Sidney York @ Biltmore -- 01/07/14

I would be very surprised if 2014 does not end up being a big year for Calgary's Sidney York. The duo is on the verge of releasing their new album, <3s (or Hearts) and kicked off their tour in their second home, Vancouver, at the Biltmore Cabaret.
But their new album is coming out in a unique way; instead of a traditional release, they are rolling out the album in five volumes, two songs each, released over ten months. "Subscribers" will get the album delivered to their door (and/or digitally) as well as other goodies, like prints depending on their subscription level. You can check all of that out right here.


Opening the night was Seattle's Lemolo, with a very mellow, melodic sound. It was just a duo on stage, a drummer with lead singer Meagan Grandall on keyboard & guitar.
I only caught the last couple songs and the dreamy pop seemed really interesting, but also a little complex; something that you would need to really dig into. There were also a couple of awkward silences between songs, but I would definitely be interested in catching them again next time they're through town.


Taking the stage next was The Gay Nineties. The Vancouver four-piece exploded out of the gates with their infectious sound, blending hints of 60s psych-rock, 90s grunge, and 00s dance-rock. It's a sound that has the potential to come across as tired and old, but there is so much raw talent in the band that they give it a fresh spin.
While they didn't say too much between songs, they had a great energy and stage presence while playing. Malcolm Holt is a great drummer, and fun to watch play live, and frontman Parker Bossley has an effortless charisma.
Almost all of the songs played throughout the set were newer than their Coming Together EP released a couple years ago, and I didn't catch the name of any of the songs, but there were more than a couple that got me excited to see what they've got coming up.


And finally, the band of the hour, celebrating the release of their new album, Sidney York was up to close out the night. The duo of Brandi Sidoryk and Krista Wodelet were backed by some of Vancouver's finest; Niko Friesen on drums, Shaun Huberts on bass, and Noah Walker on guitar. It was the first show of the tour, and the first time this configuration has played together live, so it took a couple of songs for them to get into the groove, to mesh, but once they did they gelled fantastically.

The two girls jumped between instruments throughout the night, keys and synth and guitar and french horn and bassoon and ukulele were all utilised, with the two of then swapping effortlessly. At one point, they even shared the same keyboard for the dark and sexy "Electrolove". Both also had incredible energy -- Brandi could hardly be contained -- which was especially impressive considering about an hour before going on stage, their tour van was towed from the venue.

The set focused mostly on the new album, <3s, with songs ranging from the incredibly explosive and raw "The Lion. The Tiger. The Bear." to the fun and flirty "Weird For You", and the soft and beautiful "Let The Sparks Fly" which saw Krista taking over lead vocals for an absolutely heartbreaking ballad.
The set ended with my favourite off the new album, "Weapons-Grade Love (Watch Your Back)", which erupted into a chaotic cacophony, a perfect ending for the set. It's a great song that exemplifies Sidney York's ability to blend ridiculously catchy pop with sexy lyrics and dark undertones.

Regular readers (all 21 of you) may remember that their previous album, Apocalyptic Radio Cynic, was one of my favourites of 2011, and if <3s doesn't end up making Sidney York into one of the breakthrough bands of 2014, I will eat my virtual hat.

setlist
Mile High Love, Hearts, I Wait, Dick & Jane, Math & Fractions, The Lion The Tiger The Bear, Lily's Kitchen, Weird For You, Electrolove, Let The Sparks Fly, Weapons-Grade Love (Watch Your Back).

Said the Whale @ Commodore -- 12/28/13

You can't accuse Said the Whale of not being one of the hardest working bands in Canada. They released their latest album, hawaiii, about a year and a half after the previous Little Mountain, and they have been almost constantly touring; criss-crossing Canada, down into the States, and even overseas.
But to wrap up their 2013, they have come back to Vancouver for a pair of hometown shows; an afternoon all ages show, and an evening 19+ (which I caught).

With them, they had a band that highly influenced them, By Divine Right to open the show. While I had seen the band once before, I mostly knew them more based on their legacy and reputation than their music, and the Toronto three piece definitely lived up to that.
The band lineup has rotated a lot throughout their twenty-plus years -- including musicians like Brendan Canning, Leslie Feist, and Brian Borcherdt -- and joining frontman José Miguel Contreras in their current lineup was drummer Geordie Dynes, and Alysha Haugen on bass.
Highlights from their set included the simple yet catchy "The Slap" and "Past The Stars", the first song from new album, Organized Accidents, introduced as about space aliens. Contreras swapped to an acoustic guitar for "Mutant Message", and got the crowd really going with their biggest hit, "Five Bucks". After jokingly ringing in the new year early, they ended with "Stella Ocean Heart"
They put on a strong set, and it's easy to see why they have had such longevity.

Soon enough, the lights dimmed and LCD Soundsystem's Home (appropriately enough) blasted throughout the venue as Said the Whale took the stage. The song ended and they launched into "More Than This", the soft song was a little anticlimactic after that introduction, but then quickly exploded into "Mother" promising "maybe I should fuck something up good".

They kept up the energy for the first few songs, hitting "Camillo (The Magician)" early on, the crowd singing along, not for the last time. Judging by the volume the crowd hit joining in on songs like the beautiful "Curse the Currents" (Ben goading the crowd to sing louder and louder) and "Emerald Lake, AB" and the way the dancefloor was bouncing, the audience was almost as excited to be there as the band was; more than once, the members of the band proclaimed their love and gratitude towards the fans, with big grins on their faces, visibly stoked to be headlining the Commodore.

Highlights from the set included my favourite new track off of hawaiii, "Resolution" which ended with an incredibly energetic Shad joining the band on stage to perform his portion of the song, and one of my favourite Said the Whale tracks overall, "My Government Heart", the stage bathed in red lights as Tyler vitriolically spat out the lyrics.
They also pulled out a deep-cut cover, Father John Misty's "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings", and Tyler got very emotional when he went into "Helpless Son", a song written for his mother, a cancer survivor, who was in the crowd and hearing the song performed live for the first time.

"I Love You" wrapped up the main set with a huge energy, but of course they were back for the obligatory encore; a few more songs before wrapping up with the perfect set-ender, "Goodnight Moon", capping off with Tyler rocking out on the ukulele as hard as someone can rock out on a ukulele.

I've seen Said the Whale more than a few times in the past few years, and I would say this was the best I have seen them play live. They were incredibly tight, firing on all cylinders, Ben & Tyler's voices working in perfect harmony, and even Jacelyn joining in on more backup vocal duties than before.
It made me really excited to see what they come up with next.


setlist
More Than This; Mother; Camillo (The Magician); Narrows; The Light Is You; My Government Heart; Big Sky, MT; Safe To Say; Resolutions; Seasons; I Could Smoke; Oh K, Okay; Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings [Father John Misty cover]; Helpless Son; The Gift of a Black Heart; Loveless; Curse the Currents; Willow; On The Ropes; I Love You.
(encore) The Weight of the Season; Emerald Lake, AB; Goodnight Moon. 

Basia Bulat w/ Evening Hymns @ Rio Theatre -- 12/05/13

Aside from an all-too short solo set opening for Nick Cave earlier this year, it had been over three years since the last time I saw Basia Bulat perform live. But she was back at a packed Rio Theatre to support her latest album, Tall Tall Shadow with her band. Plus, she was touring with longtime friend Evening Hymns -- who had already put on one of my favourite shows of the year, a couple months prior -- so I was more than a little excited for the show.

The night started with Evening Hymns, which is to say, Jonas Bonnetta taking the stage alone. After starting off with "Spirit In The Sky", which teased a bit of looping, he explained the concept of his latest album Spectral Dusk, written about his father's passing after years of illness and the deeply personal & heartfelt songs that were born. He told a couple stories about his father and brother, but also had some levity to his banter, joking around.

Half way through the set, Basia Bulat joined him on stage for a duet for an older song "Dead Deer", their voices blending perfectly together, and he fully exploited his looping pedal as he ran around building "Mtn. Song", his self professed dance number.
Jonas ended the set with the title track "Spectral Dusk", a heart wrenching song that surely caused more than a few teary eyes in the silent theatre. Not only was it his last song of the set, and his last live show of the year, but the last song for the Spectral Dusk "album cycle", and seemed noticeably cathartic for him as he ended that chapter.

setlist
Spirit In The Sky; Arrows; You and Jake; Dead Deer; Mtn. Song; Spectral Dusk.

It wasn't long after before Basia Bulat took the stage. Joined by bassist Ben Whitely and percussionist Ian MacKay, they started with "The City With No Rivers", and Bulat playing a charango; the first of several instruments she would cycle through over the course of the set. From the charango to the pianoette, the more conventional acoustic guitar to the keyboard, and of course the autoharp, she transitioned effortlessly from instrument to instrument. And her small stature -- which she joked about a few times -- gave way to a huge voice and presence. It was hard not to be entranced as her voice soared during songs like "Five, Four" and "Heart Of My Own".

There were a couple technical difficulties in the set, but nothing that took away from it; even when having keyboard or mic stand troubles, Basia was unfazed, joking and charming the crowd before getting it right rather than slipping into an awkward silence. Other highlights of the set included the soft and gorgeous "Paris or Amsterdam", the building intensity of "Gold Rush", and the incredibly catchy "Tall Tall Shadow", which saw Bonnetta coming out to join on backup vocals and staying for the final song of the set, "Never Let Me Go"

Basia came back out, visibly overwhelmed by the crowd's reaction, and went for a more loose and seemingly unplanned encore taking suggestions from the audience. "In The Night" again showed off her world class autoharp playing, and she did a beautiful cover of Daniel Johnston's "True Love Will Find You In The End", before she bookended the set by again bringing out the charango and finishing with her voice once again soaring for "It Can't Be You".

Basia Bulat is a fantastic musician and performer, and she had the entire theatre captivated throughout the show. I just hope it's not another three years before she's back.

setlist
The City With No Rivers; Promise Not To Think About Love; Gold Rush; Heart Of My Own; Run; I Was A Daughter; Five, Four; Paris or Amsterdam; Little Waltz; The Shore; If It Rains; Wires; Someone; Tall Tall Shadow; Never Let Me Go. 
(encore) Before I Knew; In The Night; True Love Will Find You In The End [Daniel Johnston cover]; It Can't Be You.

Brendan Canning @ Media Club -- 11/29/13

No one can ever accuse Brendan Canning of not being a hard working, busy man. The Broken Social Scene co-founderhas his name to about a half dozen bands, and now that Broken Social Scene is on a hiatus, he has been busy with his new solo album, his second counting Something For All Of Us, under the "Broken Social Scene Presents" line.
But in contrast to Broken Social Scene's bombastic, grandiose sound, his new album You Gots 2 Chill takes a tone fitting exactly with its name; it is laid back and mellow.

I got to the Media Club just as Dinosaur Bones took the stage. With a dark indie rock sound, the band had a great presence on stage. A few times they got the crowd clapping along, and had an effortless energy.
They were supporting their newest album Shaky Dream, and with songs like the moody "Career Criminal" being one of the highlights of the set, and I am definitely going to have to pick up their album.

It wasn't long after that that Brendan Canning was up. Joined by Hark on backup vocals (who opened the show and I unfortunately missed), Canning and his band played in front of a projection screen showing stock footage and old videos (including the old science film Powers of Ten)
After an instrumental intro, he launched into "Plugged In", the first single off the new album, setting the tone for the set with it's very laid back mood. Throughout the set, Canning was occasionally joined by members of Dinosaur Bones, and part way through the set invited a friend up on stage, Torquil Campbell of Stars. Campbell joined backup vocals for "Late Night Stars" -- appropriately enough -- and then a pretty amazing cover of Drake's "Hold On We're Going Home"
The band also took the time to stretch their musical legs, as a few songs ended with extended jams; Canning even mentioned after the swirling ending of "However Long" that they did some on-the-fly improvising. The set ended with the soft and beautiful "Last Song for the Summer Hideaway" and while the rest of the band left, Canning stayed to perform one more song, a solo acoustic instrumental.

It was a great show that was marred a little bit by a shitty crowd. The Media Club has always been bad for noise and conversation, and combine that with a Friday night and Canning's chill set, and the din got to be a bit much at times. But Canning managed to get the crowd to shut up for at least one song, the quietest of the set, and the noise seemed to die off after that. Noise aside, Canning is a hell of a performer, and I would love to see these songs in a more fitting venue.

Matthew Good @ Orpheum -- 11/28/13

I've said it before (more than once) but one of my favourite artists, for many years now, is Matthew Good. And I have been able to see him live at least once a year for the last six years or so; from huge, outdoor events to intimate acoustic shows.
Promoting his newest release, Arrows of Desire -- which is raw, rocking album recorded live-off-the-floor -- Matthew Good finished off the tour with a hometown show, at the beautiful Orpheum Theatre.


Opening the show was Gentleman Husbands. it was the first time in Vancouver for the Ontario four piece, and their rootsy-rock type stuff that wasn't quite good enough to like, but neither bad enough to be snarky about.
They had some catchy songs, but a lot of them ended up bleeding together and sounding alike, even the partial cover of The Wallflowers' "Difference" that the slipped into a song. For an opening band, it was Perfectly Acceptable Music and they had an obvious passion for what they were doing.



Soon after, at 9:30 sharp, Matthew Good took the stage. His band coming out first and launching into the opening notes of "Garden of Knives" from the new album before Good came on and stepped up to the mic. The nearly two-hour set focused on the new album, but reached back through his long career, hitting songs from his solo and Matthew Good Band days.

Older hits like "Everything is Automatic" and "Load Me Up" got the entire theatre on their feet and singing & clapping along, as Good poured all his energy into the set. His voice going from rough & gritty, to soft, to soaring -- sometimes within the same song -- and was always full of passion and emotion.

Good eschewed his usual dry and humourous banter, due to the show being curfewed and wanting to play as much music as possible, but did joke around a few times between songs, including spontaneously launching in to a cover of "Walk Hard" from the John C. Reilly movie of the same name.

Other highlights included the beautiful "While We Were Hunting Rabbits" from Avalanche, which was transformed from a symphonic, strings-filled number to an almost alt-country number that soared; the vicious & frantic "Via Dolorosa" finished with a huge swirling of guitars & pounding of drums; and "Shallow's Low", which starting dark and moody before exploding into a chaotic climax.

It's also worth noting the lighting, which is rarely gets its own spotlight; little touches really added to the experience, like when various members had solos, they were illuminated as the rest of the stage dark; and in one of the neatest stage lighting things I've seen in a while, the lights rapidly illuminated each individual drum as it was struck during one of the drummer's solos.

The main set wrapped up with the haunting "Letters in Wartime" the final track on the new album, before the obligatory encore. The band returning to stage with the familiar cheer piping through the theatre, and launching into "Giant", followed by another pair of huge singalongs, "Hello, Time Bomb" and "Apparitions".
They finally ended the night, and the tour, with the epic "Champions of Nothing", as Good thanked his band, his crew, and especially everyone for showing up.

setlsit
Garden of Knives, Last Parade, Load Me Up, Arrows of Desire, Non Populus, Born Losers, So Close, Everything is Automatic, Shallow's Low, While We Were Hunting Rabbits, Walk Hard [Dewey Cox cover], Had It Coming, We're Long Gone, Weapon, Alert Status Red, Via Dolorosa, Letters in Wartime.
(encore) Giant, Hello Time Bomb, Apparitions, Champions of Nothing.