Concert Review: Hey Rosetta!

December 11th+12th, 2009. The Paragon Theatre, Halifax, NS

Fellow Concert goers: too many friends to list here

Headliner: Hey Rosetta!

Supporting: Jon Mckiel, La Strada

Hey Rosetta! were back in Halifax this past weekend for a weekend stand at the Paragon Theatre. Halifax local Jon Mckiel and Brooklyn's La Strada. La Strada were a pleasant surprise, playing with a set up similar to Hey Rosetta! with violin, cello, bass, guitar, and drums. As well for many songs the lead singer played an accordion.
Hey Rosetta! were able to get the crowd dancing and singing both nights, bringing the passion, emotion, and energy that they have become known for. Both nights featured the staples of their live set; New Goodbye, Red Heart, I've Been Asleep For A Long, Long Time, A Thousand Suns, Lions for Scottie, and Yes!Yes!Yes!. They also played new songs including a song written for a CBC Radio 2 contest they won (Old Crow Black Night Stand Still), Seeds, and Glass. Watching these new songs evolve over the past 14 months has been an enjoyable experience. Of the new songs, Glass is perhaps the most exciting one. It features Adam Hogan providing haunting ambient guitar sounds while Tim Baker provides distinct guitar sounds with Josh Ward and Phil Maloney providing an upbeat rhythm. The lyrics are powerful, passionate, and honest. The song slows right down to an almost standstill before picking up again with the swooping strings from violins and cellos and Adam really showing that he does more than provide atmosphere.
Former Hey Rosetta! member Kinley Dowling joined the band on stage for a few songs during their set on Saturday night. Both shows ended with a fun cover of Oh La La by Rod Stewart. They were joined on stage by the opening bands as well as a few other musicians who were kicking around the show. The stage was crowded with a tonne of artists having a blast, while the crowd was also having fun singing and dancing along. It is evident that the band loves coming to Halifax, and Halifax loves when they come to town.


Friday Setlist
Saturday Setlist

Concert Review: The Most Serene Republic

November 27th, 2009. The Paragon Theatre, Halifax, NS

Fellow Concert goer: Joelle Grant

Headliner: The Most Serene Republic

Supporting: Mardeen, First Aid Kit

Three guitars. Drums. Bass. Keys. The occasional trumpet. Multiple vocalists. The live show can be overwhelming at times with so many instruments all being played independently, yet mixing together to form one huge sound. The Most Serene Republic returned to Halifax to play a show for the first time since their Halifax Pop Explosion dates in 2007. Since then the band has released a new album and seems to have embraced all that goes into being a successful band, good and bad. Lead singer Adrian Jewett has gone from the clean shaven look to the scruffy bearded Joaquin Phoenix look. While his vocal delivery was spot on, it was apparent that some mind altering substances were at work as he eccentrically glanced around and sang. He referred to the show being something like grade six and not knowing what was going on. Other strange shenanigans throughout the night included two girls going backstage and coming out dancing on the stage during the last song and the encore. While the whole show was quite a bit to comprehend, it was enjoyable. The songs from the new album ...And The Ever Expanding Universe worked well live and showed off the bands great talent. They have the "it" factor that sets them apart from other bands trying to make good music. The long obscure song title name and interestingly named album provide a brief glance at the creativity that goes into the composition of their songs.

Setlist:

Bubble Reputation

Anhoi Polloi

Sherry And Her Butterfly Net

(oh) God

Heavens To Purgatory

Phages

Phi

The Men Who Live Upstairs

The Old Forever New Things

Why So Looking Back

Content Was Always My Favorite Colour

Four Humours

Don't Hold Back, Feel A Little Longer

No One Likes a Nihilist

You're Not An Astronaut

Present Of Future End

encore

Where Cedar Nouns And Adverbs Walks

Setlists

10/24/2009

St. Matthew's Church, Halifax NS

Timber Timbre

No Bold Villian

Trouble Comes Knocking

Magic Arrow

I Get Low

Demon Host

Until the Night Is Over

Lay Down In the Tall Grass

There Is a Cure

Jenn Grant

Blue Mountains

You'll Go Far

Heartbreaker

Two of You

Dreamer

Where Are You Now?

