The Stoned Poet

 It was a cold Friday night. Only option was to get in the car with friends and drive to Montreal. There, lay all hopes of finding twindling and fiddling to do. There'd be no beauties nor druggies outside with the cold weather, only option was to find a venue to scuffle in and drink and fade in the crown. That meant money would be needed, and I had all but money honestly. But nonetheless we went, drove, stopped at Atomic Cafe, gave a guitar back to a friend, bought a Pink Floyd Echoes 1965-2025 Magazine reviewing the band's entire career. I couldn't help but start reading it and sure it inspired more psyched lsd induced ideas to my brain. Possibilities seemed infinite. Thus, an idea came, I could try and bargain a ticket for the gang to go to a show. The show in question I wanted to see was, Sunday Riot Club, Street Panther and The Space Wizards @ L'Escogriffe. My friends Antoine and Jordan seemed unbothered of the uncome, but I was determined to get in, whatever the co...

"Come to me now and rest your head for just five minutes, everything is good Such a cozy room, The windows are illuminated by the evening sunshine through them Fiery gems for you, only for you Our house is a very, very, very fine house with two cats in the yard Life used to be so hard Now everything is easy 'cause of you and our [house]" Those lyrics from the song Our House by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young are the exact representation of what the project called Mai/Son was. A place where I could hang my problems, have a drink or two (as it was a Bring Your Own Beer, there was no pressure to drink at the bar) and simply enjoy the music whenever and whatever music it was. On many week-ends about to end up with no place to go, I would walk up Saint-Joseph Ouest and arrive at the mythic establishment. Compared to say Van Horne, Mai/Son was really a place to embrace, it was a venue we, the youth, had the possibilities of making ours and limitless were the possibilities towa...

     Carter Kane, aka MOC has done much in the local scene of Montreal. From writing bars at the age of 10, playing shows all year long to hosting a weekly radio show called Fluid Mosaic where he interviews local artists of all genres to help promote their music and push the boundaries of a community in the music industry, allowing people to share their ideas, their creative plots and hopefully help build connections between people who delve in muisc through their earphones or during shows. Summer 2025 he hosted  FM Fest  supported by  Les Insoumises  ,  Infamy   CJLO  and  Non-Binary Twins . Artist such as  Parallel ,  Ryan Brio ,  Dievanse ,  Resonance , and more have had the opportunity to perform and showcase their talents through three neighboring venues, Casa del Popolo, Sala Rossa and La Sotterenea. This fest was really great because all kind of artist from various genres were playing, allowing for audienc...

Sunday, Funday it was on November the 16th! I went down to l'Escogriffe to see Cordial a French multi genre band that have swept everybody's feet at every venue they played. Tonight, the opening band was Oddcharm , this followed Cordial and finally, Lezart played. I came, smoke, breezed and freezes my ass off. No intake of insane amounts of alcohol would be seen from my part tonight, but as the cold bit through my limbs, I was forced to admit I desperately wanted to warm my bones. So in we got, Fanny the picture taker was there, Cordial had arrived, Oddcharm were there patiently waiting and Lezart were roaming, unseen and seeking warmth, praying on us, waiting for the right time to strike. At the door, I great the sax player of Lezart and we exchange a joke about having a line of coke in exchange of paying the ticket for the show, which I think is very inviting for the spectators yet I do reckon that now a days, everyone is broke and drugs aren't cool anymore. I go sit do...

Wednesday the 5th of November. It's cold, one of the first nights where I felt the cold biting my bones and frail limbs. Antoine, my good old drunken friend and I form a duo à la Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassidy, we love to have a good time filled to the brim with the finest of poisons, alcool. Tonight, we wanted to go out and simply have a reasonable amount of beers. No scuffing nor pushing nor shouting or rambling. We would be good boys, civilized. As we walked around Saint-Laurent, hoping we could go see Jazz at Barbossa, we are greated with a closed venue. God Fucking Damnit screams Antoine, I retort, Oh let's keep calm, we haven't even drinked yet, no need to get all riled up. Let's go grab a bite at Slice and Soda and then we can head towards l'Escogriffe and le Quai des Brumes to see what's up. Inside the pizza shop, the man tell's us he's closing so he deals us a deal and we are outted with two jumbo slices for 7$! Antoine tells me, "Wow it rea...

It's Friday 25th October, I'm posting fliers on old rotten drabbed poles who await in silence and agony. No sun caresses their envies nor woman or man to soothe their naughty desires or nitty gritty ways. I look at my phone, it's six thirty, the perfect time to get a beer, a nick and let all hell loose. I take one last pictures of the flyers, I run to my car and light up a cigarette while listening to Bob Dylan's He Was A Friend of Mine. Outside, the leaves hang low and many have fallen, a keen reminder that change comes at a great price. The cold weather mixed with Dylan's vocals on the Bootleg Series 1 to 3 send a shiver down my spine as I survey the streets of Montreal going around Mount Royal in hopes to find a parking near Saint-Laurent boulevard. A right turn, left, stop, go, turn and finally bingo, a spot lays empty. I park and head down two blocks, turn left, get a beer, get out, meet Francois a homeless guy, buy him a cookie and off I go to the show at La ...