#thedanforth

Kids went down, and I rushed down to Toronto. The timing was perfect. Left at 7:45, and had enough gas to make it to a gas station near the venue. Free street parking...and now...time for a quick beer and the show. There was one problem...the Danforth doesn't take credit cards. 

But whatever. Who needs beer anyway? (I am joking of course). 

My friend Greg (fellow rock dad and retired musician) introduced me to Kurt Vile’s 2001 “Smoke Ring for My Halo.” That album led me to more of Vile’s records — one of which was the recent “Lotta Sea Lice” — a collaboration between him and Courtney Barnett. I really liked her sound, so I checked out her most recent release "Tell Me How You Really Feel."

It wasn't until the night before the show that I decided to buy a ticket through Stub Hub. 

One thing was sure from the moment she walked on stage until she walked off almost two hours later: she earned the audience's undivided attention. Very few cell phones. Almost no chatter. Just a captive audience who were there to hear some good, raw rock and roll. 

The show was divided into three acts. The first was her new album played from front to back. While she stayed true to the songs, the live versions were much more aggressive — which in my opinion did better justice to the songs. 

The second act was a carefully crafted journey through her career, starting with two songs from her first EP's (Re-released together in 2013 as "The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas") and moving onto songs from her debut full-length album "Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit."

At points, her guitar solos were reminiscent of Kurt Cobain's — emotional, raw and intense. There were many times where she would come close to smashing her guitar, but it was clear that suddenly realized it wasn't a good idea. 

The band walked off the stage at 10:40 and the crowd roared, begging for one more song. 

They came back to end the show with two more songs. Interestingly enough, Barnett's choice for encore songs was also chronological, starting with “Anonymous Club” and ending with fan-favourite "Pedestrian at Best."

There is no doubt that Courtney Barnett and company gave it their all — explaining what all the fuzz about this newer artist is all about. Rock & roll is not dead — in fact, it's alive and well within artists like Courtney Barnett. 

I've always said that the best musicians in rock don the perfect balance between technical virtue and "feel." Courtney has both. The raucous she brings through the raw intensity of her guitar playing combined with her cool "no-shits-given" vocals is absolutely delightful. At a time when the radio is plagued by garbage, artists like Courtney Barnett bring much-needed anger and hope to the music scene — the way the White Stripes and The Strokes did in the early 2000's and Nirvana did back in the early 1990's. 

UPDATE: On August 24, 2018, Courtney’s latest video for the song “Charity” was released. It was shot during her stay in Toronto and features footage from the two nights at The Danforth Music Hall.  

Setlist:

Hopefulessness

City Looks Pretty

Charity

Need a Little Time

Nameless, Faceless

I'm Not Your Mother, I'm Not Your Bitch

Crippling Self Doubt and a General Lack of Self Confidence

Help Your Self

Walkin' on Eggshells

Sunday Roast

Avant Gardener

Lance Jr

An Illustration of Loneliness (Sleepless in New York)

Small Poppies

Elevator Operator

Depreston

Kim's Caravan

History Eraser

Anonymous Club

Pedestrian at Best

UPDATE: On August 24, 2018, Courtney’s latest video for the song “Charity” was released. It was shot during her stay in Toronto and features footage from the two nights at The Danforth Music Hall.