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| TimeGiant are: Patrick Wilken, Charlie McKittrick, Ryan Watson and Tyrone Buccione |
May 10 2012 – “… I think right now is the most interesting time for rock history. Rock can’t die when there is a bigger challenge to rock musicians out there now, which is “How do I top Zeppelin IV?”. There’s so much to compete with now that the songs just naturally have to be better than they’ve ever been. Why would someone listen to my song when they can put on AC/DC or dubstep, play an interactive online video game etc.” – Tyrone Buccione March 10, 2012.
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| TimeGiant’s dual guitars – Buccione and Watson |
In our first spotlight article for Canadian Music Week 2012 we featured a band from Toronto called TimeGiant. The quote above is from that interview when we asked the band what they think about the future of rock and roll and that is exactly the answer that all up and coming rock bands need to embrace. Regardless of the mass produced crap that the industry keeps feeding the masses, there will always be real rock and roll being produced, one just needs to look for it. We are certain that mainstream rock success can’t be limited to just the Foo Fighters, The Black Keys, and Nickelback (how unfortunate is that one – they cant even find real rock to feed the masses). TimeGiant know that it will take more than just good musicianship to get to the next level but they sure seem up to the challenge.
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| TimeGiant’s bassist – Patrick Wilken |
During Canadian Music Week we saw 34 bands in total and TimeGiant really stood out for us (you can read our review of their previous gig here). The band is composed of Ryan Watson (Rhythm Guitar), Patrick Wilken (Bass, Backup Vocals), Charlie McKittrick (Drums, Backup Vocals) and Tyrone Buccione (Vocals, Lead Guitar, Sax).
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| TimeGiant’s Ryan Watson |
Tonight TimeGiant played The Rivoli, (the band will also play Hamilton’s The Underground on Saturday with USS) and took the opportunity to test out some new material along with some of their older stuff. They are currently finalizing a CD that should be out sometime this summer and they guys wanted to take out some of the tunes for a live performance. The high energy set was about 50 minutes long and consisted of:
- Blind
- Zenith (from the Grow EP)
- I Am the Fire – New Song
- Close To Me – New Song
- Candy From A Feather (from the Time EP)
- Farcaster – New Song
- Charlie McKittrick Drum Solo
- The Inner Man’s Energy – New Song
- White Window (from the Time EP)
- Been Here Before
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| Tyrone Buccione – vocalist and guitarist for TimeGiant |
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| Tyrone Buccione – vocalist and guitarist for TimeGiant |
The only negative of the show was that McKittrick’s drum solo was too short! The dude embodied Bonzo for a while during his solo (he even has Bonham’s 3 circle symbol tattooed on his shoulder) and really showed off his skill. Longer next time Charlie! Aside from that I was disappointed that the epic After the Battle at Mt. Megiddo was not on the setlist. That song is a lengthy 7 minute classic rock/progressive rock masterpiece that could have been found on Rush‘s 2112 album. However the band did not leave us hanging, they rolled out another massive seven minute tune called The Inner Man’s Energy which blew us away. That song really let the band show off it’s technical skills and we really can’t wait to hear the studio album version (hopefully it makes it to the new CD).
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| TimeGiant drummer Charlie McKittrick |
These guys capture the essence of what made the classic rock bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Queen so grand. TimeGiant possess a certain confidence (but definitely not arrogance) that makes them very fun to watch. They clearly proved tonight that they are great musicians and left us wanting more. Regardless of whether you like their music or not you will never forget a TimeGiant show. TimeGiant is a band with a perfect blend of heavy and progressive rock that could have been made in 1972 or 2012 and with what The Sheepdogs have accomplished we hope the classic rock renaissance continues.
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| TimeGiant |
Verdict: Excellent performance from one Canada’s best up and coming bands. My money is on them to be Toronto’s next big band in the tradition of Max Webster, Triumph and Rush. Mustaches and long hair have never been cooler! We leave you with a couple of tunes from the performance.
Review by: Terry Makedon
Photos by: Steve Mallinson
excellent article. I was at the Rivoli that night and these guys were amazing.
Great stuff! Amazing talent!