Halifax Comes Alive With ECMA Showcases
Friday February 16, 2007 @ 05:30 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff

The Novaks

The buzz of music and mischief mingled in the streets of downtown Halifax as the annual East Coast Music Awards hit town on Thursday night.

FashionEASTa, a new addition to the ECMA lineup, kicked off the soiree, as design students from the local art college entertained industry-types with their beautiful creations.

The soundtrack to the artful event was scored by the hypnotic sounds of Slowcoaster. Windom Earle rocked the stage in white spandex superhero suits, Norm Adams (lead cellist of the Nova Scotia Symphony) kept a conservative, well-tailored stance, and Newfoundland songstress Amelia Curran, nominated for best female artist and folk recording awards, was decked out in treads fit for a war bride.

Further down Barrington Street, a sleepy crowd gathered at St. Mathew's Church. The statuesque presence of the building and its ethereal acoustics were flooded by the sounds of local treasure Jenn Grant, Prince Edward Island's Tanya Davis, Down With The Butterfly and Newfoundland's Hey Rosetta!. The ever-expanding group of Newfoundlanders are nominated for rock recording of the year for Plan Your Escape.

Merely a hop, skip and a jump away, a rowdy gathering of folks stood in a lengthy lineup at Tribecca. The savvy hotspot's popularity was the result of the Nova Scotia talent showcase, as patrons spilled out and over the designated upstairs lounge into the restaurant area.

Packed like sardines in a tin box, a devoted group of music appreciators huddled elbow-to-elbow for a taste of Jon McKeil and folk queen Ruth Minnikin, who's nominated for a Galaxie Rising Star prize for Folk Art.

Minnikin warmed the stage for her Rising Star competitor, New Brunswick's darling David Myles, who captured the attention of boozy listeners with his impressive collection of songs from Things Have Changed. The beauty of Myles is that he's completely unaware of his charms, as his lyrical subject matter includes hangover odes, bluesy love tunes and longing for home.

"I was shopping for a Valentine's Day card yesterday at Paper Chase," said the boyish performer to the crowd. "And the one that caught my eye was an Elvis card. I feel like Elvis now. I just need to start shaking my hips."

Doing double-duty, Grant and Davis made their way from the sober church to the bustling watering hole. In light of the chit-chatter of bar banter, each of their sets were as poignant as their quiet St. Mathew's performances. Old Man Luedecke and his simply adorable banjo tunes kept the bar buzzing until close to last call.

While the evening was winding down at Tribecca, the rock showcase at The Marquee was still in full swing with The Novaks, Caledonia and art-rockers Jon Epworth & The Improvements, who received an alternative album of the year nomination.

Long after last call, Yamaha's 72-hour jam kept the musical enthusiasts dancing past sunrise with urban heroes Ghettosocks (from Alpha Flight), Spesh K and Wordburglar. Metal maestros Molotov Cocktail and Chaos Panic And Disorder's sets were served with a side of eggs, bacon and hash browns, as they showcased their sounds for the metal breakfast portion of the event.

—Shannon Webb-Campbell