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2010-04-27T19:46:00.001-04:00

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2010-04-05T17:58:00.002-04:00

9 out of 10 - Americana - UK review

As the reviews keep pouring in, we're pleased to point out the first one from England and its a great one! Go here to check it out.

More shows will be announced soon too!

Another Canadian, Another Great Record

A thread in the Americana-UK forum late last year started to debate why Canada produces so much very good music. After a few suggestions (no X-Factor was one) it turned into a list of great Canadian musicians. Chris Page wasn’t on that list – he should be.

'A Date with A Smoke Machine' has (and I’m using my broadest of broad brushes to paint this picture) two types of track: the acoustic track and the electric track. The beauty of this is that Page seems to have written each song with whatever was a hand at the time. If there was something to plug the Gretch he is holding on the back cover of the album into, then it was electric, if there wasn’t it was acoustic.

Page would seem to be the sort of guy who, if he were hungry, would wander down to the local grocery store with just a vague idea of want he wanted to eat, would have a look around to see what looked good then take it home and cook it. He’s not the sort who would ponder for hours over the latest celebrity chef’s book, make an extensive list then give up because he couldn’t get the right colour pepper. He has the ability to move from the tender folky acoustics of 'Closets Overflowing' to the rockiness of “Fall Back Morning” without missing a beat or breaking sweat.

'A Date With A Smoke Machine' with it’s mix of folk and rock and punk gets better and better with every listen.

Date review added: Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Reviewer: John Hawes
Reviewers Rating: 9 of 10
Related web link: Artist Myspace

2010-03-01T22:05:00.003-05:00

A Date with a Magical Night

thanks to everyone who made saturday's record launch show at the dom polski in ottawa an incredible success.

the beau's flowed, year zero rocked and davie spun the turntables (everything from ELO to gaunt, natch!)

pals jill zmud, doug macpherson, jim bryson, dave draves, jon bartlett and scott terry all joined me on stage for a couple of super fun sets.

thanks to jb for once again pulling the kelp magic out of his energetic indie rock top hat.

you can check out some amazing photos of the evening (including these here) by andrew neville.

next stop: calgary! see you out west...

2010-02-23T21:41:00.006-05:00

A Date with a Smoke Machine - LAUNCH TIME!

**** this saturday is the big record launch show here in ottawa to launch 'a date with a smoke machine'. the show is at the dom polski (MAP IT HERE) and doors are at 8pm. CKCU, beau's beer and kelp records are co-sponsoring. come on out, have a few beau's and help send this pop nugget into the stratosphere.

tix are 8 bucks advance at all compact disc locations and $10 at the door.

8pm: doors
9pm: year zero
10pm: chris page w/special guests
11pm: camp radio w/special guests

**** the vinyl is out and it looks and sounds amazing! we'll have it on sale at the show. of course it contains download cards so you can grab the mp3s from the kelp web site while you spin this slab o' glory on your fave turntable!

leila's art is stunning on 12"!

thanks to our amazing friends at saved by vinyl for making this happen!

**** we've had countless terrific reviews for the record so far...check out the fakebook page as we'll keep posting them there.

**** if you want to get a head start, listen and buy it online here:

**** oh yeah...i did this pod-kelp-cast for kelp records last week: what's in that smoke machine, anyway! check it!

rock. on. have. fun.

2010-02-12T21:36:00.003-05:00

A Tribute to Sandy

It is with great sadness that I write this post.

Doug's dad, Sandy MacPherson passed away yesterday.

Sandy was a super guy who touched everyone he met. He was a jokester and true entertainer with a huge heart. He always had that sparkle in his eye and a mischievous grin that gave away the fact he was up to no good.

I have many great memories of this good ol' farmer.

Sandy let The Stand GT take over his house and farm one day to shoot a video. Always the sport, he also agreed to let these nutty young kids cast him as the drummer in some strange story that had him in a band featuring Doug's family. The plot unfolded: the boys in The Stand GT were trying to get to the 'show' to see this band.

But when we finally got there it was too late.

The final scene is of Sandy with that telling smirk, reading the paper.

The show was over. Or was it just a dream?

Sandy, you'll be greatly missed.

Our thoughts are with Doug and his entire family tonight and for the coming days.

2010-01-13T22:18:00.004-05:00

a date with a smoke machine

.: owen and dawn from SBV! :.

we're still a month away from the release of 'smoke machine' and show details are starting to come together. check back here for the full scoop on the bash soon.

here are a couple of early reviews in the meantime...

