Reunion For Christmas!

So we're back after a year with happy reunion news. TPOH (Moe, Dave, Kris, Brad and Renée) will be playing the Q107 Jingle Ball December 13 in at The Phoenix in Toronto. This is the first reunion in ages to actually be open to the public (most in the last few years have been private or corporate affairs) and the only one for ages besides the Stampede gig to be pretty much a full-length set - reportedly slated to be about 50 minutes.

Holy crap, huh? So check the details here and we'll see you there!

Reunion @ the Stampede? What?

Backstage: Renée, Kris, Moe and Brad. Photo courtesy Kris Abbott.

Yes, it's been awhile again, but this kind of snuck up on us and smacked us in back of the head. The Pursuit of Happiness played their first gig in about six years a couple days ago at a private corporate event associated with the Calgary Stampede. Part of the contract, evidently, was staying mum about it until it happened, but now it has happened, there's plenty to share. All of it so far comes from Kris, documenting a whirlwind 48 hours there and back (she had the furthest to travel from Kingston, while Renée had the least distance, still living in Alberta) in a Facebook photo album and a performance video of "Beautiful White" and "Ten Fingers".

But wait, there's more. Kris sent along three other live videos to share with you. You can rack up the YouTube playlist, but here's a sample. Enjoy! And a big thanks to Moe and Kris for getting us caught up.

Kris and Dee still here, and with their album!

Doesn't seem like so long ago we were talking about Kris and Dee working on their first album, and now we have a cover, release date and party! Still Here Inside will drop independently May 5, available at Zap Records in Kingston Ontario and online at Kris and Dee's own new site.

A release show/party happens at the Grad Club in Kingston on Friday May 13th with special guest Sticky Henderson. The fun starts at 9pm with just 5 bucks for admission. But for now, you can get a preview of the album with a new track each day on their Facebook page and myspace page. So take a listen and post your best wishes for Abbott and McNeil!

Kris and Dee back in Toronto, Mrs. Berg's Win, Master Tracks' New Season

To catch up yet again, we begin with Kris and Dee, who travel from the wilds of Kingston back to where we first met them in the Big Smoke. Busying themselves with more shows, adding members to their full-fledged band and even starting work on their first album, the Abbott-McNeils will make a triumphant return to Toronto with a show Thursday night at Slacks, 562 Church Street. There's no cover, and doors open at 8pm.

Another triumph recently as Laura Berg, lovely wife of Moe, won the 2010 SavvyMom Mom Entrepreneur Of The Year Award for her work with MySmartHands. Along with prestige and press exposure, she receives a great array of prizes - from cash to mentorships - which she's putting toward taking her business even further. Congratulations, Mrs. Berg!

As for Mr. Berg, the latest season of Master Tracks is currently unfolding on AUX-TV, as Moe and Laurence Currie take more bands from "demo to download" in a day. Head to the website for info on catching the latest episode on tv or to watch online. Here's an episode featuring one of Moe's favorite bands of the last couple years, Stereo Goes Stellar.

Master Tracks: Rides Again

Time to catch up on some more editions of "Master Tracks" with our friends Moe and Laurence. This time, the Oshawa power trio Rides Again head into Metalworks with hopes to bring "more angst" to their song "Time Bomb" - and changes to changes Moe had already made. But the collaboration comes together as Moe looks for chaos in a "guitar event" and Laurence helps by swinging a microphone over his head. Take a look here or below:

Master Tracks: Drive Faster

This time on Master Tracks, Moe and Laurence show that it takes a lot of meticulous (yet fun) work to make a song sound like it was done live off the floor in one take. The song in question: "Analog" by the Toronto-via-Calgary band Drive Faster, who had recently changed their name in the search for a new sound. They go a long way toward finding that sound - in between games of pool - with some help from Moe's Stratocaster and "delightful" lead vocals that make Moe feel like he's been drinking. Enjoy it all here or below:

Master Tracks: Mamabolo

In this edition of Master Tracks, the director gets some direction, as film festival favourite Rob Stefaniuk (Suck, Phil the Alien) plays keyboards for Mamabolo (named after the lovely Barb up front), whose track "Close Your Eyes" gets the demo-to-download-in-a-day treatment. Moe and Laurence take what was a "Rush-style arrangement" and put all the cool things in order, with the help of a bass from a garage sale and some delicious Italian sandwiches. Check it out here or below:


And while we're here, there's also a swell web bonus video in which Moe ushers us into the glamorous world of guitar tuning. Enjoy here, or down there:

Ambers For Christmas...and Boxing Week!