Fireflies

I Was Your Woman

Rainy Day

Unique New York

Sailing By Silverships

Week of Two

Let's Get Started

Concet Review: Halifax Pop Explosion Saturday

October 24th, 2009. St. Matthew's Church, Halifax, NS/The Paragon Theatre, Halifax, NS
Fellow Concert goer: Joelle Grant/Chantelle Rideout, Luke Adamski
Headliner: Jenn Grant/Japandroids
Supporting: Timber Timbre/You Say Party! We Say Die!

Timber Timbre @ St. Matthew's Church
On a miserably wet and windy day, it was a relief to get under the roof of the old church and enjoy some chillingly beautiful music. Taylor Kirk came out of the darkness, sitting down with his guitar and a kick drum along with his two supporting musicians playing violin, pedal steel, and other instruments. The show started off with the church completely dark except for a dim red glow while the band played haunting and ambient sounds with the squeal of violins and pedal steel before Taylor Kirk started to sing No Bold Villain. The first handful of songs all bled into each other, but at the first sign of a pause the audience erupted with loud applause. He played seven songs off his latest album, which all sounded perfect in this setting. While the Coast said it was "boring" and "His stuff just wasn’t big enough to control such a powerful and airy space", I completely disagree. The way he performed made it seem like these dark, deep, and personal songs are a very delegate thing to bring into public, and if you stopped paying attention they would disappear. He put on a fantastic show which ended up being one of my favourite parts of HPX.


Jenn Grant @ St. Matthew's Church
Earlier this year, Jenn Grant was selected as best local solo female by the Coast. After seeing her show it is obvious why. She is not only a great performer, but also a great entertainer. To start off the show, her and her band went around the venue throwing and handing out Halloween candy to the audience. Before and after songs she would tell hilarious stories about the origins of the songs, or things that were going on in her life such as a mouse which was living at her apartment. Each story drew smiles and laughs. At one point she pulled out too flashing lights and told the audience we were all being arrested for being too cute. The songs sounded excellent, featuring a variety of instruments. For her last song, she went out into the audience, sat down on top of a pew, and played a song on her acoustic guitar while her band surrounded providing beautiful backing vocals. The most memorable part of the show however was when she came out and closed the show with a fully costumed ghostbusters sketch (see video below).


You Say Party! We Say Die! @ The Paragon Theatre
This show was being broadcast live by CBC Radio 3 online. YSP! WSD! came out with four brightly glowing white X's on the stage in support of their latest album xxxx. The show featured mostly songs from this record. The Vancouver based band's energetic songs combined with an excellent front woman in Becky Ninkovic kept the crowd dancing the whole time. Becky had a great stage presence as she delivered the vocals, making sure the audience felt part of the show. At one point she came down and sang amongst the crowd, and at another point she let the crowd support her as she crowd surfed.


Japandroids @ The Paragon Theatre
The headliners of the show ended up only playing a set that was less than half an hour long because they were going to turn the lights on and pull the plug on the show since it was the wee hours of the morning when they came on. That combined with the fact both Brian King and David Prowse were sick meant the show did not reach its full potential. Regardless the garage rockers were able to get the crowd moving with an energetic mosh pit the whole show. The songs were loud and powerful considering it was all coming from two guys playing the guitar and drums. They were very apologetic about being sick and having to end the show early, but promised to come back to Halifax.

Concert Review: Hey Rosetta!

October 23rd, 2009. The Grawood, Dalhousie University
Fellow Concert goers: David Marsh, Joelle Grant, Sagar Jha
Headliner: Hey Rosetta!
Supporting: Oh No Forest Fires



This show was part of Dalhousie's annual Fall Fest. The opening band Oh No Forest Fires had both guitar players break strings during their set which featured energetic guitar based songs and swaying bodies that looked like they were on a collision course. Their singer is the brother of Romesh, the cello player in Hey Rosetta!
By now you know the drill, I love Hey Rosetta! I go to as many shows as possible, take a bunch of pictures, and enjoy it. So I won't write a long review. The show was great, the crowd was great singing along with every song, not just the "hit singles". They played a trio of new songs, Seeds, Glass, and Allagash. I had a great conversation with Tim Baker after the show, talking about if the shows are still good even though I've seen them so many times, talking about the new album, and new songs. There are videos of Glass and Allagash below.



