The night started off with brother-sister duo Tennyson, her on the drums and him on the decks. Tennyson’s sound is similar to Ryan Hemsworth and Giraffage — it’s those low-key, downtempo electronic jams decorated with an occasional vocal sample that turns to vivid colour when performed live.

Next up was Charlotte Day Wilson, local alternative-soul musician. Wilson was joined on stage by a full band, who brought her DIY sound to an entirely new level.

“This is the first time I’ve played any of these songs,” she declared a couple tracks in. Well, none of us could tell. Wilson skillfully mixes jazz and electronic music, plays guitar and saxophone all while singing. Multitalented, check. Her saxophone tracks are reminiscent of early Sade but as she worked through the new songs, joined on stage by support singer Kaitlin (who, let’s be honest, killed it), the tracks progressed towards more R&B. Wrapping up the set with “Work”, a song about “working for the things you love,” Wilson and her “beautiful band” undoubtedly blew some minds in the crowd.

The evening’s headliner was River Tiber, the pseudonym of Toronto-based singer/songwriter/producer Tommy Paxton-Beesley, who also performs with a four-piece band. Some of you might know Paxton-Beesley for his appearance on Drake’s mixtape If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, but River Tiber is a lot more then the sample of “No Talk” Drake borrowed in “No Tellin’”.

Paxton-Beesley is known for his collaborations, and the ease with which he approaches work makes him an asset in the industry but attention must be paid to his solo work. When The Time Is Right dropped on September 16 and was the main focus of this showcase.

People clearly came out to see a River Tiber show. “Whose first River Tiber show is it?” asked Paxton-Beesley, and a small bunch of hands went up in the air. “How about second, second River Tiber show?” more hands went up and shouts started to come from the crowd. The Q&A quickly turned into River Tiber bingo: “Who’s seen all River Tiber shows!” with some of those same hands enthusiastically going back up in the air with joyful pride.

River Tiber plays dark, ambient electronic music that builds on live instruments. Paxton-Beesley told Noisey in February that his vocals are the most valuable to him — it’s a way to bring himself forward “in an honest format,” which definitely shows during live performances and on his record alike. His voice is nested in layers of ghost choruses, just one of the few things that makes When The Time Is Right a worthy listen and River Tiber’s show a must-see.

The post RB Sound Select with Tennyson, Charlotte Day Wilson, and River Tiber appeared first on Quip Magazine.

You’ve seen nothing until you’ve seen Elmo get low with a bunch of dudes in neon tanks and “Billionaire Boys Club” t-shits. Everyone was keeping it 100%, even Minnie Mouse got moves and the cotton candy sugar rush was only fueling the celebratory hype.

The stage was tucked away at the back of the yard under trees and you had to find odd corners around the space to be able to see the DJs through the blinding sun. Every now and then you’d spot an occasional body facing the wrong way while hundreds of people are throwing shapes, tossing vocal compliments towards the stage.

The day started off with Toronto’s local Harrison who has been making appearances around various major festivals across the city all summer. Though humble in appearance Harrison always delivers an upbeat set to get the party started. Tennyson, a brother-sister duo from Edmonton, are another two kids on the scene worth paying attention to. Making soft, glitchy electronic beats with a variety of drums, Luke Tennyson and Tess Pretty came together as a perfect soundtrack to melting crushed blue ice.

Ganz had trouble at the border and could not make his set but Tom Wrecks, one half of Thugli, stepped in for a respectable nearly hour-and-a-half-long performance. Playing classics from the Thugli repertoire and club heavy hitters from Ludacris’ “Move Bitch” and Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have My Money” to Jamie XX’s “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)”, Wrecks got everyone dancing.

Flat White was also delayed but was welcomed on stage with an epic introduction by Jr. Flo and David Matisse who then stepped off the stage to wander around talk to party guests. For the first little while Flat White seemed a bit out of his element but once he got going with the crowd’s favorites from Drake’s “Energy” to a James Blake throwback the set came together into a solid performance.

Just Blaze stepped in right after dropping faster, more energetic trap-heavy tracks getting the crowd worked up for the final performance of the day. The Keys N Krates chant happened earlier in the day but things did not get real till the birthday crew took the stage. Light. Them. UP!

KNK clearly likes birthday parties. We like birthday parties. You definitely liked this birthday party. Let’s do another one next year, same time, same place, same creepy Elmo.

See more photos from the KnK Birthday Party here.

The post Best. Birthday. Ever. With Keys N Krates appeared first on Quip Magazine.