Years ago, while I was still working in Picasso's kitchen in Montreal, I would have my computer set to play Add N to (x)'s FYUZ in the morning as my alarm clock. Partially because it was an awesome song, but mostly because it was everything I loved about lo-fi electronica mixed with a heavy dose of rib shaking bass. I've since had a difficult time finding someone (or something) musically similar that wasn't either a total rip off (which I could live with) or just really terrible sounding. There's a fine line to walk when you make a formal decision to throw mud inside your electronics to get that grunge-tech sound. Toronto's Holy Fuck, playing at The Music Gallery tomorrow, likely make supremely tasty mud pies.

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With the goal of making people "freak out and smash stuff", Holy Fuck members Brian Borcherdt, Graham Walsh, Mike Bigelow, Loel Campbell, Kevin Lynn, Glenn Milchem and Robbie Kuster have been getting all crashy-crashy-smashy in Toronto since 2004. There's a lot of favoritism from the band pointed in the direction of live recording, and a lot of haterism pointed towards anything a little too digital. Stomp-box guitar pedals are everywhere, a TR-909 isn't used for percussion, and rehearsals are merely a suggestion that's best ignored.

They've been called blip-bloppers, a shabbily dressed Kraftwerk, and Toronto's evil super group. I call them A.D.D. personified and then set on fire. No matter how you karate chop it, Holy Fuck is a divine find in Toronto, worthy of your praise and worship. Their Myspace page has 3 tracks available for listening. Here's a recap.

Korock's bass line sounds like part brown note and one part vacuum in your brain. Fittingly, it brings back memories of Les Claypool's tone on Primus' The Brown Album; dark, dirty, and beautifully lo-fi. This is what Shake Hands with Beef would sound like remixed with the bass overdriven by about 10db. Safari, a live radio recording, starts off with a distinctly NES sounding melody, and quickly moves into a territory where only rabid bunnies could thrive. These rabid bunnies, of course, love to dance. They also forget their Ritalin this morning. This is a good thing. Junglor, recorded live in Montreal's La Tulipe, leads off with a repetitive sine-wave that sounds as if it were being pumped through a speak and spell, with drums and bass coming in that provide a slow groove reminiscent of an old dream I had wherein I was a detective in a film-noir murder mystery, and I was walking down a never ending alley. Three quarters of the way in, a synth with a dirty tuba-ish patch drills into your skull, while you funk out to the finish.

None of the tracks are available for immediate download on the Myspace page, however, there is a link somewhere on it for four downloads of past live recordings. See if you can find it (hint: it's in plain sight). Get these land mines of electro-funk into your earbuds, now!

- Myspace Page
- Band's homepage

See Holy Fuck LIVE:
With Kids on TV/Ohbijou Mash-up Band
January, 27 2007 at The Music Gallery
197 John St.
416.204.1080
Cost : $10

See other artists featured on Theirspace Photo by BlogTO's Jerrold Litwinenko