Chris Page
A Date With A Smoke Machine
(Kelp Records)
*****
Not only will the sexy, tormented voice of Chris Page make you melt, but that guitar work of his is pure greatness. A Date with a Smoke Machine is haunting. The songs cling to you as the memories that made them must cling to Page. And there isn’t a single letdown in the bunch. It’s poetic and moving and constantly surprising you with lyrics like, “I creep into your sleep with panic stricken song.” Page even provides the back story for each song, revealing that even his point of view is poetic. He borrowed a friend’s guitar while on tour and used it to write the introduction to a song. He admits, “I’m not sure if taking songs out of someone’s guitar is fair game.” All’s fair in love Chris, and I love this CD. It’s a new staple for road trips and lazy Sundays.
STACEY LAWRENCE
See Magazine, Edmonton
January 2010

"Coax the Ending Day"
This standout from an upcoming solo album by one-third of the underappreciated Ottawa pop-punk band Camp Radio is so propulsive, it's a shock to belatedly realize that the arrangement has no drums. If you can imagine a cross between Billy Bragg's "Levi Stubbs' Tears" and The Shins' "Kissing the Lipless," you'll be about halfway there. (From A Date With a Smoke Machine, out Feb. 16, http://chrispage.bandcamp.com)
John Sakamoto
Anti-Hit List
January 2010
Toronto Star

you can get the CD now from kelp or this weekend in wakefield when i play with micarza camaro at the awesome kaffe 1870!

see you in the mountains.

> cp

2010-01-01T12:38:00.003-05:00

waiting for the great leap forward

.: thinking about the year. the new year. :.

so it's now 2010 and i'm thrilled this decade is starting off on a friday. it feels much more stabilizing to know you've got a couple of days to get your act together before being thrown head first into the new year.

i reviewed my dorky 'revolutions' from last year on here and i think i did pretty well. i failed at spending less time in vintages and recording junior farmer songs, but i did manage to bike through the winter and, for the most part, keep my shit together. i'm still not on facebook though kelp plans to set me up with an artist page soon. *shudder* maybe i'll see some of you then.

i'll lay off the resolution list this year and only say that my plan is to play and record as much music as possible. the new record is out next month and camp radio mixing of the brand new full length is well under way. i've got solo shows booked and more plans to play with the wonderful jill zmud, so i guess i'm off to a pretty good head start 12 hours into the year.

as i look down the calendar i realize that march 15th is the 25th anniversary of the stand gt plugging in amps for the very first time. interesting. more on that to come i'm sure.

check back here soon for some demos and covers i'll be releasing in advance of 'smoke machine' seeing the light of day. show dates are hopefully coming soon as well.

i've got the test presses for the vinyl and they sound pretty hot. you can get the cd now and the records should be along via saved by vinyl in a month or so.

i'm going to go and watch the hangover now (yes, the movie). ;)

all the best to you and yours for 2010. see you down the line and/or on twitter!

2009-12-13T12:30:00.005-05:00

let it slide, let it snow, let it die

.: what is she doing with those scissors? :.

for a limited time, i've uploaded 4 versions of 2 original christmas songs.

'the minor crime at christmastime' is a brand new track i concocted in my basement inspired by a new vintage guitar and the fact my neighbours are in competition to out-christmas-light each other.

i didn't like the first version originally so i cooked up a take that's a bit more raw...they're both here so you can choose your poison.

the second track is an acoustic version of the stand gt song 'stocking stuffer'. a wonderful and bitter little christmas tale about trimming trees with contempt!

i like that i managed to fit the grinch, my pal mike enberg and shane macgowan all into one song! and remember that good ol' shane was born on christmas day!

i recorded this a couple of years ago...i don't remember when. the original stand gt version is here too...recorded directly from the 7" vinyl. snap! crackle fan!

band camp is a super great site and you can pick any format you want. these holiday numbers are free for downloading, so grab them while you can. i'd love to share in your christmastime playlists.

have a happy and safe festive season. :)

2009-11-29T10:35:00.003-05:00

hello, back catalogue

.: photo by Stephanie Montreuil :.

as we ramp up to officially release 'a date with a smoke machine', there are a bunch of activities underway. i've put up all my solo records on a really cool site called 'band camp'. so far you can listen to the entire back catalogue and soon you'll be able to purchase tracks in any format imaginable.

you can download the first track from smoke machine, 'two twenty twos' for free at the moment, so dig around and be sure to grab that. check back often as more stuff will be coming online and you'll be able to get the entire new record here shortly.

if you haven't seen it, the new video for 'coax the ending day' has been released. i remember when putting out a vid meant a ton of work, money and energy only to cross your fingers with bleak hope that it would show up once on the 'the wedge'. so thank you, youtube:

thank you to stephanie montreuil for the really nice live pics she took at a recent show. she kindly allowed me to use them for promo purposes so i thought i'd include a couple in this post.

