Happy Birthday

The Drake Hotel was celebrating its "dirty dozen" birthday on Thursday. Though the festivities were slated to occur in the main room, it was expanded to include the lower Drake Underground which was hosting Montreal band Emilie & Ogden.

Opening for them was Toronto singer Stacey. She was channelling that Lana Del Rey vibe with her candle and minimalistic piano playing. In general, I think Stacey should use her classical training to add more complexity to her arrangements. Emilie is the singer and Ogden her harp. Partially lit by a lamp hung next to her, she ran through the songs off her debut album. Although there was the shimmering glissando you might expect of a harp, I was impressed with the variety of techniques she used: arpeggios, chords, even hammers and taps. Some of the songs even rocked. This was helped by the bassist and drummer, who brought toe-tapping syncopation. Emilie's cover of Taylor Swift's Style, which got her some viral attention, was even prettier with a full band.

Afterwards, I went upstair to see the main celebration. 3-member Matrox was both bemusing and entertaining the audience. Dressed up in DIY robot costumes, with vocoded voice and dance-y synth, they exuded a great low-rent Kraftwerk/cheery Dalek vibe. I didn't stay for Lowell and the manic Rich Aucoin.