Purple City Day Two summons Big Evil Rat, Gadfly, Kali Horse, and more
Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder) - Gadfly live at Purple City
By its second day, Purple City Music Festival had fully spilled across downtown Edmonton, sending audiences in pursuit of the next strange and exhilarating band.
We started at Temple with BLXCKPUNKS, who arrived for their first Canadian performance one member down after he was unable to cross the border. The setback did little to diminish the force of their trap-metal collision, which pulled together punk aggression and metallic weight.
“Everyone in this room should do whatever the fuck we want,” they declared. Middle fingers rose throughout the crowd in immediate agreement, capturing the rebellious spirit of both the set and the festival surrounding it.
Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder) BLXCKPUNKS at Purple City
From there, we headed to the Starlite Room, where Penny & the Pits brought a different kind of attitude to the main stage ahead of Shannon Shaw. Their surf-rock tunes carried a playful cool, but one of the set’s most compelling moments came through a spooky rendition of ESG’s “Erase You.”
Formed in the South Bronx in 1978, ESG—short for Emerald, Sapphire & Gold—became deeply influential across funk, hip-hop, post-punk and dance music through their sparse, rhythm-driven approach. Penny explained that her own band was attempting to “follow in their footsteps”. Rather than simply reproducing “Erase You,” Penny & the Pits pulled it into their own shadowy surf-rock world.
Outside at the Block Party, Calgary duo Miesha & The Spanks tore through new material from their forthcoming eight-song EP, Visions, out September 18. Their combination of gritty guitar, forceful percussion and cathartic vocals felt naturally suited to the outdoor stage. Between bands, Purple City’s customary wrestling matches kept things moving, giving the audience an opportunity to boo, cheer and heckle over the soundchecks happening behind them.
Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder) - Kali Horse at Purple City
Kali Horse appeared next like a pair of mystical creatures. Desiree Das Gupta and Sam Maloney played instinctively off each other’s energy, their faces marked with metallic designs resembling Y2K-inspired butterfly wings. Together, they wove a seamless set that drifted between crunchy guitars, ethereal electronic synth lines and overlapping vocal deliveries.
Big Evil Rat ensured the afternoon’s surrealism didn’t end there. Before the band had even begun, thunderous reverberations echoed from the Rat King, a vocal-effects contraption that transformed the singer’s voice into something deep, booming and vaguely reminiscent of the great and powerful Wizard of Oz. It signalled that we were heading into more mischievous territory. The band’s unruly set served as a reminder that garage rock remains alive and filthy. Just when we thought Alberta was a rat-free province, Big Evil Rat emerged from the shadows to challenge that reputation.
Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder) - Big Evil Rat live at Purple City
We eventually made our way into the basement of Freemasons’ Hall, where Vancouver-based Gadfly previewed songs from a new record currently in the works. Originally formed in Iran, the band’s psychedelic grunge carried an abrasive physicality that felt especially potent in the cramped underground room. Gadfly’s sound also extended beyond the stage: at the merch table, attendees could find a limited-edition comic book titled GASH, accompanied by a Gadfly-created soundtrack available on cassette. It rewards catching the band on tour while you still can.
Cherry pick closed the basement with a wall of sound that ricocheted through every corner of the venue. Their mix of grunge and shoegaze could have emerged directly from the ’90s DIY underground, playing tracks from their latest EP :3. For anyone who missed them, cherry pick will soon head to POP Montréal for REVERIE’s showcase with East Town Get Down, appearing alongside Cistern, Mad Iris and pool girl.
Photo credit: Shannon Johnston (@me_onlylouder) - cherry pick live at Purple City