The latest and greatest thing Blast Toronto wants to do is share with everyone the places where you are going to find amazing live music. It may be in your backyard, and you don’t even know it yet.

The Bell and the Beacon

I recently came across this place for the first time a couple of months back. I went to see one of our unsung talents named Kevin Briet. He was playing in a place named the Beacon Room.  The Bell is a restaurant downstairs, and the beacon is an intimate room on the second floor.

When I walked in, I felt I entered my family home’s basement. With old school candles and a floor lamp that was attached from the floor to the ceiling. Even the wood paneling was nearly identical to my basement. Boy did I feel like I was home.

The staff make you feel at home as you belly up to the bar or grabbed a table in this retro loft. You can order food from the first floor, and they will bring it up to you. BTW, the food is excellent!

You have three choices when you get there. You can sit in the back if you just want to hear the music, or if you are like me, you grab a table near the stage or grab a seat by the bar. There really isn’t a light show, it just feels like a band shows up at your place and begins to play music. Intimacy it at its highest in a place like this.

Country Flash

I showed up to the Beacon Room on a Monday night and they do have music on that night. So, if you need a boost for Tuesday, this may be your ticket. The band I was about to see is called Country Flash. Nobody told me this was a country Supergroup. They consisted of the incredible guitarist Nichol Robertson, who seems to play with just about everybody and make them sound good. We have Vivienne Wilder, who is better known for being in the band, Joan Smith and the Jane Does. The third component is the drummer of the Sadies, Mike Belinsky.

If that wasn’t good enough to get your butt out the door, they invited longtime friend Lori Yates to come out and sing a few songs and tell a few stories. As much as I would love to share Lori’s stories, what she said up in the Beacon stays there. This woman would like to return to this room one day. Make sure you make it out then and you could hear these stories for yourself.

Their opening number was an instant, oh woe is me and I want to cry in my beer. Good start to get people ordering another round soon. They soon picked up the pace and began to do some pretty cool cover songs like “Tulsa Time” and “I hear you knocking”. This band knows how to put just enough twang in their sound.

With a makeshift lighting system, the mood of the lighting captured the mood of their songs. Songs like Ghost of Josephine and Mercy could bring you to your knees. And they had the best fade outs ever!

Besides cover songs, Lori got to play her song, “Alive”, from her excellent CD called Matador. She also did a fine version of Knocking on Heaven’s door. I was kind of hoping she would add the cheesy Axl Rose moment of singing Hey, hey, hey, hey…

The band wrapped up their set near midnight and the audience would not let them go. They began to bribe them to stay and play more. In fact, one woman wanted to hear Knocking on Heaven’s door again and stuffed the tip jar. It soon became an auction on what song they should finish with.

Well, the band not wanting to disappoint the loyal audience, played a mash up of Neil Young’s “Helpless” and Knocking on Heaven’s Door”. Again, no cheesy Axl Rose version.

So, Blast Toronto felt truly satisfied in finding a new spot and would recommend it to music lover to go and experience. I also discovered a band I would see again and again.

Here are a few gems from that wonderful evening:

The Bell and the Beacon is located at 1648 1/2 Queen St West.

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If you love any of the photos and would like a Hi-res copy let me know, I can email you a copy for $10. You can send an E-Transfer to blasttorontomag@gmail.com