Plants and Animals at the Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Nov 1 2012. Christine Redmond photo
Plants and Animals at the Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Nov 1 2012
– by Christine Redmond
Montreal-based indie-rock group Plants and Animals are the road again and graced the stage of the Commdore Ballroom, Thursday, Nov 1.
The band, composed of Warren Spicer (guitar and vocals), Matthew Woodley (drums and vocals), Nicolas Basque (guitar, bass, keyboards and vocals) and newcomer Eric Digras (bass), has been touring internationally since March with their third album The End of That. Wednesday night’s show was part of their second Canadian tour this year.
Plants and Animals at the Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Nov 1 2012. Christine Redmond photo
Despite the busy touring schedule, the rave reviews and a couple of award nominations (including the 2008 Polaris Music Prize and 2009 Juno Award) under their belt, the band were not able to fill the 1000-person venue. But, the sparse crowd that did show up were dedicated. Dedicated and a little high–in stereotypical BC fashion, joints were being lit left, right and centre and this combined with girls in long skirts and music that the band themselves describe as “post-classic rock” added to the hippie-esque feel of the night.
Although the release of The End of That was just earlier this year (Feb 28), the group played a mix of songs spanning their three albums. The began the show with a couple of earlier songs to get the audience pumped and then sprinkled their set with new material throughout the night. It seemed the fans hung on every word no matter which album they played from and, judging by the dancing and sing-a-longs, their new album isn’t so new anymore.
Plants and Animals even included a Van Morrison cover, which went down a treat. Through it all they didn’t say much (which I like in a band) and kept to the music. But, a bit more expression and showmanship could also go a long way.
More Plants and Animals photos:
