The New Pornographers @ WISE Hall -- 12/11/14

To promote Google Play Music, Google Canada hosted a series of Home for the Holiday shows around the country this month. Last week Toronto got City & Colour, next week Montreal gets Coeur de Pirate, and last night Vancouver got their very own New Pornographers. The "secret" intimate show took place at Wise Hall, quite the change of scene from the last few times I saw them; at a sold out Commodore and in front of thousands of people in Stanley Park.

(And not to sound like a pitchman, but I've always been an Android guy and have been using Google Play -- not the streaming service, but the app itself -- on my phone since before it was available in Canada. It's pretty great.)

But on to the show. I had caught The New Pornographers at the start of their tour, a few months back, and I was actually a little disappointed by it, so I was eager to see them again, especially in a venue so intimate. It was the first time the Vancouver group had ever played the Wise Hall, and the venue sounded great. They started off with all seven members present -- minus Neko Case -- with the title track to the new album Brill Bruisers and into one of my favourites, the Bejar-fronted "Myriad Harbour". From there the set ran the gamut from the old, going back to their first album for the eponymous "Mass Romantic" to the the frantic "War on the East Coast", and all the hits in between.

Dan was on and off stage, there when he was needed, in a trench coat and often with a glass of red wine in hand, in a way that only Dan Bejar can pull off. And Carl Newman was in fine form joking between songs, thanking their Google sponsors (then being shocked that no one could name the inventor of Google) and ringing in every holiday until the end of the year, since it was their last show of 2014.

Other highlights included the softer "A Drug Deal of the Heart", "Testament To Youth in Verse" with its chorus of nos at the end, and a couple songs that really showed off Kathryn Calder's powerful vocals, "The Laws Have Changed" and "Born With A Sound".
After a good hour, they came to a close with one of my absolute favourites -- not just of New Pornos -- "The Bleeding Heart Show", a perfect song, building to a chest-busting ending of intertwined vocals and powerful drums. Though it may have been the only song of the set where their new drummer, Joe Seiders, wasn't quite up to par with Kurt Dahle. But that's not a knock on Joe, he just had some big shoes to fill.
And of course, they were back out for one more, Carl jokingly insisting that the word "encore" came from the Latin for "more", not from the French, before wrapping the night up by singing us Spanish Techno.


With their previous show this year, I couldn't quite place what was "off" about it. But whatever it was, was gone for this show. Maybe it was because they are wrapping up a tour, having just got home from Europe, but they were on top of their game and put on a strong show in a great, intimate venue. And I hope this is going to turn into an ongoing series from Google Canada.


setlist
Brill Bruisers; Myriad Harbour; Moves; Dancehall Domine; War on the East Coast; Use It; All The Old Showstoppers; Jackie, Dressed in Cobras; A Drug Deal of the Heart; The Laws Have Changed; Fantasy Fools; Testament to Youth in Verse; Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk; Backstairs; Silver Jenny Dollar; Champions of Red Wine; Born With A Sound; Mass Romantic; Ballad of a Comeback Kid; The Bleeding Heart Show. 
(encore) Sing Me Spanish Techno.

The New Pornographers @ Commodore -- 10/04/14

Fresh off the release of their sixth album Brill Bruisers, The New Pornographers kicked off their tour with a pair of hometown shows at the Commodore Ballroom.
I caught the second of the two, but for some reason, I was not as excited as I should have been. Maybe it was the recent news that Kurt Dahle (one of my favourite drummers) had left the band. Or maybe it was the lack of the promised Neko Case who, due to issues at the border, was not able to get into the country.
But I was intrigued by the announcement that Amber Webber, of Black Mountain and Lightning Dust, would be filling in, and excluding free outdoor shows, it was the first time seeing the band in a proper venue in over four years.

Unfortunately I missed the first two bands, Cool TV and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, getting to the venue just as The New Pornographers hit the stage with the first song, and title track, "Brill Bruisers" and as soon as Dan Bejar joined them for one of my favourites, "Myriad Harbour", a lot of my misgivings had faded. The set dug heavily into their back catalogue, with lots of deep cuts throughout the night, showing off the bands 14 years of crafting some of the best power pop songs out there, from "Champions of Red Wine" all the way back to "Execution Day" off their debut album.

