YOUNG RIVAL

May Dates with The Sadies

admin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:59:44 +0000

** Update: Montreal & London dates added for YR. The Sadies aren’t playing these shows.

We’re excited to announce some shows in May with The Sadies:

May 24th – Burnstown ON @ Neat Coffee Shop
May 25th – Burnstown ON @ Neat Coffee Shop
May 26th – Sherbrooke QB @ Le Boquebiere
May 27th – Trois Rivieres QB @ Nord-Ouest Café
May 28th – Laval QB @ La Salle Andre-Mathieu (Studio Theatre)
May 30th – Montreal QB @ Divan Orange **
June 1st – London ON @ APK Live **

CMF Shows Tonight & Tomorrow

admin — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:04:08 +0000

A couple shows are happening as part of Canadian Music Fest.

March 22nd – Toronto w/ Jenn Grant @ The Mod Club

March 23rd – Toronto w/ The Inbreds @ Sonic Boom (in-store)

Upcoming Shows w/ the Sheepdogs, Dinosaur Bones!

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:19:10 +0000

YR are excited to announce some new Ontario shows with Toronto’s Dinosaur Bones. Also upcoming are a couple dates with those hairy Sheepdogs.

Jan 26 – Oshawa w/ The Sheepdogs @ Durham College
Jan 27 – Ottawa w/ The Sheepdogs @ The Cabin
Feb 02 – Toronto @ The Horseshoe Tavern (Get Tix! @ The Horseshoe, Rotate This, Soundscapes)
Feb 09 – Guelph @ E-Bar
Feb 10 – Kingston @ The Grad Club (Get Tix! @ Tricolour Outlet, The Grad Club, http://www.ticketscene.ca)
Feb 11 – Hamilton @ Casbah (Get Tix! @ The Casbah, Online)
Feb 12 – St. Catherines @ Mansion House

Happy Haunted Halloween

John — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 19:01:15 +0000

Last year we made a Halloween YouTube playlist, and thought we’d make a tradition out of it. Here is our 2011 20-song playlist you can stream and share with friends (embedded below) while you argue over the legitimacy of Ouiji boards, carve pumpkins, and discuss post-apocalyptic Zombie survival strategies. Thanks to lots of friends and fans online who made some solid suggestions. Leave your suggestions below for 2012!

Indie Travel Guide: Victoria BC

Wildcat — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 18:00:57 +0000

Our blog series “Indie Travel Guide” focuses on cities we travel through, and features all of our favourite go-to spots. Everything is listed in order to mirror our typical schedules on a day-to-day basis while touring. Next time you want to take a drive across Canada, just use this on-going series as a guide. If you’re from the city we’re covering and think we’ve missed something good, leave a comment and let us know.

View the Map

Grab a coffee

Habit on Pandora is a convenient walking distance to lots of places downtown and only a brief walk from one of our favourite motels.

552 Pandora Avenue
Victoria BC
Phone 250-294-1127

Things to Check Out

Take your coffee for a walk around Canada’s first Chinatown around Government St. & Herald St. and try to find Fan Tan Alley.

Best Dinner Options

Hernande’z is perhaps one of the most oddly placed restaurants we’ve ever come across. It’s located in the hallway of an indoor mall on Yates St., with tables lined up on each side of the hallway. You quickly forget that you’re sitting in a mall hallway once you take a bite of your awesome burrito.

735 Yates St
250-884-5313

The Mint has a pretty reasonable late night menu and doubles as a good place for some sit-down drinks.

1414 Douglas Street
250-386-6468

Go to the Venue/Bar

For checking out live music, you can see what’s happening at Alex Goolden Hall or Logan’s.

Big Bad John’s: 1/3rd of Young Rival can’t stand this place, another 1/3rd likes it, and the last 1/3rd thinks it’s one of the best bars in Canada. You’ll have to decide for yourself. Be prepared to put up with their shtick of horrible service and long waits in line if it’s a weekend night. Once you get in, grab a tree-stump seat and work away on the free basket of peanuts.

919 Douglas Street
1-250-383-7137 or 1-800-663-7476

Other options: The Sticky Wicket is a massive traditional pub just a couple doors down from Big Bad John’s (and also technically part of the Strathcona Hotel), and The Mint is usually a happening spot for some underground pints.

LEGEND HAS IT…
Rumour has it that Nirvana played a set in Big Bad John’s back in their early days. The bar claims to also have the first issued liquor license in British Columbia.

Place to crash

Paul’s Motor Inn is affordable and a short walk to downtown. It’s also near the end of the Trans-Canada highway – go check out the tribute to Terry Fox at the end of the road at Mile 0 Park.

1900 Douglas St.
250-382-9231

Greasy Breakfast

mo:le and Lady Marmalade are good options. Paul’s Motel has a classic diner attached to it which is also a convenient option. We’ve been told by locals that Victoria has a strong Sunday brunch culture and there seems to be no shortage of good breakfast spots.

Local Bands

Man Made Lake

Indie Travel Guide: Vancouver BC

Wildcat — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:16:34 +0000

View the Map

Grab a coffee

JJ Bean Coffee Roasters on Commercial Drive makes a good brown bean water, as well as Cuppa Joe on Main St.

Things to Check Out

Take your coffee for a stroll down Commercial drive. You’ll find lots of vintage stores to browse through. Main St. offers similar options.

Neptune Records one of the country’s best record stores, amazing garage rock records section. They also throw in-store shows.

Zulu Records in Kitsilano, great record store, with an ounce or two of pretension.

