Metric @ The Orpheum -- 11/03/09

After my complaining last week, it was kind of nice to finally have a curfewed show on a weekday. And what a show it was! At first, I was vaguely disappointed that The Stills were opening for Metric out east but not here, but after the show, I most definitely changed my tune and was perfectly happy with the choice of openers.

I had seen Zeus before -- a couple times, actually -- when they opened for (and subsequently played with) Jason Collett last year. I liked them well enough then, but was never really inspired to do more than turn up Radio3 when they came on. However, I can safely say after this show, they fully won me over. And based on the crowd reaction, I wasn't the only one. Their 45 minute set was filled with awesomely catchy songs, like the single Marching Through Your Head and Genesis cover That's All. They also changed things up quite a bit. Of the our members, only the drummer stayed put. The other three traded off between guitar, bass and keyboard and swapped lead vocals, with everyone providing backups. It was pretty cool too see a band do this, as not many can, and spoke volumes for their talent. The only source of disappointment was that they only had a five song EP for sale, but clearly had enough awesomeness for a full length. I hope to see one soon and can't wait for them to be back in town.

This is the third time I've seen Metric in the last year (this show, an acoustic show earlier this year and the Jingle Bell Rock tour late last year) and they somehow manage to surprise me every time. Such an incredible sound that comes out of only four members. Emily Haines is like a tiny ball of energy, bouncing and jumping and rocking and dancing all over the place, when not on guitar or on the keys. And James Shaw always leaves me in awe of his boundless talent. And not to leave out Joules Scott-Key and Josh Winstead, who were both as great as always.
They kicked off with Twilight Galaxy -- which featured a theremin! awesome! -- which built to an epic climax before launching into Help I'm Alive and somehow keeping up the energy level for the entire set. Focusing mostly on the new album, Fantasies, they threw in only a few from Live It Out and just the two hits from Old World Underground, Where Are You Now? I was kind of hoping for a fewer older ones, like Succexy or Live It Out, but oh well. Gold Guns Girls was definitely a highlight of the set, which I think was the only song that saw Haines on guitar.
The weird this is, they didn't speak to the crowd until almost the end of the set. During the instrumental on an extended version of Empty, Haines "ranted" a little bit about how the past was better and this generation needs a new Zeppelin, which tied it in to how great Zeus is. The extended Empty also featured some random lyrics slipped in from other songs, like Beastie Boys' Fight for Your Right. They ended the "main" set with another incredible live song, Stadium Love, which was just another burst of pure energy and enthusiasm from the band. The encore consisted of Monster Hospital first, then Joules and John took their leave and Shaw & Haines did a very nice acoustic version of Combat Baby which everyone in the house sang along to. They also dedicated the song to their friend Torquil Campbell of Stars, who was in attendance (apparently). This was kinda funny, since it was the third show in a row I've been to where someone has mentioned Torquil.
After the song was done, Joules and John came back out and the band thanked everyone for what was an awesome night, for all involved.

setlist:
Twilight Galaxy, Help I'm Alive, Satellite Mind, Poster of a Girl, Handshakes, Gold Guns Girls, Collect Call, Empty, Gimme Sympathy, Sick Muse, Dead Disco, Blindness, Stadium Love.
(encore) Monster Hospital, Combat Baby (acoustic).

Young Galaxy w/ Bend Sinister @ The Biltmore -- 10/28/09

I think I mentioned this previously, but I am gonna start out by complaining... why oh why, Biltmore, do you put curfews on your weekend shows, so they and at or before 11... and yet your weekday shows go on all night?! I know they end early Saturdays for club nights after, but I'm an old man now (apparently)!! I have to get up early (and in this case, write a midterm the next day)!! But I digress. Last night was one hell of a bill at the Biltmore with Bend Sinister opening for Young Galaxy. As much as I love Young Galaxy, I think I was going as much, if not more, to see Bend Sinister. They are definitely one of my favourite local bands, yet I always seem to have bad luck seeing them live. Every time they had a show, something else was going on. But I've broken my Bend Sinister Bad Luck Streak, even if it wasn't a headlining show. Which I hope they do soon.

On to their set itself. Bend Sinister hit the stage a little after 10 (see!) and started with The News and followed with a couple more from their newest album, Stories of Lovers, Tales of Brothers. The set focused mostly on that, with a new song and a few older ones thrown in, and greatest of all, a cover song. I have mentioned before how much I like live covers, and when they started talking about the Peak Performance Project (perhaps click right here and give them your vote?) they mentioned one of the "challenges" they were given was to learn a cover of a classic Canadian song. While talking about it, Dan Moxon hit the first few notes on the keyboard, and immediately everyone knew what it was and cheered. Their cover was the Guess Who classic, These Eyes. And it was a pretty glorious cover. It was a pretty straight cover, with the end a littler Bend Sinister-ized.
The whole set, all five members of the band had an insane energy, with guitarists Joseph Blood & Henry White and bassist Joel Meyers all over the stage, at the front and almost in the crowd. Even Jason Dana and Moxon, when stuck behind the drums and keyboard (respectively) had crazy levels of energy. And damn, is Moxon an animal on the keys. it's one thing to hear him playing on the album, but to actually see him play, it's mind boggling.
The only thing I was disappointed by from the set was they didn't play Julianna, which is my favourite of theirs, but seeing as the set was pretty short to begin with, being the opening band, I guess I can't expect everything. And I suppose they more than made up for itwith their sheer awesomeness. At that point I would have been satisfied to go home, but there was still more to come!

