The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer @ Commodore -- 10/09/14

Two years ago was the first time I saw The Harpoonist and The Axe Murderer, as part of the Peak Performance Project, And since then, I have had the worst luck seeing them again; every single time they played, I was cursed to miss it for one reason or another.
But finally, I broke that "streak" earlier this year at the Burnaby Blues & Roots Fest when they played a short set, and now I finally got to see them headlining a show of their own. And not just any show, their first headlining show at the legendary Commodore Ballroom, in front of a sold out crowd.

Unfortunately, I missed the openers Petunia & The Vipers, arriving at the venue a couple minutes before The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer hit the stage, adorned with over a dozen bare lightbulbs. The duo of Shawn "The Harpoonist" Hall on harmonica & vocals, and Matt "The Axe Murderer" Rogers on guitar and kickdrum were joined by a pair of lovely & powerful backup vocalists, Dawn Pemberton and Jody "Miss Quincy" Peck, and later on "Major" Tom Heuckendorff on organ to fill out the sound.

Starting off by teasing a verse of their song "Roll With the Punches" -- which was reprised a few times throughout the set, but for some reason never paid off with the full song -- they launched into an hour-plus set that focused on songs from their new album A Real Fine Mess. Their gritty, swampy blues sound drives straight into your soul, with songs like "Mama's In The Back Seat" with its frantic rhythm; the rollicking "Act Your Age", letting both Pemberton and Peck shine on backup vocals; and the Big Sugar-ish funk of the almost-title-track "A Real Fine Noise".

Part way through the set, the pair let the rest of the band take a break -- as Shawn joked they wanted to hog the spotlight -- for a pair of songs that included a bit of a slower song, "In The End", and one written by Matt's brother, Ben Rogers, "Love Me 'fore Ya Leave Me".
After a few more, they wrapped up the set by somehow taking things up another notch, with a one-two punch of "Wake Up" and the explosive "Get Out", both from their previous act "Checkered Past". And of course, they were back out for a couple more, enlisting in the aid of Miss Quincy & The Showdown drummer Jen Foster, for the aptly titled "Shake It", and wrapped everything up with "In And Out Of Love".

You wouldn't think that a show where the two main band members sit on stools all night would be dynamic, but in this case, you would be wrong. Even though both stayed seated for the set, they drew the crowd in with plenty of opportunities to clap, stomp, & sing along, and had energy to spare. Proof could easily be found on Shawn's shirt, which was soaked with sweat by the end (probably Matt's too, but his was darker to begin with). The duo was also vocally and visibly honoured to wrap up their tour with a packed hometown show, at the Commodore.


When they first announced they would be playing there, I was a little surprised, as I didn't realise that they had become a "Commodore band". But what didn't surprise me was watching them tear it up. They put on a great show, and I only hope this means my luck has turned, and I am able to catch them again next time.


setlist
Roll With the Punches (pt I), Cry a Little, Do Whatcha, Act Your Age, Don't Make 'em Like They Used To, A Real Fine Noise, Roll With the Punches (pt II), Mama's In the Backseat, Tea for Two, In the End, Love Me 'fore Ya Leave Me, Feel Me Now, Are You Listening Lord, Sweat This Pain, Roll With the Punches (pt III), Wake Up, Get Out.
(encore) Shake It, In and Out of Love.

The Strumbellas @ Imperial -- 10/30/14

I've said a few times before on this blog, there's a certain ubiquitous folk sound that I have just "gotten over". Maybe it was the over saturation, maybe I've just moved past it, but I find myself thinking it less and less interesting.
That being said, there are still some bands that prove there's still some good folk out there, and The Strumbellas is one of them. Which the Toronto band did last week as they took to The Imperial, as part of their Ride On North America Tour.


First up was Edmonton's The Provincial Archive. The four-piece had a poppy, folsky sound reminiscent of early Decemberists, as they played songs from their recent album It's All Shaken Wonder. 
Starting with the lead off track from the album, "Daisy Garden", lead singer Craig Schram introduced every song with a brief story, occasionally switching off between guitar and banjo, and even taking one song solo as the rest of the band took a break for "Land Machines".
The crowd stadily grew, and made their way towards the stage, as the set went on thanks to catchy songs like "Common Cards", and "Weight and Sea" from their previous album,  Maybe We Could Be Holy, which got some clapping along,
Their set ran for about 45 minutes -- maybe a little long for an opener -- but it was a solid set nonetheless, and I'm looking forward to the next time they're back.


The six members of The Strumbellas packed the stage launching immediately into "Home Sweet Home" from their Juno winning album We Still Move On Dance Floors, getting the crowd doing just that.

The entire band had a great energy and presence on stage -- especially David Ritter on keys and lead singer Simon Ward -- and a very loose vibe; they joked around with the crowd, and never wasted an opportunity to needle each other. They made even a packed Imperial feel like an intimate hangout in someone's living room.

