Dysfestivalexia

Right about this time of summer, Montreal’s non-stop festival marathon is likely starting to whittle away your financial clout and attention span, as the umpteenth thematic orgy of consumerism and cultural entertainment wails through town. Every second person in the street is starting to look like a transvestite African tribesman saxophonist wearing Chucks, tight jeans and an iPod. Ste-Catherine is starting to seem like the Rubicon and you can’t remember the last time you were brave enough to cross it. All music and art is beginning to appear as television static and it’s becoming difficult to differentiate between fireworks, lightning and the stars spinning around your head from all the booze and heat. The worst thing is that we’re only halfway to the end of the festivals, and to be honest, some of the best stuff is yet to come, though we’ll likely only perceive it as a swirling, sun-stroked delirium of sound and colour.

To wit, even if you don’t see a single MEG or Osheaga act this weekend, you can still fill your boots with a hefty slew of jams thanks to les FrancoFolies and a few peripheral events, not to even mention Divers/Cité.

TWICE AS NICE: numéro#

Starting tonight, Thursday, July 31, you can get a taste of the new school of franco synth pop at Cabaret Juste Pour Rire. I haven’t seen lippy Parisian MC Yelle live yet, but some pals of mine told me she puts on a surprisingly good live performance, and she’ll be joined by local catchy cheeseballs numéro#, whose guilty-pleasure pop is so enthusiastically facetious you sometimes wonder if they really mean it. Also tonight, you can catch some of the international bass wave at Savoy of Metropolis as Khiasma brings in Chilly Chill, Wongsifou and Random Recipe for the FrancoFolies edition of his kickass global soundsystem night, Baile Montreal.

On Saturday, Ghislain Poirier happily resurrects his much-blabbed-about Bounce le Gros party for just one night at Club Soda, so you can expect that to be a thunderous, thumping, funky good time. On Sunday night, you can catch up with local francophone pop as marvelous indie prog romantics Malajube appear at the Molson Dry stage of Francofolies along with Karkwa and Gatineau.

And finally, in the interests of healthy role reversal, maybe you want to make the trek out to the quatre-cinq-zero once in a while for a show. If so, make it this coming Tuesday, Aug. 5 as a massive line-up hits Laval. That’s Duchess Says, Ghislain Poirier, Donzelle, Put the Rifle Down and numéro# at Ste-Rose en Bleu.

So buck up, down a bottle of Gravol and throw on that fanny pack, because this thing ain’t even close to being over yet. If you start to feel lost and disoriented while you’re out there and marching bands start playing death metal, flamboyant gay couples start singing hard bop and you see a projection screen showing an obscure Asian slasher film, but it seems to be starring members of Wolf Parade or something, just stay calm and ignore it. Because by the time Pop Montreal rolls around in October, you’re not going to know the difference between a medieval battle reenactment and a city hall meeting.

STARTING TO GET QUEASY... jack.oatmon@gmail.com