I thought I’d be upset when I started seeing nostalgia package tours geared towards people in my age bracket. (I was born in late ‘79, which I think is an Xennial?) But when this “Monsters of 00’s Canadian Indie Rock” tour was announced with Metric, Broken Social Scene and Stars, I didn’t feel old. I was stoked. So excited that I didn’t connect at first that it was Father’s Day, and a meltdown at the mini golf course thwarted my mission, and I missed Stars’ opening set. But I still made it on time for Broken Social Scene’s perfect dad rock set. Upon entering the venue, I noticed a LOT of entire families, dads leading the pack, and realized that I was at home with my fellow fathers.
My favorite thing about Broken Social Scene shows is that so many people come and go all night that it’s impossible to actually get a solid count of the number of people on stage. I *think* the total was 13? Or 78? 106? Nobody but the tour manager knows for sure. What I do know is that every one of those 765 musicians is vital. They compressed 25 years of triumphant, well-orchestrated indie pop into a clean hour, playing their first US “hit” “(7/4) Shoreline” early in the set. I will also note that material from their new record, including “Only The Good I Keep” and “The Call,” *felt* like classics even though they were only a few weeks old at the time.
Near the end of the set, Emily Haines and Jimmy Shaw from Metric came out for what is now BSS’ biggest song, “Anthems For The Seventeen Year Old Girl,” a song that has found new legs thanks to social media and young folks realizing it’s brilliant. They closed with “KC Accidental” and didn’t play “Lovers Spit,” and I hereby will never forgive that omission.
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Speaking of deep catalogs, Metric has hits on hits. That’s what I was reminded of tonight. It was a tight 90 minute set that felt like 30 minutes. And confident, too, playing a healthy dose of the recently released Romancing The Dive littered through songs that everyone born between 1975 and 1990 knows in their soul.
I’ve been going through a tough brain period and started tearing up during “Monster Hospital” of all songs… “I fought the war, but the war won’t stop for the love of God” is such a potent line. And it felt good hearing the intensely optimistic “Now Or Never” a few songs later.
This band has spent 25 years on the road, and you can tell how tight they are, both musically and emotionally. These four people love each other. And the love was spread when they brought out members of Stars and Broken Social Scene for a few songs, adding a surprising horn arrangement to “Synthetica,” some anxious acoustic guitar to “Gold Guns Girls” and a massive, exuberant choir to “Loyal.” The new arrangements were fun and added a special dynamic in the midst of the familiar.
Emily introduced “Gimme Sympathy” with a bit about the SF bands of the 60s that influenced them, which should’ve felt corny except it was so genuine and heartfelt. They closed with an encore of “Help I’m Alive” and the Scott Pilgrim classic “Black Sheep” before the sweaty and fulfilled mass of Gen Xers, Millennials, and their children made their way home on a glorious and cold SF summer night.
