MUSIC PREVIEW: Zakk Attakk!
Black Label Society struts into town on Sunday night for a gig at Midway – one of the city’s newest arcade bars on Calgary Trail. It’s in the old Ranch nightclub location (and if you go way, way back, Barry T’s). The venue is evolving into a notable live venue with some pretty well-known bands about to grace their stage over the next few months, including Jimmy Eat World, Bombay Bicycle Club, Grandson, and Corb Lund.
Guitarist Zakk Wylde is the only constant in Black Label Society’s lengthy tenure from 1998 through today. The heavy metal band has released an even 10 studio albums, including 2018’s Grimmest Hits, which reached the top spots on Billboard’s Hard Music, Independent, and Rock charts. Their sound remains dark and ominous, with overarching grooves that carry the listener from one insane guitar solo to the next. The band celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first album Sonic Brew last year.
The renowned Wylde has a pair of his own solo albums, 1996’s Book Of Shadows, and its counterpart, Book Of Shadows II, which was released exactly 20 years later. He’s also been the on-again off-again lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne, spanning various touring bands from 1987 to the present.
Show at 7:30 pm, tickets $49, BUY
Friday 6
Tommy Castro and the Painkillers – This well-known Californian picked up his first guitar at the age of 10, and has been recording a blend of blues, rock, and soul since the mid-1990s. The band’s latest album, Killin’ It Live, came out earlier this year. It includes eight of the band’s original tracks and a pair of covers, recorded live at five venues across four states. Station On Jasper, 7 pm, $36. BUY
Coco Love Alcorn – This pop-jazz singer out of Nova Scotia has been recording albums since 1995; her most recent is out this year, titled Rebirth. She is an avid cyclist who has penned a number of songs about her passion, and also a backing vocalist for Canadian legends 54-40. The concert is part of the acclaimed New Moon Folk Club series. St. Basil’s Cultural Centre, 7:30 pm, $23. BUY
Saturday 7
Blonde Diamond – This Vancouver dream pop quintet, who some may know by their original moniker Youngblood (they changed their name in late 2018 to be easier to find on the Internet), is doing a BC-Alberta mini-tour, with stops in Nanaimo, Victoria, Calgary, and of course, Edmonton. Leader Alexis Young, who grew up in Calgary, was also previously part of the Vancouver band called Sex With Strangers (another term not recommended for internet searches). Blonde Diamond’s tour-mates for this current jaunt are Featurette, an electropop duo out of Toronto. Aviary, 8 pm, $10.
Selfish Bodies – This indie-pop project featuring members from across Canada are featured in a very talented bill that also includes art rockers The Pits Planet Earth and prog rockers Sudden Love. Bohemia, 9 pm, $10.
Monday 9
The Jerry Cans – This band from Iqaluit, Nunavut, combine throat singing with folk music and country rock. Largely written and sung in Inuktitut, the traditional language of the Inuit, they have three studio albums to their credit, including 2016’s Inuusiq/Life, released by Aakuluk Music, Nunavut’s first record label. With Jayden Paz. Starlite Room, 8 pm, $20. BUY
