Rain Can't Wash Edgefest Away

Molson Amphitheatre

Toronto, ON

on Jul 1 2006

Shannon Whibbs (CHARTattack)

07/04/2006 4:30pm

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Edgefest. The festival has gone through many permutations over the years, but in the end, it still serves as a great way of bringing music to the masses.

I don't visit the Amphitheatre often, so every time I come back it takes a little while to get used to the lay of the land. After wandering by the Chart booth a few times in Blair Witch Project-style confusion ("Haven't we walked by here before?"), my companion and I located our seats and The Next Big Thing Stage. Now all that remained was slapping on more sunscreen, shelling out for overpriced water, and waiting for the madness to begin.

The Next Big Thing Stage was an unremarkable little set-up conveniently located next to the main stage. The schedule was staggered enough that the smaller bands weren't drowned out by the big acts. As a result, I ping-ponged back and forth all day.

Dearly Beloved started early and cranked up the volume with their fast-paced, slightly glammy rock stylings. I think the sound would fly a lot better in a dark, sweaty rock club than on a bright, scorching hot afternoon on a tiny, crappy stage. The energy was good, but no one was really in the mood yet.

We headed back to the main stage for Evans Blue and quickly wished we hadn't. Didn't all the Limp Bizkit-wannabe bands die out a couple of years ago? The lead singer's voice was shrill, the sound was deafening and our earplugs made their first appearances. We wisely made a move to the bar for a much-needed beer.

Pedestrian delivered a short, sweet set of slow-burning songs that built to crashing climaxes. The sound was borderline indie, with an ethereal touch. Great stuff.

Wish I could have heard more, but it was time to run back over for Mobile. Mobile put on a solid live set, bringing the energy level without a light show to fill up the rest of the gigantic stage. "Out Of My Head" got a great crowd reaction and the tightness of the band's sound proved that overproduction isn't what gives them their catchy and excellent harmonies.

We ended up missing most of The Illuminati in favour of getting some food, but a quick run by the stage assured me that their redneck metal-rock is the same as it ever was.

Next up were Neverending White Lights. Frontman Daniel Victor assembled a good backing band for his epic rock project. Victor was able to corral a couple of his guest singers for the performance, resulting in cameos by Marco DeFelice (Supergarage), Daniel Greaves (The Watchmen) and some guy named Raine Maida.

The set also included a cover of David Bowie's "I'm Afraid Of Americans," which included Victor doing an eerily spot-on Bowie impression while unfurling a Canadian flag and playing on the patriotic fervour that was running high all day.

Then it was back to the second stage for one of my favourites, Victoria, B.C.'s Jets Overhead. They played a good set, though it all seemed a bit sleepy compared to Victor's rock opus. The harmonies were sweet and the trippy guitar work was soothing. Lots of people came to check them out, which is great, because they're one of the great new bands on the scene.

All too soon, it was time for Hot Hot Heat. Here is where the festival finally started to really rock. They have a great stage presence and lead singer Steve Bays did an excellent job of riding the fine line between motivating and antagonizing the audience to get off their asses.

As Hot Hot Heat left the stage, the cold, cold rain moved in, driving those of us in the open seats in search of shelter. There's not so much of the "let's get muddy" free-for-all festival feeling when you're in a concrete bunker like the Amphitheatre.

We ended up missing Die Mannequin as a result of huddling under an overhang to escape the downpour, taking care of calls of nature and planning a rain-free way to check out English piano-rockers Keane. Fortunately, the security staff seemed to cut us a little slack and let people stand in the big spaces between sections in order to take a bit of shelter from the rain.

We found a decent spot and soon enough, Keane took the stage for a beautiful set. They relied heavily on their new album — playing, among others, "Atlantic" and "Crystal Ball" — but made sure to keep in crowd-pleasers "Everybody's Changing" and "Bend And Break."

It was interesting to see nimble-fingered keyboardist Tim Rice-Oxley at work and, of course, the moon-faced Tom Chaplin and his soaring vocal style. Used to playing for large English festivals that could eat Edgefest for breakfast, Keane handled the crowd expertly, paving the way for the final main stage act of the night.

However, before that, it was back to the second stage for Toronto indie darlings Magneta Lane. By this point, the crowd was damp, well-liquored and prone to wearing skinny gold chains and badly drawn tattoos. But the Magneta girls did a solid job of keeping everyone enthralled with their biting songs and wild basslines.

Lexi Valentine has developed one mean, throaty vocal style and can scream with the best of them. Only two drunken yahoos had to be escorted away from the stage. At last it was time for the main event. By this time, my stamina was waning. I was wet, cold, slightly hungry and sick of navigating the crowds.

But there's something amazing about Our Lady Peace live. You don't even have to like them, but you can't knock the fact that they know how to put on a good show, especially in a festival capacity. Opening with the classic "Naveed," OLP proceeded to play a crowd-pleasing set that included "Innocent," "Superman's Dead" and "Is Anybody Home?" The lighting was superb and the sound was bombastic.

The crowd ate it all up and begged for more, which Maida and company were more than happy to give. It was a long day with extremes in weather, from scorching hot to wet chills, but the music was hot, the festival ran without a hitch, and what better way to spend Canada Day than down on the waterfront listening to rock music with a view of the Toronto skyline?