Vancouver pop-punk band Marianas Trench were big winners on the night grabbing two awards.

Fucked Up took favourite punk-hardcore group of the year, Metric and their record Fantasies for favourite album of the year, The Arkells for favorite live band, and Joel Plaskett for favourite solo artist of the year.

The Arkells.
Desperate Union.
Marianas Trench & The Midway State.
Hole/Smashing Pumpkins bassist Melissa Auf der Maur and CBC resident know-it-all Jian Ghomeshi.
Award winner Danny Fernandes.
Burnz N’ Hell.
Indie award winners The Rural Alberta Advantage.
The Rural Alberta Advantage.
photos courtesy shot7.com

ATTENTION INDIE ARTISTS: Did you win at the 2010 Indies or perform? Contact me, I might have some good shots of you from the Indie Awards evening.

One of the more buzzed about events at Canadian Music Week continues to be the Chum FM Fan Fest held at the Masonic Temple, the home of MTV Canada. Last year, it was really the place to be as the very hot Katy Perry was performing. This year, it was Daughtry and Hedley headlining.

Before the party started, Chum FM was recognized earlier in the day at the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards Reception in multiple categories.

Long-time morning man Roger Ashby was recognized for a Lifetime Achievement Award. Roger, Darren & Marilyn were awarded best on-air talent team of the year (in a major market.) As well, Chum FM was recognized as Station of the Year (Adult Contemporary) and lastly, Program Director of the Year, David Corey.

So by night time the Chum crew was ready to party.

The Fan Fest is always a fun event to cover. Not always so great from a photographers perspective, as we can only shoot the performances from a VIP balcony. But the good news, when Chum/CTV puts on a party – they do it up right and the roaming appetizers and open bar certainly would not be considered a hindrance to shooting. I tried to use my unique shooting position – above, stage left to capture things a little differently then if you were in the usual pit position. If anything, it allowed me to capture some fan interaction with the performers.

And if anything, the Chum FM Fan Fest is all about that.

Each artist played about a three song set with Daughtry and Hedley playing longer.

Faber Drive.
Girlicious. Almost didn’t make this performance.
Jacob from Hedley signs autograph mid-performance.
Karl Wolf.
DJ Dopey entertains between sets in VIP lounge.
Stereos.
Daughtry.
Faber Drive.
The Fans on the floor.
Joey McIntyre.
Faber Drive.

The three original members – lead vocalist Mark Holmes, guitarist Sergio Galli, and drummer Chris Steffler where in attendance at the Royal York hotel to receive their award and take a trip down memory lane.

Holmes couldn’t help but break down during their acceptance speech and shed tears for Kenny MacLean – the fourth Platinum Blonde member that joined the group a few years later in 1985, and died suddenly in late 2008.

During interviews with media in the green room after the event, all members talked openly about pressing ahead with plans for a new record and reunion tour.

“I miss him so much. We decided, because of Kenny, that we would get back together. It was great to play together the other night (Wednesday at the Mod Club in Toronto). We wish Kenny was there.” – Mark Holmes, March 12, 2010

photos courtesy shot7.com

The only thing that was a little surprising was one member of the group, Natalie Majia was busted for cocaine possession just three days earlier.

Since cross border travel is considered almost impossible with pending drug charges – media even reported the current Girlicious tour would mostly likely be postponed.

That didn’t turn out to be the case as Girlicious took the stage in Toronto to an enthusiastic audience. But in earlier scheduled press interviews – We hear Natalie didn’t appear with the two other members.

photos courtesy shot7.com

(HoundsTV – Toronto) Guitar god Slash was a keynote guest during 2010 Canadian Music Week. He did a lot of press to talk up his upcoming solo record.

And we mean A LOT.

Jane Stevenson, of QMI Agency (or whatever new call letters media consolidation in Canada continues to dream up. I will only continue to think of her as the long-time music reporter “Jane Stevenson from the Toronto Sun“)

Stevenson sat down with Slash and asked him his feelings about Axl Rose’s forever-in-the-making and eventually released Guns N’ Roses record Chinese Democracy:

“I thought it was exactly what I thought it would sound like… It was very indicative of what I thought he would do. So it was absolutely no surprise. ’Cause we had sort of like the Guns N’ Roses sound, which was just a straight-ahead rock band, and along the way Axl started to get very sort of techno, or had a lot of techno influences. And when I say that I mean like synthesizers and a lot of digital influence. And of course we sort of kept an old-school approach, and I think besides everything else musically, we sort of went off in different directions. Axl’s is definitely very digital and very Pro-Tools and very synthesized — whatever sounds are augmented by outside sources.” – SLASH, on Guns N’ Roses Chinese Democracy record

I’m glad Jane asked Slash how he felt about Chinese Democracy. It’s the question I wanted to ask (and tried) and took some knocks from some feeling it wasn’t a fair question to ask Slash.