After not too long of a break, the curtains pulled back to reveal a stage of smoke, and a few silhouetted figures started to play. The smoke started to dissipate -- but not before the lasers! came on -- and revealed Young Galaxy looking surprisingly glam-y, with hooded robes, gold face paint and crazy hats. The smoke would return every few songs, completely enveloping the stage and band members before dissipating again and again. It was cool the first time, but I they may have went a little overboard on it -- a notion that co-lead singer Stephen Ramsay seemed to echo at one point, with smoke swirling around him.
Musically, though, they were pretty damn solid. Songs came mostly from the new album, with a few older ones thrown in for good measure. Swing Your Heartache was definitely one of the highlights of the set, as well as Long Live The Fallen World, from the new album. Despite being the first track, it turned out to be a great closer. The end of the song saw them go absolutely batshit insane and build up to a chaotic climax for the show. The encore saw only part of the band come back out, with other lead singer Catherine McCandless taking lead for a really light and mellow tune before departing. It was a nice contrast to the crazy conclusion of the "main" set, almost a denouement to the show. The set, overall, seemed a lot shorter than it was.
It was a good, solid show and I have few complaints, but something about it just didn't seem to click for me. Maybe it was Bend Sinister being so (too?) awesome, maybe it was just it was kind of late, I dunno what it was, but everything seemed a bit... off. I'm sure it was me, though, and not by any fault of Young Galaxy, and I would snatch up tickets in a heartbeat next time they come back.

Review-kus.

Originally I wanted to review every album I bought/otherwise listened to this year. Clearly, I've slacked on that. Partially cos there have been a lot of albums that, for whatever reason, I don't feel like writing a full review for. So what I have decided to do is give a few really quick reviews all at once.... in haiku form. Here we go!

Snow Blindness is Crystal Antz by Black Mold (Chad VanGaalen side project)
Twitchy electro
Random homemade instruments
Some brilliant moments

Download Memes by Black Mold

Eats Darkness by Apostle of Hustle
Excellent music
But the spoken interludes
Ruin the flow, mood

Download by Xerxes Apostle of Hustle

Veckatimest by Grizzly Bear
With quirky music
And some intriguing lyrics
Does not disappoint

Download Ready, Able by Grizzly Bear

Yes! by k-os
A solid album
With some great guest musicians
And damn catchy songs.

Download Burning Bridges by k-os

Amy Millan @ Biltmore Cabaret -- 10/24/09

Another early show at the Biltmore last night, for them to do their weekly club night. This one ended even earlier than the previous ones, around 10:30, but none of the music seemed rushed. Both bands got a solid set, and it was even a little bit better than normal, cos it started rather quickly and there was a very short turn around time between the two bands. Of course, they only do this on the weekends, when I don't have to get up early the next day... on the weekday shows, they run as long as they feel... but I digress!

Opening band of the night was Bahamas, one of those bands where it's just one guy; in this case Afie Jurvanen. While not new to the scene at all -- he's worked with Great Lake Swimmers, Hayden, Zeus, Jason Collett, The Stills, Feist and more -- this is his first album himself, and first show in Vancouver. And you could tell he was a pro, cos from the minute he hit the stage, he owned the room. With a kind of bluesy folk rock and some awesome guitar skills, he was joined on stage only by a drummer and had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand for his all too short set. His dry wit and faux arrogant swagger made for some hilarious stage banter, and his charismatic stage presence and overall attitude really reminded me of Dave Grohl. He ended off the set in the greatest way possibly, asking the crowd to help out singing the chorus of the next song, though not saying what it was... but after a couple lines, pretty much everyone recognized, and sang along to.... Purple Rain. That, my friends, was probably the single greatest live cover I have (personally) seen all year.
Needless to say, I picked up his album as soon as his set was done (purchased it from Jurvanen himself, no less).

