If you missed our Unsigned Vancouver on April 11th, here’s how it went: 

Steam Whistle Unsigned April 2013 from Green Couch on Vimeo.

For those of you not yet familiar with Unsigned, it’s an ongoing concert series that showcases Canada’s indie music talent. Hosted in Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver each edition of UNSIGNED features three Canadian artists with all of the ticket sales going back to the arts community through organizations such as Artists’ Health Centre Foundation and Music BC.

We are committed to the future of this wonderful community and to date UNSIGNED has featured over 80 independent Canadian acts and have raised over $70,000 for local artists.  Some of the great indie acts to partner with us have included: The Rural Alberta Advantage, Austra, The Darcys, Young Empires, Rich Aucoin, The Balconies, Woodhands, Dinosaur Bones, Lioness, Parallels, Make Your Exit, Hooded Fang and Kidstreet.

Cheers to supporting independent Canadian musicians! 

Thanks to Green Couch for the video!

Then this new online music series is for you.

This year we have partnered with our friends from CHARTattack.com (Canada’s leading music site) to bring you a new online show Noisemakers.

Supporting independent Canadian musicians has always been a huge part of what we do here at Steam Whistle and Noisemakers provides an opportunity to further showcase fantastic Canadian talent. So far Luke Lalonde of the Born Ruffians, 8 and a Half, and Little Scream have all been spotlighted and if you haven’t yet heard of them, we definitely recommend you take a look here.

We’re really excited about this partnership and had a quick chat with CHARTattack’s editor Dan Busheikin only to confirm they feel the same. Cheers to that!

Why is ChartAttack.com and Steam Whistle a great fit for Noisemakers?

Steam Whistle loves independent music, and so do we. I grew up watching beer ads that were all about partying and semi-nude women, and so it’s amazing to engage with a beer brand that actually has a genuine passion for something other than being the coolest dude at the bar. Steam Whistle and CHARTattack have a mutual appreciation for interesting new music, and it’s been a huge honour to work with you on such a rewarding project.

As Canada’s premier music website, where do you see the country’s indie music scene headed?

I think the key to Canada’s indie music scene is in innovation and risk taking. Almost all of the Canadian indie acts that have captured international attention over the past five years or so – Austra, The Weeknd, Timber Timbre, tUnE-yArds, and of course Arcade Fire come to mind – have embodied that spirit.

What’s your objective with Noisemakers?

Our objective with Noisemakers is not just to record live performances and interviews, but to capture the essence of an artist. We also want it to look and sound amazing, because we’re neurotic like that.

Check out the first episode of Noisemakers below and make sure to head over to CHARTattack.com for more awesome music.

Cheers!

Raina Douris is a former on-air personality & Indie Online curator for 102.1 the Edge. She currently hosts her show Rain’s World, where she has bands come to her house, drink, talk music and occasionally make some crafts. It doesn’t get more personal than that. Former guests include Tokyo Police Club, The Elwins, & Unsigned alumni The Darcys (photo below).

She describes Rain’s World as…

I have bands come visit my basement apartment, where we do fun things like make arts & crafts and talk about feelings. Often, we laugh. Sometimes, we cry. Usually… we drink.

It’s an interview that’s not an interview! It’s an apartment that looks like a burrito take-out place! It’s uncomfortably revealing! It’s Rain’s World!

The Good Beer Folks and Raina became friends immediately upon our first meeting, bonding over our love for indie music, arts and the colour green (see Raina’s wallpaint).

Good beer folks had the pleasure to chat with Raina about her ultimate dream of interviewing bands in her basement apartment, her knack for trivia, failed dreams of running a burrito place and of course, music.

Good Beer Folk Marina: For those who don’t know, who is Raina?

Raina:  I’m a small town girl who came to the big city with a dream: to interview bands in my basement bachelor apartment and put those interviews online. And, already, here in my mid-twenties, I have achieved said dream! I guess you could say… I’m a dreamcatcher. That’s what a dreamcatcher does, right? Sure.

