I've made no illusions about my love for the music of west-coast power pop supergroup The New Pornographers, so it shouldn't be a surprise that I trekked up to Lee's Palace to see their TURF club show.
It was their first time playing two gigs in one day and they did a great job of it, playing their amazingly well crafted tunes with energy and enthusiasm.
It was a fantastic show and a wonderful way to end off TURF 2016. Now I just can't wait for next year.
Here are some of my favourite tunes from their club show setlist:
Death Cab for Cutie had the honour of closing out the main stage at TURF on Sunday night. They always do a great job of filling the big stage with melody and excitement. They have a vast catalog of perfectly crafted indie pop gems that I just love. Hearing the old classics up against their recent tunes makes for a wonderful show. "Transatlaticism" as the closing tune of the encore, and indeed, the closing tune of TURF at Fort York, was perfection.
Legendary British genre-defying band The Mekons closed out the Rebellion stage on the last day of the TURF outdoor festival at Garrison Common Fort York. They did a great job doling out their classic tunes with Celtic punk attitude. An awesome experience!
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia musician and songwriter Adam Baldwin played the Rebellion stage at TURF. They play classic rock influenced tunes that are high on energy and passion. You might recognize him and several bandmates from Matt Mays band.
Roy Cohen made these photos of the band's performance.
Much loved Etobicoke indie rock band Rheostatics played for a passionate crowd at the Battle of York stage at TURF. They regaled the audience with their unique hits and musicianship.
Listen to the Rheostatics song that you're most likely familiar with, "Claire"
Austin-based Wild Child played the Rebellion stage at TURF. I enjoyed their easy-going pop tunes with horns, cello, and ukulele in addition to drums, bass, keys and great vocals.
The Hold Steady are one of my all-time favourite bands. I was so stoked when I got to shoot them for the first time at the first TURF, then at The Horseshoe Tavern. Click through for those pics. And I got to shoot them again at this year’s TURF where they played one of my all-time favourite albums, Boys & Girls In America, in its entirety, along with a bunch of their favourite tunes. They're back with keyboardist Franz Nicolay, so this show was an extra-special treat.
The Hold Steady appeared on stage to the strains of the Spanish-language version of David Lee Roth’s “Yankee Rose” and broke into one of the most powerful rock songs ever, “Stuck Between Stations”. I didn’t know whether to rock out or take pics so I tried to do both. They continued through Boys & Girls in America and I was in musical heaven. Then they launched into "Girls Like Status", "Constructive Summer", "Sequestered in Memphis", "The Swish", "Your Little Hoodrat Friend" and they closed with "Stay Positive". Perfection.
The Hold Steady's set was an absolute highlight of TURF for me. Every time I see them they just blow me away with their songs and presence. Now I'm just counting the seconds until next time!
