Here are my favorite shows of the year. Do you agree that these are my favorite shows of the year? If you think I have other favorite shows, feel free to comment!
Kate Tempest, Latitude, SXSW
Kate Tempest was the first act I saw at SXSW and was the best. It’s like Teemu Selanne’s rookie year, how do you top that? I have rarely seen anyone so new capture a room so completely within seconds of taking the stage. The energy of her band combined with the ferocity upon which she delivered her searing lyrics was almost too much to handle this early on at a festival. It was a short set and left everyone in the crowd in a daze. It was simply amazing.
Ghostface Killah and BadBadNotGood, Mohawk, SXSW
My other favorite show at SXSW consisted of Wu Tang legend Ghostface combining with Toronto music nerds BBNG to form a loose yet completely tight ode to both Ghostface, Wu Tang and hip hop in general. Bonus points to the guy who jumped up on stage and delivered the best fan singing/rapping experience I have seen as well.
Prince, May, The Sony Centre
It’s Prince. Want pancakes?
Belle & Sebastian, April?, Massey Hall
I can’t entirely place where this show lies among all the other B&S shows I saw, but this was the only one I got up on stage and danced to The Boy With The Arab Strap. Also, my friends were all on stage, we might as well have brought some bacon and eggs and had brunch there.
Ex-Hex, Pitchfork
They only played two songs during Pitchfork, but the more important thing was that everyone was caught in a massive thunderstorm in Chicago (which temporarily cancelled the festival) and no one died. Hence, it is a favorite.
Primal Scream, April or May, Danforth Music Hall
Thank god Primal Scream decided to barely play their new material and focused on their legendary catalog. From the rave inducing Swastiska Eyes to the gospel rock of Screamadelica, Bobby Gillespie had the crowd in the palm of his hands from beginning to end. When he asked the crowd at the end of the set if we were ready to testify, we dutifully responded. Moving on Up commenced and may be one of my favorite show moments of the year.
Embrace, Definitely May, Horseshoe Tavern
One of my favorite songs ever is Embrace’s The Good Will Out. I was literally freaking out that they wouldn’t play it because it wasn’t on many set-lists for the tour but thankfully when it became time to close the show, they played it and a mega singalong occurred. A bucket list song for sure.
Do you agree? Comment below
