Dog Day Debut Album In Halifax

Reflections Cabaret

Halifax, NS

on May 1 2009

Shannon Webb-Campbell (CHARTattack)

05/04/2009 11:36am

An early show in Halifax is tough to pull off. As a city, we've grown accustomed to pre-drinking until midnight before hitting the town. But Dog Day's CD release show for Concentration at Reflections Cabaret had to go off before the venue turned into a dance club, so that was enough reason to tear us from our growlers of Propeller.

Halfway through the set of quintessential Halifax band The Got To Get Got — comprised of Mark Mullane (North Of America), Eleanor King (The Just Barelys), Brad Lahead (Tomcat Combat), Adam Hartling (Kestrals), Haley Thomas (The Orchid) and others — I made a mental note to side with Joel Plaskett. There are so many reasons to love this town: Dog Day being first and The Got To Get Got a close second.

The Got To Get Got, on the brink of releasing their Sahalee full-length debut, saw a group of dedicated listeners at their feet. Once the stereo cut in and Bikini Kill's "New Radio" blared through the speakers, we were transported to the early '90s and remained there once Dog Day took the stage.

Call it post-grunge, classic alternative or whatever. With apocalyptic themes, a somewhat lackadaisical stage presence, and well-worn jeans and T-shirts, Dog Day don't appear to care about being chic. It's not about indie hipdom, it's about music. In a time when anyone can decide to perform and call themselves musicians, Dog Day are unique.

The band ploughed through a slew of new material, including "Neighbour," "Saturday Night" and "Rome."

Dog Day's boy-to-girl ratio is two-to-two. Casey Spidle held down the rhythm section while keyboardist Crystal Thili added otherworldly qualities through the tips of her fingers. The binary of guitarist Seth Smith and bassist Nancy Urich's vocals mingled with the effects of a well-crafted duet without the cheesy he says/she says interplay. Urich's small frame says little about her powerful voice, as Concentration sees her on the mic for nearly every track. The two are married and are far more Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon than Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love.

Urich introduced the single "Happiness" for their dog Woofy, who "wrote the song" and "was supposed to be here." It's the most danceable, hypnotic track on the record.

"All of my songs are about the end of the world," offered Smith, which seemed about right aside from the seemingly romantic "You Won't See Me On Sunday," which notes his faithfulness and love.

The essence of Smith and Urich's romance seems obvious on stage, as they smash their guitars together in matrimony, only to politely thank the audience for coming out.

After a quick shot of Jagermeister to fuel the encore, the band left the stage and Reflections turned on the dance tunes so the scantily dressed lineup of people waiting on the street could come inside, having no idea what they just missed.