July Talk at the Stardust Drive-In

When the coronavirus pandemic hit earlier this year, one of the first activities that came to a halt were concerts. As time has passed, it’s become clear that the future of live shows remain uncertain. While many artists have taken to doing livestreams as a substitute, the new concert experimentation that’s taking over is using the space of drive-in theatres. Canadian alt-rock band July Talk did just that with two sold out shows at the Stardust Drive-In in Sharon, Ont., providing a socially distanced show for fans from the comfort of their cars.

Obviously, this show is different from your traditional concert. There’s no standing room, you’re not bumping shoulders against the person next you, clapping and cheering have been replaced with horn honking and light flashing. And of course, you’re sitting in your car. But for those of us who have been itching to see live music, this is a pretty unique alternative.

Before the concert, July Talk ensured that the show remain as safe as possible with health and safety measure intact. All staff and crew were wearing masks, fans who were going outside of their cars needed to wear them too, vehicles were separated 6ft apart and washrooms were disinfected regularly. For those who couldn’t be in attendance, the band provided a paid livestream, with 50 per cent of the proceeds going to various charities around the world.

Accompanied with a main stage, the show was projected on massive movie screens throughout the space, with drones circling above the cars to capture every angle. Some patrons expressed their distaste for being forced to look at a screen based on how the car parking was laid out, especially those in the VIP section. But staff were quick to remind fans that this is meant to be treated as a drive-in experience. And in some aspects, it was. Along with the show playing on the movie screens, the audio was received only through your car radio, so for those who wanted to stand outside to listen, the audio wasn’t nearly as clear as it would be if you were in your car. That, however, didn’t stop fans from stepping outside of their vehicles, or sitting in their trunks to try to get a look at the stage.

Leading up to the performance, the band provided a pre-show set with video footage of music videos, behind the scenes content, vintage drive-in ads and even videos of puppies and kittens.

Before the band started the show, one of the band’s two lead singers, Leah Fay, delivered an Indigenous land acknowledgement, as well as addressed the ongoing process of learning and unlearning the ways in which settler-colonial violence continues to do harm in both visible and invisible ways. Followed then by a beautiful message of hoping that we can be vulnerable and be kind to each other during unprecedented times.

The band tore through a near two hour set with music from their latest album Pray For It, while of course, sprinkling in popular tracks from their previous releases. The band was full of energy in their performance and soaked in the love from their fans, even if it was translated by horn honking. Despite a different concert layout, some traditional July Talk show moments remained the same, like during the song ‘I’ve Rationed Well,’ when Fay, who normally walks through the audience, replaced this by mingling through the cars and sat on top of one to finish out the song.

During ‘Champagne’ and ‘Touch’ the band brought out musicians Kyla Charter and James Baley, who provide guest vocals on the songs. The band closed their set with two covers, ‘I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire’ by the Ink Spots, and ‘To Hell With Good Intentions’ by Mclusky, then ending with ‘Picturing Love’ where they were joined again by Charter and Baley.

There were a few touching moments during the show when both lead singers, Peter Dreimanis and Fay expressed their gratitude for those who were in attendance and the crew that helped to build the show. Ahead of ‘The Garden,’ Dreimanis encourage anyone who was going through a hard time during the pandemic to reach out to friends, and that now is the time to lean on your community.

Towards the end of the show, Fay said one way to control the anxiety of not knowing the future of an unknown future is to be kind to others, and that doing something kind for someone else is a small act that can make the world better. She also encouraged getting mad when anger is needed, and to unlearn what we’ve learned is untrue.

Drive-in shows during the coronavirus pandemic still have a ways to go before they’re truly safe. There’s the concerns of making sure venue staff, crew and security, who interact regularly can safely do their jobs. There’s the issue that fans may not want to stay inside their cars and could congregate with others. Ensuring the messages of social distancing and wearing masks need to be amplified. But for now, this strange twist on an old pastime is a bit of joy that we can hang on to.

