We Are The City @ Vogue -- 07/04/13

Sometimes a lineup comes along that is almost too good to be true, which was the case for We Are The City's album release part. Celebrating their new album, Violet, they stacked the bill with local favourites for an incredible showcase of the city's talent.


Starting the night was an all-too-short set from the violin looping Hannah Epperson. She came out on stage, alone and barefoot, to create beautiful sonic soundscapes using masterful loops of nothing but her violin, sometimes plucking, sometimes tapping on it to get percussive beats.
A couple of the songs were just instrumental, but she added fragile yet captivating vocals to a new song, "Shadowless" and "We Will Host A Party", which ended the set.


After a short turnaround, Jordan Klassen took the stage, alone at first launching in to a song that started soft and tender before the band slowly joined him one by one and the song swelled to a rich ending. It's a formula that a lot of his songs follow, the quiet start with the slow build and climactic finale, and he pulls it off well.
Klassen also has a great energy on stage, full of enthusiasm with his pure joy infecting the audience, and he clearly has fun on stage; as demonstrated when he introduced his bandmates with a rap.
A few old members joined him for "The Horses Are Stuck", which was a very fitting song for a venue like the Vogue. "Sweet Chariot" started with a very impressive vocal display from Jordan and Jocelyn Price, and they wrapped up the set with another high energy ending on "Where Is Your Sound".


The last time I saw The Belle Game, I mused that the Vogue would be a perfect venue for their rich, dark, orchestral pop, and that was certainly the case. The six-piece was at their best, despite a brief microphone issue during "Blame Fiction", as they filled the room with huge songs like "Bruise To Ash", a bit of a sexy slow-jam, and Andrea Lo's incredibly powerful voice captured the crowd, most evident on "River".
The band had a strong energy and stage presence, too, including Katrina sharing a story, confessing their disastrous first show with We Are The City years ago.
They wrapped up the set, as they usually do, with "Wait Up For You", getting people moving and building to an intense ending.
It seems like The Belle Game has been a go-to "opening band" for a lot of local heavyweights recently, and they are always in danger of stealing the show. Soon enough, they'll be the ones headlining the Vogue.


That alone would have been a satisfying show, but of course we still had We Are The City to come. The stage was adorned with a couple video screens, linked to cameras perched on Cayne's keyboards and Andrew's drums, which they moved around throughout the set.
When they took the stage, they launched right into "Bottom Of The Lake", the first song on the new album, exploding with a cacophony of drums. Their dense sound was intricate and layered, creating a much bigger sound than should come from just three musicians.
With a mix of old and new songs, the trio went back to their debut album for "Time, Wasted" and the gorgeous "Astronomers", and played most of their High School EP. "Happy New Year" started only for Cayne to pause the band and urge everyone to "lose it", and restarted with the floor section around the stage jumping wildly, and the entire Vogue singing along.
The trio was in awe of the support of the fans, expressing how they were incredibly grateful to be there a few times, and they were feeding off their crowd's energy with their own amazing and intense energy, backing their gratitude.
Among the new songs, highlights were the emotion-filled "King David", the calm and hypnotic "Friends Hurt" -- during which Andy dove into the crowd to surf a little -- and "Baptism", a beautiful song that bursts into a massive ending.
And the ending seemed like a definitive one -- the band even choosing "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House as the first song to play over the PA after they walked off stage -- but in what may have been a rare "actual encore", Cayne came back out alone to play one more song, "Mourning Song" after someone in the crowd shouted it out (unless he was calling for the similarly named "Morning Song")

We Are The City has been one of my favourite local bands since just about the first time I saw them live, when I knew they were going to be big, and it was incredible to see them perform in a venue like the Vogue. They've more than earned it.

setlist
Bottom Of The Lake; Legs Give Out; Get Happy; Time, Wasted; King David; That's It, That's All; Astronomers; An Angel in White; Happy New Year; Friends Hurt; Dark/Warm Air; Baptism. 
(encore) Mourning Song.

