4TheRcrd Mag.

Last time I saw Tegan and Sara it was nearly 2001 and they played in a tiny venue on Granville (if i remember correctly), to an audience of less than 50 people — they’ve certainly come a long way with a full house. The last time, also, the stranger standing in front of me was not taking my arm around her and was not putting on the moves this coyly, stroking her hair thrice every minute and gazing at me 74 times. Everyone was evidently in the mood, a compliment to the music, and the stranger whose name is forever lost in the songs. What I did and wanted to hear, however, is that T&S recorded their first album in their highschool studio — and I hand it to them for being so prolific at such an early age. Go girls! As for the show, you can gather, they put on a fabulous time. Not only were Tegan and Sara awesome (to which I’ll return later), but Northern State — their old friends from NYC of 7+ years — fabulously complimented them.

Northern State brought back memories of Kid Rock (another great event coming to Vancouver shortly), and Beastie Boys. They were a handful of girls just givin’er with their hip-hopper semi-rapper (I wouldn’t really call them a strictly Rap group) lyrics reminiscent of Maestro Fresh West when he was younger, brilliant, and ambitious. What I dug about NS was they complimented each other fabulously (with the positive exception of their bass player who kept her cool the entire show, very intriguing…). I loved how they shared the stage, how they inspired cheer, and the musicality they showed off. I detected some Cypress Hill references, although not as strictly through their rapping but through their hip-hop signature. I got to hand it down to these girls, they just released their third record (like, less than a month ago) and already they’re touring and promoting themselves, already on the road… great stamina. Their most recent album, “Can I Keep This Pen?” was put out August 28th, 2007, and shows an obvious trace of Wu Tang Clan, Yoko Ono, and definitely Beastie Boys. I give it to these girls for setting the stage for Tegan and Sara, in spite of the evident genre-difference between the two bands.

Now, as for Tegan and Sara, I’ve got nothing but love. Click for more…

These two beautiful twin-sisters, not to mention their third electric guitarist, drummer and keyboard player, were in top form — considering they already played an earlier show on the same day. Their performances were wonderfully together, and tight without appearing rehearsed — an effect from telling emotive yet comic stories to the delight of the audience. I would totally locate these two girls along an Indie-rock-slash-Indie-pop trajectory, albeit with the sweet folk signature in their slower songs and, no doubt, in their voice. I couldn’t help thinking of Joanna Newsom, Chromeo, Azure Ray, Ani Difranco, Blue States, Coco Rosie, Halou, Lali Puna, Lorna, Bows, Falcon Project, Death Cab for Cutie, among other favorites. The positive vibe of the crowd totally stoked the band, and T&S’s encore totally closed the show on a high note. Their Cranberries-Grunge inspired version of Rhianna’s “Umbrella” brought out the brittle emotive edge without sacrificing the dance-able core of the piece. These girls know how to rock! T&S have indeed come a long way since their time with Neil Young’s record label and now, evidently with Warner, marking their fifth solid album, I can’t wait what they’ll consolidate next.

PICTURE CREDIT: JarkTheSaint, from Beyond Robson