REVIEW: The Chicks - Gaslighter

If there’s one thing to know about The Chicks, is that they don’t hold back. 

If you do recall, the country group, who up until recently were known as The Dixie Chicks, famously came under fire in 2003 when lead singer Natalie Maines spoke about her disdain for then-president George W. Bush. What followed were death threats, boycotts and ultimately being lambasted from the country music scene. After the incident, the group followed up with the release of 2006’s ‘Taking the Long Way’ which earned them several Grammy wins and a whole new fan following. Since then, the group has taken an extended hiatus, and aside from a few side projects, we haven’t had new music from The Chicks in fourteen years. Up until now with the release of the group’s eighth studio album, ‘Gaslighter. ‘

And if that time away made you think that the group distanced from being as political or personal, that’s the farthest from the truth. If anything ‘Gaslighter’ goes even further to make those statements.

On ‘Gaslighter,’ The Chicks worked primarily with producer Jack Antonoff (Lorde, Taylor Swift). While some fans may have been wary about his pop-influence being added to The Chicks’ sound, the music still feels authentically them, but from a slightly more pop-contemporary perspective. Their country roots are present with banjos and fiddles heard, but not nearly as such as in their past work. The production is sleek and programmed, but it’s smooth and with seamless transitions.

On ‘Gaslighter,’ The Chicks do what they do best, and make music that is telling of their stories and shape it to be confessional and yet relatable for its listeners. The album, believed to be inspired by Maines’ divorce, highlights a marriage falling apart and the different emotional phases that come with it. From the initial discovery of the other person, to having to tell her sons about their father’s actions, from the anger, to the tears, it’s all here.  

And while there are many songs that pack a punch (Gaslighter, Sleep at Night), the latter half of the album carries the vulnerable, personal and private moments that almost makes it feel like you’re right there watching them unravel (Everybody Loves You and My Best Friend’s Weddings).

But don’t think it’s all tears because by Tights on My Boat, Maines has run out of shits to give, especially with lyrics like “I hope you die peacefully in your sleep/Just kidding, I hope it hurts you like you hurt me” and “will your dad pay your taxes now that I am done.” 

The most obvious political track on the album, March, March, is a protest anthem that addresses the many issues in America with references to gun violence, reproductive rights and global warming. The music video, which was released last month, centers footage on the Black Lives Matter movement, ending with a list of Black people killed by police or within the criminal justice system.

The album closes with Hope It’s Something Good and Set Me Free, two beautiful ballads that tell of a lover leaving and reaching for that final feeling of relief that comes at the end of a relationship, especially one that’s gone sour.

The Chicks have worn their hearts on their sleeves many times before, but on this record, it feels like a new layer is being revealed. In their boldest work to date, ‘Gaslighter’ pulls years of pent up emotions that have been bottled up, shaken up, and released for the world to see. In the public eye, and especially as an artist, it’s a bold move to take your deepest stories and experiences and share them with critics alike, to air out the dirty laundry. But The Chicks are no stranger to that game.

REVIEW: Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor

Hayley Williams has spent the last 10+ years as the lead singer of the band Paramore. She’s no stranger to spilling her emotions in her work. On the band’s last album, 2017’s After Laughter, fans got a whole new side to the band both musically and lyrically. It truly felt as if the band was opening up more explicitly about mental health and battling one’s inner demons. And on Williams’ debut effort, Petals for Armor, the sentiments are similar. But don’t be fooled, this is not a Paramore record. This is a body of work that encapsulates the singer’s life from the past few years. The emotional layers have been peeled back and are open for the world to see, and there’s no beating around the bush about it.

Petals for Armor has been sprinkled about in the last few months, with an EP of five tracks that first arrived in February. It was then followed with Petals for Armor II in April and now the final part of the trilogy is released in the form of the full record. Conceptually, the record appears to be broken into three themes; feeling frustration and sadness, finding your self-worth in the chaos and healing your wounds and growing from the trauma.

