It has been a few years since I’ve seen  Calgary based stoner rock/ desert rock quartet Chron Goblin. But they made a triumphant return to Lethbridge, Nov. 11 at Inferno in support of their new CD “Backwater.”

Frontman Josh Sandulak, who had on the same  Godzilla T-shirt as he had on last time,  belted out raw, monstrous and soulful vocal backed by throbbing bass, a driving rhythm and big, meaty, ’70s guitar riffs.

Their short and sweet set had a solid  Wednesday night crowd bobbing their heads with the beat until they were done just after 11 p.m.
 The spirit of ’70s rock are strong in Chron Goblin, who sounded equal parts Black Sabbath, assorted  ’70s rockers, Queens of the Stone Age, Soundgarden, a touch of Govt. Mule's heavier material and contemporaries like Black Thunder and Black Mastiff.

 They played an excellent set with plenty of Gibson SG powered guitar and that  throbbing bass.
A couple of highlights came at the end of the set with the set ending “By the Turn and another song about “ drinking whiskey.”

There wasn’t much chat in between songs, other than thanking the audience for coming out on a Wednesday night.

Local metal band Killage opened the show, but I only caught the end of their big, loud, heavy set of metal.

There is always something going down in this town. There is an excellent variety of shows this week from an early shot of Christmas cheer courtesy of the The Nutcracker to psychobilly with Montreal psychobilly band The Brains.

Wednesday is a violent contrast in itself, with the Brains returning to Lethbridge to rock Inferno with Lethbridge metal band Penitentz and Gender Bender plus Calgary punks the Motherfuckers. Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 students and $15 at the door.

For something a little softer, The Slice brings back  Keswick, Ontario power pop band the Elwins. There is a $5 cover for that.

 The Geomatic Attic features Celtic music with Sean McCann of the Great Big Sea. The show begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $22.50.

 And the Slocan Ramblers, who have also played the Geomatic Attic, will be bringing bluegrass music to the Owl Acoustic Lounge. And that’s just on Wednesday.

Thursday, Nov. 19 is surprisingly busy with two big shows.
 The Slice welcomes Winnipeg pop band Chic Gamine, who were in Lethbridge opening for Lindi Ortega at the Geomatic Attic a few months ago. While the Owl Acoustic Lounge features a rare Thursday night show with deathgrass band Murder Murder.

As usual Friday is a big night for live music with several big shows happening downtown.
The Slice brings in Vancouver electro pop duo Rococode, touring in support of their new EP “Panic Attack.
The Owl Acoustic Lounge also features B.C.talent with Victoria indie-rock band Towers and Trees who also have a new  CD to support.

Linda McRae is always changing.
 You may rememberher from playing with Ken Hamm a few years ago or as the mayor of the South Country Fair. Going back almost 20 years, you may remember her as being part of ’80s/’90s hit-makers Spirit of the West. She will be returning on her owl to play a solo show for the Lethbridge Folk club at the Lethbridge College Cave, Nov. 20 in support of  her new CD “Shadow Trails.”

The music was inspired by a series of workshops the Nashville based McRae has been doing with prisoners at the  legendary California Folsom State Prison with her husband James Whitmore.
 But the more electric sound of the CD was inspired by iconic Canadian producer and guitarist Steve Dawson who recruited an A-list of Toronto musicians to appear on the CD.

“We recorded it live off the floor. I showed the songs to the guys and they played them three or four times and recorded them,” summarized an affable McRae, getting ready to play a show at the West End Cultural Centre in Winnipeg before coming to Lethbridge.

“We had a big  city release for the CD in Nashville where I live now,” she said.
 She credited Dawson for the more electric sound than her previous few CDs.
“I have a lot of respect for him. He’s  great guitar player. There’s also some old B3 organ which suited the songs. There’s also some folky songs as well,” she said.

 She has been working with prisoners at The Folsom Sate Prison since 2011, which she found to be very inspiring.
“It’s exciting. They are two hour workshops. The idea is to play 20 minutes and talk abut some of the challenges I’ve been through and James has been through because he has been a recovering addict for 20 years. I play them songs for the first 20 minutes then take them through a writing exercise that helps them to express some of their feelings and more intimate thoughts. They get to have a voice they’ve never been able to express before,” she said.

Victoria indie rock band Towers and Trees have been in the midst of a whirlwind over the past couple years. They are excited to release their latest CD “The West Coast” and support it on tour which comes to the Owl Acoustic Lounge, Nov. 20.

“It is so personal,” said frontman Adrian Chalifour who started Towers and Trees as a solo project which immediately took off about the same time his marriage fell apart. The new music was inspired by both of those things happening simultaneously.

“ It’s about how I felt about all of that happening at the end of my 20s. We got put in the middle of a whirlwind in 2012,” he said.

The whirlwind included the surprise success of their debut Ep “Broken Record,” followed by being named the Zone 91.3’s  Band of the month and becoming a finalist in the 2013 Peak Performance Project coupled with lots of radio airplay on commercial, college and CBC radio and ensuing sold out tours and award nominations.
“ So I was inspired by trying to process all of that,” he said.

“I was hurt at the same time excited about these new opportunities,” he continued.
“ It was a pretty amazing 2013. This CD is a beautiful way to tell that story. And that’s the reason for all of the diversity present on the album,” he continued.