... but Downie and crew could have
juiced it up a bit
By MIKE BELL -- Calgary Sun
THE TRAGICALLY HIP
Saddledome, Calgary
Thursday, November 23, 2000
CALGARY -- You either get the music of The
Tragically Hip or you don't.
And by "get" I mean you love with a fervour
bordering on the religious, or more appropriately
the nationalistic, and by "don't" I mean it leaves
you as cold as the northern landscape the
Kingston quintet sing so passionately about.
If you fall into the former category, as most of the
13,000 people at the Dome last night certainly
did, then a 2*-hour Tragically Hip show is like a
pickup truck ride to heaven where Hockey Night
in Canada is on 24 hours a day and Molson
Canadian runs hot and cold from all of the
faucets.
If you fall into the latter group, as this weary
scribe who has seen them three times in the past
eight days and 10 times in the past 10 years
admittedly does, then it's like being stranded in a
Sudbury hotel room with no TV, no key to the
mini-bar and a head-cold to boot.
And no matter how many times you see them,
ne'er the twain shall meet.
The reason is that a Hip concert is about the
music, pure and simple. The band (filled out on
this tour by the under-used duo of keyboardist
Chris Brown and backup vocalist Kate Fenner),
the stage setting (an equally underused crop circle
in the middle of a prairie wheat field) and even the
light show are all geared towards spotlighting the
songs.
The band members themselves -- Paul Langlois
and Rob Baker on guitars, Gord Sinclair on bass
and Johnny Fay on drums -- as competent
musicians as they are, don't seem to want to
entertain past playing their instruments. In their
spotlights they stood, playing to themselves and
not even to each other.
Frontman Gord Downie, though a little more
amped-up than usual last night, still orbited above
the audience (probably somewhere in the galaxy
of Hemponia), muttering unintelligibly.
And even with Downie acknowledging the
crowd briefly before the second song, it still came
across like your senile grandmother remembering
your name before trying to change the channel on
the toaster.
So back to the music we turn.
And last night, compared to their Vancouver
shows, the music was sorely lacking in intensity.
That could be because the Hip kicked off the first
of their two sets with the most obtuse track, Tiger
the Lion, from the latest of their eight studio CDs,
Music @ Work.
The song, when performed right, can be a heavy,
hypnotic number, but last night it merely plodded
and came off like a bit of a false start.
And even when the Hip threw in their more
well-known material like Gift Shop and My
Music at Work, the energy of the band and even
the audience was noticeably tempered, with the
most notable exception (before press time) being
a rousing rendition of Blow at High Dough.
The songs, extended as they were with added
instrumental parts, sounded flat and listless.
And when that's all you have in your bag of tricks
to entertain a packed arena, well, that's not nearly
enough to run up the flagpole and ask everyone to
salute.
==================================================================================
I had the same perspective as Erin and Brian, so my take on the crowd
around us and in the Workplace pretty much concur with theirs.
Other observations:
-As usual, I had trouble making out Gord's rants (but I did finally
pick out his guitar)
-Gord did what looked like a jig or tapdancing where he held the microphone
stand upside down and positioned the mic near his feet during Little Bones.
Look out, Michael Flatley!
-Rob played his guitar slide guitar style(?) with the strings facing
up during Scared. Does he do that often?
-The proportion of Fubu-clad people at the concert (and at War Child)
increased noticeable since the PP tour. So...does this mean The Hip
now appeal more to the Fubu-wearing demographic or does Fubu now appeal
more to the Hip-listening demographic? No offense intended to my
homies out there.
A better review by me on the Dead Rear show forthcoming (hopefully).
Bryon (mofo and near-victim of usher brutality)
==================================================================================
Ok, I was fortunate enough to have witnessed two spectacular Hip shows
this past week...Edmonton & Calgary. These were numbers 10 & 11
for me. It is hard for me to even begin to describe how they moved me,
but i'll give it a shot. I'm 28 and have been a rabid Hip fan since 89
when I first heard NOIS. Up until this time two concerts have stuck out
in my mind as special. The Henhouse 96 show in Saskatoon, and the Phantom
Power 98 show in Aspen. The Saskatoon show just seemed to have everything
going for it...setlist, crowd participation, and the people I was with.
The Aspen show was special because I was on a road trip with my girlfriend,
there were maybe 3000 people there, and it was on the side of a mountain.
So in the past week I believe I have had these shows surpassed. I have
read some peoples reviews about how either the crowd was subdued or the
band was subdued...possibly so in some parts, but from where I was standing
(killer seats for both shows) everything looked great! I think you have
to remember these are 3 hour shows and a sit down break is needed for lots
of people. I also believe the Hip are not a band that thrive off of people
standing and screaming and pumping their fists for every song. If that
was the case they wouldn't bother with songs like "Titanic Terrarium" or
"Flamenco" or even "Apartment Song".
