Beach blanket booking bingo

>> Say aloha to Deux Hawaïennes qui dansent

by LORRAINE CARPENTER

I think everyone’s in agreement that la Sala Rossa has become a major hot spot for live underground music, thanks to the Casa del Popolo peeps, the Blue Skies Turn Black boys and Alexandre Lemieux. He’s a 22-year-old kid from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, music director at CISM, and Montreal’s newest show promoter. Add N to (X), Solex, and Anti-pop Consortium are some of the cult acts he’s brought to town with his one-man bizness Deux Hawaïennes qui dansent, a moniker which begs the question, what ever happened to names like “Greenland?”
“I have a picture of two dancing Hawaiians from a tiki garage book,” says Lemieux of his inspiration. “It’s really stupid, but it reflects the mood for the way I want to do shows. I want people to party and have a good time, and if it’s done too seriously you lose some of that energy.”
In its brief existence, Deux Hawaïennes has picked winners among unique electronic acts, underground hip hop and weirdo comedy bands, people whose Canadian tour usually begins and ends with Toronto.
“Most of the shows I’ve done in the past year are stage-oriented bands. I don’t wanna see any more laptop shows, I wanna be entertained,” says Lemieux. “Also, it’s people who never played Montreal because nobody wants to take risks.”
Aside from la Sala Rossa, Lemieux is helping to promote Casa-del-Popolo-produced shows as well. “I think that’s the most open-minded venue at the moment. They have minimal techno shows, garage rock or metal if they feel like it.”
Lemieux foresees a busy March for Deux Hawaïennes, including shows by the likes of Plaid, Clinic, Hood, Ego Express and Louis Austen, “a 60-year-old crooner singing over techno.” And, showing the marks of a seasoned promoter, Lemieux offers a tease: “I’m working on a really big show, in March as well, but I can’t talk about it. :