So you're browsing the interweb, thinking of taking in three stellar Canadian acts in one weekend. Don't think. Do.
That was my reasoning when I heard that Mother Mother, Hollerado and Tokyo Police Club would be performing at this year's, world famous, Calgary Stampede grounds. Sure it's a three hour drive, and I've seen the acts before. But for only $15 per day, and the chance to see 3 of my top favourite bands, it wasn't something I was willing to just let pass.
The Stampede, for those of you who aren't sure what I'm talking about, is a 10 day festival that includes fair grounds + rides, a rodeo, huge concerts (off-grounds) including Katy Perry, NKOTBSB, and Kenny Chesney, and on-grounds shows such as the ones I went to. The Stampede is a huge festival in Calgary, and I've heard one of the largest in North America. Surprising that even though we live so close I'd never been before, but it was definitely worth the trip.
About the musical side of the weekend:
-My jaw very literally dropped when I saw the size of the "Coca-Cola Stage" where the bands would be performing. It wasn't that much bigger than a bar stage, such as The Starlite Room that they have here in Edmonton. The "floor" was incredibly small too. I started to think, maybe there wouldn't be so many people (and was soon proven wrong). If they want to continue hosting local acts, with large followings, such as the ones they had this year, they NEED to increase their venue size. Not only to get a larger audience but...
-I was crushed. Not because I didn't get up close and personal with Dave Monks of TPC (which of course was still a blow), but literally, the moshing that went on was worse or comparable to some of the biggest shows I've attended. This is through no fault of the venue (except for the small size, but I'm sure the crowd would've done the same just on a larger scale). Saturday night, when The Dudes/Mother Mother performed was the much worse night out of the two. There were lots of times during the sets that the bands had to ask the audience to calm down and "take care of each other out there". Microphones were even cut during the Dudes set to instill some crowd control. It didn't help. There were 3 times during the night when 5 police officers had to wade through the crowd to drag out some select individuals... The venue handled the crowd well, but could've handled it so much better. I think the majority was due to the fact that it was a Saturday night and the drinks were plenty to be had. (Sidenote: Bag check was set up outside the gates but I never got searched either day...There's an endless list of drugs/alcohol I could've brought in). Interested in a laugh? I temporarily lost my shoe due to the moshing. Don't panic though, after a few minutes of barefooting it balance was resorted to the world.
- I won't say much about the bands except that they all KILLED IT. I hold back from using the term, but there's no other way to describe it. Mother Mother played their set as flawlessly as they did when they played the EEC. Hollerado had their patented hot sauce in stock, and even gave a free PSA about the dangers of syphilis (good music and a good message for teens...what more could you want in a beer-swilling, drum-kit jumping bunch of role models. Seriously these guys are hilarious, their live show is worth it just to see them banter with each other and the audience.) TPC started their set during the pouring rain. It really soaked every bone in your body, but besides finding it hard to see through the rain, I forgot it was even there. As energetic and fluid as they've ever been. Again the only downside to the Mother Mother and TPC sets were the crowd. There were tons of crowd surfers during TPC and it was tough for the security to even keep up, especially when the heavens have decided to make the area into a waterfall; it definitely distracted from the music, for me, and I'm sure worse for others.
- All bands were at the merch booth after each of their sets for autographs. But since I had to get back to ye olde office early I couldn't wait in line.
- If you were on the grounds this weekend you might have seen some of the band! Hollerado drummer, Jake Boyd was temporarily missing just minutes before their set, and the entirety of TPC roamed the grounds in between soundcheck and their set.
All in all, it was a great weekend full of good times. And now for the inevitable sports analogy that I've avoided during all these posts...Calgary, you've defs stepped up to the plate when it comes to booking great acts, but you've got to improve on your stage if you want to improve your game!