So now on to song content of the shows. Three words...Boots Or Hearts,
Boots Or Hearts, Boots Or Hearts!!! I can now die a satisfied man after
Calgary's show. I was eagerly waiting for this song and the boys delivered.
Some of the other highlights
over the two concerts were "Titanic Terrarium","Gems","Opiated","IOD","Fire
In The Hole"(twice),"Scared","Sherpa","Blow" and all the others really.
I think the only song I would have wanted replaced by something else would
have been "Freak Turbulance"...I just don't care for it that much.
I remember discussions a long time ago about what Gord said at the end of "Greasy Jungle" and a lot of people seemed to think it was "Full city dark". I was never 100% sure until the Calgary show when Gord said it real slow and loud. Also does anyone else have the feeling this will be the last tour for the Hip? The fact that they are doing the long shows with all the old, obscure songs, and the enthusiasm they are putting forth make me think this is a farewell tour. If so I will be sad, but definately not disappointed. I have so many fantastic live memories to keep myself going.
Ciao,
Billy Stang
=================================================================================
I just got home. I'm very sleepy. My head hurts (more on that in my
forthcoming Red Deer show review. Let's just say that a good number of
Hip fans are still fucking morons.) Okay, anyone who says ANYTHING negative
about the Calgary show is insane. It was UNBELIEVABLY good. This was what
arena rock is all about. There were 13,600 people (according to some Calgary
newspaper) singing, dancing, sweating, and screaming together. The highlights
of the show were AMAZING versions of So Hard Done By and Flamenco, both
of which had Gord and Kate duets and verse-switching. I actually got tears
in my eyes during Flamenco. When Boots or Hearts began there were HUGE
cheers and when I looked around (I was row 22 floor centre) I didn't see
a single person sitting down. They did a jam before Daredevil again, as
in Edmonton. Emperor Penguin and
Don't Wake Daddy were both awesome. Looking For A Place to Happen and
Blow At High Dough both got huge cheers. Gord was really animated, climbing
all over the speakers like they were tightropes and covering the entire
stage with his movements. He was wearing the green shirt, so I guess it
didn't rot off. :) And, once again, Johnny did a towel wave at the crowd
to drum up applause (not that it was needed). The only thing that could
have made it better would be if they had played
Impossibilium. Alas... :)
As for the Canoe reviews, I think maybe they weren't picking big fans this time because last time they got a lot of flack for every single reporter saying the concerts were brilliant rather than having impartial observers.
Erin
==================================================================================
First I must say that Tiger is my fav song and makes a great new starter
for any show. I thought the band was in great shape and that Gordie was
way out there having a wonderful time. (I've never seen Gord in such great
shape as far as ranting and being all himself like driving the mic as a
motorcycle making it a horse). This was one of my fav shows. I lucked into
tickets at
the last minute from a friend and I was already going to Calgary for
work.
The only complaint I have about the show was that the people where I was sitting were very annoying. They kept getting up every 20-30 min. to get beer and by the end of the show were so out of it they couldn't stand up (And they wouldn't stop talking all night), we also had one guy break one of the stand seats and almost throw it, and some guy in front of me was chain smoking weed all night(I got to be a bit much after a while). My question is why do these people even bother spending $40 on the show.
Anyway I was in the upper bowl beside the stage and had a great vantage
point. (It was great to see the show as a whole for once). The sound was
amazing up there.
-Brian Hill
==================================================================================
Straight From The Hip
Surrounded by a stage dressed in wheatfields and
approximately 13,500 fans, The Tragically Hip
blurted out more than 30 tunes for close to three
hours last Thursday (Nov. 23) in Calgary.
I was fortunate to be one of those fans hip-notized by
the pounding rhythms and mesmermized by
frontman Gord Downie.
There’s nothing greater than watching someone immersed
in their craft, with such power and
energy that emminates to everyone in the room. A
performance by Downie is just that - eyes
closed, body rythmically jerking, spouting poetic
verse without a breath, Gord captivated the
audience.
The evening started with the sounds of Tiger the Lion
from their latest CD Music@Work and
included such greats as Boots or Hearts, Bobcaygeon,
Blow at High Dough and New Orleans is
Sinking.
The band was joined onstage by Kate Fenner (vocals)
and Chris Brown (keyboards) from Bourbon
Tabernacle Choir fame. The duo added a new dimension
to the Hip’s music with Kates vocals
sending roars through the crowd.
I’ve heard many things classified as being Canadian -
Anne Murray, beer consumption, cold
weather, hockey, and a humble attitude - but the Hip
are as Canadian as you can get. Whether
it’s songs like Wheat Kings or their low key stage
surrounded by a blanket of wheatfields in the
shape of a crop circle, there’s something about them
that makes me want to stand up and shout,
“I’m Canadian and proud of it!”
Leaving the Saddle Dome, you could hear the throngs of
fans relating their favourite moments
from the concert; not one person left without feeling
proud to call the Tragically Hip a
hometown band.