Setlist:
Downstairs
Lions For Scottie
Another Pilot
Tired eyes
I've Been Asleep For A Long, Long Time
Glass
We Made A Pact
Seeds
Yes! Yes! Yes!
There's An Arc
Black Heart
Allagash
Handshake the Gangster
Holy Shit (What A Relief)
New Goodbye

Encore
Red heart
A Thousand Suns

Concert Review: Bruce Peninsula

October 21st, 2009. St. Matthew's Church, Halifax, NS
Headliner: Bruce Peninsula
Supporting: Valleys, The Got To Get Got, York Redoubt
I already briefly mentioned this show in my HPX09 Wednesday entry. The Herohill Showcase featured two local bands; the upstart and hyped York Redoubt and The Got To Get Got. York Redoubt played through an energetic set, but hope you didn't blink. They only played for twenty minutes. The Got To Get Got also played an energetic set featuring a full band and multiple instruments. Valleys put on an ambient and stirring show. The music of a hazy dream, although they were having some technical difficulties at the beginning which delayed the start of their set.
The highlight of the night was the set put on by Bruce Peninsula. Album sales are a good indication of the impact a band has on the crowd. Before they were finished playing their first song, multiple people went to the merchandise booth and bought CDs, a trend that continued throughout the night. The band featured four female vocalists, two male vocalists, and multiple instruments. All of their voices worked together in perfect unison to fill the Seahorse with a beautiful and haunting show. All of the members are very charismatic, displaying passion as they sing their hearts out. At times it was like watching an elementary school music class in the sense that everyone was playing an instrument, clanging a tambourine or banging another noise maker. The songs all have a very organic feel to them, making it easy to connect to and appreciate the music. During the encore, they did a cover of Fleetwood Mac's "the Chain" which they absolutely nailed.

Halifax Pop Explosion Journal: Friday

Throughout the week I was sending twitpics and these journal posts to the Coast online since they were offering some tickets in exchange for Pop explosion feedback. Friday afternoon I found out I was the winner of a single ticket to the sold out MSTRKRFT show that night at the Palace. Hey Rosetta! was playing at the Grawood earlier in the day, but not as part of HPX. Obviously I couldn't pass up going to Hey Rosetta!, so after that show was over I scooted over to the Palace. Going to a show that featured DJs instead of people playing instruments was a different experience for sure.October 23rd, 2009. The New Palace, Halifax, NS
Headliner: MSTRKRFT
Supporting: various DJs

MSTRKRFT know what they are doing. The Toronto duo dropped tracks for over two hours to the delight of a building full of sweaty, dancing people. There was never a dull moment as they spun their mixes of songs such as D.A.N.C.E. by Justice, Thunderstruck by AC/DC, and One More Time by Daft Punk. The set was filled with aggressive rock driven songs, heavy on base, and light on annoying top 40 chart toppers. Some have the idea that this genre of music is not music, but after the MSTRKRFT experience, it is obvious that a strong musical background, a keen ear, and loads of creativity are required if you are going to fill a room with thousands of people and keep their attention for two plus hours.

Halifax Pop Explosion 2009 Journal: Thursday

Day two of volunteering. This time I was selling tickets/ushering. Its always fun to work with a team of music lovers.

October 22nd, 2009. St. Matthew's Church, Halifax, NS

Headliner: Herman Dune

Supporting: Julie Doiron

An all ages show in a historic church is considerably different from a bar show. It looks different, people all sit in rows and listen to music. It smells different as the smell of booze and wine isn't overpowering. And most importantly, it sounds different. Every note played, every word sung, and every beat drummed is heard by all there to enjoy the music. This puts all eyes on the performer to put on a great show.

Tonight it was Julie Doiron from Moncton, New Brunswick and Herman Dune from Paris, France. Julie opened up nervously, not quite used to the new strings on her guitar. But as she sang through a beautiful set she became more comfortable. She was joined on stage by a drummer as she strummed her electric guitar through a set that featured some soulful slow songs and some other more upbeat and energetic songs.

David Herman Dune then took the stage playing a couple of songs, just him and his electic guitar, before being joined onstage by Nerman Herman Dune playing drums and occasional backing vocals. There set contained a mixture of vocal heavy songs and longer instrumental songs. An event like this can seem too serious with not much chatter between or during songs by the audience. But David was able to break down some of this wall telling a story about a conversation he had earlier in the night about a Simpsons episode about Seinfeld before going into a new song which was about the moment when a superhero has to tell his girlfriend that he is actually a superhero. There were many humorous lyrics spread throughout the set of this excellent singer-songwriter duo.

Concert Review: Rich Aucoin

October 5th, 2009. The Paragon Theatre, Halifax, NS
Fellow Concert goers: Julia Churchill, Matt Bustin, Kate Bustin, and many others
Headliner: Rich Aucoin
Supporting: Ryan Hemsworth, Windom Earle

Thanksgiving weekend is a time when old friends come home, and other friends go home. It is also a time when massive quantities of turkey, potatoes, pumpkin pie, and other tasty treats which leave you feeling rotund. This is why a night of loud music, flashing lights, balloons, and dancing is highly recommended this time of year. Those who attended this show got just that. Ryan Hemsworth opened the show playing guitar and singing over custom made loops. Rich Aucoin came into the Paragon halfway through the performance sporting a yellow rain jacket and bicycle helmet. Rich then went on stage and DJed some mashups under the name Century Club. Windom Earle then took the stage with an energetic set that got everybody moving. While they were playing, an old workout video called "Teen Steam" was projected on the screen behind them.
Rich Aucoin then came out with his band, all clad in white shirts and tight white pants. A key element of his show is the way his performance is synced with video clips. Unfortunately technical difficulties removed this element, but he compensated for this by really engaging the crowd. There were multiple times throughout the set where the barrier before performer and audience was broken as he would come down into the crowd, encouraging dancing and singing. Towards the end of the show, a bunch of balloons were thrown into the crowd to throw around. One thing that sets Rich Aucoin apart from others as a performer is his ability to unite the crowd, get them energized, and feel like an integral part of the show.

Concert Review: U2

September 20th, 2009. Gillete Stadium, Foxboro, MA
Fellow Concert goers: David Briggins, David Marsh, Chris Cameron
Headliner: U2
Supporting: Snow Patrol

Throughout history, the creativity of humans has led to jaw-dropping structures. Things such as the Eiffle Tower, the Sydney Opera House, the Great Wall of China, and Jerry Jone's Cowboys Stadium. U2's "spaceship" stage they are using on their current 360 tour may not be as impressive as the previously mentioned structures, but when it comes to rock'n'roll shows, it certainly is something for the eye to behold. Fittingly, the show started with David Bowie's Space Oddity playing across the sound system as smoke emptied from various points in the claw and a countdown instrument was displayed on the large screen. It was fitting since the band was getting ready to take the 70 000 plus people on a sonic and visual journey. Their set started off with the founder of U2, Larry Mullen Jr. kicking off the show on his drum kit as the other band members emerged to play Breathe. "We've got new song, we've got old songs, we've got songs we can barely play, we've got a spaceship. But we're not going anywhere without you. Are you ready for the ride?," Bono asked the crowd after the opener. This was followed by three more songs off their most recent album No Line on the Horizon. While the new songs sounded as if they were designed to be played to the masses, it was not until the band started to pull classic songs out of their catalog that the crowd really got into the show and were ready for the ride. Mysterious Ways, Beautiful Day, and Elevation all involved chances for the crowd to sing, jump, and dance. Continuing the sci-fi theme of the night, Bono introduced each band member as a different experiment. "Experiment #1..a mix of Jimmy Page and Stephan Hawkins, the Edge." "Experiment #2, a wonder of biology, our very own big band...Adam Clayton.""Experiment #3...for he is not human at all...Robocop III, Larry Mullen Jr." After doing intros, Bono let the crowd take over, singing the entire first verse and chorus of I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. It was quite an experience hearing thousands of voices singing in unison.
This was followed by Unknown Caller which featured various words of the song scrolling across the screen, making it easy for the crowd to join in on this new song, although it did not take much prompting. Next the Edge had a chance to play the keys as the band went into New Year's Day, a song that sounds perfectly in an open stadium. With such a huge stage, at times band members were on opposite sides of the stadium. But for Stuck In a Moment, it was just the Edge, his acoustic guitar, Bono, and his voice. During this simple acoustic song, it was easy to forget what an extravagant spectacle the show was. They then played an older song, The Unforgettable Fire which was when the screen started to lower, showing that the band still had many visual tricks up their sleeve for the rest of the show. A few songs later, Bono encouraged the crowd to rock the house and get a groove on as they went into a remix version of I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight featuring Larry Mullen going around the outer circle banging a djembe. It was nice to see the drummer not constrained to his drum kit, but instead being able to explore the stage. After this, they went into their usual political inspired string of songs. Sunday Bloody Sunday dedicated to those in Iran fighting for freedom and equality with the stage and crowd covered in the green of the Iranian flag. Next, after a brief speech and message of love from Foxboro to Burma, MLK and Walk On were played for Aung San Suu Kyi. The end of Walk On featured people wearing masks bearing her image circle the outer stage. After this, Archbishop Desmond Tutu delivered an encouraging message to the crowd, a message of hope, a message to continue to work as One. This was followed by a verse of Amazing Grace before the opening sounds of Where the Streets Have No Name rang throughout the stadium. The entire stadium was jumping up and down as the classic red filled the stadium. This was the end of the main set. The encore featured Bono wearing a jacket lined with red lights singing from a lit up microphone wheel hanging from the top of the stage. They played Ultraviolet Light, an old favourite from Achtung Baby. This was followed by With Or Without You, and finally after some thank yous, Moment of Surrender.

