Arcade Fire's Exclusive Fans-only Gig at Hackney Empire

I was one of the privileged few who were allocated tickets to last night's Arcade Fire gig at the Hackney Empire - their first non-festival performance in the UK in 3 years and a chance for them to test out new material from forthcoming album The Suburbs in front of a crowd of devout fans (including Florence and the Machine). Tickets were only made available to a selection of those who pre-ordered the new album online a few days before the event. Rather than me describe how amazing it was, have a look at the much more eloquent glowing reviews from the BBC, Guardian and Telegraph.

The monster 18-song setlist played out as follows:
Ready to Start
Modern Man
Neighbourhood #2 (Laika)
No Cars Go
Haiti
Empty Room
Rococo
The Suburbs
Suburban War
Intervention
We Used to Wait
Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)
Rebellion (Lies)
Month of May
Crown of Love
-encore-
Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)
Keep the Car Running
Wake Up

Based on the new material presented last night, "We Used to Wait" and "Rococo" are likely to be my favourite tracks from album number three.

"Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)":


"Wake Up":


Win crowdsurfing at the end of "We Used to Wait":

pony down! $9.50

I feel the need to preface this post by clarifying that no, I do not live at the Horseshoe nor am I generally there more than once every week or two. But alas, another review (third in a row) from the 'shoe.

Montreal's femme-foursome Pony Up! galloped into town last night, bringing along Toronto indie-pop tarts the Bicycles for a stop at the orseshoe. And, though I had never seen either act in the flesh, having sampled both of Pony Up!'s releases, as well as cuts from the Bicycles' 2006 album the Good, the Bad and the Cuddly, I felt justified in expecting nothing less than sugary pop so sweet a trip to the dentist may ensue.

I was actually quite surprised by the one-third capacity of the small-ish room, especially with a very agreeable $9.50 price tag. But, even after watching the Bicycles fumble through an entire set in what sounded like their first show in a decade, few new faces had shown up.

Admittedly, I think I remember mention of a last-minute lineup change which could have contributed to their lack of cohesion. But ultimately, the Bicycles' sound was sloppy and incomplete, and not even close to as fun as the album. Their struggle was no more apparent than during Australia, the band's most-requested song, where merely the completion of the song was put in jeopardy on more than one occasion through miscues and a missing musician or two. The bubblegum fun was ultimately lost in the mix, and the set fell flat on its face.

By the time the Pony Up! express took the stage, the energy level in the room compared more to nap time at High Park Villa's retirement residence than to a pop-rock concert. The girls attempted nothing to rejuvenate the handful of onlookers, but rather cruised through the majority of the tracks on 2006's Make Love to the Judges with Your Eyes with limited enthusiasm.

Despite singer/keyboardist Laura Willis' claim that Toronto is the band's favourite city to play, their seeming lack of interest wore off on the majority of the crowd who, with the exception of a handful of girls adorned in matching zebra and leopard-print dresses, seemed ready to call it a night only a handful of songs from the outset.

But, while the highlights were few, they weren't entirely absent: Willis finally let herself loose with two songs left, letting her small voice rip during the yet-to-be-released 'Wet', which builds from a simplistic and mundane ballad into borderline epic. That seemed to wake up the crowd and the rest of her band, who wrapped up their otherwise lackluster performance with a strong rendition of 'The Truth About Cats and Dogs (is that They Die)', arguably their most popular song, in which co-lead Sarah Moundroukas followed Willis' lead by actually having some fun.

Regrettably, the batteries in my camera tapped out before Pony Up! even hit the stage, but below are some amateur attempts at band photography, starring the Bicycles (coming soon).


- bobby k.

Pony Up! w/ the Bicycles, Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto
Thursday, July 26th, 2007

Pony Up! - The Truth About Cats and Dogs (is that they die) (YSI)
Pony Up! - Wet (YSI)
The Bicycles - Australia (YSI)
The Bicycles - B-B-Bicycles (YSI)

eighteen hours traffic

Proudly hailing from Canada’s smallest piece of provincial real estate, Prince Edward Island’s Two Hours Traffic made the lengthy trek to the Horseshoe in Toronto recently to welcome the release of their second full-length Little Jabs. The album also marks their reunion with maritime music god Joel Plaskett, who produced their first full-length and offered his services once again for this 11-track folk-rock gem.

