The Barr Brothers
Montreal favourites The Barr Brothers kick things off with some desert-dry Americana. Reverby slide guitar and creamy slide guitar parching my thirst. No tumbleweeds in sight, the Bell Centre fills up fast.
The “In the Air Tonight” drum fill breaks the persistent thump of the drums in half of “You Would Have to Lose Your Mind,” and then all the minds are lost as the song evolves and devolves. I wouldn’t have picked it to be the first song to get whoops and cheers until the 3/4 mark, but it succeeded in getting the house’s attention.
Local hero Elizabeth Powell of Land of Talk is brought out for a rousing “Run Right Into It,” and suddenly The Barr Brothers are acting like a headliner. Epic.
Selections from the new record feel very good live. Happily, The Barr Brothers seem to have a lot of gas left in the tank and a lot of road ahead of them.
Stephen Sanchez
Was one I missed in the Osheaga schedule in 2024, so very excited to see him tonight. And he immediately whisks us from a dustland fairytale into an oasis of jazz and bebop with “Only Girl.”
The guitar solo in “Doesn’t Do Me Any Good” scratches all the itches, and most of us are on our feet. Sanchez has dance moves too, a little bit of Elvis, a little bit of James Brown. The trombone playing is top-notch as well. At one point, I thought he was missing notes; turned out he was leading the key change. When everyone landed, the song exploded. At least that’s what I think happened. Mr. Sanchez’s yellow jacket is a very engaging element.
Sanchez has a common and smooth voice until he rips out big, powerful high or long phrases.
His set is varied, and it all harkens to the early 60s.
“It’s Not Unusual” is, as I had feared, a Tom Jones cover. My feet are going to hurt tomorrow.
A couple more quick, fast ones, and we end with the rousing international hit “Until I Found You,” and the verdict is in: Stephen Sanchez and the Moon Crescents are Mr. Entertainment.
Mumford and Sons
Mumford and Sons get the star treatment. As one, the mass of people rose in respect, prepared to stomp their feet and pump their fists and sing along to every word. They are the reason we are here.
From the moment “Run Together” kicks off the set, I notice pretty bad sound separation. You can hear the lead vocals and acoustic guitar cutting through, but everything else was a mess. The problem only lasted a few songs. Even during that period, I admired how the crowd didn’t seem to care. During “Babel,” I remember thinking you better be a super-fan and know every word because otherwise you’re not included in the singalong, and that is a lonely place to be.
The set hanging overhead is tough to describe, but everyone took a picture when the Christmas tree-shaped structure began descending during the new high-energy track “Rushmere.” Hearts and stars in an artful wire hanger-like construction spun and lit and glowed slowly and purposely above our heads all evening. Like a mobile for the Agora.
The evening rolls on like a joyful riot, from the gleeful F-bomb singalong of “Little Lion Man” to Marcus Mumford adequately bashing the drums in “Lover of the Light” to the frenetic running up and down the aisles during “Ditmas,” the set had no lack of energy.
Of course, this was interrupted by a wonderful sojourn to a B stage. This came with yet again improved acoustics for songs like “Ghosts That We Knew” and “Guiding Light.”
The B stage is an excellent invention. I remember the U2 live in Sydney show from their epic Zoo TV tour and the incredible B stage acoustic versions, and at the time I just thought, why? But now I have this show to thank for understanding how crazy it is to have the band appear suddenly so close to you. Suddenly the entire venue is in a different, widened dimension, and the room is way more massive.
The energy this band puts out on a nightly basis doesn’t seem to have let up on their fifth album tour. Marcus is well on his way to blowing out his hearing and then voice, and he’ll discover his wife can sing and make her a star… yada yada yada, he’s peeing his pants at the Grammys. Well, I hope not, and I doubt that. I hope they take great care of themselves and make five more records for their fans who obviously and intensely adore them.
Maybe it would surprise you to hear I don’t really like the music. To me, the songs are a formula that has gotten duller as the pattern cuts into new cloth every time. The clothes drape badly as the models get thinner. And you really shouldn’t care that I think that way. I only bring it up to prove a point.
That’s just my opinion on their music. It’s not definitive because who am I? I like some great things and love some godawful stuff when you compare the averages of human taste.
But this is a live review. And Mumford and Sons—well, they are wizards, cult leaders, and generals that every man, woman, and child who bought a ticket would follow into battle, drink the drink, or for whom, without hesitation, throw the ring into the fire.
As Marcus said at the beginning, they aren’t here to “F” around (of course, five songs in, he said they were going to “F” around for a couple hours and then let us go home, so he contradicted himself, but the first proclamation stood to me).
The openers on tour were lovely but ultimately lucky to draft on the power and long-lasting memories this show will leave the multi-generational family members, the couples on their fifth dates and their 50th dates, the bros who came with their bros, the girl who danced really drunk and tried to hold my hand in the B section.
I finally understand it. I get why they are such a big band, and they deserve to be. Won’t see again, I get the gist. Still. Holy smokes; 9/10 level show.
Review – Mike Rogers
Photos – Andres Amaya
