Concerts

Concert Review: Neon Indian, Lemonade, May 8th, The Phoenix Theatre

Posted on May 13, 2012 by lauren in Concerts | Leave a comment

I love synth. I love the 80’s. I love new wave. I love men that can rock a polka dot collared shirt and look phenomenal in it. I love dancing. In short, I loved Neon Indian at the Phoenix on Tuesday, May 8th. II missed the first act Silent Diane, but after extensively watching online live YouTube videos I can tell you that they are an electronic duo, with that low-fi electro pop sound.

Lemonade, formerly San Franciscoans, now Brooklynites, played before Neon Indian, bringing their electronic sound with influences ranging from carribean, top 40, pop, to house. Their debut album received an 8.3 on Pitchfork, which to some, may mean “yea it’s worth a listen”, to others who care less for Pitchfork’s opinion, may mean it is pretentious drivel. I quite like their recordings, as any music fan can appreciate the wide range of influences that peek out in each song. It adds variety instead of listening to slight variations of the same song. However, their sound didn’t translate so well live. It could be that they were playing a venue too large for their sound as of yet, or the fact that the sound guy seemed to be nowhere in sight, only mic’ed the snare drum properly, you couldn’t hear the vocals, dude didn’t turn them up etc. The lead singer looked a bit out of place, only slightly swaying and sometimes moving his arms. Kudos to drummer Alex Pasternak though, Pasternak was a one man show, literally bouncing from foot to foot as he carried the insanely quick tempo throughout every song. Pasternak’s enthusiastic stage presence and the glow in the dark fluorescent pink drumsticks were definitely worth watching.

Alan Palomo has come a long way since his debut album Psychic Chasms. His stage presence has increased tenfold, with Palomo showing off some killer dance moves, added members to his live sets, as well as a Tron inspired lighting set up. When Neon Indian took the stage, to the largest venue they’ve headlined in Toronto as of yet, the crowd was going mad with anticipation. They kicked off their generous set with Local Joke, and it was a dance party from the start. Ripping through a perfect mix of both albums, he had the crowd genuinely cheering for more (not that half hearted “we know they’re coming back” cheer). They finished off with Terminally Chill and Should’ve taken Acid With You, two of the best songs off Psychic Chasms. Glad to have seen them at small and moderate sized venues, I predict Sound Academy and Kool Haus in their futures.

Concert Review: Nikki Lane, Spiritualized, May 5, Phoenix Concert Theatre

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Paul in Concerts | 3 Comments

Nikki Lane is the real deal. In her set opening for Spiritualized, the South Carolina retro  country singer proved herself to be no pretender, but a real devotee to the sounds and attitude associated with the outlaw country scene of the past. Case in point: while introducing her cover of Jessi Colter’s “Why You Been Gone So Long,” she asked if the crowd knew of Colter – “You know, Waylon Jennings’ wife?” With that, she lifted up her sleeve to reveal a Waylon tattoo. Later in her set, she uttered a phrase that cemented my opinion of her: “I spilled whiskey on my pedals.” A whiskey drinking, Waylon loving woman with a strong voice that’s been compared to that of Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette? Seems like the real deal to me. Playing a solo acoustic set, she announced that it was something she normally never does, but that she agreed to because Spiritualized offered her the spot on this condition and that she, being a fan, was not about to say no to J. Spaceman. While I’d be keen on seeing her with a full band, I’ve got to say her songs work quite well in the stripped down format. She might want to consider doing this more often.

Jason Pierce is also the real deal, in that the Spiritualized mastermind is always true to his vision.  A Spritualized record is going to sound like a Spiritualized record, even when he makes a conscious effort to make a more “pop” album, as he did with their latest, Sweet Heart Sweet Light.  And a Spiritualized show is going to sound like a Spiritualized show. That is, loud, epic, spacey … if you’ve been to one of their shows you know what I’m talking about. The band’s trademark blend of psychedelia, gospel, and rock’n’roll attitude works well and sounds great live. Pierce didn’t really say much or even move much from the spot he was standing on, but he didn’t really have to. The music speaks for itself.

Speaking of speaking for yourself, I feel the need to go on another rant about concert behaviour that annoys me. Now I’m really not one to begrudge someone if they’re enjoying a concert, but the guy who was standing next to me for a few songs might want to tone it down a notch. During the band’s performance of “Lay Back In The Sun,” this guy shouted out what I feel were a few too many “woo’s” throughout the song.  Look, I get that you approve of the line “Good dope, good fun,” but really I think one “woo” for the first time you hear that is sufficient. Any more than that and you’re veering into concert douchebag territory. Also, stop yelling out “DO IT!” while the band is jamming. Do what? They’re already doing it and doing it well. What more do you want?

