Frown Line
Up on stage to get the night started was Frown Line, a sweet indie rock band based in Montreal. They offered the crowd a nice, chill vibe to dance along to, and their music lifted everyone’s spirits before the headliner of the night.
Frown Line sounded beautiful as they played together on stage. Lead vocalist and guitar player Annika Devlin had such a lovely and soft voice while singing, paired beautifully with drummer Lucy Grant’s background vocals. Bassist Juan Jimenez and lead guitarist Owen Viragos did an incredible job as well, playing in perfect synchronization with the rest of their band and each other.
Annika introduced one of their songs before playing it, called September. It was really nice to hear on the very last night of the month. It felt like a cathartic way to end September.
Frown Line put on a really great show. They reminded me of the indie music I used to listen to as a teenager, driving too fast down a suburban road and wishing for something bigger. I was left with a nostalgic feeling once their set ended, along with excitement for the headliner of the night.
Rosie Tucker
As much as I enjoyed Frown Line’s set, it was now time for the artist I had been anxiously waiting to see for quite some time: Rosie Tucker.
There really weren’t that many people in Cabaret Fouf’s for the show, maybe about 30 people in attendance, which surprised me! I thought they had a bigger audience here in Montreal, but that might’ve been my bubble of lesbian friends who share my adoration for them. Despite the small crowd, Rosie Tucker’s performance was spectacular.
They opened their set with Lightbulb, the first track off UTOPIA NOW!, their album released in 2024. It was a nicely energetic start to their set, really getting things on the right track right off the bat.
Rosie’s delightful voice immediately captured the attention of the audience. We all listened intently as they sang sharp lyrics about falling in love, the plastic that plagues the earth, and plenty of other relatable subjects.
The audience was completely enamoured with Rosie Tucker throughout their set. How could we not be? They’re a very charming person, especially during the moments they took to speak to us. Rosie had a lot of nice things to say about their visit to Montreal, and so did their bandmates! They had a fun back-and-forth with the crowd, asking why the Gay Village isn’t that gay, and which Montreal neighbourhood is the gayest. (The crowd’s consensus was The Plateau.)
They played plenty of songs from UTOPIA NOW!, such as All My Exes Live In Vortexes, Paperclip Maximizer, and Suffer! Like You Mean It. Of course, the setlist included a good number of songs from Rosie’s other albums, Sucker Supreme (my personal favourite) and Never Not Never Not Never Not. Songs like Gay Bar, Airport, Ambrosia, and even Spinster Cycle, which was requested by a fan who had sent Rosie a DM on Instagram. They made it clear that they rarely ever perform that song, but they wanted to make an exception since it was their first time headlining a show in Montreal.
There were so many special moments throughout the set that stuck with me, and surely with the rest of the audience as well. The intimate setting allowed the artists to be silly and have fun with the crowd, like when Maria, the drummer, told us that her dream was to be booed.
So, of course, we made that dream come true and booed for her! It was a really funny moment that added to how memorable Rosie Tucker’s show was. I loved every moment of the concert.
All my lesbian dreams came true at the Rosie Tucker show. I heard my favourite songs and bought a beautiful shirt. I hope they return to Montreal for another show because I’d definitely go see them again!
Jamie Siddall
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