Northcote w/ The Cracking @ Biltmore -- 06/22/13

It's not easy touring across Canada at the best of times, but as Victoria's Northcote came to Vancouver, they were probably glad this particular tour was coming to an end. Not only did they have to contend with the Alberta floods, but they rolled their van into a ditch on the 401 in Ontario, totalling the vehicle and damaging some of their equipment. Luckily, the four band members were all right, and while they still had to cancel a few shows, fortunately their show at the Biltmore Cabaret was not one of them.

I missed the first band of the night, Library, getting there just before The Crackling took the stage.
Fronted by Kenton Loewen, the Vancouver band is sometimes touted as "Dan Mangan's band", since not only does he play drums for Dan, but guitar virtuoso Gord Grdina plays in both, as well as keyboardist Tyson Naylor.

They started off the set with "Ashen" from the new album Mary Madeline, and played a short set of whiskey-soaked folk songs, many of which start off soft before building to a powerful ending. Kenton's vocals range from gruff and powerful to soft and haunting -- sometimes in the same song -- and Grdina gets to cut loose more, showing off his amazing talent.

The songs are filled with intensity which was proven when, during the second song of the set, both Kenton and Gord broke strings on their respective guitars. The intensity was also apparent in the raw emotion in Kenton's voice during the last couple songs of the set; "Keep Me Drunk", which also had Kenton pull of the feat of getting most of the chatty crowd to sing along to the chorus, and the rare self-titled song, "The Crackling" which brought the set to a climactic ending. 

The set had more than its fair share of technical problems, but Kenton covered nicely, his dry humour and sometimes acerbic stage banter filled the gaps between songs. They may get called "Dan Mangan's band" for now, but I doubt they will be for long.

Not long after that, Northcote hit the stage, a folk singer/songwriter with a definite rock & roll vibe. They started off the set with the first few songs off the new self-titled album, "How Can You Turn Around" kicking things off with a bang. A lot of the songs had the same fist-pumping energy, with not too much variation to them, but frontman Matt Goud's captivating voice and Blake Enemark's guitar skills (throwing a few psychedelic endings into a couple songs) drove the high energy and fun show.
"Burn Right Past Them All" started softer and burst into an Jack & Diane-esque nostalgic anthem, and the frantic pace of "A Thousand Nights" were a couple of the highlights.

Midway through the set, the band left the stage for Goud to do a couple songs solo, but after one song, Goud broke his rented guitar and the set ground to a halt. He jumped off stage to give the guitar to his bandmates backstage and it seemed like he had to play a few more on his own than he had planned. Goud did a great job covering, with a few slower, heartfelt songs, and the band was back out to pick the set back up for the end, but the set did lose a bit of its momentum.

But they did pick the energy right back up for the last few songs, ending with "Drive Me Home", for what was ultimately a strong, and fun, set. Add that to The Crackling's strong set, and it was a great -- if a little problematic -- night of music.

!!! (Chk Chk Chk) @ Fortune -- 06/04/13

I've been lucky enough, in the last few years, to whittle down my List Of Bands I Need To See Live. And as the list shrank, one band rose to the top: the California dance-punk band !!! (pronounced Chk Chk Chk). I had heard nothing but good things, so when they announced they were coming back through town to promote their newest album, THRI!!!ER, I knew I couldn't miss it.
They were also playing a venue that I had somehow not been to before, Fortune Sound Club, which I was also interested in checking out for the first time.

The opening band was White Arrows, also from California. They had a dancey-rock sound, definitely appropriate to lead into !!!, but a lot of their songs had a bit of the same sound to them.
About mid-way through their set, they introduced one song -- perhaps redundantly -- as their "dance number", while the lead singer put on an electric blue wig and another member ran through the crowd, grabbing people to fill the empty gap at the front of the stage. I didn't catch the name of it, but it stuck out as one of the better ones, as well as one called "Fireworks of the Sea", which came at the end of the set, another bombastic dance-inducing tune. 

Ultimately they were not at all bad, but nothing that really made me want to hear more immediately. But they were fun in the moment, and sometimes that's all that matters. 

It wasn't long then before !!! came out, and from the moment they took the stage, singer Nic Offer was at the front with dance moves that would make anyone jealous. Throughout the entire show, he hardly stood still for a moment, strutting back and forth across the stage, hips thrusting & arms waving, with an unmatched energy and zest. Several times he was in the faces of the front row, getting them to sing along, and even jumping into the crowd to sing, going as far back to dance atop the bar. 

