Sam Roberts Band with Brandon Wolfe Scott @ Commodore -- February 24, 2024

February 25, 2024 by Kirk Hamilton in live shows, Show Review

With their new album out a few months ago, Sam Roberts Band hit the road for The Adventures of Ben Blank Tour. Their Vancouver stop was a return to the Commodore Ballroom for a pair of shows.

Opening the evening was Brandon Wolfe Scott, the Vancouver singer performing some of his solo material. He hit the stage with his backing band and launched into “In Stride” off last year’s EP Slow Transmission, treating the gathering crowd to his chill, throwback vibes.
He ‘got his Bob Dylan on’ by pulling out the harmonica for “Fade Out”, and his soft voice lilted over the crowd on the dreamy “Burden on your Shoulder”, before finishing off his short opening set with “Something Real”.
Whether it’s solo or with his band, Yukon Blonde, it’s always a treat to see Scott play, and he was a great pick for starting out the night.

It wasn’t long before the lights dimmed and the screen behind the stage filled with the Ben Blank album art, as Sam Roberts Band took the stage, starting off with a bang. First my fave off the new album “Afterlife”, then “With A Bullet”, and getting everyone to dance with “Them Kids”.

Reminding us of not only the band’s depth, but also longevity, they hit songs from all over their career, from classics like “Where Have All the Good People Gone?” which had the sold out room joining in, to the warm “Picture of Love”, the first single off the new album.

The set ebbed and flowed, not only musically, but also thematically. On a heartfelt “Cascades”, Sam opined “Ooh I need you, Baby in the worst way”, only to follow that up by spitting out “And if this is true then I don't need you, I don't need anyone” on “Metal Skin”.

Other highlights – and more singing along – included “Hard Road”, which exploded into the frenetic “Dead End”, and the three-song-punch that capped off the set, “Bridge to Nowhere”, “Love At the End of the World”, and the early hit, “Don't Walk Away Eileen”.

But of course, they were back for more, proving that “We're All in This Together” before Roberts put his guitar aside to dance around the stage and lead the crowd in singing with “Brother Down”. Finally, they wrapped up with possibly my favourite Sam Roberts song (and one which I wasn’t even sure they were going to play), the 8+ minute psychedelic journey of “Mind Flood”, with wailing guitars, intense keys, and drumming that thumped into your very core, the band going all out for a satisfying ending.

It’s been a minute since I’ve seen Sam Roberts Band play live (and even longer since a non-festival show), And after two hours of rock & roll, with the crowd in the palm of their collective hands the entire time, and hit after hit, this night was a great reminder of just how strong the band is live.

Sam Roberts Band setlist
Afterlife
With a Bullet
Them Kids
Bad Country
Where Have All the Good People Gone?
I Like the Way You Talk About the Future
Projection
Take Me Away
Let It In
Picture Of Love
Cascades
Metal Skin
Hard Road
Dead End
Spellbound
Bridge to Nowhere
Love At the End of the World
Don't Walk Away Eileen
(encore)
We're All in This Together
Everybody Needs Love
Brother Down
Mind Flood

Brandon Wolfe Scott setlist
In Stride
Our Back Garden
Fade Out
Way Way Down
Slow Transmission
Burden On Your Shoulders
Something Real

Aidan Knight with Brandon Wolfe Scott @ Fox Cabaret -- September 21, 2022

September 22, 2022 by Kirk Hamilton in live shows

It’s been six long years since Aidan Knight was last in Vancouver for a show, but luckily that changed last night at the Fox Cabaret. A de facto album release party for his 2020 self-titled release, Knight had longtime friend, Yukon Blonde’s Brandon Wolfe Scott along with him. The two shared the same band all evening; Graham Jones on drums and Jackson Gardner on bass, with Scott and Knight trading off leads for their respective sets.

Brandon Wolfe Scott was up first, playing from his own 2020 EP, Burden on Your Shoulders.
His folk-tinged songs drifted through a growing crowd of attentive listeners, with highlights included “Summer on Fire”, inspired by the effects of climate change on BC; his latest single “Fade Out”; and an as-yet unreleased song (possibly called “Take it in Stride”?) which I’m definitely gonna keep an ear out for when it comes out.

After a break and “costume change”, Aidan Knight returned with the band, started with the opening track of his self-titled, “Julia in the Garden”.
From there, Knight played primarily off the new album, including the victorious “Veni Vidi Vici”, the melancholic “Mary Turns the Pillow” and “Renovations”, with a simmering intensity that also saw Brandon pull out an omnichord. The only one not from the new release was my favourite off his previous album Each Other, “What Light (Never Goes Dim)” a slow-burner that builds to a grand finish.
Throughout the show, Knight joked with the crowd between songs, asking if anyone had questions, or rhetorically asking if we were ready for another sad song (answer: yes), and for the most part, the crowd hung on every work he sang, with barely a noise during the songs.
After about an hour, he ended off the main set with “Rolodex”, but Aidan and Brandon almost immediately returned for the encore, each playing a song on their own before getting the rest of the band back for an incredibly fun singalong to a cover of The Wallflowers’ “One Headlight”.

I would probably rank Aidan among my favourite songwriters, and it was great to see him back after so long. Especially at a venue like the Fox, and especially with support like Brandon Wolfe Scott. Hopefully we won’t have to wait that long before the next one.

Aidan Knight setlist
Julia in the Garden
La La
Sixteen Stares
Veni Vidi Vici
What Light (Never Goes Dim)
Mary Turns the Pillow
Renovations
Houston TX
Rolodex
[encore]
Angel Dream [Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers cover]
St Kierans
One Headlight [The Wallflowers cover]