Meet You at the Show | Montreal Concert Listings and Reviews

M For Montreal: Day 3 (Night)

November 22, 2009 in Show Reviews

So here we are. Day 3; our final coverage of this year’s M for Montreal Festival. What a 3 days it has been. We’re all exhausted here at MYATS. Greg will most likely need a wheelchair for the next few weeks from all the standing. Alright maybe we’re being a tad dramatic but on to the show.

The 3rd day of the festival took place at Metropolis. When I walked into the place I remembered all the old concerts that took place there and remembered how much I love the place! You’ve got a huge space downstairs for plenty of fans, a bar of course and then you can always go upstairs to the balcony to get a better view and yes there was another bar up there as well. You could definitely feel the intensity and excitement as the crowd awaited the start of the show.

First up, Xavier Cafeine, the perfect band to start the show off with. People began to gather round the stage and pretty much stood all the way to the bar. Everyone began to rock out and chant as the energetic singer gave the audience a solid performance. It wasn’t very fast paced, but it was far from boring. In short, just the right sound to kick off the show.

After a short and quite odd video break Mistress Barbara took the stage. The crowd really went crazy for this Montreal DJ. After the totally different sound of Xavier Cafeine, I had to sort of adjust to this quite different sound, but once I did, I really got sucked into her music. Her electronic/house sound was unique and a refreshing take from most of the electronic or techno music out there. Every song was different, some with lyrics some without. Personally, I enjoyed her most when I heard her voice. Mistress Barbara herself was very lively, really getting into the music and dancing about. Of all six bands that played on this night, she probably stole the most hearts!

Next up, Melissa Auf Der Maur came up on stage. She had a more dramatic opening than the rest. The music began to play, the stage dark, only the figures of the band were visible. As the music began to pick up so did the light gradually revealing the seasoned 37 year old singer and bassist rocking out energetically to the sound of their music. It pretty much went on that way for her entire set. Throughout each song, she would walk around the stage playing her guitar and bobbing her head in unison with the rest of the band. It’s always nice to see the artists really get into their music. It always heightens their performance and the light show synchronized to their instruments didn’t hurt either. The curtains lowered again and so did the big screen set to play another short video.

Once the curtains raised again, there stood Malajube. The band of musicians formed right here in our hometown of Montreal wasted no time and began to play a set that blew most of us (including me) away. Their music was quite different than what we had heard so far on this night and let’s be honest, quite refreshing. Not to say that the other artists were bad in the least, there was just something about Julien Mineau and the gang that really made this a stand out performance.

This next band caught us by surprise. Champion et Ses G-Strings began their set with a slow and steady pace, building up gradually while the crowd went totally crazy for them. A few more seconds later their music blasted out and the entire band began to jump into the air, the crowd quickly followed. The rest of their set was no different, band and crowd all danced their hearts out until the last note was played.

Then a another video came on, one of the Toronto based, 2009 Polaris Music Prize winning band Fucked Up accepting an award along with a very large check (In size and money). The video ended, the screen raised and there were all 6 band members lead by Damian Abraham, A.K.A Father Damian/Pink Eyes, twirling his microphone in the air a few times before catching it and beginning to scream words I had no chance of understanding. I looked to the crowd and a large circle began to form and it hit me: mosh pit (It’s been awhile since I’ve seen one of these). I’d like to describe their performance with more detail but fortunately in this case, one is not necessary. I only need two words. Fucked. Up!

Yes in the end, M for Montreal was a big hit. Fun was had by all and we at Meet You At The Show are all just itching for all this to start over again next year.
I almost forgot! There is one more short performance that absolutely must be addressed. This performer goes by the name of Metropolis waitress. Why is this run of the mill waitress so special? Oh I’ll tell you why, this woman managed to walk from one side of the jumping crowd to another with a trey of drinks in her hand without spilling a thing! Best performance of the night hands down! Here are some photos from the night…