Tue, Nov 3

BASEMENT JAXX at Century Room Rating: NN

Despite having a decade’s worth of recording and remixing under their belt, Basement Jaxx put on a pretty amateur performance. Whether it was because the duo of Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton allowed crowd requests to dictate the playlist or felt safer playing just the hits, it seemed like an exercise in pandering. As they dropped Afrojack’s Moombah remix into Major Lazer’s Pon Di Floor, the ambience in the Century Room suddenly turned into that of every other Toronto electro party.

At times the sound was muddy, as if the high and mid-range levels on their mixer had been dropped. And it became clear that Basement Jaxx were more interested in “selecting” than “mixing”; tracks were slammed together roughly while the stuttering loop of the CDJ turntable was left hanging. To their credit, Jaxx were trying to play something for everyone, as evidenced by their near unexpected turn to dubstep near the end of the night. 

Unfortunately, their overall execution fell flat.

ANDREW RENNIE

Thu, Nov 5

DOG DAY with IMMACULATE MACHINE and the BALCONIES at the Horseshoe Rating: NNN

Halifax’s Dog Day have gotten much louder and mightier since their CMW show at the Drake in March. Blame Rob Shedden, their brand new hard-hitting drummer, who nicely tightens up the indie rock four-piece but also at times drowns out their appealing subtleties – like Nancy Urich and Seth Smith’s endearing vocal harmonies and Crystal Thili’s synth lines. But they can find a balance over time.

Immaculate Machine, right before, were Dog Day’s opposite. West Coast breezy and loose, the three-woman, two-man band played a career-spanning set, with amicable lead singer Brooke Gallupe weaving in stories about visiting the Beatles’ old apartment in Hamburg and living above a bar called Touch Lounge in Victoria. They give off great vibes and inventively use percussion and falsetto harmonies, and Gallupe’s quick-fingered solos, especially in Don’t Build The Bridge, prove he’s no guitar slouch.

Earlier, Ottawa’s the Balconies turned out vigorous one-dimensional (but promising) power pop propelled by triple-threat guitarist/vocalist/frontwoman Jacquie Neville.

CARLA GILLIS

Fri, Nov 6

ARETHA FRANKLIN at Roy Thompson Hall Rating: NNNN

If we were grading the Queen of Soul’s performance at Roy Thompson Hall purely on the athleticism of her voice, we’d have to dock points for her diminished range and the increasingly raspy quality at her register’s higher end. But there’s more to being a great soul singer than vocal heroics, and no one can argue that Aretha Franklin didn’t put on a hell of a show Friday night.

Backed by a huge, amazingly good band, the 67-year-old R&B legend oozed confidence and presence even when coughing between verses and grasping for notes she just can’t hit any more. Maybe in some people’s ideal world Franklin would know her limitations and stay within them, but it’s a lot more thrilling to hear a legend pushing herself, even if she occasionally stumbles. Same can be said about her decision to leave most of her biggest hits off the set list. As great as Respect is, what’s more impressive is that you barely noticed its absence.

BENJAMIN BOLES

Sun, Nov 8

MAX TUNDRA and DEASTRO at the Drake Underground Rating: NNN

You could’ve heard a pin drop between songs during Detroit synth-pop upstarts Deastro’s Drake set. Unfortunately, that’s because there were only about two dozen people in the room. Glowing critical acclaim and blog buzz weren’t enough to get folks out on a Sunday night for their co-headlining tour with UK computer-pop mad genius Max Tundra.

Neither act let the poor turnout get them down. Toward the end of Deastro’s set, main man Randolph Chabot had overcome his initial shyness and did some charmingly spastic new wave dancing to rousing synth-fuelled anthems that would sound at home in a John Hughes teen flick. 

Max Tundra, aka Ben Jacobs, is also prone to awkward, jerky dance moves, but his come across like George Costanza trying to imitate Beyoncé after drinking a dozen cups of coffee. That off-beat aesthetic is also reflected in his music, which at times sounds like a caffeine-addicted computer programmer reworking contemporary R&B vibes using sounds from 80s arcade games.

BB