Toronto – I wasn’t aware of it because I am never up to date on things but on one fateful night, singer/songwriter Adaline met actor Robert Pattinson of Twilight after Juno weekend, and had a very enjoyable chat (apparently 2 minutes). She then twittered about it. And then for reasons that wasn’t clear even to the band members blogs started to form around the encounter, translations began to appear (in French, OK.. but Spanish?) Before they could say Horay! the interweb hit their myspace in record numbers. That’s the gist of the story as it was passed down to me while I sat across one band member, waiting for the Abbotsford, BC guys to begin their industry showcase yesterday at Cameron House (that building on Queen/Spadina with giant killer ants).
Per my own customs I arrived 25 minutes early, strolled into the back and found myself the first guest. First of all, Cameron House’s stage feels like the Rain-forest Cafe, with leaves and tropical lighting (they’re missing a parrot). It’s made into a mini-cabaret club, with 3 climbing rows of benches and tables that can comfortably seat around 20 people, and the band was lounging when I walked in. Tthe above story was related to me, and after a bit of wait, Adaline finally arrives, behind a Pandora’s box burst of people who had better sense of these things than I do, and the show kicked off without a hitch. You can see them greeting people in the pic above.
I don’t remember which song she opened with but I think the set list went like Poor you, followed by a new song, Chemical spill, Meaningless Meeting, We’ve got something, and Whiter Straighter. Some of these are definitely catchy, and I think they would really get attention if played on radio or bigger venues. I’ve tried to ask the band members which genre they would like to pigeon-hole themselves into (obviously with more tact) – they conceded that Adaline’s the mastermind of the whole operation, and they find it interesting how she apparently fit many styles into one coherent piece. I guess it is a silly and probably offensive question but I really couldn’t place it except for cabaret-style rock. Then occasionally she has a electro-dance number like Chemical Spill. Songs will meander like a sultry love song and then start to receive heavier drums and guitar, transforming into rock by the end. I was going to chat with her more to find out, but she was quite busy with this being an industry show. She sounds quite good live (though the set had some mic glitches) – after the lesson from Bat for Lashes’s Natasha Khan I’d not easily throw out awesome this year… Adaline was perhaps more focused on songwriting. Good news is that they are playing tonight, too, at the Drake, with longer set list. Catch them if you want to support a Canadian talent.