Sam Roberts Band with Brandon Wolfe Scott @ Commodore -- February 24, 2024

With their new album out a few months ago, Sam Roberts Band hit the road for The Adventures of Ben Blank Tour. Their Vancouver stop was a return to the Commodore Ballroom for a pair of shows. 

Opening the evening was Brandon Wolfe Scott, the Vancouver singer performing some of his solo material. He hit the stage with his backing band and launched into “In Stride” off last year’s EP Slow Transmission, treating the gathering crowd to his chill, throwback vibes.
He ‘got his Bob Dylan on’ by pulling out the harmonica for “Fade Out”, and his soft voice lilted over the crowd on the dreamy “Burden on your Shoulder”, before finishing off his short opening set with “Something Real”.
Whether it’s solo or with his band, Yukon Blonde, it’s always a treat to see Scott play, and he was a great pick for starting out the night. 

It wasn’t long before the lights dimmed and the screen behind the stage filled with the Ben Blank album art, as Sam Roberts Band took the stage, starting off with a bang. First my fave off the new album “Afterlife”, then “With A Bullet”, and getting everyone to dance with “Them Kids”.

Reminding us of not only the band’s depth, but also longevity, they hit songs from all over their career, from classics like “Where Have All the Good People Gone?” which had the sold out room joining in, to the warm “Picture of Love”, the first single off the new album. 

The set ebbed and flowed, not only musically, but also thematically. On a heartfelt “Cascades”, Sam opined “Ooh I need you, Baby in the worst way”, only to follow that up by spitting out “And if this is true then I don't need you, I don't need anyone” on “Metal Skin”.

Other highlights – and more singing along – included “Hard Road”, which exploded into the frenetic “Dead End”, and the three-song-punch that capped off the set, “Bridge to Nowhere”, “Love At the End of the World”, and the early hit, “Don't Walk Away Eileen”. 

But of course, they were back for more, proving that “We're All in This Together” before Roberts put his guitar aside to dance around the stage and lead the crowd in singing with “Brother Down”. Finally, they wrapped up with possibly my favourite Sam Roberts song (and one which I wasn’t even sure they were going to play), the 8+ minute psychedelic journey of “Mind Flood”, with wailing guitars, intense keys, and drumming that thumped into your very core, the band going all out for a satisfying ending.

It’s been a minute since I’ve seen Sam Roberts Band play live (and even longer since a non-festival show), And after two hours of rock & roll, with the crowd in the palm of their collective hands the entire time, and hit after hit, this night was a great reminder of just how strong the band is live.

Sam Roberts Band setlist
Afterlife
With a Bullet
Them Kids
Bad Country
Where Have All the Good People Gone?
I Like the Way You Talk About the Future
Projection
Take Me Away
Let It In 
Picture Of Love
Cascades
Metal Skin
Hard Road
Dead End
Spellbound
Bridge to Nowhere
Love At the End of the World
Don't Walk Away Eileen
(encore)
We're All in This Together
Everybody Needs Love
Brother Down
Mind Flood

Brandon Wolfe Scott setlist
In Stride
Our Back Garden
Fade Out
Way Way Down
Slow Transmission
Burden On Your Shoulders
Something Real

The Rural Alberta Advantage @ Commodore Ballroom -- February 17, 2024

Hot off the release of last year’s album, The Rise & The Fall, The Rural Alberta Advantage returned to the Commodore at Vancouver for a packed, Saturday night show.

I missed the opener for the evening, Mariel Buckley, arriving shortly before the screens around the room blinked to the RAA logo, and the tail end of “FGSH” blasted over the speakers, as the band took the stage. Singer & guitarist Nils Edenloff asked if everyone was ready to rock on a Saturday evening -- including the crowd, but also his bandmates Amy Cole on keys and vocals, and drummer Paul Banwatt, as they launched into “CANDU” off the new album.

The set ebbed and flowed, building with energy as the band with songs like the slow burn of “Don't Haunt This Place”, and “Vulcan, AB”, which had the crowd singing along. The explosive midpoint climax was the perennial favourite “Stamp”, one of many songs that showcased Paul’s absolutely bonkers drumming.

After that, the band eased off a little as Amy and Paul took a brief break for Nils to play “Two Lovers” solo, just his acoustic guitar and distinctive voice filling the room. From there they slowly built back up, hitting songs from all over their career, from the aptly titled “Edmonton” off their debut Hometowns, to the burning intensity “White Lights” off The Wild, and of course their latest, with the frenetic “Plague Dogs”.

