September in a Nutshell

Can't believe that September is already over! I've been insanely busy this month at work, and in my personal life. Despite the craziness, I still managed to have fun and see some great shows... I was just too busy to sit down and blog about it!

So here's the month of September in a Nutshell:

• At the beginning of the month, I went to the Ottawa Folk Festival to cover some shows for Sors-tu. I saw some good shows and discovered some great bands, including the Avett Brothers and Matt Andersen. Truth to told, I was disappointed that Neil Young cancelled and I would not have gone to this year's festival if I wasn't on assignment.

• For the first time, I checked out a show at Raw Sugar Café. Although I'd been to Raw Sugar many times, I had never seen a live show there. When I heard that Eamon McGrath was playing there, I was really excited. I saw McGrath play two years ago at Zaphod's and I really enjoyed the show. This time around, McGrath played a lot of new material. The setting was quite intimate, and it was so enjoyable to see McGrath rocking out in the middle of the living room type space at Raw Sugar. Overall, it was a great show and I was lucky enough to meet a lot of people and even chat with McGrath afterwards.

•  After seeing the poster, I decided that I wanted to check out indie group Braids at Ritual Nightclub. Yep, I often look at posters and I can just tell whether or not I would like an artist/group. Also, my girl Elly invited me to check it out with her. I was really impressed with the group, and I enjoyed the show very much. Their sound reminded me of Purity Rings, a group I really enjoy. The group recently released their second album "Flourish // Perish". Go get it now!

•  I participated in festivities in celebration of the 2nd annual Nuit Blanche Ottawa+Gatineau, a "dusk-until-dawn celebration of Contemporary Art and local culture that takes place across multiple venues". This year's theme was SUPERNOVA! Many spaces (both physical and outdoor) hosted events, shows or art installations as part of Nuit Blanche. I loved it! Although it was raining, we had a blast. Starting at 1am, we started our trek in the Byward Market and stopped at the Ottawa School of Art, the SAINT-LAURENT+HILL GALLERY, Upward Dog Yoga studio, Saint Brigid's Centre for the Arts (which is a church!), la Petite Mort Gallery and Saw Gallery. There were some really interesting projects on display. I really enjoyed the video installations at the church. By far my favourite of the evening (or morning). We also got to see a short theater performance taking place in the jail cell in the basement of the Arts Court building. Overall, I really enjoyed seeing people at the different spots, participating in these events. It's obvious to me that people in Ottawa love and support culture in our city! Next year, take a nap in the afternoon and stay up all night so you can be part of Nuit Blanche!

• Last weekend, my friends and I went to check out Greg McEvoy at Avant-Garde Bar for the release of this EP "Sea of Yards". A singer/songwriter based in Toronto, McEvoy is a nice, down to earth guy. I had met him previously and saw him play on the rooftop of JackPine earlier this summer. Since then, I've kept him on my radar. He played an acoustic set that summer afternoon on the rooftop so it was refreshing to see him play with a full band. The show also included performances by Danielle Knibbe, Brittanny Kwasnick and Papermaps. It sounded like entirely new material. The show was really fun, and Avant-Garde was the perfect venue!

• I also played lots of Trailer Park Bingo. I didn't win but it was awesome!

So that sums up my September... At least what I remember of it! Looking back at what I did, it reminds how I truly love this city and what it has to offer.

I wish you all a great October!