LIGHTS Proves Breakout-Ready

Not even a snowstorm could prevent hundreds of young girls in headbands from heading to Toronto's Phoenix Concert Theatre to check out one of Canada's fastest rising new talents: LIGHTS.

Sweet Thing were the perfect opener for the pint-sized pop star. Their funk-infused pop performance came complete with "da-da-da" sing-alongs, audience clap-alongs and high doses of tambourine shakes. They sounded almost as tight as their pants, and came across a lot more solid than when I saw them perform at Edgefest last summer. Their energy and enthusiasm were well-received by the hoard of young girls up front, and they were successful in pumping up the crowd.

The audience was more than just squealing girls, though. The venue was packed with a crowd split almost equally between males and females, and both young fans and legal age drinkers, which proved LIGHTS has the diversity needed to stay relevant.

When LIGHTS hit the stage, the kind of excited anarchy unfolded which would have led you to think it was the Jonas Brothers onstage instead. LIGHTS puts on a big show for a little lady. Though the set started with some technical difficulties with her beloved keytar, Russell, she remained composed and enthusiastic without once looking worried.

LIGHTS was joined on stage by drummer Maurie Kaufmann and keyboardist Adam Weaver. She played a handful of solid new tracks along with simple synth-pop hits like "February Air," the ubiquitous song from that Old Navy commercial campaign.

Watching LIGHTS live is almost like hanging out with your best friend. Her between-song banter is friendly and comfortable. It feels like she's performing with you rather than talking to you. LIGHTS threw paper airplanes with "secret notes" on them into the audience and giddily accepted drawings of herself in exchange. It was a fun performance on par with her happy music.

LIGHTS played a great cover of Phil Collins' "In The Air Tonight" and an acoustic version of "February Air "during the encore. That was the only time she played guitar all night.

Undeniably big things have happened in LIGHTS' world since I first saw her perform a year ago at Toronto's tiny Rivoli. She's in the midst of touring North America, gearing up for her first U.K. tour in April, and received a new artist of the year Juno Award nomination.

It's easy to draw similarities between LIGHTS and Canadian superstar Avril Lavigne, even though their styles are entirely different. While LIGHTS prefers sweetness to pretension, it seems colourful T-shirts and neon headbands have replaced white wife beaters and neckties. This show's calibre was a good indication that LIGHTS is on the verge of becoming Canada's next big pop star.


Check out our photos from the show here.