Frontman Carl Newman occasionally chatted with the crowd a few times, joking that in revisiting some of the older songs he found some were "pretty good" -- specifically "The New Face of Zero and One" -- and looked happy to be home, asking if anyone else went to school in White Rock. Bejar was on and off stage, joining only when he was needed, as he usually does, and while the absence of Neko Case was felt, Kathryn Calder unsurprisingly stepped in with her own fantastic voice. Guest Amber Webber was mostly on backup and harmonies, and there were only a couple times that her voice really soaring above the rest, the best example being "Born With a Sound", which featured her on the album. I actually ended up wishing they utilized her more; I would have loved to see how her haunting voice fit with songs like "Challengers" or even "Letter From An Occupant", neither of which ended up in the set.

After over an hour, they ended the main set with my two favourites from the new album, Dan Bejar's frantic "War on the East Coast", and the impressive vocals of Calder shining on "Dancehall Domine" before thy were back out for a few more. Bejar returned one last time for "Spyder", before they went all the way back and wrapped up with the with the first song, and title track to their debut, "Mass Romantic", a nearly perfect song, with Calder once again filling the room with her powerful pipes.

In the end, it was definitely a good show. There was too much raw talent on stage for it not to be, but something about it just felt... off. I have seen the band perform without Case a few times, and I think it all came down to the new drummer. He was a fine drummer, don't get me wrong, but the absence of Kurt Dahle left some pretty big kickdrums to fill.

setlist
Brill Bruisers; Myriad Harbour; Sing Me Spanish Techno; Born With a Sound; The End of Medicine; Twin Cinema; Execution Day; All The Old Showstoppers; The Moves; Silver Jenny Dollar; You Tell Me Where; The Spirit of Giving; The New Face of Zero and One; Champions Of Red Wine; Ballad of a Comeback Kid; Backstairs; Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk; War on the East Coast; Dancehall Domine.
(encore) Spyder; The Laws Have Changed; Mass Romantic.

Summer Live w/ The New Pornographers, Neko Case & Hannah Georgas @ Stanley Park -- 07/09/11

All year the city of Vancouver has been celebrating its 125th year, and this weekend is one of the events I have been looking forward to most: Summer Live; a weekend of free shows in Stanley Park, showcasing Vancouver talent. The first night, which I had to miss, had Mother Mother headlining, but with the lineup they had for the second night, I knew nothing was going to keep me from it.

There was music happening nearly all day, but I showed up at 6, just in time to see the gorgeous Hannah Georgas. The sound for the whole event wasn't really that great, but Hannah seemed to have the worst least good sound. The drums especially seemed a little loud throughout the set, but that aside, it was quite enjoyable. Joined, as usual, by Andrew Braun & Johnny Andrews of Rococode and Robbie Driscoll of everyone (seriously, if I had a nickel for every time I've seen him play with a different band...), she started off with “Chit Chat”, and a few more from This Is Good before a couple new songs, mentioning a new album in the works, which I am eagerly anticipating. “Your Ghost” and "All I Need", off The Beat Stuff EP, were definite highlights of the set, and she ended, after wishing Vancouver a happy birthday, with "The Deep End".

setlist
Chit Chat, Bang Bang You're Dead!, Lovers Breakdown, Thick Skin, Dancefloor, [new song], [new song], The Beat Stuff, Let's Talk, Your Ghost, The National, All I Need, The Deep End.

Next up was the person I was most anticipating for the day, Neko Case. It had been over two years since I last saw her live (not counting shows with The New Pornographers), so saying I was just a little excited is an understatement. She started, and ended, for that matter, with songs I didn't recognize, but the bulk of her set was off her last two albums Middle Cyclone and Fox Confessor Brings The Flood, with a few new ones thrown in. The new songs sounded great, and her voice was, as usual, simply amazing. From lulling the crowd with the softer songs like "That Teenage Feeling" to knocking people over with sheer power on songs like "People Got A Lotta Nerve", her voice in unparalleled. Another thing that makes Case so enjoyable live is her great banter and sense of humour on stage, especially between her and backup vocalist Kelly Hogan.
They, too, had some technical difficulties, but it is always incredible seeing Neko Case live, and I just hope it's not another two years before I get to see her again.

setlist
[mystery song], Maybe Sparrow, People Got A Lotta Nerve, Fever, The Pharaohs, Hold On Hold On, That Teenage Feeling, Middle Cyclone, [new song], Margaret vs. Pauline, [new song], Vengeance is Sleeping, I'm An Animal, I Wish I Was The Moon, Red Tide, [new song], This Tornado Loves You, [mystery song].

After Case I rushed over to the second stage to catch the last bit of The Zolas. As I got closer, I could hear the shrieks of the crowd, and Zach introduce a song as “about sex... or the lack thereof...” and I rounded the corner just in time for “Body Ash”. I only caught four songs, but they were as good as I've seen them; Zach especially seemed to have more energy than usual, bounding around stage. They “ended” with “Pyramid Scheme” -- which I don't think I had ever seen live, so I was happy to hear it -- before coming back (they acknowledged the faux pas of doing an encore while not the headliner, saying Said The Whale insisted) with “You're Too Cool”, which ended with a crowd sing-a-long.

(partial) setlist
Body Ash, These Days, Pyramid Scheme.
(encore) You're Too Cool.

At that point I made the executive decision to head back over to the main stage for The New Pornographers, and miss Said The Whale. Even though I have had bad luck with STW shows this year, I had still seen them thrice since I last saw The New Pornos. Plus... it's The New Pornographers!
They kicked off the set mentioning that Kathryn Calder was running late -- Case threatened to ground her, “With [her] grounding stick” -- so they started off with a couple older ones until Calder arrived. (To be fair, it was kind of insane getting to Stanley Park). From there they played for over an hour, hitting songs from all their albums, with loads of singing along.
Highlights of the set were "Adventures In Solitude" (despite the crowd's terrible offbeat clapping) and especially “Testament To Youth In Verse”, one of my favourites; though it just wasn't the same without Dan Bejar. In fact, I was a little disappointed that Bejar wasn't there at all, but of course it was still a great show regardless. They ended with one of my favourite songs of ever, “The Bleeding Heart Show”, which was an absolutely perfect way to cap off the day.

setlist
The Slow Descent into Alcoholism, All For Swinging You Around, Challengers, Moves, Sweet Talk Sweet Talk, Use It, Adventures in Solitude, Crash Years, All The Old Showstoppers, What Turns Up In The Dark, The Laws Have Changed, Testament to Youth in Verse, Your Hands (Together), Mass Romantic, Sing Me Spanish Techno, The Bleeding Heart Show.

It was a fantastic day of music, and I am now convinced that Hannah Georgas and Neko Case need to tour together... but I have to admit, it did end on a little bit of a sour note. During The New Pornographers final song, I could see something thrown on stage – looked like a water bottle – which just reminded me of the video of Case snapping when a CD was thrown on stage at a show.
After the song the set was done and nothing was said, but after the usual cheering, there ended up being no encore. I chalked it up to curfew, but according to Chris Coburn of The Peak, who was emceeing, there was no encore because Case did not want to go back out due to the thrown object. Which, good. Artists should not have to deal with that kind of crap, and as much as I wanted an encore, I fully support them in not going back out.

The New Pornographers @ The Vogue -- 07/15/10

I feel as if the Indie Rock Gods were rewarding the hardcore New Pornographer fans. Last nights sold out show was the first one announced, then they added a second show, for the night before. Well, for the first (but really the second) show, something went wrong and Neko Case couldn't make it. But she was out in full force last night!

