Concert Review: Low Cut Connie, August 6, Horseshoe Tavern

 
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It’s quite a big stretch to say that I’ve seen Low Cut Connie in concert before since my previous experience with the band probably amounts to a grand total of a song and a half this past March while I waited for our food order during SXSW. But I’m gonna say it counts, in that the band made some kind of impression on me and they certainly had the crowd at Lucy’s Fried Chicken in the palm of their hand that day so I made a mental note to check the band out in more of a proper concert setting when I got the chance. And on Monday night at the Horseshoe, I got that chance.

As it turns out, the chance to see the band in Toronto was not necessarily a given. Singer and pianist Adam Weiner noted early on in their set that the band hadn’t been to Canada in four years, later adding that they had considered the option of not returning to Canadian soil at all.

“I didn’t think we’d come back,” he said, explaining that they played a show once at the Drake Hotel where they couldn’t get the piano down the stairs as well as a show in Ottawa that he only described as “very strange” and a show in Kitchener (“wherever that is”) that also didn’t make a good impression on them. So while all of that could have added up to convincing the band never to cross the border again, luckily they changed their mind and came back. And despite the fact that Weiner described the crowd as “polite motherfuckers” early on when they didn’t respond quite enthusiastically enough, he repeatedly stated how much he loves Toronto throughout the night and even dedicated the song “Beverly” to the late Jackie Shane, who spent the bulk of her career in Toronto.

Weiner also mentioned another Canadian connection – the fact that he once lived in Montreal for two years, a time wherein he would often see Leonard Cohen walking around his neighbourhood and hoped that Cohen might come in to the cafe where he played piano and see “the other depressed Jewish boy in Montreal” play.

Leonard Cohen never did see him back then, but if he had, I’m sure it would have been much a much different performance than the kind of show that Low Cut Connie puts on – the band’s performance was a full on rock spectacle centred around Weiner’s over the top showmanship. Strutting about the stage, ruffling people’s hair, high-fiving, and standing on top of his piano at various points throughout their set, Weiner gave off a bit of a Jerry Lee Lewis meets WWE vibe. He started the set at pretty much 100% energy level and didn’t really let up aside from a couple of piano ballads later in the night. That’s entertainment.

Posted on by Paul in Concerts