Musically, their "folk popgrass" sound had songs ranging from a slower, country jams to a fiery rocking  and everything inbetween -- with plenty of stompin' and clappin' and singing along to their deceptively upbeat songs, a lot of which about death. Highlights included the anthemic "End of an Era", the explosive energy of "Sheriff", and a new song that they "weren't finished fighting about".
There was also a great moment where Simon said he was going to try a song off-mic, unplugging his guitar and stepping to the front of the stage for a beautiful song "The Fire", as the rest of the band joined him off-mic and the crowd shushed each other into silence.

They wrapped up the main set with "Sailing", but of course were back for more -- one member joking that the whole encore concept was "More awkward than sleeping with your wife's sister" -- and they wrapped up with a couple more, including the raucous "Did I Die" that even included a harmonized rap from Simon & David.

The Rural Alberta Advantage w/ July Talk @ Commodore -- 10/23/14

Celebrating the release of their new album Mended With Gold, The Rural Alberta Advantage hit Vancouver for the first time in about two years. And if that wasn't reason enough to fill the Commodore on a Thursday night, they had fellow Toronto band July Talk along with them; a pairing that was bound to tear down the proverbial house.


I got to the venue just as the Toronto five-piece July Talk took the stage, fronted by the pairing of Peter Dreimanis and Leah Fay. Their whiskey-soaked blues-tinged rock & roll mixes Peter's rough growl and Leah's sweet (yet no less powerful) voice, and the two have a great energy and playfulness on stage. They would be constantly teasing and getting in each others faces, and frequently strutting up to the front of the stage. Especially Leah, who spent most of the set perched on the monitors. Part way through the set, Peter even leapt into the crowd to surf, while still playing guitar, which inspired guitarist Ian Docherty to do the same at the end of the set.

And the crowd was definitely on their side, singing along to many songs -- Leah giving the crowd the mic to join in on the frantic "Guns + Ammunition" -- and when they announced it was the last Canadian show on their current tour and joked they should sing "O Canada", the crowd not only complied, but couldn't be stopped. 

Other highlights of the set included the great vocal-interplay of "Headsick", and "Paper Girl", which somehow managed to top all the energy they had throughout the set for a fiery finale.

It's not hard to see why they won (mere hours before their set) a Casby Award for Best New Band, and I hope they're back soon enough, with a show of their own.


That was going to be a hard act to top, but The Rural Alberta Advantage were up to the task, the trio consisting of the distinct voice of lead singer and guitarist Nils Edenloff, Paul Banwatt's frantic and incredible drumming, and multi-instrumentalist Amy Cole playing about four or five instruments, sometimes simultaneously.

Starting off with the explosive "Stamp", they created a folk rock (emphasis on the rock) sound much greater than you would expect from just three people. From their newest songs like "To Be Scared" and "Terrified" off the new album Mended With Gold -- both of which written about the Evil-Dead-like cabin Nils wrote the album in -- to the moody "Don't Haunt This Place" from their first album Hometowns, they tore through their whole arsenal of songs. And even though the trio is from Toronto, they had plenty of songs about Alberta, the fan favourite and chaotic"Tornado '87" and the newer, intense and heartbreaking "Vulcan, AB" being standouts.
With a fantastic energy, the band had the crowd whipped into a frenzy, people furiously clapping, singing, and even crowdsurfing -- impressively, even during their slower and calmer songs.

After about an hour, they ended the set with "Drain the Blood" before Nils came back on stage alone for the encore, starting with "The Build" as the band slowly joined him and closed out the night with a few older songs. The eerie "Barnes' Yard" bringing the energy back up, and they ended off with one last rager, fan favourite, and Alberta-inspired song "The Dethbridge In Lethbridge" with the crowd singing along to the last note.


setlsit
Stamp; Muscle Relaxants; Don't Haunt This Place; Our Love...; Runners in the Night; Tornado '87; Vulcan, AB; Luciana; On the Rocks; Two Lovers; 45/33; To Be Scared; Terrified; Four Night Rider; Edmonton; Frank, AB; Drain the Blood.
(encore) The Build; Barnes' Yard; In The Summertime; The Dethbridge in Lethbridge.

David Vertesi @ Anza Club -- 10/22/14

It's been a while since David Vertesi -- tall bass player of Hey Ocean! -- has done a solo show in Vancouver. But earlier this month he released a brand new song, to tease his upcoming second solo album which should be released sometime next year, and a quick jaunt of western tour dates, wrapping up in him home of Vancouver.


Starting off the night at the Anza Club was Windmills from Kelowna. The one-man-band of Cory Myraas took the stage alone armed with his guitar and a looping station, building layers of his ambient-pop (or maybe post-folk) sound, with almost haunting vocals.
He combined it with awkwardly charming stage banter between songs, even going so far as to tell a couple purposefully terrible puns, or joking he was going to "kick it up to 7", as he wrapped up the set with a couple of the more high energy songs of the set.
It's always fun to watch loopers perform live, and he was no exception.