The album kicks off with her song ‘Simmer,’ which was also the first track she released as a solo outfit. Williams has described the song as her personal experience of dealing with abuse and revenge. She’s also expressed how to channel that energy and learn from it. It’s a dark, moody track with a vocal curl that will rope listeners in.

The next track, ‘Leave It Alone,’ is a harrowing song of grief which, in a recent interview, she explained was developed from a time when her family was experiencing intense trauma. She sings ‘now that I want to live/everybody around me is dying'.’

But it’s not all doom and gloom. The record picks up with the motivational ‘Over Yet’ and even ‘Dead Horse,’ a song that describes her divorce from New Found Glory frontman Chad Gilbert, seems to have this sweet and sour, tongue in cheek to its lyrics, not to mention the chorus is an absolute earworm.

Williams explores a lot musically on this record too. There are elements of Madonna’s Vogue-era with ‘Sugar on the Rim,’ and some disco-funk on ‘Pure Love.’ As well as some airy-like R&B on ‘Why We Ever.’

The record closes with two significant tracks: ‘Watch Me Bloom’ and ‘Crystal Clear.’ The contrast of going from ‘rage is a quiet thing’ at the start of the record on ‘Simmer,’ to ending the record with ‘I wanna make it crystal clear that i won’t give in to fear,’ shows character development. It’s something that Williams has grown into or at the very least is working towards.

Petals for Armor manages to be raw and honest. There are no edits or filters, there’s no sugar coating. What you see is what you get, and what you get is all authentic. It’s a very human moment for Williams, bringing everything down to a personal level and showing the listener a very vulnerable side to her. It’s refreshing to see an artist use her talents in a way that can help the listener. While we don’t know for sure if we’ll see more solo material from Hayley Williams in the future, it is certain that Petals for Armor can stand alone as one of Williams’ best musical accomplishments to date.

Heart at the Budweiser Stage

Each year Toronto’s Budweiser Stage manages to gather up a number of high profile acts to play for the summer. From country favourites to rock icons, it’s very rare to see a bad year at this venue. But this year, something is missing; the lack of female representation. Out of the 52 shows scheduled this year, only six women are headliners. This meaning that it’s just them at the top of the bill, not sharing a spot with another act. In a time where women are still pressing for equality, it’s frustrating to still see a lack of representation.

This is not to say it’s the venue’s fault. You can look at any other amphitheatre in North America this year and you’ll likely see a similar trend. Thankfully we’re moving away from that, but we still have a ways to go. Despite this, it was incredibly refreshing on Sunday night to see an all-female line up featuring 70s rock band Heart, as well as Sheryl Crow and Elle King.*

The venue was packed with all sorts of age groups, from people who grew up with Heart to some who said they discovered them through playing Guitar Hero. People were dancing in the aisles and cheers-ing their beers to what would be a fantastic night.

Sheryl Crow kicked off her set with just her, her guitar and her backing band as she played some new songs off her upcoming album, while also dabbling into some of her greatest hits. As soon as she played songs like Soak Up the Sun and If It Makes You Happy, the audience practically jumped out of their seats to dance and sway along. Finishing her set with Everyday is a Winding Road, the audience gave Crow a standing ovation.

Heart opened their set with Rockin’ Heaven Down before jumping right into Magic Man, two fierce tracks back-to-back that showcased sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson’s showmanship, and making sure they had the audience’s full attention.

In the middle of the set, the Wilson sisters did a series of covers: Simon & Garfunkel’s The Boxer, Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb, and Yes’ Your Move. An interesting choice seeing as most bands will only do one cover at best, as opposed to having multiple together, let alone grouped together so closely. Nevertheless, they performed beautiful renditions of them, with a light show for Floyd and Nancy taking lead on The Boxer.

The show continued with deep cuts like Back to Avalon and Dog and Butterfly, but they also smashed out some of the hits like Crazy On You and Alone, which electrified the venue.

The encore saw Heart play a cover of Led Zeppelin’s The Battle of Evermore, where the whole band gathered in the centre of the stage and played their respective instrument before launching into the guitar shredding Barracuda. Finally, ending the night with What About Love.

