NXNE 2014 Day One: The same, but different

NXNE is Toronto's music, film, comedy, art and interactive festival.
One drum, one bass, two guitars and vocals. After a great meal at Wvrst, we heard that ubiquitous combo interpreted three different ways by three relatively new bands our first night of NXNE 2014.

First up: Monomyth from Halifax. In addition to a song in rotation on CBC Radio 3-- "Cigarette"-- they recently signed with Mint Records, which will release Saturnalia Regalia July 22. Descriptions of the band are all over the map: psych pop, shoe-gaze, space pop, surf rock. Their style is all over the map, which is what we liked, especially combined with occasional dissonance and rhythm changes.





Toronto's Brave Little Toaster was off our radar but on stage before our next scheduled show. They win for band name least likely to invoke what the actual band sounds like. They call it soul twang, we call it rock as basic as bread. But all the good ingredients are there: energy, talent and solid harmonies.



It's been two years since we saw Stella Ella Ola; drummer Vince Rice promises an album is coming soon. Based on the great set of alt pop/rock we heard at the Silver Dollar, it promises to be worth the wait. Until then, you'll have to be content with this brand new video for "Peter Sellers."







Photos: Russ Gordon/N2D Images