First up, though, was Imaad Wasif, from Vancouver. He had an intriguing sound, kind of a psychedelic, stoner rock that had an ebb and flow to it; sometimes being soft and slow, something going crazy rocking out. At times it was impressive that such a bombastic sound came from only four people -- guitar, bass, drums and violin -- but the set seemed to drag on a little much, as I think he was on for over 45 minutes. He also seemed very enamoured with love, stating how every song was about love (and possibly longing) and at one point saying how love was the most important thing in the universe. Nothing wrong with love, of course, but he just seemed very up on it. And aside from that, there wasn't much by way of stage banter. All four of them had a pretty good presence and energy while playing, but Wasif didn't have much to say between songs other than the usual "thanks for coming/the [opening band] for having us"

The Dodos were next up, and immediately I say wow! They were just three members strong, but an interesting setup. One on guitar, one on drums (with no bass drum, but a tambourine taped to his shoe), and one who played the vibraphone and a floor tom (Sometimes simultaneously). And on top of that, he was occasionally playing the vibraphone with a bow.
They had a more indie pop sound to them, and a nice variety of more slower, folky numbers and faster, rocking out ones. All of which were highly infectious and catchy, and any other night they may have stole the show. For their final song they played "Fables", which I immediately recognized, but for the life of me I am not sure where from.

And the, finally, The New Pornographers. They hit the stage nine large, as the the gang was all there. Opening with the awesome "Myriad Harbour", they immediately got everyone out of their seats and singing along. From there they spanned a good variety of their catalogue, spanning all five albums. Among the highlights was the highly energetic "Your Hands (Together)", Bejar's stunning "Execution Day" and "My Shepherd", which made me fall even more in love with Case's voice (if possible). And let's not forget Kathryn Calder, who had "Sweet Talk Sweet Talk" to spotlight her amazing pipes. Though the one song that I was disappointed they didn't play was "Adventures In Solitude", which is one of my favourites and would have been another showcase for Calder. And as for Newman, he makes it all just seem so effortless.
They also had, as usual, some hilarious banter which included, but was not limited to: a battle of wits with the bro show at the front (which was pretty one-sided). Neko Case spotting a shirtless man with "bigger boobs than [her]", which led to a rant about how HE could bare his chest in public, yet SHE could not. And then, when the prerequisite odour and smoke wafting on stage, the band mocking those responsible for not even trying to hide it -- Case likening it to survival of the fittest and taunting a T-Rex.
The set ended with what may be my favourite New Pornos song, "The Bleeding Heart Show", which was just amazing live. Then they came out for an encore which consisted of two more of my favourites; first the beautiful "Challengers", then Bejar coming back out for "A Testament To Youth In Verse", which saw them look to the crowd for a few of the "No no no..." verses, and even though the crowd was slow to pick up on, we were belting it out by the end, before they exploded into the finale. A superb ending for the show.

My only complaint would be that the sound in the place seemed a little loud, especially the vocals. But it was only enough to be noticeable, and not enough to be annoying. What was annoying though was the dickbag who, between every song, would yell "Where's Bejar?" (sometimes "amusingly" pronouncing it bay-jar) at the top of his lungs. At first he was ignored, then yelled at by the crowd, then mocked by the band, especially when he yelled it when Bejar was on stage. But aside from that, it was a brilliant show from Vancouver's own The New Pornographers.

Setlist:
Myriad Harbour, What Turns Up In The Dark, Sing me Spanish Techno, Crash Years, Jackie Dressed in Cobras, The Laws Have Changed, My Rights Versus Yours, Twin Cinema, Jackie, Sweet Talk Sweet Talk, All The Old Showstoppers, Go Places, The Moves, Your Hands (Together), Execution Day, My Shepherd, Use It, Silver Jenny Dollar, Letter From An Occupant, The Bleeding Heart Show.
[encore] Challengers, Testament to Youth In Verse.

"We're a part of you, and you're a part of us." "Whether you like it or not!" - Death Cab For Cutie & New Pornographers @ Pacific Coliseum -- 07/16/09

What is it with Death Cab picking awesome touring mates? I like them well enough, but both times I've seen them live, I've been going more for another band. The first time it was Franz Ferdinand, and this time? The New Pornographers. I like Death Cab well enough, but I am not sure I would have paid as much to see just them at a place like Pacific Coliseum, so I am glad they have been playing with some great bands.

