Celebrating their 29th year, Music Waste returned to the DIY venues of East Vancouver Thursday, June 1 to Sunday, June 4 for another year of exquisitely curated music and art for the people, by the people.
With the Vancouver real estate industry continuing its mission to make the city near-unlivable, it's quite normal to see DIY venues come and go with the seasons, making it tough for the local creative community to thrive. This is why it's so important for human-led institutions like Music Waste to provide a reliable platform for up-and-coming Canadian artists to share their art with the city they call home.
Without having to recognize a single name on the lineup, festival attendees can rest assured that they'll find something that tickles their fancy, from the crunchiest experimental electronica to the most guttural punk rock. Here are five highlights we saw at Music Waste 2023:
Clara Sanchez
"This is my first time leading a band so you're gonna see me doing a lot of this," Clara Sanchez explained as she made direct eye contact with every member of her band on stage. Performing at the first night of the festival at Green Auto, Vancouver-based Sanchez returned for her second Music Waste with three band members, giving her country tinged folk songs a richer presence on stage.
The unseasonably warm Vancouver weather matched perfectly with the North facing outdoor stage at Green Auto that set Sanchez against a backdrop of dimming blue skies and mountains as the sun slowly tucked itself in for the night. Sanchez's 2021 single "the woman you need" was an instant highlight, an emotional representation of her relationship with her own perceived role as a woman that showcases her soothing vocals and thoughtful songwriting.
Gaijin Smash
Coming all the way from Toronto just for their performance at Music Waste, Gaijin Smash brought the energy to a sweaty Friday night at the Red Gate Arts Society. Self-describing their music as dance-punk, the three piece band layer anthemic bilingual vocals over crunchy guitars, bright keyboards and punchy drums to make their dancefloor hits.
Their biggest singles "Headache" and "FTW" inspired a mini-pit at the front of the stage and let concertgoers let loose and get some of their ya-yas out. To make this high-energy performance even better, it would have been great to have some effects added to the mics to add some depth and width to the band's vocals. Other than that, a stellar performance from an exciting new band that left the audience hungry for more.
M01E
Amplifying the Friday night energy of the Red Gate Arts Society was Vancouver's M01E, a punk band that must also act as therapists for fans because, as they say, "screaming is healthy!"
The simple three piece band consisted of just guitar, bass and an interesting DIY standing drum kit that was created because the band had so much trouble finding practice space in the city that had room for a full sit-down kit. They also set up a mic facing the crowd, giving them a magic word for each song that any audience member could come up and scream along. With songs like "[Losing Meaning 2022] - UPPER - reject everything with indifference 失," M01E brought the audience into their music like no other act.
Anodyne
Back at Green Auto on a toasty Saturday afternoon, Music Waste attendees roused from a late Friday night to the nonchalant vibes of Vancouver's Anodyne. Having released their first record about a year ago, it feels like this four piece band have been playing together forever. Outfitted in long hair, graphic tees and ripped jeans, their easy Westcoast slowcore and presence made their set feel effortlessly cool, casting a Spicoli-esque spell over the crowd.
Set against the now familiar backdrop of blue sky and green mountains, the band washed over their audience with wave after wave of easy rock for the next 20 minutes including some of their well loved tracks, "Treatment Life" and "Where I Tread."
Pudding
Wrapping up the first half of programming on Saturday at Green Auto was Pudding, who've been making their ramshackle rock together in Vancouver since 2015.
"We're just doing our best, you know," drummer Cyndi said gently into the mic behind the kit as the band settled into their places on stage. Showcasing their experience and unmatched synergy as a trio on "date night" and "double happiness," the highly technical songs were written to skip across different melodies and tempos. The band made light work of the afternoon and sent attendees out into the night on a high.
With the Vancouver real estate industry continuing its mission to make the city near-unlivable, it's quite normal to see DIY venues come and go with the seasons, making it tough for the local creative community to thrive. This is why it's so important for human-led institutions like Music Waste to provide a reliable platform for up-and-coming Canadian artists to share their art with the city they call home.
Without having to recognize a single name on the lineup, festival attendees can rest assured that they'll find something that tickles their fancy, from the crunchiest experimental electronica to the most guttural punk rock. Here are five highlights we saw at Music Waste 2023:
Clara Sanchez
"This is my first time leading a band so you're gonna see me doing a lot of this," Clara Sanchez explained as she made direct eye contact with every member of her band on stage. Performing at the first night of the festival at Green Auto, Vancouver-based Sanchez returned for her second Music Waste with three band members, giving her country tinged folk songs a richer presence on stage.
The unseasonably warm Vancouver weather matched perfectly with the North facing outdoor stage at Green Auto that set Sanchez against a backdrop of dimming blue skies and mountains as the sun slowly tucked itself in for the night. Sanchez's 2021 single "the woman you need" was an instant highlight, an emotional representation of her relationship with her own perceived role as a woman that showcases her soothing vocals and thoughtful songwriting.
Gaijin Smash
Coming all the way from Toronto just for their performance at Music Waste, Gaijin Smash brought the energy to a sweaty Friday night at the Red Gate Arts Society. Self-describing their music as dance-punk, the three piece band layer anthemic bilingual vocals over crunchy guitars, bright keyboards and punchy drums to make their dancefloor hits.
Their biggest singles "Headache" and "FTW" inspired a mini-pit at the front of the stage and let concertgoers let loose and get some of their ya-yas out. To make this high-energy performance even better, it would have been great to have some effects added to the mics to add some depth and width to the band's vocals. Other than that, a stellar performance from an exciting new band that left the audience hungry for more.
M01E
Amplifying the Friday night energy of the Red Gate Arts Society was Vancouver's M01E, a punk band that must also act as therapists for fans because, as they say, "screaming is healthy!"
The simple three piece band consisted of just guitar, bass and an interesting DIY standing drum kit that was created because the band had so much trouble finding practice space in the city that had room for a full sit-down kit. They also set up a mic facing the crowd, giving them a magic word for each song that any audience member could come up and scream along. With songs like "[Losing Meaning 2022] - UPPER - reject everything with indifference 失," M01E brought the audience into their music like no other act.
Anodyne
Back at Green Auto on a toasty Saturday afternoon, Music Waste attendees roused from a late Friday night to the nonchalant vibes of Vancouver's Anodyne. Having released their first record about a year ago, it feels like this four piece band have been playing together forever. Outfitted in long hair, graphic tees and ripped jeans, their easy Westcoast slowcore and presence made their set feel effortlessly cool, casting a Spicoli-esque spell over the crowd.
Set against the now familiar backdrop of blue sky and green mountains, the band washed over their audience with wave after wave of easy rock for the next 20 minutes including some of their well loved tracks, "Treatment Life" and "Where I Tread."
Pudding
Wrapping up the first half of programming on Saturday at Green Auto was Pudding, who've been making their ramshackle rock together in Vancouver since 2015.
"We're just doing our best, you know," drummer Cyndi said gently into the mic behind the kit as the band settled into their places on stage. Showcasing their experience and unmatched synergy as a trio on "date night" and "double happiness," the highly technical songs were written to skip across different melodies and tempos. The band made light work of the afternoon and sent attendees out into the night on a high.