The day following the concert, my brother and I raced
to the newstand to see the coverage of the
concert. We were thoroughly dissappointed to see two
columnists give the Hip a seemingly bad
review. I’m not certain if they attended the same
concert, felt the same emotion or even
listened to the same music as we did....but they
certainly missed the boat on this one.
As I become more immersed in my family and career,
I’ve found that certain simple pleasures seem
to have fallen to the wayside. One of those being my
love of music. The Tragically Hip awakened
that enjoyment within me and left me with a renewed
interest in music and awareness of all that
is Canadian.
Carrie Whitman, Editor
Lifestyles Publications
=================================================================================
Just thought I'd share a few thoughts on the Calgary show. I was one
of the
winners in CJAY 92's Hip contest, so my girlfriend and I were treated
to a
"private concert" a.k.a. soundcheck the afternoon of the show. We were
also
promised free dinner at a local restaurant/bar in between soundcheck
and the
actual show, but apparently their definition of free dinner is one
beer and
chicken wings, so we passed. Anyway, us and the other 20 or so contest
winners sat in the front row of the darkened Saddledome and watched
as the
band members made their way onstage, one by one. Gord Downie was wearing
a
backpack, all-black outfit and toque. We got to hear a complete Lake
Fever,
Chagrin Falls and The Rules, plus a partial Bobcaygeon. Gord sang the
first
verse, then stopped until picking up at "Drove back to town this morning..."
and ending at "Aryan twang." There was also a lot of jamming, of course,
with the openings to Tiger The Lion, Music@Work and Fireworks being
played
at various times. Afterwards, to our joy, Gord Downie and Paul Langlois
came
down to sign autographs and take pictures. I had pictures taken with
both,
plus Gord signed our tickets, but I still have no idea what he wrote
on
them. If anyone can help decipher them, let me know. They were both
super
nice and made sure everyone got what they wanted. I asked Gord if they
could
play Long Time Running (favourite song of my girlfriend, who came all
the
way from Kentucky for the show) and he said he'd "take it under advisement."
I also requested it during the canoe.ca chat a few weeks back, so it
was
pretty depressing when the night ended with no Long Time. Even worse,
I come
home, read a copy of the Calgary setlist online and there it is, Long
Time
Running listed as the second encore song! They wound up playing So
Hard Done
By in its place. Overall, it was a great show, but the setlist did
disappoint me a bit. I also wanted to hear Scared and Something On
(yes, I
realize they've played it to death since Phantom Power, but I still
love
it), but I guess you can't have everything. The first set was awesome,
no
complaints. I do think things tailed off a bit towards the end of the
second
set, though. Blow At High Dough, played early in the second set, definitely
got the best reaction of the night, just awesome. They never really
re-captured that energy again, though. Middle-of-the-road stuff like
Emperor
Penguin, Daredevil, Don't Wake Daddy and Chagrin Falls (which I was
hearing
for the second time that night) just didn't keep the momentum going
after a
great opening set with stuff like Courage, Looking For a Place To Happen,
Fireworks, Ahead By a Century, Bobcaygeon, Nautical Disaster and Music@Work,
and then Wheat Kings, Boots or Hearts and Blow early in the second
set. New
Orleans Is Sinking didn't really get much of a reaction, to my surprise,
perhaps because it was a very different-sounding version. I don't know
if
I'd say uninspired, but definitely much mellower. Little Bones was
well-received as the closer, but didn't come near Blow in either intensity
or reaction. The stand-outs were definitely Blow, followed by a beautiful
ABAC (great sing-along), Boots, Music@Work and Wheat Kings, as well
as stuff
you can never go wrong with like Fireworks, Bobcaygeon and Nautical.
Again,
it was a great time, but the setlist did disappoint somewhat. I mean,
if
this is our last chance to hear older stuff like Long Time, Boots and
Opiated for several more years (maybe forever, who knows?), I'd like
to see
those songs played in every city, more or less, with the less obscure
stuff
varied from show to show. For a tour being centred around the idea
of
playing stuff that hasn't been played in years, look at how much of
the set
was from their last two albums or older stuff that still gets played
all the
time:
Music@Work (9) - Tiger The Lion, Putting Down, The Completist, Music@Work,
Train Overnight, Lake Fever, Stay, Freak Turbulence
Phantom Power (5) - Fireworks, Bobcaygeon, Emperor Penguin, Poets, Chagrin
Falls
Still Frequently Played (13) - Courage, Gift Shop, Springtime In Vienna,
ABAC, Greasy Jungle, Nautical Disaster, Wheat Kings, Daredevil, Poets,
Flamenco, Meridian, NOIS, Little Bones
That leaves only Looking, Titanic Terrarium, Boots and So Hard Done
By as
the rare stuff on that night. Still, I'll take it, and meeting Gord
and Paul
is something I'll never forget.