(All photos by VA)
Broken Social Scene were one of my signature favourites of the ’00s. The Canadian collective made two of my very favourite albums of this century in 2002’s You Forgot It in People and Forgiveness Rock Record (#s 24 & 10 respectively on my 40 Best Albums of the Century (2000-2019) list).
As a BSS fan living in Ottawa from 1996-2016, I was spoiled from a live show perspective. While the collective is Toronto-based, there are occasional and members from Montreal and, for 4 of the 5 Ottawa shows I saw, they sported a 10+ person lineup, including satellite participants from Metric and Stars among others.
As a live band, they were always mind-blowing, full of energy and intensity. On a few occasions, they had a 3-piece brass section that was a particularly enjoyable addendum to their sound. They sounded extra-rich with horns.
This show at the London Music Hall was my first time seeing them since 2010. In the interim, they released Hug of Thunder which I was indifferent to.
We’re all a bit older, and the band’s intensity has mellowed to some degree, so the show had a bit of a different flavour. Maybe not laid back per se, but definitely more so than back in the day.
They were joined by one of the singers from Dwayne Gretzky (Carleigh Aikins, I believe) who delivered the female-fronted songs. Meanwhile, they are now touring with a two-man brass section much to my delight.
But my feeling was that this night was more “really good” vs the riveting, adrenaline-filled gigs of yore.
For me the highlight was the encore: the haunting “Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl,” the song that got me into BSS in 2002 that was initially sung by Metric’s Emily Haines.
Even if it didn’t have quite the fangs of their yesteryear sets, it was still good to see them again.
Gotta say though: I Love their brand new single, “Hey Amanda” and “Not Around Anymore.” Let’s hope the forthcoming album is just as good.
And as I go to write this, I’ve learned there’s going to be a great triple bill gig in October here in London with BSS, Metric, and Stars. I saw each of these bands a few times when I lived in Ottawa, so this will be cool to see them all together again.
I’ve blogged about seeing them in 2010 and I’ll eventually be writing and podcasting about all of the Broken Social Scene shows down the line in the mylifeinconcert.com series.
- Capital Music Hall, Ottawa, Ontario, Saturday December 6, 2003
- Ottawa Bluesfest, Second Stage, Festival Plaza, Ottawa, Ontario, Friday July 7, 2006
- Bronson Centre, Ottawa, Ontario, Thursday October 30, 2008
- Bluesfest in the Byward, York St. Stage / Kid Koala, Capital Music Hall, Ottawa, Ontario, Sunday July 12, 2009
- Bronson Centre, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Thursday December 16, 2010
NEXT SNAPSHOT: The Grapes of Wrath’s two main songwriters come to Aeolian Hall and deliver a KO show, playing some of their best-known songs and the stories behind them.
SNAPSHOTS no. 221. Kevin Kane & Tom Hooper from The Grapes of Wrath, Aeolian Hall, London, Ontario, Canada, October 16, 2025.
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