WEEK IN PREVIEW: March 9 - 15, 2009

Here's a quick glance at the week ahead in music in the Windsor area. For sound samples for shows, click on the bands names for a quick trip to their MySpace or other music outlet site.

Monday March 9

The Milkmen
Milk Coffee Bar (68 University Ave. West)
Another night of chillaxin' at Milk with the sultry improv jazz sessions of the Monday Milkmen.

Open Mic Surgery with Tara Watts
Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West)
The always delightful Tara Watts hosts an eclectic open mic session on Phog's stage. For the first-timer to the stage veteran, you never know who will show up and sing a song.

Open Mic with Clinton Hammond
The Kildare House (1880 Wyandotte St. East)
Windsor's longest running Open Mic continues along without any signs of showing down! The charismatic Clinton Hammon runs the gauntlet of the Open Mic - sing a song, tell a joke, the stage is open!

Tuesday March 10

Ron Leary & "Mr. Chill" Kelly Hoppe
Aardvark's Blues Cafe (89 University Ave. West)
Ron Leary and Mr. Chill play a smattering of songs, with some choice covers mixed in with songs from Leary's brilliant debut CD, theroadinbetween, and Mr. Chill's fantastic Cold Testament.

The Last Trio
Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West)
Alan Penner leads a rotating cast of some of the city's finest players through jazz interpretations and beyond. Note the venue change! This is due to the live taping of "The Comic Book Syndicate" at the Last Trio's usual Tuesday home at The FM Lounge.

Clare Renaud's Session
The Kildare House (1880 Wyandotte St. East)
A real traditional Celtic feel to this impromptu jam session that has all the flair of a Cape Breton house party. You never know who's going to stop by with what instrument and play what song. And the beer ain't half band neither.

Open Mic with Stefanie Sarafianos
The Mill Tavern (3199 Sandwich St.)
One half of the sisterly duo Twisted Sisters, Stephanie leads a cast of musicians of all types of experience each week on the West end.

Open Mic with Andrew MacLeod
The Dominion House (3140 Sandwich St.)
Andrew MacLeod leads another Open Mic on the West end, showcasing many of the city's finest songwriters and drinkers.

Tuesday Night Music Club with Jamie Reaume
Twig N' Berries (2135 Wyandotte St. East)
Former Foreign Film Star frontman Jamie Reaume (and currently a part of The Golden Eagles) leads an all-star cast of local musicians through one of the city's wildest Open Mac jam sessions.

Open Mic with Travis Reitsma
The Sanctuary Coffee Lounge (1735 College Ave., 6-10pm)
"The Heartbreak Kid" will woo you with his own songs and share the stage for you showcase your own at one of Windsor's best kept secrets and coffee lounges.

Wednesday March 11

ALL-AGES: The Breathing Process (Connecticut) , Whisteria Cottage (Baltimore, MD) and The World We Knew (New York, NY) wsg The Dead’s Elite, Analyze the Catastrophy, Abstractionist
The Chubby Pickle (762 Ouellette Ave.)
This all-ages metal assault is a nice blend of touring national and local support. The Breathing Process headlines this mosh pit ballet with their fierce metal inspired by the likes of Emperor, Meshuggah and Dimmu Borgir, coming to Canada with U.S. imports Whisteria Cottage and The World We Knew. Local metal heavyweights The Dead's Elite bring some Windsor tonnage to the show, along with newcomers Analyze The Catastrophy and Abstractionist. Doors at 6pm.


Daren Dobsky & Josh Zalev
Aardvark's Blues Cafe (89 University Ave. West)
Dobsky and Zalev lead an occassional all-star ensemble through a series of covers, from Led Zeppelin to Jeff Buckley, rock and roll to the blues.

Kenneth MacLeod
The Dominion House Tavern (3140 Sandwich St.)
Kenneth MacLeod is a one-man musical wrecking crew. His talent is overwhelming and his intensity equally so. A variety of music, from East Coast to contemporary, with a supporting cast of local musicians.

Thursday March 12
The Windsor Scene on CJAM 91.5 FM
Randi Irving continues to host the on-air version and multi-JAMMY Award winning companion to "The Windsor Scene", each and every Thursday evening from 6pm to 7pm, on CJAM 91.5 FM, Windsor's Campus and Community Radio Station. Hear tracks from some of Windsor's current musical stars as well as nuggets from the vault, not to mention live interviews and peformances!

