life is noise

As the crowd at Amplifier struggled to contain their enthusiasm for Okkervil River on Wednesday night, Amplifier struggled to contain the crowd. As the small venue slowly filled, the excitement in the atmosphere was tangible, the crowd nattered about favourite albums and tracks, potential openers and opinions of the new album released this year — I Am Very Far.

Unlike most of Okkervil River’s previous releases, I Am Very Far is the first since 2003’s Down the River of Golden Dreams that is not a concept album. It is a departure from their established norm not only in form but also in sound with more instruments, more density and generally more noise. I Am Very Far is the first album of Okkervil’s that instrumentally competes with Will Sheff’s emotive vocals instead of supporting them. Despite moving away from what we’ve grown to know and love, even fans loyal to their folk-based, lyrically focused work will appreciate the success of the band’s evolution in this record. Despite their musical transformation, however, they still provided the powerful and energetic performance promised by their past. Read the rest of this entry ”

The Bakery — Sunday, October 9

At 10 o’clock on the dot, a crowd made of more hair than flesh stood silently in awe as the Japanese post-rock marvels, Mono took the stage at the Bakery. Without a single word spoken the quartet commanded the attention of the audience with their own brand of emotion-laced soundscapes. Read the rest of this entry ”