This article was last updated on April 16, 2022
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Next Level Syndicate presents….
███▓▒░░WEI ZHONGLE (Chicago)░░▒▓███
https://weizhongle.bandcamp.com/album/nu-trance
Wei Zhongle’s current level of praise in the DIY circles of Chicago are no surprise to anybody who’s had the pleasure of witnessing their live show. Currently touring on the release of their latest full length album, Nu-Trance, the trio (Rob Jacobs guitar/vox, John McCowen clarinet/electronics, Sam Klickner drums) is making their first steps into Toronto, although Rob Jacobs isn’t entirely unfamiliar with the GTA, having played two shows in Toronto in the last year.
“There are many nods toward Chinese music, likely inspired by the ensemble’s namesake, who was a multi-instrumentalist on a variety of Chinese traditional instruments and founder of the Traditional Instruments department at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.”
“Jacobs sings with a nasal tone reminsiscent of Far Eastern traditional styles (Thai, Balinese, Japanese, Chinese) and in scales that do not fit the Western major/minor dichotomy. All in all, Wei Zhongle is one of the most fascinating American bands right now, and a real joy to discover.”
███▓▒░░NICK STORRING (Toronto)░░▒▓███
https://nickstorring.bandcamp.com/album/endless-conjecture
What is there to be said about Nick Storring that hasn’t already been said? Composer, Music Journalist, winner of the Canadian Music Centre’s Toronto Emerging Composer Award. (His broken-violin-based electronic piece Artifacts (I) also won first place in the 2008 Jeux de Temps/ Times Play competition for emerging Canadian electroacoustic composers.)
His chamber music has been performed by the Quatuor Bozzini, Arraymusic, the Madawaska String Quartet, the Esprit Orchestra, and Thin Edge New Music Collective. He also regularly creates incidental music for theatre, film and intermedia projects, including for the MT Space’s Last 15 Seconds which toured through Canada and the Middle East, ambient gaming installation “Tentacles” which was presented at MoMA in 2011, and Ingrid Veninger’s feature film “The Animal Project” an official selection at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Apart from making regular solo appearances, he also plays in Picastro (Polyvinyl Records), I Have Eaten The City and improvising cello duo The Knot with Tilman Lewis. He has collaborated live and in the studio with Nadja, Sandro Perri, Daniel Johnston, Araz Salek, Laura Barrett, Rhys Chatham, Wyrd Visions, Andrew Timar, Castlemusic, Eddie Prevost, Diane Labrosse, and Damo Suzuki (of Can). He’s been written up by just about every Canadian music publication you can think of: Weird Canada, CBC, BlogTO and Exclaim! (just to name a few).
This particular evening marks the wonderful début of Nick’s band, which consists of:
Germaine Liu — percussion etc.
Brandon Valdivia — percussion etc.
John Mark Sherlock — pianet/ clavinet etc.
Jason Doell —portuguese guitar etc.
Nick Storring — electric cello, electronics, etc.
███▓▒░░BEARS & CHILDREN (Toronto)░░▒▓███
https://bearsandchildren.bandcamp.com/album/the-rest-of-everything
Bears & Children have not been a band for all that long in Toronto, but they are already making waves in the music community, most notably a write-up by Weird Canada for their 2014 release, # fLEXTHEWAVE. The trio of York graduates consists of Aaron Corbet, Kieran Maraj and Ben Sirois.
“Stuck on the 400, somewhere around Bradford. Condensation forms on the windows as the faulty Gameboy you dug out of the closet sputters through you mindlessly passing the next level.
That night, exhausted, frantic, unable to sleep, channel-surfing late at night, everything is imbued with interference from CKVR. You look for the lightswitch, but when the dim bulb lights up, only kosmische vapours emanate. Eyes to heaven, you get no response.”
“Through crashing drums comes instrumentally brooding moments that make way to electro glitches. Some static fade gives way to an upbeat drum machine loop which sounds a lot like a scene out of a Carnival (or also the Atari game of the same name)”
███▓▒░░MIRAPOLIS (Toronto)░░▒▓███
Mirapolis remains a puzzling trio, having played a handful of shows over the last two years around Toronto. With no known recordings, live or otherwise, they operate within a perpetual shroud of mystery. Having personally witnessed them perform on a multitude of occasions, I can certainly assert that these three musicians (Luan Phung/guitar, Chris Rennie/tenor saxaphone, Noah Sherman/Drums) pack quite a punch. You’ll just have to come early to find out what these three guys are all about.
19+
DOORS @ 9
MUSIC @ 9:30
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