The Maine 'The Mirror' Tour | Toronto, Ontario Concert Review

It's a cold Saturday morning. Waiting in line since 12pm, I watched as fans of Arizona rock band 'The Maine" showed up one by one decked out in golden yellow (per the band's request). As the evening grew colder, the doors finally opened for the sold-out show and one by one everyone piled into the venue trying to avoid the cold. Upon entering the venue a voice can be overheard over the speakers. "Welcome to The Mirror tour!" The pre-show playlist that was played while we waited for the nights opening band "Twin XL" to play, included the classic pop-punk hits with songs from Sum 41, The 1975 and other songs for the crowd to get excited for. 8pm rolls around and Twin XL takes the stage. They were nothing short of entertaining. Fans whipping out neon sunglasses during the band's song 'Sunglasses' and then waving around glowsticks to 'Neon Summer'. Everyone around me, including myself, had such a fun time during Twin XL's set. I was actually sad when it was over!

As everyone is waiting for the night's main event (no pun intended!), the preshow playlist from before begins to play once more. Suddenly, the music stops, orchestral music begins to play, as well as a countdown appearing on the screen center stage. 45 seconds to go. Then 30. Then 20. 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. A video introduction plays and The Maine comes onto the stage. A few people already throwing their yellow flowers they brought with them onto the stage. Nonstop dancing and fun were being had, as lead vocalist John O'Callaghan instructs everyone to sing, even if they did not know the words, he wanted them to sing and have fun! About halfway through the night began the part where I became quite emotional. As soon as the song "Lonely" began to play I had tears streaming down my face. Going from such an emotional song into "How Do You Feel?" where jumping was encouraged, my tears quickly turned into smiles once more. After all that, John made his way to the B-Stage for an acoustic rendition of "(Un)Lost". Bringing up an audience member to sing the chorus with him turned out to be a surprise engagement for a beautiful couple named William and Riley. (She said yes by the way!) John then returned to the main stage to finish the remainder of the band's set. The Maine's final song was 'Flowers On The Grave', which is a beautiful 9-minute song and one of my personal favorites off their newest album. Once again I had tears running down my face and we all began to throw our yellow roses onto the stage. After the show, I turned to my best friend who was in attendance with me and we both just cried into each other's arms. Quite the comforting moment if you ask me. The band ended the night by hanging around inside the venue meeting fans as they have been doing for years.

Overall, The Maine put so much effort into their shows and you can tell that they love all of their fans so much and want nothing more than for them to feel good! I would definitely recommend going to catch them on tour if you ever get the chance because you will NOT be disappointed! The Maine continue their tour all the way until November 30th so please try and catch a show if you want to have a really fun night with friends old and new!

Montreal's Newest Upcoming Band: An Interview With Second Harbour

   

Photo courtesy of Constance Delisle

     Forming just last year in 2018, Second Harbour released their debut EP 'Transparent.' back in March of 2019. Consisting of brothers Xavier Morency (vocals/guitar) and Vincent Morency (bass), the duo are preparing to release some new music, as well as their first-ever music video. I got a chance to sit down with the boys before their show in Montreal on October 3rd. I got the details on how the band wants to grow going forward, how to handle a career in the music industry, and much more!  You can keep up with Second Harbour and their upcoming projects @secondharbourband on Instagram and @secondharbour on Twitter!

    Bailey: What are your top 3 goals related to the band? Any dream venues you want to play and/or bands to play with?

    Xavier: Starting venue wise, I really want to play Chain Reaction, Warped Tour is pretty much out of the question unless they do reunion show or something similar, but Chain Reaction for sure just because so many bands that I've listened to growing up played there and cite it as one of the major places to play so that would be really cool! It doesn't even matter if it brings a lot of people in, its just the fact of playing in a place where so many bands have played. As far as the 3 goals for us, just growing an audience as much as we can, would be pretty great, I think to establish a really pure connection with people, so not just trying to attract the most 'pop' fans but really just trying to get on a one to one basis with as many people as we can. Also, writing songs that not only are people content with not just now but in the future. We don't want to write a song that we were unhappy with 2 years from now, we want to try and write stuff that for ourselves is timeless.