Next up was Rosie June joined only by Andrew Rassmussen on keys and synth, with more of a minimalistic pop sound. The focus was definitely on her lofty and breathy vocals for the show, but unfortunately much of the set it was either too low, or not clear at all, at times hard to make out what exactly she was singing. In fact, she didn't have very much stage presence, hardly moving through the entire set. Even Andrew behind the keys was more animated than she was.
Aside from her own songs she included a cover of Sugar Ray's "When It's Over", and the synth beats were definitely catchy. But I can't help but feel if she just had a bit more behind her vocals, it would have been a much more enjoyable set.


And finally, finishing the pattern of adding a band member, David Vertesi hit the stage with Andrew once again on keys, and Johnny Andrews on drums. They started with a slow-boiling instrumental before going into "Soft Skin" from Vertesi's first album Cardiography, joking that his genre of music was "sad dad cruise ship" (a phrase plastered on the shirts he had for sale).
His songs are simple, yet effective, many of them are about love, or the lack thereof, but it's the emotion he brings to the songs with his smooth baritone that really sells it and sucks you in. The best example of that came later in the set with the heart-wrenching song "Learn To Run" as it built to an intensely emotional release.
As well as the new songs -- like the catchy "Loud Talker" -- Vertesi also threw in a couple cover songs; first an almost lounge-y version of GOB's punk hit "I Hear You Calling" which was a really cool reinterpretation, and later a pretty straight up and dancey cover of "Say You'll be There" by Spice Girls. He wrapped up the set, without bothering with the whole faux-encore business, with his most upbeat (musically, anyway) song "Mountainside", leaving the floor dancing.

Vertesi left the crowd with only a little taste of his new album, but from the sounds of it, I am already looking forward to it.

setlist
[intro]; Soft Skin; Gentlemen Say; [new song]; I Hear You Calling [Gob cover]; Loud Talker; All Night, All Night, All Night; Learn To Run; [new song]; Say You'll Be There [Spice Girls cover]; Mountainside.

Bahamas @ Vogue -- 10/17/14

Somehow it has been two years since I last saw Bahamas play live. The last time, it was at the Biltmore Cabaret, so to take a jump from there to a sold out Vogue Theatre was pretty indicative of how big he's become, and how well his latest album, Bahamas is Afie is doing.


Opening the night was Toronto's The Weather Station, and much like Bahamas is Afie, The Weather Station is Tamara Lindeman. She took the stage alone armed only with her guitar and breathy but powerful vocals as she wooed the packed theatre with her folky, alt-country sound.
She had a good stage presence -- not shy, but hushed, as if to urge you closer -- and she joking with the crowd, even a few times even answering single questions yelled in the direction of the stage, and was pretty captivating while playing.
Near the end of her set, she invited Afie -- who produced her upcoming album -- on stage to play the drums for the last couple songs, switching to an electric guitar.
I enjoyed her set, but I get the feeling that her live shows are the kind that are exponentially better when you know the music, and so I'll definitely have to check out her new album before she's back.


Soon after that, Bahamas himself, Afie Jurvanen, came out joined by Felicity Williams, Christine Bougie, and Jason Tait as his backing band. As they kicked off with "Never Again", Afie looked visibly glad to be there, to be playing for a packed house. He played and strut around the stage with an effortless cool and charisma, even bantering with the crowd, with his dry sense of humour.
The set began with some older songs, including the ridiculously catchy "Caught Me Thinking" before he delved into his new album. Highlights from included the gorgeous and heartbreaking "Can't Take You With Me", and the pairing of "I Had It All" and "Nothing To Me" as Afie pointed out the juxtaposition of the two song titles.

Part way through the set the band took a break as Bahamas pulled out the guitar his first album was named after, his pink strat, for "Lonely Loves" off that album, as Afie showed off his considerable talent on guitar. The band came back to end off the main set, as they were joined by Tamara Lindeman to help out on vocals for the beautiful "Lost In The Light" before leaving.
But of course, they would be back, with Jason Tait utilizing the vibraphone for the first and only time throughout the set on "Montreal" and Lindeman returning to help out with vocals. After a cover of a Bobby Womack song and newly fan-favourite "All The Time" off the new album, the crowd took to their feet for the third standing ovation of the night, and Bahamas ended things off with another beautiful song,"Snow Plow", and Afie one more time showing how grateful he was to be there.


From even the very first time seeing Bahamas, as an opening act at the Biltmore (five years ago this month, actually), I could tell he had ridiculous amounts of charisma and charm. Even in a sold out theatre venue, he still managed to make it seem small and intimate, and is such a good performer. It's no wonder, after many years of backing up bands like Feist, Jason Collet, Zeus, and more, that he went out on his own, and no wonder that he can sell out venues like the Vogue.


setlist
Never Again, I Got You Babe, Caught Me Thinking, Already Yours, Like A Wind, Can't Take You With Me, Waves, I Had It All, Nothing To Me Now, Lonely Loves, Sobering Love, Overjoyed, Okay Alright I'm Alive, Your Sweet Touch, Lost In The Light.
(encore) Montreal, Bitter Memories, Please Forgive My Heart (Bobby Womack cover), All The Time, Snow Plow.