As another Montreal summer draws to a close, it dawned on me that I’ve spent more nights hanging with friends in parks than I have moshing with them at shows. A Sunday night at Club Soda was the perfect opportunity to get back into my usual rhythm of things. It’s been a decade since I’ve seen Winnipeg’s best, and arguably the country’s best hardcore export, despite the fact that Comeback Kid hasn’t slowed down in the last 10 years, pandemic aside. I was very excited to see these guys again, on a tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of their breakout album, “Wake The Dead,” to boot.
Though, I must confess that on the morning of this show, I woke up a ways away from town in Guelph, Ontario. I prayed to the Megabus Gods, but ultimately, getting to Club Soda for the 7 p.m. start time simply wasn’t in the cards for me. Still, I got to the venue in time to witness the gaping pit in the centre of the floor that was left in the wake of the end of the second band’s set.
Next up that night, Montreal’s own Prowl proved that it was indeed one of those kinds of shows. Tons of space was dedicated to a chosen few who felt like two-stepping, windmilling, and crowd-killing along to the band’s thrash-inspired brand of hardcore. Energetically encouraging the crowd in front to move forward and move around, in French no less, to minimal success. Still, the music was crushing, even if terribly mixed from the front of the stage, and the atmosphere was a perfect sign of things to come.
Next up was Incendiary, a NYHC group that hasn’t played north of the border in nearly a decade, and tagging along for only two of these shows on Comeback Kid’s Canadian run. I was ready to enjoy them to the fullest, but less than a minute into their set, I got an elbow right to the teeth while standing on the edge of the pit. Now, I’ve taken hits at shows like these often enough, but it may be the first time it’s happened while I’ve had zero adrenaline in my system. Therein lies the big difference.
I spent the rest of the show fairly miserable, standing at the back where, much to my surprise, the sound was miles better. Old heads might be on to something here. Chunky guitars were ringing clear, the drums hit harder, and vocalist Brendan Garrone’s lyrics were comprehensible. He took some time beyond his commanding performance to spout an anti-ICE rant near the tail end of their half-hour set, which was met with attentive ears and loud cheers.
As I washed out my still-bleeding gums with Jameson, I stayed near the sound booth to catch the night’s headliners. And the energy that the five-piece brought from the first seconds of their set absolutely tore through the crowd and translated all the way to the back. Comeback Kid’s near-choreographed stage movements, and the vocal energy from frontman Andrew Neufeld, really put them in a league of their own.
Twenty-five years into their career, these boys could easily be phoning it in at this point, yet they have the hunger and energy of a young band with something to prove. Despite not singing leads on the record they were celebrating that night, Neufeld has become such a staple of the band’s trademark sound. It was great hearing him power through songs off of “Wake The Dead,” some of which I’ve never heard him do.
They snuck in a few rippers from albums old and new, and before closing with the record’s title track, the Toronto-residing frontman confessed that tonight was better than last night’s show in his own town, and the lack of barricades was largely to thank. The crowd then continued doing what they had been all night—jumping up on stage to hardcore dance and front flip into the wings of the floor—as Neufeld successfully commanded the entire balcony to stand for their chant-along closer, “Wake The Dead.”
Despite my swollen lip and bitter mood for the better part of the night, I’m glad I stuck it out. Comeback Kid aren’t showing any signs of slowing down, and I can only hope their next Montreal show also won’t have any barricades either.
Review – Mathieu Perrier
Photos – Luiz Fernando Araújo
