Noah Bick is a young twenty-something with a recent past rooted in our city’s musical exploits. He’s a tireless champion of local artists, playing the often unceremonious role of ringmaster for his independent music promotion and production company, Passovah, which is celebrating birthday number four this week. He takes us through his unique position in Montreal’s scene.

Hour: What was the original impetus for starting the company?

Noah Bick: Passovah was born out of the year of interning I did at Pop Montreal when I was 16. After working closely with Dan Seligman on the festival’s compilation I realized that I had met a lot of the city’s musicians, and that I could probably put together a show if I got organized. Around the same time I was going to the Friendship Cove quite often (this was during the Jack Dylan era), so it was the obvious choice in terms of location. I contacted Adam Waito who was playing in that awesome band Telefauna and sure enough they agreed to do a set. We added Mixylodian and Fort Miracle as support and away we went. My buddy Lukas Glickman and I promoted that show really hard. Jack Dylan did a really memorable poster, a play on Tintin. The show went really well, and we began putting on three or four of these events a month.

Hour: What were the pros and cons of getting Passovah off the ground at such a young age?

Bick: I think the major pro about starting Passovah when I was 17 is that it’s given me a lot of time to try all sorts of things out within the local scene. As a promotion and production company, Passovah has put on 98 shows in Montreal. Using what I’ve taken away from producing these events, I’ve been able to work at Blue Skies Turn Black as a production manager and at Pop Montreal as Dan Seligman’s assistant. Along the way I’ve dabbled in other things like booking shows for Montreal bands in other cities. I can’t think of any real con except for those terrible nights where I’ve worked at a venue until 2 a.m. and then made it to an 8:30 a.m. class.

Hour: Where do you see the Montreal scene today, and what local bands are at the top of your list?

Bick: I think we are at a really exciting point in terms of local bands on the verge of breaking into the international spotlight. I’m excited for bands like Braids, Grimes, Mozart’s Sister, Parlovr and The Luyas to get heard by more and more people.

Passovah Four-Year Anniversary Show
w/ Freelove Fenner, Jordan Robson-Cramer, Alden Penner, Martin Horn,
Caroline Keating, Mike O’Brien, Adam Waito, Lisa Gamble, DJ Jeremy Gara
At Il Motore
February 10