     Vince: For the 3 bands we want to play with, Neck Deep is a really big one for us, as well as The Story So Far, Green Day, The Interrupters...I mean I could go on all day!

     Bailey: That's awesome! So, out of the two of you, is there a main songwriter in the group or are you both involved? And, what are the main themes discussed in your music?

     Xavier: So, we both have different roles when it comes to writing. I write the majority of the songs and piece everything together, I'm kind of  like the 'puzzle maker' and Vince is the one where when I bring a bunch of ideas to the table, he handles cutting down the things that are not that good or things that wouldn't be good for the songs, he decides where the songs go direction wise. Its a dynamic that works, it's a bizarre dynamic, but it works for us. For the main themes, it's a lot of self-doubts, that's like the MAIN theme, so like, being scared of what other people think while also trying to not be scared of what other people think, just like contradictory stuff. Self-doubt for sure and we try to just blend in a bunch of metaphors and nautical terms.

     Bailey: I know you guys are brand new to the scene, so what has been your biggest challenge so far as a band? 

     Xavier: I think inter-personal relationships are tough, especially since Vince and I live together and we have grown up together, we get along really well but it can be challenging just because if we have an argument we can't take a few days off and then regroup a week later...

     Vince: Yeah! I still have to see his face!

     Xavier: Yeah, and then the next day we are making stuff or we are together. That for me would probably be the most challenging thing, but we make it work! As long as we don't end up like Oasis we are going to be fine I think.

     Vince: I mean, if we end up as big as Oasis, then I'm fine with that!

     Bailey: What are your rehearsals like? Do you have a set time each week where you need to practice or is it more spontaneous where you just decide when and where you will rehearse? 

     Xavier: It depends on schedules. Vince goes to school, so apart from that our live drummer and myself both have jobs that are morning and day jobs so we can all have the nights to practice. We usually practice 5 times a week on any given day.

     Bailey: Pretty generic question, but if you guys were not in a band, what else would you be doing? Would you still be involved in the music industry somehow?

     Vince: I don't actually know if I'd be involved in the industry, I like to surf and rock climb so I'd probably try to find a job somewhere in that field, we live in Canada so I can't do that here but hey, it's fine!

     Xavier: I think I'd definitely be in the music industry still because I  grew up playing drums, I've been playing the drums for about 15 years now, I still play and record the drums in our band so it's not something that I would ever plan on giving up ever. I think I'd also be a drummer for another band because there is actually a really high demand for drummers. Music aside, I think, I just recently got into comics and art so if I got a side job it would probably have something to do with art!

     Bailey: If there was one thing that you wanted people who listened to your music to remember about you, what would it be?

     Xavier: For me personally, I would love it for people to dive into the lyrics and see all the connections that we made and that I really like to play with them. If anything, I prefer playing with the words and making complicated little messages instead of writing meaningful lyrics, I do enjoy doing that but my priority is stringing together all sorts of weird rhyming words and stuff related to that. I'd really like people to remember me for the lyrics and to look into all the little bits and pieces and the crazy things I try and add in that I take hours to do.

     Vince: I'm not the main lyric writer so the way I can answer that is, I'd like for people to retain whatever good emotion they get when they listen to our music.

     Bailey: In your own opinion, what is your best song you have released so far and why?

     Vince: Tough Luck, simply because I wrote the bass intro lines!

     Xavier: My favorite song we've released is Aim Below The Head which is the closer of our EP because we took a different approach to it, it has lots of parts and pieces that come together in cool ways, especially at the end, and it is a really nice way to close the EP. We had to limit our selves time-wise, which we usually try to, and it was cool for me. I'm not sure if people will latch onto it like the other songs since it is a bit longer but for me personally, I just wanted to put that song out there.

     Bailey: Who was the first person or people you showed your music to and what was their reaction?

     Xavier: I wrote music alone for a long time, so I showed Vince and my music must have been pretty bad when I started out, but he ended up joining the band, so maybe he enjoyed it?!

