After the recent release of her new album Upsweep, Hannah Epperson returned home to Vancouver to celebrate at the Fox Cabaret.

I got to the early show a little late, catching the last half of opener Holy Hum, the solo project from Andrew Lee of In Medias Res. Spacey synth drones paired with his electric guitar set a dark mood, while fitting imagery being projected behind him; like a slow zoom in to the earth from orbit, or waves crashing in the ocean.
There was a bit of an awkward ending, as Andrew did the typical pre-last-song "thanks for coming" spiel, but the person in charge of sound must have misheard, and turned the lights and house music back on, thinking it was over. Lee managed to grab their attention thought and finish off with one more song.

After a very quick turnaround (one of the few good things about curfewed shows) Hannah Epperson was on stage, backed by the two members of Omhouse, the other opening band I missed. Starting off with "Cat's Cradle", Epperson filled the theatre with beautiful violin loops & plucking, her fragile voice lilting over the rapt audience. She played older songs like the haunting and powerful "We Will Host A Party", and of course new ones Upsweep like the transformative "Story" and the heartwrenching "Farthest Distance".
Between songs, Hannah chatted with her charmingly awkward (or awkwardly charming?) banter, mostly thanking everyone for not only being there, but being so quiet and attentive; a feat that is near-impossible for crowd in Vancouver, especially club shows. But Hannah Epperson is one of the very, very few musicians who I have seen with the ability to silence the room with just their music.
With the curfew in mind, Epperson played right up until the end of the show, without doing the faux-encore bit, leaving the crowd to go home full of awe.

setlist
Cat's Cradle.
Iodine
We Will Host a Party
Story
Circles
Farthest Distance