Bands like Ra Ra Riot, who hit the stage promptly at 7. My friends description of them as "like Hey Rosetta!.... but really not at all" was surprisingly apt, even if the only similarities between the bands are the inclusion of a cello & violin to add a great depth to their sound. One that is an incredibly catchy indie pop-esque sound, almost bordering on twee-pop. With six members on stage, they never felt to cluttered and had a pretty good stage presence, if maybe looking a little out of place playing a stadium show. They seem like they would be much more comfortable playing smaller club venues. It was a pretty good set, though, and made me want to search out and get their new album (which, fun fact, I am listening to as I write this very sentence). Hopefully they're back soon enough for a show of their own, since I would really like to check them out more.

Next up, right at 8 (the only good thing about curfew shows is the strict timetable) was The New Pornographers. This was my fourth time seeing them live -- having seen them once a year since '06 -- and... I don't want to say the worst, because that implies it was bad, but it was the least good. It was still a great set, but just because it was at the Coliseum, which is not a great venue, and because they were opening, the set was all too short. But again, it was still a damn good set! They opened with My Rights Versus Yours, with all the regular crew on stage, sans Neko Case (who is touring on her own, in Michigan last night), though Kathryn Calder did her usual superb job of filling in for all of Case's vocals.
Before the show, I was really hoping that Bejar would make an appearance, since Destroyer would be playing a show the next night at the Biltmore. And of course as soon as the first song ended, Bejar popped out from backstage and they launched into Myriad Harbour!
The 50 minute-or-so set consisted of a fair amount of new and old, hitting at least one song from each album, which was really cool. I wasn't sure how they would structure their setlist, due to opening for someone like DCFC, but I am glad they went with the list they did. I was especially thrilled that they played Testament To Youth In Verse, as it's one of my favourites of theirs, and for some reason I thought they would not.
Newman was in fine form, too, crowd banter-wise. He expressed enthusiasm for playing at the Coliseum, saying his first show was when he was 9, seeing Rod Stewart there ("back when he was awesome"), then occasionally interjecting between songs what other acts he had seen. He seemed genuinely thrilled to be playing there, as did the rest of the members.
They finished off the set with another of my favourite songs, of all time, not just Pornos, The Bleeding Heart Show, which never fails to leave me awestruck, especially at Kurt Dahle's drumming. The man is a fucking maniac.
I managed to keep track of their setlist, which was:
My Rights Versus Yours, Myriad Harbour, The Laws Have Changed, Use It, Jackie Dressed In Cobras, All The Old Showstoppers, Challengers, The Spirit of Giving In, Mass Romantic, Testament to Youth In Verse, Sing Me Spanish Techno, Bleeding Heart Show

At that point, I could have gone home happy, but there was still Death Cab for Cutie to go! Hitting the stage at about 9:15, they played just about an hour and a half, right up until curfew. Again, I fully admit I was going to see The New Pornos, so Death Cab was almost like an added bonus. They are really good live, playing as tight as you would expect a band that has been around for as long as they have. Though, maybe a little on the stiff side, but you can still tell after all this time, they're not just going through the motions, rather they still enjoy playing.
Their set also consisted of a good number of new and old, starting off blasting through a half dozen songs before introducing themselves, then right back to the music. Gibbard and the rest were pretty quiet through the night, just letting the music speak for itself. The one story he told was their first meeting with The New Pornos, 9 years ago, where the members of Death Cab drank all their beer.
They hit all their big songs and hits, too, but saved them for later in the show and/or the encore. My favourite would have to be I Will Possess Your Heart, or more specifically, the introduction to the song, 4 minutes or so of instrumental, which is my favourite bit of any Death Cab song, I would say.

Even though it was at the Pacific Coliseum, which is usually a sub par venue at best, it was still a pretty damn good show and with three great bands, definitely worth the money. I was kind of hoping for some sort of New Porno + Death Cab (New Pornographer for Cutie?) jam up, but those [almost] never end up happening, so I wasn't too disappointed. A great way, also, to kick off my streak of 5 concerts in 6 days...