Insightful Felines and Feisty Canines (Click for Video)
The Weakerthans w/Jenn Grant
The Phoenix – 11.07.07
Rating: 9/10
Despite the frigid November wind and rapidly plummeting temperature, The Weakerthans managed to heat up the Phoenix on Nov 7. Running through a good chunk of their catalogue of tunes in about an hour and a half, The Weakerthans commanded the stage and proved to be well worth the 2+ year wait.
Jenn Grant warmed up the crowd with a set of soft and gentle East Coast Feist-meets–Sarah-Harmer songs. Her hollow acoustic/electric guitar was filled by high falsettos, warbling ooh and ahhs and dreamy lyrics. Although a bit nervous, she was able to handle the noisy crowd (save a couple solo numbers), with the help of a solid back up band. The bassist, Chuck Teed, was more than just a backup, providing vocal harmonies, counterpoint bass melodies and effects. He added another dimension to the music to a level that was more than your average “girl on a guitar” act. “Heart of Sticks” written after her pet dog “Stanley Grant”, was one of the highlights of her set – the slide, banjo, violins and stand up bass gave us the ho-down platform we needed to get moving!
The Weakerthans stormed the stage next, blasting us with Benediction and Oh Antarctica. Fitting for how cold it was outside. Like most shows in Toronto, the crowd was a little frigid and comatose, however underneath the surface you could tell everyone was digging the music. After all, what I love most about this band are singer and songwriter John K. Samson’s insightful storytelling lyrics, written in descriptive prose vs. rhyming couplets. Jim Bryson was also supporting them for this leg of the tour with back up vocals and keyboard support.
The crowd suddenly felt their feet moving mid-way through with “Aside” and the new release of their latest record, “Tournament of Hearts”. “Night Windows” was another standout song from their new record, with a dreamy introspective sound characteristic to some of their classic ballads like “Left and Leaving” and “Slips and Tangles”. They finished their set with “A Plea from a Cat Named Virtute,” leaving the crowd wanting more.
And boy, did they deliver.
The Winnipeg lads pumped out 7 more songs over 2 encores, which included crowd favourite “One Great City!” (see video clip below), a Replacements cover, and “Virtute the Cat Explains her Departure” a sequel to the original from the last album Reconstruction Site. Do we see a theme here? Even the crowd was shocked by the 2nd encore, but ready to stay until the end. They rightfully ended with “Everything Must Go!” leaving the crowd with a warm cup of musical java after an incredible night.
Tonight yet again demonstrated that Canadians can write great music, and that inspiration can come from anywhere – even from our furried friends.
“One Great City” – The Weakerthans
REVIEWED BY: ROBB ENG
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