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north bay

March 7th – North Bay – Urban Cafe

North Bay has always been good to me.

This time was no exception.

I played at the Urban Cafe, as part of a party for the Campus Free Press.  The Cafe was a tight space with lots of tables and chairs, but it also had a second level, which is where I managed to grab a seat for some food.  Having arrived there quite early, I made sure to try some of their eats, as they had been preparing for over an hour, and the smells were too much for me to handle: I had to order something.  I can’t remember what the exact configuration was, but the wrap I had was fantastic.

photo by Shannon Lepere

The Dining Dead opened up the show while I was still upstairs munching, and their take on post-rock sounded great.  Even when I came downstairs, prepared to be bombarded with volume because of the size of the room, I didn’t even need earplugs.  They knew how to play to a room, and the crowd loved them, even though they’re originally from the Sault!  I did my set and had a great time with the intimate crowd.  After explaining that the title of “How Come No Bones” came from a short story by Steve Martin, I ended up having a micro debate about Steve’s legitimacy as a comedian.  I don’t know who won, because my only argument was that “he used to be really funny!”

photo by Shannon Lepere

That night we met up with my friend Polly, who runs the  Deluxe Custom Tattoo parlour.  After a really late night in one of North Bay’s safest neighbourhoods, talking about all things under the sun and teasing fat cats with static electricity, it was time for bed.  Little did I know that the next day would bring this wonder of food, at a Lebanese restaurant beside Deluxe Custom Tattoo: behold, the cheese pie!

photo by Shannon Lepere

It may not look that impressive, but it’s a pita (or some sort of bread/pastry that seemed more deep fried), filled with a melange of cheeses.  Unreal.

September 25th – North Bay – The Underground

North Bay has always been good to me, thanks to Kelly Allan, who I met on the Northern Rocks tour last March. I managed to play a cool show in a new all ages underground venue, along with a couple of local acoustic performers as well as The Rough Sea from out east, and Greater Than Giants from Edmonton (I actually had their CD on repeat for a good 2 weeks in the car). Catchy stuff! One of their amps didn’t seem to be working, but thankfully the venue also houses several different ‘jam rooms’ for bands, so a tenant just wheeled out an amp for them to use, and the show went on!

Greater Than Giants at The Underground in North Bay

Northern Rocks Tour – North Bay

Spent last night in North Bay, playing a sold out show (we definitely went over capacity!) at the Bull and Quench pub.

It was the first time that I had met the other 2 bands that I’m touring with;

Rabbit Transit – www.myspace.com/rabbittransit – Sudbury, ON
Cody Allen – www.myspace.com/codyoallen – North Bay, ON

We also shared stages with some other pretty cool locals, like Feels Like Yesterday, and the Black Hole of Calcutta, who opened and closed the show, respectively.

Chris Rancourt (of Northern Rocks) and I are pumped to have a short drive to Cobalt, ON today, since I’ve driven since Tbay, and that was a sweet haul.

Either way, it’s Cobalt tonight at the Classic Theatre. There should hopefully be some good photos to come!