String Fling w/ Four on the Floor String Quartet @ Rio Theatre -- 12/13/12

Even if you don't know them by name, there's a good chance you've seen some members of the Four on the Floor String Quartet playing live. As a group or individually, they've been a part of the Vancouver music scene for a while, playing with local artists like Adaline, The Belle Game, Kyprios, The Matinee, and many others, as well as having members of the quartet taking place in every Peak Performance Project as a part of various backing bands.
But they've decided to step into the spotlight and put on the first (of what I hope is many) String Fling, which saw members Hannah Epperson, Michelle Faehrmann, Tony Kastelic and Dougal McLean inviting some local acts to the Rio Theatre to play some of their own songs, with string accompaniment. And as someone who has always had a soft spot for strings in music, I was definitely interested to see how they came together with some of Vancouver's finest.

The show was broken into two halves, with each the performers playing a few songs and a steady flow of music with Four on the Floor performing between acts, with songs from their members or spoken word poetry over top of some strings arrangements. They opened the show with a songs before being joined by the first performer of the night, Ali Milner. With her gorgeous voice and jazzy piano, the strings blended really well with upbeat songs like the catchy "Waiting" and the dynamic "Fly".

After a spoken word interlude, they showcased a couple of their own solo projects, first Dougal Bain McLean with a could laid back, singer-songwriter-type songs, followed by the looping violin and lovely voice of Hannah Epperson, joined by Ajay Bhattacharyya on a drum machine for the aptly named "We Will Host A Party".

Ajay stayed on stage, joined by his bandmate Amy Kirkpatrick as Data Romance was up next. There was a bit of technical difficulties before they started, but Hannah covered fairly smoothly and they soon launched into their dark and moody, synth-infused electronic vibes. They played a couple new songs, teasing a new album in February, but I think they meshed with the string quartet least well -- which isn't to say it was bad in the slightest, just a clash of styles. That is, until their last song which was a bit more low key with Amy's ethereal voice soaring with the strings to close out the first half of the show.

After a short break, the second half opened with a spoken word piece from the quartet before Dominique Fricot took the stage. He is definitely no stranger to playing with Four on the Floor -- they helped him land third place in this year's Peak Performance Project -- and so he meshed the best with the quartet of all the performers. The acerbically charming Fricot talked and joked with the crowd, taking advantage of their relaxed atmosphere to play a couple slower, quieter songs from his repertoire, including the title track to his recent EP If Baby Could Walk. 

The next interlude, featured another spoken word piece, this time it segueing into the quartet playing the epic Game of Thrones theme, which was as fantastic as it sounds.

Of all the acts of the night, I was most interested to see how Shaun Verreault's bluesy sound mixed with the strings, and he introduced his first song as one least likely to be backed by a string quartet; Wide Mouth Mason's "Love Not Loving You". Originally a raw, distorted blues-rock song, it was turned into an absolutely gorgeous and heartbreaking number that ended up being my favourite of the night. His next couple songs were from his own solo albums, both a little more suited for the strings accompaniment, giving his amazing guitar playing and powerful voice an extra kick.

After one last Four on the Floor interlude, The Gay Nineties hit the stage to close out the night with their energetic and infectious rock. The first song had guest vocals from the powerful Colleen Rennison of No Sinner, and their raw energy was enough to get people up and dancing at the front of the stage. They sounded pretty much exactly like themselves, but with the addition of strings, which wasn't a bad thing at all, and they were definitely a good choice in closing out the night.

The pacing of the show was fantastic, with it never dragging on or seeming long, and for the most part everything ran like clockwork. It was a great night of music with a fantastic premise, and at the end of the show, they hinted at already planning a second one, and I already can't wait to see who Four on the Floor will be collaborating with for another.

Rich Aucoin @ Biltmore -- 09/15/12

"When you give it all up, you get it back." Those are just some of the lyrics that can be heard chanted at Rich Aucoin's shows, and I can't think of a better way to describe them. Aucoin has been criss-crossing the country tirelessly since the release of his album We're All Dying To Live last year, and gaining the reputation of one of the best live shows you will see. He dropped by the Biltmore in Vancouver -- on his birthday no less -- to prove it.

Opening the night was Data Romance from Vancouver. The duo of Ajay Bhattacharyya on drum pads and Amy Kirkpatrick on keys and vocals creates a moody, synth-infused electronic vibe. Amy's voice is soft and ethereal, adding to the dark atmosphere of the songs. For almost the entire set they were content to just play, not saying much, but near the end Amy thanked us and wished Rich a happy birthday, before getting back to it. They were really tight, playing off each other really well, and had an interesting sound, with a lot of the set being a bit of a slower tempo, but they picked it up for the last couple, which were a lot more high energy and danceable, getting the lingering crowd up on the dance floor. It was a strong set from the pair, and I would definitely check them out again.

As soon as Data Romance wrapped up their set Rich Aucoin started to set up, but not on the stage -- he set up his table with his keys and drummers on either side in front of the stage, in the crowd. When they were done and ready to go, Rich give a brief explanation as to what was going to happen; he writes his songs to sync up to old movie clips, which would be projected behind him, and what was a movie without trailers? After a giant sing along to the 20th Century Fox fanfare, there were a couple funny clips, which lead into the "opening credits", a series of slides with fun "facts" about people from the audience. The excitement built until the music started with an explosion of confetti, and the pure joy and fun did not let up for the next hour.
Aucoin is an amazing performer with so much charisma. Very few others would be able to get nearly an entire venue down on one knee, or unravel a giant parachute -- the kind from when you were in elementary school -- and get everyone to play Popcorn and then dance under it. Rich even goes into the crowd frequently, making everyone a part of the show. You don't just watch a Rich Aucoin concert, you experience it.
And of course, the spectacle would be nothing without the songs. Incredibly catchy and high energy songs like "P:U:S:H", "Brian Wilson is A.L.I.V.E." and "Undead" had the crowd yelling along with the lyrics, helpfully up on the screen, and jumping up and down. The set came to an end with the bombastic "It" and Aucoin even crowd surfing and bringing everyone in for a giant cheer. And, as usual, Rich left up a slide with his actual phone number on it, telling people that if they texted him, he would send you a zip file of some of his music. (I did this the first time I saw him, and got his Public Publication EP)

It's hard to sum up a show like this in words, and I don't think I could even begin do it justice, but Rich Aucoin's live shows will leave you grinning for days afterwards. They are high energy, fun, life affirming, and just pure bliss. If I could watch him play every night, I would.