It’s been a minute since the last time Toronto’s Elliott BROOD were in Vancouver, but after they released Keeper in 2020 — their first new album in three years — they were hitting the road with their “Out and About” tour, with a stop at the Hollywood Theatre.

Opening the show was Johnny 99, which was kind of fitting, as John Sponarski’s first live show as a solo performer was opening for Elliott BROOD in 2013! Joined by Scott Smith on pedal steel and Kendel Carson on guitar & violin, and also backing vocals, Johnny joked he would “soft-rock us to sleep” with a collection of country-tinged love songs. Playing off his recently released album, Words Left Unsaid, he did just that, pouring his heart out over his twangy guitar, with highlights including the incredibly catchy “I Wanna Go With My Boots On”.

It wasn’t long before the three members of Elliott BROOD hit the stage, the voices & guitars of Mark Sasso and Casey Laforet blending together perfectly, with Stephen Pitkin’s drumming holding everything up.

Their set of dark-folk-rock started on the calmer side — for them, anyway — with songs like “Dig a Little Hole” and the rollicking “Out Walkin’”, as well as some newer tunes. But as they went on, they slowly grew and built the intensity. Favourites like “Without Again” and the soaring “Northern Air” ramped up the energy before breaking with the boot-stomping “Oh, Alberta” and going non-stop to the end.

They got the crowd joining in, first with “This Valley Town” and then the ultimate singalong “Write It All Down For You”, shouts of “hey! hey! hey!” filling the room, before they ended off the main set with “The Banjo Song”.

But as you would expect, they were back moments later for a few more; first a cover that they put out last year, yet another big singalong, “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” originally by Gary Portnoy — and best known as the theme for Cheers. And finally, they capped off the night and sent everyone home with “The Bridge” off their debut full length Ambassador.

I always love a live set that feels like it has a “flow” or sense of progression, and this show was a great example of that. As they took their leave, they promised they would be back sooner than the last time, and I certainly hope that’s the case.