Thriftstock a raging success
Paradise is not always a tropical island in the sun or a luxurious hotel. Sometimes, it’s a store filled floor-to-ceiling with old albums, plaster casts of teeth, racks of second-hand clothing, musical instruments and knick-knacks up the wazoo.
Last night, a bunch of people who love music and the arts, performed in just such a place. The Family Thift Store is downtown Guelph’s least likely, but most fantastic concert venue.
I’ve written about the saga of Ray Mitchell’s junk store here before. But now the end has come. And so for the last week, Ray and his daughter, Jenny Omnichord, have been holding a series of concerts called Thriftstock to try and show the Royal City what it will be missing when the store closes its doors.
Ray is what we in the biz call a character. He always has a good quote, his store, which is filled with “treasures and mysteries” is always great for a photo, and more often than not, people are prone to disregard much of what he says, labelling it hyperbole and balderdash. Which is why I guess it took many months before anybody paid attention to his claims that the city was going to buy up a bunch of property on Wyndham Street and demolish it so the new library could have frontage on a main street.
It turns out, Ray’s predictions were true. The city does plan to buy up the block, tear it down and build a new library with some greenspace. And who’s going to protest a library? Nobody. But due to some troubles with a landlord, last night was, well, the last night.
Ray has provided this community’s artists, musicians and entertainers with instruments, equipment, friends, materials, a place to perform and a place to sleep. For the last week, they’ve been paying him back with shows. Groups as varied as Knock Knock Ginger, The D’Urbervilles, The Magic, Tacoma Hellfarm Tragedy, Richard Laviolette, Innes Wilson and his Opposition, Greg Denton, The Saltlick Kids and many more have performed at the Thrift Store in the past week.
Tonight, Wax Mannequin, Scott Nightingale of Guelph group Ragg Mopp (who I’m sorry, I can’t find any other information on, though I’m pretty sure they’re on NoFi Militant Records, but somebody correct me if I’m wrong) and The Burning Hell (Pat’s written about them here) performed. All these groups are quite fitting. Scott played the very first show at The Family Thrift Store. At the time, they all assumed it was a one-off. Then Wax Mannequin called because he was on a tour of alternative venues. He’d just played a grocery store and wondered, would the Family Thrift Store host him? Sure, said Jenny, who in addition to releasing solo albums, plays omnichord and sings with The Burning Hell.
It was a bittersweet goodbye, but I think the Burning Hell was a great choice to end it all with.
Their song The Things That People Make (parts one and two) is perfect for Ray, who is famous for his window displays. Once, he was approached by an art student who asked him to display a pig carcass tattooed with images of naked women as a statement on gender politics. Liberal use of an air freshener did not deter the flies. He’s taunted Leafs fans (as should we all), entreated local politicians to retire, called them bigots when they deserved to be called bigots, and just generally stated his mind via the found art he arranges for all to see. The displays may not all be my cuppa tea, but I think they’re great because they’re pushing boundaries and envelopes and buttons and other things that sometimes need to be pushed. Ray makes things and artistic people gravitate toward him. And now that his store is gone, they won’t. It’s as simple as that. Now, Ray could return in a different location, but until he does, there will be a gap and we’ll all be the worse off for it.
Late last night, when all but Burning Hell front man Mathias Kom and Jenny had left the makeshift stage, it got quiet and Jenny said she felt honoured to be the last to sing there. There was a moment of applause for Ray, who stood there, silently holding his sleeping grandson, Otis. Then, Kom announced they were about to retire a song he’d written about Guelph, one of his favourite places besides his hometown of Peterborough. And they sang Municipal Monarchs and at the chorus, the whole place sang along:
We’ll be municipal monarchs
With crowns made of oak leaves and birch bark
Our subjects will be loving and loyal
After all, this city is royal.
The Burning Hell - The Things That People Make: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download The Burning Hell - The Things That People Make Part 2: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download The Burning Hell - Municipal Monarchs: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
Many of these artists are available on Weework Records, Zunior and, yeah, iTunes.
