Moist/The Cardigans/Treble Charger/Dayna Manning
By James Morrison
Leave it to the guys from Moist to rescue an otherwise-pleasant summer evening show (part of Moist's off-again summer tour) seemed like a dodgy operation. First, opener Dayna Manning took the stage half an hour earlier than the showtime printed tickets, and had the privilege of playing to mostly empty seats. treble charger fared better, with a contingent of teenage girls hooting for their idols, but their set still seemed lacklustre; while The Cardigans failed utterly to move the welling ranks to much more than the odd catcall, despite a meaty performance and the winsome presence of luscious vocalist Nina Persson. Clearly, the evening was Moist's for the taking, although even this small feat seemed beyond hope with the announcement that singer David Usher, injured several days previous in a stage-diving accident at a Quebec show, would have to perform while sitting on a stool. True enough, I've seen 2x4's that looked more limber than the usually-hyperkinetic dynamo who staggered onto the stage. But if Usher's body wasn't up to par, it didn't show in his voice, or in the flawless and energetic performances of the bandmates who gave their all to make up for Usher's infirmity. With a song list fairly evenly divided between the band's two albums (opener 'Tangerine', 'Silver', 'Ophelia', a crowd pleaser 'Push', 'Shotgun', closer 'The Shrieking Love'), along with a muscular, if overlong, cover of the Rolling Stones' 'Miss You', there was plenty of opportunity for everyone to shine, and so they did. Especially noteworthy were guitarist Mark Makoway, as solid as ever, who had a chance to step out from under Usher's shadow and became the show's visual focus, and keyboardist Kevin Young, who tolerated Usher's gently gibing and even subbed for the singer with his own journey into the mosh pit. Even playing' hurt, this is a band that can more than hold its own.
Back to
MoistCreature.