As part of the popular Nu Music Nite Tuesdays at the ‘shoe, Two Hours Traffic were sandwiched between two other bands that nobody cared about. This only highlighted the fact that these former UPEI chemistry kids should probably be headlining their own tour across this vast nation.

Not unlike the rural rock of Mr. Plaskett and his counterparts the Emergency, or prairie fires the Weakerthans, each new track relies heavily on clever, intelligent, and fresh vocal hooks to set them apart from their peers. The occasional “ooh ooh oooh” doesn’t hurt either.

Despite a laughably horrific band name more reminiscent of radio jock rock than worthwhile songwriting, the new record is polished indie folk-pop seemingly crafted specifically for the likes of CBC Radio 3 listeners who’ll inevitably eat this shit up.

The entire new album is streaming from the band's website.

two hours traffic - stuck for the summer

two hours traffic - sure can start

two hours traffic - heatseeker

- bobby k.

The Blow @ Horseshoe Tavern

As Khaela Maricich, better known as Portland Oregon’s The Blow, wandered unassumingly toward the microphone at Toronto’s filled-to-capacity Horseshoe Tavern, I had no idea that my frequently unchallenged notion of a live music performance would be put to the test.

The one-hour headlining sets generally fall into one of two categories: a band or artist rushing to squeeze in as much material as can be allowed, or struggling to stretch 40 minutes worth of material into 60, usually resulting in unnecessarily long guitar tuning intervals, extended bridges, and more often than not, hopeless audience banter. The Blow defied either of these pigeonholes, instead opting for an unparalleled blend of ad-hoc storytelling interwoven with songs from her 2006 release Paper Television. The songs, it seemed, acted merely as electro-dance versions of the stories which often were longer than the songs themselves. The first third of the set consisted of maybe eight minutes of music, the rest being filled entirely with monologue. And, while the talk was generally funny, charming, and entertaining, it left me wondering what exactly I had paid my $12 to see – a musician or a comedian.

But when Maricich did opt for a tune in favour of a story session, her genuine and soothing vocals over top of the pre-recorded beats recreated the charms of the band's breakthrough album effortlessly. Much like the album, the strongest live tracks included the album’s opener 'Pile of Gold', as well as the beautifully whimsical love song 'Parentheses', and non-album tracks 'Hey Boy' and her re-worked and charming cover of the Police’s 'Every Little Thing She Does is Magic', which served as her one-song encore.

Previous to last night, never had I ever considered the potential of a Beck Hansen/Ellen Degeneres lovechild (for obvious reasons). But Maricich juggled both of their defining characteristics with ease, and entirely by accident; Beck’s unorthodox merger of vocal harmony, hip hop rhythms, and train-of-thought lyrical rantings combined with dance moves so quirky the audience didn’t know whether to cower in sympathetic embarrassment or take notes so as to recreate them later in a bedroom mirror. The Degeneres influence was evident in between the songs themselves, where Maricich seemed just as comfortable engaging the crowd through conversational humour about love of both men and women, chasing love, falling out of love, jogging, and those dudes who drive around shouting out the window at girls they’ll never get with.

In the end, Maricich’s performance seemed to win over the majority of the crowd, demonstrated by the extended cheers of adoration throughout the set. Despite her dorky charm and obvious talent, it took all the power within my own self-control to deny my urge to be that guy who belts out: “Shut up and play a fucking song!” For the record, I didn’t. And neither did anyone else, though I’m sure we all were thinking it. I, like everyone else in the bar that night, just shut up and listened. But that doesn’t mean we’ll all be as accommodating (or as sober) next time around.

- bobby k.

