Summer is in full swing, and plenty of bands are on the road and on their way to venues across the country. With an onslaught of concert listings, it can be tough to pick and choose which tickets to spring for, so check out our selection of this week's Can't Miss Concerts in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal to help you narrow down your search.
Vancouver
Friday, July 6
If you'll be walking into this show not knowing much about the headliners, you're not alone. The Seattle-based Master Musicians of Bukkake, despite releasing several records, are decidedly mysterious, with little information about the group readily available, and its members often perform in garments that disguise their identities. With a lineup that's at least partially concealed, the band offer tunes laden with Eastern and mystical influences, featuring unconventional rhythms, instruments and a distinctly enigmatic esthetic.
Master Musicians of Bukkake
Basketball
Trail of Broken Treaties
$12 at the Biltmore Cabaret
Saturday, July 7
Wrapping up a cross-country tour to promote their latest, Exclaim!-approved album, Celebration Rock, Japandroids will be returning for a homecoming show at the Biltmore Cabaret this Saturday. The show is already sold out, but it would be worth the effort to try scrounging up a ticket -- their new record lives up to its name, and this tour finale with a hometown crowd should rock particularly hard. Plus, the concert comes as part of Exclaim!'s ongoing 20th anniversary concert series.
Japandroids
Previous Tenants
$15 (sold out) at the Biltmore Cabaret
Monday, July 9
On their new album WIXIW, Brooklyn-based art punk trio Liars delved into electronic experimentation, while maintaining the propulsive rock weirdness they're known. Their date in Vancouver, which comes near the beginning of their current North American tour, is the first in Canada and should offer both atmospheric and dance-ready tunes from the band's six studio releases.
Liars
Cadence Weapon
$15 at the Biltmore Cabaret
Calgary
Sunday, July 8
Alt-folk unit the Joel Plaskett Emergency are on the road in support of their unconventionally released new album, Scrappy Happiness. For the follow-up to 2009 Juno winner Three, the Nova Scotia-born Plaskett and company put the album out one song at a time, documenting the recording process as they went. Now, they've asked fans to record their own videos to go with the tracks, which are available to view on their website.
Joel Plaskett Emergency
$20 at Wildhorse Saloon
Toronto
Thursday, July 5
The abbreviated lineup of a band that helped define the sludgy sound of the early '90s, Melvins Lite will be rolling through Toronto this week in support of their new album Freak Puke. Minus the fourth member, the band's "lite" version still packs a punch and, they say, helps to keep things fresh. In addition to their current tour, the Melvins' four-piece group just announced that they'll be going for a Guinness World Record in September, as they attempt to tour all 50 states in just 51 days.
Melvins Lite
$26 at the Opera House
Friday, July 6
Coming off of a performance at the Ottawa Bluesfest on Thursday, Dirty Projectors' shows in Toronto and Montreal will be two of their last before the release of their upcoming album, Swing Lo Magellan. The LP will mark their sixth full-length record and will provide plenty of new material for concertgoers to enjoy as the six-member group make their way across the U.S., Japan and Western Europe. Canadian electro-indie duo Purity Ring, fresh from their first NXNE appearance a few weeks ago, will round out the evening's bill.
Dirty Projectors
Purity Ring
$25 to $30 at the Danforth Music Hall
Saturday, July 7
Back from a series of shows in Europe, Sacramento dance punk veterans !!! will be in town this Saturday, bringing with them their brand of hooky, ready-to-party numbers. Although they haven't released a full-length since 2010's critically admired Strange Weather, Isn't It?, the group put out a live version of a new song called "Byron" in April, which is apparently a track from an upcoming as-yet-untitled LP in the works. This weekend's outing will undoubtedly be fuelled by danceable items from their previous four records, but who knows -- it might feature some new material as well.
!!!
$16.50 at Lee's Palace
Montreal
Thursday, July 5
After a brief stint opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sleigh Bells' Derek Edward Miller and Alexis Krauss are in the midst of a headlining tour in support of their February release, Reign of Terror, hitting a selection of cities in Canada and the U.S. before making their way over to play Europe's summer festival circuit. Fans in Ottawa and Montreal should count themselves lucky -- those are the only two cities that the noise pop duo will hit north of the border on this tour.
Sleigh Bells
Jel
$23.50 advance, $25 door at the Corona Theatre
Saturday, July 7
Dirty Projectors will come north, along with Purity Ring, to play their last show before heading home to Brooklyn for a pair of dates and releasing Swing Lo Magellan, so it's probably safe to expect a mix of older standbys and new material from their upcoming album during this weekend's performance. The band will make another Canadian appearance on their current tour, when they head west and pay a visit to the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver.
