Finish What You Started Fest: Get Yer Boots On! @ Luneta Café
If you were wondering what to do with yourself (this weekend or this lifetime) you should take a page from the book of Finish What You Started Records. Energizing, supporting and empowering the local talent is at the core of this hardcore label but what good ol’ Ska Jeff’s really saying is don’t wait around to be what you want to be. Go forward with it! And if you need to create something, do it yourself.
Oh and if you like to mosh, skank, scream, and feel the sweat fly from a musician’s banging head you’re going to have to attend the Finish What You Started Fest this weekend. It starts officially in four hours! It’s a manifestation of the FWYS manifest, a promotion of youth culture & loud music, and one bitching good time.
Wednesday was the pre-show, getting the masses ramped up for the commotion to come. Three-week-old band Bloodnail & the screaming banshees of Bonnie Doon welcomed Oakland, CA post-punk band The New Flesh to their first-ever Canadian tour. Everyone got their feet under them and swayed. A drummer spat on a chandelier, I saw him. Bonnie Doon covered Kitty by The Presidents of the United States of America. Oh yes. It woke us up.
Tonight continues things in a way Ottawa wants it, with three local bands who’ll welcome everyone in with a few raucous songs. Tropical Dripps, Moon Destroyer & Cryptids! will grace us with their mad bastardry starting at 8PM. The hub of the event is Luneta on Bronson, and we’re please reminded to smoke near the front of the building so the neighbours don’t complain. “We wanna keep this thing going for a long time,” as Jeff says.
Saturday won’t wait for evening to get under way. If you’re quick enough you’ll score some brunch at Robot House after the hour of noon. A small donation is required for grub but it’s also BYOB! No corking fee! Two guys from Ottawa, and three bands from Montreal, London & Pennsylvania will work off the Friday hangover and hustle us over to Luneta for another 8PM start with one my personal favourites Robots! Everywhere! There are five other bands playing that night… Do I have to list them all?!
Sunday (yes, another wonderful day) grindcore from Peterborough, Torontonian grinding black metal, PEI powerviolence, and local band Knives & Forks For Freedom will dot the tees and decapitate the liars to bring FWYS Fest to a wonderfully ringing silence. I can only imagine we’ll be aching for more so maybe next year will be five days of hardcore fun.