…or if you’re feeling like being one with the Earth, go take a stroll through Stanley Park.

Gastown is worth strolling through. Gentrification live in the flesh.

Best Dinner Options

The Foundation has the most laid back service you can find in a restaurant. We tend to favor places with lots of vegetarian options, so the foundation is a gold mine. They serve veggie options till 1AM.

The Naam – we haven’t been here in a few years, but we do remember being an awesome spot for a nice sit down meal if you find yourself in the Kitsilano district.

Budgie’s Burritos – around the Main St area, great for a quick bite.

Go to the Venue/Bar

The Railway Club stays open until 3AM on Fridays and Saturdays, and they get lots of quality indie bands coming through. Last time I was there I ran into Nardwuar, and although it was completely by chance, that automatically got them some bonus points in our books. They even have an electric train running laps above the bar.

The Narrow is a cool bar to check out too.

LEGEND HAS IT…
The Railway Club was once just that – a membership only club for the employees of the Canadian Public Railway, which once had a station down the street on Seymor. According to their website it maintains one of the oldest liquor licenses granted in British Columbia since the end of the prohibition.

Place to Crash

Dominion Hotel at 210 Abbott Street is a cool, arty boutique hotel. Not the cleanest place, but a cool spot right in Gastown.

Greasy Breakfast

Slickety Jim’s Chat & Chew, The Foundation, or Sunny Spot Cafe are all good bets.

Local Bands

Yukon Blonde (Kelowna transplants), D.B. Buxton, Thee Manipulators

Indie Travel Guide: Sudbury ON

Wildcat — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 14:41:11 +0000

This post marks the beginning of a new series on our blog: “Indie Travel Guide”. Each post will focus on a city we visit, and will feature all of our favourite go-to spots. Everything is listed in order to mirror our typical schedules on a day-to-day basis while touring. Next time you want to take a drive across Canada, just use this on-going series as a guide. If you’re from the city we’re covering and think we’ve missed something good, leave a comment and let us know.

View the Map

Grab a coffee

If you feel like a sit-down coffee, check out the Laughing Buddha.

Things to Check Out

Cosmic Dave’s Vinyl Emporium & Cosmic Dave’s (Guitar Shop)

Although these two stores are a small walk/bike/drive apart from each other, they’re both great places to check out. Cosmic Dave’s Guitar Shop was once a small diner. Its past is still present: lots of the original features are still in place, including the bar, diner stools, and breakfast menu hanging in the back corner.

At Cosmic Dave’s Vinyl Emporium you’ll find a tasteful selection of new indie and used vinyl.

Best Dinner Option

Head back over to The Laughing Buddha. You won’t regret it.

WORDS OF WISDOM…
The Laughing Buddha makes a deadly za. If you’re not hungry enough to eat a whole pizza, order one anyways and get the other half to-go. You’ll be happy you made this decision at the end of the night when you’re sitting at the end of your bed at the motel craving some late night food.

Go to the Venue/Bar

The Townehouse Tavern has been running for over 20 years.

LEGEND HAS IT…
Many a band has slept overnight in the basement of the Townehouse (it’s been open 20+ years). Legend has it that once upon a time there was a brothel in the same building that was a popular spot for some of the local nickel miners. Bands and employees of The Townehouse have reported ghostly experiences and claim that the basement is haunted by one of the “ladies of the brothel.”

LEGEND ALSO HAS IT…
that Stompin’ Tom Connors wrote the lyrics for the song ‘Sudbury Saturday Night’ on a wall in the basement. The wall has since been covered over with some sweet vintage wood paneling.

Place to crash

The Quality Inn – It’s certainly not the Hilton, but it never really is when you’re on the road. Don’t let the nice pictures on their website fool you.

Greasy Breakfast

Frank’s Deli

Local Bands

Statues, The Havocs, Ox

From Young Rival Estates: Wildcat Wine

Wildcat — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 11:25:02 +0000

Today, as we pack up and leave for tour, we are excited to officially announce our latest endeavor: Young Rival Wildcat Wine. Check out the label and watch the video teaser below:

It’s a bangin’ Barolo Red wine with no preservatives. Made, bottled, and designed by the band.

Our first batch is very limited, and will only be available through contests we hold online – so be sure to follow us on Facebook if you aren’t already. Details to come as we hit the road.

Stay Young,
YR

Indie Machine Mixtape & More Shows Added

John — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:23:15 +0000

The good crew over at The iNDiE MACHINE asked us to make a mixtape, and we said “heck yeah, let’s do this”.

You can read what we’re up to on their blog post over here, as well as get a run down as to why we chose these tracks. You can also listen to the embedded mix below.

Also, as noted in my creative blog title, we’ve announced two more shows for our tour with Hollerado: September 30th in Edmonton @ Wunderbar, and October 1st in Saskatoon @ Amigo’s. Check out full tour dates here.

7 Day Mixtape: Vol. 34 – Young Rival by The Indie Machine on Mixcloud

D.I.Y. Bleach Shirts

John — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:43:09 +0000

Young Rival have always believed in the “Do It Yourself” work ethic, and in following that mentality we figured it was about time to try making some t-shirts for our upcoming upcoming tour.

So we got together the other day, cut a stencil, got out some bleach and tried some experimenting. Turns out that stenciling and bleaching shirts takes a lot longer than we thought it would, so we unfortunately ran out of time after only making 9 shirts. Needless to say If you guys like ‘em we’ll be sure to make a bigger batch next time around. There’s only 9 to be had, all one of a kind and of various sizes.