Your guide to the 2023 Montreal Jazz Fest
Our top recommendations for (mostly) free and (some) ticketed shows at all nine days of the festival that’s about to take over the Quartier des Spectacles.
Les Francos de Montréal: A festive free-for-all with no language laws required
Concerts by Loud, Lisa Leblanc and Robert Charlesbois showcase how les Francos attracts truly accessible appreciation for the French language and Quebec culture.
Fucked Up, One Day: REVIEW
“Fucked Up does anthems expertly, and these 11 tight, catchy, urgent pieces clock in at a lean 40 minutes. The album’s brevity makes it easy to get drawn into instant replayability.”
The podcast Sorry About the Kid captures a tragic piece of Montreal history
We spoke with Alex McKinnon about his acclaimed documentary on his brother’s death, his loss of memories about his sibling and gathering intimate eye-witness accounts of the 1990 event.
The Beatles, Revolver: Special Edition: REVIEW
“The only reason the 2022 mix of Revolver isn’t getting a perfect 10 is because no amount of goodwill can ever forgive ‘Yellow Submarine.'”
Backxwash, HIS HAPPINESS SHALL COME FIRST EVEN THOUGH WE ARE SUFFERING: REVIEW
“With this third entry in a trilogy of albums, Backxwash outmatches herself in a sudden death round at her own playoff series.”
Yassin Narcy Alsalman on teaching a Kanye course and co-owning an Old Montreal bookshop
An interview with the local MC, teacher, author, label and lifestyle company director about Kanye vs. Ye: Genius by Design, the Maktaba shop and more.
DOMi & JD Beck, Not Tight: REVIEW
“French keyboard phenom Domitille Degalle, 22, and Dallas, TX stick master JD Beck, 19, have seemingly invented their own telepathic language of rhythm and melody.”
OFF!, Free LSD: REVIEW
“The L.A. punk rock supergroup gathers ‘round the flaming ashes of an alien apocalypse, seeking to cleanse the galaxy of bullshit, freeing minds, asses and atoms with every pulsing groove along the way.”
The music behind the art is the focus of the new Basquiat exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
“The goal of Seeing Loud is to give life to this nexus of music, art and club culture that was the backdrop against which Jean-Michel Basquiat made his art — to immerse people in that time, and to stay authentic to that time.”