Archive for May, 2011

Sorry for the lack of posts this week, I’ve just been swarmed with shows! But luckily for the readers here, I’ve recorded them all on video. I must say my favourite performance was probably Sleigh Bells, they definitely performed the best. I’m hoping to do more concert coverage this summer for all the Room-Noise readers. So far I’m taking the month of June off from shows to hopefully blog more and do some more research. Currently I’m in the process of getting a press pass for Osheaga, it would be amazing for me to be able to take my DSLR to record some of the performances for those who won’t be able to go this year! If you have the money and the chance to go to Osheaga, I highly suggest doing it. The line-up this year is quite insane. Death From Above 1979 is my number one reason at the moment. More info will come when the date comes closer, I might do a daily blog or a vlog of my journey to Montreal with my close friends. So for now, enjoy my review, comments and thoughts of the past three days.

CHILDISH GAMBINO:

My week began with Donald Glover/Childish Gambino at The Opera House, he started the night with a 25-30 minute set with his stand up comedy and a digital short featuring a member from LCD Soundsystem (don’t remember who because I was too short to see the screen). Afterwards he had his live band come up and Donald opened up his set with Freaks and Geeks. Let’s just say that I was really surprised at how well his live band performed, they had put so much energy into playing their part which sadly over powered Glover’s vocals. Otherwise, everyone at the show was clearly a die hard fan since I paid only $20 for my ticket, but there were people in the room who definitely paid more than $200. Overall, the show was a bit overhyped, he did a great show but it was, in lack of a better slang/word “aight”.

SLEIGH BELLS:

The next day, I missioned to The Sound Academy in the absolute crappy weather to see Princeton, Sleigh Bells and CSS. A great lineup (except for Princeton – sort of random) to be honest, I was actually really surprised that there was barely anyone when I arrived at the venue but by the time Sleigh Bells opened up with Iron Man by Ozzy, the crowd went insane. The band then appeared and the song slowly transitioned to Crown on the Ground. Their entire set was around 40-45 minutes long and I could tell the duo put in a lot of effort into their performance. My favourite part about the show was probably the lighting and the set behind them. Despite most of their music was probably air played over the speakers and not actually playing the music 100% live, it was the fans that really made it good.

CSS:

I probably waited for over 30 minutes for CSS to get on stage and it was definitely worth the wait. I’ve been a huge fan of this band, but I was actually really disappointed on their setlist and also Lovefoxxx’s vocals. I could barely hear her the entire time, nevertheless, she made it up with her crazy energy and her endless stripping! I also loved the fact that she wore a RATATAT t-shirt the entire time, really makes it work. This was probably my second favourite performance since I had the chance to see the band upfront and I could tell everyone in the band was having a great time, they were smiling non-stop and trying to get the crowd to dance. CSS will be returning to Toronto in October.

DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE:

I had the chance to see Death Cab For Cutie with The Edge Intern Army. I spent four hours talking to the crowd who were lining up for the show, and let’s just say they were ALL die hard fans. DCFC hasn’t been in Toronto since 2008 I believe and tickets to this show were $50 at The Phoenix. There were fans who weren’t able to get tickets and they waited outside in the rain until the venue was nice enough to let them in. When I saw the band perform, my first thought was, what was Chris Walla playing? But also.. why was the drum set in the back corner of the stage? Those small set ups usually isn’t a concern to fans but it was just distracting for me. As for the set, the band played over 19 tracks and then an encore of 4 songs, ending with Transatlanticism. I will be seeing DCFC again in July in Osheaga, I can’t wait to compare the two shows in two completely different settings. I’m not a HUGE fan of the band, but I could tell that they were so grateful of their fans.

- Constance