Music
Thee Silver Mount Zion tour with Stephen Harper
Montreal's Thee Silver Mount Zion Memorial Orchestra chose not to allow media cameras into their Lee's Palace show on Friday — a questionable decision given that, as I predicted, many fans successfully smuggled in cameras, but not a particularly surprising one. Silver Mt. Zion is an offshoot of notoriously media unfriendly Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
The worst part about the photo ban is that I can't show you the first thing fans saw upon entering: a framed, up-side-down photo of Stephen Harper mounted above the stage (I must say, Harper looks better inverted than right side up).
Silver Mount Zion, currently a quintet, appeared just after eleven. Leader Efrim Menuck added to the light-hearted political flavour offered by Harper's visage, greeting the crowd by stating sympathetically that "base humour" is the only response possible to Toronto's mayor. Beginning with a new song, the bluesy "Take Away These Early Graves," Menuck and violinist Jessica Moss harmonized over rock riffs and strings with punky yells, epitomizing the band's take on post-rock: a sound that pulls from folk, punk, neoclassical, and blues.
Musical highlights were Godspeed-reminiscent orchestral climaxes, tranquil moments of violinists Moss and Sophie Trudeau's sweetly feminine vocal harmonies, and Menuck's loud, discordant voice singing mostly indiscernible lyrics.
Between songs, Menuck engaged the crowd with question periods that mostly produced asinine questions — "is she (Moss or Trudeau) single?" — but did bring the revelation that the band is not working on a full-length at the moment. Menuck quipped more about mayor Ford, Canadian mayors past, and of course, Harper.
The political theme continued to the set's end. "They say we get the leaders we deserve" Menuck said, gesturing toward Harper, "our leaders don't care if we live or die." The band began "What We Loved Was Not Enough," another new song and a gorgeous, melodic composition which made me feel lucky to be in attendance.
Judging by various lewd comments and conversations around me, I doubt some of the post-rock hungry fans in the audience were impressed with the night's political slant, but it struck a chord with me. Having spent my fair share of time thinking about the current state of Canada and what I sometimes view as the dark path our country is taking, I hope the band's message reached other members of the crowd in the same way it did me.
Back to the music — check YouTube for the next week or two if you'd like some visuals (and audio) from Friday. Media ban or not, I saw at least one fan film the set.
Set list
Take Away These Early Grave Blues
Blind Blind Blind
13 Blues for Thirteen Moons
There is a Light
The State Itself Did Not Agree
Horses in the Sky
What We Loved Was Not Enough
Encore:
Psalms99
Photo of a previous Thee Silver Mount Zion show by Jason Persse
Discussion
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There is simply not enough money for many artists to make a living. The grant system is to foster the arts within Canada, and without it we'd be without a lot of great Canadian music acts. Do you know how dull a country we'd be if we didn't put money into the arts?
Yourartsucks. You sound like a typical apathetic Canadian, leave it up to a talentless douchebag to take exception with a talented group of musicians who've challenged your complacency regarding our countries politics.
Here's another challenge for you. Why don't you present us a document that supports your claim that TSMZ have hypocritically accepted a government funded grant?
I also ask you to name one profession in Canada which doesn't receive some form of government support through educational loans or university grants.
Perhaps doctors should pave their way through 7+ years of post secondary education without grants, and perhaps law and commerce students shouldn't be given the opportunity to claim for OSAP.
Whilst we're on it, might as well cut funding to our Canadian Hockey program, as any athlete worth their weight in sweat should be able to make it through the ranks without the help of our countries development system.
It's people like you that make it hard to be proud Canadians. I'd hang my head low if I were you.
We truly do get the leaders we deserve.