StereoGoesSteallar wsg ST and AMRA and Amour Amour
The Chubby Pickle (762 Ouellette Ave.)
Following the successful release of their self-titled debut at the end of last month, StereoGoesStellar is right back at it live with a show at the Pickle. They've got some great talent in the duelling piano of Amour Amour, who recently played at Phog for the International Women's Day event. ST and AMRA is the electro-improv duo featuring Adam Rideout-Arkell of Yellow Wood and Stefan Cvetkovic (Efan! and Michou).

Huladog
The FM Lounge (156 Chatham St. West)
Always a great night of live jazz and funk jams by a group of Windsor's premiere players. Huladog have been at it for years now and they play the perfect blend of great jazz and booty shakin' funk.

Jamie Reaume
The Gourmet Emporium (1799 Wyandotte St. East)
The former brainchild behind Foreign Film Star, Reaume is still one of the city's hardest working musicians. Despite the break-up of FFS last year, Reaume keeps busy with a series of shows throughout the week around the city showcasing a deep pocket full of songs. Watch for the upcoming CD release party for his new band, The Golden Eagles, later this month!

"Mr. Chill" Kelly Hoppe, Tom Hogarth and Chris Borshuk
Mezzo Ristorante & Lounge (804 Erie St. East)
Mr. Chill teams up with the incomparable voice of Tom Hogarth as well as Chris Borshuk for this intimate showcase. A great night for dinner and some music.

Friday March 13

Explode When They Bloom wsg Death or Comber
The Coach & Horses (156 Chatham St. West, below Pogo's)
Pick of the Week: I've said many things over the past year about Explode When They Bloom and I've meant every word. These guys play great songs with a passion that is as real as the music. I've seen them in their developing stages and seen them recently and it's always an absolute joy watching a band claw its way to its own individuality and sound and then, when they've reached that mountain, bring down the Hammer of the Gods. These guys are in for a helluva ride. Death or Comber may be relatively new on the Windsor live scene but I'll bet they're standing room only by the summer. A great brand of post-punk with killer songwriting, these guys are the real deal. Reminiscent of bands like Shudder To Think and Built To Spill, these guys could be my new favourite local band and I just discovered them. This show is going to be intense.

89X presents
Two Hours Traffic (Charlottetown, PEI) wsg Songs From A Room (Toronto, ON) and The Tree Streets
The Chubby Pickle (762 Ouellette Ave.)
PEI's Two Hours Traffic have come along way since the first time they played Windsor. They've played both Phog and the Avalon Front (taking part in one of the P.A. Festivals there) and they've impressed with each visit. Since then they've become nationally recognized indie rock champions in Canada, heralded by the national mainstream media. Backing them up is Toronto's Songs From A Room, a band that actually formed right here in Windsor several years back. Local indie pop favourites The Tree Streets open the show.

The Mix Massacre featuring
Kero, Vex, (wh)y.m.e.(??), Stephen Hargreaves and Josh Bryant
Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West)
Some of Windsor's finest electronic purveyors of alternative beats get together for a real mash-up bash. There's going to be a lot of lap tops on stage this night but the results will be an eclectic collection of beats and electronic sounds from some of Windsor's finest.

[GrounD] with special guest DJ Waseem
Empire Lounge (128 University Ave. West, above California Sushi, across from Capitol Theatre)
It's impressive to see how the [GrounD] DJ team of J-Wild and Mach-X have taken this night from slow beginnings on a Sunday at Light Bar (when it was known as [Bright]) to a full blown Friday night dance party on Fridays at the Empire Lounge. Electronic music the way Windsor/Detroit is known for, these guys push the platforms combining old school electro sounds with the newest beats. They're joined this night by guest DJ Waseem who apparently is doing his last show in Windsor as he prepares for film school in Vancouver.

Guitar Army
Aardvark's (89 University Ave. West)
Day one of a two night stand at Aarvark's Blues Cafe, Guitar Army (formerly known as Elad's Guitar Army) is a collection of players from Windsor's punk legacy, featuring members of The Spy's and The Hard Tops to mention a few. They play a wicked mix of rock and roll covers from The Stooges to The Rolling Stones as well as originals from their various CD's.

Mark Blomsteel (Rotterdam, The Netherlands) wsg Bridget
Milk Coffee Bar
Not sure how this show came about, but this dude is from the Netherlands (where he apparently still lives) and this is his only show booked. Heck of a long way to come for a show but I'm sure there's more to this than his MySpace is letting on. Perhaps its the absinthe. Singer/songwriter pop, he's joined by local chauntreuse Bridget.

