The Blue Stones, OxfordTown, Daybreak Gentlemen, deVah Quartet at Toronto’s The Horseshoe Tavern

 Monday August 13 2012 – A great night of music was to be had last Wednesday August 8 2012 at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern. We were there to see our good friends from The Blue Stones whom we interviewed for their NXNE appearance. You can check out that interview here. The bill featured not only The Blue Stones, but three other bands which we had never seen before (nor heard of). OxfordTown, Daybreak Gentlemen and deVah String Quartet (along with The Blue Stones) provided a fantastic night of entertainment. Although none of the bands were similar musically, the all impressed us and left us wanting to see more of each. The night felt like turning the FM dial and tuning into four different stations.

OxfordTown was first up. Although we didn’t get there in time to see the whole set we really enjoyed what we did see. This trio presented an eclectic mix of old school Drum N’ Bass with massive distortion along with Hendrixesque guitar riffs. We have never heard such a mash up of different musical styles come across so successfully. You can read more about the band on their website here.

Daybreak Gentlemen was next on the bill.Never at a loss for words our movie critic John Dash had this to say “Daybreak Gentlemen channeled everything from the English Beat to the UK Romantic era with infectious lyrics and catchy riffs in a set that energized the Horseshoe Tavern faithful.” A mix of Arctic Monkeys with a touch of The Killers and a bit of The Strokes. This band had a large audience watching their set and they were no doubt delivering the goods.

The Blue Stones were next. This blistering duo from Windsor has been on our radar for a while and every time we see them we remember why. Best described as a Black Keys style of band, their music is raw powerful and good hard rocking blues. Their set was energetic and yes Ma there really are only 2 dudes on stage making such rich sound. We interviewed The Blue Stones right before they hit the stage and you can see that below.

deVah Quartet were last this night but certainly not least. When we saw four lovely ladies getting on stage and setting up bizarre looking instruments we were left wondering. Their website tells us “deVah is comprised of an electric violin, two electric 5-string hybrids, an electric cello capable of multi bass octaves, and guest drums. deVah invents a rich texture of sound utilizing various non-acoustic modifying tools creating a different tone and dimension to their music. Set apart from any stereotypical mold, deVah is continuously evolving and recreating itself, innovating the quartet world in electric string artistry.” When they kicked into action we felt the same emotion as the first time we saw The Blue Man Group or Cirque du Soleil. This was something new, something exciting, and something that will explode. As much as I hate reality shows, I can almost picture deVah Quartet on America’s Got Talent – and winning it. Spectacular stage presence and charisma, the band played a mix of original compositions and well know covers. When they finished their set the crowd wouldn’t let them go so the ladies obliged and played an unplanned cover of The Killers. 

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