On The Beat

Lara's Theme

LARA ST. JOHN: This young Canadian violin virtuoso is certainly not afraid of upsetting the classical music purists. She raised eyebrows earlier in her career by posing nude for an album cover, and she'll now likely elicit criticism for her new crossover musical style. Her major label debut, Re: Bach, was given a lavish launch by Sony Canada recently. The party was held in the luxurious confines of Holt Renfrew, and Lara and her five-piece band serenaded guests with the new material. There is no denying the fact that St. John can play superbly and is highly photogenic, so crossover success could be hers. The CD features modernized variations on BACH themes, with the tunes given world, jazz and pop musical twists. These ears would have preferred a straight classical approach, but we wish Lara well.

SONDRE LERCHE: This highly touted 20-year-old songsmith from Norway impressed the audience at The Horseshoe recently. Armed only with guitar, he kept them listening to his melodic songs and sweet voice pretty intently. Sondre played tracks from his Faces Down debut CD, then ended his all too brief set with a very cool version of the COLE PORTER classic, "Night And Day." Catch Sondre when he opens for ED HARCOURT at Lee's Palace on June 14.

NADA SURF: These New York City headliners drew a pretty respectable crowd, one that included industry types and JAY FERGUSON of SLOAN. Their gig was rather disappointing, however, as the trio never seemed to hit a groove with any kind of consistency. Their material has some variety, but no sense of sonic identity. The rather bland results just seemed like more of that American modern rock some of us have got real tired of. Nada Surf have been at it a while (they mentioned playing the 'Shoe six years ago) and have just released a third CD, Let Go, so you'd think they'd have developed a more distinctive or focused sound by now.

YONGE-DUNDAS SQUARE: This scribe boycotted the recent official opening of this ugly piece of urban architecture. Hard to believe the positive media coverage the square has received from places like CITY-TV and The Toronto Star. It is user-unfriendly and authoritarian in design and its security-enforced edicts on behaviour. Councillor KYLE RAE is the man considered primarily responsible for the project. He's clearly defensive about it, refusing to respond to my critical comments to him recently.

NEW RELEASES: With the warm weather finally here, it's a good time to check out the breezy and summery vibe of some new European releases. They loosely fall in the electro-jazz category, but also use elements of soul, pop, Latin and r'n'b stylings. Germany's DE PHAZZ have a new release on Universal, Daily Lama, and it's a perfect soundtrack for cocktails on the patio, as is Time To Grow, from PUDDU VARANO. They're a Danish duo that use guest vocalists like LADY Z on their beguiling mix of funk, disco, house and Latin soul. It has already spawned a club hit in "Blue Sky White Sand," and there are likely more to come. It is out on D7, a new and very promising label out of Montreal. The hardcore clubgoing dance music fan will want to check out Guvernment: All Access Vol. 1. It features hot dance tracks from the likes of MOGUAI, HATRIXX and HOOLIGAN, and is mixed by top Guvernment DJ MARK OLIVER. Buyers of the disc (on Hi-Bias) get an excellent bonus in the form of a free ticket to attend the Guvernment or any venue on a planned national club tour.
Those more into indie pop-rock should investigate Yours, Mine & Ours (Yep Roc/Outside) from the PERNICE BROTHERS. They're the brainchild of the prolific singer/songwriter JOE PERNICE (SCUD MOUNTAIN BOYS), and this marks his eighth album in the last decade. It may just be his best, as it's a moody and melodic effort that has occasional traces of Anglopop in its sound. the Pernice Brothers check into Lee's Palace for a gig on July 22.

UPCOMING: The recurrence of SARS in Toronto has renewed the ignorant hysteria in the camps of American musicians. Rock band STAIND recently cancelled their Toronto appearance (no loss there), while country superstars THE DIXIE CHICKS postponed their planned June 12 Air Canada Centre show until August 6. Here's a band with guts enough to criticize Dubya Bush, so sparking the biggest backlash ever in country music, yet run scared at the fear of SARS. Shame.

Publication Date: 2003-06-15
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=2848