Up surprisingly shortly after -- perhaps the Biltmore learned their lesson with Rain Machine -- was Amy Millan. She started the set off with an old gospel song and then launched into her own solo material, playing pretty evenly from both albums. She seemed pretty loose on stage, sharing stories, mocking the olympics and thanking us for coming when we "could have bought some weed instead". The most amusing story was either her in the washroom before hand, with a random girl next to her asking if she could "spare a square", not realizing it was her; or the time she, Amy Millan, met Amy Mann.
Her beautiful voice was definitely the focus of most of the songs, but she was backed with some pretty great musicians in their own rights (interestingly enough, no drummer). Her light and folksy songs and the chill atmosphere had the crowd pretty mesmerized from the moment she hit the stage.
One of the highlight of the show would has to be when a random member of the crowd asked to sing backups on Baby I and, amazingly enough, Millan said okay! The song was a little later in the set, but when she got to it, she invited the young lady on stage. That kind of thing could have gone either way, but I have to say, she was pretty good! And that was pretty great of Millan to agree to that. Most artists would have just said no or blown her off, but you just know that she made that girls night, year, life by allowing her on stage to sing with her.
Millan "ended" the set after about an hour, then came back out solo for the encore, but was quickly joined by special guest, friend and band mate... Torquil Campbell! They proceeded to do an acoustic version of the Stars song Calendar Girl, which was just superb. After the song, Campbell took a bow and Millan finished off the night with a couple more of her songs.
The only song I wished they would have played was Blue In Yr Eye, but other than that, it was a pretty awesome set. A pretty awesome night, overall, even, as Bahamas came very close to upstaging Millan!

And interestingly enough, this was the second show this year where Torquil popped up on stage for a surprise appearance. It's great living in (or near) a city where so many amazing musicians live.

Outside Love by Pink Mountaintops

Oh, Stephen McBean. The more immersed I become in your music, the more I am convinced of your genius.
Pink Mountaintops is a bit more of a solo project for McBean, frontman of Black Mountain, but that's not to say it isn't full of friends. Musicians from all over contribute to the album, including just about everyone from Black Mountain and members of bands like A Silver Mt. Zion, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Destroyer and Lightning Dust, among many others. McBean does the majority of vocals, but is also assisted by GY!BE's Sophie Trudaeu and the Webber sisters, who are a great contrast, and a few songs even find them in front and centre. The album is a bit looser than Black Mountain, a little more experimental, but it never meanders or draws out; it is still as tight as anything you'll hear. Backed with piano, strings and even a choir, it is definitely gentler and perhaps even a little more cerebral than Black Mountain. There are shades of similarities between the two bands, but Pink Mountaintops veers more into the psychedelic shoe-gazing realm of things. Though it's not solely that, as they race through several different genres, never stopping for too long or looking back at any given style.

One thing I always look for in albums is how it flows; not just how one songs transitions into another, but the overall "tone" of the album. I prefer it to be a novel, where each song is a chapter rather than a collection of short stories, where each song stands on its own. (Metaphorically speaking... I don't mean it has to be a concept or "story" album.) Outside Love manages to have a near perfect flow to the whole thing.
Axis: Thrones Of Love sets the mood for the album, with it's slow and calm jangling, asking us right out of the gates "How deep is your love?" -- perhaps almost mockingly, considering the rest of the lyrics, not just in the song but the album as a whole. Execution picks things up for a more fast and rollicking number before Ashley Webber's beautiful vocals drive the haunting While We Were Dreaming. Vampire somehow manages to be even "creepier", with the spine-tingling rise from it's minimalistic beginning to the grandiose finish. Holiday, with McBean proclaiming that "everyone [he] love[s] deserves a holiday in the sun" and Come Down pick things up a bit with their cheer and energy only for Outside Love, another stunningly chilling song which pairs McBean with Jesse Sykes, to give a complete sense of desolation.
And I Thank You picks it up again, lyrically to be sure, and it gradually gains energy, musically, in the country-twinged song and The Gayest Of Sunbeams gives the album it's last burst of energy... and what a burst it is. Finally, the album closes out with Closer To Heaven and leaves us on somewhat of a high note. With its beautiful strings, choir vocals and McBean "pray[ing] sweet angel that we'll make it all right" it gives a cautiously joyous and uplifting ending to both the song and album.

There is a kind romance to the album, in a way. It is not unabashedly romantic, saying that love is a many splendoured thing that will lift us up and conquer all and is all we need. It acknowledges the doom that it can bring, as though expressed through someone that knows it's darker side. But it doesn't go too far in this tragic direction, either; it is skeptical without being cynical. In the end Outside Love has a grim optimism and while it somehow manages to be simultaneously vaguely disturbing and surprisingly uplifting, in both cases it is incredibly powerful and quite brilliant.

One last thing I will mention about Outside Love is that is has quite possibly the best cover and album art of the year. From the front cover (seen above), the above image of a book on crushed velvet, to the back cover, which is the back of said book complete with "author's" portrait, and even the insides, with the book sitting on the back of a toilet. Hell, even some of the promo shots, like the one to your right is all sorts of awesome. One of the big reasons I still buy physical CDs is that I love awesome album art and/or packaging, so it's always nice to see something like this, rather than a bunch of images dashed together with no meaning or relation. I think it would have to be my favourite album art or "theme" of the year so far.

Download Vampire

Download And I Thank You

Download The Gayest of Sunbeams

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