Open Mic with Tara Watts
Cafe Morena (999 Erie St. East)
Tara's second weekly Open Mic is the heart of the Erie St. Village and offers a more relaxed and intimate venue.

Saturday March 14

The United Steel Workers of Montreal (Montreal, QC) wsg The Locusts Have No King
Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West)
Montreal's raucous USWoM are currently crossing the country in support of their latest release, Three on a Tree, bringing their blistering "blue collar alt. country" shows to stages far and near. Think if The Pogues combined with Uncle Tupelo and then covered songs by Hank Williams or Bill Monroe and you're getting warmer to what to expect. These guys are good friends and label mates (Weeworks Records) of Windsor favourites, The Unsettlers. Our very own alt. country ambassadors The Locusts Have No King warm up the party.

Inward Eye (Winnipeg, MB) and One Second 2 Late (Oshawa, ON) wsg PurpleOrange, Citizen Erased, Sixty First Second and A Point in 7
The Chubby Pickle (762 Ouellette Ave.)
J Records' Inward Eye is in the middle of massive tour schedule throughout North America (capped off by joining the Van's Warped Tour in the summer) but they're bringing their Clash-meets-Kinks punk rawk to The Chubby Pickle, with Sony Records' One Second 2 Late in support. As always, the Pickle loads the show with some great local support, with a couple of resurrections (Citizen Erased features former members of PlusMinus-X, while Sixty First Second played for years as Focal Point), plus the duo of PurpleOrange and new pop-punk sounds of A Point in 7.

Ancestors (Toronto, ON), LunchMeat (Toronto, ON), Gnar Sesh and Hard Sell
The Coach & Horses (156 Chatham St. West, below Pogo's)
Great sounds from two great Toronto bands, joined by two local Windsor punk outfits. Toronto's Ancestors bring some great sounds reminiscent of Melvins and Jesus Lizard, while LunchMeat (despite their name) sounds like mid-90's shoegazy Britpop. Rumours have it that this could be Gnar Sesh's last show in Windsor (at least with this line-up) and to be honest, I'm not sure if Hard Sell is indeed on this bill. Gnar Sesh's MySpace claims they are, but Hard Sell's listings show not show scheduled. The Coach's site says Monument is playing but Monument's site shows nothing. The first three bands are definitely there though and that may be good enough.

"Mr. Chill" Kelly Hoppe and Greg Cox
The Kildare House (1880 Wyandotte St. East)
"Mr. Chill" and fellow Witness Greg Cox pull into the fine pub atmosphere of The Kildare House where they'll deliver some great sets of roots and blues standards, not to mention a choice selection of songs from their debut album, Mr. Chill's Cold Testament.

Guitar Army
Aardvark's (89 University Ave. West)
Second night of Guitar Army's Aardvark's invasion. See the first night show (on Friday) for more info.

Bree Gaudette
Taloola Cafe (396 Devonshire Rd.)
Just off playing the International Women's Day event at Phog Lounge this past Sunday, Bree brings her acoustic stylings to Taloola for one of their infamous intimate showcases. These shows are early remember, starting at 8:30pm and done by 10. Great way to start off a night with a bite to eat and organic tea or coffee before heading out later.

Big Wiggle
The Gourmet Emporium (1799 Wyandotte St. East)

Sunday March 15

Michou wsg Amos Transparent (Ottawa, ON) and The Library Voices (Regina, SK)
Phog Lounge (157 University Ave. West)
This is a very close second for Pick of the Week. Michou is easily Windsor's hottest act right now. Everything they touch turns to gold and they've already started work on new songs (some of which have shown up on their MySpace of late) while still touring in support of 2008's stellar Myshkin. Amos The Transparent were indie rock darlings for much of 2008, hitting many of the big festivals (Pop Montreal and Halifax Pop Explosion) and receiving critical acclaim across the board. The Library Voices are touring in support of their new EP and it'll be surprising to see how well this 10-piece pop band fits on a stage like Phog's. Should make for quite the moment.

Dusty
Aardvark's Blues Cafe (89 University Ave. West)
One of the city's premiere entertainers, hand down, he plays an impressive mix of songs, from outlaw country to rock and roll to a little dab of hair metal. Genuinely super dude with a great sense of humour.

Open Mic with Dan Marshall
The FM Lounge (156 Chatham St. West)
Meters To Miles' frontman Dan Marshall leads an impromptu Open Mic at the Old Fish Market each and every Sunday.