His obvious enthusiasm shone through with a big grin on his face between songs, and that was definitely infectious, as the crowd was going nuts, dancing and jumping along with wild abandon. Even the most uncoordinated bloggers people couldn't help but bop along.

But while Nic was definitely the most energetic, and the focal point, the band was definitely on top of their game, too. They started off with "Get That Rhythm Right" from their new album THRI!!!ER, and just kept ramping up the energy from there. An older song, the frantic "All My Heroes Are Weirdos" had the crowd moving, and the defiant "Californiyeah" rallied people with one of my favourite lyrics of the year so far: "Why would I live somewhere where the bars close at 2? That ain't right, that ain't right"

They suffered from some technical difficulties about half way through, and after trying for a couple minutes to fix it -- while Nic covered for it expertly, joking "this is why we're a dance-punk band, not a dance-rock band!" -- they decided not to lose any more momentum and go right into the next song. Some other highlights from the set included the funky "Slyd", the sexy "Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass", and the groovy "Heart of Hearts" which ended the main set. But of course, they came out for the requisite encore, Nic apologizing a little for some of the technical mistakes throughout the set before vowing to make up for it, as they launched into "Must Be The Moon" and ended with an older tune, "Yadnus" which ended the night off with one hell of a bang. 

I had heard quite a bit of hype before the show, and I would have to say they not only lived up to the hype, but surpassed it. It was one of the most purely fun shows I have been to all year, and I already can't wait to see them again.

setlist
Get That Rhythm Right; All My Heroes Are Weirdos; Jack Ruby; Californiyeah; Even When The Water's Cold; One Girl/One Boy; Except Death; Slyd; Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass; Me and Giuliani Down by the School Yard; Heart of Hearts.

(encore) Must Be the Moon; Yadnus.

Rykka @ Fan Club -- 06/01/13

First time I saw Rykka was a few years back; she was a part of the Peak Performance Project under her own name, Christina Maria. Since then she's eschewed the folk-pop, re-branded herself as Rykka, and embraced a dark, electro-pop sound. Splitting her time between Vancouver and Switzerland, she's ready to release her first album as Rykka, called Kodiak, and celebrate with a show at the Vancouver Fan Club.
This was also the first proper show I had seen at Fan Club, still a fairly new venue, and I was more or less impressed with the place.

Starting off the night was Rococode -- or more accurately, one half of Rococode. Andrew Braun promised some slow jams as he & Laura Smith took the stage, Braun on guitar and Smith on keys, their voices harmonizing and intertwining excellently.
They played a short set, a bit toned down and relaxed, but no less catchy. The usually punchy songs like "Empire" & "Blood" were more melodic, and the new songs they included sounded promising; I'll be interested to hear them with the full band.

Next up was Ryan Guldemond doing a solo set. The Mother Mother frontman has worked with both Rococode and Rykka, producing and playing on the new album, so he seemed a natural to support the show. His solo songs sounded much like you'd expect the Mother Mother member to sound -- catchy tunes with sharp lyrics -- but with more of a bluesy riff in the mix, giving Ryan an excellent chance to show off his great guitar chops.
Highlights included a brand new song called "Cut the String" and "I Go Hungry" as Ryan effortlessly went from songs full of literary references to love songs with a bit of a sinister undertone. He even threw in a newer Mother Mother song, "Happy", from their most recent album, The Sticks.

The curfewed show ran like clockwork and it wasn't long before Rykka hit the stage in a homemade outfit -- bodysuit with strategically placed spikes to give her a bit of a Mad Max look -- with a band that included some familiar faces to the Vancouver music scene, including Andrew Braun pulling double duty for the night on keys.
They started off the set with the album's opener, "With Love In Woe", and right from the get-go, Rykka's incredible energy and stage presence shone through. Her powerful voice carried songs like "The Brink" and her intensity giving weight to songs like "Showdown Lover". Other highlights included "Shotgun" and "Map Inside", both incredibly catchy songs.
The set included most of Kodiak, a few new songs, and even a cover of Whale Tooth's "Wolves" to wrap up the main set. But of course, Rykka was back out moments later for the encore, first joined only by Ryan Guldemond for a soft and beautiful song, "The Mirror", Ryan on guitar and their voices blending fantastically. The rest of the band then joined them the the last song of the night, definitely going out with a bang with probably the most high energy of the night, "Electric"

When I saw her perform as Christina Maria, I was quite impressed. She was confident and energetic on stage, and that's only been amplified in the few years since.
Vancouver has a wealth of musical talent, as this night was a perfect showcase of that.

