After leaving work late last night, I thought I'd try to sneak in a show on my way home. I checked some listings, and saw a fun-looking band from Vancouver, Hey Ocean, was playing Piano's at 10. Perfect. Except that when I showed up, the sign outside said they weren't going on til 11. Bummer. Oh, but wait: here's another sign that says some band's going on at 10 upstairs. Awesome. So, I go up there, and there was one slow-moving dude just starting to unload his gear.
Make no mistake: this has nothing to do with laziness or poor organization. This is a calculated ploy designed to get people to spend more money on booze, just like when they tell you that table you reserved for dinner isn't quite ready yet, "but you're more than welcome to have a drink at the bar." Look, I don't mind buying in a drink, but it's a pain in the ass to have to wait around an hour longer than you thought you'd need to when you have to get up for work the next morning.
So, I walked out of there, and headed straight to Cake Shop's cozy basement, with no idea who was playing. (Smartly, they dispense with the idea of set times altogether, instead listing bands as either "1st, 2nd or 3rd.") And I ended up catching this great band called Storms – old timey and acoustic, with a dissonant banjo, cello, guitars and a guy playing washboard that swelled into a torrent of sound, with a girl's voice keening on top. About as brilliant a surprise as you can hope for; good to know there are still some joints in this town you can rely on.