BASIA BULAT at the Mod Club, Friday, February 16. Rating: NNNN
The first thing that jumps out from the portrait on the cover of Basia Bulat’s Good Advice album is the striking richness of the colour palette. That radiance came across during the Toronto-born singer/songwriter’s 90-minute show at the Mod Club – and not just because she was sporting a gold-sequined cape and glowing blonde bob.
The brightness came through in her synth-accented pop-rock tunes and the foot-stomping energy her four-piece band and two background singers brought the performance. From opener Fool – with its windy country breeze of a melody – it was clear Bulat was at the top of her game. She sang a subsequent run of new songs with relaxed conviction, managing to project her dusky voice over the band’s big, propulsive rhythms despite sounding lower in the mix. Only when she paused to intro the “slow jam” Time could you tell she was a bit winded.
She frequently swapped out instruments, singing Let Me In with one hand on the keys and the other gripping a mic, and she alternated between auto harp, synthesizer, acoustic guitar and ukulele during a solo segment of folky ballads mid-way through the show. The band returned and gradually eased the energy level back up with the title track and songs off 2014’s darker Tall Tall Shadow album.
“I can’t believe I got away with making a fourth record,” she told the sold-out crowd toward the end. Four albums into her career, Bulat has the improvisational chops and a diverse enough repertoire to keep a show interesting.
kevinr@nowtoronto.com | @kevinritchie
