Two Hours Traffic – Petit Campus – Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Last night, Australia’s Dead Letter Chorus set foot in North America for the first time ever, right here in Montreal. Although their French skills needed a little bit of work, their sexy Aussie accents won over the hearts of every girl in the room. Lead singer Cameron Potts attempted to arouse the crowd with a couple jokes, but the deadbeat audience’s response was pitiful and he responded by calling us the (nicest) bunch of weirdos he’s ever met. Their set was heartfelt and honest, as they sang of death, sleep and airplane crashes. The charming Gabrielle Huber switched with Cameron to lead vocals from song to song, between verses, as well as when they sang together in perfect harmony. Their set was packed with dynamic variety, as well as incredible layers of guitar lines and groovy bass from the 5-stringer.

Although the audience was fairly reserved for the first couple of songs of Two Hours Traffic‘s set, clapping along to “I Did What I Could” drew them closer to the stage. In a matter of minutes, the entire crowd (which seemed to have tripled in size) began a dancing frenzy. Dance moves from both PEI and Australia seemed to have tagged along on the trip, as there were some rather interesting combinations rarely seen here in Montreal, from Pogo jumping, moonwalking, and moshing to square dancing, techtonic and spinning round in circles. Soon enough everyone was nice and sweaty, singing along and having a great time.

The band’s set was incredible tight, and the acoustics at Petit Campus were surprisingly impressive. The backing vocals were performed live perfectly, exactly as heard on record. Two Hours Traffic played a range of songs from all of their albums, and played their latest album, Polaris Prize nominated Territory almost in it’s entirety. After coming back onstage to play “Better Sorry Than Safe” for the encore, singer Liam Corcoran gave away their old mini-keyboard to a lucky fan in the front. The show couldn’t have gotten any better; two charming, talented bands, an enthusiastic audience and two amazing sets. Although the show ended fairly early, both bands stuck around at their merch tables to chat with the fans after the show which was a real treat. – Amelia Robitaille

Two Hours Traffic

Dead Letter Chorus

Photography by Amelia Robitaille

Two Hours Traffic Set List:

Territory
Drop Alcohol
Stolen Earrings
Wicked Side
Backseat Sweetheart
I Did What I Could
Happiness Burn
Sure Can Start
Heatseeker
Painted Halo
Heroes of the Sidewalk
Monster
Noisemaker
Lost Boys
Nighthawks
New Love Weightless

Encore 1: Better Sorry Than Safe
Encore 2: Stuck for the Summer

Tags: 2010, Amelia Robitaille, Australia, Dead Letter Chorus, March 24, Montreal, PEI, Petit Campus, Polaris Prize, Setlist, SXSW, Territory, Two Hours Traffic