Polyester Heart's Music Blog

Well, I have to admit, I was a bit anxious in the days and hours leading up to Friday night's show at the Press Club.  We haven't played live much recently (I think only 2 shows in the last 8 months or so), so we were anticipating this one a bit more than usual.  

Our set consisted mostly of newer stuff.  Some very new, and we stacked those songs near the top of the set.  I've also added some new gear to the arsenal, so the show was sort of a reboot for us.  I'm playing more electric guitar now, and I've added a "foot piano" into the mix too.  So, yeah, I was basically nervous that something would go wrong somewhere along that chain.  There were a lot more things that could possibly go wrong than usual, so I figured that if we didn't fall on our faces at any point during the set, the night could be considered successful.  

Ryan Partridge started the night by taking us through the "Subway Rider's" commute.  Dusting off his sampler, he dropped the occasional beat (which is a good thing, of course), like sitting on a crowded car, somehow solitary inside the warm envelope of your headphones chiming in with the soundtrack to your isolation in a crowd.  On stage, Ryan donned headphones from time to time, and he was by no means isolated.  Headphones notwithstanding, the soundtrack was shared for all to hear.  I know it was part of a work in progress, which made it an even more outstanding set from my perspective.  He tried some brave stuff, and it came off really well.

We followed with a not too disastrous set.  So, by my standards, pretty good.  The new stuff felt really good, and we kind of settled into a nice groove.  I'm not going to say much more than that.  I'll let the people that were there be the ultimate judge.  

Nick Zubeck followed with his cast of always sublime co-conspirators: Darren Wall, Robbie Grunwald, and um, oh yeah, Marshall Bureau.  Every time I hear these guys, it seems like they try something a little different, whether it be a different keyboard sound from Robbie, or a different bass part (Darren didn't play any electric bass, just upright).  The music is always epic, and Friday was no exception.  There were huge climaxes in "Tip Of My Tongue" and "Cherry Sunshine" and slow burning mood pieces with payoff hooks in songs like "Track and Field"

Thanks to everyone who made it out.  See you soon.

P.S. both photos were taken on an iPhone, which explains the somewhat poor quality, but also means that we're cool 

Dave 

So, based on my last few posts, it might seem like I just think everything is great, and I heap praise upon any band I see. Though this post won't appease knee-jerk detractors who really believe that, all I can say is: fuck 'em. Nick Zubeck is one of my favorite artists in Toronto, and his band is pretty much right at the top for me.  On September 18, Nick held his CD release party in the main hall at the Tranzac. Christine Bougie, Dafydd Hughes, and Sandro Perri opened.  Christine and Dafydd played very beautiful music, some of which was reminiscent of collaborations between Daniel Lanios and Brian Eno in the early eighties, but I don't want to cheapen what they did by simply attatching a comparison. The music really was beautiful, and I can't wait to check them out again at the Tranzac (they play there every Monday at 7pm).  Sandro played without cliché as always. And Nick, Darren, Marshall and Robbie delivered an inspiring performance that sent chills up our collective spines. If you see the name Nick Zubeck in your local listings, go see this band. In addition, I've had some time to listen to the cd in question, Tracker, and it's brilliant. The show and the disc really felt like a triumph to me as a fan, seeing Nick and Co. seemingly poised to take some big steps after a culmination of a few years of music that some of us already knew was world class.

The Book Of Gnomes is an obscure (for the time being) experimental project curated by Ben Bowen, Marshall Bureau, Darren Wall, and Nick Zubeck.  I'll quote something off their myspace page cause it's true: "Book Of Gnomes is a music geek's dream band".  That doesn't say it all, though.  It's my belief that with the right media support, their eclectic sound would be loved by everyone, music geek or not.  There is so much here to love.  It's different, no doubt, but there's a universal appeal that oozes through, and anyone with a soul would find sitting and listening to them a pure pleasure.  There's jazz in there for sure - Ben's trumpet sound is warm and sits perfectly wherever it lands. But it's not just the jazz aspect that thrills (and I admit, I'm a push-over for good live jazz), it's the journey they take you on, where you can "get" the music if you want, or just feel it.

From this point forward, I will be a relentless cheerleader for these guys.  I think they might wind up being four of the most relevant musicians (artists too) in Toronto.  Not exaggerating.