Sebadoh + Raising the Fawn

Sebadoh + Raising the Fawn


Sebadoh

Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve never felt the urge to yell out a request during a concert. I always figured that the musicians on stage could play whatever they felt fit the mood of the night. An entrance fee should allow someone to witness an act’s creations unfold, not tell them when to play them. Listening to the crowd at the Underground during Sebadoh’s recent stopover in Hamilton left me wishing that a few select individuals felt the same. During every break the band took a dozen drunken cries for songs cut through the murmur of the mid-twenty and thirty year olds gathered. I guess this could be expected at any type of reunion show, but at this specific concert they just didn’t make sense. Dubbed “Jason and Lou: Turbo Acoustic,” the twelve date jaunt was set up by Sebadoh front men Lou Barlow and Jason Loewenstein to rehash some of their lo-fi classics for fans across North America. It was decided that basic percussion would be pre-recorded before leaving on tour and played in the background to support the duo. As a result of this, the set had to be played in a specific order so that the percussion for each track would match up with the proper song. This was evident to everyone watching the show. The band joked about it on several occasions and clearly hit start and stop on the drum machine at the start and end of each number. Common sense would dictate that this would make it somewhat difficult to change the set, but it didn’t stop people from loudly voicing their requests at every given opportunity. Barlow and Loewenstein were good-natured throughout the night and merely laughed off the alcohol-induced cries. Loewenstein commented on how great it was to be playing in front of such a rowdy group, and only asked the crowd “to chill out for a minute” before Barlow began playing a beautiful version of “Love is Stronger” from 1999’s The Sebadoh. The show started simply enough with Loewenstein walking up to his mic and saying “Howdy. Thanks for coming.” Although he didn’t need any help doing so, he quickly got the 200 people in attendance on his side by turning over his bass and revealing a Canadian sticker that was attached to the back. The two concentrated on older material early on, performing such gems as “I Can’t See”, “Good Things”, and “I Believe in Fate” much to the delight of those gathered in the hip, spacious venue. Barlow strummed away on an acoustic guitar while Loewenstein bopped around on stage and plucked away on his electric bass. The laid back attitude of the performers gave the show a very loose feel. They paused between each song to speak with the audience and prep for the next number. Each song was introduced by Barlow’s pre-recorded voice saying the name of the next song on the drum machine before the instrumentation began. The night featured a great mix from all of the group’s efforts with a lot of focus placed on Freed Weed and Bakesale. This seemed to sit well with the crowd, who spent the duration of the two-hour show nodding and singing along to the indie rock anthems that helped define their disenchanted teenage years and misguided twenties. Barlow and Loewenstein’s strong showing and amazing interaction made it seem as if they’d never stopped playing with one another. The night provided a healthy dose of nostalgia and reminded everyone why Sebadoh was such a vital part of the ’90s indie rock scene. Although the two have no plans of recording together anytime soon, one can only hope that this group of reunion dates will help them re-consider this option. Opening up the show was Toronto’s Raising the Fawn. The trio turned in tight thirty-minute performance, which began with “Into Ashes White” from last year’s critically lauded By the Warmth of Your Flame. After an unscheduled and unwanted two-year hiatus, the band seemed to be happy to be playing live again. This, coupled with the fact that they had just completed a tour of Western Canada, saw the group at the top of their game as they played selections from all three of their releases. The strongest material of the night came from this year’s brilliant The North Sea. Guitarist John Crossingham’s awesome vocals filled the room on sonic adventures such as “July 23rd”and “ETA” while his band mates concentrated on laying down the goose-bump enticing instrumentation that accompanied each piece.