LIVE: Alexisonfire Give Fans A Late Christmas Gift
Tuesday January 29, 2008 @ 02:30 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff

Alexisonfire's Chris Steele Photo by Jason McLoughlin

January 25, 2008
Sound Academy
Toronto, ON
By John Papamarko

"Fuck Mississauga" was the sentiment shouted by a boisterous fan "rehydrating" in the beer cage. It was a sentiment shared by many who attended Friday's Alexisonfire show at Sound Academy, a make-up for those fans unable to make the trek to Arrow Hall during a December snowstorm.

I walked in as openers The Arkells, whose blues rock jams have been compared to the Constantines, were ringing out their last notes of an early opening slot. That was a bummer, but I'll make sure to see them when they play the Chart CMW Showcase in March.

Thankfully, I did catch an inspired psych rock set from upstart band Quest For Fire, whose membership can boast stints with The Deadly Snakes and Cursed. They dealt with sound issues early on. The vocal mix was quite murky and, compounded by the dark mumble of lead singer Chad Ross, it made hearing lyrics impossible. But the kinks got ironed out and the band ended with the meandering '70s-style rocker "Strange Waves," which was the standout of their set.

Looking somewhat out of their element in a venue so large, they made the most of it and gained more and more audience approval as their set went on. Quest For Fire are truly a band that should be experienced in a dive bar, not the sterile cavern of Sound Academy.

Then, it was on to the headliners.

After a month of disappointment and waiting, it became evident that the crowd was hotly anticipating the boys from St. Catharines, Ontario. Chanting "Alexis" with fists raised, the crowd exploded the moment Dallas Green stepped on stage with his white vintage Gibson shimmering in the spotlight. He started banging out the opening chords of new single "Rough Hands" and was slowly joined onstage by his bandmates who then launched into a blistering hour-and-a-half set.

Without taking away from the rest of the band, I have to say that Green is a musical tour de force. His complex melodies and earnest vocals are equally as haunting in layered, heavy songs "Boiled Frogs" and "Mailbox Arson" as they are alone with an acoustic guitar in his City And Colour incarnation. It's almost a waste of a Canadian resource for Green to be in only two bands. I'd like to see him go side-project crazy like Spencer Krug.

The night's song choices leaned heavily towards their most recent album Crisis, but fan favourites "Charlie Sheen Vs. Henry Rollins" and "Get Fighted" elicited huge responses. During the latter, crazy-eyed, and crazy-bearded bassist Chris Steele leapt over the stage barricades into the third row of ecstatic fans, which came with some angry reactions from the security staff.

Security at the venue was a bit troubling. After a $5 million overhaul of both the look, sound and brand identity of what used to be The Docks, maybe it's also a good idea to hire security guards who don't assault 50-kilogram girls who lost their shoes. The victim seemed unhurt, and went right back to crowd-surfing, but I don't know how long Sound Academy can sustain itself as a venue that actively solicits all-ages shows when it doesn't let kids do what kids do at all-ages shows.

What the venue did have going for it was the band onstage. Watching Alexisonfire wrap up their set with a tender, stripped down rendition "Happiness By The Kilowatt" was a treat, and the subtle interweaving of "Soon Enough" by the Constantines was lost on most, but it made my night.

I had the luxury of seeing the first and last shows of Alexisonfire's Crisis tour. The former was an intense and enthralling show at The Reverb, and Friday night's show felt almost as intimate. Sound Academy isn't an ideal venue with its $15 parking, no discernable link to public transit and brutish security guards. But the sheer joy of those in attendance brought the walls a little closer, and the tightness of a well-oiled touring machine made the stage feel a little smaller and the walk back to civilization a little warmer.