Concert Review: M83, May 6th, Sound Academy

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Ricky in Concerts | 2 Comments

Going to a M83 show is like entering a kaleidoscope dream where you don’t want to wake.

With neon fluorescent lighting augmenting a colorful starry night backdrop, the band’s spectacular light show coupled with their super impressive live set made the it completely worthwhile for those willing to risk live and limb heading to the Sound Academy Sunday night. As Sean Bean would say, “one simply does not go to the Sound Academy.”

M83’s most recent album, the double disc spectacular known as Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming was one of the best albums of last year and it seems like many people are catching on, as French band made the jump from the cozy Lee’s Palace to the gigantic Sound Academy in just a span of six months. The sold out all ages crowd ranged from children to older types, which had me thinking that some of the eight year olds in the crowd were definitely much cooler then I was when I was that age.

The band was exceptionally solid from start to finish, vets Anthony Gonzalez, Loïc Maurin and Morgan Kirby were as good as you would expect but new comer Jordan Lawlor was especially impressive as the non stop energizer bunny guitar player. He was all over the stage and added a nice element of surprise to the show.

The set was evenly divided between materials old and new, with classic tracks such as Graveyard Girl, Teenage angst and Sitting making an appearance. In what appears to be a role reversal from most shows, the excited crowd responded more to the new tracks then the old one, an ever clear indication of the band’s relatively new fan base. m83’s songs are a great example of quiet-loud songs done well, and the live show was no exception. The quiet parts, such as the track Wait created a sort of intimacy one normally wouldn’t expect in a crowd of three thousand while tracks like Steve McQueen created a blistering wall of sound that was one of the trademarks of earlier m83 works.

Then there was Midnight City. Arguably my (and most people’s) favorite track of 2011, Midnight City was the highlight of the show for me. As the opening notes of the track played over the speakers, the crowd erupted in a frenzy of excitement. Of course, we were all wondering – what about the sax solo? Would it be pre-recorded (some parts of the concert had pre-recorded bits) or would it be something else. Sure enough just as the sax solo part arrived, a solo saxophone player burst out from the back playing the solo in all it’s gloriousness much to everyone’s delight. Greatest part of the show.

m83’s rise to the top has been a slow journey, but with impressive festival slots and ever increasing concert venue sizes, it looks like m83 has finally arrived. Make sure you are there for the ride.

Set List

Intro
Teen Angst
Graveyard Girl
Reunion
Sitting
Year One, One UFO
We Own The Sky
Steve McQueen
Wait
Fall (Daft Punk cover)
This Bright Flash
Midnight City
A Guitar And A Heart
Encore:
Skin Of The Night
Couleurs

Concert Review: Eleanor Friedberger, Hospitality, May 4, The Garrison

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Paul in Concerts, Everything | Leave a comment

I’ve long been a fan of The Fiery Furnaces yet I’ve never had a chance to see them live. I have, however, seen FF singer Eleanor Friedberger live twice now. The first time was an instore performance at Soundscapes last summer in support of her then just released album, Last Summer. That show was a stripped down solo affair featuring Eleanor alone with an acoustic guitar and acted as a good showcase for the songs, highlighting the strong melodies.  However, I was curious to see how it would sound with a full live band.  Augmented by backing players, would it just end up sounding like Fiery Furnaces?

The answer? Sort of but not really. Obviously because she’s the singer, there are going to be similarities, but there are enough differences evident to make this it’s own thing entirely. For this show, Friedberger was backed by a solid three piece band who helped to fill out the sound quite a bit. Especially noticeable were the  guitarist’s somewhat Beatlesque leads throughout the set.

I feel I would be slightly remiss if I didn’t mention Friedberger’s unique fashion sense. Dressed like she raided a thrift store, or like some kind of cool, ex-hippie elementary school art teacher, she certainly made an impression on stage. And for the record, Eleanor did indeed put her boots on for tonight’s show.

I was also looking forward to this evening’s openers Hospitality. I had heard a bit of buzz about them, but only having heard a couple songs beforehand, I was going in more or less blind. Not knowing much in advance may have made it all the more impressive as there was an element of discovery at play as well.

Singer/guitarist Amber Papini led the band through a set full of breezy, jangly, and catchy as hell indie pop. Highlights were “Friends Of Friends,” “Argonauts” (which she dedicated to some guy in the audience who told her at the bar that it was his favourite song) and a cover of Steely Dan’s “Ricky Don’t Lose That Number,” which was interesting to me as fellow PM writer Allison had just the day before mentioned how she felt that that song was one of the most annoying to get stuck in your head (I disagreed, noting that I would actually appreciate having said song stuck in my head). It was a weird bit of serendipity for me. For everyone else, I hope they recognized it as a great interpretation of a classic tune. They certainly caught my ear with their performance and made a fan of me that night.

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