.: photo by Stephanie Montreuil :.

next up: video for two twenty twos and show bookings. want me to play in your town? get in touch. believe it or not, i'll actually be heading out on the road soon. where i play is completely up in the air at the moment.

cheers.

2009-11-03T17:06:00.004-05:00

best new artist no doubt

.: two members of the stand gt, about to kick out the jams :.

it's cool to be nominated for 'best new artist' in ottawa: even though i'm not sure what it all means and i've got more than a few friends getting a kick out it.

anyway, you should vote for me here at the ottawa xpress.

i thought i'd dig up an old pic for the occasion of me and someone else who could have easily been nominated for best new artist in ottawa, todd gibbon of the fiftymen. :)

can anyone guess the year?

speaking of something actually 'new', my new album is here and stacked up in a basement closet. it hits the streets feb. 16th...many more details to follow.

in the meantime, get voting!

2009-10-12T16:08:00.003-04:00

two shows this weekend!

.: the line up @ raw sugar this saturday afternoon :.

i'm firing up two sets this coming saturday if you plan to be in ottawa and/or the local environs. first, i'm on around 3pmish at raw sugar for a singer-songwriter afternoon show being put on by kelp and beau's. jill zmud, sarah hallman and others will join me on stage.

then it's off to wakefield for an evening show at the spectacularly fine kaffe 1870. wayne from bloomistry will be starting off the evening, so c'mon up for a drink and listen in the mountains.

psst: i have my new cd on hand, but shhhhh: it doesn't 'come out' until february. but no worries, you can buy one now if you like. more details about the official launch will be coming later on. email me if you need some pronto.

.: a.v. lounges in our pop montreal digs :.

as always, pop montreal was a blast this year. we teamed up with mint and had two super fun shows. the bbq was a raging success by all accounts. how is it we are able to score great weather each year?

NOTE: sorry to report the camp radio show at the elmdale with the spitfire nines has been canceled for unforeseen reasons. we promise we'll reschedule soon.

2009-10-01T14:13:00.001-04:00

and on to pop montreal

.: shooting 'coax the ending day' :.

if you're heading to la belle province this weekend, specifically the glorious island of montreal, be sure to stop by the kelp records showcase and bbq! we've teamed up with mint again this year and it promises to be a killer couple of days and shows! details:

POP MONTREAL!

THURSDAY OCTOBER 1ST
MINT / KELP SHOWCASE!
Petit Campus (57 Prince-Arthur Est), MONTREAL
A Pop Montreal Showcase
$8 at the door

9pm- Chris Page
10pm- Hot Panda
11pm- Andrew Vincent
12am- The Pack AD
1am- Flecton Big Sky
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=135062201363&ref=search&sid=519941985.890024696..1

FRIDAY OCTOBER 2ND
MINT / KELP / UNFAMILIAR AND COKEMACHINEGLOW.COM co-present

EAST MEATS WEST III
Friday October 2nd, 1pm-7pm
Notman House (51 Sherbrooke Ouest @ Clark), MONTREAL
free show and food!

1.30- no gold
2.00- flecton big sky
2.30- carolyn mark
3.00- hot panda
3.30- the pack a.d.
4.00- snailhouse
4.30- andrew vincent
5.00- chris page
5.30- hollerado
6.00- sports: the band

Free food and very cheap suds while supplies last. Come early for the swedish berries and Dubble Bubble!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=169095597387

2009-09-14T20:02:00.002-04:00

mountain air i do declare

.: red sky at night :.

i just finished listening to this solo record master for the umpteenth time and yikes, i still like it. 'a date with a smoke machine' rolls off to the plant tomorrow. the artwork is smoking again and i feel like i might be on to something. much more on that later...

while listening, i'm reflecting a some pretty amazing weekends with family and friends recently and i thought i'd share some of the cool moments from a couple of days ago. my dad and i caught this incredible sunset that someone sent our way and i was pretty grateful to have my camera nearby. we both paused for this one.

