Whitehorse - Hillside 2013 (Sun Night)

Admittedly I have been a doubter of this duo from the get-go. Not that there's a problem with either of their solo projects but more that based on their Whitehorse albums solely I couldn't quite understand the attention being showered upon them. (I mean a sold out Massey Hall, really?) Then I witnessed the show and now I'm starting to get it..

Just a pair with a unique setup of an old-time shared mic up front and centre, with a pair of rerouted telephone receivers acting as mics behind that surrounded by an assortment of percussion instruments and litter of guitars rested nearby. They proceeded to make compelling, fleshed out songs from this array by running around and singing this piece here, looping that sound there, feeding back over here and then coming together as a dynamic duo in front of it all to bring it home. Opener Killing Time is Murder laid its hooks and they dug deeper with each passing track.

To add another family dimension to it all Luke Doucet paused to describe the little girl in her bathing suit who had run up from the beach to clamber over the stage and sing along some 8 years previous. Then proceeded to introduce this little lady as his now 17 year old daughter whose musical talents were obviously inherited from her father as she controlled the mic with ease on an excellent Tom Waits cover that all three coordinated on while Luke simply played the acoustic.

This couple's attractiveness runs much deeper than the skin, penetrating to their vocal cords and musical souls. I'd love to see what their home jam space looks like, or be around during for Christmas carols.

Usually special guests are not kept under wraps at Hillside for the mere fact that there are 3000 talkative volunteers milling about backstage with open ears. (Stuart McLean comes to mind.) However despite "..with special guests for the finale" being in the program there was much talk and few possibilities floated. (Win and Regine joining the already present Richard Reed Parry and Sarah Neufeld as an incarnation of The Arcade Fire wasn't really feasible as a finale to overshadow Whitehorse was it?) After their curtain call the couple were enticed back onto the stage and Luke took to the mic to introduce Ruth Moody, Brenda McMorrow, and Tony Dekker (GLS) plus the return of his daughter, Chloe. In recognition of the recently passed JJ Cale they performed his song, Crazy Mama, with Brenda on violin and all else acting as new backing vocals. Following this they tore it all down with I'm On Fire. A splendid Springsteen song, they really brought it home by bringing it down to crowd fueled finger snaps and sing-out as the band backed away slowly and disappeared, leaving us singing ourselves out into the night with another amazing Hillside wrapped up.

The Burning Hell, Tony Dekker, The Pining (Tranzac, July 29, 2011)

The Burning Hell
Mathias Kom was back with a decent sized Burning Hell composed of Toronto and St. John's (his new home) musicians, including three women holding down violin, sax and clarinet. All told the sound was rather full as they opened with the straightforward My Name is Mathias and kept it going with a number of new Flux Capacitor songs. During a song about pirates (Pirates) band introductions were made, giving ample opportunity to showcase each instrument with a solo.


A slightly sad, slower song about pets still showcased the quirky but amusing wit of Mathias' lyrics. Our moods rebounded with some more familiar songs such as the trumpeting Everybody Needs A Body and a faux-jazzy intro to Last Will and Testament.

Working toward climax they launched into The Things That People Make 1 and 2, with a hilarious In the Air Tonight intro. For the Dance, Dance, Dance finale they upped audience participation with an on-stage then in-crowd limbo contest below the bass neck.

We roared for more and they gave it to us in the form of a medley of sorts. Okay it was more like the first half of absolute fave It Happens in Florida with a drawn out singalong to the word Loooove each time it came around, meshed clumsily into Bretton Woods. What a celebration it seems to be whenever Mathias and friends play a show - now that he's moved base from Peterborough to St. John's the shows become more and more special.


Tony Dekker
Tony Dekker took to the stage without the Great Lake Swimmers. Instead he simply had his guitar in hand as he opened by plucking through a rendition of Moving Pictures, Silent Films. However being a large Tranzac room on a Friday night the place was a little chatty for the core of the set with either less recognizable or new GLS/T. Dekker tunes. He did play the wonderfully worded Your Rocky Spine and closed with an earlier Swimmers fave in Imaginary Bars.



The Pining
The Pining were a group of women playing country music. The vocals were sometimes unexpected but sounded solid even if I wasn't a huge fan of the genre. A small number of tracks were recognizable from Radio3 listening and the familiarity improved enjoyment.