Overall it was a spectacular show, something that was obviously designed with their stadium rock songs, and something to please the crowd. With something so grand, some of the intimacy of a U2 show was lost. But at the same time it showed off how well the band works together. Playing a few hundred feet apart at times, each instrument worked together as one part. Bono was right when he called it a spaceship. For those two plus hours, the crowd was transported from a stadium in busy America to a musical experience in a different dimension.


Setlist:
Breathe
No Line On The Horizon
Get On Your Boots
Magnificent
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day - Blackbird
Elevation
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Stand By Me
Unknown Caller
New Year's Day
Stuck In A Moment
The Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight (remix)
Sunday Bloody Sunday
MLK
Walk On
One - Amazing Grace
Where the Streets Have No Name

Encore
Ultraviolet
With or Without You
Moment of Surrender

Concert Review: Hey Rosetta!

September 19th, 2009. Bridge Street, Sackville, New Brunswick

Fellow Concert goers: David Briggins, David Marsh

Headliner: Hey Rosetta!

Supporting: Boxer The Horse, The Novaks

This show was part of Sackville Fair, an annual festival of various activities that happens in the town of Sackville, N.B. The show featured three Canadian bands, Boxer the Horse (Charlottetown, PEI), the Novaks (St. John's, NL), and Hey Rosetta! (St. John's, NL). Not bad for a town of 5 400 people. The combination of a Friday night, a university town, a beer tent, and a free concert led to an energetic and rowdy crowd. The stage, or rather the back of something that you hook up to a trunk, was small and easy to access. The lack of security meant concert goers were basically on the stage giving it an intimate feel. Boxer the Horse were the first band to play an alternative rock/folk type of set. They were followed by the Novaks who played a more traditional upbeat rock set featuring a number of snippets of other bands songs mixed in with their original set. After these two bands finished up, Hey Rosetta! came on. They wasted no time getting down to business, opening the set with I've Been Asleep For A Long, Long Time. This set the tone for what would be night full of jumping, moshing, and crowd-surfing. This was followed by Lions For Scottie from their Plan Your Escape EP, the first of many songs from the EP which would be played during the course of the night. These were followed by two slower songs, a new one as well as Death Is Quick. While the performances were great, the crowd clearly wasn't in the mood for piano based ballads. They then played Seeds, a new song that will be on their upcoming album. This song is turning into my favourite live songs, following the proven Hey Rosetta! formula of a song that builds up and by the end erupts into full band rock and roll. By the end of the song, everyone is going off playing a drum of some sort, or clanging and banging whatever they can find. Holy Shit (What A Relief) featured Romesh dancing around the stage wildly at the end of the song banging a tambourine, and trying unsuccessfully to keep his glasses from falling off. The main set finished with New Goodbye, the perfect ending to a show. The whole crowd singing in unison as things come to a close. But there was too much energy in the tent to end the show here. People were still body surfing, heads were still thrashing, and people were still having a good time. The band returned to play a pair from their EP; Swing The Cellar Doors and Another Pilot, as well as A Thousand Suns. During the final song, Adam chucked a tambourine to the fans to clap with. This was followed by another tambourine, and then another, until nine of them were passed out. Once again the band put on an amazing show, displaying why they were shortlisted for the Polaris music prize. While the stage wasn't the biggest thing in the world, and the sound system wasn't the best, they still put on an interactive and energetic performance that even someone who didn't know a single Hey Rosetta! song would still enjoy.

