13 hot & heavy shows in Montreal this week

Well the music festivals keep on rolling this weekend but I’ll ease up on my annual fest moaning for this week as I grumbled enough last week about the Brosheaga fest. This week is Heavy Montreal and yep, you guessed it — I ain’t goin’. Nothing against the festival organizers and bands, and I am truly glad that it forces the mainstream media to even acknowledge that metal exists, but, uh, yeah, giant music festivals just aren’t my thing.

For those of you who are going, you can catch Metallica desperately trying to become relevant again, God’s favourite band Slayer, new noise kids Whores and hometown heroes Voivod proving whey they are one of the most important metal bands of all time. Million-dollar idea for giant metal fest organizers: corpse paint that doubles as UV protectant! Think about it.

For those who are also taking a pass on Heavy Montreal, there is plenty to do around town over the weekend.

Thursday: The main show you will want to check out tonight is the Spanish punk from East L.A.’s Generacion Suicida with Pure Mania (Nice Vibrators snatch there), Sexface and the young, loud and sloppy (feel free to rip off that title for your debut release, fellas) Dead Future at Katacombes. 1635 St-Laurent, 8 p.m., $8

Friday: Another amazing installment of Mr. Ralph’s Record Player is happening at BBAM! Gallery. Ralph Alfonso will be in discussion with hip hop artist Jonathan Emile as they chew the fat on one of the greatest records of all time, Marvin Gaye’s What’s Goin’ On. 3255 St-Jacques W., 7-10 p.m., free

If you want to kick off your Heavy Montreal weekend right, you can show up to the kick-off party/BBQ at Katacombes with Cancer Bats‘ tribute to Black Sabbath, Bat Sabbath (get it?), Toronto psych warlords Biblical, the bell-bottomed riffs of Eagle Tears and the skate thrash of Boids. 1635 St-Laurent, 8 p.m., $10

It just wouldn’t be a true Montreal weekend without the scruffy fucks from Turbohaus hosting a show, and this weekend is no different. Po Lazarus launches their EP with help from Ogen. 1180 St-Antoine W., 9 p.m., $10/$14

Believe it or not, Montreal used to be a surf rock paradise, with bands like the Treblemakers, Surferino and plenty more reverbed twangers holding the torch in the ’90s. If you want to check who is riding the crest of surf rock in 2014, you can catch the Krooks at Wiggle Room. 3874 St-Laurent, 9 p.m.

Saturday: A show I will definitely be at this weekend will be the Om-styled trance of Moncton’s Zaum with the post-rock hammer of Kuato, the pulverizing power of the Great Sabatini and Special Noise at Drones Club. 8 p.m.

If it weren’t for the aforementioned show, I would have been at Essaie Pas (featuring Marie Davidson) with Police des Moeurs at la Vitrola. Essaie Pas and Police des Moeurs will launch their split LP, with openers Johnny Couteau and DJ Incognito. 4602 St-Laurent, 9 p.m., $5

For a night of unabashed rawk and guitar solos that stretch beyond the legal limit, you can catch the Steve Albini-produced Alexei Martov with the hi-energy rawk of Dead Messenger, Drifters Faith and DJ Erik Elektrik at Divan Orange. 4234 St-Laurent, 9:30 p.m.

Sunday: What should prove to be all asses and elbows will be the Heavy Montreal afterparty at Katacombes with Fucked Up and Solids. Better get there early if you want to squeeze into this stellar gig. 1635 St-Laurent, 11 p.m., $10

Monday: The word “psychedelic” was once attached exclusively to bands like the Strawberry Alarm Clock and 13th Floor Elevators, but more recently acts like Comets on Fire, Bardo Pond and Dead Meadow redefined the term and reintroduced it into the music hack’s lexicon. One of the first bands to reclaim the word in the early 2000’s was the always-amazing Montreal collective Shalabi Effect. Don’t miss Sam and his drugonauts at la Vitrola. 4602 St-Laurent, 8 p.m., $10 [UPDATE: This show has been moved to Casa del Popolo.]

Tuesday: Nothing is better than punk rock at the Barfly, so dunk yer whiskers into an amber nectar and punk out to Japan’s Sete Star Sept with Powercup and Ahna. 4062 St-Laurent, 9:30 p.m., $7

Wednesday: This is going to be a tough decision for the self-respecting punker, so choose wisely. First up at Brasserie Beaubien, you can catch Fredericton’s Hard Charger with Philly’s Alement and B.C.’s the Nausea and Ashes, Effet Werther, and the amazing Annie slingin’ the suds behind the bar. 73 Beaubien E., 9 p.m.

The other show that should appeal to the unwashed and unruly is the long awaited return of Propaghandi with Rvir and War on Women at Club Soda. Punk out! 1225 St-Laurent, 7 p.m., $23

 

Current obsession: Godflesh, Streetcleaner