Tokyo Police Club (w/ Arkells & We Are The City) @ Commodore -- 10/02/10

I feel like a broken record saying this, but I have been incredibly lucky with lineups this year. Meaning, I have seen more than a few shows where every single band playing has been stellar. The latest was a little spontaneous, as the original opener, The Meligrove Band, had to drop out of the western tour dates due to vehicular problems. But instead of just leaving it with Tokyo Police Club and Arkells, they had to replace them. With We Are The City. I hate to admit, I was a little on the fence on the show, but as soon as I heard that, I knew I was going.

We Are The City was up first, and you could tell they were thrilled to be there, both at the commodore and part of the bill. They played a short set of their usual prog rock, bursting with energy, as all three of them seemed on top of their game, even though Andy seemed to have a bit of a hoarse voice. At one point they brought out a unique stage prop... the entire front grill of their car, which was in an accident earlier that day (between that & Meligrove Band's troubles, I'm starting to wonder...), and left it in front of Cayne for the rest of the set. I've mentioned before, but it's been really cool to see the band grow over the last year or so, and I will be sad to see David depart the band, but interested to see where they go from here.

Next up was, admittedly, the band I was looking forward to most of the night, Arkells. Besides a short set during the olympics which didn't have the greatest sound, I hadn't seen the Hamilton fivesome in almost a year. The set consisted mostly of songs from their debut, Jackson Square, but they teased a new album with a brand new song that sounded great. Very Arkellsesque, yet not so much like their old stuff as to seem repetitive. They engaged the crowd excellently, especially during "Oh, The Boss Is Coming", which had everyone shout the eponymous line, and then the back and forth "punching in/punching out". A couple times they enlisted the help of TPC member Graham Wright for saxophone, and after giving shout outs to the rest of the bands -- as well as the ones represented in the audience -- they brought Tokyo Police Club up to help out with the final song, John Lennon. Slipping in the now-usual "Eleanor Rigby" lines, they even splitting the stage/crowd between "look at all the lonely people" and "where do they all come from?" They have such raw energy and passion, and the whole band has a confidence to them that makes them one of the best live bands I have had the pleasure of seeing. I can't wait until the new album and/or they come back.

That right there would have been a show worthy of my monies, but there was still Tokyo Police Club to come! They hit the stage with an energy to match, if not surpass, the level set by the other two bands, getting everyone in the crowd into the set. With the infectious levels of enthusiasm, and the incredibly tight sound they've cultivated, I don't think there was a single person there not singing, dancing, or [off-beat] clapping along; they certainly know how to work a crowd. They focused on the new album, but of course played some old favourites, too, before bringing the set to an "end" with a little help from Arkells, then came back out with a cover of Weezer's "My Name is Jonas", and blasting through "Cheer It On", leaving the crowd exhausted.

Live at Squamish. Day two, part two. -- 09/05/10

Down to the final entry. I will take this moment to give my eternal thanks to everyone who made this possible. From the festival organizers, to the bands, to my friends (and my friends in bands), and the new friends I met there. The lineup was as good as any two-day festival can be, the setting was gorgeous, the festival itself was incredibly well run and everything was organized. My only complaint was that while the grass at the main stage was incredibly nice and comfortable to sit on, the field at the second stage was very much less so. And when that minor annoyance is my only complaint, I think that the whole place did a damn good job. But the day was not over. Let's take a look at the rest of the acts!

I had only seen Tokyo Police Club live once before at a show that, frankly, I was attending more to see the opening band. At the show they raced through their entire set in about 45 minutes and were done. That being said, they were still enjoyable. That show was three years ago, so I was interested to see how they had progressed. As they hit the stage, it was obvious that they still had the same levels of enthusiasm -- especially keyboardist Graham Wright, who reminds me of a hummingbird -- but learned to pace themselves a bit more.
But they sounded even tighter and more energetic, which made the set really fun, and everything sounded great. People were clapping and singing along when appropriate and dancing up a storm, especially when they got to the hits. The set made me appreciate them that much more, and I will have to be sure to catch the show next month (especially since Arkells will be there, too)


And then, the dudebros were out in force for Bad Religion. I can't really say I'm much of a fan of the band, but it was obvious that they had been around for 30 years. In a good way. They knew exactly how to put on a show, with good energy, stage presence and banter. And they made it seem pretty effortless, from where I was standing. A few of their songs sounded kinda... same-y, but less like they were all the same song, and more like they've just found their groove and have stuck with it. That, and the lead singer has a pretty distinctive voice.
It was nice to see they we're not super serious about things, as well, as some bands of their ilk seem to be. When they first came out, the bassist was wearing the head of the festival's mascot, Square the bear, and played the first few songs with it on before proclaiming it was too darned hot.


And finally, to close out the whole shebang, there was The Decemberists. They were one of the best last year I saw last year, and while I was sure they were not going to do the whole Hazards of Love, a part of me was still hoping. Well, those hopes were dashed, but they still put on an incredible show. They played songs from all over their career, including "O Valencia", with a little bit of "Dracula's Daughter" slipped in (he didn't explain it, but fans know Colin Meloy considers Dracula's Daughter the worst song he's ever written, and he usually prefaces it as such) and the multi-part "The Crane Wife". After the call and answer "la-di-da-di-da" of "16 Military Wives", he spoke the line of the festival, saying "now that we're friends and have developed a rapport... here's a song about infanticide" and launched in to the brilliant "The Rake Song". From there, he ended the set with mostly tracks from The Hazards of Love. They also played a few new songs, teasing us with news that a new album is in the works. (To get a taste, see the embedded video. You can't see much, but you can hear it just fine). The new songs were very much Decemberists, and I can't wait to hear the rest.
Even though the crowd had thinned out a little by the time they were done, it was still a fantasmic way to end the festival, as they put on quite possibly my favourite set of the weekend.

I gushed about the festival enough above, so all I am going to say is... I can't wait to be back next year.
(that, and check out my picture set on the flickr!)