Dirty Projectors
Purity Ring
$21 advance, $24 door at Club Soda
Vancouver
Friday, July 6
If you'll be walking into this show not knowing much about the headliners, you're not alone. The Seattle-based Master Musicians of Bukkake, despite releasing several records, are decidedly mysterious, with little information about the group readily available, and its members often perform in garments that disguise their identities. With a lineup that's at least partially concealed, the band offer tunes laden with Eastern and mystical influences, featuring unconventional rhythms, instruments and a distinctly enigmatic esthetic.
Master Musicians of Bukkake
Basketball
Trail of Broken Treaties
$12 at the Biltmore Cabaret
Saturday, July 7
Wrapping up a cross-country tour to promote their latest, Exclaim!-approved album, Celebration Rock, Japandroids will be returning for a homecoming show at the Biltmore Cabaret this Saturday. The show is already sold out, but it would be worth the effort to try scrounging up a ticket -- their new record lives up to its name, and this tour finale with a hometown crowd should rock particularly hard. Plus, the concert comes as part of Exclaim!'s ongoing 20th anniversary concert series.
Japandroids
Previous Tenants
$15 (sold out) at the Biltmore Cabaret
Monday, July 9
On their new album WIXIW, Brooklyn-based art punk trio Liars delved into electronic experimentation, while maintaining the propulsive rock weirdness they're known. Their date in Vancouver, which comes near the beginning of their current North American tour, is the first in Canada and should offer both atmospheric and dance-ready tunes from the band's six studio releases.
Liars
Cadence Weapon
$15 at the Biltmore Cabaret
Calgary
Sunday, July 8
Alt-folk unit the Joel Plaskett Emergency are on the road in support of their unconventionally released new album, Scrappy Happiness. For the follow-up to 2009 Juno winner Three, the Nova Scotia-born Plaskett and company put the album out one song at a time, documenting the recording process as they went. Now, they've asked fans to record their own videos to go with the tracks, which are available to view on their website.
Joel Plaskett Emergency
$20 at Wildhorse Saloon
Toronto
Thursday, July 5
The abbreviated lineup of a band that helped define the sludgy sound of the early '90s, Melvins Lite will be rolling through Toronto this week in support of their new album Freak Puke. Minus the fourth member, the band's "lite" version still packs a punch and, they say, helps to keep things fresh. In addition to their current tour, the Melvins' four-piece group just announced that they'll be going for a Guinness World Record in September, as they attempt to tour all 50 states in just 51 days.
Melvins Lite
$26 at the Opera House
Friday, July 6
Coming off of a performance at the Ottawa Bluesfest on Thursday, Dirty Projectors' shows in Toronto and Montreal will be two of their last before the release of their upcoming album, Swing Lo Magellan. The LP will mark their sixth full-length record and will provide plenty of new material for concertgoers to enjoy as the six-member group make their way across the U.S., Japan and Western Europe. Canadian electro-indie duo Purity Ring, fresh from their first NXNE appearance a few weeks ago, will round out the evening's bill.
Dirty Projectors
Purity Ring
$25 to $30 at the Danforth Music Hall
Saturday, July 7
Back from a series of shows in Europe, Sacramento dance punk veterans !!! will be in town this Saturday, bringing with them their brand of hooky, ready-to-party numbers. Although they haven't released a full-length since 2010's critically admired Strange Weather, Isn't It?, the group put out a live version of a new song called "Byron" in April, which is apparently a track from an upcoming as-yet-untitled LP in the works. This weekend's outing will undoubtedly be fuelled by danceable items from their previous four records, but who knows -- it might feature some new material as well.
!!!
$16.50 at Lee's Palace
Montreal
Thursday, July 5
After a brief stint opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sleigh Bells' Derek Edward Miller and Alexis Krauss are in the midst of a headlining tour in support of their February release, Reign of Terror, hitting a selection of cities in Canada and the U.S. before making their way over to play Europe's summer festival circuit. Fans in Ottawa and Montreal should count themselves lucky -- those are the only two cities that the noise pop duo will hit north of the border on this tour.
Sleigh Bells
Jel
$23.50 advance, $25 door at the Corona Theatre
Saturday, July 7
Dirty Projectors will come north, along with Purity Ring, to play their last show before heading home to Brooklyn for a pair of dates and releasing Swing Lo Magellan, so it's probably safe to expect a mix of older standbys and new material from their upcoming album during this weekend's performance. The band will make another Canadian appearance on their current tour, when they head west and pay a visit to the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver.
Dirty Projectors
Purity Ring
$21 advance, $24 door at Club Soda