     Vince: I mean I'm in the band so it worked!

     Xavier: Realistically when we had our real recordings of our EP, I showed a few close friends and our dad. It's hard to get real reactions off people you are close to but, they all seemed proud of us so that was the cool thing.

     Bailey: What is your advice for anyone else who wants a career in the music industry?

     Vince: Don't do it! No, I'm kidding! Just be prepared. A lot of people are going to tell you that you can't do it. Have a backup plan and be ready cause you never know what is going to happen. If you are going to want to do this for real you have to go 110% and go all in. Practice as much as you can.

     Xavier: Definitely give yourself wholeheartedly, give all of yourself to the craft and practice day in and day out. Try and write songs that please you as well as other people.

     The boys are currently in the process of working on their new EP which they hope is even better than their first and are looking forward to continuing to grow as musicians. Make sure to check out Second Harbour and to follow them on social media to know everything about their upcoming music, first-ever music video, and more! 

Photo courtesy of Constance Delisle

Photo courtesy of Constance Delisle

   

    

Yungblud | Montreal, Quebec Concert Review

     It's a beautiful sunny day in downtown Montreal. The past couple weeks of the International Jazz Festival are beginning to wrap up, but not before Yungblud closes out the festival at Club Soda. Opening the show was Glasgow based band Saint PHNX, a rock alternative band with the best stage presence I have witnessed. Continuously hyping up the crowd and the drummer even jumping into the crowd at one point! 10pm rolls around and Yungblud takes the stage.

     Walking onto the stage in pitch black, throwing water onto the crowd to announce his arrival (which was very appreciated!), donning a black dress, black creeper shoes, and his iconic pink socks. Opening the show with '21st Century Liability' the crowd was jumping and screaming the entire hour and a half set. A fan-project during the song 'Kill Somebody' and everyone screaming the lyrics back to Dom at his first-ever Montreal show was one of the many times he became emotional on stage, stepping back from the mic, tears in eyes, smiling, thanking the crowd. After the little emotional moments, we were right back into jumping around and having the time of our lives. At Dom's command, two moshpits opened up during the show. I personally have never moshed before but it was way more fun than I thought! I even managed to squeeze my way to barricade and grab Dom's hand during 'Machine Gun'.

     As the show ended, Dom announced he would be heading to the back of the venue outside near his bus to sign autographs. The people in the line were very respectful, not yelling and remaining calm. Dom made it halfway down the line before needing to leave as he had a show the next day and needed to make bus call. Unfortunately, due to this, I did not get to meet him (which is totally okay) but he made sure to go down the rest of the line and tell everyone he loved them and that its time that he left. He was very sweet to everyone and truly cares about his fans. All in all, the show was one of the best I've been to all year quickly making my top 5. I'll definitely attend another Yungblud show and encourage all of you to do the same! I have never sweated more in my life than I did at this show from all the jumping, dancing and just having fun. Be sure to catch a Yungblud show if you get the chance cause you will NOT regret it!

 

Twenty One Pilots 'Bandito' Tour | Ottawa, Ontario Concert Review

     On May 21st, 2019, I finally got to see the band that I have loved since 2015. That band was Twenty One Pilots. After missing their last show in Ottawa in 2016 I knew that the Bandito tour was a show I HAD to attend! It was a night filled with laughter, dancing, and lots of tears. Doors for the show opened at 6pm, but because of traffic I knew my friends and I were not going to arrive until 6:30pm. Surprisingly, for being later than what we wanted we still managed to get extremely close to the stage! (Even closer once the show started and everyone pushed together). Once 8pm hit, it was time to experience the best show of my entire life thus far.

