The Flatliners + GOB + A Wilhelm Scream @ Club Soda▪

The definition of a “mêlée” is “a large, noisy, uncontrolled crowd,” which perfectly sums up the interior of Club Soda. From the show’s start at 7:30 PM right through to the 11 PM curfew, the room is bouncing. Tonight’s show, being billed as “The Holiday Mêlée,” couldn’t be more fitting!

I arrived a couple of songs into A Wilhelm Scream‘s set after waiting it out in my car until 7:30 PM (when the city finally stops being one giant bus lane, and I can finally park). They’re one of those bands I’ve seen a few times over the years, and every time I see them, I realize how much I enjoy them. They’re definitely the heaviest of the three bands on the bill, with frontman Nuno Pereira’s growl over the top of the thunderous beats blowing away any cobwebs right off the bat. The epic wandering bass intro of “The Horse” never gets old, and “Figure Eights in My Head” is equally storming. “The King Is Dead” rounds off the main set in thunderous fashion, and the mêlée is thoroughly up and running!

A Wilhelm Scream Setlist:

Famous Friends and Fashion Drunks
I Wipe My Ass With Showbiz
Me vs. Morrissey in the Pretentiousness Contest (The Ladder Match)
GIMMETHESHAKES
Be One to No One
Boat Builders
The Horse
Figure Eights in My Head
Anchor End
Yo Canada
The King Is Dead

Langley BC’s Gob is a band I had literally never heard of until a few years ago. It seems I was the last to find out about them! My office mate instantly recognized “I Hear You Calling” on a Spotify mix that came on in the office one day, while the pre-show dinner with my wife revealed that she loved “Give Up The Grudge” when she was in high school. It feels a little wrong that I get to see Gob tonight before either of them; I’ll count myself lucky!

Their sound is unapologetically pop-punk; I would have absolutely eaten it up if I had heard it 20 years ago. Heck, I’m eating it up now! Frontman Tom Thacker sounds decidedly like Sum 41 in places; to my untrained ear, the similarities between “Give Up The Grudge” and Sum 41’s “Nothing On My Back” are striking. The floor heaves from start to finish, and Tom drops off the mic completely at the breakdown to let the crowd sing the chorus themselves. It sounds awesome. He pulls the same trick on “I Hear You Calling,” which, for me, is the highlight of the set; honestly, if you don’t love it on first listen, you should probably check your pulse.

A massive cover of “Paint It Black” also sounds pretty epic, as do the power-punk riffs of “Oh! Ellin.” “Bully” sounds a lot more old-school punk in comparison, almost like Pennywise with its “woahhh woahhh” roars, while “Soda” is a little more NOFX in its grime. It’s a fantastic 50 minutes, and I can see why Gob is so beloved in this country!

Gob Setlist:

236 E. Broadway
On These Days
Self Appointed Leader
Beauville
What To Do
B Flat
You’re Too Cool
No Regrets
Oh! Ellin
Bully
Underground
Custer’s Last 1 Nite Stand
Ming Tran
Give Up the Grudge
Paint It Black (The Rolling Stones cover)
I Hear You Calling
Soda

Speaking of beloved Canadian punk bands, Toronto’s The Flatliners are worthy headliners to close out the party. Right from the opening ear-splitting “YEAH!” proclaimed by frontman Chris Cresswell on “Hang My Head,” the floor of Club Soda is heaving and doesn’t stop, “bringing the juice,” as Chris puts it.

In a similar manner to Gob, The Flatliners have a distinct pop-punk sound; “Bury Me,” “Count Your Bruises,” and “Monumental” are the prime examples you would probably show your friends if you were trying to convert them. However, there are various detours that keep things interesting too. After Chris introduces “the heads portion of the set, a few deep cuts…” in a gravelly ironic voice, we get a cameo from A Wilhelm Scream’s Nuno on “Shthawks,” and obviously, things sound a lot more hardcore all of a sudden! “That’s some family shit right there!” emotes Chris!

Still, he admits, “OK, maybe that was a little too much juice; we’re gonna cool it down…” “It’ll Hurt” follows, the closest thing The Flatliners will ever have to a power ballad before the vibe changes immediately again with the ska-esque “This Respirator.” “Sew My Mouth Shut” promptly returns us to pop-punk mode. “Monumental” sees waves of crowd surfers take to the skies, and then on “Under A Dying Sun,” a huge bro-hug ring swirls around the circle pit. Not sure if that has any significance, but it looks pretty cool looking down from my spot on the balcony. The floor explodes one last time on set-closer “Eulogy,” with a foam cannon dousing the front rows in froth to send them out into the winter night even stickier. It’s been a fun mêlée for sure, and a great conclusion to my gig schedule for 2023!