The Fur Ball – Divan Orange – Thursday, March 18th, 2010
I will admit that going into this show I didn’t consider myself a big bluegrass/country fan. When I think of country music the first thing that comes to mind is Garth Brooks and that band that won all those Grammy’s last year. To put it simply, last night’s show was nothing like I expected it would be.
Amy Lou Keeler of Halifax, Nova Scotia’s The Ash Cats would take the stage first. Unfortunately, the venue was still pretty empty for Keeler’s performance so only the early birds got to witness it. What most people missed was a laid back performance of banjo and acoustic guitar heavy country ballads. They started things off slow but by the end of the set they amped up the energy a little and even got a few people on their feet.
By the time Montreal’s Sonny Best Band took the stage the venue had filled up quite a bit and with the band’s opening track, “God Bless This Bar” the mood quickly changed. Lead singer Sonny Best did his best to get the Montreal crowd up and moving their feet. The band played mostly originals but also did a pretty cool cover of The Bee Gee’s classic, “To Love Somebody”. At this point Divan Orange was getting pretty full and exceptionally hot and I was almost hoping their set would finish just so I could go outside for a breath of fresh air (and oh was that fresh air sweet).
When I came back in I was actually really excited to see what Lake of Stew were all about as I have been hearing their name all over the place lately. I was even more excited when I saw 4 grizzly guys and two gals hop up onto the stage with only one mic right in the center. As I suspected the band gathered in a tight little bunch and would all sing as loudly as they could into that one mic while the now very full Divan Orange crowd would sing along to every word. Using instruments like accordion, banjo, mandolin, guitar, gut-tub bass (which was one of the oddest instruments I had ever seen) and the always appreciated kazoo, these guys showed wy they are one of Montreal’s buzziest new bands. They had a large contingency of people up front who were singing along loudly to each song and dancing their hearts out which only made the performance better.
While I was a little worried at the start of the night when I walked into Divan Orange and there was hardly anybody there, my fears waned as the night when on and by the time Lake of Stew took the stage it was clear that this night was a success. I urge everyone that went to this show along with those that didn’t to keep supporting Eleven Eleven Animal Rescue in any way you can. Find out more about how you can help by clicking here. – Greg Lozoff
Lake of Stew
Sonny Best Band
Amy Keeler
Photography by Greg Lozoff