     Twenty One Pilots opened their set with 'Jumpsuit' which included pyro, smoke, a car engulfed in flames as Tyler stood on it and sang and an explosion of yellow confetti that poured over the entire crowd. During 'Fairly Local' towards the final chorus Tyler fell through the stage through a trapdoor only to reappear in the upper section of the arena! 'Lane Boy' is the song that personally got me even more hyped than before. Tyler would remind the crowd that this is our show and that everyone is watching us in the pit. With that said, he told us all to get down as low as we could and on the count of three we all jumped up and went absolutely crazy with people in gasmasks sprayed the crowd with thick white smoke. After their B-stage songs, Tyler and Josh took the bridge they have set up at the shows and walked over the crowd, with Josh taking his shirt off and Tyler sitting down directly above me to sing a verse of 'Pet Cheetah'. My favorite song off of 'Trench' is 'Morph' and when I found out they were playing the album in full on the tour that was the one song I waited all night for. As expected it was the best song on the setlist. (Not to be biased or anything). Josh put his drum kit on the crowd and he came and performed the best drum solo I've ever heard! It started off with a short cover of 'Seven Nation Army' which abruptly stopped with the narration in the back chanting "Not Done. Not Done. Not Done. Josh Dun." to which Josh belted out his solo. Twenty One Pilots have so much trust in their fans, especially since they are so confident they won't be dropped, which has not happened yet, fortunately! It was all fun and games until we reached 'Leave The City'. Once that song began playing, I'm still not sure what came over me, but I just sobbed non stop. I had to lean on my friend where we cried on each other's shoulders just because we were both so overcome with emotion. The crying fest lasted all the way through to 'Trees". Despite all the tears I was able to pull myself together for one last moment when Tyler told us to jump once more and then both Tyler and Josh stood on the crowd with their drum platforms. As the show came to a close yellow and green confetti shoots out and rains all over the crowd once more, signaling the end of the Twenty One Pilots show.

     Overall, the show was a 10/10. I would recommend you see a Twenty One Pilots show at least once in your life because they really do put on such an amazing performance and the hard work that went into the production and layout of everything was extravagant!! After spending a year listening to 'Blurryface' on repeat, finally seeing the band that impacted your life in so many ways really is a surreal experience.

Broadside Releases Two New Singles 'King Of Nothing' and 'Empty' - Review

     2 years after dropping their sophomore album 'Paradise', Broadside is back with 2 new singles!  After much teasing, on May 15th,2019, Virginia based pop-punk band Broadside released 'King Of Nothing' and 'Empty' which are the first two songs to kick off the new era for the band and to give fans a taste of what to expect from what we can only assume is a new album.

     'King Of Nothing' opens with a distorted guitar which reminds me slightly of the bands' other song 'Laps Around a Picture Frame' which was my previous favorite Broadside song, so I knew I was going to absolutely fall in love with this song just from the first few chords. 'King Of Nothing' has that classic Broadside sound that we all love which fits perfectly for a song like this. From a soft tempo pre-chorus that bursts into a loud, powerful chorus and a bridge that has hints of Baxxter in it (lead singer Oliver Baxxter's solo side project), this will definitely be a fan favorite for sure. The lyric "paradise of bones" a clear call back to the bands previous two records, 'Old Bones' and 'Paradise'. 'King Of Nothing' will without a doubt become one of the bands biggest songs! Mark my words. A very upbeat/jumpy song with deep meaningful lyrics, I wouldn't expect anything less from Broadside.

     'Empty' is the second of the two singles. With an intro that makes you happy just by hearing those first few notes, 'Empty' is definitely a summer song. If you want a song that you can blast with your windows down on a cool summer's night, this is the song for you! I can already envision the crowd jumping along to the chorus during live performances. 'Empty' in my opinion is actually way different from past work Broadside has released but it still fits with the band's overall tone. Oliver Baxxter's distinct vocals are what make Broadside stand out from other bands in the scene. I could see 'Empty' as a part of a movie montage, the little instrumental right after the final chorus gives off the classic "main character falls in love in the summertime, they spend time together, and then share a kiss with the sun setting behind them." For me, I LOVE songs where I can imagine what a music video may look like and hearing other fan's opinions on how they picture it because I love seeing how others interpret music. Because as we all know, music can have multiple meanings depending on whos listening.

     Overall, Broadside surprised us all with these new singles and I have no doubt in my mind that these songs are going to be a part of many summer playlists! To hear more from Broadside or to stream 'King Of Nothing' and 'Empty' for yourself, you can stream them from where ever you like to stream your music from. Also, be sure to catch Broadside on tour this summer with Emarosa and Lizzy Farrall supporting Set It Off!

