Winnipeg, MB

Had a chance to see Jose Gonzalez perform live at the Park Theatre last night. The Park Theatre is an intimate and enchanting little theatre that can fit around 240 seats. I went through a Jose stage last year and was into both Veneer and In Our Nature. I was surprised, like most people, that the indie folk singer-songwriter actually resided from Sweden. I was also shocked to find out that his previous musical experience came from playing in a plethora of hardcore punk/rock bands. His music seemed so soothing and serene that you would assume he had a more folky/classical upbringing.

To be honest, I grew tired of Gonzalez’s sound. A lot of the songs started sounding familiar. For $25, I thought he was worth checking out. I’m glad I did. Frankly, I’ve never seen such a unique way of playing the guitar. Let me set the scene first. When I walked into the quaint theatre just before his set, all there was on stage was a yellow chair on a with a couple of smallish amps and two microphones. One for vocals and the other for the guitar. There was no keyboardist, no bassist, no percussion, nothing. I always thought there was two or sometimes three guitars when listening to his albums.

When he got on stage, he proceeded to tune his guitar, in what seemed to be an ‘Drop D’ tuning. He continually adjusted the tunings inbetween songs on his classical guitar for the remainder of the gig, which I liked because it was more spontaneous and intimate. It was just a guy and his guitar. The only “produced” part of the show was a couple of horns that were mixed in by the sound guy at the very end of two songs.

I was captivated by Gonzalez’s technique. He used his thumb to pluck the E-string for the base lines, and the rest of his fingers hammered, slid, picked, and strumed enthralling variations. By using a “classical-like” technique, he managed to create an arrangement that sounded like there was a bassist, lead guitar, and a rhythm guitar. His vocals only supported his mastery of the 6 nylon strings.

Below is some footage of the show I found on YouTube. The songs called “Hint”. If you get a chance you’ve got to check him out. ~TJK

I had a chance to catch a few acts this year at the Winnipeg Jazz Festival, which has 10 days of live shows featuring local, national, and international talent. The festival is not exclusively jazz and has grown to include R&B, Roots, Blues, Indie Rock, Hip Hop, and Dance. For more info about the Winnipeg Jazz Festival visit jazzwinnipeg.com. 

I had a chance to see The Stars (3.5/5 Chilis), The New Pornographers (2.5/5 Chilis >> they were without Neko Case this night), and local favorite Moses Mayes and The Funk Family Orchestra (4.5/5 Chilis).

My highlight of the festival definitely was the show that Moses Mayes put on in Old Market Square. The late Sunday night set had the entire crowd dancing to good ol’ funk with a modern twist. Old Market Square is a great venue, located in the heart of Winnipeg’s artsy Exchange District. After the show a tumbla jam session broke out in the blocked off street. I found some footage of the jam session which is posted below (I’m having a great time somewhere near the big white truck…).