They brought the main set to a close with an absolutely chaotic finish to “Terrified”, featuring the crowd joining in on the backup WHOA-OO-OOHs. And once they left the stage, the audience continued to sing, so the band returned and re-join for a brief reprise. With only a few more songs left, the trio finished off with one last song about their provincial namesake, a classic “The Deathbridge in Lethbridge” to cap off the night with a huge bang.

I’ve seen The Rural Alberta Advantage a handful of times now, and every time I do, I’m somehow still amazed that “just” a trio has such a big live sound, with fantastic intensity and raw power. At the end of the set, Nils drove home that this was a singular moment we were all sharing, and I would be more than happy to share more moments watching The RAA play.

setlist
CANDU
Bad Luck Again
Don’t Haunt This Place
Three Sisters
Four Night Rider
Tornado ‘87
Vulcan, AB
AB Bride
Drain the Blood
Stamp
Two Lovers
Don’t Wake Up
White Lights
Plague Dogs
Edmonton
Frank, AB
Brother
Terrified
(encore)
Terrified (Reprise)
In the Summertime
Runners in the Night
The Deathbridge in Lethbridge

Feist @ Commodore Ballroom -- February 13, 2024

It’s been quite some time since I last saw Feist perform live, so I was very happy to catch one of her three(!) shows in Vancouver, at the Commodore, on the Multitudes Finale Tour.

Arriving to the venue, there was a small stage auspiciously set up in the middle of the Commodore floor, and a large sheet blocking off the main stage. With no opening act for the show, the lights dimmed and the sheet flickered to life, with a live feed from a phone camera. The POV shot went from the backstage area, came out into the main floor & through the crowd, eventually ending up on the small stage, as Feist spun around with the camera on the audience.

Before she could even say a word, the crowd sang her a happy birthday, as she gratefully launched into an acoustic “Century”. From there, she performed ‘in the round’, moving the microphone to face different parts of the audience, and hitting songs spanning her career; from the classic “Gatekeeper” to “The Bad in Each Other” about a dissolving relationship, and the haunting “Become the Earth” making incredible use of the vocal loops.

Between songs, Feist told stories and generally chatting with the audience for an intimate feeling, even choosing a “volunteer” from the crowd to be in charge of the camera, sill streaming to the screen at the stage. (Though it was soon clear that if the volunteer wasn’t a plant from the tour, it was an incredibly lucky choice).

After about an hour, Feist was handed a mystery notebook, which she started to read, spinning it into a spoken word poem. The poem transitioned into “I Took All of My Rings Off”, as she slowly weaved through the crowd toward the stage. Standing at the edge, the sheet dropped to reveal her band, backlit on a smoky stage, who instantly joined in for a hug swell to finish the song. And let me tell you: chills.

From there, the second half of the show kicked into gear, as Feist and her band cranked up the energy with “My Moon, My Man”, and another hour reminding the crowd just how many bangers she has. Highlights including an aptly named “A Commotion”, the frenetic “Sealion”, and “In Lightning”, the tempestuous opener from her latest album Multitudes. The crowd sang along to the jubilant “I Feel It All”, before the soft & heart wrenching “Let it Die”, as Feist capped off this portion of the set with a relaxed, fuzzed out version of “1234”, which then erupted into the upbeat singalong everyone knows.

Another curtain dropped and instead of leaving, the band milled around onstage, silhouettes projected while getting ready for the encore. Feist emerged from behind the sheet and once again went through the crowd, this time with a green sheet, creating some wild visuals on the returning live feed, for “Of Womankind”, and then coming back up to stand in front of the sheet for the beautiful “Love Who We Are Meant To”, as the screen followed along to handwritten lyrics in the same notebook as earlier.

The band popped back out to took a bow — including the volunteer, who was indeed part of the crew — with Feist proclaiming it was the best birthday a person could ask for. Either half of the night could have been a satisfying show on their own. But both halves together, with the fun production twists, and Feist's incredible songs & effortless performance, easily made this a high bar for every other show this year to try and top.

setlist
(acoustic)
Century
Gatekeeper
The Redwing
The Bad in Each Other
Forever Before
Become the Earth
Calling All the Gods
I Took All of My Rings Off
(band)
My Moon My Man
How Come You Never Go There
A Commotion
Hiding Out in the Open
Sealion
In Lightning
A Man Is Not His Song
I Feel It All
Let It Die
1234
(encore)
Of Womankind
Love Who We Are Meant To

Babe Corner @ The Pearl -- February 01, 2024

You know when you like a band, yet somehow just keep missing their shows? I can finally cross Babe Corner off that list. While I have seen them in a ‘free outdoor show’ setting, I somehow haven’t seen them in a proper venue (just missing tickets for their sold out album release show last year) until their headlining show last night at The Pearl.