Setlist:

I've Been Asleep for a Long, Long Time
Lions for Scottie
Death is Quick
Glass
Seeds
Yes! Yes! Yes!
We Made a Pact
There's an Arc
Black Heart
Handshake the Gangster
Holy Shit (What a Relief)
Red Heart
Simplest Thing
New Goodbye

Encore:
Swing the cellar doors
Thousand suns
Another pilot

Concert Review: Joel Plaskett Emergency

September 11th, 2009. Dalhousie University, Halifax

Fellow Concert goers: Joelle Grant, Jenni Richard, Dave Marsh, Rebekah Briggins, Jenna Aguinaga

Headliner: Joel Plaskett Emergency

Supporting: The Mark Inside

Getting sick of reading about Joel Plaskett on this blog? This was my fourth Plaskett show of 2009, but seeing him never grows old. The show was part of DalFest, and it was free. Last time I checked, people (especially cheap college kids) flock to free concerts and this was no different. It was a beautiful September evening on the Quad. The show got kicked off by The Mark Inside, a four piece band based out of Toronto. As the evening turned into the night, the tall and lanky Joel Plaskett emerged from the back of the stage along with the rest of the band and started into Absentminded Melody. This was followed by a pair of songs of his latest album Three. It was different hearing You Let Me Down and Sailor's Eyes sung without the accompaniment of Anna Egg and Rose Cousins, but they were still entertaining nonetheless. During Penny For Your Thoughts, Dave Marsh was experiencing some difficulties with his bass drum. There was a slight delay after the song as it took some time to repair. Joel took advantage of the delay and played Outroduction by himself. After this, Chris played a few notes on his bass which got the crowd going. Thats because they were the distinctive opening lines of Work Out Fine. It was during this song where it was evident that it was going to be a good night, the whole audience singing along word for word. This was followed by a few other crowd pleasers: Extraordinary and Through & Through & Through. Down At The Khyber got a great reaction from the crowd every time he sang the chorus which mentions Edmonton Alberta, Halifax, and Musquedobit Harbour. "I'm pressing all the right buttons" Joel said in response to the crowd. After singing the ode to Halifax "I Love This Town", they played a rocking version of Nowhere With You. The ground was shaking and the air was filled with the crowd belting out "nah nah nah nah nah" which drew smiles from everyone in the band. But Joel warned everyone that although it was nice, winter in Halifax was coming, which meant they were playing my favourite Plaskett song: Snowed In/Cruisin' . They haven't played this one at many shows I've gone to, so it was a personal highlight of the show. Having Peter Elkas there to play the harmonica during the transition between the two parts of the song is always a bonus. After the main setlist, the band came out for a two song encore. First they played Fashionable People where Dave and Joel do the switcheroo with Joel on drums and Dave on guitar. The show ended with a very fitting song for a show at a University in September; Come On Teacher. It was the perfect ending to an energetic concert.

After the concert as part of Dalfest, there were a plethora of fireworks shot off. It was rather impressive. The fireworks were constantly being shot off for at least five minutes, keeping the ears and eyes stimulating. The smell of sulphur was overpowering, and it almost seemed like Dal was being air raided or something. Way better than anything Halifax Regional Municipality has shot off in the past decade or so. Its good to know our tuition is being used in explosive ways.

Following the Fireworks, we hung around to get some autographs and pictures with the band. I yelled out to Dave as he was taking down his drum kit and asked for a setlist. He came over and handed me one, and then gave Joelle one as well. Dave Marsh told Dave Marsh his name, and Dave Marsh remembered meeting Dave Marsh at the Carleton in the spring. So Dave Marsh gave Dave Marsh a drum stick. The band are always a treat to watch and meet afterwards. Any chance you have to see this great Canadian artist, go for it. You won't regret it.