The Blow, Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto
Sunday July 8, 2007

The Blow - Pile of Gold

The Blow - Fists Up

Nothing and Everything

Call it fate or luck, but 24 hours before Mates of State were scheduled to play the Spring Scream festival in Kenting, Taiwan, I happened to be obliviously browsing the band’s website. Immediately following this exciting discovery my girlfriend and I packed a bag and make the two-hour trip south on our Vespa. Our heads filled with Mates of State’s contagious indie-pop anthems and genuinely sappy ballads helped to build the anticipation as we made the beautiful trek south.

After arriving at the festival we learned that MOS would be playing the “indie” stage, filled with American indie bands, most of which I’ve never heard of. The first band we saw was a four-piece bar mitzvah-inspired act from NYC by the name of One Ring Zero. Their Jewish backgrounds were made obvious by the lead instruments: accordion, claviola, and theramin; I couldn’t help but think that they’d break into a rendition of Hava Nagila (you know - the Jewish wedding song). Their set was filled waltzes and pop tracks glazed with lyrics commissioned from various renowned poets including Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster and Rick Moody. Their sheer novelty was reason enough for listening, but this genre is not for everyone.

With our dancing feet warmed up and plenty of room in front of the stage, Kori and Jason took their places. They opened the set with the chugging chords of ‘Fraud in the '80s’ and I was immediately impressed at how the two command their stage. The chemistry between husband and wife duo filled the stage and spilled into the crowd until everyone was intoxicated by how incredibly adorable they are. Their set included a balance of tracks from Bring it Back and Team Boo including ‘Beautiful Dreamer’, ‘Think Long’, ‘Ha Ha Ha’ and ‘Goods’.

Unfortunately, the setlist was limited by a malfunctioning “D” key on Kori’s organ, preventing the band from playing favourites ‘Running Out’ and ‘Punchlines’. Nevertheless, ‘Like U Crazy’ stole the night when the crowd, the majority of whom weren’t familiar with MOS, swayed and sang along to the infectious “ah-ah-ah…like you crazy” lyrics.

Kori and Jason showed no signs of jet lag throughout the show, belting out their tight melodies and producing a powerful organ-driven dance groove like no other. Even though the twao of us appeared to be the only ones there specifically to see the Mates, there is no doubt that the Taiwanese crowd found every minute pleasing to their ears.

-Marc Bertrand

Mates of State, Spring Scream Festival (Hillside Stage), Kenting, Taiwan
April 7, 2007

Mates of State - For the Actor
Mates of State - Like U Crazy

And I swear to the stars, I’ll burn this whole city down

Or at least Shepherd’s Bush Empire. The Decemberists last played at the London venue in November of 2004, and judging by the band members’ awe-inspired glances to the top tiers of this venerable Victorian concert hall and Colin Meloy’s glowing praise of the crowd throughout the night, the band was happy to be back.

All three balcony levels and the venue’s floor were packed. As The Decemberists took the stage the crowd roared, and then absolute silence reigned until Mr. Meloy strummed the unmistakable opening chords of The Crane Wife 3 on the 12 string electric-acoustic guitar that he was to use almost exclusively throughout the night. John Moen’s frenetic yet tender syncopated drumming brought the other performers into the mix and the show was underway. As the band blended carefully into The Island, fans exchanged glances wondering if a live run-through of The Crane Wife was in store. Jumping quickly into Billy Liar from the plaintive closing chords of You’ll Not Feel The Drowning dispelled these suspicions and the house now buzzed with a previously suppressed excitement as the entire standing section began dancing about. The energy level remained high as the band went from strength to strength with fan favourites We Both Go Down Together, The Engine Driver, and Yankee Bayonet. Addressing the audience, Meloy was soft-spoken yet eloquent and didn’t shy away from sprinkling praise on the crowd, variously referring to the assemblage of Londoners and a substantial number of American ex-pats as “trendy”, “savvy” and “a fantastic audience”. Between bouts of running around on stage, guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Chris Funk encouraged the crowd to clap along.

