Call & Response is a series of Q&As with bands, artists and random people we dig that live in Montreal, visit here, or have some dubious connection to the city.

Darling Ghost can be described as Theatrical Anti-Punk... that is if you feel the need to describe it. The band grew out of singer/songwriter Sheena Bernett's solo creations, most of them odd songs written on piano and performed with hyperemotionality. Her theatrical concepts are brought to life by double-bassist Chivas Delacroix, cellist Vera Alexis Charles and drummer/percussionist Enki de Treetop. With Sheena's surrealistic lyrics, highly personal delivery and the dynamics and arrangements of an avant-garde orchestra; you are sure to feel something whether it be pleasant, uncomfortable or pleasantly uncomfortable. You can catch them August 31st at Casa Del Popolo with Deer Ashes, Dear

I recently had a chance to sit down with Darling Ghost via the internet and ask them some very in-depth questions about life and music:

Call & Response is a series of Q&As with bands, artists and random people we dig that live in Montreal, visit here, or have some dubious connection to the city.

A band needs to know where they're from in order to know where they're going. Little City came from the close suburbs and not-as-close rural reaches of the larger Toronto area, forming in the heart of the city to merge the brains and hearts of their dense music and words into the sounds found on their debut EP. You can catch them this Thursday August 26th @ Bar St Laurent with Belgrave.

I recently had a chance to sit down with Little City's Shaun Axani via email to ask him some questions about life, love, and Montreal:

Call & Response is a series of Q&As with bands, artists and random people we dig that live in Montreal, visit here, or have some dubious connection to the city.

Have you heard of local Montreal band Coral Red? If so, I've got some good news and some bad news. Bad news is, they don't exist anymore. Good news is, they are now known as Belgrave, and will be playing this Thursday August 26th @ Bar St. Laurent with The Thanya, Emilie & Ali Band and Little City, who are playing their first Montreal show.

I recently had a chance to sit down with Belgrave via the internet and ask them some very in-depth questions about life and music:

Nommé d'après la tragédie de Shakespeare, Titus Andronicus revient ce soir à Montréal après un passage inaperçu au défunt Green Room en avril dernier. Le quintette originaire du New Jersey, mais établi à Brooklyn, rapplique toutefois avec une renommée grandissante. Le magazine Rolling Stones l'a qualifié d'un des sept meilleurs nouveaux groupes de 2010. Sans parler de Pitchfork qui se pisse dessus après lui avoir affublé l'étiquette de meilleure nouvelle musique et l'avoir invité à son fameux festival estival de musique dans le vent. La rumeur précédant leur deuxième album n'est cependant pas qu'un vulgaire feu de paille. The Monitor figurera sans doute au palmarès de fin d'année de nombre d'experts et d'analystes de la scène musicale. L'opus inspiré par la Guerre de Sécession aux États-Unis se veut simplement épique avec ses pièces excédant souvent les sept minutes. Complexe, tout en étant accessible, mélodique, sonique et profondément accrocheur, The Monitor regorge d'influences, passant de Dropkick Murphys à Dinosaur Jr. Sans contredit l'un des albums rock par excellence de 2010. À voir dans l'intimité du Il Motore, car si le groupe poursuit sur sa lancée et que leur troisième gravé s'avère d'aussi bonne qualité, nous croyons qu'il ne fréquentera guère longtemps les salles d'aussi petite taille.

Titus Andronicus;
Free Energy
Ce soir, 22 août 2010;

Il Motore (179 Jean-Talon Ouest);

15$.

Photographie par l'utilisateur Flickr vanshnookenraggen tirée de la page MySpace du groupe.

Here at Midnight Poutine, we've made no secret of our respect and admiration for Montreal-based rockers Land of Talk. Jangly guitars combine with Elizabeth Powell's saccharine but edgy voice to create a truly ambitious sound. Their critically acclaimed debut album, Some Are Lakes, was delicate yet destructive. It landed the band on the 2009 Polaris Prize Long List. Now, after a teasing EP released late last year, the band is set to launch their 2nd full-length album, Cloak and Cipher, later this month.

Thanks to the band and the good folks in their entourage, you don't need to wait to hear it. They've given Midnight Poutine a sneak peek of the lead single, 'Swift Coin' and you can download it here.

I would bet that half the population of Montreal's downtown core is made up of artists.The creatively inclined take a liking to Montreal because this place has got soul.In this city a lot of people are questionably labeled singers and songwriters.Nothing is worse for me than suffering through someone's best kept secrets over badly written melodies. This is not the case for Montreal's Armen at the Bazaar.