Sled Island: CFCR Tubby Dog Showcase!
Sled Island is this week, and one of the shows we love to hit each year is the CFCR Community Radio Showcase at Tubby Dog.
Sled Island Music Festival is upon us again! While there are a ton of great bands in a variety of venues, one of my favourite parts of the festival is the CFCR Showcase at Tubby Dog. This is the 6th year they’ve done it and it all goes down Friday from 2 PM til’ 6 PM at Tubby Dog. A bunch of people pack into Tubby, grab themselves their favourite dog and a beer, and get riled up while some amazing talents make noise. It’s a free showcase and there’s a $5.00 beer and hotdog special.
(Craig with artist Cate Francis, Keef from Shooting Guns, and J from Shooting Guns/Switching Yard)
CFCR is Saskatoon’s Community Radio Station (at 90.5 on the FM dial or streaming online at cfcr.ca) and the bands at the showcase are all from Saskatoon. You can go to www.cfcr.bandcamp.com to find free downloads and streaming of each band.
Here’s our take on each band:
2 PM – respectfulchild
Admittedly, I haven’t heard these guys yet, so I’m interested to see what they’re all about. It’s been described as minimal and hypnotic, using violin and pedals to create instrumental textures. Looking at the rest of the line up, my guess is that they will be the conduit for getting all us hotdog munchin’, beer guzzlin’ weirdos set for the journey we’re all about to take. Strap in. Blast off.
(It’s a shot of Foggy Notions, featuring Kalon and Janice from Waitress).
3 PM – Waitress
A duo that rose from the ashes of Saskatoon dreampop mainstay, Foggy Notions, Waitress continues that sound, but takes it in bold new dimensions. It delves into territory that’s a bit more electronic and cinematic. So much amazing delay that they’re always in danger of ripping open a hole in the space/time continuum. And while it will have you nodding your head and getting hypnotized by your navel in places, there are also songs that remind you that it ain’t worth a thangle if it ain’t got that jangle.
(Laramee from The Switching Yard (and Shooting Guns)).
4 PM – The Switching Yard
A band so good, that it draws other great players into its orbit — having added not one, but two members of Shooting Guns in the last year or so. This is beautiful, bashing noise, bludgeoning you on the head while it simultaneously cradling your poor, damaged soul. It’s what I put on when I feel drunk and obnoxious, because it speaks to the skinny punk within me that wants to smash car windows in the night. It’s space fuckin’, baby.
(Skot from Adolyne (and KEN Mode) about to get his dog on).
5 PM – Adolyne
I once described Adolyne as, “a cathartic, primal force that will tear down your soul and spit in your face. It’s usually a cliché to say something defies categorization, but I’ll take a punch in the face before I’ll offer a definitive description of the music that Adolyne makes. It’s best to just get the hell out of the way.” I mean, if I had to sum it up for you in two words, I’d say loud and angry. One of the best bands doing what they do in Canada right now (and also featuring at least one member of KEN Mode).
(J Loos from The Switching Yard (and Shooting Guns)).
Photos by Craig Silliphant, taken at previous Sled Island CFCR Tubby Dog Showcases (except feature photo, which was pretty much stolen from the internet. But like, don’t sue us dude. If it’s your photo and you don’t want us using it, just let us know. But man, you should take it as a compliment that we used it).
About the Author
Craig Silliphant is a D-level celebrity with delusions of grandeur. A writer, critic, creative director, editor, broadcaster, and occasional filmmaker, his thoughts have appeared on radio, television, in print, and on the web. He is a juror on the Polaris Music Prize and the Juno Awards. He loves Saskatoon. He has horrible night terrors and apocalyptic dreams.
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