I remember very little of this set, except that I had a lovely chat with Jeff.  Sorry, guys.  It was poppy?

Our time at The Boat was a study in contrasts.

I’d heard all kinds of awesome things about Rural Alberta Advantage, but had yet to see them play.  Anyway, the rumours were true — they played a great set, very well enjoyed by the capacity crowd at The Boat.  My friend Matt remarked that they write good pop songs, which is true — pop songs with a rural flavour, of course.

Modern Boys Modern Girls did not similarly impress me.  Part of it was the sound — it was really muddy, which is a problem when you’ve got a three vocalists, guitar, bass, drums and keys.  For many of the songs, the only instruments I could pit out of the jumble were the high notes on the keyboard and the bass drum.  But aside from that, the songs just didn’t appeal — the vocals did nothing for me and they all kind of ran together.  The crowd seemed to be enjoying it, though.

Another thing at The Boat that sucked: the disco ball.  Good lord, that thing is annoying.  Jeff and I agreed that disco balls are only appropriate in clubs where the ceilings are high enough that they are not flickering light directly into your eyes every three seconds, like some kind of glamourous rescue signal.  All those rotating tiny mirrors completely obliterated the effects of the two extra-strength Tylenol taken earlier in the evening.

When Medallions started playing their first song, I didn’t think I’d like them.  By the end of the set, I was enjoying it.  The band, featuring the bassist of controller.controller, has an interesting mix of rock with bits of other genres and influences, and the songs are catchy in a sneaky sort of way.  This one was a nice surprise.

It’s got to be a bit nerve-wracking to be the first band to play NXNE at a venue.  They’re working out all the tech kinks with you, people aren’t necessarily out yet, everything’s not quite in full swing.  The Hots handled it well with an energetic set of poppy rock songs, and for the time and night the crowd was actually pretty good (and kept moving closer and closer to the front).  They actually got a few Torontonians dancing for an early Thursday set, which is a great sign.

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