Post by riley on Apr 5, 2006 7:25:23 GMT -5
Saturday April 1, 2006 - Halifax Forum Multi Purpose Room.
Their faces split the Canadian East Coast in half.
Well not quite, but Toronto’s most popular indie collective arrived in Halifax for the country’s annual Juno Awards and celebration this past weekend. More importantly however, they gathered a couple thousand of their favorite Haligonians so we could see first hand what Canada’s best band look and sound like at the top of their game.
Given the occasion, the standard rotating roster was top heavy with about as pure a line up as one could hope for. Julie Penner from the Fembots on violin, singer Lisa Lobsinger, Ohad from Do Make Say Think (in place of Jason Collett) were some newer faces along with a couple new horn players. Feist was in the house, along with John Crossingham from Raising the Fawn, and Amy from Stars. The Metric crew was MIA, but with 16 people on stage at the height of the evening, it’s difficult to determine where they would have stood. The balance of the line up was the usual suspects. It was confirmed scientifically that Evan Cranley and Charles Spearin are two of the country’s most exciting multi-instrumentalists. I can’t disclose the formula, but all the concert goers were in agreement on this point. It was also confirmed with a similar formula that Andrew “The Apostle of Hustle” Whiteman is the coolest guitarist in Canada and one of the most interesting players in modern rock period.
Like a well trained sports team, the band warmed up quickly and gained momentum within the first few songs. The set list was upbeat far longer than one might have expected, given the natural pace shifts of their catalogue. The first section peaked with the introduction of Feist to the stage for a blistering version of “7/4 (Shoreline)”. It’s easy to see they’ve been gigging for a bit now since releasing the new album, with the controlled component of their “controlled chaos” esthetic having a surprisingly dominating chunk of that quotient. Her voice was spot on and her energy was show altering. Having seen them without her last time, her participation makes for a much more exciting evening.
Through the balance of the show, songs flipped seamlessly from Broken Social Scene and You Forgot It in People. Last stop in town they were admittedly growing tired of playing the latter, having been out on the road playing the same songs for the better part of 3 years. The songs sounded rejuvenated this time around. Highlight songs were “Shoreline”, “Superconnected”, “Almost Crimes”, “Handjobs for the Holidays”, “Stars & Sons”, and “Ibi Dreams of Pavement (A Better Day)”. “Hotel” was a bit awkward (Drew said as much during the song), but served to reconfirm that if you want to see a well oiled machine, with limited spontaneity and no bumps and bruises through the proceedings, a Broken Social Scene show probably isn’t your best bet. All four female vocalists did a vocal combo on “Bandwitch” though, which more than made up for the rockiness of “Hotel”.
The overwhelming thought I have when leaving their shows and reflecting is “man there was so much going on in there” and “how did they do all that?” Sensory overload to the Nth degree. Some selections have ear splitting noise, that should be way more offensive, but you’re too focused on getting your ass to stop shaking from the infectious grooves.
They can throw 4-5 horns into a piece with absolute precision, create an ultra large vibe without compromising their lo-fi sensibilities. Even with all their gadgets, effects, and tricks, the overriding characteristic is the strength of the songs. When everything gets stripped away, there are two guys who have an uncanny sense of what a good pop song should sound like. From there they turn it upside down, bring all their friends in to fuck around with it and build on it, with the result being a sound that no one has ever quite showcased before and is already started to get replicated
Monitors break, feedback sneaks in, voices waiver, liberties get taken with standards (they did two versions of “Major Label Debut” through the evening – one standard – one upbeat and bouncy – both brilliant), but some pretty serious and complicated music hits you from the stage without taking itself too seriously or losing its sense of playfulness. Broken Social Scene brought an event to Halifax Saturday night. It was a celebration of music. In an age of inept wannabes getting judged on TV for record contracts, it was refreshing to see a group of musicians so committed to creativity and a passion for the craft above all else. Amen boys and girls. Keep up the good work. Thanks for the experience.
Their faces split the Canadian East Coast in half.
Well not quite, but Toronto’s most popular indie collective arrived in Halifax for the country’s annual Juno Awards and celebration this past weekend. More importantly however, they gathered a couple thousand of their favorite Haligonians so we could see first hand what Canada’s best band look and sound like at the top of their game.
Given the occasion, the standard rotating roster was top heavy with about as pure a line up as one could hope for. Julie Penner from the Fembots on violin, singer Lisa Lobsinger, Ohad from Do Make Say Think (in place of Jason Collett) were some newer faces along with a couple new horn players. Feist was in the house, along with John Crossingham from Raising the Fawn, and Amy from Stars. The Metric crew was MIA, but with 16 people on stage at the height of the evening, it’s difficult to determine where they would have stood. The balance of the line up was the usual suspects. It was confirmed scientifically that Evan Cranley and Charles Spearin are two of the country’s most exciting multi-instrumentalists. I can’t disclose the formula, but all the concert goers were in agreement on this point. It was also confirmed with a similar formula that Andrew “The Apostle of Hustle” Whiteman is the coolest guitarist in Canada and one of the most interesting players in modern rock period.
Like a well trained sports team, the band warmed up quickly and gained momentum within the first few songs. The set list was upbeat far longer than one might have expected, given the natural pace shifts of their catalogue. The first section peaked with the introduction of Feist to the stage for a blistering version of “7/4 (Shoreline)”. It’s easy to see they’ve been gigging for a bit now since releasing the new album, with the controlled component of their “controlled chaos” esthetic having a surprisingly dominating chunk of that quotient. Her voice was spot on and her energy was show altering. Having seen them without her last time, her participation makes for a much more exciting evening.
Through the balance of the show, songs flipped seamlessly from Broken Social Scene and You Forgot It in People. Last stop in town they were admittedly growing tired of playing the latter, having been out on the road playing the same songs for the better part of 3 years. The songs sounded rejuvenated this time around. Highlight songs were “Shoreline”, “Superconnected”, “Almost Crimes”, “Handjobs for the Holidays”, “Stars & Sons”, and “Ibi Dreams of Pavement (A Better Day)”. “Hotel” was a bit awkward (Drew said as much during the song), but served to reconfirm that if you want to see a well oiled machine, with limited spontaneity and no bumps and bruises through the proceedings, a Broken Social Scene show probably isn’t your best bet. All four female vocalists did a vocal combo on “Bandwitch” though, which more than made up for the rockiness of “Hotel”.
The overwhelming thought I have when leaving their shows and reflecting is “man there was so much going on in there” and “how did they do all that?” Sensory overload to the Nth degree. Some selections have ear splitting noise, that should be way more offensive, but you’re too focused on getting your ass to stop shaking from the infectious grooves.
They can throw 4-5 horns into a piece with absolute precision, create an ultra large vibe without compromising their lo-fi sensibilities. Even with all their gadgets, effects, and tricks, the overriding characteristic is the strength of the songs. When everything gets stripped away, there are two guys who have an uncanny sense of what a good pop song should sound like. From there they turn it upside down, bring all their friends in to fuck around with it and build on it, with the result being a sound that no one has ever quite showcased before and is already started to get replicated
Monitors break, feedback sneaks in, voices waiver, liberties get taken with standards (they did two versions of “Major Label Debut” through the evening – one standard – one upbeat and bouncy – both brilliant), but some pretty serious and complicated music hits you from the stage without taking itself too seriously or losing its sense of playfulness. Broken Social Scene brought an event to Halifax Saturday night. It was a celebration of music. In an age of inept wannabes getting judged on TV for record contracts, it was refreshing to see a group of musicians so committed to creativity and a passion for the craft above all else. Amen boys and girls. Keep up the good work. Thanks for the experience.
