Hello there ladies and gentlemen! Welcome one and all to my first blog post. It seems that you have all now witnessed a truly incredible event: the birth of yet another internet personality. Be very afraid internet…very afraid. So! Let’s talk music! As a brand new Canadian indie music blogger it seems only appropriate that I talk about some quality Canadian indie music. Today let’s take a look at an up-and-coming band named Jaron Freeman-Fox and the Opposite of Everything.

I was first introduced to this wonderful group at a small bar in Montreal called l’Inspecteur Epingle, where I was treated to one of the greatest folk performances that I have ever seen. To say that I was completely blown away by the astounding fiddle work of Jaron Freeman-Fox would be quite the understatement. Never in my life have I heard a fiddle played with such an incredible amount of skill and expression. His flawless playing will make you want to dance, it will put you into a deep trance, it might even make you feel like splitting at the seams. The small audience at the bar that night was transported to a whole range of cultures through Jaron’s ability to shift entirely from one style of folk to the next. The band moved from straight fiddle tunes, to klezmer, to the stylings of what seemed to be perfectly authentic Indian music. A true fiddle devotee, Jaron Freeman-Fox actuallyspent an extended period in India studying their musical tradition and incorporating that into his playing. The end result is a captivating ability to blend opposing styles like no other.

Now that little rambling about fiddles only scratches the surface of the Opposites, since Jaron Freeman-Fox is accompanied by a full band of wonderful musicians. The band plays with real chemistry, and makes sure to feature some serious clarinet, accordion, double bass, and drum work. I’m realizing right at this moment that a blog does not contain nearly enough space for me to write all of my thoughts about this phenomenal band, so it looks like I’m going to have to skim through some things and let you audiophiles do some listening on your own.

Jaron Freeman-Fox has currently created two albums. His first, titled Manic Almanac : Slow Möbius, is a more laid back and peaceful version of what I was treated to live, and features the fiddle very prominently. This album is a good one to sit back and enjoy on a nice sunny day. His second, Jaron Freeman-Fox & the Opposite of Everything, is fresh out of the studio. It’s thanks to this release that I was able to catch the band touring again this year, and it features the rest of the band to a greater extend than the first. If I really had to choose one or the other I would pick his newest album, mostly because of greater diversity between songs and instrumentation, the decision to include a handful of vocal tracks, and a lot more serious jamming (just give the opening track, Auctioneering Everything, a good listen). Not to mention a brilliant rendition of People Are Strange.

I will leave you with a video or two, and the link to their website, so that all you lovely readers can experience this truly excellent music yourselves. These guys don’t get nearly the amount of credit they deserve, so I leave it up to you, internet universe.

Much Love,

~Dave

http://theoppositeofeverything.com/site/