Past the wire

There was a triple dose of high energy rock and pop at Babylon last night, starting with local faves The White Wires, followed by California fuzz rockers Bare Wires and finishing off with an incredible set from Puerto Rican combo Davila 666.

The White Wires have been away from Ottawa for awhile, touring hither and yon behind their new album WII, which seems to be getting rave reviews from all over. They played a short but punchy set, finishing with a cover of Rats.


The White Wires at Babylon, April 14, 2011

Ian was sharply dressed for the occasion.


The White Wires at Babylon, April 14, 2011

The Bare Wires must be one of the gangliest trios I've seen. The band is fronted by Matthew Melton, also of equally kick-ass combo Snake Flower 2, whose more space-rocking nature seems to have leaked into the Bare Wires' live show.  They put on a super set featuring much flailing from their bass player Fletcher Johnson as the band ripped through their songs with barely a pause for breath.


Bare Wires at Babylon, April 14, 2011

Fletch could not stand still.


Bare Wires at Babylon, April 14, 2011

Davila 666 finished the night off with their own super-catchy brand of shoutalong rock'n'roll. They have their own tambourine player, which makes me think of Singapore Sling and Les Breastfeeders. They also played a killer cover of Hanging On The Telephone - always a crowd-pleaser in this town.


Davila 666 at Babylon, April 14, 2011

Also, plenty of singalong action.


Davila 666 at Babylon, April 14, 2011

Even better, I managed to buy Dan Melchior and Rantouls albums from the merch guy ...

• Show reminder: Ron Sexsmith and Ash Koley pack 'em in at a sold-out First Baptist Church show; L'asco, Bone Black, Nightmare/Reality, Police Funeral and Antimony are at the Montgomery Legion on Kent St.;  Amos The Transparent, Oceans and Alex Newman play Mavericks; Paper Maps and The Love Machine perform at Zaphod's; Silkken Laumann (featuring Pat Johnson, Rolf Klausener and Adam Saikely) make their debut at Raw Sugar; Rudeboy and Take The Boys collide at The Rainbow; The Bushpilots and Brendan Flynn and the Terrible Liars roll into Irene's; the Elmdale hosts Uncle Sean and The Shifty Drifters and Hobo Outlaws. It's cello time as TyLean and ThOrN perform at the Avant-Garde Bar.