*sigh*

then i thought i should rip it up, get creative and shoot a video.

yeah, much more on that later too.

.: standing the shadow of a late summer day :.

.: after dinner jam :.

my uncle bob pulled out his accordion after dinner and treated us all to a bunch of fine traditional reels and spiels. i accompanied on my magical j45 and while he looks like he's about to give me the gears for playing a wrong note here, i thought i did rather well. :)

hearing his playing echo in the still country mountain air was a serious treat.

2009-09-04T20:26:00.003-04:00

camp radio: rock record update

.: charlie says a-ok to the cottage inspired blistering leads :.

no seriously. it's freaking cool being independent. you get to work at your own pace. camp radio has tracked 15 crunchass tunes and now i'm messing with them getting ready to finish up with the leads, overdubs, glockenspiels, 5 part harmonies, etc. here, senior demo producer charlie takes a time out while i work the camera. it was pouring rain at the cottage so we both set up that morning in the country kitchen and laid down some ridiculous solos. ridiculous!

.: late one night near the river near the falls :.

later on and days later, i found jim and hinch drinking in the new grotto out in the bush. the mountain air had got to them and they were giddy there in the patio lantern light.

2009-08-13T18:12:00.003-04:00

hanging at the bathouse

.: jim tracking brand new spanking tunes :.

i've been cashing in a little vacation time this week, hanging with jim recording his new album out in bath, ontario. the new stuff is sounding beyond killer and this place is absolutely magical. dave and bandit are here too and as i type this, jim is ripping through some incredible guitar parts that will have tone fiends drooling in the aisles.

.: dave with house engineer aaron :.

there was a meteor shower last night and while the guinness was flowing and the stars were shooting, the highlight of the night was probably aaron's wicked 3am grilled cheese.

i don't want to go back to reality. ever.

2009-07-23T11:50:00.003-04:00

it's a smaller world after all, twitter

i got a huge kick out of this today. a friend from boston pinged me on twitter from merge XX (i was at 15 and bummed i'm not in carrboro right now). to set the scene: a guy from boston standing in a crowd in carrboro NC beside a stranger from seattle:

bradleysalmanac@chrispager So I'm standing in the crowd at XXMerge & I hear a guy next to me say the words "Stand GT" in between songs. Carl from Seattle?

that would be 'the' carl from top drawer records. nutty.

be sure to check out brad's terrific and long running blog here.

as for carl, i'm sure you can find him on facebook. ;)

2009-07-20T22:13:00.002-04:00

chris: black sheep inn july 23

hopefully you're not too bluesfested out. i'm playing the magical black sheep inn up in wakefield qc this thursday with the kingmakers and great bloomers. come up to the mountains and enjoy the air. i'm on at 8:30 sharp...it's a school night, kids!

.: at raw sugar: photo by jesse hildebrand :.

we had a swell time at the fine raw sugar...thanks to the folks who popped by to see me play some songs to the rain with western pals mark davis and lorrie matheson. it was a room of albertans!

and jesse hildebrand took shot amazing shots (see above). you should check out his site here.

awesome pics, jesse.

2009-06-20T12:38:00.001-04:00

...and this just in!

i've confirmed with the man himself and 'piet masone' will be joining camp radio on the bill at the kaffe 1870 in wakefield on july 4th! suh-weet!

2009-06-20T09:58:00.002-04:00

westfest and upcoming shows

westfest, as always, was a pleasure to play and super fun. for those who missed it, dave was asked to put a set together for a sunday evening show. while we didn't get in all the songs we hoped due to time constraints, it was a great pleasure to share the stage with such incredible talent. it was the first time i'd played with jill, christine and jerusha...and i was blown away by their powerful voices.

did they ever make my songs sound good, huh?

.: striking a ghostly pose over dave, jill, christine and jerusha :.

here's a clip of jill's gorgeous song, reconcile.

oh, by the way, i've got a couple of upcoming shows. i'm playing solo with alberta pals lorrie matheson and mark davis @ raw sugar on thursday july 2nd. then camp radio is in at the fine kaffe 1870 up in wakfield QC on saturday july 4th.

