2:59

So Paul McCartney likes the Sex Pistols. Weird, but whatever. 10 points go to Macca. Anyways…

I hit up two shows in the past months that were among the highlights of my year. The earlier show being the FemBots, Constantines and The Weakerthans in Guelph. It was actually in the basement of my University centre, which seemed odd to me but such is the case with this city every since morons took over and closed the Trasheteria.

I had never heard the FemBots prior to the show but I was quite pleased with their performance. They play a very-Canadian indie-folk that wouldn’t sound out of place with the Three Gut Records roster. The band’s just two guys at its core but they had a drummer and violinist with them for the set. I picked up 2003’s Small Town Murder Scene from their merch table and it’s definitely worth checking out.

The Constantines are as close as you can get to my “favourite band” (but such labels are silly). They played a set heavy on material from Shine A Light mixed with older selections from The Constantines. I was completely enthralled with their set, particularly because it was my first time seeing them but more so because of simply excellent showmanship. They nicely bridged their songs together, didn’t talk to the crowd much but at the same time had a tone of in-song interaction (call and response, handclaps, etc). They closed with “Nighttime / Anytime (It’s Alright)” and worked a cover of Neil Young’s “Tonight’s The Night” in between verses. All that and they (with three guitars) smashed out a blazing cover of The Ramones’ “My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo goes to Bitburg).” My only complaint is that they didn’t play “Blind Luck,” but that’s a moot point overall.

The Weakerthans were a real joy too. They had two of the FemBots playing guitar and keyboard for them so they were a 6 piece for the show. The entire crowd was made up of die-hard fans who sang along to every song, which was just an awesome experience. John K (with a perpetual smile on his face and a fledgling beard for “Beards Against Bush”) told various amusing stories and returned for two encores.

I love this story, and I’m paraphrasing of course:

“I was in Providence, Rhode Island and outside of a bookstore there was a really neat modern art sculpture made of scrap metal. A mother and her daughter walk by and the daughter says “It’s a horsie” but the mother corrects her with “NO. It’s not. It’s just junk.” That made me sad. As they walked away the daughter turned back and insisted “It IS a horsie.” This song is dedicated to the fact that it’s always a horsey.”

So yes, awesome show…

…As was The Libertines in Toronto this past weekend. After my big epic review of their eponymous sophomore full length I was quite eager to see how it all held up live. Of course, Pete Doherty wasn’t there (and apparently hadn’t spoken to the band since he disappeared in Thailand), so I realize this wasn’t the band in their true form.

However I have to say I was quite impressed. The Libertines are much faster and sound more like a punk band live then on record. Carl Barat just oozed cool and the band was really tight, Pete or no Pete. I was quite pleased with the set list too, although we didn’t get “The Man Who Would Be King” we did get “The Boy Looked At Johnny” (the song that introduced me to them) and a few choice b-sides. It was interesting how the crowd would erupt in applause and cheers when an anticipated part of a song would hit (in particular the “Fuck `em” line in “I Get Along”).

Oh, and Toronto buzz band The Golden Dogs opened. They had a handful of really infectious songs and were really over the top with some of their antics, but I’m sure they’re destined for greater things.

I went solo to both the Constantines and Libertines shows and it really made me realize something: none of my friends share my musical tastes. We’re all quite in our own little worlds, and while we all respect each other’s music we’re no longer listening to the same things like we were in high school. So it was quite nice to be in a room full of people all digging on bands that, up until that point, had been entirely personal and solitary parts of my life.

Currently Spinning:
The Ponys - Laced With Romance
The Marked Men - On The Outside
The Ends - Concrete Disappointment
The Futureheads - The Futureheads