Venue of the Month: Casa Del Popolo

Of course Tegan & Sara are playing on the 18th at Place Des Arts, Nouvelle Vague is playing at Metropolis on the 26th and Charlotte Gainsbourg is playing at L’Olympia on the 28th. But here are a few shows from some band’s you may not have heard of but are definitely deserving of some attention:

Intensive Care – Friday, January 8th

Our first highlight is tomorrow night’s Intensive Care show at Casa. We had a chance to see these guys open for another Montreal band, Cotton Mouth not too long ago and we were really impressed with their performance. The band is a 4 piece and their music style is a bit all over the map. These guys rock out pretty hard but mix in a lot of falsetto vocals and some electronica to give their music a sort of magical feel to it. Opening up the night will be 3 other Montreal bands, Final Flash, Divingbell and a special opening set from Hoefizer.

Fall Horsie – Friday, January 15th

Next Friday, Casa will play host to multi-instrumentalist Justin Karas and his band, Fall Horsie. Karas’ first release, From The Seam Of Doors, A Cone Of Light was more or less a solo release, but his latest album, Devil (e) Durge was written and recorded with the current band that now accompanies him and shows a huge change from his prior work. Karas now has the power of a small orchestra behind him, which really beefs up his songs and compliments his witty vocal deliveries quite nicely. Opening for Fall Horsie will be Montreal electro pop band MIXYLODIAN and twee-folk darling Billy Whims.

The Hoof and the Heel – Sunday, January 17th

On Sunday, January 17th Casa will play host to three great up-and-coming Montreal bands, The Hoof & The Heel, The F in Fresh and Cinéma L’Amour. The Hoof & The Heel are an energetic trio of musicians that pack a punch of emotion into each song, whether it’s one of their slower numbers like “Save Us From” or one of their more upbeat numbers like “Fireworks”. These guys are beginning to really make a name for themselves in the city and it won’t be too long before the rest of the world takes notice. Opening will be 80s inspired electro poppers The F in Fresh and the intense drum, guitar duo Cinéma L’Amour.

The Breezes (Album Launch) – Wednesday, January 20th

It’s always kind of a big deal when bands release their first album. It’s even a bigger deal for us when a Montreal band releases it’s debut album. In this case we have the newly formed Montreal band, The Breezes with the celebration of the release of their debut self titled EP. Their music leaps all over the grid, from laid back surf rock to funk to hip hop. In short, these guys are just a whole lot of fun. Opening up will be Jane Vain & The Dark Matter and frenchwestindies, making this a show not to be missed.

James Blackshaw – Sunday, January 31st

And toping off a great month of shows at Casa Del Popolo we have guitar virtuoso James Blackshaw, who’s latest album, The Glass Bead Game was one of our top 20 albums of 2009. His music is composed primarily of guitar, with a few other instruments along the way and very minimal vocals. But when Blackshaw weaves it all together he creates the most beautiful musical soundscapes. You can see and hear this for yourself live at Casa on Sunday, January 31st. Opening up for him will be Gary Higgins.

Tags: Billy Whims, Casa Del Popolo, Divingbell, Fall Horsie, Final Flash, frenchwestindies, Gary Higgins, Intensive Care, James Blackshaw, Jane Vain, January, MIXYLODIAN, Montreal, The Breezes, The Hoof & The Heel, Venue of the Month