PICK OF THE WEEK: Konqistador combines Old World music with dark age electronics to create Future Perfect Sounds

Konqistador with special guests Dekadens and Venus Flytrap, TONIGHT (Friday March 6) at Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West) - Doors at 8pm, Show starts at 9pm sharp.

This show is going to be insane. Not just because it's probably going to be sweaty hot and packed, but because of the music that is going to come out of Phog Lounge tonight.

If you've picked up a copy of March's WAMM Magazine then you probably saw the big interview I did with two of the members of Konqistador (if you didn't, shame on you! Pick up a copy at your favourite watering hole or local business and read it!), then you know of what I speak. But here's another look at what promises to be the best musical show of the week here in Windsor, simply for it's diversity in music and worldly inspirations.

Konqistador may be technically an Australian band, but that's not really the truth. And though they spend parts of the year in places like Istanbul, Turkey or Cairo, Egypt or Moscow, Russia collecting and admiring cultural music and peoples, they're not really from there either. You see, the three members of Konqistador are from Windsor. Yes, from right here. Drummer Reg Tiessen was the thunderous backbone of such Windsor's icons as Jimmy Bronco and Way Too Gigalo; vocalist/electronics gadgetry manipulator Liz Graham used to wow audiences with her powerhouse pipes in such bands as Ghoti or Lizzy Girl; and guitarist Dave Andruchow (who is the only one to still reside in the area) is still playing the local music scene as one third of Helsinki Go. They manage to combine electronic and industrial sounds akin to bands like early Nine Inch Nails, Front Line Assembly or Delerium and mesh it with worldly sounds. Kind of like how Dead Can Dance did it with American folk music, but combining it with Satan's dance machine.

Reg is also a tireless promoter of music through their venture New Found Frequency. He's constantly promoting Australian music (and beyond) through the website and is constantly bringing over international acts to such events as Canadian Music Week and South By Southwest (SXSW), which is exactly what he's doing again this time around. Consider this show a hometown tune-up as they get ready to take their act to Toronto next week for Canadian Music Week (playing The Velvet Underground on March 11th).

Playing with Konqistador tonight are two European bands that they've brought over to North America.

Dekadens is a straight up power-pop punk band but not in the sense of Blink 182. More like late 70's New York, along the lines of bands like Television or Patti Smith or Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers. In fact, their song "Fire in the Hole" wouldn't sound out of place on a 70's punk compilation at all. It would probably be a stand out. Dekadens hails from Bucharest, Romania and this marks their first time playing outside of their own country so expect them to hold nothing back. These Romanian ambassadors of rock-and-fucking-roll are coming to impress. They'll be following with Konqistador to CMW next week then off to SXSW to unload on Austin, Texas.

The Netherlands' Venus Flytrap is also on the bill and these guys sounds like a night visit to Amsterdam - hazy, dazy and the kind of thing you probably shouldn't tell your mom about. Labeled "noise-pop" by some journalists, it's a surprisingly fitting term (even if we are getting a tad oversaturated with journalistic and commercial genre tagging). Think if Spiritualized remixed My Bloody Valentine, or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club produced The Secret Machines. The song "Shoot the Breeze" is pure heroin.

This show is going to be running a little earlier than usual for most Windsor music goers, so PLEASE make a note of that.

Doors are at 8pm (well, technically it'll be open at 6pm, but you should be there for 8)

Venus Flytrap is on at 9pm

Dekadens is on at 10pm

Konqistador is on at 11pm

So all you late shower-uppers who wander in at 12:30 or 1 am expecting the headliner to just be starting (or worse, that the openers will still be on) will be out of luck! And we'll all be drunkenly reminiscing about what a killer show you just missed.

See you there!