As Montreal Rocks’ self-proclaimed biggest Frank Turner fan, I took it upon myself to hop a train back to my hometown of almost-Toronto last week to attend the seventh edition of Lost Evenings. This four-day event features much more than your standard Frank Turner show: two stages, panels, and multiple openers, with Frank headlining each night with a different setlist.
I attended the first Lost Evenings in London in 2017 and have been quietly hoping it would find its way to Canada once it started moving to different cities. The announcement felt too good to be true, but Toronto has been historically kind to Turner in the past. The event was held at The Great Canadian Casino Resort in Rexdale, on the edge of the city. Very inconvenient to get to for locals, but right by the airport, which made it easier for attendees flying in. And, boy, did they arrive in numbers! Nearly everyone I met at the festival came from farther away than I did, often from the USA, England, or Germany. Surprisingly, most were older as well. For a relatively younger artist, I didn’t expect to see so many people in their 50s and 60s. Regardless of age, kindness and community were all around us.
Night one was acoustic night, and although the music was lower energy, the people certainly weren’t. All the excitement of festival friends meeting up in foreign places or seeing each other for the first time in a year echoed through the venue halls. As we learned the layout for the weekend and how to navigate the parts of the casino that were ours, people were still beaming through their collective confusion. My highlight of night one was hearing Henry Rollins speak—legendary stories from a legendary man. He mostly spoke of his new life on a quiet Nashville street, but plenty of laughs and applause-deserving messages were shared among the enthralled crowd. I’m convinced Rollins could tell you a story about watching paint dry and make it engaging.
Each of the festival’s four days had a similar schedule: doors at noon, a couple of panels with industry experts in the afternoon, three acts on each stage running from 6:30 to 11 p.m., and even an open mic happening at the entrance before then. (One I really wish I didn’t wait until the final day to try signing up for; that list filled up fast!) The panels were, to be blunt, quite dull a lot of the time. Some interesting conversations, but I didn’t learn too much. The multiple hour-long lulls between activities meant there wasn’t much to do at times but drink or gamble. I can’t help but think the years where the festival is held in a central downtown location would be a lot more fun.
Day two featured Frank exclusively playing material from his first five albums with his band, The Sleeping Souls. It also introduced me to my favourite discovery of the weekend: Montreal’s own Redfox, who graced the much better-sounding Nick Alexander stage with their unique blend of indie folk and alternative rock. During Frank’s set, it was only during his closing song, Photosynthesis, where he urged the crowd to split the room and perform a “wall-of-hugs,” that people finally started moving and dancing outside their bubble. Even Montreal darlings NOBRO, who crushed their set, were appreciated by a still crowd. The collective embrace was an excellent high point to end the night on, and I hoped that same energy would carry into Saturday’s rowdier lineup.
The OBGMs did what they do best the following day, injecting a shot of adrenaline into the crowd to kick off Day 3’s punk rock night. As local Montreal-scene legend Guilhem was finishing up a strong acoustic set on the side stage, The Dirty Nil kept the energy going with their punk-tinged rock-and-roll sound. Frank’s set consisted of him playing through his newest album in full, but it was his perfect transition of playing my favourite song off Undefeated, Never the Back Problems, into his heaviest tune, Non Serviam, to kick off the punk rock portion, that sold me. The crowd absolutely erupted into the moshing sea of chaos I had been anticipating the previous night. Proving that Frank and his band, The Sleeping Souls, can pull their weight among the best of them.
The Sunday scaries were in full effect by Day 4, and with it came a strange energy, amplified by Murder By Death’s hauntingly beautiful sound. Bedouin Soundclash followed, and their songs, which helped define my formative years, weren’t met with the open arms and singalongs I was expecting. Frontman Jay Malinowski seemed to be in a different world, one where time moved at a different pace than it did for the rest of us. The oddities didn’t end there. A relatively heavy police presence, and bar staff that felt like they’d poured their first drink the previous week, soured my mood. I thought Lost Evenings would end on an underwhelming note. Having to Google the ingredients of a Burt Reynolds for the bar didn’t matter by the time Frank Turner hit the main stage one last time for a greatest hits set.
It was, by all means, a perfect set. A dream setlist that the crowd was receptive to. He played some solo acoustic numbers, some older, deeper cuts, and a few faster, punk-adjacent songs. He even threw himself into the crowd to surf and mosh among us. It felt way more punk rock than the previous night, and he expertly blended the most appealing aspects of the first two sets as well. The audience was on cloud nine if the post-show huddle of strangers dancing and singing to The Proclaimers’ 500 Miles didn’t make it obvious.
After experiencing my first Lost Evenings in full, I have a lot of conflicting thoughts. I had an absolute blast, but as a part convention, part music festival, there were a lot of aspects I feel could be improved upon. Primarily, how empty the first half of the day feels when you can’t realistically leave the venue. However, I was surrounded by community, and a carefully nurtured one at that. A few thousand people brought together by nothing more than their love for Frank Turner. Though I may not be one of the many who will follow him to Lost Evenings’ next edition in Edinburgh, I’m so glad I went. I returned home with fantastic memories, a few new artists to check out, and no regrets (aside from missing out on playing that damn open mic!).
Big shoutout to the Ally Coalition for raising $76,000 for local charities through their draws and donation boxes, to The Sleeping Souls for absolutely crushing 90-something songs in four days, and to everyone involved in hosting an unforgettable weekend.
Review – Mathieu Perrier
Photo – Kieron Yates
