Last night Hammer and I took a drive down one of Vancouver's most active live-music venues, The Railway Club. On the bill for the night was The Stolen Organ Family Band, Earthbound George, Amusia, and The Niche. Due to other work earlier in the night, we could only catch the last two acts, we apologize!
Upon entering the club, Amusia had just finished setting up, and launched into their first song of the set. (Great timing I'd say!) The first thing I noticed was their overall sound. It was very chill, though at the same time very dance-able. The whole band seemed to be having a blast on stage in their own ways. I found the vocals to be very marketable sounding - meaning he had great pitch and tone, and knew how to deliver his lines clearly and passionately. You could tell there was a lot of heart behind the lyrics. The bass riffs were fat and you could really hear the runs pounding through the speakers. It's all too ofter we'll go to shows, or listen to an album, and you can't distinctly hear the bass. Amusia really knew how to deliver though. The guitar riffs simply kicked ass. They were tight, and were leveled perfectly with the rest of the band. Though we would have liked to hear the distortion channel a little louder than the clean one. It lacked a little bit of a punch due to just volume. The small use of spacey synths added a really cool electronic vibe to some of their tunes. There was one instrument that really stood out to me though, and that would be the drums! Whether it was the tone of the kit, the way it was mic'd, or just the sheer talent of the drummer - they sounded amazing. The kick and snare really stood out, which was absolutely perfect for their Rock sound.
Over all, great show, and would love to check them out again sometime. They'll be playing The Cellar in downtown Vancouver (on the Granville strip) on February 10th, where they're releasing their brand new full album. Go like their Facebook page for more info, tunes, and upcoming gigs!
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Amusia/56610853079
Gabriel Savage (lead singer) from The Niche, was the one to invite us out the to the show Friday night, and man did they ever know how to put on one! These guys (and gal!) knew how to rock the stage. The performance alone was very dynamic and entertaining, and the music was catchy and fun. There were definitely a lot of people up on the dance floor grooving to their Rock, meets Bluesy-Jazz-almost Latin Funk style that they like to call "Sonic Rock." In the beginning of the set there were some guitar troubles, though once switched out for a second guitar - Ryley Kirkpatrick (Lead/Rhythm Guitar) jumped into some intricate riffing, followed by some smooth rhythm playing. He certainly made it look like he was having the time of his life on stage! The bass was nice and thick, though we would have liked to see Chris Seversen move around a little more to add to the overall stage presence of the band. The drums were hard hitting, and very pleasing on the ears at the same time. You could tell drummer Mario Beer (wicked last name!) has some talent! During a song he jumped into the crowd, cowbell in hand, and commenced playing it before passing it off to an audience member for the remainder of the song. We love to see bands break the fourth wall and react with, and jump into the crowd. It's a fun a way to really connect to your fans. Kaylar Chan filled out the rest of the sound with some interestingly placed keys and sax. She really added a neat effect to the overall sound. A well placed sax can make almost anything sound good, or better if already good! And last, but certainly not least, was Gabriel Savage's vocals. This guy really knows how to move on stage, while still carrying out sick melodies and keeping on pitch for most of the show. The thing I love most about this genre of music is that it's meant not to sound perfect.
If I had to sum this performance up in one simple sentence, it would be that The Niche sounded perfectly imperfect. I'd go see them again in a heartbeat! To check out more on these guys, and keep up to date with new tunes and shows, check out their Facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/#!/TheNicheBand
Until next time!
Cheers!
Roxy