Setlist:

Absentminded Melody

You Let Me Down

Sailors Eyes

Ashtray Rock

Penny For Your Thoughts

Outroduction

Work Out Fine

Extraordinary

Run, Run, Run

Down At The Khyber

I Love This Town

Nowhere With You

Snowed In/Cruisin'

Face of the Earth

A Million Dollars

Wishful Thinking

Encore

Fashionable People

Come On Teacher

Concert Review: Virgin Festival Nova Scotia

July 4th, 2009
Fellow Concert goers: Alex Greenwood, Julia Churchill, and a plethora of other friends
Artists: In Flight Safety, Arkells, Plants and Animals, Hey Rosetta!, Handsome Furs, Dinosaur Jr., Metric




Ever since the lineup for Virgin Festival Nova Scotia was announced I really wanted to go. However I wasn't willing to spend $75.00 for a ticket mostly to see Metric and Hey Rosetta! who would not be playing for that long. In an effort to increase ticket sales, tickets went 2 for 1. And then due to a sudden family emergency, the headlining Tragically Hip were forced to pull out of the show turning it into a free show. I didn't think I'd be able to go. But after a few phone calls and kms later I was down in the muddy pit known as Citadal Hill with a plethora of old high school friends and other friends. Here is a quick summary of each artist that played and some highlights.

Dog Day - Unfortunately I missed this great Halifax band since they were the first ones on stage. Seeing them last September made it a little easier to miss.

In Flight Safety - I only heard the last three or four songs in their set. But luckily I heard my favourite song, Model Homes, as well as their most popular song Surround. One of Halifax's best bands. They are always a treat to watch.


Arkells - A Hamilton based band, they put on an entertaining and lively show. While they were playing I was visiting the merch booth, so I can't properly review them. They are a band I will be checking out more in the future.


Plants and Animals - A Montreal based band, I was looking forward to seeing these guys live finally. Parc Avenue was a critically acclaimed album drawing great reviews from pretencious indie websites such as Pitchfork. They put on a good show, playing some of my favourites including Good Friend, Bye Bye Bye, and A Lorree Des Bois. Elements of psychadellic rock are present as intricate drum beats are played backed by passionate vocals and mesmorizing guitar.


Hey Rosetta! - Always a highlight to see these Newfoundlanders rock out. I was talking to Josh(bass player) before hand which was neat. A real down to earth and friendly guy. Hey Rosetta! always picks a fantastic setlist depening on the type of show they do. This performance was kicked off with the playing Red Heart. Everytime I hear the opening guitar riff of I've Been Asleep For A Long Time, I can't help but let a cheer out in anticipation of the great song. They also played two new songs, including Seeds which sounded much improved since when I saw them in May. Tim hitting a snare drum, plus everybody else hitting objects equals epic ending to a song. They finished off with New Goodbye, which the crowd instantly clapped along with without prompting. Up to this point of the festival, they definitely had the most fan support.

Handsome Furs - A Montreal based band featuring the husband/wife duo of Dan Boekner and Alexei Perry. This is another band I knew nothing about, but as soon as Dan started singing I thought his voice was very familiar. After a few minutes of trying to figure out who it was I realized it is the lead singer of Wolf Parade. They put on a lively and loud show. It was a mixture of rock with heavy synth and pre-recorded drum beats. Alexei was very energetic and entertaining to watch. Another band I will be looking into more closely now.

Dinosaur Jr. - A Massachusetta based band that has been on the go since 1984, I had heard the name, but not much of their music. They are an influential band in the alternative rock music scene, but not exactly my cup of tea. They seemed uninterested to be there, but the moshing fans seemed to enjoy pushing each other around while they played. I was just waiting for them to end and for Metric to begin. Maybe if I was more into the alternative rock and roll scene I would have enjoyed them more.

Metric - What to say, what to say. I've been on a huge Metric craze the past few months, so seeing them was a dream come true. With the Hip pulling out, they were able to play longer which was fantastic. Emily Haines was in fine form, dancing, singing, banging her tambourine, playing guitar, you name it. The setlist started with Twilight Galaxy from the new album, a song that builds from a slow and sweet ballad into an electronica rock song at the end. The set was heavily loaded with songs from the new album, but also featured some old favourites such as Dead Disco and Monster Hospital. From Fantasies they played Twilight Galaxy, Help I'm Alive, Sick Muse, Satellite Mind, Gold Guns Girls, Gimmy Sympathy, and Stadium Love. Throughout various parts of the set Joules would lead the crowd in sing alongs and fist pumping. Hopefully they return to the Maritimes soon and play a full proper concert.






The Offspring - I left before they came on. Maybe if I was a teenager in 1994 I would have went. But I wasn't.