Steamy as a sauna, L’Escogriffe welcomed energetic musicians and an audience that embraced all kinds of dancing last night. Toronto’s Maylee Todd and Hooded Fang made Montreal the last stop of their summer tour together. Beginning the night with a full venue, Hooded Fang charmed us with their pop music, orchestrated with horns and equip with gentle harmonies. After their first song, they urged their audience, “Come Closer!” The consistent pace of the drumming encouraged dancing amongst the audience. As a dace party ensued, we learnt that despite some bad luck with animals earlier that day (a bird relieving itself over the bass player and food-poisoning-by-mussels experienced by the lead singer), Hooded Fang was in good spirits. Fans of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros would be fond of Hooded Fang’s harmonies. Fans of Stars would enjoy Lorna (main female vocalist of Hooded Fang)’s soft voice. Hooded Fang makes pleasant and catchy music for any mood. The reptilian monster-like figures employed as the band’s graphics nicely juxtapose the sweet nature of their music.
Another creature could be seen in the venue-a plush lion’s head. Boasting a fluffy mane, this lion’s head is usually found worn by Maylee Todd in promotional photos, but last night this lion’s head damped the sound of the drum. Being much to warm for any costume, Maylee instead delivered her majestic performance barefoot. She claimed to be tired at the beginning of her performance, but I’m not sure if I believed her. Sharing boundless energy, Maylee began her set with her harp before moving to the guitar and later dancing with her vibraslap. Hooded Fang horn players Lane and Julia accompanied Maylee for the second half of her set. Her music is a fusion of Bossa-jazz and funk. Delivered with confidence and charm, Maylee’s jazz infused music makes us feel as though she has taste and style beyond her years. The freedom of her spirit is implicit in the title of her debut album Choose Your Own Adventure. As the end of the evening approached, Maylee called for a good ol’ “soul train”, whereby two lines formed and the individuals at either end met to groove back down the line aside one another as Maylee acted as the MC. Sad to see the evening reach its end, we all breached the thick air of the venue towards the refreshing feeling of the cool air that met our bodies outside. For these musicians, dancing in this humidity is worth it.
Hooded Fang: http://www.myspace.com/hoodedfang
Maylee Todd: http://www.myspace.com/mayleetodd
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros: http://www.myspace.com/edwardsharpe
Stars: http://www.myspace.com/stars
Hey Kali, just checked out Hooded Fang. I think the drummer's voice the lead singer from Franz Ferdinad kinda.
ReplyDelete