BKonthescene

Where the arts come together

Category: Music Reviews

  • Big Sugar @ Speakeasy 21, Thu July 31 2014

    by Bill Kwan It was a warm night in Toronto’s Financial District where Gordie Johnson (guitar and vocals) and Kelly Hoppe (harmonica and vocals) of the Big Sugar band brought their music to Speakeasy 21. The crowd enjoyed a spirited acoustic set with Big Sugar’s hits and a lot of Blue’s cover tunes. And with…

  • Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner, Eh? Dine Alone Records, That’s Who …

    Dinner is Served! Got a little package in the mail from a Canadian music label called Dine Alone Records. Unbeknownst to me (after a quick Wiki search), I discovered that this was a little (?) homegrown independent Canadian record label. Started in 2005, Dine Alone Records debuted with a little band called City and Colour and since…

  • Soundgarden & NIN @ the Molson Amphitheatre, Sun, July 27th, 2014

    by Bill Kwan It may have been a rainy day at the Molson Amphitheater on Sunday, but in no way did that dampen the spirits of the audience who was treated to two superstar bands of the 80’s and 90’s; Soundgarden and Nine Inch Nails. Current membersline up are: Chris Cornell – lead vocals Kim Thayil –…

  • Megadeth – Sat July 19 2014 @ Casino Rama

    by Bill Kwan Megadeth played to a capacity crowd in the usually conservative srtage of Casino Rama. Once in a while this venue needs it’s foundation shaken up with a powerful dose of “Heavy Metal”. And all four members of the band were up to the task, giving the audience a rousing performance that put…

  • Train – Fri July 18 2014 @ Fallsview Casino

    by Bill Kwan For Train’s concert at Fallsview Casino, fan participation was the order of the day. And to that effect, frontman Patrick Monahan really knew how to work the crowd. The San Francisco Pop & Rock band gained commercial success in 1988 with their first hit “Meet Virginia” with Monahan and Stafford as the…

  • Willie Nelson & Family, Alison Krauss & Union Station, with Jerry Douglas @ Casino Rama

    by Bill Kwan Tue. July 15 2014 at Casino Rama was a night of incredible musical talent coming together as Alison Krauss opened for Willie Nelson, starting the evening with a spirited performance of Blue Grass, Country, and Pop standards such as Baby, Now That I’ve Found You for the Foundations cover. Krauss is most…

  • Queen & Adam Lambert – Sun Jul 13 2014 @ A.C.C.

    by Bill Kwan The sold-out Air Canada Centre venue was in deep anticipation for Queen with Adam Lambert. Loud clapping, whistling, stomping and cheers roared out as the “Witching Hour” approached for the band to hit the stage by the enthusiastic and appreciative audience. Adam Lambert and Queen started the set late with “Now I’m…

  • Beyoncé & JayZ”On The Run Tour”-Wed., July 9th, 2014 @ the Rogers Centre

    by Bill Kwan Toronto was a hot bed of superstar acts on the same day. Would you choose Lady GaGa at the Air Canada Centre or the Beyonce/JayZ show at the Rogers Centre. It was quite the eventful Wednesday night for JayZ and Beyonce as this writer chose to attend that show instead of the…

  • Bad Company-Tues., July 8th, 2014 @ Casino Rama

    by Bill Kwan Bad Company played to a capacity crowd on Tuesday night at Casino Rama as it was “Rocksteady” for this iconic Rock and Blues band. You know it’s a band of importance when the casino is packed with music lovers mingling with the die hard gamblers of Rama. The set was started with…

  • The Science Of Rock N Roll Exhibition-June 11th-Oct.26th, 2014@Ontario Science Centre

    By Bill Kwan A special presentation is being held at level 6 of the Special Hall at The Ontario Science Centre  from June 11th-October 26th 2014 called “The Science Of Rock N Roll”.  People who are curious will wonder about the science behind rock ‘n’ roll and how technology shaped this multi-billion dollar industry.  It…

  • Diana Ross-Wed.,July 2nd, 2014@Casino Rama

    By Bill Kwan Diana Ross arrived late on stage for her scheduled show at Casino Rama due to the tropical storm on the east coast of the U.S.A. Living up to her Diva status, no pictures were allowed and it was strictly enforced until security allowed patrons to rush the stage to the last song…

  • TD Toronto Jazz Festival-Kenny Wayne Sheperd+Robert Randolph-Sun.,June 22nd, 2014

    By Bill Kwan Sunday night had the Blues injection for the MainStage at Nathan Phillips Square as part of the Toronto Jazz Festival. Robert Randolph And His Family Band, from Newark, NJ, who always performs a mini concert just before each New York Knicks game, opened the show with a high octane set. Randolph played…

  • TD JAZZ FESTIVAL-June 19th to 28th, 2014@Various Locations

    WWW.TORONTOJAZZ.COM

  • TD Toronto Jazz Festival-Chaka Khan-Thurs.,June 19th,2014@The Kool Haus

    By Bill Kwan Chaka Khan http://www.chakakhan.com/ played to a sparse crowd for the kick off to the 28th annual TD Toronto Jazz Festival. Rudy Blair of 680 News introduced her with the 80’s intro” I Feel For You” and the verse”Chaka Khan, Chaka Khan” blaring in the background. Khan was in fine form and her…

  • Luminato 2014 June 6th-15th 2014@Various Locations

    By Josh Cowell An amazing year for the eighth edition of Luminato. Some of the highlights were: Time Talks with Daniel Lanois, Isabella Rossellini, Rufus Wainwright; The Roots in concert; Ziggy Marley’s rousing reggae concert; Bebel Gilberto’s bossa nova in concert; Aline Morales’ Brazilian concert; Daniel Lanois and his “Sleeping In The Devil’s Bed” Concert;…

  • Luminato 2014: Sleeping in the Devil’s Bed: The Music of Daniel Lanois (June 10, 2014)

    Haunting. It was a splendid night at Massey Hall for a cast of fine performers to pay homage to arguably one of the great music producers of our time. Sleeping in the Devil’s Bed: The Music of Daniel Lanois, produced by Hal Willner, captivated the audience with the lush interpretations of Lanois’ creations. Featured Performers: Daniel…

  • Santana-Tues., June 10th, 2014@Casino Rama

    It wasn’t a quiet day or night at the sold-out show at Casino Rama on Tuesday for Carlos Santana and his 10 piece band. This  amazing band comprised of  percussionist duo and  conga drummer: Paoli Mejias and Pepe Jimenez, two male singers: Tony Lindsay and Andy Vargas. Plus two horn players:Trumpeter Bill Ortiz and trombonist Jeff…

  • Ringo Starr and His All-Star Band-Fri., June 6th, 2014@Casino Rama, Orilla

    It was two years ago in 2012 when Ringo Starr and His All-Star Band started their North American/World Tour in Niagara Falls. This will be the very first time his “All-Star Band” will tour with the same All Starr Band members line up from the 2012 junket. Ringo Starr the one time Beatle drummer launched his…

  • Luminato 2014 with Jimmy Fallon’s House Band…”The Roots”! Special Guest:AdrianX

  • CMW-Canadian Music Week-May 6th-10th, 2014

    A big shout out to: Kaitlyn Davies || AUDIO BLOOD INC. *Powering the Best. Publicity and Administrative Assistant *Catch the #ABFam at CMW! for the invite and hospitality for CMW ! Support Canadian Music Week! and for the whole year of 2014! For ticket info:http://cmw.net/music/wristbands/ Also Ticket information is also available at http://cmw.net/music/ Looking forward…