Pink Mountaintops will be performing at the former Harpo’s, now the Upstairs Cabaret, 5 Bastion Sq., Dec. 5 – a place where the group’s leader Stephen McBean cut his teeth performing with his thrash band Mission of Christ in the late ‘80s.
Pink Mountaintops is Stephen McBean, the eccentric, psychedelic genius behind the Vancouver-based band Black Mountain.
McBean has been in numerous groups over the last two decades. As a 13-year old, he was in the legendary band Jerk Ward, playing hardcore influenced by the Neos, Discharge, Crucifix and whoever else was the fastest. His other bands to date have been straight out punk: a crusty punk/metal band, and of course, Black Mountain.
From the release of their debut album – a psych-tinged maximal rock assault – Black Mountain has been at the forefront of the new psychedelic movement, capturing heaps of critical acclaim resulting in tour dates with Coldplay and others around the world.
Their most recent CD Wilderness Heart reached No. 94 on the Billboard top 100 and was named as a longlisted nominee for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize.
McBean’s more experimental and electronic side project has been described as a thumping, buzzing, blissful haze, at various parts sounding like the Velvet Underground, Spacemen 3 or the Jesus and Mary Chain circa Psycho Candy.
This concert is the second in a series of semi-annual events that will reunite the beloved venue with some of the revered groups who were part of its glory days – all in support of local charities and not-for-profit groups.
These events will be curated by the same people who brought groups like Sarah McLachlan, Pearl Jam, John Lee Hooker, Green Day, The Neville Brothers, No Doubt and thousands more to Victoria in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.
The Pink Mountaintops concert is a benefit for The Victoria Society For Children With Autism and the local families that depend on it for support, information and respite funds.
Tickets for the benefit show on Friday Dec. 21 are $15 and are available at Ditch and Lyle’s Place. Doors open at 7 p.m., show begins at 10 p.m.
There will be more donation opportunities at the venue. For more information go to victoriaautismsociety.com.
