Sunday night shows can be tough – the crowd is winding down from the weekend, still recovering from last night’s hangover or this morning’s Bloody Marys, mentally preparing for the work week ahead. But this Sunday at the 9:30 Club, openers Wintersleep and main act Frightened Rabbit refused to acknowledge this reality and instead offered a night full of rock anthems and beautiful moments in between.
When I think about contemporary Canadian bands, beloved indie pop acts reigns supreme – The New Pornographers, Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene, Stars. But Halifax, Nova Scotia’s Wintersleep provide a welcome divergence from the norm with their beat-driven rock sound.
Wintersleep took to the stage promptly at 8pm on Sunday with little fanfare, launching straight into their first song to a half-filled crowd at the 9:30 Club. Dressed in jeans and un-tucked button downs, the five piece band looked like any group of guys hanging out a moderately hipster-filled party. As soon as they started, it was clear that their sound was an obvious match as an opener for Frightened Rabbit. Many of the audience members who arrived early enough to hear them were legitimate fans, and those that weren’t seemed surprised to catch an opening act they might actually look up after the show.
With five studio-length albums and a decade together under their belts, it wasn’t surprising how tight Wintersleep sounded live or how mature they are together on stage (I think here is where I note that they also won Canada’s Juno Award for New Group of the Year back in 2008). Most of their songs in their set were quick, two-to-four minute rock anthems with percussion-laden beats and strong guitar riffs. Their set list leaned heavily on 2007’s Welcome to the Night Sky as well as their most recent effort, 2012’s Ho Hum, easily keeping the crowd engaged with their up-tempo songs.
It wasn’t until the end of the set that I started to recognize why Wintersleep hasn’t yet broken out from opener to main act. Toward the end of the set, they played a few more diverse tracks – a waltz, songs infused with unexpected jams – that, while not bad, didn’t retain the same identity as their bigger, exciting, but ultimately more straightforward rock songs. It seems as if the band is trying too hard to break out of a certain mold without quite knowing where they want to go.
But ultimately, after a nearly-50 minute, powerful opening act, Wintersleep energized the crowd and exposed many there to a new act. I’m looking forward to seeing where Wintersleep heads next and hope they continue to pursue the inventiveness they show in the rock songs at which they excel, without veering too far into genres that just don’t work as well for them.
The contrast between the curiosity most of the audience showed toward Wintersleep and the fervent enthusiasm toward Frightened Rabbit was almost startling. After playing a sold out show at the Black Cat just six months earlier, Frightened Rabbit sold out the 9:30 Club well before this show—and looked just as surprised about it as anyone else.
After an all-audience sing-a-long during the second song, lead singer and guitarist Scott Hutchison looked around and remarked, “My, my I think it’s going to be a good night.”
Frightened Rabbit’s live show is fuller with a more pronounced post-punk sound than their studio recordings. With liberal use of percussion and heavy bass lines pervading, their often beautiful and complicated lyrics take a back seat to the music during their performance—though I admit the hundreds of people singing along to every song might disagree with me. Their Scottish roots are unmistakable, and not just because of their heavy accents—every few songs, a welcome hint of traditional Scottish music seeps through the beats.
This is a band that works hard on stage. Even after admitting to having a “bit of a hangover” after a 7am bus party, Hutchison assured the crowd, “You’re curing it very well.” Throughout the night, an extra roadie filled in on snare drum and tuned guitars in between grabbing extra water bottles and keep the band’s glasses of Scotch (what else?) full.
But the most memorable part of the night happened toward the end of the set. Hutchison announced that a good friend was attending his 25th live Frightened Rabbit show. The band had some trouble finding a song from the catalog to dedicate to a man, but assured his friend that this is “for you but definitely not about you.” The rest of the band exited the stage, leaving Hutchison alone with a guitar and a spotlight. He launched into a quiet, slow solo version of “Fuck This Place,” with the lyrics imploring, “Would you be good enough to take me home?”
Hutchison segued into “Poke” off of 2008’s The Midnight Organ Fight. Still simply strumming his guitar, Hutchison serenaded the audience with the song’s painful and entrancing break-up message.
The band slowly rejoined for the rest of the set as they brought the tempo back up to speed. The memory of Hutchison’s solo songs faded as the band encouraged the audience’s enthusiastic participation, and the set ended with the energetic, strong rock songs they began with. I’m just glad they gave us a glimpse into their slower side as well.
WINTERSLEEP
Photos: Richie Downs