Sigur Rós @ Deer Lake Park -- 05/27/13

A little over a year ago, the prospects of any new Sigur Rós seemed slim. The band was on hiatus and Jónsi had a few solo projects under his belt; his own album and collaborations with his partner Alex Somer. But not only did we get Valtari almost exactly a year ago, the band is already about to release another new album, Kveikur. Impressive, considering most previous albums have 3 or 4 years between them.
And not only do we get the albums, but the band has embarked on a world tour, stopping by Burnaby's picturesque Deer Lake Park*, fresh off the Sasquatch Festival.
*when it's not raining, that is.

Opening the night was Julianna Barwick, whose most recent album Nepenthe was produced by Alex Somer. I arrived about mid way through her set, not actually sure if she had started; there was pleasant, ambient music wafting from the stage, but it wasn't until you got closer that you spotted Barwick, alone on stage with just her looping station. Her haunting voice added to the samples and loops coming from the laptop, and while the music was well crafted and soothing -- and a great choice to set the mood for the show -- it wasn't much to watch.

It had been raining on and off all day, but the rain eased off for the most part in time for the show, and was only at a faint sprinkling when the members of Iceland's Sigur Rós took the stage. The band is now down to a three piece -- Jónsi Birgisson on vocals & guitar, Georg Hólm on bass, and Orri Páll Dýrason on drums -- but they were backed by eight others, including a hefty strings and horn section to fill out their sound with a magnificent eleven-piece band.

All clad in black, they started the show with a new song "Yfirborð", which consistently bubbled up, threatening to burst, but never quite getting there -- a good opener to a night of songs that would erupt with energy and joy.

The video screen behind them going from ambient images to videos for the songs, fitting the mood perfectly. And while the group isn't known for their talkativeness, their stage presence had the audience entranced. Especially Jónsi who was everywhere between gently caressing to violently sawing away at his guitar with his signature bow, with his angelic voice transfixing the crowd, whether he sung in Icelandic or his made-up "Vonlenska" (or Hopelandic).

Many of the songs got recognition applause based on a single note, like the absolutely heartwrenching "Vaka", or the beautiful "Sæglópur"; "Svefn-g-englar" saw the dozens of light bulbs on stage twinkling like stars with every note (and a flock of geese soaring over the stage with perfect timing at the end of the song); and the appropriate titled "Hoppípolla", which translates to "Jumping Into Puddles", gave me chills that had nothing to do with the weather and lit up the stage with both the lights and the LED screen sparkling to life like fireflies.

The set ended beautifully with a trio of songs; another new one, the title track "Kveikur", which was absolutely apocalyptic in scope; a brief respite with the beginning of "Festival", and Jónsi holding a single note longer than anyone I have seen, before the skies part and the rain fell right as the song started to rise to its gorgeous and soaring ending; and finally "Brennisteinn", a heavy and distorted new track, with the PA system almost unable to handle the driving bass.

But of course, they were back out for a couple more, first the uplifting "Glósóli" before ending the show with "Popplagið", as they are wont to do. The song is one of my absolute favourites, that builds and builds, layer upon layer, and every time you think they can't push it further, it explodes into another climax, until you are almost physically spent from the sheer intensity.

Corny as it may sound, seeing them live is a magical and transcendent experience. The songs leave you full of hope, full of sorrow, full of joy -- sometimes all at once -- without the band singing a single word of English.

setlist (can not verify this is 100% correct; found it independently after the show, but it looks about right)
Yfirborð, Ný Batterí, Vaka, Hrafntinna, Sæglópur, Svefn-g-englar, Varúð, Hoppípolla, Með Blóðnasir, Olsen Olsen, Kveikur, Festival, Brennisteinn.
(encore) Glósóli, Popplagið.