in Canada (or close to the Canadian border) I'd highly recommend checking out a show if you want to see some truly amazing music.
Basically every year one doctor in Toronto named Steve decides to drop a sh*t-tonne of money to finance a tour he organizes by himself that brings obscure Japanese indie bands to Canada for a series of shows in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Not only is it a super-unique event that is worth supporting, the bands he chooses are always top-notch, the venues are great, and to top it off tickets are only $10.
Here's the promo video for this year's tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8fmhC_lxdM" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8fmhC_lxdM
UchuConbini (Outer Space Convenience Store) are the newest band coming, having just recently received any exposure thanks to their fresh blend of math-rock, and emo-ish pop + super stylish music videos. These guys aren't as hyped on stage as the other bands, but the music is great and they definitely bring the technical element. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO-2DErkmus" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO-2DErkmus
jizue is easily the most established band coming, having actual experience playing outside of Japan. They have a pretty chill, but enjoyable take on nu jazz with somewhat post-rock inspired song-structures and occasional outbursts of intensity thanks to their drummer's background in hardcore punk bands, a lot like PA favourite mouse on the keys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRWXfSTTj88" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRWXfSTTj88
The featured band is the returning favourite from last year who blew everyone's minds to smithereens; Kinoko Teikoku (translates to Mushroom Empire). These guys have modern shoegaze totally nailed with powerful female vocals, super tight rhythm section, and live they are just catastrophic with the wall of sound they create. Here's their latest single which is a more up-tempo rocker https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdgQ82boywc" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdgQ82boywc and also my personal favourite, this ominous, dissonant and epic masterpiece https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLLqGseXBTs" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLLqGseXBTs (both of which have simple, but cool music videos too). These guys are the absolute sh*t and are basically worth going for alone.
Next from the promo is Happy!Mari who is Steve's personal favourite at the moment, being essentially totally unknown in Japan even. Their vocalist is zany as f**k and his whiny high-pitched acrobatics take some getting used to, but these guys tear it up live and their songs are catchy as hell. Steve describes them as Supertramp meets Cap'n Jazz meets Deerhoof. The song that starts about a minute in is kick-ass https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbkPNQRqALk" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbkPNQRqALk
Lastly, nayuta who was a very last-minute addition to the tour, but is another of Steve's personal favourites. These guys are just weird. A lot of chant-like vocal harmonies and strange guitar work, and also they're very prone to just start jamming and see where it takes (what else would you expect from a band with song names like Hippo Attack and Manchicken) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i-hyE8Q-ec" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i-hyE8Q-ec
So yeah, hopefully this post influences at least one person to check out the shows and I'll be at the Toronto and Montreal shows if anyone wants to say hi!
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http://carve.bandcamp.com/
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