Slash was met at Toronto’s Pearson airport by at least one professional autograph collector (and his helpers) who are on a mission to get a few guitars signed by the original Guns N’ Roses lineup. This particular collector was about the only one to get Axl to sign his guitars a few weeks ago when Guns N’ Roses rolled through Toronto on a Canadian tour.

Slash was more than happy to spend a few minutes and sign for the collectors that greeted his Toronto arrival. His handler politely asked everybody to line-up outside the terminal and Slash added his signature and skull & crossbones sketch to the guitars which already have Axl Rose’s autograph on it.

Next up, IZZY & DUFF. The professional collectors Gn’R journey continues…

MARCH 11th UPDATE: Mission complete on guitars. Slash signed Bryan’s last two guitars after his Canadian Music Week interview. Though, it was not without some difficulties.
photos courtesy shot7.com

But on a Juno Awards night where surprises were kept to their usual minimum (and the winner is…. “Nickelback”) – there was shock among a few in the music industry when Lights won and much more talked about magazine cover girl Kreesha Turner was denied the Best New Artist award most assumed she would win based on a year of strong radio play from two hit singles.

But something obviously impressed the Juno voters more with Lights (Valerie Poxleitner) – who is set to release her first full-length album later in ‘09 – but scored commercial success the past year with Drive My Soul and the buzz just continued when her tunes were featured in a series of Old Navy commercials.

We would bet the photographers on the red carpet at this years Juno awards in Vancouver were impressed – especially when the very pretty and petite Lights turned around and a sexy back revealing dress showed this tattoo off.

REPORTING FOR MEDIA OR BLOGGING? There are FREE LIGHTS photos for sharing here

Anvil was presented the honour on stage at CMW by Bif Naked. Bif spent a few minutes talking about the upcoming buzzed about documentary on the band set to premiere in theatres during April. “The Story of Anvil”, said Bif, “has made David Byrne, Michael Moore and Brad Pitt fans of the band.”

The documentary has been getting some great reviews:

The Los Angeles Times called the film an “alternatively moving and hilarious love story,” a Wall Street Journal blogger said it was the only movie screened at Sundance in 2008 that brought him to tears, and British newspaper the Guardian described the film as “charming, touching and very funny.” – CANADIAN PRESS

The Story of Anvil opens up in select city theatres during April, 2009.

REPORTING FOR MEDIA OR BLOGGING? There is a FREE ANVIL ROCKS CMW photo set for sharing here

Both Lefsetz and Simmons were at Toronto’s Royal York Hotel to give talks to overflowing conference rooms of music industry delegates, fans, and media. HoundsTV attended by keynotes and later learned that the Simmon’s camp of record people at CMW briefly crossed paths with Lefsetz and this lead to this nasty exchange that Lefsetz posted on his very popular music industry email newsletter – the Lefsetz letter.

Regarding the success of KISS:
“I mean if we really want to get down to it, don’t we have to give credit to Bob Ezrin?…I’m thinking without Ezrin, KISS is a footnote.” – LEFSETZ

Gene starts to get into the “mother”
“JUST BECAUSE I REMEMBER YOUR MOMMY BACKSTAGE AND THEN AT THE HOTEL IS NO REASON TO BE ENVIOUS OF MY GOOD LOOKS.” – SIMMONS

“Just because you’re a big musical act, that doesn’t mean you’re a decent executive, that you can run a record company.” – LEFSETZ
“SAYS WHO. YOU? AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MAKE THESE ASSESSMENTS. WHAT’S YOUR QUALIFICATION, IN FACT, FOR SAYING ANYTHING… – SIMMONS”

REPORTING FOR MEDIA OR BLOGGING? There is a FREE BOB LEFSETZ VS. GENE SIMMONS cmw 2009 photo set for sharing here

(March 5-08) Original KISS member and lead guitarist “Space Ace” Frehley was in Toronto as part of Canadian Music Week. Many years ago I started getting some posters of the band signed – starting with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley.

Space Ace proved to be quite a difficult autograph to obtain and required lots of time and patience (in the freezing cold, no less.) When it was all said and done my original KISS band pieces were finally complete after an 8 year journey. To my surprise, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss were far and away the most difficult autographs to obtain from the band. But my posters are now complete!