On the Road Again
Live Reviews:

NORTH BY NORTHEAST 1999
Featuring: Possum
June 10, 1999
Barcode, Toronto, Ontario

The five members of Possum — each of them a gifted songwriter and unique singer in his own right — boast set of indie CanRock credentials that are quite unparalleled in this country. Slide guitarist, main singer and nominal "frontman" Gord Cumming led The Lawn to ragged glory in the late '80s, and The Woods Are Full Of Cuckoos before them; his bandmate from those bands, bassist Richard Gregory, is one of the most melodic players in Toronto; non-slide guitarists Fred Robinson and Danny Preszcator fuelled the punk-garage fire that was UIC; and drummer Dave Clarke provided the always-swingin' beat for everything that The Rheostatics played.

Possum not only do live up to the pedigree, but they consistently melt such nostalgic wax by surpassing all expectations. Despite a rather harsh mix on Cummings' sweet yowl of a voice (hey, sometimes it's about emotional accuracy, not technical shit), his songs sigh and yearn with the best of 'em, especially live. "The Telephone Song," in particular, is a stunning piece of work, and a new song, tentatively called "Chlorine," offered powerful stuff as well.

Cummings is perhaps the most unique slide guitar player in Canada, playing in regular tuning (as opposed to the usual open tuning) with his characteristically heartfelt, deeply emotional sound. It's a rough yet majestic texture, but still bespeaks the everyman spirit from whence his songs flow. And it's so distinctive, you could recognize it from 90 miles away with a set of earmuffs on your head.

Robinson's songs are rock 'n' roll workouts that make their cogent lyrical points via some pretty wonky words. His songs never stray too far from the garage, but come from the beautifully twisted perspective of, say, an indie-rock David Byrne: How his world isn't what you think, how you might never settle down because you've let the days slip by unnoticed; and — in a punkier vein — how he don't care anymore. And he's not above using "la la la" as his chorus, which shows great judgement, I think.

Gregory's songs are more earthy and solid, rooted in those ineffable but everyday moments where you discover that you're sitting on the edge of some sort of perceptual breakthrough. They're sung in his rheumy, catchy voice, and they can't help but mesmerize.

Yup, they rock. Some of it sounds like punk, some like garage, some of it like country-rock, some like indie guitar stuff. But all of it ends up distinctively, unclassifiably Possum. They're perhaps the most original-sounding "rock" band you'll see in Toronto this year.

They have a new album out on DROG Records. It's the sort of timeless, singular rock 'n' roll that I know is going to be riding my personal wheel of steel well into the next century.