Another single-topic post today, as the sixth installment of
Mike Haggith's #LockdownLive Facebook concert series took place on Saturday, and as suggested by his old Din bandmate Brandan Glew the previous week, this episode is devoted to Mike's extensive solo back catalogue! This one's slightly shorter than last time, but at 2:36+ hours, there's still lots to take in here. The local/Thompson, Manitoba alternative/hard rock musician started the live-stream by plugging it on Facebook with his phone, and by checking in with live-stream commenters. While the theme is about Mike's past solo material (officially, "If Ever Comes The Day" is his
50th studio album), he acknowledged that he doesn't promote his back catalogue actively due to most of it not being representative of his current musical and production abilities, though he did note that modern re-recordings are possible.
Specifically, this installment only deals with Mike's six Sault Ste. Marie-era solo albums from 2011-2015 before he focused on The Din and moved out west. In this respect, we're not diving into his 43 Windsor-era albums that aren't actively promoted online due to their quality in hindsight, but the songs he's playing are the most familiar to local fans, and can be found
on Bandcamp! The set proper begins with "To Whom This May Concern", the opening track from 2012's
"Neighbourhood Watch", before playing the religious-themed "Trinity" from the previous year's
"Suspended Animation". Mike next moves onto May 2013's
"The Present Din" and how it inspired the name of his band
The Din. From that album, he plays "Door To My Mind", which is actually a re-recording from his 2009 album
"The Curse Was The Cure". After that, we get "Miss 76" from September 2013's
"Neighbourhood Watch II: Where It Ends", and some reminiscing about his late-period Windsor band The Thorns.
Mike jumps back to "Suspended Animation" next with a rendition of "As Memories Fade Away", before addressing some of The Din's acid jam era (look up "The Dog"), and talking about the writing process behind 2014's
"A Place Of Our Own", from which he plays that album's title track and "Cowardly Hearts Beneath The Stars", the latter of which you may also recognize from
"The Din Does Laundry". Mike pauses from the theme to cover Bruce Cockburn's "Lovers In A Dangerous Time", but picks back up with a pair of cuts from "Neighbourhood Watch", including an ironically abbreviated rendition of "Far Too Long" and "Room 822". 2015's
"The Warinside" is finally addressed with the song "Lay My Body Down To Rest", but Mike took a quick break afterward to find his camera's AC adapter due to a low battery, during which we meet his cats once again! When Mike returns, he shows off a physical copy of "If Ever Comes The Day" to preview it's release on Friday.
The camera is mirrored, but it's a nice look at the album packaging, and it is more professionally done than his local-era CDs! Mike did note that physical copies will cost a little more than in the past, though the quality difference is worth it. Another cover break is next, as Mike tackles The Barenaked Ladies' "If I Had A Million Dollars", a surprise rendition of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" (via a rare toddler request!) and Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me)" before returning to the back catalogue theme. That resumes with "The Snake" & "Of Cars & Criminals" from "The Warinside" (the latter also from "The Din Does Laundry") and "This Potato May Be Used As A Flotation Device" from "A Place Of Our Own" & (post-renaming) on
"Give In To The Din". Upon request, he plays "Leon the Janitor" from "Neighbourhood Watch" and the band
Haggith's album
"Deuce", before plugging the "If Ever Comes The Day" release on Friday, plus it's live-streamed release concert.
As such, #LockdownLive VII will be on Friday rather than Saturday to time in with the album release, and the whole CD will be played front to back on this evening. The set fittingly closes with "Goodbye" from "Neighbourhood Watch II", and it was nice to hear these songs again, some of which I haven't heard since reviewing those albums on the SMS! Mike has grown a lot as a musician, but he still showed lots of talent in his old albums, as proven here, and he picked a nice selection for the unplugged set! Just a shame that he only did one "Present Din" song. Give his entertaining and amusing live-stream a watch below, and stay tuned for a new post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
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