Wheel Goes Round and Round

It has been raining on and off all week-end. But with early Sunday evening looking drier, I ventured out to Christie Pits Park for the tail-end of the Toronto Bicycle Music Festival. Not only are the electronic equipment powered by volunteers on stationary bikes, they also play at various parks throughout the day, commute between venues (via bikes of course), and even has a moving stage where bands can play during the trips.

But not being a granola-eating hippie, I refrained from all that consciousness-raising stuff. I did contribute some money to the cause. In any case, it was near the tail-end when I arrived at Christie Pits. Soul singer Tanika Charles was grooving about good love (Silly, Happy, Wild), bad love (Soul Run), and city living (Parkdale). Apparently, her long-awaited album is nearing completion. I've missed her singing now that I don't go to Big Sound anymore: that lady has got cool vibes to spare.

Before the final act, a pair of hip-hop dancers squared off in a dance battle. I didn't think it was fair to pit a (usually flashy) break-dancer with the subtler pop-and-lock-er. Yet I was still surprised that the break-dancer won. I thought the popper had cleaner moves.

The final band of the festival was Bry Webb and The Providers. There were some feedback issues at the beginning which got resolved before Webb got too irate. I guess if you're a professional musician, it would bug you to play with a problematic sound set-up, even for a low-key community festival. They book-ended their set with two driving numbers: Ex-Punks and Receive Me. In between, it was a folkier set (Asa, Big Smoke, Rivers of Gold) that matched the laid-back park mood and the soft and colourful sunset.