Friday, May 9, 2014
As I sat in the Air Canada Centre before the show started, I began to realize that City and Colour sold out this building, this arena, the ACC. The show started with Dallas Green and company playing mostly songs from City and Colour’s latest release, The Hurry and the Harm, songs such as set opener “Harder Than Stone” and “The Lonely Life.”
However, 7 songs in, Green sang a few songs solo, harking back to the early days with the release of Sometimes and Bring Me Your Love. He started the solo part of the set with “Save Your Scissors,” calling it “the song that started it all.” And, for a moment, it was as if the audience seemed to not breathe, as they took in Green’s sweet voice. But then the crowd started to show their appreciation as they waved their makeshift lighters, turning their flashlight on their phones on, and it was truly something beautiful. As Green stood on stage alone, he was almost vulnerable as he conveyed genuine appreciation of his fans, of the people who have supported him from the start, when he was slowly trying to show Canada who he was as an individual, not just a member of Alexisonfire.
As the set continued, Green mixed in old favourites “Sleeping Sickness” and Neverending White Lights’ “The Grace” with newer songs from City and Colour’s latest, as well as Little Hell. Green came across as honest throughout the set, almost blown away that he was living the dream. Green even showed a bit of personality as he dedicated a couple songs to Toronto Raptors fans – “Against the Grain” to reflect the heartbreak and “We Found Each Other in the Dark” to reflect hope.
The real highlight came as Green, just after he came back on stage for the encore, called up a friend who was touring with him when he was just starting out. The next part seemed almost predictable, yet still incredibly sweet – Green’s friend proposed to his girlfriend before the band performed “The Girl.” City and Colour then closed out the show with “Two Coins” and a haunting “Death’s Song.” It was a great show, one that certainly left fans buzzing for more.
Montreal’s Half Moon Run has been constantly touring since the release of Dark Eyes, first on Indica Records in Canada and then on Glassnote Records in the US. Their steady rise in popularity landed them the biggest show they’ve played in Canada to date – opening up for a sold out City and Colour show at the ACC. While much of the crowd arrived late just to see City and Colour, a good contingent showed up early to catch Half Moon Run’s set and buy their merchandise. The indie rock band showcases 4-piece harmonies and a live show that will blow you away, every single time.
The band opened up with “Judgement” before playing a couple newer songs that they’ve been playing live for a little while now, “Turn Your Love” and the absolutely beautiful “Unofferable.” It was just a 8-song set, but they managed to fit in a brand new song into the set of songs from Dark Eyes. “Call Me in the Afternoon” was a highlight, but set closer “She Wants to Know” was full of so much energy that I could hear the buzz in the crowd after the set ended. It seems like Half Moon Run walked away with new fans. Half Moon Run has been working on their new songs between tours, so hopefully we’ll be hearing more new music from the band soon. For now, you should definitely highlight Half Moon Run as a band to see when you get a chance because, mark my words, soon this band will selling out venues bigger than the Phoenix. | CL
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