More acts from the 70s and 80s are touring again, and for some, it’s challenging. Their voices don’t hold up, some look bored, and others are so obviously doing it for the money. But Heart has just that-heart. Ann Wilson can still wail like she did in the 70s, and Nancy is still killing it on the guitar, barely having to look at the chords she’s playing. Before this tour, the Wilson sisters had a bit of a falling out, and it was uncertain what the future of Heart would look like. But after Sunday’s show, Heart’s future very much lives on, and with that, they’re paving the way for a legacy of kick-ass women in music.

*The writer did not get to see Elle King

Foo Fighters at the Rogers Centre

In 2018, it's particularly rare to come across a good rock and roll band, in between the shuffle of pop stars and hip hop moguls. Rock music isn't what it was 10, 20, even five years ago. Now it's a battle of who can last on the charts, who can make an impact, and who won't be forgotten when the song of the summer is over. 

Rock bands now are either retiring, breaking up (and getting back together before breaking up again), or just getting their land legs in the rickety boat that is music. The floor can drop at any moment. 

But The Foo Fighters have a particular magic about them. Similar to acts that emerged at the same time they did, like Green Day and Weezer, The Foo Fighters are one of those bands that can command a certain energy. Really bring people together from all ages, and put on a real authentic rock show. But what sets The Foos apart from the aforementioned bands, is they can do it in, as lead singer Dave Grohl lovingly put it, "a big ass rock stadium". 

Touring in support of their latest effort, 'Concrete and Gold', The Foo Fighters brought a completely sold out show to Toronto's Rogers Centre. Things kicked off immediately with "All My Life" followed by hits "Learn to Fly" and "The Pretender". One rock song barreling into another, with Grohl pausing in between to ask the crowd "are you ready?!" To which the audience followed with a resounding roar. Sprinkled in between the set of hits were tracks from their latest effort including "Dirty Water" and "The Sky is a Neighbourhood", both of which featured four backup singers, one of which was Grohl's daughter, Violet.

Sandwiched in their catalogue of hits were a string of covers including Alice Cooper's "Under My Wheels", The Ramones' "Blitzkreig Bop", and Queen's "Under Pressure" which featured drummer Taylor Hawkins on vocals, and the lead singer of opening band The Struts making a guest spot in the duet. Even when Dave slowed things down in what the audience thought would be a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine", began to sing "Jump" by Van Halen, leaving for a confusing but hilarious moment. 

Grohl paused the show a few times to speak to the audience, letting us know that we'd be here "all f*cking night" and to add that for those who had to work the next day, to use the excuse that The Foo Fighters played "all f*cking night." And for the most part, he kept his word! With a start time of 8:30, the group played until past the 11 p.m. curfew, to which the audience was a bit divided. Some were either incredibly enthusiastic about the potential all-nighter, or were ready to leave before the encore to beat the crowds.

The band powered through the rest of their set, playing more fan favourites like "Monkey Wrench" and "This is a Call" before ending it off with "Best of You". The band returned for a three song encore with "Big Me," "Times Like These," and finally finishing with "Everlong." If fans were anticipating a good, real rock show, The Foo Fighters absolutely delivered.

 Leading up to last night's event, there was news earlier in the day, that parts of the GTA was threatened with a terror attack, one spot being the CN Tower, steps away from the Rogers Centre. There was a heavy police presence, and increased security. And with many reminded of the various attacks in recent months at concerts, it left people with an unsettling feeling. Many were posting to social media their fears of attending the show, some even giving up their tickets. But by the time the show started last night, that sort of gut-wrenching feeling was washed away, because as soon as the music started, fear was shaken off. This concert proved that hundreds and thousands of people could fill a room and celebrate music fearlessly. Fans danced, jumped around, hugged each other, sang, clapped, and cheered. We all celebrated what brought us together. Despite the different lives we all lead, and the stories we all have, at the end of the day, it's this great thing called music that brought us here. And that is something special that no one can take away from us.