I got there a bit late, missed the first act of the night, doohickey cubicle, arriving partway through Layten Kramer, as he and his band were rocking out with “Unravelled” off his latest EP, Eye to Eye.
From there they kept up the energy with “Strange Displacement” before capping off with “Slow The Time / Bend The Light”, a 7+ minute tune that ebbed and flowed, growing to a clattering guitar solo, before calming back down for band member Dougal Bain to pull out his violin.

Soon after, the members of Babe Corner took the stage; Lindsay Sjoberg on guitar & vocals, Haley Blais on bass, Lilli Carr on guitar, keyboardist Alli Deleo, and drummer Jessica Jones.
With their nostalgic dream pop (or “babe core”) sound, they hit most of their new album Crybaby, from the chill “Bianca” to the grittier “Summer Slaughter”. Lindsay’s soft vocals drifted through the room, often joined by harmonies from the rest of the band, a prime example being “Caught on the Double”.

Lindsay also joked with the crowd, and her bandmates, between songs, telling stories or trying to get everyone in the room to march to the rollicking “Bone Dry Dunes” — my favourite off the new album, and a highlight of the set, as well as the absolute earworm “Cigarette”, another song rich with harmonies.

After the melancholic title track, “Crybaby”, they ending the set with Chris Vanderkooy joining on guitar for the breeze & charming “They Don’t Love You (Like I Do)”. But of course, they were back for one more song, their recent collaboration with doohickey cubicle, the synthy and dancey “Corner Babe” to cap off the night.

Crybaby was definitely one of my favourite local albums from last year, so I was very happy to (finally) see them at a proper venue last night.

Hotel Mira @ Commodore Ballroom -- January 19, 2024

The very first time I saw Hotel Mira (back when they were still JPNSGRLS) they were the opener of three bands on a bill at the Commodore. Flash forward ten years, a name change, and a few albums -- and hit singles -- later, and now they are not only headlining the Commodore for the first time, but a sold out Commodore at that!

Thanks to an early show that evening, I missed the first opener Holy Felix, getting there to catch the tail end of Fake Shark. While the Vancouver band hasn’t always been my jam personally, I cannot deny they have a palpable energy for their fast-paced alt-rock. Especially singer Kevvy, who had the crowd in the palm of his hand, singing along to singles like “Fake Friends” and “Bummer Summer” off their recently released album Afterglow. They also ended the set with a surprise, Matt Webb from Marianas Trench to join in on “Loser”.

After a break, the lights dimmed and “Total Eclipse of the Heart” hit the speakers (crowd obviously singing along) as the members of Hotel Mira took stage; Mike Noble on bass & synth, Clark Grieve on guitar, drummer Cole George, and singer Charlie Kerr.

They started off with “King of the World” and “Alone in America” from their latest album, I Am Not Myself, for a set that weaved through that album as well as 2020’s Perfectionism. From explosive songs like “Everything Once” and “The Eyes on You”, to the harmonies of “Vampire” and “Jungles”, the band hardly let off the gas for their hour-long set.

And they were definitely a good companion to Fake Shark, because if anyone can match Kevvy's vibrancy, it’s Charlie Kerr. They got the crowd riled up and singing along with some hits, “Better On Your Own” and “This Could Be It For Me” early on, and it was clear everyone onstage was feeding off the sold out crowd, but especially Kerr as he waded into the audience for “Speaking Off the Record”, ended with him crowdsurfing.

They wrapped up the main set with the incredibly catchy & frenetic “Fever Pitch”, but were of course back out a few minutes later, first with the more melancholic “The Age of Detachment” before cranking the energy again while reaching back to the JPNSGRLS days for a perennial favourite, and one last singalong, “Southern Comforting”.

One of my favourite things about following local bands is watching them evolve. And it’s definitely been cool to see the lads in Hotel Mira go from opening slots and smaller, more intimate venues, to headlining a sold out Commodore (and beyond?)

setlist
King Of The World
Alone in America
Better On Your Own
This Could Be It For Me
Everything Once
Eventually
Amanda
Silver Lake
Mama
Vampire
Jungle
The Eyes on You
Speaking Off the Record
Dancing With the Moonlight
Fever Pitch
encore
The Age of Detachment
Southern Comforting