Roddy Colmer is a musician’s musician, with his gig on the Howard Stern Show as a parody song contributor, his storied career as the founder of The Rebel Emergency – PLUS, his further foray into humour which garnered him a #1 comedy LP Comfortably Dumb and his own Sirius XM show “The Dumb Show” – his new venture is one that will bring about legendary moments for music fans in Toronto.
As the creator and curator of Unplugged North, Colmer is bringing (and has brung) together musicians from all walks of life. From Jully Black to Andrew Hyatt to Nefe – these monthly acoustic performance circles provide an intimate showcase that brings together established artists with up-and-comers – to result in often spontaneous, magic moments that leave the audiences (and the musicians) awed. Taking place at the El Mocambo one night a month (and moderated by radio host Sarah Burke) – Unplugged North is on track to become THE event in downtown Toronto.
UPCOMING UNPLUGGED NORTH SHOWCASE:
January 29, 2023
Chad Price
Andrea Ramolo
Yarro
Victory
Learn more about Roddy Colmer via our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
My name is Roddy Colmer. I’ve been in the Canadian music scene for a while now, initially as the lead singer of the Rock/Reggae band Rebel Emergency, and then after that, I was in a band called Most Non Heinous. Most recently, I have released two solo albums, and I’m excited to be putting out more new music this year.
Tell us a bit about your concert series.
We began the Unplugged North Concert Series in 2016 to give music fans a great show to come out to each month and to help build and contribute to the music community in Toronto.
I see the show from two perspectives. One is the artist experience, where an artist or band gets to play at The El Mocambo – one of the best sounding and most legendary venues in Toronto – to a very captive audience. It’s the type of vibe where an artist can feel comfortable sharing stories and trying new things, which can often create special and unique moments. The stripped-down “Unplugged” aspect of the show also lets the talent and songwriting shine. Each act also gets to be interviewed by our host Sarah Burke from indie88, who is one of the best interviewers in the business and has had a big impact on the Canadian music scene. Also, it’s become a place where musicians can meet, mingle, and form new personal and creative friendships. The team who runs this show (myself, Ben Nudds, Big Story Entertainment) are all musicians, so we do everything we can to make sure each artist has the best experience playing this show.
The second perspective is of the audience. Toronto is an amazing music city, and I feel like there aren’t enough regular shows that music fans can count on to be a place where they will consistently see high-level talent and can discover new artists. It’s also a great environment to see a show in. Mike Wekerle and his team at The El Mocambo did an amazing job renovating the venue. It’s really beautiful and impressive from top to bottom, and seeing the photos and memorabilia from legendary shows that happened there in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s reminds you that you’re somewhere special. The crowds at these shows are pin-drop quiet when the artists are performing, and the venue sound is exceptional, so you really get to experience each artist in a clear way.
Where do you tend to pull inspiration from when booking these shows?
One of our main goals with the Unplugged North shows is to not only show off the musical talent in the city but also to show off the diversity of talent. We enjoy mixing genres, whether it’s R&B, Rock, Indie, Folk, Soul, or Country. We just book artists that we like. That’s another cool thing about it for me, personally. I feel lucky to reach out to artists I think are cool online and then book them and see them play. It’s like my own fantasy concert generator for artists in the city. We had some amazing artists play the show in 2022, such as Aysanabee, Elise LeGrow, Joey Landreth, Andrew Hyatt, Tafari Anthony, Ron Hawkins, Terra Lightfoot, Skye Wallace…It’s a long list. The stripped-down aspect of the show really ties all the artists together as well, so no matter what genres are on display, it works for the show as a whole. It’s fun to mix it up, and I think it keeps it interesting for the artists and for the audience.
Do you have any upcoming shows you’d like to tell us about?
We do these shows once a month on a Sunday. The next one is January 29, featuring four great artists: Andrea Ramolo, Yarro, Victory, and Chad Price, who won the CBC Searchlight competition in 2022. You can follow us on Instagram @unpluggednorth or check out unpluggednorth.com to get updates on future shows and see photos and videos from past performances.
What’s your goal for 2023?
Our main goal is to keep developing this show until it becomes the marquee concert series in Toronto. The El Mocambo has been very supportive in helping us to grow the event over the past few years. These things don’t happen overnight. The good thing for us is that there is no shortage of talent in the city, so we are able to set the bar high and keep it there, and hopefully stay consistent in providing great entertainment each month. Of course, it all comes down to people coming out to support the show and other shows like ours. Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I hope to see you at a show soon.