Arcade Fire + In-Flight Safety + Architecture In Helsinki + The Pipettes + Wil

Thursday May 24 - Arcade Fire @ Deer Lake Park

We arrived at Deer Lake Park in time to catch the last bit of St. Vincent's set. Annie Clark was supported by a large backing band, and the multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter left a good impression on me with what I heard of her set.

I had just seen the Arcade Fire play a stunning performance a month prior at Coachella, and on this night it was no different. The Montreal natives were out in full force accompanied with their video screens, lighting, and stage props. They delivered a show filled with such strong energy, intensity and emotion.



One of my main highlights for any Arcade Fire show is watching Richard Reed Parry and William Butler go absolutely ballistic on Neighbourhood #2 (Laika), throwing their instruments and using various parts of the stage and themselves as a surface for their drumming.

Regine Chassagne commands a great presence, especially during her playful self in Haiti. Violinist and backing vocalist Sarah Neufeld is a pleasure to watch onstage, full of life and dancing the entire time.



Other highlights for me during the 1hr 30min set were Keep The Car Running, No Cars Go, Rebellion, and Wake Up.



SETLIST:

Black Mirror
Keep The Car Running
No Cars Go
Haiti
Neighbourhood #2 (Laika)
Black Wave / Bad Vibrations
In The Backseat
Intervention
Antichrist Television Blues
Ocean Of Noise
Neighbourhood #1 (Tunnels)
The Well And The Lighthouse
Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)
Rebellion (Lies)
-------
My Body Is A Cage
Wake Up

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Saturday June 9

Did a CD Release show for some fantastic musicians, which turned out to be my last show at The Lamplighter before it closed down.

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Tuesday June 12 - Young Galaxy and In-Flight Safety @ The Media Club

The venue was full and there were many family and friends in attendance to show their support and welcome home the duo in Young Galaxy. The Arts and Crafts signees, comprised of couple Stephen Ramsay and Catherine McCandless formed the project in Vancouver before moving east to Montreal to record their debut album. They mentioned that this was their most important gig to date as they were playing infront of so many close people in their lives.



Their set was filled with dreamy pop-rock songs such as "Swing Your Heartache" and "The Sun's Coming Up and My Plane's Going Down". There were some nice harmonies and they reminded me of Stars. Props to Stephen Ramsay playing the show despite having his hand in a cast.

It's unfortunate that most of the family and friends of the first band didn't stick around to catch the In-Flight Safety set. I first saw the Halifax quartet last November and they blew me away with their well-crafted atmospheric rock songs. Singer John Mullane does a soild job making you feel the lyrics he's singing.



The guys have a Vancouver tie as well, as a few of the tracks off their debut LP were recorded by Warne Livesey in the city. They played a few new songs during their 1hr set, which was highlighted by Surround, Fear, and Coast Is Clear.





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Thursday June 14 - Architecture In Helsinki @ Richard's



Yacht opened the evening at Richard's. The solo artist performed a set of interpretive dance and spoken word backed by his pre-recorded music samples. He had some pretty sweet dance moves and even stopped during one of his songs and did an impromptu q and a session with the audience. It was good times.

The playful folks from Architecture In Helsinki came on next and started things off with Red Turned White. The collective from Australia performed a fun filled set with their orchestral pop numbers.



There were some sound problems with the monitors during the set but the band still kept a great level of energy going. It'5 had many in the audience dancing, as did Nevereverdid during the encore.



Set lasted 1hr 10mins with one encore.



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Friday June 15 - The Pipettes @ Plaza Club

The girls from Smoosh opened the show. It was my third time seeing them this year in an opening slot. They once again played their nice cover of Bloc Party's This Modern Love.

I've wanted to see The Pipettes since I first heard them over a year ago. Their blend of 60's girl pop is absolutely infectious and you can't help but wanna dance everytime you hear their songs.

The British trio came onstage supported by a four piece backing band and opened with Don't Forget Me. Their choreographed moves are simple and easy to imitate.....which the ladies do intentionally so the audience can follow along and get involved in the show.

Songs like Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me, Pull Shapes, Dirty Mind, and ABC were highlights for me during the 1hr set.



For their encore, the ladies brought onstage the members of Smoosh as this was their last tour stop together. Together, they sang and danced the night out with We Are The Pipettes.

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Tuesday June 19 - Wil @ VECC

Leeroy Stagger opened the show. He played a solo acoustic folk rock set that sat well with me. I could feel a lot of raw emotion in his songs.

Wil was touring in support of his new album, his first major label release. No Pat Steward on this night as the Calgary native was also sporting a new support band, which included Ryan Dahle on guitar. It was only the third show together for this new lineup so there were a few noticeable things to improve upon.

Still, Wil and his tremendous vocals and guitar skills can never disappoint. Ryan and him had a really awesome guitar duo during the performance. Honey Pie sounded really good too. Set lasted 1hr 40mins with one encore.

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Saturday June 23

Put on a rock fundraiser event with the folks from CFOX to raise money for diabetes research. It ended up being my last event at The Buffalo Club before it closed down. We're losing way too many venues in this city.