The Besnard Lakes @ Firebird (4/23/13)

Opener

• I missed all of Tone Rodents, but caught the last couple of songs by Suuns.  I wouldn't have minded seeing more of them.

Setlist

• The first several song were off the latest album, Until In Excess..., which I've only given a couple of listens thus far.  I was disappointed to only hear one song off ...the Roaring Night, my favorite of their 3 albums I've listened to.

Stage

• They pulled out quite a few stops for a show at a small venue like Firebird.  In fact, they probably overdid it with the fog machine (the whole place was filled up with it).  But the pedal controlled lights were a decent addition.

Observations

• Too bad the show only drew maybe 50 people, which is disappointing considering that they have put out a couple of Polaris Music Prize nominated albums.  I guess that's St. Louis on a Tuesday night, especially when you're an obscure indie band.
• The two guitarists used their whammy bars way more than I can recall seeing at a concert before.  This makes sense when considering the music, but I never thought about it enough to realize that's what's going on.
• Overall, I think I set my expectations to high for this show, as I was a bit disappointed when I walked out.  I think the setlist choices probably contributed the most to this.

High/low-lights

• I could have done without the seeming two minute intros to almost every song.  And they started pushing my patience with the jams, especially toward the end of the show.
• Their harmonies, in which all four members participated at one time or another, are just about as good live as on record.

Rating: 4.0/5

Purity Ring @ Plush (4/6/2013)

Opener

• Blue Hawaii.  I'm not sure if opening with another boy-girl duo (where the dude does the beats and the chick sings) is a good thing (because it's likely fans of the main act would also like them) or a bad thing (because it could be viewed as seeing the "same" act twice).

Setlist

• They played all the songs off their only album (not in order, of course) and a cover of "Grammy" by Soulja Boy (WTF?).  Though they did not have an encore, it was no surprise that Fineshrine was last.

Stage

• "Performing" their style of music live mostly involves pushing buttons and twisting knobs, in addition to singing.  But Corin spiced it up with a homemade light bulb percussion kit.  They also had a light in a big drum that Megan banged a few times (each time making me worry that it would fall off its shaky stand).  Unfortunately, the light inside the drum stopped working toward a couple of songs before the end of the show.  Oh, and they used a lot of fog, which I think helped quite a bit with setting the mood.

Observations

• I wouldn't say that their performance was spectacular or anything, especially considering what performing their style of music entails.  But their songs are just so good that it was a very enjoyable show.

High/low-lights

• When performing Grandloves live, Megan sings the vocal part that is sampled from Young Magic.

Rating: 4.5/5