The down tempo Shankhill Butchers provided the crowd a break from dancing, if not singing along, but this respite was to be short-lived. After a little banter with members of the audience, Colin Meloy choreographed a funky calisthenics intermission including stretches and jumping to a bass-driven beat. This served well to prepare everyone for O Valencia!, likely the overall crowd favourite, and the rollicking 16 Military Wives. Like an eccentric Maestro, Meloy split the floor in two sections (physically) and incorporated the hall’s three balconies as separate choir sections for the song’s “La-di-da-di-da-didi-didi-da” refrains. Gesticulating wildly, under his direction each section of the divided audience attempted to overpower the other, ultimately overlapping thanks to Meloy’s signaling and cooperatively creating a beautiful and powerful ending to the song. Meloy appeared to be extremely pleased with the outcome. “I think I even heard some harmonies up there”, he noted, referring to the seemingly distant third tier balcony.

After all the excitement, The Crane Wife 1’s gentle melody was received with quiet appreciation. A droning melodica noted the beginning of Sons & Daughters and the crowd predicted with apprehension that the show was drawing to a close. However, the night’s performance was far from over. Boldly enlisting the help of audience members, Meloy commandeered several fans to help complete the song. Venue security hoisted the lucky few over the barriers and onto the stage as both band and audience began chanting, “hear all the bombs fade away”. This went on for several minutes until the performers disappeared, leaving their fledgling apprentices on stage and the audience screaming for more.

After an obligatory few minutes of floor pounding, chanting, screaming and general remonstrations of “one more song”, the band reappeared in full and began their first encore set with Eli, The Barrowboy. The crowd seemed suitably impressed by the performance of this somber number; screams of “Eli!” had been heard from all sections of the audience throughout the show. Meloy had promised “special surprises” earlier in the evening and these surprises appeared in the form of guest performances by Robyn Hitchcock and Mike Scott (of The Waterboys fame). At the close of the encore set Meloy confessed: “that essentially is my 16 year old self’s rock fantasy pornography. Let that sit in your mind for a while and carry you home.” Fortunately, it would be A Cautionary Song that would end the night and carry us all home.

Just three members returned for the one-song second encore; Meloy on acoustic guitar, Jenny Conlee on accordion and Nate Query on upright bass. “I get a sense that you are a kind of seedy lot”, Meloy proclaimed, before launching into their final song of the evening amidst wild cheers from the crowd. A Cautionary Song was interrupted midway through for a reenactment of the American War of Independence. “The Decembersits’ Travelling Players” made their way through the crowd searching for recruits; John Moen played the role of leader of the British redcoats (to much acclaim), Chris Funk was loudly booed for representing the Americans, and Jenny Conlee assembled her group of Native Americans. Unlike the actual historical version, the reenactment ended with the arrival of a meteorite that “smote” all involved.

This last song was the sole representative from Castaways and Cutouts (still my favourite Decemberists album) and the only Her Majesty track to made an appearance was Billy Liar, which was extremely well-received by the then-boisterous audience. I got the feeling surveying the crowd and speaking with other attendees that the majority of the audience was largely familiar only with material from The Crane Wife. But no matter, as both the band and crowd were in top form, making for an enjoyable experience for new and diehard fans alike.

“Thanks for being such a great audience, you’ve been fantastic”, Colin Meloy earnestly imparted as the band ambled offstage.
No, thank you, Decemberists.

-Andrew (the one in London)

The Decemberists, Shepherd's Bush Empire, London
February 8, 2007

Setlist:
1. The Crane Wife 3
2. The Island: Come and See/The Landlord's Daughter/You'll Not Feel The Drowning
3. Billy Liar
4. We Both Go Down Together
5. The Engine Driver
6. Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)
7. Shankhill Butchers
Exercise Intermission
8. O Valencia!
9. 16 Military Wives
10. The Crane Wife 1
11. Sons & Daughters

First Encore:
12. Eli, The Barrowboy
13. Madonna Of The Wasps (with Robyn Hitchcock)
14. Fisherman's Blues (with Mike Scott of The Waterboys)

Second Encore:
15. A Cautionary Song (with American War of Independence reenactment)

The Decemberists - The Engine Driver
The Decemberists - Eli, The Barrowboy