A Local Indie Night at the Silver Dollar with Dora Alexander

Date of show: May 12, 2011

By far, Dora Alexander had the biggest draw of the night. The band recently went from a 4-piece to a 5-piece and is now comprised of Alex Grant (vocals, guitar, keys), Christophe Brochard (guitar), Michael Succi (guitar, keys), Adrian Gagnon (drums, keys), and Lawson Smith (bass). For a band that is relatively new, the band just gets tighter and tighter with each performance. Grant has a laidback approach as a frontman, sandwiched between the other two fervent guitar players on stage. With Succi recently moving from bass to guitar, the sound has gotten much louder without losing the melodic aspects of their sound. Brochard happened to be celebrating his birthday, which Grant pointed out on stage, and the night became a reason for a bit of a celebration.

Tundra Fun

Jay Richards (vocals, guitar), Josh Kohler (bass, vocals), Emory Martin (drums, vocals) make up this Toronto-based band, although they were missing their keyboardist, Rob Sills. Tundra Fun’s name poses an interesting juxtaposition and had me curious about their sound. Although I felt the set started off on the right foot, as the set continued, I felt more and more confused by their sound, especially when it came time for Richards’ falsetto. The pace of the set seemed to slow down and drag on as it continued, so perhaps a refined set list would have made a difference. A few songs did have potential, but Tundra Fun really needs to hone in on their sound first.

Paint

Paint, a Toronto-based 4-piece kicked off the night. The band is comprised of Robb Johannes (vocals, guitar), Mandy Dunbar (guitar, vocals), Marcus Warren (bass) and Andre Dey (drums). The harmonies alongside pop hooks really drive the sound, balanced with an indie rock edge. It was a rather sparse crowd, but the band still delivered their pop rock sound with enthusiasm and skill, while trying to interact with those who came out for the early set.

Growl Chant Howl

Growl Chant Howl, a 3-piece made up of Pat Piper (vocals, guitar), Eric Brauer (bass), and Neil Cavalier (drums), closed out the night. They had a much heavier sound compared to the rest of the bands on the bill. Most of the crowd had dispersed by the time they hit the stage, but the band still played their loud, highly energized (and maybe a little scary) set as if they were playing to a much bigger crowd.