Marianas Trench 'Suspending Gravity' Tour | Ottawa, Ontario Concert Review

 

      Marianas Trench is a Canadian band from Vancouver, British Columbia. The band consists of Josh Ramsay (guitar/lead vocals), Matt Webb (guitarist/vocals), Mike Ayley (bass/vocals) and Ian Casselman (drums/vocals). The band is currently on tour to promote their newest album 'Phantoms' which was released March 2019. 'Phantoms' is their biggest album debut thus far. I was lucky enough to attend the Suspending Gravity tour on March 16th after being a fan of Marianas Trench for about 10 years now.

     The doors opened right at 6pm where our tickets were scanned and a lot of fans heading to the merch stand as it was situated right by the entrance. The venue was just a small one which made it very easy to find your seats and navigate your way around the venue. At 7pm a DJ appeared on stage in order to get the crowd excited for the show. The first and only opening act took the stage around 7:45.

    Elijah Woods X Jamie Fine, a pop duo who are native to Ottawa and were contestants on the Canadian music show 'The Launch' opened the show with their own original songs and 2 covers; Gold Digger and Dream On. The duo performed an exciting performance that definitely got the crowd in the mood. A free meet and greet from Elijah and Jamie at the merch stand after their set followed their performance where they took the time to meet as many people as they could before Marianas Trench began their set.

Finally, at 9pm, the main event began, Marianas Trench! The set consisted of songs of the 'Phantoms' album and lots of other fan-favorite songs such as; 'Pop 101', 'Celebrity Status', 'Desperate Measures', and a plethora of others. Josh Ramsay's stage presence is nothing short of remarkable. From killer high notes to multiple guitar changes and crowd interaction, a Marianas Trench show really is something else. Towards the end of the bands song 'Pop 101' which led nicely into 'Haven't Had Enough', Josh Ramsay pulled a Brendon Urie death walk and proceeded to walk through the crowd, all the way to the upper sections and then back down again taking selfies with people as he went and taking sips of peoples drinks. He always wanted to make sure he was including everyone there and making sure everyone was having a good time. Marianas Trench has such good songs to dance to that you never stop moving and having fun while they are on stage. Before we knew it the show came to a close. It was a truly wonderful experience and I'm still shocked as to how Marianas Trench is still not as big worldwide as they are here in Canada because they honestly deserve so much more recognition! If you ever get the opportunity to attend one of their shows I highly recommend it as you are in for a night full of fun!

     Make sure to check out the band's
new album 'Phantoms' now! Available on Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play and anywhere music is sold!