Behold the mighty Suchy Sisters of St. Albert, aka The Ambers. Last week, Renée and her sisters put on "The Canadian Christmas Canon", a concert with holiday music new and old and vaguely-related, and you can find it all from Concerts On Demand on CBC.ca for your gift-wrapping or opening pleasure - and it IS a pleasure (turns out Renée's sisters are as funny as she is).

But that's not all. Though the CD they made with Moe lo these many months ago, Rain and Sun, has been on CD Baby for a while, next week it gets a proper release party. Not only will the ladies be rocking it out live at The Ivory Club in Edmonton December 28, Moe (who just happens to be home for the holidays) will be playing alongside them! If you're anywhere near the City of Champions, hightail it on your snowmobile for an amazing night - until we can drag the girls out for more shows in other places.

Master Tracks: Diemonds

In this edition of Master Tracks, Diemonds bring the rock for "Little Miss", but Moe starts feeling like he's trying to turn around a bad date. With a few beers and a lesson in "Arrangement 101", though, things do indeed turn around. Check it out here or below:

Master Tracks: Big Ideas

This time on Master Tracks, Big Ideas accepts some of Moe and Lawrence's ideas for their song "Set a Fire". Moe tries not to mess with the bassist's "contrary motion," the guitarist learns a new chord, the boys pick prettiness over twang and the drummer tries not to lose his shirt. Check it out here or below:

Kris and Dee Lose My Mind

The latest song posted by Kris Abbott and her wife Dee Abbott-McNeil was actually born of Dee's day job as a physiotherapist and educator in elder care in Kingston, Ontario. According to Kris' blog post on their myspace page, Dee was preparing a conference presentation about Dementia, and when she sought stories to give a more human perspective on the condition, she found a woman in the UK who has been keeping a photo journal of her experiences with her mother, who lives with Dementia. A collaboration began for which music was needed. Kris describes her role in the project as "co writer and musical interpretor of the photo journal collaboration. ie.. producing I suppose and getting the music to match their evolution between technical and emotional."

Read the blog post for more details about creating the song, but more importantly, check out the song itself, "Lose My Mind", on the main Kris and Dee myspace page or their ReverbNation page on Facebook.

Master Tracks: Everything All the Time

In this edition of Master Tracks, studio virgins Everything All the Time set a record (longest day? shortest day? most gang vocals?) working on their song "Love Love" with Moe and Laurence, who have to navigate FIVE sets of keyboards. Look out for Laurence's secret mic technique, drums that are "more April Wine than AC/DC" and the use of a rattlesnake. Take a look here or below:

Master Tracks: Turn Off the Stars

And so the new season of Master Tracks begins with Toronto band Turn Off the Stars taking "Heartbeats" from demo to download in a day (give or take 10 minutes) with the guidance of Moe and Laurence. The band finds a focus after being around the block in the music business, Moe plays bass during an intonation crisis, Laurence finds "no love in this coffee," and the band literally sings Moe's praises for the traditional gang vocals. Check it out here or below:



And in an AUX web exclusive, Moe relates a cautionary tale for musicians who didn't play before the age of ProTools. Watch here or below:

Welcome for real! Master Tracks Preview Roundup

YES! It may have taken just a slightly shorter time than it took to release The Downward Road, but the Updates blog is here. If you had been going to the Updates section of Incompletely Conspicuous for the latest (sort of) news on TPOH-related stuff, this is now where you'll go instead. I've copied the Updates posts from the past two years (not much) and put them here, so for stuff from 2006 and before, you can still meander through what will now be the Updates archive. The Updates links on the main site will be changed (uh...eventually) to direct you straight here. Of course, there are other changes and tweaking to be done, so hang in there.

Oh, I should mention: I haven't started this new chapter of the Updates because there's actual band news, like they're getting back together or anything. Everything is as it's been, with everyone leading their own lives and crossing paths from time-to-time (yikes...I should be updating the "To Review" page on the site. New babies have been born, people have moved, jobs have changed...) and there are no new reunion plans. Seriously. So the Updates continue to be mainly about life going on, and any remnants of the past that come back to pleasantly haunt them. :-)

Now, let's get down to business!

The big news lately has been the promo push for Master Tracks, Moe's series with Laurence Currie where they produce a young band "from demo to download in one day," mainly because their home at AUX.TV is making the leap from the internet to digital television tomorrow and the second season is currently in production. New episodes should be embedded here as they come in, but you can catch up on the first season at Master Tracks' online home.

Leading up to all this, Moe and Laurence have been making the media rounds talking about the show, the AUX tv launch and life in general. You can check out the coverage at Torontoist and at Dose.ca. Moe also had a chat with Kevin McGowan on The Ruckus podcast at rabble.ca, including a couple of the finished demos, as well as a couple TPOH tracks for good measure. Take a listen here!