POP MONTREAL at various venues in Montreal, October 3 to 5. Rating: NNNNN
Last year, many accused Pop Montreal of being on the verge of betraying its upstart, homegrown indie rock origins to become just another industry/media suit-and-tie affair.
Yes, the schmooze factor has increased. That’s inevitable at a hot festival in a desirable and talent-rich city. But Pop Montreal hardly seems to be a red-carpet glam show awkwardly outgrowing its humble beginnings. Even the corporate sponsorships are kept refreshingly low-key in most venues.
This festival, with its impressively diverse program of known and unknown music, films and panel discussions, is still fighting the good fight and has yet to lose its bite.
It’s not as tough as I expect to get in to see effeminate wunderkind Patrick Wolf at the Just for Laughs club Friday, despite the stampede of mopey teens rushing the stage.
His unabashedly adolescent songs about broken hearts and sad, rainy days are alluring for the emotionally overwrought, but Wolf proves quite the performer, too. The Bowie-esque blond dressed in a Sgt. Pepper jacket, ratty cut-offs and copious amounts of glitter sticks closely to The Magic Position, swooning through ornate orch-pop songs and drawing his audience into his world whether we feel comfortable there or not.
Photo By Jason Keller
The audience adores every moment, a love Wolf reciprocates by playing two encores, including Magpie, joined by impressive sitar-pop opener Bishi .
Initially, NOW’s Jamaica To Toronto showcase looks under-attended for the midnight slot and Montreal debut of this band of soul funk saviours. But after they put their noses to the funkstone on a few intro throwdowns, I recheck over my shoulder and discover a rammed Club Lambi, bobbing heads and a dance floor ready to ignite.
And then the Pope arrives.
Earle “the Mighty Pope” Heedram belongs to a rare breed, the kind of hard-charging frontman who can a turn a party out with a few hot-footed dance moves and a warm, powerful Otis Redding-type voice that booms over the reggae funk beat.
Photo By Jason Keller
Not that co-leader Jay Douglas is to be outdone. Starting from the back of the room with a cordless mic, he works his way through the crowd, fancy footworking and singing until he reaches the stage, climbs on top of a speaker and finishes the classic Cougars cut Right On with his arms outstretched.
On Thursday, Cody ChesnuTT opener Tiombe Lockhart has jaws dropping when the striking New York diva marches out in disco shorts and a revealing top and begins wailing an unwaveringly cool set of take-no-shit, ESG-influenced NY underground funk.
The pre-fest buzz is that ChesnuTT’s show will be his only one in North America this year. The eccentric Atlanta native arrives garbed in a sequined cape and premieres a conceptual song cycle called The Live Release, 45 minutes of sparse, electric-guitar-based soul, every note played with disarming passion.
Meanwhile, meshuga hometown hero A-Trak is holding court at Club Soda, showcasing his new label, Fool’s Gold. Sort of the Duddy Kravitz of underground hiphop, the 25-year-old is hyping Chicago emcee (and love interest) Kid Sister , who lights up the two-storey joint with her speedy flow, keeping time with A-Trak’s pitched-up Baltimore beats.
Photo By Jason Keller
The biggest name at Pop Montreal this year is recent Rock Hall of Fame inductee Patti Smith , the first of whose two shows is an unscripted collaboration Wednesday with eight-piece avant-garde collective the Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-la Band . A sense of atmospheric grandeur prevails as she plays her clarinet or reads poetry over top of their expansive experimental compositions. The musical collision’s spiritual feel is heightened by the venue, a former church and synagogue.
Cleveland proto-punks Pere Ubu ‘s much-heralded set is relatively sedate, and, depending on who you ask, a dud. Singer David Thomas needs a chair to sit on (and swig beer) during the extended instrumentals, often giving the scowling impression that he’s not too thrilled to be here.
Odd, because looking back on my first Pop Montreal experience, I can’t think of any place I’d rather be.
