It’s been a busy time for Broods since their first visit to Montreal just over 2 years ago. Even back then, touring off the back of just a single EP, they pulled in a decent crowd at Il Motore, suggesting bigger things to come. Since then they’ve released two full-lengths, and tonight at l’Astral is their 4th visit already. Shows have been selling out in this tour already, in Washington and New York to name just two, and tonight is certainly there or thereabouts. There’s no question that the hard work is paying off!
You’re The Voice is booming out over the PA, and as John Farnham proclaims that we’re not gonna sit in silence, we’re not gonna live with fear, the music cuts out to be replaced with a growling bass line that signals the arrival on stage of New Zealand siblings Caleb and Georgia Nott, aka Broods. A brief moment of silence follows, before the twinkly keys intro of Conscious, title track of their current sophomore album, explodes into life. Georgia prowls the front of the stage like only a true frontwoman can, and the audience sings along rabidly. Hold The Line follows, a poppier number with Georgia singing over a distorted vocal, and very dominant drum beat. She then proclaims “Montreal, it’s good to be back!” in the most endearing kiwi accent ever, before launching into Everytime and noticeably upping the intensity of her vocals. In fact, the song culminates in Georgia really showcasing her impressive vocal range in almost Aguilera-like manner, minus the showboating. Never Gonna Change, from debut Evergreen, follows on with its drum-heavy intro, and again, all eyes are on Georgia, a truly mesmerizing stage presence. Even her ear-piece sparkles!
“It’s not just ‘cos we love the city, we always have amazing shows! Friendly friendly people!” As if the crowd could love Georgia anymore right now, she has to go and say something like that, and draw even more cheers from the adoring assembly. At this point, the pace of the show slows down, and Georgia explains that the next song Freak Of Nature is an important song to the siblings. With a soft vocal intro, piano backing provided by Caleb, and soft drums, it becomes one of the most stirring parts of the show, another real showcase for Georgia’s vocals. The veins bulge from her neck at times, as she clearly is pouring her heart into this moment. Clearly, an important song to them indeed. The stripped-down pace continues with the next two songs, as two stools are brought to the front of the stage and it’s just Georgia, Caleb, and his acoustic guitar. They remark that it feels just like when they used to perform at High School at this point, as they run through acoustic renditions of All Of Your Glory and Taking You There. The simplicity of the stage setup at this point really demonstrates the raw talents of these two.
After this, the stage goes dark, for about 30 seconds or so, and we can vaguely see the Notts leave the stage, amid a hum of twinkly keys. When the lights come up again, they’re back, in all-new outfits! Costume changes! Unless you frequent Bell Centre pop concerts (I don’t), you don’t see that very often! The black outfits of the first half of the show are traded for an all-white look, with Georgia’s black catsuit swapped for white pyjama shorts, and ribbons dangling from the elbow of some kind of cut-off dressing gown. Or something. I don’t know, I’m a guy, I can’t describe women’s fashion. Anyway, you get the idea. Perhaps she just wanted to be in something a little more comfortable, since as soon as they return to the stage, they launch into a series of dancier numbers in the vein of Australasian counterparts Cut Copy. Caleb now wields a bass guitar, and busts out some dance-funk grooves, accompanied by hi-hat heavy drum beats, to deliver euphoric renditions of Recovery and Are You Home? Georgia joins in with some quirky dance moves on Pretty Thing, and the dance party continues. A sea of hands and camera phones greets the familiar intro of Mother & Father, Broods’ ode to homesickness, and another huge singalong ensues. Georgia next encourages all to “make some noise for the last song,” to which the crowd groans and mock-boo’s, obviously for the “last song” part of that request. “Erm, not those kinda noises!!!” is Georgia’s response! She re-phrases her request to ask for help in singing it, and the crowd, clearly eating out of the palm of her hand by this point, duly obliges, with deafening “WOAHHHH!”‘s filling the air as Broods close out the main set with current album opener Free.
They return for a 3-song encore, beginning with Four Walls, in which Georgia again sings over her own recorded vocals, allowing her to go somewhat “off-script” herself, before the spooky vocal intro of breakthrough single Bridges makes everyone lose their minds once more. The reaction is not lost on Georgia, who proclaims “Hells bells, you guys are loud!” Arms are again thrown into the air for each chorus, and the deep electronic beats go right through every single body packed into l’Astral; a great song transformed into an epic one in a live setting. Before launching into final song Couldn’t Believe, Georgia says that “there’s not an ounce of sadness in this song, we wanna leave you on an extremely happy note!” That mission is promptly accomplished, with one final arms-aloft shot of delirium. 20 songs, 85 minutes, a stunning show for sure. It’s not a question of how soon we can expect Broods back; judging by their track record, it’ll probably be sooner rather than later. The real question is, How high can Broods go from here? On the strength of tonight’s show, the sky’s the limit.
Set List
Conscious
Hold the Line
Everytime
Never Gonna Change
Bedroom Door
Freak of Nature
All of Your Glory (acoustic)
Taking You There (acoustic)
Recovery
Are You Home?
Heartlines
Pretty Thing
L.A.F.
We Had Everything
Full Blown Love
Mother & Father
Free
Four Walls
Bridges
Couldn’t Believe
Review & photos – Simon Williams
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