A friend and I went to an event at the Conexus Arts Centre yesterday. Shake the Lake has been running for several years but yesterday was the first time I have been. It turns out that I have missed an excellent festival and will be attending every year from now on. It was that good of an experience.
The venue was absolutely perfect and I loved how the security line would take you into the Conexus Arts Centre and then back out into the festival site. It created an excellent separation between the world and the festival. It's such a small detail but it makes a festival so much more fun. And it's such a small detail that it's the perfect way to start reviewing the festival. It was perfectly run, every detail was lovingly taken care of and the venue was set in an absolutely beautiful part of our city. The sun setting to stage right while 54-40 was playing is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen at a festival.
If you've ever been to a show with me, you know that my hearing is totally fucked but I still feel qualified to have very strong opinions about the sound. The sound at Shake the Lake was incredible and it really let the bands shine. It was teched so perfectly that I could both hear and feel the entire rhythm section, the guitars were thick and crisp and vocals rang out. I rarely appreciate video at shows - it's nothing I dislike but I'd just rather watch bands play with my own eyes than on a video screen. But in this case, the videographers were really really smart and creative so it really added to the overall experience.
Wide Mouth Mason and 54-40 were absolutely incredible - I've been a fan of both those bands for a long time and both sets absolutely blew me away. They're absolute professionals, incredible musicians and their live shows are really special. Going in, I'll admit I really didn't know Headpins well besides a few songs I've heard through the years on the radio. They ended up being the biggest (positive) surprise of the whole night. I really had no idea what Headpins were about, but their rhythm section is so thick and drives everything else. Umm, I don't even know what to call it but it's aggressive, heavy and sometimes even unsettling in the way that really great heavy bands can be.
And then, my one complaint of the night. Smash Mouth is actually a really good band and I bet some of their early punk shows would have been real spectacles. But they really overdid the Regina/vagina jokes. I understand that it's funny to outsiders and it isn't that big of a deal but I'm reminded of the advice 'sometimes the best thing a front person in a band can say is nothing'. That very minor nitpick aside, Smash Mouth's drummer, bass player and keyboard player put on a live sample/bass and drum heavy workout that was just really really fun to see. So they are a really good band and I'm glad I got to see them.
It's likely obvious that I really love my city and province so I am usually quite biased when I write about its events. I take this place really seriously, want everyone to see the eternally groovy and weird little city I love and want this city to be the best version of itself. But in this case, even with my pro-Regina biases aside, this event was genuinely amazing: the organization was perfect; the venue was set up with care in a beautiful part of the city; the sound and video were incredible; and all the bands were very very good. This is a festival worth travelling to if you're not from here.