2009-04-26T12:46:00.002-04:00

kelp records 15th anniversary party this weekend!

as the buds are exploding on trees over here and i'm cranked up on lack of sleep and too much coffee, i figured it was about time i get to updating this blog.

it's kelp anniversary time folks, when i know it is truly time to usher in spring! And there is SO much going on this week:

.: damn i love this poster :.

as you can see, camp radio is playing at the elmdale on friday night. i'm playing solo on saturday at the carleton tavern and with rhume at the gluepot saturday night. sleep? hell with it.

you should really get your passes ASAP here. i hear they're flying...

.: rolfster and jb: random alley shot :.

get all the details over at kelp, including show stuff, off-the-beaten-track and after-last-call activities as well as this year's cause of choice: ride to conquer cancer (it's true! matt and liz will be stationary biking during each show!)

the new kelp sampler, kelp 15, is also streaming off the home page, so be sure to give it a listen.

well allright! i guess i'll see you all at the shows...

2009-03-26T21:11:00.004-04:00

the austin texas recovery

.: at the hold steady, feeling fairly steady :.

okay so i think i'm fully recovered from sxsw. what was that, 4 days recovery time? not bad. hi-lites for me? they are far too many to list here. ask me over a beer. regrets? 5000 shows in 4 days is an awful lot to take in, so yes i missed a few and yes, i have regrets.

but man, what a great time.

i suppose i should get a flickr account or something and share some memories. i know. facebook too. how the hell do you people have time to update all this stuff! ;)

i'm loving twitter at the moment, so feel free to find me there. its rapid-fire-concise-no-time-to-waste blogging for those of you still curious. perfect.

KELP TURNS 15: keep the last weekend of april open! april 30th the music flood gates open. prez jon has lots up his indie sleeves so you don't want to miss a thing. i'll be playing a solo set (somewhere) of sure to be legendary gems (sometime - ha!) and camp radio will make an appearance, drunk on new material.

there's a new kelp 15 comp out and it's really wicked. i have a non-new-album track called 'calling all kids reunion' on there and camp radio contributed 'cracked up to be'. there's a ton of other great numbers from kelp artists and friends...be sure to grab one before the big weekend.

2009-02-27T20:41:00.004-05:00

SAVE CBC RADIO 3

please sign this petition and help save one of the most important supporters of indie music in this country.

i honestly can't imagine losing radio 3.

sign here

2009-02-11T21:09:00.006-05:00

camp radio back in the studio

.: dave heading to the moon room with jb, higs, civ and page :.

i'm happy to report that camp radio took major strides toward a brand new album this past weekend. 8 beds are down and 1 is finished, mixed and destined for the kelp records 15th anniversary comp due out this spring.

.: estee guards the drum troll room post smoke break :.

the comp track is a cool departure, i think. title TBD, though 'last minute comp track' seems to be the current choice (read: joke).

there are 6 more to add to the 8 in the coming weeks. we'll see how the indie rock ditch digging goes and if we can't wrap it all up by summer.

my solo record 'a date with a smoke machine' is currently being mastered by the good lads at little bullhorn. we're still targeting a mid-spring release on kelp and saved by vinyl.

.: draves has a new smoking coat :.

2009-01-31T10:04:00.003-05:00

in a cabin with...

.: check out the new myspace page here :.

on feb. 9th i'm playing a set as part of the dutch music recording project called 'in a cabin with'.

it's a pretty cool event that mashes up artists from the netherlands and the project's host country. the dutch musicians seek out cool and idyllic locales around the world and spend time holed up in a makeshift recording studio.

it's a fascinating project and i'm looking forward to hearing more.

from what i understand the mercury lounge show is a showcase of what's going on here in ottawa as part of the canadian leg of the project.

will be fun!

monday, february 9th: mercury lounge, 56 byward market sq., ottawa.

2008-12-31T16:41:00.002-05:00

taking a long walk off a short year

.: glengarry sunset, christmas day 2008 :.

some new year's revolutions for 2009:

i will:

- entertain the idea of purchasing an old guitar that's new to me.

- try not to loiter as much in the lcbo(s)...or worse on the home hardware book, vintages.

- endeavor to release a 'record' of original solo songs that the kids won't like

- try to keep my shit together

- entertain the idea of opening a facebook account for all you people who can't find me on the web

- ride my bike through an ottawa winter

- get camp radio to record those new songs we've been mulling over for two years

- drink and skate for the millionaires 10th anniversary at the exclaim cup

- record those long lost junior farmer songs and put them on the net for posterity

- brush my cat a bit more (his dreads in '08 were jah awe inspiring)

feel free to call me on any of these as '09 winds down...that's if you can find me on the web.

happy '09. be free. be happy. be true.