LIVEONRELEASE opening for 30 Odd Six and the BACKSEAT DRIVERS at the Horseshoe, May 3. Tickets: $5. Attendance: 35. Rating: N Rating: N
thirty minutes after the sche- duled 9 pm start time of the LiveOnRelease Toronto debut and the Vancouver foursome were still holding out hope a crowd would appear. No such luck.
Eventually, they gave up waiting and ambled onstage in front of 38 people split between casually outfitted record company types and various friends of the group’s mentor, Bif Naked, and of mixer Peter Karroll, stationed behind the board.
Clearly underwhelmed by the turnout, singer Colette Trudeau mustered a half-smile, shouting, “How you guys doin’ tonight?” Silence. “Umm cool. This song’s called Get With It,” she announced while getting into a crouching position.
As drummer Leah Emmott, bassist Fox Herst and guitarist Brittin Karroll bounced into the tune, Trudeau ran through her carefully planned moves, punching the air, stepping forward, kicking back and gesturing at the ceiling, which caused a few people up front to try to see what she was pointing at.
The song’s completion was met with brief applause, then silence. Seconds elapsed that seemed like hours while Trudeau mulled over the choreography for Hardcore, reminding herself to flash the devil horn sign to accent the word “hardcore” in the chorus refrain. Got it.
Another lengthy lull and they delivered their one shot at a radio hit, I’m Afraid Of Britney Spears, without cracking a smile. They were so concerned with getting everything right — the steps, the chords, the beat — it didn’t occur to them that playing music with friends was meant to be fun. The whole scripted 40-minute exhibition was less like a show than an audition. They failed.