I love music. I love art. I love trivia and I can defeat you easily in Jeopardy. I can quote Billy Madison from start to finish. I have a tattoo on my ankle that says “Internet” that a lot of people think is really stupid but I think is really, really awesome.

Also, I’m a cat person. Not a cat LADY. A cat PERSON. What I’m trying to say here is: I like cats? And also pizza.

Good Beer Folk Marina: How did you first get started?

Raina: When I first moved into my apartment- which is painted bright yellow and green, my friends immediately said “Hey! This looks like a burrito joint! Let’s open one!”

Turns out, you need a ‘license’ to open a restaurant. And ‘safety standards.’ And ‘cooking ability.’ So I decided it would be easier to just have my friends over for beer instead… and film it. Through my previous job at 102.1 the Edge, my group of friends included lots of musicians – so it just made sense to start this video series. Plus, Raina almost rhymes with Wayne. Y’know, if you take the A off. Rain’s World was born!

Good Beer Folk Marina: What’s the best part about Rain’s World?

Raina: Getting interesting people into my apartment and having them do things they wouldn’t normally do in an interview, like lie on the ground and do puppet shows.

Good Beer Folk Marina: Any bands you recommend for us to check out?

Raina: This question is impossible. Two of my big Toronto favourites are Hollerado and Zeus- but there are so many. I’d use up this site’s whole bandwidth if I were going to list them… but I’ll try. Some bands to watch are The Darcys, The Elwins, Topanga, Dirty Mags, Dinosaur Bones… seriously. There are too many. The last band I got REALLY into was JEFF the Brotherhood. They’re from Nashville, and eventually I hope to lure them into my basement. In the most non-creepy way possible.

Favourite…..

Interview:

There’s this great interview were David Byrne (of the Talking Heads) interviews himself. Pure gold… and anything that Nardwuar does.

Venue:

Dakota Tavern- even though it has no cellphone service. The Horseshoe & Sneaky Dees … but really, my ideal concert would be outside in the sun, in a park, in the summer.

Band:

Talking Heads is my all time favourite.

Concert:

LCD Soundsystem at Sasquatch Music Festival in 2010. They were playing “All My Friends” and the sun was setting over this giant gorge and it started to rain. I cried. I CRIED. It was amazing.

Hobby:

Drawing- pen & ink. Here’s a sample.

Check out the latest episode of Rain’s World, ft. The Darcys below:

Remember folks: Support your local band, and beer
Cheers!

Cheers to that!

Recently, the line up for Edgefest 2012 was announced and we were ecstatic to see some familiar names who have performed at our brewery. Can you spot them?

Congratulations to Steam Whistle UNSIGNED ALUMNI performing at Edgefest ’12:

The Balconies
The Coppertone
The Darcys
Whale Tooth

Edgefest is an annual outdoor concert put on by one of our partner stations Edge102. The festival started as a way to promote Canadian rock music in 1987 as a thank-you gesture to Edge listeners and as a birthday party for our nation. Today over 300 bands have been seen by over 500,000 attendees.

(Source: masey.com.au)

Go Canada!

Take a look at these videos of 4 Steam Whistle UNSIGNED alumni getting their start in our beer hall:

THE DARCYS – The Mountains Make Way from Mitch Fillion (southernsouls.ca) on Vimeo.

THE COPPERTONE Live at Steam Whistle from Mitch Fillion (southernsouls.ca) on Vimeo.

WHALE TOOTH Live at Steam Whistle from Mitch Fillion (southernsouls.ca) on Vimeo.

THE BALCONIES Live at Steam Whistle from Mitch Fillion (southernsouls.ca) on Vimeo.

Looking forward to seeing the UNSIGNED alumni and more of Canada’s amazing talent on July 14th 2012 at Downsview Park. 

And, heads up to all you West Coasters!

On January 26th, we’re bringing  our first ever UNSIGNED to Vancouver in supporting more Canadian independent talent. The Vancouver show will be held at Biltmore Cabaret and will feature Sidney York, The Ruffled Feathers, and Treelines. Doors open at 8pm and tickets are only $5 at the door with 100% of proceeds going back to the community through Music BC.

See you for a night of true Canadian music and beer