Date of show: September 29, 2010
Brian Borcherdt remarked, “The Phoenix is pretty big, but I think we did pretty well.” Holy Fuck may not have sold out The Phoenix, but the 4-piece Toronto-base experimental band drew a good-sized crowd to the stage. The rest of Holy Fuck is made up of Graham Walsh, Matt Schulz and Matt McQuaid (aka Punchy).
I will tell you right now that Holy Fuck is one of my favourite bands. This is about 99% based on their live show alone, but that doesn’t mean I am knocking on their recordings (they were, after all, on the 2010 Polaris Prize long list). They are just really that good live. They bring so much energy and there’s no denying much of that energy is creativity at its finest, especially given their improvisational tendencies.
However, I will say this was not the best I’ve seen of Holy Fuck. They are best suited to a smaller venue, where everyone gathers right up against the stage and sweats their hearts out. It is in those environments that the crowd is fully entranced and absorbs the energy from the band, and it is that atmosphere that Holy Fuck creates that makes them special. The performance was by no means lackluster, but the crowd was, with the exception of a few at the front (particularly the very cracked out fella that created his own mosh pit). I always look forward to seeing Holy Fuck, but hopefully next time it will be at a venue that does the band and the crowd justice.
Indian Jewelry was second on stage and, considering the rave reviews I’ve heard about this Houston band, I was rather disappointed. To be fair, with such a great opener and such an epic headliner, it would be pretty hard for any band to not disappoint. For me, they crossed that line between interesting experimental and inaccessible experimental. They started off their set by requesting all the lights be turned off before they start. The only lighting they had were strobes on the floor, which was both visually interesting and painful (it doesn’t help that Flyerman was there lighting up his jacket, which was an eyesore in stark contrast with the near-complete darkness). Multi-instrumentalists Erika Thrasher and Tex Kerschen are the foundation of this band that has had many different faces contributing over its 8-year existence. Their sound is dark and ominous, rich with synths and tribal drums. Although there was clearly talent on that stage, it was hard to appreciate with all their added strangeness.
Perhaps I just don’t “get” them. Apparently I wasn’t the only one. When they finished their set, I heard someone yell, “FINALLY! IT’S OVER!” But hey, everyone was excited for Holy Fuck.
Bad Tits started off the night with a bang. There is a certain stage presence carried by former Death From Above 1979er Sebastien Grainger (vocals, drums) and Tangiers’ Josh Reichmann (vocals, guitar, synth) that certainly captures attention. With a heavy reliance on synths, they weave garage-type beats, post-punk experimental and dream pop riffs to create a sound that is all their own. They opened up to a modest crowd, but those that hadn’t yet arrived missed out on this danceable set. Although rather rebellious and out there in nature, their sound still remains accessible. It’s undeniable how strong each musician is with their respective roles and together they make a potent duo that has the potential to completely blow everyone away. Give these guys time to continue to develop more as a duo and they surely will knock your socks right off.
Currently these guys have an EP out, Garbage Nights, but you should pick up the limited edition 7” of the same title (it comes with a digital download of the EP) because it’s pretty badass. But you should definitely see Bad Tits live. And with a name like Bad Tits how could you not be curious about them?!
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