As It Is 'The Great Depression' Tour | Toronto, Ontario Concert Review

     It's a frigid day in Toronto. I just got to the venue after 5 hours of traveling that day. I arrive at Velvet Underground around 2pm, just in time for my 4pm VIP check-in. Benjamin Langford-Biss, guitarist of As It Is has just brought out coffee for the fans waiting outside in the cold. Surprisingly, not many people are waiting and don't show up until the check-in time. Once inside the venue, As It Is begin their soundcheck/Q and A session. Followed by the meet and greet, which was not rushed at all as you were allowed to take as long as you wanted to talk to the band. 6:30pm. The show begins. Point North, the newest pop-punk band in the scene take the stage. With such good stage presence and interacting with the fans in the crowd, even if you were like me and didn't listen to Point North before the show you couldn't help but not jump around and have a good time during their set. I can gladly say that I am a huge Point North fan after seeing them and will definitely attend another one of their shows in the future. Next was the more chill, but still entertaining Hold Close. With lead vocalist Braxton Smiley taking over the keyboard during a few songs. I also would recommend checking them out as they too are another amazing band I wish I listened to prior to this show. The final opener was the more loud, "scary", definitely not pop punk band Sharptooth. With lead singer Lauren telling her story and struggles she went through in life, to providing resources for audience members to look into if they needed help, to overall just wanting to make a safe place for everyone. Sharptooth wasn't my type of music, but the message they convey is so important in today's world. If you are into more heavier music, definitely give Sharptooth a listen. Finally, it was time for the moment I waited months for. As It Is, my favorite band since before they were a band and my first time seeing them headline (I've only seen them on Warped and as openers in the past). As their song 'The Reaper' begins to play, the crowd gets more and more hyped up until, "I'm staring death in his eyes!" The entire time As It Is are on stage it's as if you are in a trance, you can't take your eyes off of them. From Patty's extreme microphone swings to Ronnie getting right in your face, to Ben ripping at his guitar, As It Is really are a band that has so much fun while on stage. Taking a more serious tone before 'The Question, The Answer', Patty reminds the audience of the importance of talking about mental health and how we need to break the stigma surrounding it. He also tells all of us that he wants to make this show a place where you can escape all the troubles that you suffer outside of the venue whether it is your personal life, friendship/relationship issues, anything. At an As It Is show you are welcomed, safe, and will have the time of your life. Once the show came to a close it wasn't long before Ronnie was out meeting fans, jumping the barricade just so he could get closer to us. Everyone who works on this tour, including all the bands, crew, tour managers, everyone was so nice and made the whole experience 10 times better. I recommend going to an As It Is show at least once in your life because they really do put on a show like no other. You will more than likely catch me at the next As It Is tour because I owe my life to this band and I'm so thankful for them. I can not wait for them to come back so I can have the time of my life once again!! 

Panic! At The Disco - Pray For The Wicked Tour | Laval, Quebec Concert Review

Leg 2 of Panic! At The Disco's Pray for the Wicked tour began on January 10, 2019, in Buffalo, New York. I was fortunate enough to attend the second date of the tour on January 12th in Laval, Quebec. As a fan of P!ATD for many years, I was in disbelief for the entire day knowing I would be just a few feet away from Brendon Urie himself. The show began with Betty Who, an Australian singer who is most well known for being associated with singer Troye Sivan. Who put on an energetic performance which hyped the crowd up with her catchy songs and fun, slightly risque choreography. Next up was Two Feet, who I can only describe as house music mixed with TONS of bass and even some guitar. The crowd seemed to thoroughly enjoy their performance. Personally, I thought the bass was a little too much, but other than that, they were great! After about a 30-minute wait, the countdown for Panic! appeared on the screen. 10 minutes turned to 3 minutes and before we knew it the time has come. The crowd jumped to their feet. 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. Brendon jumped out from beneath the stage and going right into '(Fuck a) Silver Lining', with confetti pouring down on the crowd. With Brendon's past Broadway experience in "Kinky Boots," he sure did know how to work that stage. The production of the show was like no other. Confetti, lasers, pyro, animations! I felt as if I was in a whole other world. With crowd favorites such as "The Ballad of Mona Lisa," "This is Gospel," "I Write Sins Not Tragedies," "Nine In The Afternoon," and many others, you could hear the cheers of joy from the crowd as they got to sing along to their favorite songs. Brendon's famous 'Death Walk' happened in which he walks through the crowd during "Death of a Bachelor" to get to his B-Stage/Flying Piano. As he made the walk through the crowd, everyone was being very respectful. Brendon hugged some lucky fans and I was actually on the side he did the Death Walk which if you ever get a chance to go to a Panic! show, try to get an aisle seat as you have an easier chance of getting close to him. After the walk, Urie gets on his flying piano where he performs "Dying In LA" which was one of the most beautiful vocal performances I think I've ever heard. As the piano flies over the crowd Brendon peers over the edge looking out into the crowd. He even became a bit emotional and teared up a bit. After the little emotional moment everybody including the band experienced, we got back into a fast-paced, happier tone. As the show came to a close, one more shot of confetti was poured down over us. I have never been to a show where I have danced and screamed so much in my life. A Panic! At The Disco show really is like no other and I encourage you to attend one at least once in your life. You won't regret it. This will be a night I will remember forever.

Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco performing in Laval, Quebec January 12, 2019
photos courtesy of  Mihaela Petrescu