What I love about what I do is finding little gems in Toronto to see live music. I recently walk into a place called the Bell and Beacon located at 1648 Queen St West. Going straight upstairs you walk into a place called the Beacon Room. I jokingly said this was the basement of my nightmares. It just reminded me of my house with the wood paneling, the old coloured glass candles and the floor lamp that is attached to the floor and the ceiling. I didn’t ask, but I did see people eating pizza and I can assume it came from downstairs and served upstairs. I will definitely try it next time I am there.

The place holds about 40-50 people, so if you go see a show there, go early grab some pizza before it gets too packed.  This is a friendly neighbourhood crowd. I was the newbie, but I had a chance to talk to many different people there.

I arrived just in time see Kevin Breit start his first show at the Beacon Room. Within a few songs Kevin was saying how much he was looking forward to playing this room and he really wants to return soon. I don’t blame him. They seem to fit each other really well. Being a Parkdalian, Kevin understands the loyalty of this neighbourhood. He loves living there and they love that he is a part of this unique section of Toronto.

This is a Wednesday night and the people who showed up looked like they needed to forget the day. It was all good, because when Kevin slipped into his first guitar solo people were slipping into limbo.

By the time Kevin went into his second solo on the next song he transformed the sound into bubbly energy that seem to motivate himself and put a smile on everybody else’s face.

This is what makes Kevin and his guitar so very special. Each time he goes into a solo, it carries its own true originality with it. He is like a great coach of a football team. He is always creating new strategies for his playbook. I will take this one step further and say he is a great architect where he is always pulling out improvisational blueprints and just laying them out there for the world to witness. I will take even further. Kevin is like a Bell and Beacon Pizza: there are so many different ways to have a pizza your way. So many toppings to choose from…

In fact, one of the best things I have ever seen was when Kevin picks up a rectangular piece of foam and placed it under his strings. He said he just transformed this object into a $300 modulator. When he played it, yet another original sound vibrated out of his guitar.

I won’t go into the setlist, because it is filled with different moods and emotions that speak to everyone in the audience. Just know the fact that his songs wobble between fine musicianship and a sense of quirkiness that keeps you off kilter. It breaks up your routine and lets you know there is more to the doldrums of life and you have an artist that can remove that from your daily grind that weighs you down.

I really did enjoy his story about how he and his other two brothers lived in the same bedroom for 12 years and huddled together to listen to the static radio and pick up the exotic sounds all the way from Detroit. You can derive your inspiration from anywhere.

Kevin Breit in Action:

You should follow the Beacon Room to see when Kevin Breit returns. www.instgram.com/thebellandbeacon/