Logicbank Media

Cooler temperatures, moodier skies and a garbage strike haven’t made the city streets the ideal playground this summer, but overall conditions made it more conducive to staying indoors and rocking out, the ambition of all those enrolled in these five July days of Toronto Rock Camp. And the sources of inspiration were increasingly diverse by the time the bands took to the stage of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School during the last couple hours of Friday afternoon.

This week, there were some familiar influences in the set lists, along with some unusual twists: a salute to the recently deceased Michael Jackson, a reggae-fied spin on an old guitar-lesson favourite, and a band who couldn’t decide on one of two proposed names — so went by both. But the feeling throughout the otherwise empty school hallways was increasingly familiar: young people connecting through the language of rock ‘n’ roll, guided by CityArts staffers and professional musician visitors, gaining creative insights that may inspire them forever. A few of them might end up joining that rare breed that ends up playing this kind of music for a living. (With parental permission, of course.)

ARIZONA ICE

ARIZONA ICE (L to R: Dylan, Nick, Aaron, Mike, James) took their name from the collective favourite brand of iced tea — 99 cents for a tall can — quenching their musical thirst with something relatively new, and not so new: “The Pretender,” a rave-up from the Foo Fighters, and the original shuffle arrangement of Eric Clapton‘s “After Midnight.”

BRACE

BRACE (Julian, Susan, Keaton, Santiago, Adam) settled on their monkier because of the amount of metal in their mouths: three members are regulars at the orthodontist. While they tried some original songs, their final performance numbers were Weezer‘s “Pork and Beans” and a spin on “The Way You Make Me Feel” by the late King of Pop.

CARMEN DIOXIDE

CARMEN DIOXIDE (Charlie, Derrick, Carmen, Garnet, Dale, Eason) deferred to their lead singer to provide a band identity, along with the lyrics to an original song, “Scream at You.” The quintet also channeled The Ramones through their kinetic take on “Blitzkrieg Bop,” possibly better known to generations young and old as the “hey, ho, let’s go” song.

DESTROY DETROIT/VINTAGE FEEDBACK

DESTROY DETROIT a/k/a VINTAGE FEEDBACK (Brian, Max, Quinn, Charles, Emmett) couldn’t decide on one handle, because both choices perfectly described the tunes they played: “Search and Destroy” by Motor City feedback legends Iggy and the Stooges and the tourist anthem “Detroit Rock City” by visiting New Yorkers KISS.

THE LIKELY JOHNS

THE LIKELY JOHNS (Andrei, Sean, Chris, Ridley, Michael) proved that you’re never too young to rock hard, taking on “Paradise City” by Guns N’ Roses along with AC/DC‘s “TNT” — another group attesting to the staying power of music popular before they were born, arguing that few acts have come along to match the potency of the originals.

MONKEY BAR SOCIETY

MONKEY BAR SOCIETY (Daniel, Ethan, Nick, Eric, Alexander) chose a name that mixed their playground attitude with a more seasoned perspective on classic rock: “House of the Rising Sun” via The Animals was given some fizz with a reggae arrangement, and they perked it up further by tackling the James Gang‘s “Funk #49.”

More images of week #2 here.